Press archive

"Local drivers at Ruapuna"

The earliest racing in the scrapbook: Lyn (Mini sprint) and Murray Bugler (Lotus 22B) at the last Ruapuna meeting of 1969. Lyn worked from the back of the grid to 4th in a scratch race, lapping in 54.5 s, was 5th in a handicap and 4th in the fast-saloon feature. That puts his debut before the March 1970 meeting the paper later called his first.

Source: Marlborough Express, late 1969

"Local drivers do well at Ruapuna"

Billed as Lyn's first race meeting (though see the 1969 report above), the Canterbury Car Club's monthly meeting at Ruapuna, with Graham Gosling, Terry Sowman and other Blenheim drivers. In his "newly acquired Mini sprint 1293 S" he won a handicap race for slow saloons but was later "plagued with missing troubles and the occasional off the track excursion". The speed trap on the front straight had him at 93 mph, listed as "146 L. Hatton, Mini Sprint": in 1970 the Cooper S was his "Mini sprint 1293 S".

Source: Marlborough Express, March 1970; Ruapuna speed sheet, 15 March 1970 (both labelled March 1974 in the scrapbook)

On the cover

"Lyn Hatton rounds Rothmans' on a rather unconventional line during the March Ruapuna meeting."

Source: Canterbury Car Club Bulletin, April 1970

Car Club events

Marlborough Car Club bent sprint, 21 entries including seven from Nelson in slippery conditions: L. Owens (Formula Ford) fastest in 38.6, then L. Hatton (Cooper S) 2nd in 40.8 and A. McKenzie (Mini Sprint) 3rd in 42.7.

Source: Marlborough Express, 21 May 1974

"Hill climb test for Gold Star meeting"

The Marlborough Car Club's time-test climb ahead of the Gold Star meeting it had been awarded. About 20 cars, three runs up the twisting gravel road. "Winner was Lyn Hatton (Blenheim) in his Mini-Cooper S in 1.04 min", from S. Russ (Morris 1300) and R. Hore (Escort 1600 TC).

Source: Marlborough Express, 5 August 1974

"Hillclimb win by a hairline"

First round of the New Zealand Gold Star: Peter Leversedge's V8 Chev Sprinter won by 0.02 s from L. Hatton (Mini Cooper) 69.19, with Ash McKenzie (Mini Sprint) 3rd. The first five were covered by 0.8 s.

Source: Nelson Evening Post, 26 August 1974

"Hillclimb driver has lucky escape"

A Gold Star round, one of eight in the South Island series. John Rush (De Joux Mini Cooper S) set the unofficial fastest time, 1:46.3, and Lyn, in a 1300 cc Mini, was next best in 1:50.05. Rayne and Wills tied for third in 1:51.06. Nick Taylor rolled his Lotus Seven and walked away. Eighteen months later Lyn would win the national final on the same hill.

Source: undated clipping, likely November 1974

"Records fall in Gold Star hill climb"

The Labour Day Mills-Toyota Gold Star climb, advertised with "Lyn Hatton (Cooper S) Redwood Pass Record Holder". Ron Nicholls (Farina Ford) won and broke the record; Lyn was 2nd overall and won the 1300 cc class in 1:02.74 "in his darting little Cooper S", fastest in three of the five runs. Ash McKenzie set the record in his Mini Sprint on the first run, then went airborne at the last hairpin and crashed. The preview two days earlier ("Gold Star hill climb on Monday", 26 October 1974) named Lyn the "danger man" and explained the format: each island ran 10 rounds, with the final alternating between the islands.

Source: Marlborough Express, 26 and 29 October 1974

"New record set for Craigmore hill climb"

Leo Leonard's Datsun 1200 SSS set a new record of 56 s, breaking M. Stanton's 14-year-old mark. Lyn was 3rd in 57.2, a tenth ahead of John Rush; the two of them were leading the series.

