More "Senior" (F1) Racing in the 1960s *Look
for Here you can see the cars of Johnny Ayling, Barry Hebborn, USAF's Jim Berg, Roger Minkley, Barry Van den Oetelaar, Rog Taylor, USAF's Ted Janes, Jock Lloyd, Geoff Harrison,Reg Pryor, Darkie Wright, Melvyn Bassey, Alan England, Frankk Bourne, Brian Tuplin, Jim Esau, Rod Dore, George Ansell, John Pratt, Tony Wicks, Chick Woodroffe, John Scott, Karl Grossman, Jim Potter, Skid Skinner, and Bill Harrison.August 2010 note: here I am giving credit to do-it-yourself budget racers, on this labour-of-love nonprofit website where everything has been donated free by kind fans, and someone is snagging the photos and selling them on eBay ---.  August 2010: Passed on to me by Kevin Crabtree, Two night-time photos of Roy Goodman #163 at a shale track, unidentified, date approx 1970. Roy on his own, kicking shale from that outside wheel; and lined up with 37 Don Evans [note: it is 163 though the camera angle makes it look like an 88; compare the two photos]Denis [one 'n'] Irving #485 from Nottingham, here shown "on the hook" at Brafield. July 2010: From
an anonymous donor, a couple of photos from the May 1963 Henson Trophy
meet at Brafield, the wild and woolly 'Consie' race in which the 25
starters were reduced to 5 finishers, with Tony Wicks the winner.
In the first shot, a tangle between #290 Ernie Savory [Oxford] and #438 Goerge Venables [Harlow], as Ian Ireland 314 misses the mess. Then, Oxford's Don Evans 37 gets his front end well and truly embedded in the fence, requiring the big hook. But
let's start this section with some reminders that the programmes
gave us more than just the cars. In 1962, below left, "Miss
Brafield" was Maggie Ford. The 1963 contest is below right:   February 2010:
Matcham's Park (Ringwod, nr. Bournemouth) in 1961
advertized a bargain restaurant: 4/- with a tip!  Trivia:
what were you or your parents earning in 1961? A
Leeds United
professional football player got £20 a week basic before various
bonuses and extras; by 1966 they got about £30.   May 2010: Neill Crookes #15 from Sheffield sent this colour photo of his handsome Topolino-bodied car, and
it has regrettably sat in my files for months. It was Neill's
first car, powered by a 292 cu.in. Ford V-8. His later cars appear in
the SEVENTIES section. Neill raced from 1967 to 1978 and says "arriving at a bend and finding you're not slowing, courtesy of someone's front bumper, can really focus your attention." Above: the Darkie Wright # 7 in the Coventry pits in 1966 — classic racing
and engineering. ---Have
you ever said "Small world"? Well, unknown to me at the time, the two young gents standing turned out to be Barry Redman [hands in pockets back
to camera], who would become a racer in #151, and Pete Webb with the
scarf and programme, who was to be #8 --- they were
schoolmates then. In 1966 I was
standing only 12 feet away; then in September 2009 Barry got in touch,
and you can see his and Pete's first cars at Webb snr's garage, at the
top of my "Seventies" page.
Above: Jock Lloyd's Morris being readied for action in Brafield's pits, 1964.
Above:
the 1964 World Champ, the late great Trevor Frost drove this classic;
it was restored for the Stu Smith Testimonial meeting, and Trevor's son
Andrew remembers with awe watching his father "muscling that big car round
the track", just like he had done in the good old days. Photo taken at the Ipswich track's 50th anniversary meeting. The car is now
in private hands near Derby. April 2010: Wham-bam rollover: in that big cloud of dust is #304 Willie Wanklyn from Stevenage, on the back straight at Brafield in 1962. Ouch! January 2010: From a Coventry programme, dated 1966, Pete Poole #129 from Leicester, reflects on the damage those fence posts could inflict. April 2009: Prize days at Brafield: Trevor Richings scanned this programme. In 1962, what looks like an end-of-season celebration with some famous names looking cold and muddy. Ken Freeman #61 from Sunbury-on-Thames raced, and built cars for other racers, and here he's collecting the 1962 Marathon Trophy. Second, in 1965 Barry Hebborn collects the prize while Graham Guthrie waits patiently (??) with the microphone. Graham did wonders and hard work for Brafield over the years, but 'show-biz smiles' were not in his job description ----. Geoff Barnett was invaluable at Brafield Stadium right from its first 1955 meeting --- and here's his official photograph. Action at Brafield in 1962, from Trev.R. : Trevor Frost 68 misses the tangle between 261 Derek Mountney from Thames, and a "Tip-Top" sponsored car which may be Chick W. (?). In 1963, Ellis Ford helps push the Don Evans (37) car down the straight. Ellis and Freddie Mitchell were both lap record holders in 1961/62. In 1965, Les Taylor and his brother do some victory celebrations [this photo may appear elsewhere on my site]. Les
Taylor was a butcher by trade, but was not afraid of carving a
bunch-of-bananas exhaust system for his his 383 cu.in. Lincoln motor. About three years ago, along with some great Jumbo Tustin photographs, I was kindly given these three scans of a truly rare document: the 1965 Stock Car Racing News 4th "Dinner and Dance" and awards ceremony. The late Aubrey Sutton's wife Diana sent these (Aubrey was Jumbo T's mechanic in 'the god old days"). Here's the cover of the evening's programme. Then see the puns and jokes for the menu, (eg. the first course is called 'EAT ONE) and the list of awards, where Ellis Ford walked away with an armload. This lonely "fencer" # 444, Brafield, 1963 is Ted Elliot. Brian Goodspeed recognized Ted's Roy-Goodman-built car. (Brian founded the British Stock Car Racing Supporters' Association along with bro Roger, and Dave Simmonds and Barbara Stevens, and earlier had sold Peter Arnold's "Stock Car Racing News" around the tracks. This keen bunch also drove a huge old Humber, and towed such cars as Terry Coell's, Chick Woodroffe's, and Johnny Allen's. Brian Goodspeed (what would you give for that surname!) raced F2's in England and later in the Isle of Man where he settled.
