Inspired at a young age
Late at night, Chris Banning listened through the open louvers of his family’s home off Java Drive to the racers in the distance on Mulholland Drive. Of all of them, Charley Woit made the greatest impression. “The racers of Mulholland Drive drove close to my house as they made their pass thru “West”. I heard them almost every night that they were out there. One night, something was different. A mighty roar could be heard in the distance. It came closer and closer and got louder and louder. It was very loud and thunderous. And then it would diminish and be gone. After a few minutes, this would repeat itself again. This was the legendary Corvette [Charley Woit] going west and then returning back east. Who knows? I may have heard the very first time Charley drove his Vette on Mul [Mulholand]. Over the years I would experience this again and again and learned to look forward to it.”
Chris started driving Mulholland when he was 12 years old driving his moms 1966 Ford Mustang Fastback.
(Chris Banning’s 1973 Porsche 911S)
Chris eventually had his own 1973 Porsche 911S and found himself racing on Mulholland.
First encounter with ‘Crazy’ Charley
“One night in 1974, I was racing along Mul with my sidekick Bruce Kusada in my silver ’73 911S. I loved to drive by Grandstands and goad those folks out to race to improve my racing skills. As we passed Grandstands and slowed to look at the guys there, an old primer grey pickup [1951 GMC] passed me like I was standing still. His headlights were off so I could not see him coming. As he passed me in front of Grandstands to humiliate me, he turned his headlights back on. It was Charley! I had no idea who it was at this time or that it was the same guy I had heard late at night (while in bed) tearing up Mul in his uncorked racing Corvette. I pulled out all the stops and raced like never before. I could not believe I was being bested by an old Pickup. Bruce and I were in awe seeing this old truck sliding from the dirt on the right to the dirt on the left while straddling all of Mulholland. In the big left before lower Coldwater, we saw a Beer can fly out the window of the truck. Bruce and I just looked and thought, “What?” Beer can? I could no way pass this Truck. Too crazy of a driver. We got to European Straight. I gave the little 911 all she had, and we started to overtake the Pickup. Neck and neck we proceeded thru the straight. Charley was not going to let me in. I realized this was a race to the death and I was the one likely to die. At the end of the straight are three blind turns, left, right, and sharp left. The pickup had to slow slightly, and I got my chance to pass. Into the first sharp left the 911 lifted up on its right-hand wheels and almost flipped over. Barely made the next two turns due to speed. Bruce then slugged me in my right shoulder yelling, you almost killed me! After that I was on home turf and raced like the devil possessed me. I was able to gain some car-lengths in the sharp turns. At the bottom the S’ss I saw him entering the top of the S’ss. After the bottom blind turn, I shut off my headlights and disappeared up Java in the same manner Charlie had appeared.”
“When I hear that Mulholland Charley (and don’t forget HE IS the legend) was never beaten on Mulholland, even in his pickup, I just smile and remember that after that evening I realized that there was no way to compete with the best with only a 911S to bring to the table. Hence the reason for the Mulholland Carrera RSR. By the way, I thank the Lord that Charlie and I never raced our big racecars. It would have ended up with at least one fatality, and that would have been unacceptable for him or myself.”
(‘European Straight’ on Mulholland in the late 1970’s)
Building the Porsche, you see here
“Charley taught me a private lesson on Mulholland, so to speak. I learned valuable things that evening that I’ve used all my life. By appearing out of nowhere and passing with his headlights out, he taught me to do the same and be elusive. By illustrating his driving technique to me, it showed just how far you could “hang it out” without crashing. And by nearly losing to an old Pickup while I’m driving a very fast 911S, it showed that a very fast 911S isn’t enough by a long shot to be fastest on Mul. In a race against a setup 427 Vette with racing tires, a 911S would look like it’s in reverse at 60mph. He was almost the sole inspiration for me building my Porsche Racecar for Mulholland.”
Thanks to a letter of introduction from John Thomas (Bozzani Porsche/Audi parts manager), Chris was able to go to the Racewerks at the Porsche Factory in Stuttgart, Germany. He explained that he was building a car for a road with tight turns and short straightaways with lots of bumps and off camber sweeps. They provided him with a collection of manuals, parts list and information that he used to build the car you see here.
