WAMPUM, PA – With the legendary GT40 turning 60 this year, the Ford GT enthusiast community hosted a grand reunion during the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix’s annual Historic Races at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pennsylvania. The Ford GT40 was first raced in May 1964 at Nürburgring and went on to become the first American car to win the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. Thanks to several major sponsors and a group of dedicated owners, the three-day 60^th reunion gathering featured everything from original GT40 race cars, street cars and recreations, as well as modern-day versions of the Ford GT.

The paddock and VDA at Pitt Race was packed with GT40s and hundreds of enthusiasts of this historic car, with a display and track sessions each day over the July 26-28 weekend, including special sessions on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with the GT40 Featured Race on Sunday afternoon. The reunion was open to all Ford GT variants, from the original 1964 Ford GT, which became the GT40 in both Mk I and Mk II versions, the Mk IV, the reborn 2005-06 Ford GT and the latest in the GT lineup, the 2017-2024 Ford GT. Ford-powered, accurate replicas were also welcome to attend.

Participants enjoyed a GT40 swag bag, a commemorative track entry lanyard and invites to the GT40 Reunion Dinner at the Marriott Cranberry that featured an evening presentation, table talks and meet & greets with significant people who were involved in the development, racing and history of these fabulous cars. There was also a catered BBQ lunch at the track on Saturday, with the Pitt Race facility’s world-class 2.78-mile track proving ideal for the GT40s.

PVGP Executive Director Dan DelBianco noted the area’s special connection with the Ford racecars: “Pittsburgh shared a part of GT40 history when Grady Davis, Executive Vice President of Pittsburgh-based Gulf Oil, started a GT40 racing team with John Wyer Automotive Engineering’” he said. “The Chassis 1075 won at Le Mans in 1968 and 1969 in its famous blue-and-orange Gulf Oil livery.” Indeed, the history of these famed cars wasn’t lost on our own FordPerformance.com correspondent Jeff Burgy, a longtime Ford and Shelby enthusiast and a co-founder of the SAAC-Motor City Region Shelby club more than four decades ago. Burgy pulled double duty for us that weekend, first covering the annual SAAC convention at New Jersey Motorsports Park, and then heading to Pitt Race for the GT 60^th Reunion.

“Due to SAAC-49 and the GT Reunion happening on the same weekend, I missed the first two days of the Reunion, where I heard they had about 90 cars,” Burgy told us. “Only about a third of them were left on the last day of the meet, but I was still able to photograph some very incredible cars.” We thank Jeff for his twin event efforts on our behalf, and hope you enjoy the GT action he was able to capture in his 60^th Reunion photo galley below:

FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY JEFF BURGY