45 replies to this topic

[Jackie]

I thought some of you might be interested in this:

A few weeks ago, I was at my dad's in the UK and coincidentally Trevor, the chap who used to be his bouncer in the trialling days was there. Also coincidentally, they had a framed photograph of the two of them in their trials car, RPD 4, taken in 1958 - fifty years ago. I couldn't let the opportunity pass.

2008



1958

[Vitesse2]

For those not in the know, Jackie's father is Eric Jackson - triallist, rally driver etc etc ....

The old feller's looking good at 84, Jackie!;) How's his book going?

[Jackie]

Hi Vitesse,

You've got a great memory

He's doing well and still working on the book. The delay is me - the 'editor' - as real life keeps getting in the way!

[bradbury west]

Perhaps my memory is not what it was, but ISTR him with a Lotus Cortina- 63/64ish- with a bank of 4 spot/fog lights across the grill with padded covers embroidered to look like cats' faces, plus ears.
Roger Lund.

[Jackie]

Someone else with a great memory! Yes, my mum made those covers from coloured fur fabric she bought on Barnsley Market. The faces were indeed embroidered - she used pipe cleaners for the whiskers

I bet she never thought for a minute that people would remember them after all these years.

[bradbury west]

There must be a photo somewhere in one of the comics.
RL

[mikeC]

Hi Jackie,
Perhaps Eric (and others) would like to see these photos from around 1958, taken on the North Midland Motor Club Autumn Sporting Trial on the Snake Pass to the west of Sheffield. I am pretty sure your dad was competing that day.







If anyone can add identifications, I would welcome your input - sadly I never bothered cataloguing my photos and am now relying on fading memories!

[Jackie]

Great photographs - do you have more? I can't help to identify the cars/drivers but I could well be the child in the yellow mac!

Names I remember:
The Harrisons from Sheffield
Lol Hurt
Rex Chappell
Dennis Hobson.

[bradbury west]

And Mr Cannon, of course.
RL

[RS2000]

Originally posted by Jackie
Someone else with a great memory! Yes, my mum made those covers from coloured fur fabric she bought on Barnsley Market. The faces were indeed embroidered - she used pipe cleaners for the whiskers
I bet she never thought for a minute that people would remember them after all these years.

Can't see them that well here. Entering Excellsior Hotel, Heathrow, finish of 1966 Gulf London International Rally.

[sterling49]

I remember Eric well, always used to read about his exploits in the Castrol Achievements Annuals. Did he not race the Union/Cape Town Castle from Cape Town to Southampton, in a Ford Corsair? Recently re published in the Classic Ford magazine.I also think that he was sponsored by Service Garage Barnsley, probably got that waaay off track

Cannon, would that be Mike Cannon? If so which part of the U.K. did he come from, we used to do autotests along 7 Mile Lane, near Wrotham, Kent, at a venue named "Cannon's Farm", just wondered if it was the same gentleman.

[bradbury west]

Same chap, I suspect. His cars became the benchmark for years, till Julian Flack ? did his version, nar vertical steering column or some such IIRC- long time ago.
RL

[Jackie]

Thanks for the photograph RS. I can't see the covers very well, but my memory can fill in the blanks

Sterling 49, you're spot on. Yes, he raced a liner from Cape Town to Southampton and also drove around the world in 43 days.

You're right about Service Garage too - that was his business; it later became Polar Motor Company.

[RS2000]

I haven't been able to improve it - it was taken on a very basic camera (and by a very basic schoolboy).
You might like to ask on Britishrally forum "Pictures from the past" thread. There was a photo of his Escort RS1600 (which I think began life as a TwinCam) there a few days ago:
http://www.britishra...8132&start=9460

[Jackie]

Thank you for the link

[RTH]

I don't know about anyone else , but I would like to see some live trials action back on the TV screens on a Saturday afternoon in the depths of winter when the mud is at its slipperiest !

[sterling49]

Originally posted by RTH
I don't know about anyone else , but I would like to see some live trials action back on the TV screens on a Saturday afternoon in the depths of winter when the mud is at its slipperiest !

Point to Point also and the old style R.A.C Rally

[Geoff.Harrison]

Jackie and Mike C - good to see some photographs of proper trials cars !

I well remember seeing ( and hearing ! ) Eric at various trials in Derbyshire and Yorkshire .

Jackie's pic shows Eric in the ex Rex Chappell Cotton - possibly the most succesful trials car in the old 1172 side valve Ford days - although Eric replaced this with a Cannon trials car AHE 999B .