"Hurricane Hits Harringay" 1962-65 Albert Holmes 488 from Oxford at a jaunty angle in 1961; this is a classic early-sixties car: Three-car tangle in 1962 featuring [number invisible] 377 Merv Kirby on his side, thanks perhaps to Bermondsey's Duncan Hamilton 281, while Vic Wright 453 goes by. Nineteen programme scans from Trevor Richings, who was Rod Dore's travelling mechanic. [Note: as with most tracks, Harringay sometimes used photos from previous years.] A Harringay programme cover from 1965. Reg Pryor 189 from Plaistow goes the opposite way from Tony Wicks 93. A classy crowd get crowded: Allen Briggs 138, Dougie Wardropper 5, and legendary car builder Ken Freeman 61 from Sunbury-on-Thames, are being avoided by Don Evans 37. Syd Hinds 158 from 'Brum' and 265 Jim Moyes from Maida Vale lock Morris and Fiat wheels. This looks more like a fifties car. #189 was Reg Pryor's from 1960-1963, but if Harringay dipped haphazardly into its files, this could be Bob Cox's car from 1959. Dennis de Quincy from Walton-on-Thames in #207 scatters the barrels with the help of 314 Ian Ireland from Nazeing. In this grainy half-tone photo, which may be Harringay, and is probably 1961, 323 is abandoned as 226 "brews up" big-time. Pierre Ryan from Colliers Wood was 323, and Tom Penfold from Headcom Kent, would have to cope with his 226. John Symondson 324 from Edgware gets a 'scoop' on 453 Vic Wright from Harrow, assuming 1963's season. [Jack Reinbeck had the number twice before this date] Albert Holmes gets it wrong in # 485, and naturally Dougie W gets it all right as usual. Another Albert, "Chignell from Chelmsford" in # 186 has what must be the most bruising kind of incident in all of motor sport. Forget Indianapolis crashes: try ramming a Harringay steel H-beam with your no-crumple-zone-or-airbag British Stock Car. Allen Briggs 138 looks composed and calm, receiving the Embassy trophy. I I don't know why I put up with Embassy for years; they were awful fags ---but then I also drank 'orrible Watneys Red Barrel. Thank heavens the 'real ale' movement came along. Eddie Asling and Ron Cayzer collect the goodies for their Junior F2 and Senior F1 wins. Barry van den Oetelaar escapes through the absent windscreen of his Renault 4CV bodied car, while Ted Pankhurt's 104 car aims at the sky. Ray Pearce 234 from Walworth avoids this crash; cannot quite se the numbers on the other cars. Unknown racers (Juniors or Seniors?) tangle at Green Lanes Bend. Willis, Wardropper and Ford get the trophies from a CHARMING Eve Clark. Harringay's programmes apply "charming" to every presenter; hey, couldn't they call Ellis "charming" ----?! Jim Potter in his always-smart 146 pushes a sideways Fred Mitchell 38, while 278 Harry Linney from Loughton plays it safe. Ted Pankhurst wins the bubbly; the umbrella is 'just in case. Seems silly now, but things like the fancy furniture appeared at many Harringay prize givings. "Best for Last" in this sequence, at least these were my heroes: Ted, Jock, and Chick all get on the gas, the roar goes up, and the best sport in the world gets under way --------------------.