Source: Timaru Herald, 2 March 1975

"Otago Gold Star hillclimb"

32 competitors on a half-mile sealed course with over 20 corners. Wilson Crosbie's Begg Formula Ford won in 77.60; John Rush (Mini de Joux) 2nd; Lyn 3rd in 81.58 ("Austin Cooper 1293cc").

Source: Motoraction, 21 March 1975

"Local driver is NZ's sixth fastest"

After 2nd in the eight-round South Island series in his "modified Mini-Cooper S", Lyn was picked for the six-man South Island team and finished 6th overall in the New Zealand final, the fastest South Islander on the day. Kevin Ingram (Terrapin) won the title. Going into the final at Houghton Bay, The Dominion had John Rush on 11.8 points, Ingram 0.2 behind and Lyn 3rd on 8.8. Lyn had driven only six of the eight South Island climbs; "had Hatton competed in all the South Island climbs he may have won the series". On the national rankings the paper put him a second behind the overall winner.

Source: Marlborough Express, 14 and 29 April 1975; The Dominion, 26 April 1975

"Drivers lower sprint record"

With "some desperate though controlled driving" Lyn set a new Tua Marina bent sprint record of 45.95 s in his Cooper S. A week later he was at Ruapuna, where The Press caught the Mini (#85) behind Wayne Murdoch's spinning Datsun at the hairpin.

Source: Marlborough Express, 19 May 1975; The Press, 26 May 1975

The season opener at Moenui

The Marlborough Car Club's first hill-climb of the season: Ross Hore (Escort) 44.4, Lyn (Cooper S) 44.5, Athol Smart 44.8.

Source: Marlborough Express, 14 August 1975

First drive in the Mini Sprint

The Mini Sprint's debut was not a Gold Star round but the club's 0.8-mile gravel sprint at Tua Marina. In "his first drive in his Mini Sprint" Lyn set a new record of 44.8, from Ron Nicoll 45.1, Dave Watson 45.2 and John Wadsworth 45.7.

Source: Marlborough Express, 23 September 1975

"Lyn Hatton away to good start in Gold Star hill climb series"

The preview introduced the new car: "a rebuilt Mini with aluminium panels for lightness and a 1300cc Cooper S motor with a special head". Lyn was 2nd at Upper Moutere on the Saturday, then won Redwood Pass in 61.6, taking 0.6 s off the record, from Ian Fehsenfeld (Escort) and John Rush (Toyota Corolla).

Source: Marlborough Express, 24 and 28 October 1975

Certificate of Merit

Gold Star hill-climb, weather fine. L. Hatton, Mini Sprint, 1:09.6, 2nd overall equal.

Source: Nelson Car Club Certificate of Merit

"Oamaru Autoworld to Greer"

Three drivers broke the hill record. Lyn "shattered both the record and Greer's time, an outstanding effort for a 1300cc car", but Russell Greer's Stanton Corvette set 53.890 to Lyn's 54.230. Points after four rounds: Hatton 52.5, Greer 42, Hewlett 27.5.

Source: Otago Daily Times, 14 and 17 November 1975; Motoraction, 12 December 1975

"Local driver wins Otago hill climb" · "Local driver leads hill climb series" · "Lyn Hatton leads hill climb series"

Three wins in three weekends: Kaitangata in 55.29 (breaking a five-year-old record of 60 s), Garveys Creek near Reefton by 3 s and in record time, and Castle Hill Road, Dunedin. "After seven meetings in the series Hatton has won four and been second twice."

Source: Reports of 23 February, 1 March (with the Westland paper) and 9 March 1976

"Leonard's record still stands"

Fastest time of the day, 56.65, just 0.65 s outside Leo Leonard's record. Lyn's car was the only entry in its class. John Rush's Corolla was the fastest saloon in 59.3.

Source: Timaru Herald and Christchurch Press, 5 April 1976

"Hatton leads hillclimb series"

132 points from eight meetings in his "Cooper S Sprint", 16½ to take into the Gebbies Pass final against 14½ for Kevin Ingram, the present champion. Russell Greer also qualified.

