CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE


News


he was partnered by compatriot Denis Jenkinson, a true and valued life-long friend. They beat Fangio, who was second, by more than 30 min- utes, an unheard of margin in such an event. His career was cruelly cut short following a


severe accident at the Easter Monday Glover Trophy meeting at Goodwood of 1962. In a coma for over four weeks, he did not return to driving for a year, by which time he felt he had lost his edge. I asked him about this many years later and he confessed he made the decision to stop too soon after such injuries.


M


any of you will have read the recent announcement that our President, Sir


Stirling Moss, is retiring from public life. Philip Strickland, a personal friend of Sir Stirling, has provided the following text, which I have repro- duced unedited as the ‘Chairman’s message’ for this Bulletin.


Sir Stirling Moss OBE retires ‘At the age of 88 years the time has come for Sir Stirling Moss OBE to retire from public life in order to devote himself to his family, who have been for so long utterly devoted to him. It is probable that his story is well known to all who read this. The son of a dentist, he began racing as a young teenager and found success early in his career, leading to media exposure from the begin- ning. He took part in 66 Grands Prix, winning 16, often driving cars made in the UK. Many of those were owned and operated by the wonderful Rob Walker, whose generous and kindly nature exposed Stirling to a standard of sportsmanship and support that may have been unique in any age and certainly was unparalleled then. He was partnered with the great Juan Manuel Fangio when he joined Mercedes and won the British Grand Prix for them in 1955. It was his first Formula One Grand Prix win. There were many highlights, per- haps too many to recall here. He took part in 529 races and was fortunate to win almost half of them. Among them was his historic drive in the Mille Miglia of 1955. This was a very satisfying win as


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Stirling is all too often described as the most successful driver never to have been World Champion. This is somewhat disingenuous as he chose (against better judgement) to drive for British teams when their cars were unreliable, often leading when his mount broke down. He should have been World Champion in 1958, but for an act of great personal honour and sacrifice which deprived him of the Championship, which Hawthorn won, by a single point, despite winning four races to Hawthorn’s single victory. Stirling has never really been sure from where he inherited the will to race and win. Perhaps it came from his father, who raced at Indianapolis in 1924 and regularly at Brooklands in the inter- war years. It was partly this connected heritage, together with the example of people he came to admire, such as Rob Walker and Denis Jenkinson, that led him to wish to become involved in the revival of Brooklands as a working Museum. When he was invited to become the President of the Brooklands Trust Members by the late Ian McGregor, he immediately accepted, knowing that he would be involved with people who shared his passion for motor sport, aviation and motorcycling history. Stirling is proud to have been a part of the success that is the continuing story of Brooklands and is confident it will thrive in the years to come. Brooklands Trust Members owe Stirling a huge debt of gratitude for his support. It might be said that in many ways he has led a charmed but successful public life. It is equally true that he shared much of that charm with Brooklands Trust Members with whom he has always been so willing to share his experiences. The BTM wishes both Stirling and his devoted wife Susie every success in the future and an early return to full health.’


Neil Bailey


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