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Old 23 Sep 2006, 06:51 (Ref:1716892)   #1
markal
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Where are all the Modsports Cars !

In the early 70s i watched Modsport's, Tvrs, Lotus, Marcos, E types, Midgets, Sprites etc, Fantastic days, Where are they now, and the drivers! have you any pictures.
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Old 23 Sep 2006, 08:30 (Ref:1716924)   #2
John Turner
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markal, I miss them, too! However whilst there may be a few lying in the corner of garages gathering dust, I suspect a lot have been restored to original spec., or at least closer to original spec. because they are worth more like that.

I'd love to see a historics series which covered the old modsports cars; all those lovely flared arches and wide wheels, but I fear it is probably only a pipedream.
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Old 23 Sep 2006, 09:57 (Ref:1716969)   #3
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Speed Event situation

The Modified Production classes in sprints and hillclimbs are now dominated by Locaterfields (that's Lotus 7s, Caterhams and Westfields). You do see an occasional true Mod Sports like Graham Oates' Lotus Europa but they are few and far between. The other growth area are the Mod Prod saloons - mainly Peugeot 205s.

It would be great to see more of the Mod Sports out competing especially as the Midland Hillclimb Championship & the Hagley & DLCC Championship both have a class for Classic Cars.

The MGBs, Midgets & AH Sprites all seem to have gravitated to the Luffield Championship run by the MGCC whilst some of the TVRs run in the one-make series for these cars.

All in all a thoroughly under valued series with some seriously quick cars!
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Old 23 Sep 2006, 11:14 (Ref:1716985)   #4
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I watched Brian Hough with the big Tvr at Aintree in 73 and was hooked, i know where John Fletchers Lotus Elan is, its not been touched since the late 70s, where is John (Plastic) Pearson with the XK 150, Ed Stevens, who bought Brian Houghs 3ltr Tuscan, i know its just a dream to see them again but it would be great.
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Old 23 Sep 2006, 17:55 (Ref:1717130)   #5
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Agree with what you say markal, although my recollection of 'Plastic' Pearson's Jaguar was that it was an XK120, in appearance, anyway. Interesting that the John Fletcher Elan still exists and in its modsports form.
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Old 24 Sep 2006, 19:44 (Ref:1717807)   #6
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big andy should be qualifying in the top 10 on the gridbig andy should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
marrk cambel races a elan and richard waring races a europa in the nsscc there both true mod sports cars
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Old 24 Sep 2006, 21:23 (Ref:1717945)   #7
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I used to race a heavily modified modsports midget back in the 1980s and rescued it from a garden at the time to get it back on the track... sadly I ran out of funds and it was sold to guy who broke it up and sold the bits. I fear the same thing happened a lot of modsports cars as the competition bits on them were often worth more individually than the cars complete. Very sad.
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Old 25 Sep 2006, 07:06 (Ref:1718126)   #8
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gfm should be qualifying in the top 5 on the gridgfm should be qualifying in the top 5 on the grid
Yes, we ran a 1340 cc Spriget in 69/70 ish with class winner Andreason, Jenvey, Hough who was killed at Thruxton, Fletcher, John Saborin, one or two quick E Types (John Quick?) etc in was it STP Modsports? Great little car, ex-Peter Kitchen about 9 cwt. Did my first foreign trip to Zandvoort in it.
Don't know what happened to the car but it was super light and very simple components, reliable as the day was long. I remember Pearson too.
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Old 25 Sep 2006, 07:57 (Ref:1718155)   #9
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The ultimate modsport was probably Rob Cox's Design backed Caterham 'Blackbrick', a phenomenal piece of kit. Is that in a collection anywhere?

You might find that a number of 'modsport' Midgets/Sprites are in the MGCC Midget Challenge series. They are still very rapid cars indeed.
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Old 25 Sep 2006, 07:59 (Ref:1718158)   #10
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Pardon my ignorance but who was Hough and did he die at the wheel of a modsports Midget at Thruxton ? I wasn't aware that anyone had been killed in one.
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Old 25 Sep 2006, 11:48 (Ref:1718355)   #11
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John "plastic" Pearson's XK120 was later seen in the Intermarque series driven by a chap named Brian Arculus. I believe he had a connection with a firm called Staright Six Historic Racing.
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Old 25 Sep 2006, 12:55 (Ref:1719265)   #12
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gfm should be qualifying in the top 5 on the gridgfm should be qualifying in the top 5 on the grid
Correct me if I'm wrong, but Brian Hough was racing a superquick Blue & Orange TVR Griffith. He went off round the back at Thruxton. Lovely gentle man he was.
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Old 27 Sep 2006, 09:05 (Ref:1721031)   #13
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Brian Hough was killed at Kimpton Bend at Thruxton on October 28th 1973, racing in the Blue Circle Modsports Championship, on the last lap, of the last race of the year, the race was won by John Pearson in the VRM Elan, second was John Fletcher in another Elan, who also won the championship.

