74 replies to this topic

[mgtd]

I went to quite a few Racing Car Shows from a couple in the 60's at -was it Westminster? - to the later Showboat and Olympia. My so-called filing system has broken down though,can't find any relevant prgrammes.I have found a few out-of-focus ancient prints from early 70's shows;I'll try and find the negs one of these days and see what else took my fancy.















The Matra shot was on the Showboat,I think,but the other two??

Stephen

[alansart]

The Matra shot was on the Showboat,I think,but the other two??

Stephen

The Lotus 72 is Olympia. You can tell by the balcony in the background

[Alan Cox]

A few short Pathe News clips of various Racing Car Shows which may stir the memory
1960
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=61479
1961
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=41782
1962
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=41866
1964
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=42968
1965
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=43979
1968
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=45096
1969
http://www.britishpa...rd.php?id=45334

[Miles Fenton]

I was there at the first Racing Car Show at the Horticultural Hall.
I was working for V W Derrington and was working on the stand selling his products.
I do recall a BRM engine on show and a huge scalextric track set-up where all the leading drivers were happily competing with whoever fancied a go.
Also my Bisley shooting team captain, Archie Butterworth, had his wonderful flat six engine on display.
Sorry no photos, I didn't even have a camera in those days.

[RTH]

Fantastic clips, pity we cannot all go around those brilliant shows again, in the days when it was all exciting , optimistic and absolutely packed with high quality exhibits and full of interest.

[arttidesco]

I went to Londidnium the other day and was trying to envisage a Townsend Ferry moored up next to the Tower of London for the Showboat event does any one have or know where I might be able to see any pictures of the boat in situ ?

Failing that does anyone recall the name of the boat/s used ?

Thanking you in anticipation of your responses :-)

[pete53]

I went to Londidnium the other day and was trying to envisage a Townsend Ferry moored up next to the Tower of London for the Showboat event does any one have or know where I might be able to see any pictures of the boat in situ ?

Failing that does anyone recall the name of the boat/s used ?

Thanking you in anticipation of your responses :-)

Free Enterprise II

[pete53]

I still have my Autosport dated 6 January 1972 which contains a review , by John Bolster, of the Motor Racing Showboat event. It includes a large b/w picture of the ferry (Free Enterprise II) moored against the banks of the Thames with a small ferry boat "Ferry Belle", that was used to carry people across the river, pulling away from the big boat. Admission was 50p (20p for children).

Among the attractions were the Connew F1 car, Surtees TS11 F5000 and a McLaren M8F CanAm - not much in the way of F1 cars though. Inside the front cover of the magazine is a photo of John Webb and Nick Syrett admiring one of the exhibits .. a naked woman sitting on top a car holding to what looks like a roll bar!

I did attend the event but my personal memories of it are now rather vague - there were certainly no naked women on show when I was there.

[thirtytwo]

My story -

I went to the 74 show on the Thames determined to win the daily prize of a school race at Brands for the fastest time 0-60? in the Mexico on the rolling road, so i fathomed that i had to be there near the closing time 8 maybe 9pm, arrived a few hours early and looked around and then onto 'my' goal the Mexico, Ray Allen was overseeing the stand with the fastest time so far posted paid my money and listened to the instructions about what revs to drop the clutch change gear etc, so i dropped the clutch at the recommended revs and changed up again at the revs advised result a time but nowhere good enough. I then went away and thought about it and realized the advised revs were for prolonging the Mexico not fast times!, go number 2 was done using more revs and I was faster maybe 3rd at that moment but still no race so had another period of deep analysis as to where the time was being lost and i concluded it was lifting the throttle and depressing the clutch changing gear. Now time was getting on maybe 20 mins before the finishing time so back again for the 3rd try which was going to be my last go anyway into the car and the instructions to go, the throttle pedal went to the floor and STAYED there at the same time the clutch pedal came up and STAYED there 2nd and 3rd gear were engaged forcefully and then it was all over and fastest time achieved getting out Ray Allen commented that i was a hooligan with no mechanical sympathies which was fair, but i had that fastest time which was followed by 10 to 15 mins of nail biting to see if it was going to be beaten which it wasn't so mission successfully completed a school race at Brands.

[Sharman]

Has anyone got any pics from the '66 show? Specifically looking for the 'Mangoletsi' stand.

Any other info on this company would be appreciated - I know they are still going as an Alfa / Fiat dealer in Cheshire, but under new management.

My reasons for asking will be revealed next week........;)

Nobody answered Mistron on this, It probably came up when I was forcedly incommunicado due to Oranges mismanagement. I knew the Mango's quite well. George who founded the business was (I believe) a self taught engineer who made a lot of money during the war from gas carburettors used to facilitate the use of producer gas [trailers and burners with gas bags on top of buses and cars] as fuel for road transport. After the war he designed the Mangoletsi modifier which improved gas flow on production car induction saystems. He branched out into performance tuning and at one time ran Warwick Banks in a VX/4-90. An Alfa dealership followed but I think that control of that lay elsewhere. I recall that John Mango made headlines with a resuscitation of BRM which turned into a resounding failure and put John into the Bankruptcy Court.
So Mistron what were you going to reveal next week more than three years ago?

[arttidesco]

I still have my Autosport dated 6 January 1972 which contains a review , by John Bolster, of the Motor Racing Showboat event. It includes a large b/w picture of the ferry (Free Enterprise II) moored against the banks of the Thames with a small ferry boat "Ferry Belle", that was used to carry people across the river, pulling away from the big boat. Admission was 50p (20p for children).

