Gentlemen racers

from HGPCA Yearbook 2020/21

Tony Merrick remembered

Motorsport has always attracted a certain level of gentry. A sporting spirit, a flair for driving coupled with the ability to endure fatigue and a passion for engineering are all elements required to become one of the few gentleman racers.

Arguably, motor racing is mostly a solo sport, but it is actually a pursuit steeped in camaraderie. Early participants often banded together – one example being the Bentley Boys, led by Joel Woolf Barnato. The heir to a South African diamond mine, Barnato had invested heavily in Bentley. Folklore has it that he won a £100 bet that he made whilst partying in Cannes. What was the bet, you ask? That he could pilot his 6½-litre Bentley Speed Six all the way from the Carlton Hotel in Cannes to The Carlton Club on St James Street in London by the time the Le Train Bleu pulled into the French port city of Calais – and that he’d be nursing a single malt at the bar. He drove the 1,329 kilometres in 22.5 hours, beating the train by a mere four minutes. Possibly the most gifted and utterly fearless of Bentley Boy drivers was Sir Henry Ralph Stanley ‘Tim’ Birkin. His restless dynamism and a longing for adventure was best described by The Times: “Danger, and the need for caution, were all sacrificed to the love of brilliant driving at high speed.”

In the 1928 Le Mans, he managed a lap average speed of 85 mph while on just three wheels despite a punctured tyre. But his driving prowess was not just limited to the track. Mischievously, he allegedly managed to shoe-horn a Bentley up the staircase of the Savoy Hotel during a well-lubricated dinner.

Taking the baton from Sir Henry was the Italian Count Carlo Felice Trossi, a young engineer and gentleman racer. In 1930 he commissioned a supercharged 7.1 litre Mercedes-Benz SSK ‘Count Trossi’, known as the Black Prince. Remember–this was an era where some cars were bespoke works of art.

Above: Tim Birkin’s 4 ½ litre Bentley at the 1930 LeMans. Right: Count Gianni Marzotto twice took first overall in the Mille Miglia.

Characterised by his ever-present 46 mm diameter Trossi Leggenda by Patek Philippe on his wrist – his greatest achievements on the racetrack were with the mighty Alfa Romeo team, with victory on the streets of Milan’s Portello district in the 1947 Italian Grand Prix. Ferrari’s first customers were all wealthy privateers for whom a Servizio Clienti department was set up in 1948 in Viale Trento e Trieste, Modena. Enzo Ferrari’s fourth-ever customer, Count Gianni Marzotto, was the owner of a 2-litre grand touring coupé. He set the sartorial standard by winning the 1950 Mille Miglia in a double-breasted suit. “I raced like that because that was my normal working attire… it meant I was always ready, if forced to retire, to take the train home,” he later said of his daring-do.

Scotch whisky heir Rob Walker the man who, having got his wings at Cambridge, was ejected from the university air squadron for clipping the fences around Cottenham racecourse in his Tiger Moth. Citing his occupation as ‘gentleman’ in his passport, he described himself as selfunemployed. He went on to form the Rob Walker Racing Team to become one of the most respected characters in motor racing history, winning a Formula One World Championship Grand Prix nine times between 1958 and 1968. But is there still a place for the modern gentleman driver? The concept of a gentleman driver can seem almost quaint in this day and age, however there’s no shortage of venues or outlets for gentlemen drivers to test their mettle behind the wheel of a purebred racing machine.

The enabler these days are the makers of high-performance cars, the Ferraris, Porsches, Lamborghinis and Maseratis of the world. There’s plenty of opportunities for the well-heeled to satisfy their need for speed, the HGPCA being one such association.

Cigars and brandy during pitstops may be a distant memory, but the flair for spirited driving and the appreciation of motorsport heritage is alive and well.

The Trossi Mercedes-Benz

Top: Count Trossi’s Alfa Romeo Middle: Bentley have built 12 of the Speed 6 Continuation Series Above: 1930 R.H. Nockolds ‘Birkin Blower’ at Pau

With over 50 years combined experience in the Lloyd’s and London Insurance market Bertie and Emma-Jane Gilbart-Smith would be delighted to discuss your insurance requirements. Insurance Specialists with an involvement and interest in Historic Motor Racing.

We are able to provide a Personal, Discreet and Specialised Service for: l Classic and Historic cars on Agreed Values l Modern cars and motorhomes can be included in the same policy l On Track cover whilst racing l Higher value Home insurance including Jewellery, Antiques and Fine Art l Marine insurance for cars being shipped overseas

56 /

The Coach House, Waltham St Lawrence, Berkshire RG10 0HE Telephone: +44 (0)118 932 1400 email: info@gilbart-smith.co.uk Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

A unique collector’s co ee-table book of new photographs celebrating Britain’s most iconic and inspirational drivers, past, present and future. To order, visit narrativebooks.net/gbrd