17 replies to this topic

[richie]

I remembered this name from the 1960's driving a McLaren, I think.

I also think he was sponsored by a pirate radio station/Radio Luxembourg?

Anyone know what else he raced?

Is he still about?

[David Beard]

Here too...;)

http://forums.autosp...ight=Keith John

[sterling49]

I saw Keith drive some of his cars, IIRC, a plum coloured Elva BMW and a single seater, possibly a 1 litre F3 Brabham, recalled from a very poor memory. He featured strongly in the PR stakes at the Radio London Races, some of the programmes of the day had a photograph of him driving his Elva on the cover.This would have been around 1965 ish?

[David Force]

Was this the McLaren Malcolm Clube drove ?

[sterling49]

I think it was an Elva Courier with BMW 4 pot motor (IIRC)

[john aston]

He was driving at the first race meeting I ever attended at Snetterton.We drove there in my uncle's white Fiat 1500- Millecinquecento.It would have been about 1965 /6 - KSt J was driving a Radio London sponsored sports car - dark purple ? I can still remember the smell of racing oil - first time I had smelled it - very Proustian.And I remember thinking - at the age of 13 or 14 - what is the form when someone is killed ? Different times....... I was obsessed with military planes back then and it'd be another 3 or 4 years before I saw my next meeting at Rufforth....then Oulton ,then Croft etc

[Alan Cox]

Originally posted by sterling49
I think it was an Elva Courier with BMW 4 pot motor (IIRC)

I think, for once, sterling, your memory is playing tricks - I'm sure it was a MkVll

[sterling49]

Originally posted by Alan Cox

I think, for once, sterling, your memory is playing tricks - I'm sure it was a MkVll

It would not surprise me in the slightest Alan I watched him many times, can picture the car, colour, but certain things fade with age : Thanks for the compliment Alan, posting here makes one aware of just how knowledgeable the Forum is, and how much I have forgotten, sadly. I could even confirm it...if I could find where I have put my programmes away, safely of course

[richie]

Rarely does the forum fail to get the all important info.

Thanks

[raceannouncer2003]

According to Martin Krejci's site, St. John drove an Elva Mk 7 in 1965, and a McLaren M1 in 1966 and 1967:

Elva photo here:

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...bayphotohosting

and present whereabouts here:

http://www.ecuriesca...n/elva-bmw.aspx

Vince H.

[Michael Henderson]

Yes, the various links noted above provide a lot of history on Keith St John and the Elva Mk VIIs BMW chassis 65, including the fact that I bought it from Ken Sheppard in 1967 and brought it out to Australia with me. I sold it in the early seventies but bought it back again in 1998, and still have it. The Ecurie Scalpel web site (as linked above) has a picture of it as it is now. As others have said, when Keith drove it, it was a plum/purple colour, but this was changed to royal blue just before I originally bought it and I have returned it to that colour.

My friend Ed Holly has the Sheppard/St John/Radio London team's Brabham BT15.

As a matter of interest to Elva buffs, Ken and Keith had cooling problems with the car, and changed it to a single central radiator. That's why the nose looks a little different to the original original, with the additional air intake similar to a Lotus 23.

And thanks to Vince H for the link to the photo for sale on Ebay - part of that picture is in Pritchard's book on British sports-racing cars of the fifties and sixties, but I have put in a bid for the photo for sale. Others please keep out!!

[David Force]

Originally posted by raceannouncer2003
According to Martin Krejci's site, St. John drove an Elva Mk 7 in 1965, and a McLaren M1 in 1966 and 1967:

Elva photo here:

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...bayphotohosting

and present whereabouts here:

http://www.ecuriesca...n/elva-bmw.aspx

Vince H.

Yes it was the M1 which I had in mind that Clube drove with great aplomb (as he did with everything else ) now he would be the ideal subject for a thread...

[David McKinney]

Originally posted by David Force
now he would be the ideal subject for a thread...

Hear hear
I used to see him at all the meetings but haven't for a while. Is he still around?

[David Force]

Originally posted by David McKinney

Hear hear
I used to see him at all the meetings but haven't for a while. Is he still around?

Very much so and pretty much unchanged, still with (slightly grey ) pony tail and different coloured socks.

When I used to work in Lancaster Mews, sadly after all the motor sporting businesses had left, Clube would call around and keep us entertained for ages.

A visit to his lockup garages at the back of Olympia was a real experience.

[bradbury west]

[i]Originally posted by David Force
Very much so and pretty much unchanged, still with (slightly grey ) pony tail and different coloured socks.
[/B]

I recall at a Modena trackday at Thruxton in 1986ish he did the first bungee jump I had seen, from a platform suspended from the hook and cable at the top of a fully extended crane.
Roger Lund

[MikRo]

I used to know Keith fairly well in the early 70's, he had a parafin sales business based in Willsden at the time. I helped him get a Formula 4 car ready to race, here the memory fades but it definately had an Imp engine and I think it was a Merlyn chassis. I think we went to Brands for a test/race.

Mike

[sterling49]

Originally posted by MikRo
I used to know Keith fairly well in the early 70's, he had a parafin sales business based in Willsden at the time. I helped him get a Formula 4 car ready to race, here the memory fades but it definately had an Imp engine and I think it was a Merlyn chassis. I think we went to Brands for a test/race.

Mike

I am pretty sure that Formula 4 was powered by Imp engines, and the popular chassis at the time was Vixen (IIRC). I do not recall seeing Keith in one of these cars, the driver of the day in this formula was (again IIRC) Pat Longhurst. Rapid little cars, very pretty.

[richie]

I think Chris Featherstone McRae F5000 drove a Formula 4 but I may be incorrect.

Is the formula still about or did it fizzle?