They include:
- Spare Parts Lists for 1970 thru 1972 911S
- Sport Technical Information for the 911S and 914/6
- Spare Parts List for 1974 RSR 3.0L competition type
- Information Catalog/Manual for Carrera RS 3.0L Straasenversion
- Sports Information- Carrera Racing Version FIA Regulations Group 4
- Information Regarding Porsche Vehicles Used for Sports Purposes 911 911L 911T 911S
- 1974 Carrera RSR Owner’s Manual
A full RSR suspension was installed to suck up all the bumps Mulholland has to offer. This includes double adjustable Koni’s that are adjustable for bounce and rebound with dials on the side of the shock, shock tower bracing was added front and back, oversize Porsche RSR torsion bars to increase spring rate to suck up potholes at speed, special spring plates set in solid Delrin bushings to prevent geometry changes while cornering, gusseted and magnafluxed trailing arms set in solid bushings, and oversized RSR anti-roll bars also in solid bushings.
This suspension combined with 9-inch and 11-inch Fuchs wheels from one of the original IROC Porsches and Goodyear Blue Streak racing tires makes for quite formidable handling.
The Porsche has 906 brakes with cross-drilled and vented rotors combined with alloy calipers and stainless-steel brake-lines for maximum stopping power.
3-feet of the front and 3-feet of the back are from a 1975 Porsche. The floorpan, roof and dash assembly come from a 1972. The front bulkhead is from a 1967. Arnie Verbiesen had been racing it in SCCA A-Sedan, but when he laid back the windshield, they booted him out of the class. Chris bought it as a shell for $1,300. The roof line was lowered 3-1/2 inches, and the rear window was mounted flush instead of being set down like all of the 911’s to make the airflow smoother. The car uses a short hood instead of long hood and the fender protectors on the back are from a 930. And of course, you can’t forget the whale tail on the rear.
Inside is a T6 alloy cage, twice as strong as steel in compression strength, with 1/5th the weight. It was designed and built by John Mason Engineering at quite a cost. The rollcage extends from the rear of the car to the front and forms a kind of tubular chassis. The cage is gusseted to all chassis members such as the rear deck, the four window pillars, floor mounts and integrated into the entire dashboard.
The interior is spartan with flat door panels and no glove box door. The 10,000 rpm tachometer redlines at 8500 and the speedometer shows a top speed of 185 mph. The seats are Scheel Nomex racing deep buckets that are flameproof. Leather Recaro sport seats are also used for the car. Bright H4 headlights illuminate Mulholland when necessary.
The powerplant is a hi-compression RSR 2.8L MFI racing engine complete with RSR sprint cams, ported and polished heads, an R3Y MFI pump, twin plug ignition, cadmium plated sheetmetal, magnafluxed crank and rods, custom exhaust, and of course fully balanced and blueprinted. The engine has a 11:1 compression ratio and is rated at 290 horsepower. The car has an estimated top speed of 180 MPH.
The motor and transmission were built by Bozzani Racing. The transmission is a magnesium cased 915 racing gearbox with an 85% limited slip and “Riverside” Gears. The car has a 16-quart dry sump lubrication system that pumps oil from the rear of the car to the front where an aluminum tank is located inside the gas heater trunk. All oil lines are Teflon braided stainless steel and travel throughout the car. The tank which was made by John Mason is wedge shaped to prevent grabbing air in hard cornering, baffled to prevent foaming of the oil, and vented for crankcase ventilation. It also combines a remote oil filter with a thermostat that opens to an external oil cooler when necessary.
How the Porsche ended up in his living room
“I had taken a flat out run to the San Diego Frwy. and was coming back when I stopped at Horseshoe. Horseshoe was the circular turn opposite the 99 Fire Station where some would hang out when Grandstands was too hot with Police patrols. This circular drive was in fact the old Mulholland as it was in the 60’s before they made the big wide straightaway between Benedict and Beverly Glen. It’s hard to believe but I know this because I fell there on a bike in 1965 right in that turn.
