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#1 Barry Boor

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 11:57

....Fred Meyer, Adolphe Mandirola and Kenneth Evans?

All three took part in the 1947 Grand Prix de Nice but a general search seems not to unearth any information other than their participation in this and some other events.

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#2 Geoff E

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 12:07

Kenneth Evans competed at Shelsley Walsh 11 Sept 1937 in 2.9 litre P3 Alfa

and

1 June 1946 "with the Alfa-Romeo in which Nuvolari had sensationally won the 1935 German GP".

(Midland Automobile Club centenary book "Ton up")

#3 David McKinney

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 12:16

Kenneth Evans raced MGs out of the Belle Vue Garage in Wandsworth, together with his brother Dennis and sister Doreen, from 1934, when he was 21. Chief mechanic was W E 'Wilkie' Wilkinson. K D Evans raced the Alfa from 1937, finishing ninth in that year's German Grand Prix but racing mainly at home, where he gained many placings in the major races. He switched briefly from the Alfa to a Maserati after the War, and was for many years after his retirement a prominent race official - I believe he was starter at the British Grand Prix

#4 taylov

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 15:16

Adolphe Mandirola is best known as a Maserati 8CM racer pre-war (in chassis 3008 according to several webpages).

Leif on the Golden Era website describes him thus - "Swiss driver. Raced first for Ecurie Genevoise then as a Maserati privateer. Was one of the last few privateers to race in GP racing in 1939."

He raced at Turin, Naples and the Eifelrennen in 1937, at the Swiss GP in 1937 and 1938, and the Belgian and German Grands Prix of 1939. In the last pre-war race at Spa he "blotted his copybook" by forcing Georg Meier's Auto Union off the road at Blanchimont.

His final appearance before the war was at the German GP of 1939 when he was disqualified for a fuel infringement.


Tony

Edited by taylov, 22 November 2012 - 20:43.


#5 Vitesse2

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 15:54

I believe Mandirola's first name is more correctly rendered as Adolfo, since he was of Italian extraction. Regular pre-war competitor in Swiss national events from at least 1933 but usually outshone by Max Christen, Armand Hug and Emmanuel de Graffenried. Prior to the neatly rebodied Maserati he had run both a Mercedes Benz and a Bugatti. He was still competing in hillclimbs in 1954 - he died in either 1958 or 1959.

#6 sramoa

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 20:10

Fred Meyer was from Zürich,amateur Swiss driver.My list think only in 1947 raced.Entered in Bremgarten event with bugatti(but I am not sure for this info),Nice and Comminges GPs.He has one more event in July in Malojapass(Maloja hillclimb) with Maserati car.

#7 Barry Boor

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 20:26

Thank you, gentlemen. So, two more Swiss to go along with de Graffenried, Fisher and Branca.

#8 taylov

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 20:42

Thank you, gentlemen. So, two more Swiss to go along with de Graffenried, Fisher and Branca.....


...and Hug (or are you excluding him for being largely a voiturette driver? )

Tony

#9 Barry Boor

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 20:44

Don't know Hug.

#10 simonlewisbooks

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 22:21

The Evans family, who raced extensively in the 30s, apparently derived their considerable family wealth (the Belle Vue Garage was more like a hobby) from a Grandfather(maybe Great Grandfather?) who'd been some sort of land agent in London when large areas were still open fields and marshland. He 'saw the future' and bought up tracts of land which became very valuable a few years later as the city expanded rapidly.
I was told this several years ago by someone( who's name I cannot now recall) researching a possible book on their racing exploits.

#11 taylov

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Posted 22 November 2012 - 22:57

Don't know Hug.


David McKinney produced an excellent brief review of his sadly short racing career here in 2002. Hug crashed in practice at Albi in 1939 and received serious head injuries from which he never recovered despite "surviving" another 40 years or so.

http://forums.autosp...p;hl=Armand Hug

Tony