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John Ogier and Essex Racing Team

Started by Bjorn Kjer , Jun 08 2008 13:06

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38 replies to this topic

#1 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 08 June 2008 - 13:06

A former officer becoming farmer at Rough Hill Farm in East Chaningham , near Chelmsford , John Ogier also raced cars himself in the mid 50's with a XK120 . Heavily involved with Tojeiro cars too and good friends with David Murray of EE he lend them "their" first Tojeiro. Ogier formed the Essex Racing Team in 1960 (not to be confused with Essex Wire RT) , and raced Cooper F2 and Aston DB4 Zagatos. Closing the team after 1962 he
started Ogle design and the highlight was designing the Reliant Scimitar.

Further infos are most welcome ! :smoking:

#2 Jerry Entin

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Posted 08 June 2008 - 17:09

Bjorn: John Ogier was not just any old farmer, he was a chicken farmer and more successful in this line of work than Carroll Shelby.
all research Willem Oosthoek.

#3 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 08 June 2008 - 19:01

I read somewhere he was a turkey farmer , but didnt consider this to be important to his racing .

#4 h4887

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Posted 08 June 2008 - 19:51

Originally posted by Bjørn Kjer
A former officer becoming farmer at Rough Hill Farm in East Chaningham , near Chelmsford ,
Further infos are most welcome !

I live quite near Chelmsford but I've never heard of East Chaningham

#5 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 08 June 2008 - 20:01

Thanks Geoff , a senior moment I would say , meant was East Haningfield , quite a difference eh ? Sorry about that! Perhaps you can confirm now ? :blush:

#6 eldougo

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Posted 09 June 2008 - 00:59

Bjørn......This maybe not any held to you however it may help track down some info regarding Mr Ogier.

When Ron Tauranac Ralt cars began its 2nd era in Snelgar(spelling) Rd in Woking UK.he employed a young James Ogier,he would have been in his mid 20st and he was still their when i last left the UK shores in 1981.
We became friends and he told me that his father was the designer of the Reliant Scimitar. I meet him once when james took me to his London home in 1975. He married a girl that used to work in the store and make wire looms, etc for Raltcars later on when we move back into the old Brabham works at Newhaw. They had a son and eventually parted company, she married Irish Dave who worked for Theodore racing for many years ,and then i ran out of contact with him i also would like to know where he is too.

#7 Leigh Trevail

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Posted 09 June 2008 - 07:05

John Ogier started Buxted Chicked, he was one of the first to see the potential of ‘Factory Farming’. In the fifties he met the landscape artist Cavendish Morton at a party, the two were talking about racing and Ogier asked Morton if he would style a racing car for him, this was to become the Tojeiro Jaguar.

#8 llmaurice

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Posted 09 June 2008 - 07:17

For what its worth Taylor & Crawley (Mike Taylor) supplied Ogier with 2 Fiat 2300 estate cars and two cars came in as part of the deal . They were 1VEV and 2VEV one of whick was raced in the Colibri Traphy at Silverstone in I believe 1964 ? the other was sold to John Vigers of Shell . The rest is history . I believe the short wheelbase car is valued at over £1,000,000 today

#9 Cirrus

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Posted 09 June 2008 - 16:07

I also remember James Ogier in the Ralt "Weylock Works" days. A little Googling has revealed that a James Ogier works at Silverstone Circuits - sounds like he'd be the right sort of age as well...

#10 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 12 June 2008 - 07:10

Thanks guys , I am however a bit surprised that not more has come ? Have I missed some sources. I believe I tried the net etc. but also know that Gaulds book on Tojeiro should have something ! :smoking:

#11 Doug Nye

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Posted 12 June 2008 - 22:38

Jimmy in the Essex Racing Stable '2 VEV' - captured by Geoff Goddard at the Goodwood TT; The car was later reduced to rubble by Lucien Bianchi at Spa, and replaced in effect under the same identity with a reprofiled and lightened version which came down to us as '2 VEV/2'...

