Phoenix Park memories

[eamonn ledwidge]

I am a bit older than young Leo, dont know about the other gent.

My first Phoenix Park was in 1961 & I was captivated. We went at 5am for the practice sessions. 1963 was incredible, especially the hotly contested Formula Junior race won by a family friend, Scotsman Adam Wylie - tragically killed 2 years later at Dunboyne. Great saloon car race & the Gold Flake Trophy handicap race - in 2 heats, if I recall correctly. Then the great Libre race.

This was a pattern which continued for many years of fantastic racing, then into the magic times of the Atlantics. The tobacco companies provided huge funding, ferry discounts & start money for the UK boys.

My abiding Park memory is of Sid Taylor's Lola. Taylor, originally from Rathfarnham had a big plant hire business in UK. In the early 1960s he was a regular visitor to Dunboyne & the Park - initially with a Lotus Elite, then a Brabham BT8 sportsracer ( I think his wife drove a Mini Cooper in the Park saloon car race) In 1966 he rocked up with a Lola T70 & won hands down.

On the Monday following the race I was crossing O'Connell Bridge at lunchtime, & there at the lights was Taylor's Lola, driven by an engineer on route from the Park to North Wall & the Liverpool boat. A huge crowd gathered & an obliging Garda held the traffic for a clear run & waved our man away to a great cheer from the public.

We will never see its like again & if not careful, the same may apply to Phoenix Park Motor Races.

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by eamonn ledwidge

On the Monday following the race I was crossing O'Connell Bridge at lunchtime, & there at the lights was Taylor's Lola, driven by an engineer on route from the Park to North Wall & the Liverpool boat. A huge crowd gathered & an obliging Garda held the traffic for a clear run & waved our man away to a great cheer from the public.

Super stuff Eamonn! As Gerry Ryan would say "great story, well told"

Anyone else out there with similar?

[Graz]

Originally Posted by eamonn ledwidge

The reality here is that 75% of the motorsport licences issued by Motorsport Ireland are for rally, the balance are race/kart or sprint. That is a decision made by the participants & how they spend their money is a matter of personal choice.

Saucer of milk there buddy...never said it wasn't...just an observation and I am curious why rallying is so much more popular and more highly promoted than circuit stuff.

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

Super stuff Eamonn! As Gerry Ryan would say "great story, well told"

Anyone else out there with similar?

Not directly the Park as such but I got hold of the Dirty Dozen podcasts recently and Derek Daly spoke about going to Mondello (from Rathfarnham??) with his 1600 on a tow rope. I think that's just marvellous stuff.

One thing that I always recall from the Park was the Supersport race mentioned elsewhere on the thread. This was 1982 so I was 8 and I recall being fascinated by the commentator (Robin Rhodes I guess) talking about David Piper and how he had lost a leg racing previously and yet here he was still racing. I thought that was incredible stuff and as an 8 year old, conjurs up all sorts of images. Am I correct in saying he had an accident during the shooting of the film 'Le Mans' and this is how he lost his leg? Have always guessed as much when the closing credits give him special mention for his personal sacrifice during the making of the film.

I was down at Furry Glen one year, can't remember when and Gordon Kellet in his Cossie arrived there with no brakes - deliberately chucked it into a massive spin and nearly ended up in Mount Sackville. The speed of thought and skill was awesome. The Glen was also a great place to watch the FOpels - they used to buck around like crazy under braking on the bumpy tarmac. Balls of steel I tells ya.

The Maseratti 250f Grand Prix cars a few years back (96 ish) were really impressive. Thye were much faster than I would have imagined and you can only imagine the Maestros such as Fangio driving them on the death trap circuits that existed then - they looked very much at home in the Park I thought.

Nikki Potterton's multiple cart wheels in a 90's FF1600 race and some chap whose name completely escapes me (some chap from from Prosperous??) having a HUGE accident in a Vee race, from which he suffered pretty bad injuries to his pelvis stick out as the worst crashes - actually along with a FF1600 in the early 80's utterly demolishing a lampost - still remember the errant wheel buggering off down the straight, sans car...

I guess my favourite Park was probably 1983 when I saw the Theodore I mention elsewhere and also (my hero along with Prost) Martin Donnelly scrapping with Colin Lees in an epic and very wet FF2000 race.

[Motormouth]

How about Roger Eccles coming over in the Merc Cosworth ('85ish?) and trouncing all the Capris in the production saloon race??! He reckoned he was seeing over 150mph on the way down to Ratra, brave man!!!
David Hall turning up with a Ford 1600 engine in his spaceframe Imp (instead of the Imp lump) and beating the TMC Costin of John Keaney, in front of all the TMC sponsors, who had a whole corner to themselves!!
Donal Loughrey, missing qualifying due to a dodgey rain light and winning the Vee race from last on the grid despite never having driven the circuit
The celebrity race in standard Nissan Micra rental cars on the Oldtown Circuit....... Who won that anyway??

