Eisert 1968 FA history
Jack Eiteljorg in his 1968 Formula A Eisert at the Castle Rock SCCA National in 1969. Copyright Chris Bell 2025. Used with permission.
After splitting with J Frank Harrison, Jerry Eisert built a car for the new Formula A in 1968, based on his USAC Harrison Specials. It was raced by Jack Eiteljorg in both the SCCA Continental Championship and in the road-racing events of the USAC championship.
Jack Eiteljorg was a rancher and some-time sports announcer from Englewood, in what was then the outskirts of Denver, Colorado. He had raced in SCCA Formula C before acquiring an ex-F1 Brabham BT11 from Lloyd Ruby's organisation. His cars were entered by his wife Debbie Drake, a widely-syndicated TV fitness guru. His Eisert was broadly similar to the series of monocoque cars that Jerry Eisert had built for Harrison for USAC racing between 1965 and 1967, and was fitted with the same type of Chevrolet small block V8 engine that had been used in the 1965 and 1966 Harrison Specials.
The new car's debut came at Castle Rock's Continental Divide Raceway for a round of the SCCA's national Formula A championship in May 1968. Eiteljorg finished fifth; a good result but the car was significantly slower than the leading Eagle 'Mk 5' and Lola T140. He also competed in Formula A for the SCCA Midwest Division title, winning at Mid-America Raceway in June. He then took on the USAC Rocky Mountain 150 at his home track at Castle Rock, where he qualified 18th out of 25, and retired. He also qualified 15th of 20 at the Mont-Tremblant USAC race four weeks later, and finished tenth and ninth in the two heats. In the Continental Championship, the car continued to be at the back of the Formula A contingent.
For the SCCA Runoffs in November, Eiteljorg acquired Hank Candler's Lola T140, and used that same car in the first few races of the 1970 season. After that he returned to the Eisert, and drove it in Continental Championship events and in SCCA Nationals, winning at Continental Divide in September. He continued with it into 1970, racing with USAC at Continental Divide and Indianapolis Raceway Park, with the Continental Championship at Dallas International Motor Speedway, Brainerd and Mosport Park, and in SCCA Nationals, where he again won the Continental Divide National. Mechanic John Barker also raced it in SCCA Nationals, winning the Great Salt Lake Road Races in Utah in September.
His last major race in the car was the Riverside Grand Prix Formula A race in April 1971, where he was ten seconds a lap slower than the leading cars, but still had a number of lesser FA cars behind him on the grid.
If you can add anything to our understanding of this car, or have any photographs that we can use, please email Allen at allen@oldracingcars.com.
The driver here is unknown, but this photograph from Aspen Raceways in November 1975 appears to show the ex-Jack Eiteljorg Eisert, in Arlon Koops' light blue and wearing Koops' #85. Copyright Ezekiel Ferguson 2020. Used with permission.
New to Jack Eiteljorg (Englewood, Colorado) in 1968 for Formula A, and raced in SCCA Continental Championship and in SCCA Nationals. The car was also eligible for the USAC National Championship, and Eiteljorg raced it at Continental Divide and Mont-Tremblant. After using a Lola T140 for much of 1969, he returned to the Eisert for SCCA Continental Championship and in SCCA Nationals late in 1969. Retained for 1970, when he raced it in SCCA Continental Championship and in SCCA Nationals, plus the USAC road racing events at Continental Divide and Indianapolis Raceway Park. Raced also by mechanic John Barker at Bonneville Raceway Park in September 1970. Retained for one race at the start of 1971, then replaced with a Lola T192. Sold in May 1971 to Bill Tempero (Fort Collins, CO), who already owned the original 1965 Eisert that had been in New Zealand for several years. Tempero planned to keep the older car as a spare and race the ex-Eiteljorg car, so it is assumed here that's what happened. Retained by Tempero for 1972, when he used it mainly in SCCA Nationals, winning overall at Hutchinson Naval Air Station in June. Then very probably to Arlon J. Koops (Denver, CO), who raced a light blue #85 Eisert in SCCA Formula A in 1973, entered by Solazure IV Ltd. He was entered for the two Californian Pro F5000 races at the start of the season, but did not appear. He then raced it in Midwest Division SCCA Nationals that year, leading the opening lap at Hutchinson in July before retiring, and winning his class at Fort Sumner in September. He was apparently present for the Road America Pro F5000 race in July, but failed to set a practice time and did not start, so his only start in the L&M series in the Eisert was at Seattle in late September when he finished 12th. Subsequent history unknown.
Driven by: Jack Eiteljorg, John Barker, Bill Tempero and Arlon J. Koops. First race: Continental Divide (US R1), 26 May 1968. Total of 31 recorded races.
Later life
In May 1971, the car was acquired by Bill Tempero in Fort Collins, an hour or so away to the north. Tempero already owned the 1965 Eisert that had come back from New Zealand, and now intended to keep the older car as a spare. He raced the ex-Eiteljorg car for the rest of 1971 and through the 1972 season. After that, it is likely to be the Eisert raced in 1973 by Arlon Koops, who then raced as A. J. Koops. Koops was from Denver and photographs that are date-stamped as November 1975 show a car at Aspen Raceway with many features that match the Eiteljorg-Tempero car painted in Koops' light blue and wearing his #85 entry number. Its life after that time is unknown.
Acknowledgements
My thanks to Wolfgang Klopfer for his early work deciphering the various Indy and Formula A Eiserts, and to Bill Wiswedel who later owned the other Eisert that Tempero acquired and was able to unlock their histories. Thanks also to Ezekiel Ferguson for his very interesting photographs.
If you can add anything to our understanding of this car, or have any photographs that we can use, please email Allen at allen@oldracingcars.com.
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