I still have my my fathers results sheets for the trials he entered in covering the years 1950 - 1962 .
Unfortunately I'm unable to see the competition numbers of the cars in Mike C pics so unable to identify the drivers shown in the 1958 NMMC Kitching Trophy , although they do seem vaguely familiar.
For info , Ron Kemp , Tony Marsh and Tony Alldred filled first three spots , Eric Jackson was 19th .

[Squire Straker]

All very interesting indeed with the Cannons. I too well remember the Television Trophy with the likes of Lol Hurt. Do any of the fellow "posters" have any photos of a Cannon reg. number FRO 853? This was one of the early cars with the single centre mounted shock absorber at the front. It now resides in my shed awaiting restoration (with 3 others for company).
Regards SS

[RTH]

Any photos ?

[RTH]

Originally posted by sterling49


Point to Point also and the old style R.A.C Rally

The biggest travesty of all is the loss of the round Britain rally in November each year with the extreme weather and ground conditions in all corners of Britain , the spectacle being massively helped by 2 wheel rear wheel drive only.

The idiots who destroyed the annual RAC rally ought to be deeply ashamed of themselves.

Now the Cardiff rally is a complete non-event and as such rightly receives no mass media coverage at all.
Contrast that with up to the minute reports on the hour every hour on both BBC TV news and radio and huge national print coverage as well , when Britain's one major rally was a massive event and attracted interest on a par with Wimbledon, The Grand National, the open Golf ,the boat race , Lords Test, etc etc..

Shameful destruction.

[RS2000]

It lives (well half of a proper one) and starts tomorrow.
http://www.rogeralbertclarkrally.org/

[RTH]

Pity this cannot get a bit of national TV coverage.

I don't suppose they have 300 starters and a 2000 mile route over 4 1/2 days and nights sadly.

[Jackie]

AROUND THE WORLD IN FORTY-THREE DAYS
Ford Corsair completes tough 30,000 mile trip on schedule.

On September 2nd, experienced drivers Eric Jackson and Ken Chambers set off from London in a white Ford Corsair with distinctive black anti-glare patch on the bonnet, for a testing round-the-world trip. The journey took them through America, Australia, India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, back to London again.
En route they found some of the worst road conditions encountered anywhere in the world; they endured thousands of miles of Australian desert, crossed monsoon-flooded rivers and battled through thick jungle. To give some idea of the conditions, let us quote their cable of October 8th: “India. Monsoon flooded rivers only just navigable, snakes everywhere. Delhi. Ken hit water buffalo, dent on bonnet to prove it. Pakistan. Directed on wrong road through mountains. Way through was murder.” As a matter of interest, some gun-toting brigands attempted to waylay them when, as stated in the cable, they were lost in the mountains of Pakistan. That’s an indication of what a tough trip this was, for the drivers as well as the car. Nevertheless, they returned to London on schedule, having motored some 30,000 miles on Castrol in only twenty-four days, excluding sea and air travel.
New York: 17.32 hours – September 2nd


Castrol Limited. Castrol Motor Oil, Achievements 1963. London: Castrol House, Marylebone Road, N.W. 1, 1963.

[sterling49]

It was partly my reading of these fantastic journeys that gave me my desire for travelling and long road trips, so exciting! Thanks for posting, I would have had the original Achievements book, though it sadly got mislaid in one of the house moves, I can still see the picture of the Corsair, which, from memory, was an artist drawing, rather than photograph. Great adventures

Your father must have some wonderful tales to tell, can you not get him to post in this thread?

[Jackie]

I wish I could Sterling49, but he doesn't even have a computer. Although he does say, with his tongue firmly in his cheek, that he thinks they "will catch on, one of these days"

As Vitesse said above, he is working on his memoirs though - I'll post some excerpts. It's slow going because I am supposedly the 'editor' and it's hard to find the time. (I know, I must!)

You would love to see the little office he has at his house - jammed to the rafters with maps, old photographs and general memorabilia.

I was talking to him on the phone today and told him about this topic - he is amazed that people are interested in stories and photographs from all those years ago.

PS. To Geoff Harrison - who was your dad? (John? Edward?) If we were both going to trials in those days, do I know you????;)

[Geoff.Harrison]

Jackie - my dad was Fred Harrison - no relation to the Sheffield Harrisons - Cuth , Edward and John .
We lived in Chesterfield so he knew them well .
He built his first trials special in 1951 and subsequently a further 13 over the period to 1961 , with four being made to 'customer' order.
A company move took the family to Old Windsor in 1959 and whilst he built another trials special , he lost interest and took up scrutineering for the RAC as it was then , also becoming involved with vintage cars and motorcycles .
I used his last special from 68 - 71 and it was finally scrappped in about 1996 having been left in a friends barn which collapsed on it .