[Motormouth]

Originally Posted by eamonn ledwidge

On the Monday following the race I was crossing O'Connell Bridge at lunchtime, & there at the lights was Taylor's Lola, driven by an engineer on route from the Park to North Wall & the Liverpool boat. A huge crowd gathered & an obliging Garda held the traffic for a clear run & waved our man away to a great cheer from the public.

We will never see its like again & if not careful, the same may apply to Phoenix Park Motor Races.

I actually drove the Ritmo home from the Park on the Sunday night, suit still on, champagne bottle in hand, open exhaust and all!! Don't remember any law enforcers holding traffic back for me though!!!!!

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

How about Roger Eccles coming over in the Merc Cosworth ('85ish?) and trouncing all the Capris in the production saloon race??! He reckoned he was seeing over 150mph on the way down to Ratra, brave man!!!
David Hall turning up with a Ford 1600 engine in his spaceframe Imp (instead of the Imp lump) and beating the TMC Costin of John Keaney, in front of all the TMC sponsors, who had a whole corner to themselves!!
Donal Loughrey, missing qualifying due to a dodgey rain light and winning the Vee race from last on the grid despite never having driven the circuit
The celebrity race in standard Nissan Micra rental cars on the Oldtown Circuit....... Who won that anyway??

Think Eccles was 86 - wasn't that the same year the Metro Championship came over from the UK?

Re the Micra race, I seem to remember the late Fr. Michael Cleary featuring - could he have won it?

Wasn't the GT class great all the same - I loved George Crozier's mini. Was gutted when he changed to the Metro, though it was the dogs too. Those cars were so quick and what a great sound from those little Ford 1600's.

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

The only thing I can remember is John Hayes dropping fag ash on the roof of my dads Midget before scrutiny!!

I never saw that chap without a fag in hand right enough. Did he smoke when he raced?

[davyboy]

David Kennedy in the Group Waterworks Atlantic annihilating the field that year [1977/1978] and humungous crowds 3 or 4 deep the whole way around the circuit.

The beautifully prepared Escort RS Turbos of Kellett, O'Rourke et al who kept snapping front hubs [although that mainly happened at Mondello].

Somebody turning a Capri on its side in the paddock [Tuite, Shorthall ?] to work on the underneath !

@Peter... I forgot your dad did race MG Midgets, when was that as I've quite a few old Park programmes... maybe he's in one.

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by davyboy

@Peter... I forgot your dad did race MG Midgets, when was that as I've quite a few old Park programmes... maybe he's in one.

I think it was around '85/'86. He shared it with his longtime pal Paddy Healy but the thing had a healthy appetite for pistons and never really ran well.

They only entered the Park once and my abiding memory of that is plying copious amounts of Isopon to the gearbox where the selector had worn a nice hole during practice. I don't think the car finished and cant remember what broke, but I do know it wasn't the box!!

I have a picture of the car on its way to the Fury Glen (somewhere). I'll have a root for it and post it next week. (Just for you David. I know pics of modsports are your "porn" )

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by davyboy

Somebody turning a Capri on its side in the paddock [Tuite, Shorthall ?] to work on the underneath !

We did the same thing last year in Mondello to Michael Roches Mygale! Got a few funny looks too.

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

I think it was around '85/'86. He shared it with his longtime pal Paddy Healy but the thing had a healthy appetite for pistons and never really ran well.

They only entered the Park once and my abiding memory of that is plying copious amounts of Isopon to the gearbox where the selector had worn a nice hole during practice. I don't think the car finished and cant remember what broke, but I do know it wasn't the box!!

I have a picture of the car on its way to the Fury Glen (somewhere). I'll have a root for it and post it next week. (Just for you David. I know pics of modsports are your "porn" )

Modsport Midgets had the propensity to break everything - usually your heart in the end. Going back to the memories topic again... I do remember plenty of them littered around the track after a race or qualifying session in The Park. Mondello was a stretch for them, but the full throttle sections of the Hawthorn circuit would spell the death of all but the very strongest.

Definitely post those pictures... They are my porn alright and I've already started pysching myself up for them )

[Motormouth]

Ahhh.... The Smithwicks Midget!! I have a feeling that was an ex JOhnny Flynn car. Alan Dawson tugged around in it for a while after your dad had it and then a guy called Kehoe from Ashbourne had it. Last time I saw it was at the Park in '89..... But, yeah bring on the Midget Porn (!!) And if you have any Imp pics, even better!!