Below: Sunny Sunday at Brafield in 1964, and a neck-and-neck match race (remember those?) between the identical cars of Ted Pankhurst and Doug Wardropper.  Walthamstow Wild Men Nine more programme scans by Trevor Richings show us this action from 1963 to 1965: No. 30 on its nose, acrobatics courtesy of Maxie Bacon from Plumstead, in 1964. Infield, track, barrels, who cares, we're all here having fun in 1963: Barry Hebborn 282, Doug Mason 250 from Oxford, Peter Guinchard 472 from Edgeware, and I can't guess the rest. A tangle on the straight: # 238 Barry Brew from Deptford, # 5 Dougie W., and a mystery 355: not registered in 1963; 355 was Roy Allen in 1961, and Brian Carter in 1965; if it were 365, it could be John Piper. Londoner Vic Ferriday # 73 wins the "Capstan Cup", balancing the 'capstan' and himself on the lap of honour in 1965. Players Capstan ciggies, an old advertising sign. Remember the advertising motto "Let Capstan Take the Strain" on the telly? Were you tough enough for Capstan Strong Unfiltered? Several jingles here George Ansell 475 (more often under 375), must be pre-1964, in a mess, with 322 Nobby Clarke from Basildon. Lots more pics of George Ansell further down this page. The Walthamstow programme for the Stow Cup, showing 12 drivers; big jpg image, I don't know how clear this will come up. The Rod Dore Story
October 2009: ex-racer
Ian Melton recalls this fascinating incident with regard to Rod Dore:
towards the end of the 1962 racing season, Rod and his wife Megan
organized a weekend party for friends, at their Mill Hill home,
naturally inviting some of the "Yanks". The day before the
party, an apologetic phone call from the Chelveston base told that none
of the USAF flyers could come because of "a situation". The radio
and TV news then announced the Cuban Missile Crisis,
and Ian and his friends realized that many of the US personnel were "in
the air / off the tarmac" in shifts, 24 hours a day, in their bombers
--- just in case. The rest were glued to their radar.
"We'll be wearing our tin hats on Monday!" was the typical joking
British response. JULY 2009: Bless the InterNet -- another character in the Rod Dore story has contacted me. Ian Melton, from Stanmore at that time, raced under #403
from 1960 to 1962, in the old Jumbo Allen car, here seen parked behind
Willie Wanklyn. A night shot at Harringay in 1961 with Ian spinning in front of Aubrey Leighton
and with Chick Woodroffe in the background. Here Ian 403 rides the barrels at his only Long Eaton appearance [ beside #121 who could be George Radwan or Ron Amas]. Ian also travelled
and mechanic'd with Rod Dore when Trevor Richings was not available.
Ian gave me the inside story on Rod's famous ex-Vanwall Ferrari gearbox; Rod mounted it remotely further back in the car, and drove it with an angled shaft from the engine bellhousing. Another innovation,
later copied by other drivers in their own ways, was to cut 2.5 inches
out of the left-side chassis member, so that the left side axle end was
pulled back. Indy cars used to do something like this in the old days,
and it made the right-front wheel "bite" harder and reduced the left
front's drag and interference --- Ian tried the set up and
reports that #35 basically wanted to turn left all the
time, requiring a strong arm down the straight. Ian also said
that the car was so fast because it was so much lighter and easier to
drive than the competition. Ian sent the following Dore photos:
first, the Morry Oxford with some damage but without the neat hood scoop seen on a later photo, and an earlier car written-off in the track fence. Next, Rod stands beside the Fiat 600 (which Ian Melton helped to build), relatively undamaged. Then, the "little 'un" lining up
beside Jim Berg's famous super-powerful # 471. The Fiat was
bought in Ealing as a write-off, but the mechanical parts were sold to
break even for the body, on which Ian himself painted the name Rod Dore.
Towing it between Ealing and Rod's Mill Hill home brought a ticket ----
one rear wheel was missing a tyre, so the North Circular got a free
groove cut in it, displeasing the constabulary. Ian retains
detailed and happy memories of the early 1960's, its heroes and a few
"villains" too, and almost 50 years later a knee occasionally
reminds him of the 1960 Harringay 20-lapper which he drove his 403
without brakes until the last lap when the track fence put a sudden and
painful stop to his progress! Like quite a few others from that
era, Ian says that stock car racing taught him much about human nature,
such as how to recognize empty threats and fake boasting; but above all
that wonderful, famous, and true element: (Ian's words:) "drivers who would shunt you off the track, curse you etc. but if you broke down on the
way home they would lend you their last spanner." A big thank-you to Ian for all this info.
Thanks to both Ken Mason and especially to Rod Dore's one-time travelling mechanic Trevor Richings, for the scanned photos. Trev was generous in telling the Rod Dore story to me. Rod was a pure racer, here, middle photo, shown in his # 35, not a rough-and-tumble crasher, and was known for smooth reliable driving. "Rod was softly spoken, and although he shared the laughs at the drivers meetings, he never shouted at anyone and in fact never had a bad thing to say about anyone, drivers or otherwise," Trevor recalls. Rod's unobtrusive skills kept him in the A (blue top) and Star (red top) grades for most of his career from the mid fifties to 1966. Rod was 3rd in the 1963 World Championship, and also 3rd in the World Semi-final. If you had to give a fragile GLASS trophy to a stock-car racer, then smooth-driving Rod was probably the right man. But he did not duck out of barrel-jumping on the Brafield back straight, with 68 Trevor Frost in the background and 439 (High Wycombe's Les Taylor) ahead.
