When James Bond went ice racing: the rally drivers behind famous chase scene

George Lazenby’s one-off appearance as James Bond in Her Majesty’s Secret Service has often been branded as one of the worst films in the franchise.

But it’s recently been rising in the estimation of fans and that’s in no small way down to the chase sequences that remain breathtaking today.

Bond being pursued down a ski run is up among the very best 007 scenes to this day, so too is the car chase where Tracy di Vicenzo — played by Diana Rigg — crashes into an ice race as she and Bond, in the passenger seat, attempt to flee SPECTRE’s goons.

The vehicle might not be one of the classics: but the Mercury Cougar XR7 is a classic example of old-school American muscle and stole the show in a classic chase.

Almost as compelling is the story behind the chase: from repeatedly flooding a muddy meadow to create the track, to recruiting rally drivers and watching Rigg race away with glee. It’s told in an extract below from Spy Octane: The Vehicles of James Bond Volume 1. The 400-page book recounts all the vehicles of Bond throughout his near-60-year career on Hollywood’s silver screen.

After making a daring escape on skis from Piz Gloria, 007 seeks refuge as Irma Bunt and SPECTRE agents frantically hunt for him. Bond is rescued by Tracy, and they flee in her Mercury Cougar but are spotted by the enemy in their Mercedes-Benz 220S saloon. A hair-raising chase begins, with both vehicles negotiating the twisting and perilously icy roads.

To lose their pursuers, Tracy bursts into a stock-car race on ice. The Mercedes enters the fray, chasing the Cougar between Ford Escorts, Minis and a Volkswagen Beetle. Tracy outmanoeuvres the enemy; the Mercedes flips over and explodes. As they exit the furore, Tracy quips, ‘We didn’t even stop for the prize.’

Peter Hunt explained the genesis of the sequence. “On one of our recces in Switzerland we saw a group of stunt drivers doing a car race on ice. We thought it would be great to use that as a deviation in the car chase.”

The stock-car race was handled by Austrian rally driver Erich Glavitza. In July 1968, Glavitza had been involved in a major accident during the Internationale Donau-Castrol-Rally and hit a moving train. “It was witnessed by German journalist Reinhard Klein. Hubert Fröhlich, the production manager for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, had contacted Klein looking for a rally driver. Reinhard said, ‘Yeah, I know just the idiot. I just watched him crash into a train.’ I met with Fröhlich, who asked me, ‘Can you roll a car?’ I cheekily replied, ‘Sure, how many times do you need?’”

The 26-year-old visited Lauterbrunnen to meet Fröhlich and Harry Saltzman, who showed Glavitza the location where they planned to build the stock-car circuit. “We flew by helicopter down into the valley. We landed in a very wet meadow full of water and mud and Saltzman said, ‘Can we stage a car race here?’ We walked around and I pulled branches from the trees and outlined an oval racetrack with a chicane.”

Glavitza’s work escalated as the sequence developed: “First it was five cars, then ten and suddenly 20 cars. He enthusiastically suggested to Peter Hunt how he could heighten the action, demonstrating manoeuvres using cigarette packets to simulate the cars.”

Ford would supply the production with its new Escort. “I collected the Escorts and transformed them cosmetically into rally cars in my workshop. The relation between wheelbase and track made it very controllable. The 1,300cc engine gave us enough power, and, on the ice, we got up to 60-80km/h (37-50mph.”

Glavitza also met with Avon Tyres. “As this was going to be a race on ice, we required special tyres with spikes. Avon were enthusiastic and right away offered full support. In return we put sponsorship stickers with the Avon logo on the Escorts.

“For the spikes, I contacted a rally mate in Sweden who worked for Scarson, a spike manufacturer. I had calculated 1,200 spikes per tyre. In the end, we had 25 cars and with four tyres per car, we needed 120,000 spikes to be shot into the tyres.”