Photo copyright: The GP Library

DCN

#12 Sharman

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 07:13

Doug
Ogiers Astons wqere originally DB4GTs, not Zagatos
John

#13 Dutchy

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 11:40

17TVX and 18TVX

#14 Sharman

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 15:11

And

739WMB

#15 Hugo Boecker

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 15:55

Hadn't Ogier brought a DBR1 and entered them at the Nürburgring and Le Mans in 1961/62

#16 Doug Nye

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 16:41

Originally posted by Sharman
Doug - Ogiers Astons were originally DB4GTs, not Zagatos. John

So?

DCN

#17 Paul Parker

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 19:56

I attended the 1961 and 1962 TTs and watched the Ogier Zagatos wallowing around like cabin cruisers in a heavy sea.

'Salvo' beat Clark to 3rd in '61 whose car suffered from an open bootlid, but it also seemed to lack 1 VEV's pace.

If anything the 1962 evocation of 2 VEV looked as if it was even worse handling than in its original guise and even with JC driving it was IIRC 3 seconds off Ireland's pole position GTO although significantly quicker than it had been the previous year.

They sounded great but were not as powerful as they should have been plus they were, despite the lightweight alloy body and all alloy engine, rather too heavy due to their very substantial steel chassis frame. The quoted weight in 1961 for a 'standard' car was 24.6 cwt, only marginally lighter than the DB4GT.

As for Ogier's DBRI/300 (DBR1/1) this was one of the original 1957 team cars and it retired at the Ring and Le Mans in 1961 but finished a worthy 5th in the 1962 Ring 1000 clicks driven by Cooper F1 team mates McLaren/Maggs.

#18 Sharman

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Posted 13 June 2008 - 21:07

My comment was just in case somebody got the impression that his Aston phase began with Zagatos

#19 raceannouncer2003

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Posted 14 June 2008 - 06:18

Nurburgring 1000 km, 1962

First photo - a great moment for the team...Maggs, I believe, in DBR1/1 and Clark in the Lotus 23 lead at the start.

Second photo - Maggs in the Aston which he and McLaren drove to 4th OA.

Posted Image

Photos by Ted Langton-Adams, copyright Eric Faulks, from the book Tom Johnston and I have edited.

Vince H.

#20 Paul Parker

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Posted 15 June 2008 - 12:23

Oops, yes McLaren/Maggs were 4th, but 5th on the road as the Gurney/Bonnier Porsche was NRF.

That'll teach me to pay more attention, or wear better glasses!

#21 eldougo

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Posted 21 June 2008 - 00:03

Originally posted by Cirrus
I also remember James Ogier in the Ralt "Weylock Works" days. A little Googling has revealed that a James Ogier works at Silverstone Circuits - sounds like he'd be the right sort of age as well...

Thanks Alan your googling has made me happy i just last night received an e-mail from James Ogier :up:

The power of this forum is just amazing. I am planing to catch up with him in Sept this year in the UK. :wave:

#22 ERault

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Posted 01 August 2008 - 19:20

I just realised that Essex Racing Team ran two F2 Coopers (said to be T51s) in the second part of the 1960 season. I can't find an entry for these cars in DCN's chassis records. Were those used 1959 cars ? or "back door" kit cars ?

#23 David McKinney

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Posted 01 August 2008 - 20:05

One at least was a T45, reputedly ex-Rob Walker RT
The other may have been a second-hand T51

#24 ERault

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 12:36

Thanks David. The ex-Walker bit raises the question how many T45s Walker really ran...

#25 David McKinney

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 15:37

Five, I think, though some had T43 chassis numbers ;)

#26 oldtimer

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Posted 04 August 2008 - 17:35

Originally posted by Paul Parker
I attended the 1961 and 1962 TTs and watched the Ogier Zagatos wallowing around like cabin cruisers in a heavy sea.

'

If anything the 1962 evocation of 2 VEV looked as if it was even worse handling than in its original guise and even with JC driving it was IIRC 3 seconds off Ireland's pole position GTO although significantly quicker than it had been the previous year.

I too was at the 1962 TT.

A factor in my judgement of the event was that the GTOs made both the Astons and the Jaguars look like cart horses amongst thoroughbreds.