At Walthamstow, one of his favourite tracks Rod parades with the chequered flag and trophy in 1964. Rod shares the Fan Club Derby limelight with Alan Wardropper, Jock Lloyd, and Fred Mitchell.Here is Rod on the cover
of the Feb/March SCRN for 1962. Parading after a win, in the November 1964 SCRN.
Rod raced a beloved Morry, shown
here in 1960 with his custom radiator inlet and hood scoop (surely
influenced by the aerodynamics he'd seen on that Vanwall). Rick Young sent this colour photo (rare enough back then) of Rod with his car in the Brafield pits. Rod raced well everywhere:He divided his time between stock-car racing and his job as a racing
mechanic for the famous British Grand Prix teams Connaught
with their screaming 4-banger Alta engines (the team was bought out by one Bernie Ecclestone in 1958, sound familiar? Rod also worked for Vanwall.
Pit scene 1. Pit scene 2. Vanwall was the project of millionaire industrialist Tony Vandervell who
owned Vandervell Bearings in Rod appeared on screen,
uncredited, as a race mechanic in the film THE
GREEN HELMET, and travelled to If he wasn't already busy enough, Rod also did some writing for the BSCDA; here he explains the then-new Junior 10 formula. Here the Harringay promoter uses Rod for some humour. When Trevor Richings was a youngster he
financed his train-spotting trips by cleaning cars. One day he discovered
Rod's three cars (including an ex-RAF Standard Vanguard van), parked on his
street. Being keen, he offered to clean it, and from then on became Rod's
buddy and helper. Trev travelled all over with Rod Dore for years, until
Rod emigrated. In
1960 Trev accompanied Rod to several scrap yards to re-build the racer with Trevor remembers the
drinks and
laughter, mixed with moaning over winnings and start money, after
racing at
Harringay. Like many a mechanic looking back on those days, Trev
reckons
it was a terrific way to grow up and learn about life. Here are
two "treasures" that many a driver and mechanic have kept over the
years: Trev's BSCDA overall badges: One, and Two, and the solid metal BSCDA car badge. And like many a
racer, Rod taught his helper practical skills and "the right way to go
about things", which Trev still gratefully remembers today (as a busy HGV
man behind the wheel of his 'artic'). Rod made a point of meeting up with
Trevor again in 1969 and 1981 when he visited back from Below: Rod is in the World Final pre-race lineup, front row right, (squinting in the sunlight) next to Johnny King in this photograph:
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————- Here's a no-nonsense character for you: under the number 339, Arthur Townsend bought good cars one after the other, and went hell-for-leather against his many rivals. The black/white car shown here was an ex-Toon car. Next photo is of Arthur Townsend on parade at Brafield. Townsend was Welsh, from Pontypridd, growing up hard in the "dirty thirties", and moving to Leicestershire set about building his own grocery business alongside his father and brother (travelling vans/converted buses). Before entering stock-cars, Arthur had done very well in the early days of kart racing. Arthur advanced from B to A grade briefly, and contested the 1967 World Championship at Harringay, which was just one of the occasions he got into a real ding-dong with Ellis Ford. Arthur also tangled with one of the Cayzers (John) at Brandon, getting them both suspensions, and Charles Ochiltree even wrote about it in the Brandon programme. "Uncle Arthur took no crap from anyone", commented his nephew. His team buddies in stock-car racing were "Davie" Crocket, Jack Lord, and Bryn Davies. Although this website likes to emphasize a cheery all-friends image of our beloved sport, the whole truth has to include the fact that many if not most drivers had a tough side, and a full-contact sport means that tempers are lost and grudges are remembered. As Ochiltree points out (and we all know) that wonderful big smile of Fred Mitchell's would be on his face just before and just after he stuffed you in the fence or gave you a warning in the pits —. After he left racing, Arthur turned his hand to several businesses, and ran the Tudor Hotel in Leicester and a flourishing bar, the "Tivoli", in Gibraltar. Arthur passed away at age 76 in 2004 while living in Coalville Leicestershire (yes, also home of the Toons). My thanks to Jim Patterson, who, as Arthur's young nephew 40 years ago, had the thrill of following the stox "circus" from track to track, and who first got me digging up these facts. Thanks also to Steve Gateley, Ken Mason, and Rick Young. I have had the following photo 'buried & lost' in my computer files for a long time, but now it has surfaced. Dave Berresford #260, waiting calmly for the shale storm to start at White City stadium, with arms resting on each door. He also appears in one of the sport's most spectacular "flying" photos, in the 1970's section of this site. Johnny Piper raced under numbers 365 and 10. (photographer unknown). He achieved red-top status and also had the honour (?!) of piloting that famous "COP CAR" at Brandon Stadium. It was a WW2 Daimler armoured scout car which (fortunately?) had its two-pounder cannon removed from the turret. Fans from the old days recall it was driven onto the track as a barrier to protect a car and driver that had been rolled and was vulnerable. For old hands and newcomers I will insert a photograph and a drawing of the kind of armoured vehicle, often called a "Ferret" here: Photo, and Drawing. Johnny was from the London area, and raced at Harringay, West Ham, Ringwood, Belle Vue, and others from the late 1950's to the early 70's, and also held positions in the BSCDA. He used an Olds Rocket motor, which was probably what powered him to a 3rd place in the 1968 British Championship at Harringay. Thanks to Rick Young and Roger Melanaphy for the background info. Page out of history — Ron Knight kindly sent this scan from the stock-car album. Ron and his wife at one time ran the Tony Allen fan club. One-time Brafield deejay Rick Thomas sent this classic 1962 photo of "the usual suspects" on the job: Ralph Howley's V-8 Pilot spun, while Mick Lewis 191, Albert Chignall 186, 'Lightning" Bob Laurie 98, and Johnny Goodhall 200 find their way past. Crunch Crunch, in 1963 by the pits bend there was always head-banging fence action: can anyone identify the cars?