[eamonn ledwidge]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

I actually drove the Ritmo home from the Park on the Sunday night, suit still on, champagne bottle in hand, open exhaust and all!! Don't remember any law enforcers holding traffic back for me though!!!!!

I dont wish to steal the thunder from what was your great day, but a Ritmo with open exhaust (even with you behind the wheel) does not quite stir the blood & senses - or the Garda colour party, as a Lola T70 would booting away from the lights.

However, I will see what can be done after your next success!!!

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

Ahhh.... The Smithwicks Midget!! I have a feeling that was an ex JOhnny Flynn car. Alan Dawson tugged around in it for a while after your dad had it and then a guy called Kehoe from Ashbourne had it. Last time I saw it was at the Park in '89..... But, yeah bring on the Midget Porn (!!) And if you have any Imp pics, even better!!

Thats right Leo. Johnny built it and sold it to Brendan Dolan(?). Paddy and my old man bought in a bar in Ballyjamesduff after the street race there in the early '80s. I think they got a bit caught up in the emotion of the day! They fooled with it for a couple of years (and your right David, it broke our hearts) and passed it to Alan Dawson.

The last I heard, it was rotting away in a corner of someones yard after it was badly crashed on (an unopened section of) the M50!

Such a shame that it and many others of its day have disappeared.

[Motormouth]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

The last I heard, it was rotting away in a corner of someones yard after it was badly crashed on (an unopened section of) the M50!

Such a shame that it and many others of its day have disappeared.

Yeah? Which yard? where?!!! You know they are eligible for Historics now, 3 of them are currently running, with Steve Griffin now prepping the ex Plower/Keaney car too!!!!
they'll never beat a good Imp though!!!

[eamonn ledwidge]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

Yeah?
they'll never beat a good Imp though!!!

Please tell, where would I get a GOOD one???????

Back to topic pse

[Motormouth]

Originally Posted by eamonn ledwidge

Please tell, where would I get a GOOD one???????

Back to topic pse

*YAWN*
Maybe McLaren would build a brand new one, and you could stick a Zetec in it??

Ok, ok, how about the D type Jag going on fire on the Oldtown track in the mid eighties?
Cliff Dempsey's Modsport Midget (sorry!) retiring after the warm up lap with mechanical difficulties.....
David Hall debuting the Suzuki-Imp at the Park, whilst John Murphy drove his Imp-Ford and was sideways EVERYWHERE!!
David Kennedy's demo laps in the Wolf F1 car which he was using in the Aurora F1 series in the UK.....

[Peter Dunne]

As promised, Midget porn!!

(Sorry Leo, but Midget porn is not little naked people )


Notice the lack of a racing suit! I don't remember why he didnt have any on. Maybe you didnt need to wear them for practice or something?

[Podd37]

Not sure how well these will turn out but some pics I found of 84/85. Check out the size of the crowds in some of them.

Historics


The famous Theodore


Fiats Fiesta and Alfas


F.F as most people mean when they mention the Park


Park oddities. Superkarts (bonkers) and Bicycles (why?)


Various including Tuite and Shorthall in Capri's


And finally, look closeley at the guy in the middle. You can just see a tear in his eye...!

[Motormouth]

Fantastic pics, well done Paul!!!
Except there ain't a tear in my eye, cos that's not '98, that's 2004. I was getting used to it at that stage!!

Can anyone name any of the car/driver combos in those pics? I spotted Swervyn Mervyn Miller in the 3P, Pat Murphy in the Fiesta Supersport and Ivan Thompson in the yellow Alfasud Ti.......

[Motormouth]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

Notice the lack of a racing suit! I don't remember why he didnt have any on. Maybe you didnt need to wear them for practice or something?

It was probably taken on the Thursday evening.......

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

Can anyone name any of the car/driver combos in those pics?

The Theodore is definately David Kennedy

I spent the weekend (ok, a small part of it) looking for my programme from the Golden Jubilee in 70something. No sign. I fear it got lost in one of my many moves. Shame as it was full of all sorts of pics and articles.

[Podd37]

Is it Finn Murray in the white Sud? And I think Dermot Carroll's boot leaving the shot on the left. The Yellow F.F with no front corner is Derek M.

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

I spent the weekend (ok, a small part of it) looking for my programme from the Golden Jubilee in 70something. No sign. I fear it got lost in one of my many moves. Shame as it was full of all sorts of pics and articles.

The Golden Jubilee was 1979... and I have that programme. I've quite a few others from the 1970s as well. I'll dig them out and scan them for you.