specially developed to screen out gases known to depress the action of cilia in the respiratory tract. While at the time Larks were the only cigarette to used this special charcoal, there was no reason why other cigarette manufacturers could not add the substance to their filters and thereby achieve the same probable level of safety as Larks. "Speaking as a scientist," Fieser stated, "this filter represents a definite encouraging advance." He emphasized, however, that at least 20 years would have to lapse before mortality statistics of the type reviewed by the Surgeon General's committee would be available on the new filter. Fieser said that he, at the time, smoked Larks and occasionally a pipe. Though he stated that the safest course of action would be to stop smoking he refused to say whether he had any plans to quit. The report of the Surgeon General's committee, of which Fieser is a member, concluded that "cigarette smoking is a health hazard of sufficient importance in the United States to warrant appropriate remedial action." Sponsorship All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship Lark was the main sponsor of the Team Goh team which featured two McLaren F1 GTR cars to race in the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship under the name "Team Lark GTR". Debuting at the opening round at Suzuka Circuit, the Lark team took a 1-2 finish, with winners Naoki Hattori and Ralf Schumacher. At the following round at the Fuji Speedway, David Brabham and John Nielsen would take victory for the Lark McLaren. However, in the next two rounds, the Japanese rivals would overcome the McLarens, only to have Team Lark return to take victory in the final two rounds of the season. At the Sugo round, Lark badly damaged their one chassis, requiring them to borrow chassis #04R from GTC Competition as a replacement for the final JGTC round. With four victories on the season, Team Lark captured the GT500 teams championship ahead of factory squads from Toyota and Nissan. Team Lark would not return to defend their title in 1997, and no McLarens raced in the series. McLarens would return though in 1999 with Team Take One purchasing McLaren F1 GTR #19R, a 1997-spec car, for competition in GT500. The competition from Toyota, Honda, and Nissan had improved since the McLaren last raced, and therefore Team Take One struggled to be competitive, achieving only a best