Source: Marlborough Express, 10 April 1976

"Mini Sprint excels" · "Hillclimb to Lyn Hatton"

"The snub-nosed Mini Sprint of Lyn Hatton proved much too good for the country's top hill-climbing road machines." Lyn won the inter-island final in 1:48.67, four seconds clear of John Rush, and was Gold Star hill-climb champion for 1976.

Source: Christchurch Press and Marlborough Express, 26 April 1976

"Bent sprint to L. Hatton"

Despite drizzly conditions the track was in good condition. 29 cars, seven from Nelson. Fastest: L. Hatton (Mini Sprint) 44.0, R. Hore (Datsun 1200) 44.5, A. Smart (A.B.S. Special) 44.9.

Source: Marlborough Express, 13 September 1976

"Lyn Hatton wins two hill climbs" · "Gold Star hill climb tough test" · "Hatton still tops down south"

The defence began with wins on consecutive days, at Garveys Creek near Reefton and at Redwood Pass in 62.95, over three seconds clear of Brian Fitzgerald's Mini. The Mini Sprint was newly painted red.

Source: Christchurch Press, 25 October 1976; Marlborough Express, 28 and 29 October 1976; Motoraction, 12 November 1976

"Hatton second, but best effort..."

Ian "Inky" Tulloch of Mataura won in his GTX Camaro Z28 in 102.88 s, a course record by half a second; Lyn, "last year's New Zealand champion", was 2nd in 104.95 and took the Ramada Cup for the hardest trier. 22 starters on the 1.7-mile climb, fine but cold "with odd flakes of snow falling". Points: Hatton 55, Rush 28, Fitzgerald 21.

Source: Marlborough Express, 8 November 1976; "Hill Climb To Tulloch" (Queenstown report, paper not recorded)

"Hatton retains S.I. hillclimb championship" · "Hatton's Kaitangata"

Second on Castlewood Road (80.23 to Graham Jenkins' Formula Ford), then a win at Kaitangata for the second year running (60.66). Points: Hatton 90 of 100, Rush 48, Fitzgerald 27.

Source: Marlborough Express, 28 February 1977; Motoraction, 25 March 1977

The Cooper S on the sand

"Slippery rough sand produced plenty of incidents, Lyn Hatton's Mini and the Scott Cortina making contact here." Russell Greer won the Beach title in the Stanton Corvette.

Source: Motoraction, 26 February 1977

"Hatton wins hill-climb championships" · "Rush surprises in North Otago"

Lyn retained the 1977 Gold Star "by a massive margin", 130 points from 140 (Rush 75, Greer 56). At Ngapara Rush's "deceptively fast" Corolla was 0.16 s behind; at Craigmore Lyn broke Leo Leonard's two-year-old record with 55.95. He now held four course records: Redwood Pass, Reefton, Balclutha and Craigmore.

Source: Marlborough Express, 4 April 1977; Motoraction, 6 May 1977

"Barnard's Final, Ingram's Title"

The defending champion's "potent 1293cc (twin-Webered, 8 port cross-flow headed) Mini-Sprint" was 5th in the final on Admiral Road (41.62), Lyn 3rd in the championship. Paul Barnard (Begg FF) won the final; Kevin Ingram (Terrapin) took the title.

Source: Motoraction, 6 May 1977

Car Club results

"Hill climb champion Lyn Hatton won the Marlborough Car Club's standing quarter mile on the Waihopai Valley Road at the weekend in his new Mini-powered Terrapin."

Source: Marlborough Express, 7 June 1977

"Hill climb at weekend" · "Hillclimb to Lyn Hutton"

The preview picked John Hocken and Lyn Hatton as the drivers to watch. "In only his second run in his car, a Terrapin, he won the event at the Redwood Pass hill, beating two top visitors, Paul Russ (Nelson) and John Rush (Oamaru)." 1:03.14; the paper spelt him "Lyn Hutton".

