In 1982, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile decided to turn their entire class structure on its head with the introduction of Groups A, B, C and N. Previously, the governing body had used a chaotic ruleset under Groups 1 through 7, changing the definition of several groups every few years at random.

Group 5 covered four wildly different types of car in the span of 15 years. Group 5 covered four wildly different types of car in the span of 15 years.

Aside from streamlining the rulebook, the FIA was reacting to several societal, economical and technological changes which had started to affect the world of motorsport by the late 1970's. A tough economic climate and two major fuel crises had crippled the sport. Spectators and competitors alike stayed away, and several major racing series crumbled to dust as a result.

Sportscar racing was struggling so much, the ACO invited NASCAR to compete in 1976. Sportscar racing was struggling so much, the ACO invited NASCAR to compete in 1976.

As a result of the financial strife, many teams had trickled down to less expensive lower level touring car or rally racing, draining the high end categories even further. To combat these issues, the FIA introduced Group C sportscar regulations for 1982.

The new rules aimed to reduce fuel costs with a maximum allowable fuel limit of 600 liters per 1000 kilometers. This not only placed a politically favorable importance on efficiency, it also allowed large naturally aspirated engines to compete with smaller turbocharged engines on relatively equal terms. With a limited amount of fuel, the turbo teams would be unable to simply turn up the boost every time a competitor came close.

Group C revitalized sportscar racing around the world. Group C revitalized sportscar racing around the world.

The change proved to be an amazingly popular one, as both privateers and major manufacturers professed interest in joining the category. Soon enough, Ford, Porsche, Mazda, Jaguar, Lancia, Aston Martin, Nissan, Cosworth and BMW were all linked to Group C in some capacity, supported by a wide selection of independent chassis builders.

Propelled by this initial success, Group C spread from its European base around the world. An analogous series already existed in North America under the IMSA GTP name since 1981, but the Americans left out the fuel restrictions in search of absolute power. However, the All-Japan Sports Prototype Championship opted to take on the Group C rules in 1983.

Group A sportscars kept the Can Am spirit alive long after the series collapsed. Group A sportscars kept the Can Am spirit alive long after the series collapsed.

Despite the rise of Group C, one country kept doing its own thing. Down in Australia, the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport retained their Group A Sportscar category, which had been in effect since 1964.

In 1969, the category was given its own national series with the advent of the Australian Sports Car Championship, which was broadly similar to the later Canadian American Cup Challenge, save for a five liter maximum displacement limit.

All kinds of sports racers populated the ASCC. All kinds of sports racers populated the ASCC.

As Can Am-style sportscars fell out of favor, the championship became home to a myriad of privately modified machines, ranging from converted Formula 5000 cars to European small-capacity sportscar chassis. The ends result was a fantastic mix of front-engine, mid-engine, open top, closed-top machines powered by a wide variety of motors.

Despite Group A remaining untouched in the wake of the rise of Group C, the international category started to seep into the Aussie racing scene. In 1984, Sandown Raceway was given the honor of hosting a round of the World Sportscar Championship, introducing Group C to the masses.

K&A based the car around a disused Lola T400 Formula 5000 chassis. K&A based the car around a disused Lola T400 Formula 5000 chassis.

In awe of the formidable factory-supported racers blasting around the narrow track, ASCC driver and professional photographer Bernie van Elsen was convinced to build his own. To this end, he contacted Dale Koennecke and Harry Aust of K&A Engineering.

Though Koennecke and Aust certainly knew their way around a racecar, they had no experience with the ground effect underbody aerodynamics used in Group C, making them unable to design an effective package straight away. Thankfully the pair knew some colleagues who did understand the dark art of ground effect, as their friends Bob and John Murphy had worked with the technology in Europe while employed by Belgian team VDS racing.

The C1's monocoque was built over the bones of the Lola chassis. The C1's monocoque was built over the bones of the Lola chassis.

With the next World Sportscar Championship race at Sandown only a year away, Bernie van Elsen realized the team probably wouldn't have the time to design a car from scratch. In an effort to speed up the process, he managed to obtain a disused Lola T400 Formula 5000 car.

At K&A's workshop, the donor car was stripped to its bare chassis, and a specially built, aluminium monocoque was fixed to the remains. The suspension was similarly modified, with top rockers and lower wishbones on the front, and a multi-link setup in rear. The T400's 520 horsepower 5.0L Chevrolet V8 and Hewland DG300 5-speed manual transmission stayed in place, neatly adhering to the engine limit.

The car was then fitted with a sleek fiberglass body with an extremely low nose, made possible by fitting the radiators beside the cockpit. Out back, the car sported a large rear wing suspended on big struts blending in with the bodywork, similar to the dominant Porsche 956. At slower, twistier tracks, the nosecone was fitted with an auxiliary front wing to generate more front downforce to help remedy understeer.