[Cirrus]

I don't know about anyone else , but I would like to see some live trials action back on the TV screens on a Saturday afternoon in the depths of winter when the mud is at its slipperiest !

Until I saw the pictures earlier in this thread, I had no idea that 1950's trials actually took place in colour!

[RTH]

There was a trials sequence in this 1962 film 'The Fast Lady '

http://uk.youtube.co...h?v=9j846NGD0Vg

[sterling49]

Originally posted by RTH
There was a trials sequence in this 1962 film 'The Fast Lady '

http://uk.youtube.co...h?v=9j846NGD0Vg

The "Drinkwater" lorries used to frequent Kent's roads in the early '60s!

I love Stanley Baxter's brand of comedy

[Russell Burrows]

Yes Sterling, Drinkwater trucks were a common sight all over greater London then. My old Dad was one of their drivers. Their Dodges also appeared in the earlier film 'Hell Drivers'.

[RS2000]

A local contemporary of Eric Jackson, Bob Bean (who also had links to Service Garage Barnsley in the Escort Mexico Championship days) is currently setting the most incredible stage times on the Roger Albert Clark Rally in his Mk1 Lotus Cortina, relative to the fastest BDA Escorts (including Malcolm Wilson), Porsche 911s and Lancia Stratos.
Bob has a few years age advantage over Eric but not that many!

[sterling49]

Originally posted by RS2000
A local contemporary of Eric Jackson, Bob Bean (who also had links to Service Garage Barnsley in the Escort Mexico Championship days) is currently setting the most incredible stage times on the Roger Albert Clark Rally in his Mk1 Lotus Cortina, relative to the fastest BDA Escorts (including Malcolm Wilson), Porsche 911s and Lancia Stratos.
Bob has a few years age advantage over Eric but not that many!

Remember Bob well

[RTH]

Originally posted by Russell Burrows
Yes Sterling, Drinkwater trucks were a common sight all over greater London then. My old Dad was one of their drivers. Their Dodges also appeared in the earlier film 'Hell Drivers'.

1957 film from the Rank organisation

http://uk.youtube.co...feature=related

[RS2000]

Coincidently, noticed Eric Jackson and Bob Bean did London-Munich 1974 in same car. Can't post photo here for obvious copyright reasons (which don't seem to concern French forums...)
http://www.forum-aut...sujet378618.htm(4th post on page)

[sterling49]

That was a Pinto (RS2000) rather than a RS1600? I had forgotten that they did the event, was this not the "low key" event because of the fuel crisis?

[ciclotron]

Dearest Forum colleagues,

I’m a Portuguese 1/43rd static modeller, dedicated to the theme of The Rally of Portugal.

I’m doing a very interesting project on the Escort MKI participations on this Rally for which I have already received contributions from J.C. Withers and Tony Fowkes, for which I am deeply thankful.

I’m very sorry to bother You in this tread, knowing that it is not dedicated to the Rally theme, but I am desperate for an information about Bob Bean’s 1974 car in the Portugal Rally, a car sponsored by Service Garage Barnsley and Castrol, which had also a sponsorship from other Ford-Service, something named Ford-S…E Service.

I don’t know what it is and I’m rolling over it for a long time because it is the only information I’m lacking to finish the decoration of the model.

Noticing Your references to Bob Bean’s on this tread and Your knowledge on the theme, I’m hoping for Your help in identifying this last sponsor…. Please help me on this… if You can…

I’m posting You some photos (frames of an old movie) I have of this car.








Please forgive me if i'm being incovenient, it is not my intention, but i really need this help and, thrully, i think Bob Bean, with its marking career, really desearves this model, even if it does not reach him.

I will post here some photos of the model when finished.

Many thanks in advance for Your comprehension.

Best Regards.

João.

[sterling49]

Hi ciclotron, it's "Ford Sure Service" part of the Ford Service maintenence programmes in the '70s, all service books and documentation were printed with this logo. It is a long time since I have seen it!


Hope this helps, regards.

[RS2000]

Appears to be in Group1 Mexico spec. there (the steeply inclined rear dampers are a giveaway). I think CHE347K was also Bob Bean's UK Mexico Championship car and was Harold Morley's later. Probably originally supplied and first registered By Eric Jackson's "Service Garage".

[ciclotron]

Hi Sterling49 and RS2000,

Thank you very much for the accurate information, You’ve solved my last doubt about this car, work in accomplishing the model will follow and i believe by the end of December it will be finished and i will post here some photos.

