Mother’s Day tragedy cut short a brilliant racing career

It is a day that will live in infamy in Australian Speedway history — when Sydney Speedcar star Jeff Freeman, 27, crashed to his death at Sydney’s Westmead Speedway.

History: A photo of Jeff Freeman taken shortly before the fatal crash in May 1965

It is a day that will live in infamy in Australian Speedway history — when Sydney Speedcar star Jeff Freeman, 27, crashed to his death during the 15-lap main event at Sydney’s Westmead Speedway.

The tragedy that killed one of the most naturally talented speedcar drivers this country ever produced occurred 50 years ago, on Sunday, May 9, 1965.

It was Mother’s Day. Late in the afternoon Jeff’s mother Mayfree received the horrible news by phone her son had died on the track.

Freeman took up racing in 1959 and his daring dirt track deeds had attracted thousands of fans and created a legend of film star status.

He was a high-profile Sydney personality who attracted widespread attention from mainstream media in the 1960s boom years when speedway racing in Sydney reached unprecedented popularity.

Jeffrey Edwin Freeman, born at Mudgee on December 29, 1937, was a likable man who gave his time to underprivileged people and learned sign language to communicate with folk who could not hear or speak. He became a cult figure for fans who regularly attended speedway meets just to watch Freeman compete.

Freeman was an immensely talented driver, always careful and calculated. But one mistake would cost him his life. His American Offenhauser Speedcar drifted into a heavy dirt ridge and overturned at high speed. A coronial inquiry in September, 1965, recorded that racing conditions were “very heavy” at the Westmead track the day Freeman was killed.

Jeff Freeman in action at Westmead Speedway in 1965. Picture: Courtesy Dennis Newlyn

National Speedcar Drivers’ Association president Leonard Steele said Freeman was a very experienced driver but rain two days earlier had left the track very heavy.

Others died before and after Freeman, but he had always seemed too good and too indestructible to be killed.

Two months earlier he had reached the pinnacle of his career when he defeated American Speedcar legend, Bob Tattersall, to win the prestigious Australian Speedcar Grand Prix at Sydney Showground on March 6, in front of 25,000 fans.

At the top of his game and the undisputed champion of Australian Speedcar racing, he was scheduled to race in 18 fixtures across America in August on the demanding US Auto Club circuit.

What he would have achieved in America will never be known but many predicted international stardom on speedcar racing’s world stage.

Jeff Freeman (pictured in 1963) was a firm favourite with Speedway fans. Picture: News Archives

Freeman and his mother moved to Sydney in the 1950s, living on Glenmore Rd, Paddington, within an exhaust roar of the Moore Park Showground speedway track.

Educated at Mudgee Public School, he also excelled at junior rugby league, was an enthusiastic boy scout and learned to box at Mudgee Police Boys Club.

He was a motor mechanic by trade and spent his early working years with Sydney Service Station, near Taylor Square. He later worked at Sydney Airport in the Qantas maintenance section where he struck up a close friendship with workshop foreman, Eric Kydd.

Freeman’s introduction to the Sydney Showground speedway came when he was stood up on a blind date. He was immediately hooked on the sport. After starting in novice races in 1959 he quickly graduated into the A-grade ranks.

Kydd admired Freeman and became involved with his racing. He decided to build him a Speedcar using the best race parts imported from America. Work began in 1964 but after that terrible May day at Westmead Speedway, the car remained unfinished for years.

The job was finally completed in 1987 and the sleek Speedcar, powered by an American Offenhauser engine, was sold to American interests after Kydd’s death. Today it serves as a tribute to Freeman in US speedway circles.

Jeff Freeman (front) in his Holden-powered car during a practice session.

Two days before his death, Jeff Freeman helped car owner Don Mackay with a benefit cabaret at Paddington Town Hall to aid the family of Nick Collier, who died in a Speedcar crash while driving for Mackay at Sydney Showground on February 27, 1965.

During the benefit an opportunity arose to take a group photo of all the drivers in attendance. Freeman wanted the shot because he said the time was right to get the photo while everyone was “still around”. Prophetic words from Freeman, who never got to see the printed picture.

The coronial inquiry heard Freeman had tried to overtake the two leading cars at Westmead while entering a bend. Going “three wide”, he appeared to lose control of his car and collided with the fence. His car rolled three times.

Freeman’s funeral was one of the biggest in years for a Sydney sporting identity. Traffic lights were switched off as police controlled the entourage as it made its way to Woronora Crematorium. His ashes today are in a Mudgee cemetery plot beside his mother’s.

Dennis Newlyn is a journalist who has covered speedway racing for 49 years. He was at Westmead Speedway on the day Jeff Freeman died.

Originally published as Mother’s Day tragedy cut short a brilliant racing career