Although the project was relatively small-scale, the team took care to place the driver's feet behind the imaginary front axle line, a requirement needed for IMSA GTP homologation. In doing so, K&A avoided having to design two different versions of the car for both categories, as Porsche was forced to do with the 956/962 twins. The finished car weighed less than 900 kilograms (1984 lbs) and was named Veskanda, Van Elsen Special K AND A.

With the new car Bernie van Elsen hoped to take the fight to the Romano WE84, the first Group C-style sportscar of Australian manufacture. The WE84 had evolved from the earlier Kaditcha K583 Group A sportscar, but ditched the Chevrolet V8 in favor of a Cosworth DFV Formula One V8 borrowed from a McLaren. In this form, the WE84 had dominated Australian Sports Car Championship racing during 1984.

Since Van Elsen only managed a 27th place that year while driving an inferior locally-built Bolwell Nagari, he though it best to entrust his new weapon to some more skilled hands. Eventually, he hired open wheel racer and 1984 Australian Driver's Champion John Bowe.

Van Elsen intended to run the car during the 1985 ASCC season, but a test crash at Adelaide International Raceway due to a wheel failure forced him to postpone the car's debut. Repairs took up some two months, leaving the car to run in anger for the first time at round 4 of the ASCC at the same track. The C1 ran well at the event, but unfortunately failed to finish.

At Calder Park Raceway, Bowe and the C1 were in much better form. Setting the pace all weekend, the team took a comfortable victory in only their second race. In doing so, Veskanda beat out the Lola T610 Chev of Terry Hook, the Kaditcha K583 Chev of Chris Clearihan, the JWS C2 Mazda of Jeff Harris and the Rennmax BN6 Ford driven by Ray Hanger.

The feared competition from Bap Romano's WE84 never materialized, as the car had been "upgraded" to a 3.9L Cosworth DFL V8. This endurance version of the famed DFV supposedly offered more torque and less revs for more reliability, while providing a similar amount of power.

However, the DFL became most known for truly appalling vibrations, shaking apart itself and the car around it. Bap Romano found this out the hard way, as reliability issues saw his competitive edge wane.

After a less successful run at the last round of the season at Surfer's Paradise, and the cancellation of the World Sportscar Championship round at Sandown, the Veskanda squad set their sights on 1986. In preparation for the new season, CAMS upped the maximum displacement limit from 5.0 to 6.0L, and introduced a fuel limit similar to the one used in the WSC.

Taking advantage of this, K&A Engineering installed a bigger 5.8L Chevrolet V8, forgoing the 6.0L option to mitigate the car's fuel consumption. The change saw power rise from 520 to 590 horsepower with very little weight increase, making the C1 an even more potent machine.

Equipped with the bigger powerplant, Veskanda had an absolute dream of a season. Thanks to the sublime driving skill of John Bowe keeping it in check, the C1 completely annihilated the competition. It took every pole position, won seven out of seven races, and scored a fastest lap each time it went out.

On numerous occasions, these laps were outright track records, making the car faster than anything ever before. Unsurprisingly, the perfect 100% win rate saw John Bowe and Veskanda take the title with amazing ease. Sadly, the WSC round at Sandown was once again cancelled, again denying the car the chance to compete at the World Championship level.

John Bowe falling out of the car as it bursts into flames, Calder Park 1987. John Bowe falling out of the car as it bursts into flames, Calder Park 1987.

For 1987, the Australian Sports Car Championship was heavily gutted down to just three races, as a lack of entries saw the latter three being cancelled. The sheer dominance of the Veskanda C1 was blamed for this by some, as it was simply impossible to keep up with the big red brute.

In the run up to the first race at Calder Park, John Bowe experienced a particularly hairy moment when a fuel line ruptured at speed. The resulting fire quickly spread throughout the car due to its high-pressure Lucas fuel injection system, but Bowe only noticed it when several flames licked through a gap between the roof and the bulkhead.

Bowe made a hasty escape to safety, but the car was not so lucky. By the time the marshals had put out the fire, the damage was severe enough to prevent the car running any further that weekend.

John Bowe running back to the car in a slight panic, Calder Park 1987. John Bowe running back to the car in a slight panic, Calder Park 1987.

The car was fixed in time for the next round at Amaroo Park, where it once again displayed its dominance by winning with ease from pole position. In the process, John Bowe set a 44.36 second lap at the tiny track near Sydney, another new lap record.