I pull into the circular drive and park to talk to some of my friends. All of a sudden, a Police car pulls up fast to the curb on Mul opposite where I’m parked. They put a searchlight on and start scanning the area. They see my silver Porsche, and the light goes off. They then accelerate into the drive. Steve B. says to me, “Chris, you better get out of here”. Without thinking, I get into my car and close the door as the cops were opening theirs. They came up to my car on either side with flashlights on pointing into my interior. They had to stoop since my car is very low to the ground with a lowered roof. I had my left hand on the ignition key, my left foot into the clutch, and my right foot depressing the throttle to the floor. The officer leaned down to look into my drivers open window. We had eye contact…I engaged the key. The car was already hot and it sprang to life. At about 6000 rpm, I dumped the clutch and the Blue Streak tires grabbed asphalt. The headlights went up into the air as the little 911 did a wheelie.
I was so scared that I never let off the gas. As I exited the circular drive, I dented the front valence and blasted home going east. By the time the cops got back into their car and onto Mulholland, I was passing Deep Canyon at 120mph. I got home, covered my car, and watched Mulholland as more cops showed up all over the place.
Now every night for about 2 weeks these same cops were coming up to Mulholland to look for the guy with the silver Porsche. They harassed just about everybody looking for me. That is why you see my RSR in my living room (photo above). I had to keep in the house for six months until I felt it was safe to put it back into the carport outside again.”
In 1994 an earthquake completely flattened Chris’ house. The Porsche wasn’t damaged, but the Mechanical Fuel Injection Pump lacquered after sitting for several years afterwards.
Movie – King of The Mountain
Chris Banning, Charley Woit, and the Mulholland racers were the inspiration for the movie King of the Mountain. Chris Banning is portrayed by Steve (Harry Hamlin) and drives a Porsche 356 Speedster. Charley Woit is portrayed by Cal (Dennis Hopper).
What was the official start of the course?
Grandstands was not the start or finish technically, but many races started there because it’s where everyone was hanging out. The course lies between Skyline and Coldwater where you would turn around, change places and race back the other way.
For example, let’s say you come up to Mulholland one evening in your fastest car and you are driving west from Hollywood. You would be coming up the racecourse towards Grandstands. Everyone would be hearing and seeing you coming up. If you were to stop at Grandstands someone might challenge you to a race in which case you would probably go back down the course to Skyline, turn around and race back. If it was a close race, you might go all the way to Coldwater and then back to Grandstands. Some races were spontaneous where just passing Grandstands was an invitation to start a race.
However, if you were going east on Mulholland from Coldwater and you didn’t stop at Grandstands you may not have been heard early enough for someone to challenge you. So after coming back from turning around at Skyline you would likely have a challenger. Some guys like John Hall would race in an inferior car like a VW Beetle and surprise the crap out of some Dude in a Vette or other fast car. Knowing the course and taking it to the limit is the winning game.
The races were always at night when the sweep of headlights showed oncoming traffic, and spectators, armed with CBs, police scanners and flashlights, could keep the coast clear. The course, laid between Coldwater Canyon and Deadmans, had 11 turns, a decent straight away, a pit area and most importantly, fewer driveways than anywhere else along Mulholland. It was, in short, perfect for following the leader, with speeds often running in excess of 100 mph.
Racing hit a fever pitch during the summer of ’82. A year before, Polygram Pictures came out with “King of the Mountain,” starring a young Harry Hamlin and the veteran Dennis Hopper.
Between 1980 and 1982, the so-called Mulholland International Raceway saw four deaths and 140 injuries. When a hit-and-run driver struck a 12-year-old boy at 1:30 on a Sunday morning, the L.A. City Council adopted an emergency ordinance that permitted them to close segments of Mulholland.
The racing scene never recovered.
Resources
The majority of this information came from the forum at PelicanPats.com.
See Discussion: ‘What happened to the Mulholland “King of the Hill” RSR?‘
Article: Thunder Road
Article: If You Ever Want To Fly…
You can see Chris Banning’s Porsche in person at the Petersen Automotive Museum.
Book – The Mulholland Experience
Chris Banning wrote a book titled ‘The Mulholland Experience‘.
This is the story of Mulholland, the man, the water, historical perspectives, and the racing that immortalized the famous road. Many first hand accounts were recorded and preserved for future generations so that the truth about what happened during the 1950’s to the 1980’s up on “The Hill” won’t be forgotten. Many interesting facts are explored and re-counted. This is one fascinating story and you won’t want to miss it.
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