A shadow man

The UOP Shadow Racing Team (picture-above) with left to right: Peter Revson, owner Don Nichols and Jean-Pierre Jarier, in front of the Shadow-Ford DN3, at the 1974 Brazil Grand Prix held at Interlagos.

For nearly a dozen years, an American racing team helmed by an ex-paratrooper and former counter-espionage agent competed at the highest level of Can-Am and Formula One racing.

The team was called Shadow, its mascot was a spy, and its leader was the tall and secretive Don Nichols, fluent in Japanese and skilled at judo. As someone once said about Enzo Ferrari, he was as closed as a walnut, he knew everyone, but few people knew him.”

For the 1974 F1 season, the team hired two of the most promising drivers of the time: American Peter Revson, who had won two Grand Prix for McLaren in 1973, and super fast Frenchman Jean-Pierre Jarier. Sadly, Revson was killed during a practice run for the 1974 South-African Grand Prix at Kyalami when the suspension of his DN3 failed. He was replaced by Welch driver Tom Pryce.