At Sandown, Bowe turned in a similar performance, again sweeping the weekend. Strangely, although he had won two out of three races, Bowe still finished second overall. This was due to CAMS regulations prioritizing small capacity cars, which were awarded more points for high overall finishes irrespective of their class.

Because Andy Robert's home-built, 1.6L Ford-engined Roberts SR3 had two fourth places and one second, he was able to beat the Veskanda by 19 points despite being nowhere near as fast. The controversial result marked the last appearance of the C1 in the ASCC.

Due to the fact John Bowe was called into service at Dick Johnson Racing to contest the popular Australian Touring Car Championship, Bernie van Elsen decided to withdraw his car from the 1988 ASCC. Instead the machine made several appearances at lower level events in the hands of Mick Monterosso, who claimed the lap record at Adelaide International Raceway's short course.

Despite the initial setback, the Veskanda would finally get its debut in the World Sportscar Championship, which returned to Sandown after a three year absence. Unlike the 1984 event, the FIA opted to keep CAMS Group A Sportscars and Sports Sedans out, precluding most local teams from competition.

The car was given a bigger engine for the WSC race. The car was given a bigger engine for the WSC race.

However, since the Veskanda was one of just two Australian cars complying with Group C regulations, it could join the ranks without any issues. John Bowe came back for the 360 kilometer race, and brought his boss along, four time ATCC Champion Dick Johnson. In an effort to help the C1 keep up with the factory cars, a 6.0L V8 was installed to the tune of some 610 horsepower.

Helped by the extra grunt, the Veskanda did surprisingly well in a highly competitive field encompassing the best of the best in sportscar racing. Facing the Jaguar XJR-9, Sauber C9, and Porsche 962C, Veskanda was still able to qualify 8th overall. This placed it behind the Saubers, the Jaguars, a Porsche 962C and two Cosworth-powered Spice SE88Cs.

Ironically, while the car was running quite strongly in 8th during the race, it was later disqualified. Just as Bernie van Elsen had feared in 1986, the 6.0L version of the Chevrolet V8 had been too thirsty. Because the team had used more than the maximum allowable amount of fuel, their result was scrapped.

And with that disappointment, the Veskanda C1 was screwed out of an impressive finish in its last ever race. As the 1988 season proved to be the last for the Australian Sports Car Championship, John Bowe's commitment to the ATCC grew and the World Sportscar Championship remained out of reach, Bernie Van Elsen elected to retire the car for good.

The C1 reemerged from obscurity in 2007. The C1 reemerged from obscurity in 2007.

The car remained in suspended animation until 2007, when it was purchased by former Sports Sedan racer John Briggs. Lavished in an attractive coat of dark blue paint, the car made an appearance at that year's Historic Sandown Meeting, powered by a tired 5.8L Chevrolet V8.

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Over the years the car made further appearances at Philip Island Classic in 2011, before being sold to Western Australian car fanatic Paul Stubber, who restored the car to 1988-spec with the original livery and 650 horsepower 6.0L engine built by Australian firm KRE, better known for their V8 Supercar power units.

Paul Stubber and the Veskanda at Le Mans Classic, 2012. Paul Stubber and the Veskanda at Le Mans Classic, 2012.

Stubber then entered the car in historic Group C racing, attending events at famous venues such as Le Mans, Silverstone, Donington, Nurburgring, Imola, Paul Ricard and Spa-Francorchamps.

The C1 remained a competitive machine, allowing Stubber to finish 10th in 2012 and 5th in 2013. Thanks to Paul Stubber, the Veskanda finally saw the legendary tracks which made up the WSC it had been unable to contest in period.

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The Veskanda C1 was an incredibly important car in Australian motorsport history. Owing to Bernie Van Velsen's passion for sportscar racing, and the expertise of K&A Engineering and the Murphy brothers, a tired old F5000 car morphed into a fearsome opponent in the Australian Sports Car Championship.

"The Veskanda was a fantastic car. It was built for Bernie Van Elsen by Dale Koennecke and the K & A Engineering team in Adelaide. It had a ground effects set-up that really worked. All credit to K & A." John Bowe.

Its amazing chassis, fantastic ground effect aerodynamics and good old V8 grunt enabled it to set blistering times on every track it encountered, while violently beating its rivals into submission. The car's prowess was augmented further by being matched up with a talented young driver, as John Bowe guided the car from victory to victory.

The pair's lap record at Surfer's Paradise (1:04.3) stood until its closure in 1987, and the 44.36 lap at Amaroo Park was likewise unbeaten until the track was decommissioned in 1998. More impressively though, Bowe's 52.69 burst around Calder Park Raceway remains the absolute track record to this very day. These records have cemented the Veskanda C1 as the single fastest racecar ever built Down Under.