Source: Marlborough Express, 20 and 25 October 1977 (the scrapbook writes the second as 25/10/72)

"Hatton wins hill climb"

"Terrapin Mini Special driver Lyn Hatton put it all together on Sunday" after "a year's layoff": 1:57.44 on 2.5 km of tar-seal, from Russell Greer (Stanton Corvette) 1:59.9 and R. Hore (Datsun 1300) 2:01.8.

Source: Marlborough Express, undated

"Lyn Hatton used to get his Mini Sprint really moving"

A review of the 1979/80 Gold Star season lists the national champions: 1974 Jon Waring (F2 McLaren), 1975 Kevin Ingram (Terrapin), 1976 Lyn Hatton (Mini), 1977 Kevin Ingram (Terrapin), 1978 and 1979 Paul Barnard (Begg). Its photo of Lyn's Mini Sprint is captioned "Below: Lyn Hatton used to get his Mini Sprint really moving."

Source: Magazine, 1979/80 Gold Star review

"I wish I still had it"

Adrian Robertson posted a photo of Lyn's #85 at Ruapuna in 1972, with Lyn's words: "competing at Ruapuna in 1972 with my Mini Cooper 1293 fitted with an 8-port Ardun head which performed very well … Anyone know where it ended up?" Graeme Farr replied that it is "pretty sure still around, but a road car now", probably the oldest Cooper S in New Zealand and originally a 1071, and that it was the ex-Kinsella car; Lyn confirmed it was ex-Kinsella and bought out of Wellington.

Source: South Island Motorsports Facebook group, 29 January 2024

"This photo is too good to hide away in a comment"

Adrian Robertson shared this photo of the Mini Sprint in John Hocken's white. John says he bought the rolling body from Lyn ("it was orange") and later sold it as a rolling chassis; Lyn says he sold it complete. Paul Kendrick remembers "Ash" building it in the Thomas & Kendrick workshop, and the 8-port engine making it "jump sideways on the upshifts"; Lyn lifted off at 112 mph in the flying quarter. Brendan McKenzie says Ash has the car and is restoring it as a display car.

Source: South Island Motorsports Facebook group, 5 January 2024 · the full story on the Mini Sprint page →

#146 at Ruapuna

A saloon-car entry list from a race programme has "146. L. Hatton, Blenheim, Mini Sprint, 1293", alongside Rod Coppins' and Dennis Marwood's 5450 cc Camaros, Robbie Francevic's Falcon GT HO and a field of Cooper S, Escort and Anglia saloons. Austin Prattley of Christchurch is also entered.

This is very likely Lyn's first meeting, at Ruapuna in March 1970, in the Cooper S: the Ruapuna speed sheet kept with the 1970 clippings lists "146 L. Hatton, Mini Sprint" at 93 mph, and the 1970 report calls his car a "Mini sprint 1293 S". The programme itself doesn't give the meeting or year. Know which meeting?

Source: shared in the Old New Zealand Motor Racing Facebook group; Ruapuna speed sheet, Lyn's scrapbook

Kevin Ingram's Terrapin, then Lyn's

David McKinney's list of the Terrapins he knew of in New Zealand starts with the Mk1 "Kevin Ingram from 1971, initially as KBI Terrapin (won 1975 and 1977 Hillclimb Gold Stars, third 1976), Lyn Hatton 1978-79, Wayne Sendall (second in 1980 Hillclimb Gold Star), Ross Cameron 1982-85; sold to Steve Marks, but later bought back again." Another poster, rf84, adds: "There is at least 1 Terrapin in Blenheim, possibly the Lyn Hatton car."

Source: motor racing forum thread "Lost Terrapins and MER", posts #190-192, 10 January 2011

From the scrapbook

These entries come from a scrapbook of cuttings from the Marlborough Express, Christchurch Press, Timaru Herald, Otago Daily Times, Nelson Evening Post, The Dominion, Motoraction and the Canterbury Car Club Bulletin, kept with handwritten dates. Some of those dates are a few years out; where the clipping itself says otherwise, the entry follows the clipping. Have one we're missing?

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