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Tom Wheatcroft
Frederick Bernard "Tom" Wheatcroft (8 May 1922 – 31 October 2009) was an English businessman and car collector. He made his fortune through building and construction, and was known for resurrecting the Donington Park motor racing circuit and founding the Donington Grand Prix Collection museum. Biography Frederick Bernard Wheatcroft was born in Castle Donington, Leicestershire, in 1922. Early in life he was nicknamed 'Tom-Tom' by an uncle, owing to his habit of repeatedly patting his stomach, and the name stuck with him for the rest of his life. Wheatcroft had only 20 months of formal schooling, and following the end of this he became an apprentice plasterer. However, he preferred to bicycle from his parents home in Leicester to Donington Park to watch pre-war motor racing. He was in attendance at the circuit during the 1937 and 1938 Donington Grand Prix races: During World War II Wheatcroft served as a tank driver. He saw action in many theatres, including Madagascar, India ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Castle Donington
Castle Donington is a market town and civil parish in Leicestershire, England, on the edge of the National Forest and close to East Midlands Airport. History The name 'Donington' means 'farm/settlement connected with Dunna'. Another suggestion is that it could means 'farm/settlement at the hill place'. King's Mill, the nearby crossing on the River Trent, is mentioned in a charter issued by Æthelred the Unready in 1009 regarding the boundaries of Weston-on-Trent. ''Dunintune'' or ''Dunitone'' is mentioned twice in the Domesday Book of 1086 as having land belonging to Countess Ælfgifu and land assigned to Earl Hugh. It is called ''Castoldonyngtoin'' in a duchy of Lancaster warrant of 1484. In 1278, King Edward I granted a charter for a weekly market and an annual Wakes Fair. The Fair continues in Borough Street for three days each October. Lace-making was an important industry up until the 1850s, when a sharp decline in the population is recorded. The population did not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theater (warfare)
In warfare, a theater or theatre is an area in which important military events occur or are in progress. A theater can include the entirety of the airspace, land and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations. Theater of war In his book ''On War'', Carl von Clausewitz defines the term ''Kriegstheater'' (translating the older, 17th-century Latin term ''theatrum belli'') as one that: Theater of operations ''Theater of operations'' (TO) is a sub-area within a theater of war. The boundary of a TO is defined by the commander who is orchestrating or providing support for specific combat operations within the TO. Theater of operations is divided into strategic directions or military regions depending on whether it is a war or peacetime. The United States Armed Forces split into Unified Combatant Commands (regions) that are assigned to a particular theater of military operations. A strategic direction is a group of armies also known as a task (fie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Derek Bell (racing Driver)
Derek Reginald Bell (born 31 October 1941 in Pinner, Middlesex, England) is a British racing driver. In sportscar racing, he won the Le Mans 24 hours five times, the Daytona 24 three times and the World Sportscar Championship twice. He also raced in Formula One for the Ferrari, Wheatcroft, McLaren, Surtees and Tecno teams. He has been described by fellow racer Hans-Joachim Stuck as one of the most liked drivers of his generation.AUSringers.com – Hans-Joachim Stuck speaks to AUSringers Retrieved 4 April 2009  [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1969 German Grand Prix
The 1969 German Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Nürburgring on 3 August 1969. It was race 7 of 11 in both the 1969 World Championship of Drivers and the 1969 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. Twelve Formula Two cars were also entered into the race, though they were not eligible to score points. The 14-lap race was won by Belgian driver Jacky Ickx, driving a works Brabham-Ford. Ickx took pole position, led the final eight laps and set the fastest lap of the race. Scotland's Jackie Stewart finished second in a Matra-Ford, with New Zealand's Bruce McLaren third in a McLaren-Ford. Report Gerhard Mitter was killed during a practice session for this race at Schwedenkreuz. He was practicing for BMW's ''269'' F2 project. As a suspension or steering failure was suspected, the BMW team with Hubert Hahne and Dieter Quester withdrew from the race, as did Mitter's teammate at Porsche, Hans Herrmann. Mario Andretti drove the 4WD Lotus 63 for very few la ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jacky Ickx
Jacques Bernard "Jacky" Ickx (; born 1 January 1945) is a Belgian former racing driver who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans six times (second-highest of all time) and achieved eight wins and 25 podium finishes in Formula One. He greatly contributed to several World Championships for Makes and World Sports Car championships: Ford (1968), Ferrari (1972), Porsche (1976–1977) and (1982–1985) by his 37 major World Sports Car wins. He also won the Can-Am Championship in 1979 and the 1983 Paris–Dakar Rally. Ickx twice finished as championship runner-up in Formula One, in the consecutive years of and . He won the majority of his races for Scuderia Ferrari, for which he was the team's leading driver for several seasons in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Early racing career Born on 1 January 1945 in Brussels, Ickx was introduced to motorsports when he was taken by his father, motoring journalist Jacques Ickx, to races which he covered. Despite this family background, Ickx had limited ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brabham BT26