It happened so often that you could call it the "Fred-and-Frida" show — so often did superstar Fred Mitchell collect the goodies from the wonderful Frida Arnold, wife of the sport's great ambassador Peter Arnold.Thanks to Ken Mason, here is a nice programme photo of Fred Mitchell as winner of the 1966 World Championship at Belle Vue, being congratulated by the NEWS OF THE WORLD SPONSOR. From Aycliffe in 1967, two nice photos courtesy of racer John Rigg. Two "little" F1 cars that look slim enough to be F2's but they aren't. Foreground is Earl Testo #389 in a space-framed Pontiac motor, and behind is Ron "Dixie" Dean the Aycliffe promoter in a space-framed Ford powered motor.One of the drivers who stayed faithful to Jaguar power was Terry Coell #133, who would tow his car all the way 'oop North' long before there was an M6. Terry was from Plaistow, East London, the same as another Jag exponent, Les Suckling #132. How did two Jag racers from the same place get numbers 132 and 133 assigned, I wonder? January 2010, and Nigel Harradine has sent this snap of Les Suckling, ciggy in mouth, manoeuvring his Jag special in the pits at Harringay in 1965.Rick Young reminds me (from hard experience) from the photos that instead of today's luxury transporters, these guys towed the racer on dolly wheels. Here is Terry Coell's Mini-bodied Senior racer in the pits at Brafield, autograph added. And for his fans, a choice of this sticker, or that sticker. [Rick Young collection].The car that changed the game. Once in a decade or more, a car appears that moves stock-car racing 'up' or 'forward'. This one did it for the sixties, built by Johnny Brise, who won the World Championship with it in 1959 and 1960 under number 103. Johnny King inherited this car, [and it bears King's #6 in this photo]. Keith Barber's books and magazines have often described the machine — a mix of Mercedes, Jeep, and Ford that simply revolutionized the idea of 'handling'. Brise was a brilliant engineer, who also pioneered go-karts in the UK, and whose famous son Tim tragically died just as he was making a name for himself in Grand Prix F1 racing with Graham Hill.
The family that races together —- stock-car racing is known for its
"tribal" character: old hands can recite dozens of families in
which different generations competed (The Scrivens had three
generations on the track at one time) . Here are the famous TOONS
from Coalville — and
I suspect the Coalville phone book has dozens more. I'm
never sure just how many Toon brothers were racing -- but here are
two shots of Jack Toon #199. First, catching
a ride with Ellis Ford in 1966; then, his immaculate
car, which was later raced by Brian Tuplin.
Below: Spinning at Harringay in approx 1967.
Johnny Ayling # 299 going round and round, helped by 282 Barry Hebborn. That Ayling body lookslike a pickup, and if so, did BriSCA ban it like they did to Keith Barber's F2 pickup? Sadly, Harringay Stadium is no more. Barry Hebborn from Oxford had raised the stakes in the mid sixties by importing a brand-new NASCAR racing 427 Ford V-8 motor built by Holman & Moody -- probably a thousand pounds even back then. His ex-Jim Berg (USAF) car was already a hot number that made a few drivers jealous: # 282.
The photo is taken from the Veteran driver's newsletter. Barry H. had asked Fred Mitchell to try out that new 427 motor. The car rode up the fence wires, hit the floodlight pole, dropped down sideways, and the steel RSJ pierced the car just 6 inches behind the driver's seat! Mechanic Pete Schafer ran over and found Fred uninjured still in the seat. You can see that both axles were torn off, and the tire 'cushions' that probably saved this from being a lot worse. Roger Minkley, from Gamston, Notts, was an occasional racer who was known as dealer and collector of diecast models; this car was an ex-Rod Falding motor. Can you squeeze an American V-8 motor into a Mini? Yes, and still leave room for Rog Taylor in his 198 car.