Not that it stops me again enjoying that picture of Clark...

#27 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 31 December 2008 - 17:43

I am not the only one , who would like to know more about Ogier/Essex , any more info please ?

#28 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 07 September 2009 - 15:11

Any further infos would be appriciated .

#29 raceannouncer2003

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Posted 07 September 2009 - 18:53

Some results here:

http://www.oldracing...s... Ogier (GB)

Vince H.

#30 Mistron

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Posted 07 September 2009 - 19:11

Going back to the 1st post, I didn't know Ogier was anything to do with Ogle Design. I thought this was just Tom Karen's company.

#31 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 21 September 2009 - 16:25

On behalf of member Hedenhammodels :

John Ogier was friends with David Ogle and a director and chairman of his firm, Ogle Design , untill John himself died in a road crash like David Ogle earlier. The Ogle SX250 , a coupe bodied car based on the Daimler SP250 was designed and named for John Ogier.

It is more than likely that John was a money man for for David in the early days and probably turned his head toward car design and away from toasters!

On a separate note Sir John Whitmore was instrumental in getting the famous little Ogle Mini special off the ground. Ogle are still going and have designed some wide ranging and famous stuff. Worth looking them up sometime.

Another little bit of the mysterious Mr. Ogier !!

Niall

#32 DavePoole

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Posted 21 September 2009 - 18:38

On behalf of member Hedenhammodels :

John Ogier was friends with David Ogle and a director and chairman of his firm, Ogle Design , untill John himself died in a road crash like David Ogle earlier. The Ogle SX250 , a coupe bodied car based on the Daimler SP250 was designed and named for John Ogier.

It is more than likely that John was a money man for for David in the early days and probably turned his head toward car design and away from toasters!

On a separate note Sir John Whitmore was instrumental in getting the famous little Ogle Mini special off the ground. Ogle are still going and have designed some wide ranging and famous stuff. Worth looking them up sometime.

Another little bit of the mysterious Mr. Ogier !!

Niall

Hi Niall and all

John Whitmore and John Ogier put money into David Ogle's car design and making venture, David Ogle Limited, and were directors. John Ogier went on to be an effective and enthusiastic Chairman of the company when it was renamed Ogle Design Ltd in 1966. Tom Karen was the managing director and chief designer.

The Ogle SX250 was privately commissioned by Boris Forter (a managing director of Helena Rubinstein), apparently the SX stood for Essex where John Ogier and John Whitmore were from.

Here's the Ogle SX250 today (Sadly, missing it's bumpers)

Posted Image

It was the car that Reliant acquired the rights to the body design and with some modifictions it later became the Reliant Scimitar GT.

Dave Poole

#33 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 07 October 2009 - 20:34

Has anyone seen a logo or some text on the ESSEX RACING TEAM ?

#34 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 04 January 2010 - 13:00

Any news here (or help with post 33) ?

#35 Bjorn Kjer

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Posted 26 May 2010 - 05:39

I have found that the official name was not Essex Racing Team but :

ESSEX RACING STABLE

#36 David McKinney

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Posted 26 May 2010 - 10:07

In every instance?

#37 cooper997

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Posted 16 July 2019 - 17:04

Just trying to find a decent photo of John Ogier. If anyone has one, or knows where one can be found that would be very helpful.

Stephen

#38 RobMk2a

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Posted 16 July 2019 - 20:25

Stephen,

There are a few a photos in Graham Gauld's Toj John Tojeiro and his cars

Page 17 close up Tojeiro Jaguar at Rest and be Thankful. (with glasses)

page 27 standing next to the Tojeiro Climax at Le Mans. (without glasses) The reference for the photo is Gordon Wilkins

Page 24 Also a not so good one (in more ways than one) of John flying form his Tojeiro Jaguar at Stapleford Hill Climb. (Glasses probably fell off).

Rob

#39 cooper997

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Posted 17 July 2019 - 06:31

Rob, Thank you for the information from Graham's book and sending through a snap of John Ogier racing.

Still hoping there's a portrait type photo of him to be unearthed

Stephen

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