Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Former Grand Prix tuner Nobby Clark, 68, became a U.S. citizen on September 27, in New York City, New York.

Clark, who was born to British parents in the country of Rhodesia, which is now known as Zimbabwe, tried for years to get a British passport, including gathering documents and records showing his family’s English roots going back 150 years. Clark finally gave up his pursuit of the British passport, registered as a Resident Alien in the United States (where he has lived and worked since 1993) and began the long process of obtaining U.S. citizenship.

“It dragged on and on. I went for a medical exam and finger prints. I didn’t hear anything for it must have been two years, then I got a letter to go for this interview, which is a normal thing.

“The crazy thing about it was I couldn’t understand the guy who was doing the interview. His English was so bad that my attorney, who was with me, had to interpret. He was a nice guy and all and I’m sure he was a U.S. citizen, but he was interviewing me for citizenship and he could barely speak English!

“I didn’t hear anything more for 18 months, then I got a letter telling me to be in New York City at the Federal Plaza at 9:00 a.m. Monday morning. I got there at 8:00 a.m.”

Clark’s swearing-in ceremony took place two days before his 68th birthday. “As a birthday present, I don’t think anything could have been better,” Clark told Roadracingworld.com.

Clark is best known for tuning for the Honda factory Grand Prix team during the 1960s, followed by a long stint with Yamaha, during which, “I worked with Kenny (Leroy) Roberts until he retired, all eight years he raced in Europe,” said Clark.

Clark is currently working in a small Ferrarri shop in upstate New York.