A nostalgia special: Ted Janes was a USAF airman who raced with the Alconbury Spartans stock-car team based at USAF Alconbury (Huntingdonshire). Here he is in 1966 but with a new car that harks back to the 1950's -- Ted built this #66 as a nostalgia exercise for demonstration runs. Dick Young provided the photo, but tells me that those shiny chrome wheel trims were removed before Ted ran this thing in anger. And here from another fan is Ted's autograph: janesauto.jpg July 2010: Great photos of Ted Janes, courtesy of hot-rod WC Gordon Bland:Ted putting on a lively Wild West act at Harringay in 1965 --- the young woman equipped themselves with holsters and "Colt .45's". Ted celebrates his win at one of the rare Brands Hatch races, which was also filmed by Pathe News and is viewable elsewhere on this site. "Friendly" Ted Janes puts the bumper to #161 Ken Sheridan from Enfield --- at Brands Hatch.
Jock Lloyd 131
Much thanks to Chris Holmes for the following photos and facts. Chris apprenticed to Jock at his White House garage, and travelled with Jock as race mechanic — what a great way to learn your trade. Chris could be found in the garage by the age of 12 and was stripping and rebuilding Jaguar engines by the age of 16. But Jock taught something else, just as important: total professionalism with the job and with people. Here are three scans of Stock Car News as it gave the wonderful results of the 1961 World Final at West Ham: The cover (Jock almost invisible in the background), and the two page write up with results (1) (2) . Sorry if I can't make the image clearer. Big thanks to the sender of this document: someone at the 1961 WF at West Ham carefully wrote down the placings of that historic meeting in their programme. Here is history! Also, Jock's Mk 7 Jag, his Morris-bodied stock-car, and finally Chris Holmes himself with his MG Magnette saloon at his first (Spedeworth) race. With this car Chris won the Walker Bennett Trophy for white-tops in 1971, then was promoted to blue top status. If you look at the bonnet, you'll see a partial word "-ock", which I thought referred to Chris's old boss "Jock", but it is part of Chris's racing nickname (guess what goes with HOLMES) --- Sherlock. The Walker-Bennett trophy came with the princely sum of 25 pounds. The MG raced and also hit fences at Aldershot, Eastbourne, and Wimbledon until it gave up the ghost. Chris recalls the long-ago pleasures of travelling and racing for TWO QUID start money, towing the Magnette on a converted caravan chassis behind his trusty Mk II Zephyr. "Those were the days". Thanks to Chris "TOTTER" Holmes (lucky man had two nicknames to choose from) for info on the photo I took many many years ago in the Brafield pits, of Jock's Andy Capp Special, is a Morry MINOR on an XK140 chassis, and it won the World in 1961. "Totter" recalls the signwriting being done by a brilliant paint man named Frank Howlett, who taught Chris the art. Frank Howlett was the starter at the Staines track in 1958. Chris still remembers the joy of Victory 46 years ago, AND the next morning's hangover! 'Totter' Holmes worked for Jock in the 1950's and 1960's, and he gratefully remembers the late Jock Lloyd's character as a man -- something that several veteran drivers' friends and mechanics have mentioned to me — there seemed to be something just a bit special about that generation of drivers. In the next photo, which I was pleased to take with my 48-shilling plastic "Brownie Cresta" camera, Jock had rebuilt his Jag to look like a US "supermodified", and had tuned the motor up to 'Le Mans' standard by bolting on three twin-choke Weber carbs:
In 1968 Rick Young photographed the same Jock Lloyd Jag at Swindon's track. Fans could buy this transfer. [Rick Young collection] Jock first raced at Staines in 1955, and his last win was in 1966 at Harringay. Jock died in 2000, and is missed especially by VSCA members, for whom he was president for years. Thanks to Trevor Richings for these two dramatic photos of Jock Lloyd at Brandon, parading beside Chick Woodroffe (who as usual has his pipe in his mouth---) in 1965 or 66. --- and here in (?1962/3?) in his Jaguar XK140, getting rough with 6 Johnny King, 138 Allen Briggs, and 347 Barry Johnson. Wish I knew more about Geoff Harrison and his tidy # 127 "Senior" at Brandon (Coventry) 1966, Geoff's bomb. Anyone know Geoff? Thanks, Roger Harris, who was mechanic for Geoff. Harrison was one of the Cheltenham drivers, sponsored by Denis Blunt. Geoff was also in the Malvern "A" skittles team which was made up mostly of stock-car drivers and mechanics! It is sad to record Geoff Harrison's passing, April 2004 at the age of 75. Thanks to Di Sutton, here's a programme photo of Geoff Harrison "The Cheltenham Flyer". Geoff Harrison is visible on the left, white overalls, in this Brandon photograph that shows the high-reach crane they used in the fifties and sixties to unload stock-cars from their transporters — younger fans may not know the ingenious ways that drivers carried their cars; at least one chap (one of the Wesley brothers) would arrive with his stock-car in the back of his dump-truck. At Brafield some cars would simply drive off their flatbed onto the back slope of the spectator banking.
