Almost 62 and still at it!

Almost 62 and still at it! Motor racing that is! I have been in the very fortunate position of having a life of working in the racing industry and driving now and again too.

My wife and I spent most of our working lives on the West Coast of the USA, 26 years to be exact, and four years ago semi-retired back to our Cheshire roots ( well mine, Jess is from Glasgow but we spent our first 9 years of marriage in Lymm, Cheshire) first in a Wimpey built semi and then the British Railway built "Heatley" railway station sold off under Beeching – good for us though.

1980 saw us landing in Los Angeles to the unknown, however we had bought a house 3 months previously and had rented a workshop to to start our business.

The rest as they say is history. Four houses and a farm later, we decided enough was enough. As nice as it sounds, our California/Oregon residence came to an end and we moved back to Cheshire.

We were lucky enough to buy our cosy cottage here in Audlem, in poor repair. We have taken the last 6/7 years updating and improving the property – we had owned it almost 3 years before we returned permanently.

We arrived back on December 3rd '05 and have loved Audlem ever since. I digress -- what am I still at?

Motor racing, of course, from tracks like Sears Point and Laguna Seca, I now race all over the UK and Europe. I still prepare my own cars, build the motors and transmissions etc., and keep them running through the season which runs from late March to late October.

Jess and I have a "live in car trailer" that carries the car to the track and doubles as a caravan when we get there.

Although I am a self confessed "mediocre" driver, I have been lucky enough to drive most circuits in the UK now and as a special treat last year we were invited to race at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium.

It was the highlight of '09, absolutely fantastic driving on a current F1 track – and our 10th place wasn't too bad either!

We have no regrets about leaving (or living) in the States where we still have family but we love Audlem. It must be one of the greatest places to live in Cheshire and a more vibrant, lively and picturesque village would be hard to beat.

So, we're looking forward to the new 2010 season with a new (old) car fully restored 1966 race car originally made in Cheshire (Hale) and raced first time at Oulton in that year and to be raced after it's restoration once again at Oulton in March 2010.

I still have " the passion " to race and work in the buzz of the race car industry. I hope that you have enjoyed my story and maybe I will see some of you at Oulton in March.

This article is from our news archive. As a result pictures or videos originally associated with it may have been removed and some of the content may no longer be accurate or relevant.