Quote:
Originally Posted by rainbow
Hi mab01uk, I have just been reading your old posts which brought back memories to me.I was born and bred in Ewell and worked for a couple of years at Lankesters L,head running the parts dept while Ray Bell was the top mechanic.If I have read this right he was your eldest brother?
Anyhow Ray was a workaholic and soon had enough private jobs to set up on his own,working on the driveway and single garage at his parents house.At the sametime I decide to have the summer off work and ended up helping Ray on a day to day basis,collecting ,delivering cars and even doing the odd bit of mechanics for him.I lived on the London Rd the other side of the Organ Inn and can vaguely collecting one of his brothers from school.The highlight of the week would be towing the mini to brands on a wed, for a test session,originally behind his ex DJ Bond cortina estate and then a burgandy mk1 capri complete with sunroof,unfortunately only 1300cc! W,ed meet up with the likes of Paul Butler,Chris Tyrell and Ray soon started to progress.I can also remember his lovely girlfriend,not her name though,who lived in a big house in Esher,although whether they approved of him we will never know!!
At the end of the summer I had to get a proper job and drifted apart from Ray but as with everyone else where shocked at his early tragic death,I used to go to school with the driver, a sad sad day.
Brought back great memories of a bygone era.
rainbow
|
Hi rainbow,
Good to hear your memories, yes Ray was my eldest brother and worked at Lankesters in Leatherhead, I remember we used to pass your Ewell house in the mornings when he dropped me off at school on the way in the Mk1 Cortina estate and later the Capri. I have posted photos of Ray's race Mini, not sure which previous thread so I have added some below in case you have not seen them. His girlfriend at the time was Annette, she was a hairdresser and had a green Mini Countryman woody, one of many Mini's Ray used to fix! Her father owned a chain of Launderette shops. I used to go over to her parents house in Esher sometimes with Ray to get my hair cut. Myself and my other 2 brothers all got into Mini's and Mini racing because of Ray and still are today. As you say great memories of a bygone era....pm me your email via the forum if possible and we might be able to fill in some of the gaps in each others memories from those days and would love to hear more of what you may remember about Ray.
Mab
Some old 'period' album pictures of my older brothers (Ray Bell) 850cc Free Formula Special Saloon Mini at Silverstone & Brands Hatch in 1972, wheels were 6x10 Mambas + Dunlop and later Firestone 1B19 6.0x19.3x10 slicks with Dunlop CR65 Mk11 (320) 5.00L-10 used on S reverse rims for the wet. The body was an early 1961 Mk1 ex-Mini 7 shell bought for £25 and we 'updated' it cutting apertures for Mk2 rear lights!
Mini 7 ace Chris Tyrell modded the head at his Leatherhead, Surrey workshop along with my own modded road Mini's later.........in later years my younger brother Steve went on to become Chris Tyrell's race mechanic and ultimately a Mini 7 champion himself in 1997, so this is where it all started!
Brands Hatch also in 1972 (The mis-matched blue fibreglass bootlid was a hasty replacement for some previous weekends damage!)