Oops, at Leicester in 1963: Geoff Harrison 127 gets pushed around by Mike O'Hara from Mansfield 372 and 250 Doug Mason from Oxford. [Programme scan from Trevor Richings] Dick Young tells me the rear bodywork on Reg Pryor's car (1968) is from a BMW Isetta bubble car. Reg Pryor # 109 Reg was from East London. Whatever became of bubble cars? Londoner Darkie Wright built quality racers: sheer craftsmanship. His cars were spotless, a fabricator's dream. Darkie's trademark was the Mercedes grille which looked like Mercedes-Benz had designed it specially for a stocker. There may have been some cleverer cars, but none were more neatly and thoroughly built. This photograph is Brandon (Coventry) 1966. Later he even shoehorned a big Jaguar V-12 motor into his Senior. Having begun at the sport's inception, 1954 at New Cross, where Darkie scored a 3rd place, he was still bouncing off steel girders at an age when most men have retired quietly to slippers and a footstool. Here is Darkie sharing the limelight with George Ansell; Darkie on the right of course. Darkie celebrates another victory at Brafield, with Miss Brafield (Maggie Ford). Note the white-painted regulation petrol-can "tank", and does anybody drink Ceres Danish beer today? [Photo from Carol Cockings] Thanks to Steve Gateley, a Brafield shot of Darkie's car in 1962. Of the three guys together, Darkie is on the left, then Johnny Piper #10, who after retiring from racing drove the famous Coventry "Cop Car" scout car, then Doug Warner #313. Darkie hung up his helmet at 62 years of age. Few people actually knew his name was William. Darkie lived to be 88 years old, bless him, and died in late 1999. Darkie Wright parading with the chequered flag at Brafield; date probably 1963. From Trevor Riching's scans, here is some pre-race comment on Darkie Wright; and here a mug shot of the "little Londoner" himself. Mel Bassey, #17, was not only Darkie Wright's son-in-law, but he obviously drove a Wright special; here escaping after a tangle with the Brafield fence. [Dick Young photo] Check the quality of Alan England's car: it's a Darkie Wright special of course. Alan's in the pits at Brandon (Coventry) in 1966. Here is Alan England in the Brafield pits, a photo I just dug out after 44 years. Frank Bourne raced yet another Darkie Wright special, which was originally built for Jim Potter in 1967, with a 1935 Ford Model Y body. This car represents the classic design a "golden age" stock-car, with 4"x2" RHS steel frame, Darkie's trademark Mercedes grille, transverse springs, powered by Buick. Frank Bourne, a farmer from Cheswardine, raced under # 16. [Dick Y. photo, and facts from a 1985 issue of Keith Barber's invaluable Stock Car Magazine.] Thanks to David Collins and Ant Jenkins for passing on this photo (possibly a Mike Greenwood pic?) of Frank Bourne #16, car and driver basking in brilliant sunshine at Hednesford Hills Raceway in approx 1968/69. Rick Young reckons these Y bodies were "The Business" as far as stock-car looks. Another Ford Y body can be seen on this sunny pits shot of 155 Brian Tuplin, of Lincolnshire. Jim Esau 244 DY photo in 1968. “Big Jim” was from Heston, Middlesex. (If you squint into the background you may see the famous Roll-Royce radiator grille on car 394 of John Pratt, a car that is still in the Pratt family.) Here is a Keith Barber drawing of Jim's car, from Keith's book WILD BILL TO WILDCAT: Jim Esau Art Drawing. It's Keith's copyright, so if you want to see more, track down the book second-hand. Big Jim Esau in the Brafield fence; [Dick Young photo]
George Ansell. A big thanks to Ian Snoad (who raced bangers, late 70s early 80s in car #331 and 509, as "Ian Williams"). Ian has obtained a fabulous set of professional photos, and has kindly sent me 9 files for this page. Ian wishes to remind everyone out there that the grand title "KING OF TAR" belongs to George Ansell, especially for his blinding speed at Harringay. Ian is in touch with George, who is still fighting fit at 70+yrs, and with George's ex mechanic Jim Bunyan. Ansell is a true gent, and presented Ian with one of his Harringay trophies and some programmes. Ian counts himself the No 1 Ansell fan from the age of 8, and at age 10 he also painted cars for banger champion Roy Syme (#55) of the notorious Harringay "Teddy Bears" team. A buddy of mine knew the Teddy Bears well, and reckoned the ownership history of some of those bangers was not always 100% kosher — "say no more, guv'nor". Some credit to Ian: here he is in his own blue # 509 car ready to rumble. And here he is "in the mix" at Harringay in his 331, as a rival barrel-rolls in the puddles.
http://www.harringayonline.com/video/stock-car-racing-at-harringay A winner: Ansell1.jpg And again: Ansell2.jpg On parade: Ansell3.jpg Brands Hatch Victory : Ansell4.jpg George mokin' tyres: Ansell5.jpg Bouncin' barrels: Ansell6.jpg Congratulations from (Johnny Hoskins??): Ansell7.jpg Another trophy: Ansell8.jpg Next, a stunning shot of George, power on, look at his hands on steering wheel, what a driver: Ansell10.jpg Ian, thanks a ton for these great photos. . I have added a nice trophy photo of George with Darkie Wright, up the page in Darkie's section.
