by Alison Bowler

Created on: July 06, 2009   Last Updated: April 27, 2010

Karl Jochen Rindt was born in Mainz, Germany on 18 April 1942. Jochen was orphaned the following year when his parents were both killed in an allied bombing raid. His maternal grandparents adopted their orphaned grandson taking him to live with them in Graz, Austria.

The young Jochen grew up a competitive daredevil with a love of going as fast as possible. This was to lead to broken bones from downhill skiing and a bit of a reputation with the local police for the speed as he drove his Volkswagen on the Austrian roads. His early forays into the world of motorized racing were on two wheels first racing a moped then a motocross bike. It has been said that either he won a race or he crashed.

Jochen originally joined the family business of spice importing but the lure of motor racing was too great and in 1962, he started racing in saloon cars. The following year he raced a Formula Austin Cooper. The Austin Cooper was no longer a competitive vehicle but Rindt would push it to the limits and beyond. He achieved enough success to bring his driving skills to the notice of Ford Austria.

With the backing from Ford Austria and in a Brabham-Cosworth that he had paid for himself, Rindt entered the Formula 2 championship in 1963. A win at Crystal Palace and a second place at Mallory Park combined with a distinctive driving style gave him the opportunity to join Bruce McLaren at the Cooper Formula 1 team in 1964.

The Coopers were not considered competitive but Rindt still managed to gain a fourth place at the German Grand Prix as well as a sixth in the American during the 1964 season. At the same time, he supplemented his income by driving in the Formula 2 with one win and two third places to his credit in 1964.

His other successes in 1964 include winning Le Mans in a NART Ferrari 275LM with Masten Gregory and a third place in the Nurburgring 1,000 Km in a Porsche 8. In Austria, he won the Prix du Tyrol at Innsbruck driving an Abarth 2000.

Whatever class of car Jochen was driving, the race was bound to be exciting. He would take the corners at high speed, the car sliding sideways round the curves. Some called his driving reckless but Rindt knew his car’s capabilities as well as his own. If he thought he could win a race, he would push these capabilities to the limit. When asked how often he drove outside of his limits he replied, "Did I ever drive within them?"

Jochen had signed a three-year contract to drive with the Cooper team, which he finished without succeeding

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