Hough's car was originally built for Richard Taft in 71 by Mike Bigland and was fitted with a full race Gt 40engine bored and stroked to 5.4 ltr 450 bhp. Martin Lilley, who who owned TVR at the time, bought the car and put Ted Worswick in, then Hough in 73. The engine was a special Holman and Moody 6ltr Can Am, the car had Mclaren suspension on the rear, with a Jag lsd, discs all round, 15" or 17" on the back, 12" or 13" on the front, and massive wheel arches, a monster! I have pictures of the car, if someone could tell me how to download them.

I have just finished building a 71 TVR, 5ltr v8, and was going to make it a replica of the Hough car. I have asked before, do you have any pictures of the Hough car? I have all the Ferret ones! I was told John Pearson has got the XK and was restoring it, do you have a contact number? I still dream of those days.

Last edited by John Turner; 28 Sep 2006 at 09:46.
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Old 27 Sep 2006, 09:30 (Ref:1721049)   #14
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Alan Raine should be qualifying in the top 3 on the gridAlan Raine should be qualifying in the top 3 on the gridAlan Raine should be qualifying in the top 3 on the gridAlan Raine should be qualifying in the top 3 on the grid
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Originally Posted by markal
i have pictures of the car, if someone could tell me how to download them.
Markal, see here http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=64573 for photo download instructions.

I remember the Brian Hough TVR around Silverstone in the early 70's. A fantastic machine!
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Old 27 Sep 2006, 15:52 (Ref:1721301)   #15
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There used to be loadsa Modsports cars here in Ireland, nearly all Midgets/Sprites, but most have disappeared. One of the quickest ones, the ex-John Keaney/Liam Plower car is still around and is currently being re-fettled for 2007.
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:09 (Ref:1721936)   #16
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:12 (Ref:1721937)   #17
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Sorry new to this, future pics will be smaller.
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:26 (Ref:1721948)   #18
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http://img226.imageshack.us/my.php?image=aintreelo6.jpg

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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:39 (Ref:1721960)   #19
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http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/2756/bhld4.jpg
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:50 (Ref:1721966)   #20
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Modsports Elan

John Fletchers Elan at Aintree in 1973.
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2108/jfzm4.jpg
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 11:57 (Ref:1721974)   #21
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Modsports XK

John (plastic) Pearson at Aintree 1973.
http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/5521/jpvi4.jpg


(This is all good stuff, but let's keep it on the one thread, please! All threads now merged! -JT)

Last edited by John Turner; 28 Sep 2006 at 16:57.
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Old 28 Sep 2006, 13:02 (Ref:1722042)   #22
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Does anyone know what happened to this. It was built in the mid sixties at FGR's in Shortlands, Bromley. It had a Ci Cadillac engine mated to a Moss box. I started to restore it in the mid seventies but ended up selling it to a Racing team called Trox Racing. They had a clothing business in Deptford SE London. I and my uncle (pictured right) who built it would love to know what became of it.

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Old 29 Sep 2006, 14:59 (Ref:1723080)   #23
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Thanks to those who filled in the gaps on Brian Hough's sad fate with the TVR. Its lovely to see pictures of the car from Markal here. I also noticed some reference to him on this site, which is a really good source for 1970s modsports and modsaloons.

http://www.racing70s.pwp.blueyonder....ts/tvrs_02.htm
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Old 29 Sep 2006, 17:05 (Ref:1723210)   #24
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Top link, davyboy!!

Added it to my fav's
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Old 9 Jun 2008, 03:53 (Ref:2223297)   #25
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My first two seasons of my short and uneventful and underfunded career was spent in STP Modsports and MGCC, in my 1380cc MG Midget. It ran as number 52. White with blue trim. My Devon neighbours were Roger Sparling in another MG and John Pugsley with his amazing black Davrian. Among others in the fray in 79/80 in STP were Steve Soper in the Radbourne X/19, Steven Roberts in the amazing Trans XL M Marcos, David Sutherland Datsun 240Z, John Fletcher, THAT white Lotus, Adrian Yates-Smith Porsche RSR, and many more. Those cars are probably in many pieces and no longer around. The guy that bought my Midget wanted to return it to it's 1960 stock form... At my first open test day at Brands in 79, there was another driver there with a Midget and he had a lot of experience. He was most helpful and i saw him at numerous MGCC events over the net 2 years. I have forgotten his name and sadly I heard he was killed at Thruxton a few years later. Anyone have anything on it?
I really enjoyed my 2 years in Mod Sports, but felt the pull to Prod Saloons, and had 2 hilarious seasons with Marshall, Lanfranchi, Llewlyn, Scarborough etc.
After that I moved to Florida, for meteorological reasons, and got back into racing behind a camera lens about 12 years ago. Now I contribute to dailysportscar.com ( ALMS) and am Audi Sport NA's racing photographer. It could be worse....I could be in Grand Am shooting those ugly slow DP's. They call THAT sports car racing? I'd take them back in time to an STP Modsports event anywhere in the UK...I still miss the sense of excitement that is unique in getting into a racing car. You never lose it. I was happy to have been involved in a golden age. My inspiration was watching Plastic Pearson in that bright red XK, on Grandstand, with Murry Walker getting all excited as once again, John threw the big red beast around Thruxton. Mesmerizing indeed.
What a great thread...
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