George Ansell at Brafield in 1964, below. The photo was published in my article in AUTOCAR magazine in September 1965. That's Barry van den Oetelaar looking col as always on the far left. Ansell was a red-top in this pic, with a 389 cu.in. Pontiac under the battered hood, and and Austin A35 roof. 
1967 World Champion, George Ansell, 4 years later: here the gold-top car is being towed back into the pits at Brafield; pretty thin armouring for this level combat? Number has changed too. George Ansell #375
That unforgiving Brafield fence: John Pratt stuffs Tony Wicks into the steel post-and-cable track fence. Tony Wicks #93 was from Wisbech. Tony Wicks was racing as early as 1961, powered by Oldsmobile, when a second place at Harringay brought him the fortune of ten pounds. Tony's grandson Steve Taylor is racing today, and has been assigned his grandad's number #93. That 494 was famous for its Rolls-Royce radiator grille, which appeared on several Pratt cars -- much to the anguish of the Rolls Royce company. Thanks to Andrew Pratt (John Pratt's son), Brian Goodspeed, and to Stan and Diane of Farnborough for their race programme info.
John
Pratt on the trailer,
showing that famous grille in
the 1980's; it MIGHT be a genuine Roller grille, or a nice bit of replica work? Thanks to Steve Morralee,
in Canada, one of the mighty Pratt clan, for these two photos of Johnny
Pratt. Steve is John Pratt's nephew, and recalls with pleasure
following the stock-car "family" across England during holiday
breaks. JP 1, and JP
2. Time-travelling forwards
to the 1980's, here is Richard Pratt's
F1, still keeping up the "Rolls Royce" tradition, and still
based in Oxfordshire. But I'm not sure the Rolls-Royce factory actually made that grille —! Here are shots (early ones are professional jobs I think) of Tony Wicks, courtesy of Tony's grandson, racer Steve Taylor: First = Tony's heat win at Harringay in 1966 . Second
= Tony on the pace truck after a Harringay
heat win in 1963.
Third
= Happy trophy winner at
Long Eaton on 26th September 1964.
Fourth
= Tony's tough-looking car on a Brafield
parade lap in 1965 .
Fifth = The engine, being tackled by Tony. Sixth
= A Happy Tony beside his car.
Seventh = The third generation, Tony W. with his grandson, Steve Taylor, who races with Tony's old number 93, taken at King's Lynn. Chick Woodroffe on parade laps at Brafield. This guy always wore a feather in his hat. Chick's "Big 'Un" August 2010: Chick Woodroffe. again, in the pits, with Alan England's 24 car behind: [photo from Kevin Crabtree] Trevor Richings reminded me of Chick Woodroffe's then-famous contribution to road safety in Britain. In about 1963, when motorways were a novelty and nobody knew quite how they would work out, the Ministry of Transport did all kinds of research. One aspect was safety barriers, and the relative effectiveness of "armco" style steel barriers versus steel cables. Well, anyone with brains knew that the experts on "cars-into-cables" were stock-car racers, so the Ministry went to Chick, who was registered under # 409 that year, and asked him to bring his car along and did some hit-the-cables experiments. At different times, Chick had the #1 on his Senior and his Junior, and also had 409 on both cars.
Anyone recognize the track? And here is a night shot of John, masked and goggled and ready to rock. Track and date unknown.
The simple touch. It's easy to get impressed by high tech cars, but BriSCA stock-car racing flourished back then because people could stroll round the pits and see a car that made them say "Heck, we could do something like that". So, here are three strong and simple racers that filled out the grids and kept the racing alive:- Here is # 289, German Karl Grossman from Oxford. Karl used to work for Oxford racer Barry Hebborn. Karl was a p.o.w during World War 2, and like many, stayed on in England. He died only a couple of years ago. Here is an early (1963 or 1964) car run by Jim Potter (146) from Coventry. Jim raced F1's on and off for about 30 years — these guys have to be tough. A terrific colour photo of Jim Potter 146, distinctly more colourful than the old b/w shot above. Here he is at Brands Hatch circuit (thanks to a sharp-eyed Graham Brown for recognizing the setting) The big man, # 316 Ron
"SKID" Skinner
Contact
me on spratton@hotmail.com
|
Stock-cars
and Rock-stars? A message from "Rick" [Russ] Thomas the Brafield
deejay during the early sixties, and who really knows his rock 'n' roll,
tells me that a regular record-requester was Biddy Meek, the mother of
the great British sound engineer and rock producer JOE MEEK. Joe's
memory lives on in the 
![Denis [one 'n'] Irving #485](images/Dennis%20Irving.jpg){kind=link}
![[here he collects the kiss and the trophy at Brafield in 1964]](images/Rod%20kiss%20oct%2064.jpg){kind=link}
