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Ards Circuit
The Ards Circuit was a motorsport street circuit in Northern Ireland used for RAC Tourist Trophy sports car races from 1928 until 1936, when eight spectators died in an accident. Industrialist and pioneer of the modern agricultural tractor, Harry Ferguson was instrumental in setting up the race. As Northern Ireland's premier sporting event, it regularly attracted crowds in excess of a quarter of a million people. Description The triangular circuit long ran between the towns of Dundonald, Newtownards (known as ''Ards'') and Comber in County Down, Northern Ireland. Races were run in a clockwise direction, starting at 11 am. Initially races were of 30 laps for a total distance of ; from 1933 races were of 35 laps for a total distance of . The entries were handicapped to cater for cars of different sizes and capabilities, and W. O. Bentley wrote that large cars could often be baulked by smaller ''baby cars'' on the winding sections so the circuit did not suit the larger Bentley or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Street Circuit
A street circuit is a motorsport racing circuit composed of temporarily closed-off public roads of a city, town or village, used in motor races. Airport runways and taxiways are also sometimes part of street circuits. Facilities such as the paddock, pit boxes, fences and grandstands are usually installed temporarily and removed soon after the race is over but in modern times the pits, garages, race control and main grandstands are sometimes permanently constructed in the area. Since the track surface is originally planned for normal speeds, race drivers often find street circuits bumpy and lacking grip. Run-off areas may be non-existent, which makes driving mistakes more expensive than in purpose-built circuits with wider run-off areas. Racing on a street circuit is also called "legal street racing". Local governments sometimes support races held in street circuits to promote tourism. In some cases, short segments or connector roads of the circuit are purpose-built for the rac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edward Ramsden Hall
Edward Ramsden Hall (17 July 1900 – 12 May 1982) was an English racing driver. He was born in Milnsbridge into a wealthy Yorkshire family in 1900, the heir to a successful textiles business which funded his motor racing and other sporting exploits. He is famous for being the only driver to successfully complete the full 24 hours of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race solo, a feat he achieved in 1950. He lived at Kirkburton, near Huddersfield until leaving the United Kingdom on his retirement in the early 1950s to live, initially in South Africa, later in Canada and then Monte Carlo, where he had an apartment overlooking the harbour and part of the Grand Prix circuit. He was married twice, first to Evelyn Muriel (divorced in 1931) and secondly in 1933 to divorcée Joan Evelyn Quarmby (née Goddard) who survived him on his death in 1982. Racing career Hall started motor racing in 1922 and was a prolific amateur competitor at many venues including Donington Park, Shelsley Walsh, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ernest Hives
Ernest Walter Hives, 1st Baron Hives (21 April 1886 – 24 April 1965), was the one-time head of the Rolls-Royce Aero Engine division and chairman of Rolls-Royce Ltd. Hives was born in Reading, Berkshire to John and Mary Hives, living at 31 Christchurch Road from at least 1891 to 1901. During the Second World War he was closely involved with the design of the Merlin engine as well as numerous later Rolls-Royce jet engines. He began his working life in a local garage. However, in 1903 he got a job working at Charles Rolls, C.S. Rolls' car company, after fixing Rolls' car. Achievements After becoming a chief test driver in 1908, he led the Rolls-Royce team in the Austrian Alpine Trial in 1913. During the First World War the company designed its first aero-engine, the Rolls-Royce Eagle, Eagle, and Hives developed it successfully; by 1916 he was Head of the Experimental Department. In 1919 the Eagle powered the twin-engined Vickers Vimy bomber on the Alcock and Brown, first direct ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Cobb (racing Driver)
John Rhodes Cobb (2 December 1899 – 29 September 1952) was an early to mid 20th century English racing motorist. He was three times holder of the World Land Speed Record, in 1938, 1939 and 1947, set at Bonneville Speedway in Utah, US. He was awarded the Segrave Trophy in 1947. He was killed in 1952 whilst piloting a jet powered speedboat attempting to break the World Water Speed Record on Loch Ness water in Scotland. Early life Cobb was born in Esher, Surrey, on 2 December 1899, near the Brooklands motor racing track which he frequented as a boy. He was the son of Florence and Rhodes Cobb, a wealthy furs broker in the City of London. He received his formal education at Eton College and Trinity Hall, Cambridge, before joining his father's firm and pursuing a successful career as the managing director of a number of companies in the trade, the personal financial resources from which he used to fund a passion for large capacity motor high speed racing. In 1924 he acquired a Royal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthur Sidgreaves
Sir Arthur Frederick Sidgreaves (12 June 1882 – 7 June 1948) was a British businessman who was head of Rolls-Royce, notably during World War II. Early life He was born 12 June 1882 in the Malay States, the son of Sir Thomas Sidgreaves, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Straits Settlements, and Barbara Catharine. His father, suffering from financial problems, committed suicide in 1890. He attended Downside School in Somerset. In the First World War, he served in the RNAS and RAF. Career Rolls-Royce He joined Rolls-Royce in July 1920, where he was export manager in the London offices. In 1926 he became General Sales Manager. In 1929 he became managing director, where he was managing director for 17 years, and throughout the war. From 1935, the British government introduced its shadow factory programme, and he jointly instigated the Rolls-Royce factory to produce the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine in Cheshire. Another factory was built at Hillington, Scotland, which went i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mille Miglia
The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi, which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 (thirteen before World War II, eleven from 1947). Like the older Targa Florio and later the Carrera Panamericana, the ''MM'' made grand tourers like Alfa Romeo, BMW, Ferrari, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche famous. The race brought out an estimated five million spectators. From 1953 until 1957, the Mille Miglia was also a round of the World Sports Car Championship. Since 1977, the "Mille Miglia" has been reborn as a regularity race for classic and vintage cars. Participation is limited to cars, produced no later than 1957, which had attended (or were registered to) the original race. The route (Brescia–Rome round trip) is similar to that of the original race, maintaining the point of departure/arrival in Viale Venezia in Brescia. Car numbering Unli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bentley 3½-Litre
The Bentley 3½ Litre (later enlarged to 4¼ Litre) was presented to the public in September 1933, shortly after the death of Henry Royce, and was the first new Bentley model following Rolls-Royce's acquisition of the Bentley brand in 1931. Bentley sold only the drivable bare rolling chassis with engine and gearbox, scuttle and radiator, ready for coachbuilders to construct on it a body to the buyer's requirements. Many distributors ordered their preferred bodies as showroom stock to enable them to stock finished cars ready for immediate sale. Bentleys of this era are known as ''Derby Bentleys'' because they were built in the Rolls-Royce factory located in Derby, England. Those of Bentley's previous independent era are Cricklewood Bentleys. Chassis series A to F were 3½ Litre cars; G to L (excluding I) were 4¼ Litres, and the M series was the 4¼ Litre Overdrive chassis. Each series consisted of 100 chassis numbers, either odd or even. The numbers 13 and 113 in each series w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