Among the attractions were the Connew F1 car, Surtees TS11 F5000 and a McLaren M8F CanAm - not much in the way of F1 cars though. Inside the front cover of the magazine is a photo of John Webb and Nick Syrett admiring one of the exhibits .. a naked woman sitting on top a car holding to what looks like a roll bar!

I did attend the event but my personal memories of it are now rather vague - there were certainly no naked women on show when I was there.

Thanks for the pointer pete53 just what I needed to know... about the picture of the ferry that is

[RS2000]

Was it a different year then that it was moored to HMS Belfast? I wouldn't have thought there was enough depth to moor anything that big right against the bank.

[pete53]

Was it a different year then that it was moored to HMS Belfast? I wouldn't have thought there was enough depth to moor anything that big right against the bank.

Yes you are right. A closer look at the picture in Autosport shows the prow of HMS Belfast protruding forward of the Free Enterprise II.

[arttidesco]

Yes you are right. A closer look at the picture in Autosport shows the prow of HMS Belfast protruding forward of the Free Enterprise II.

Which would explain why I had a hard time imagining the Free Enterprise II moored up alongside the Tower of London

[RogerFrench]

I've only just seen this thread, so forgive my reviving an old bit of it.
My father didn't originate this saying, and I don't remember him using it. I do remember Arthur Mallock using it, though I think he said 'Simplicate'.
It has been ascribed to many people, including Colin Chapman, but I think it pre-dates him. Maybe Henry Ford or Harry Miller, or a US aircraft designer whose name escapes me right now.

However, I'll bet the old man wished he had coined it, because it truly reflects his credo.

Jack French said, referring to750s "Simplify and add lightness"

[David McKinney]

A quick google shows fairly conclusively that the term comes from the aviation industry

[Sharman]

......but his 750 was named "Simplicity" was it not?

[dwh43scale]

Happy memories of the Racing Car Show at various venues including the floating one. Big New Year trip for the family from Derbyshire with the Boat Show and Model Engineer Exhibition thrown in for good measure ! One day we did all three. In later years, did the Ally Pally and Hammersmith. Latest iteration a bit too "touristy" for my liking ...

[RogerFrench]

......but his 750 was named "Simplicity" was it not?

"Simplicity Itself" to be totally accurate.

[Allan Lupton]

A quick google shows fairly conclusively that the term comes from the aviation industry

And see my post no. 36!

[arttidesco]

This is probably a long shot but is there anyone out there in TNF land who could and would be kind enough to send me a scan of the 1972 Evening News Motor Motor Racing Showboat programme ?

PM me for an e-mail address if you prefer to send an e-mail.

Thanking you in anticipation :-)

[RTH]

Happy memories of the Racing Car Show at various venues including the floating one. Big New Year trip for the family from Derbyshire with the Boat Show and Model Engineer Exhibition thrown in for good measure ! One day we did all three. In later years, did the Ally Pally and Hammersmith. Latest iteration a bit too "touristy" for my liking ...

Anyone remember the sheet ice up the hill to Alexandra Palace when it was held in a vast marquee? ....And at the Royal Horticultural Halls ?
The present exhibition is not remotely the same thing at all. The swamping of UK racing by one make series means we do not have anything like a customer racing car manufacturing industry as we had back then with scores of fascinating small constructors.

[john winfield]

Two American customers have just bought Racing Car Show programmes from me: one from 1973 at Olympia and one from a year later on the Showboat. The 1974 programme was of interest to the buyer because his family owns the ex-Teddy Pilette / Kaye Griffiths Can-Am McLaren that appeared at the show.
This had me thinking. I went to all the early 1970s shows and vaguely remember boarding the moored ferries in the Thames - a smaller boat took us out I think. But how and where did all the exhibitors get their cars and equipment on board? Did the BRSCC and Townsend Thoresen arrange for this to be done at one of their usual ports (Dover? Felixstowe?) or did they use somewhere nearer like Tilbury? Or was some smaller craft used to ship the cars out to the ferry, moored on the Thames in central London ? I wonder if Barry B remembers, because the Connew was exhibited, I believe, on the showboat ferry in early 1972.

[Tim Murray]

But how and where did all the exhibitors get their cars and equipment on board? Did the BRSCC and Townsend Thoresen arrange for this to be done at one of their usual ports (Dover? Felixstowe?) or did they use somewhere nearer like Tilbury? Or was some smaller craft used to ship the cars out to the ferry, moored on the Thames in central London ? I wonder if Barry B remembers, because the Connew was exhibited, I believe, on the showboat ferry in early 1972.

I was leaving this one for Barry, but I think he may have missed it. Here's what he posted some time back in one of the Connew threads:

It certainly was, RTH. The joke was, we had to drive all the way to Dover to put it on board the ferry, which then sailed all the way back to the Pool of London, no more than a dozen or so miles from where we started from!

[john winfield]

I was leaving this one for Barry, but I think he may have missed it. Here's what he posted some time back in one of the Connew threads:

Thank you Tim, question answered! I'd never noticed that particular post of Barry's. BRSCC, TT and all exhibitors must have been praying for calm seas as the ferry headed around the Kent coast. I wonder if latecomers, smaller accessory suppliers, who missed the Dover sailing, were allowed to take their boxes across the Thames by rowing boat.....
As a 14/16 year old, I thought the Showboats were a good idea. Not quite as spacious as Olympia but fun nevertheless. Staging shows in the Channel Tunnel wouldn't have quite the same appeal.