If the name Jean Pierre Kunstle came up in a conversation about sports car racing, it wouldn’t be surprising if it didn’t sound familiar. He was sort of a “mystery man” since not much was written about him personally, virtually all reports were about his racing success on the track. He appeared on the sports car racing scene in 1954 and departed six years later as one of the best drivers on the West Coast. Who was this man they called “The Swift Swiss”?
Jean Pierre was described as handsome, charming, intelligent, confident and with an air of European sophistication. This photo taken in his early 30’s.
There were many reasons to immigrate to the United States in the 1950s – perhaps it was a job opportunity, a need to see more of the world or a desire to find a better way of life that motivated individuals to relocate from another part of the world. However, in the case of 22-year old Kunstle of Geneva, Switzerland, it was an American tourist that was the key factor in his moving to the U.S. in 1951.
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