As well as his close friend Peter Huber, Glavitza recruited fellow European rally drivers Gösta Zwilling, Lothar Schörg, Rudi Kronfuss, Gino Molin-Pradel and Günther Pfisterer, and mechanic Willy Neuner. He also needed other cars to pepper amongst the Escorts. Glavitza used his own red Mini fitted with a Formula 3 Holbay engine, while commandeering a green Mini from Rudi Kronfuss. Gösta Zwilling recalled, “Erich told me to bring my yellow Volkswagen Beetle that I used to race in. The team referred to it as the ‘Yellow Submarine’”

Decals were stuck to the cars featuring the drivers’ nicknames. Schörg looked like French ski champion Jean-Claude Killy, so ‘Jean-Claude’ was stickered on his Escort. Glavitza can be spotted in the scene wearing a black and blue check helmet: “I had the name ‘Glavonen’ on one of the Escorts. It’s a nickname that was given to me years ago.”

To build the track, they flooded the field night after night until it froze thick enough to take the weight and punishment of the rally cars.

Erich Glavitza: “We were going very slow to begin with and the director looked very disappointed. But then I gave the sign to my guys, ‘Let’s go!’ We shifted back into second gear and let loose. The grip of the tyres was sensational. The spectators were immediately scared. We were drifting within a few inches of the spectator barriers, with chunks of ice flicking up into their faces. Soon they were shouting, ‘These guys are completely crazy! They are completely mad.’”

Glavitza was not convinced by the beginning of the chase sequence in which Tracy and Bond screech away from a telephone booth after SPECTRE agents open fire from the Mercedes. “Screeching tyres on an icy road? Not even a hamster would buy that. But Peter just shrugged it off and said, ‘No one will notice when they watch the film! It’s the magic of the movies!’ And he was right – nobody did!”

Some sources claim that British stuntman Maurice Grove doubled Tracy in this scene. [Cinematographer] Michael Reed described Rigg having difficulty with the car: “You could hear George [Lazenby] shouting instructions to her, which was making the situation worse. Suddenly the door opened, and Diana jumped out. I have never seen a lady so angry. She was so upset, she turned to Cubby who was standing close by. ‘Can you do something with that boy scout in there?’ Broccoli had a word with Lazenby, the atmosphere settled, and Hunt shouted ‘Action.’ Diana slipped into reverse, backed the car… and sped away at top speed without any problem.”

Motoring journalist John Viner reported from the set: “Here we are driving towards the tiny village of Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland; over a rise in the road and there on the valley floor appears an oval of twinkling fairy lights. They etch the shape of an ice racing circuit. The noise of generators hard at work mingles with the noise of half a dozen Escorts revving up beneath a track wide banner reading ‘Start.’”

Standing with the owner of the meadow, Viner reported: “Now the farmer stands muffled against the subzero temperatures, chewing his pipe and contemplating the escapades of James Bond and his merry men. Before him is an ice racing circuit complete to the most finite detail: pits, grandstands, bunting, advertisements, an ambulance, fire engine, police with a two-way radio and a crowd of 300 extras, all of them stamping their feet, eager to produce instant enthusiasm for the camera.”

Glavitza was tasked with rolling one of the Escorts onto its roof. After a number of failed attempts, a ridge of about a third of a metre was created by wedging a large tree trunk into the ice. He circled the track and then slammed the Escort broadside into the tree trunk, flipping it perfectly.

Michael Reed admired Rigg’s attitude: “…nearly all the close-ups on Diana Rigg driving the car were shot live. We all admired her wonderful spirit in driving this car at 50mph on ice and still giving a performance.” Decades later, Rigg reflected, “I loved it! It was great. The poor cameraman was green, as you can imagine!”

The final stunt in which the Benz flips onto its roof fell to stunt driver Eddie Stacey who broke some ribs while overturning the Mercedes.

Once it had flipped, it was time to destroy it. Glavita recalls, “Peter Hunt was happy when he saw the old Mercedes lying on its back like an old turtle. But it began to snow, so he called for a break. It didn’t stop. I hadn’t seen such heavy snowfall in all my life. Luckily, they had placed a large tarpaulin over the Mercedes, otherwise it would have been impossible to find it under the snow.

“When we came back, we had to use avalanche probes to find it.” Again, Glavitza had to give in to implausibility, “The explosion didn’t make any sense. Why should a car catch fire and explode, just from overturning? But, hey, it was a James Bond movie.”

Spy Octane: The Vehicles of James Bond Volume 1 by Matthew Field & Ajay Chowdhury is published by Porter Press International, 416 pages, over 800 images, ISBN 978-1-913089-85-6, priced £99. For more details visit:  www.porterpress.co.uk