The project MKI Rally of Portugal has until now near 20 versions of TC, RS 1600, Mexico, RS 2000 and GT/HC from 1970 to 1978, with drivers as Roger Clark, Tony Fall, Jean-François Piot, Tony Fowkes, Bob Bean, Chris Wathen, Andy Michailidis, Chris Sclater, Norman Anstins, Barry Hooper, Belgium driver Ringo, Spanish driver Fernando Lezama and our own Francisco Santos, Giovanni Salvi, Larama and João Guerra.

I believe the results will be very interesting as the bases in resin are very well sorted out, if You want to have a first glance at them You can see them in the following link:

http://www.automodel...&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

I don’t know if You have in this Forum a tread dedicated to these ancient rallyes, please tell me if that happens and i will be very glad to contribute...

Once again thank You very much, i will be following this excellent Forum constantly.

Best Regards.

João

[arttidesco]

I remember Eric well, always used to read about his exploits in the Castrol Achievements Annuals. Did he not race the Union/Cape Town Castle from Cape Town to Southampton, in a Ford Corsair? Recently re published in the Classic Ford magazine.I also think that he was sponsored by Service Garage Barnsley, probably got that waaay off track

Cannon, would that be Mike Cannon? If so which part of the U.K. did he come from, we used to do autotests along 7 Mile Lane, near Wrotham, Kent, at a venue named "Cannon's Farm", just wondered if it was the same gentleman.

Looking out for some pics on Tommy Ivo's Window sided Wagon Master Hauler in google earlier this afternoon I stumbled across pics of a familiar looking ship The RMS Windsor Castle upon which I was privileged to travel, aged 10, from Southampton to Durban in 1969.

What caught my attention was a rather beaten up Ford Corsair in the foreground of the magnificent ship and having just read several versions of the story behind the race between the Corsair driven by Eric Jackson and Ken Chambers and RMS Windsor Castle under the guidance of Captain Hart I'd like to pass on my belated respects to Jackie Jackson's Dad Eric and co driver Ken Chambers on his achievements.

Having been driven in non competitive conditions from Cape Town to Mombassa in the back of my folks Escort Estate, when I was a kid, I have some insight into how difficult it must have been and of course still is, to drive from Cape Town to Southampton in less than 2 weeks, but I am sure even that achievement pails against driving a Ford Corsair around the world in 43 days ?

For those into tales of adventure a nice oversight of drives across Africa is to be found here :-)

Edited by arttidesco, 16 July 2010 - 17:49.

[MrTed]

I am the current very proud owner of Erics car, RPD4 , and have started a website www.rpd4.com it is very much a work in progress but please have a look, if anyone has any useful information or photos I would be very glad to add them to the site.

Martin

[Allan Lupton]

Ah, hello Martin - we've "met" c/o the VSCC and it was this thread and another on Ken Chambers that I'd noticed "Jackie" posting on. I offered to put you in touch, but maybe she'll see this and there you'll be.

[MrTed]

Hi Allan, I seem to have trouble with pm's on them VSCC forum, did you get the one I sent with my email address? Anyway here I am, have you had a look at my website? I would love to get some more photos of Eric, especially a good quality scan of Eric and Trevor in the car with the trophy collection.

Cheers, Martin

[Rupertlt1]

#7, registration RPD 4 is here in 1952:

https://revslib.stan...log/jq473wb4344

(I have already flagged that it should be the Kentish Border Trial.)

 

Updated: https://library.revs...er-trial/445721

 

www.rpd4.com seems to be defunct?

 

RGDS RLT

 

P.S.

 

Here is another: https://revslib.stan...log/zq863dj8132

 

Updated 1953: https://library.revs...er-trial/388773

 

P.P.S.

 

Is this another:

 

https://revslib.stan...log/sk022dv9656

 

And again:

 

https://revslib.stan...log/cn112yf9233

 

Once more:

 

https://revslib.stan...log/nh683hk2511

 

Updated 1960: https://library.revs...ll-trial/410300

Edited by Rupertlt1, 10 January 2025 - 08:29.

[Rupertlt1]

All very interesting indeed with the Cannons. I too well remember the Television Trophy with the likes of Lol Hurt. Do any of the fellow "posters" have any photos of a Cannon reg. number FRO 853? This was one of the early cars with the single centre mounted shock absorber at the front. It now resides in my shed awaiting restoration (with 3 others for company).
Regards SS

 

853 FRO (Hertford) is here in Kent:

https://www.transpor...hoto/gm00412-09

RGDS RLT

Edited by Rupertlt1, 10 January 2025 - 08:33.