The Repco Brabham BT26 was a Formula One racing car design. A development of the previous BT24, its Repco engines were unreliable, but following a switch to Cosworth DFV engines it scored two World Championship Grand Prix wins and finished runner up in the 1969 World Constructors' Championship. Concept Designed by Ron Tauranac, the BT26 was the final incarnation of his spaceframe F1 car, and one of the last F1 cars to be raced of such construction – forthcoming rule changes regarding fuel storage would outlaw spaceframe chassis. Tauranac had actually combined the spaceframe with stressed aluminium panels to create a semi-monocoque, enabling him to reduce the size of the spaceframe tubing and so lighten the chassis. The other main difference between the BT24 and the BT26 was a more powerful Repco 860 series engine, but it was also less reliable; the 1968 season was plagued by a string of retirements and Jochen Rindt left to join Lotus. In 1969 the Repco engines were repl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doug Nye
Doug Nye (born October 1945) is an English motoring journalist and author. He lives in Farnham, Surrey, England. He is generally recognised as a world authority on competition cars of any period from 1887, and is a consultant to the Bonhams auction house, the Collier Collection (in the USA) and sits on the Advisory Council of the British National Motor Museum at Beaulieu. He has also consulted for The Dutch National Motor Museum, the Brooklands Museum in England, McLaren International and McLaren Cars Limited. He was a founding consultant to the SpeedVision TV network in the USA and to the Donington Collection of single-seater racing cars, is Historical Consultant (founding) to Goodwood Motorsport – creators of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival Meeting, and a member of the Historians Council of the International Motor Racing Research Center at Watkins Glen, NY. At the age of 18 he went straight from grammar school to the staff of ''Motor Racing'' magazi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
V8 Engine
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. The first V8 engine was produced by the French Antoinette company in 1904, developed and used in cars and speedboats but primarily aircraft; while the American 1914–1935 ''Cadillac L-Head'' engine is considered the first road going V8 engine to be mass produced in significant quantities. The popularity of V8 engines in cars was greatly increased following the 1932 introduction of the ''Ford Flathead V8''. In the early 21st century, use of V8 engines in passenger vehicles declined as automobile manufacturers opted for more fuel efficient, lower capacity engines, or hybrid and electric drivetrains. Design V-angle The majority of V8 engines use a V-angle (the angle between the two banks of cylinders) of 90 degrees. This angle results in good engine balance, which results in low vibrations; however, the downside is a larg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chevrolet Corvette
The Chevrolet Corvette is a two-door, two-passenger luxury sports car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet since 1953. With eight design generations, noted sequentially from C1 to C8, the Corvette is noted for its performance and distinctive fiberglass or composite panels. It was front-engined through 2019 and mid-engined since. The Corvette is currently the only two-seat sports car produced by a major United States auto manufacturer and it serves as Chevrolet's halo vehicle. In 1953, GM executives accepted a suggestion by Myron Scott, then the assistant director of the Public Relations department, to name the company's new sports car after the corvette, a small maneuverable warship. The first model, a convertible, was introduced at the 1953 GM Motorama as a concept car; production models went on sale later that year. In 1963, the second generation was introduced in coupe and convertible styles. Originally manufactured in Flint, Michigan, and St. Louis, Missouri, the C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
V12 Engine
A V12 engine is a twelve-cylinder piston engine where two banks of six cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V12 engines are more common than V10 engines. However, they are less common than V8 engines. The first V12 engine was built in 1904 for use in racing boats. Due to the balanced nature of the engine and the smooth delivery of power, V12 engines were found in early luxury automobiles, boats, aircraft, and tanks. Aircraft V12 engines reached their apogee during World War II, following which they were mostly replaced by jet engines. In Formula One racing, V12 engines were common during the late 1960s and early 1990s. Applications of V12 engines in the 21st century have been as marine engines, in railway locomotives, as large stationary power as well as in some European sports and luxury cars. Design Balance and smoothness Each bank of a V12 engine essentially functions as a straight-six engine, which by itself has perfect primary and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Whitehead (racing Driver)
Peter Nield Whitehead (12 November 1914 – 21 September 1958) was a British racing driver. He was born in Menston, Yorkshire and was killed in an accident at Lasalle, France, during the Tour de France endurance race. A cultured, knowledgeable and well-travelled racer, he was excellent in sports cars. He won the 1938 Australian Grand Prix, which along with a 24 Heures du Mans win in 1951, probably was his finest achievement, but he also won two 12 Heures internationales de Reims events. He was a regular entrant, mostly for Peter Walker and Graham Whitehead, his half-brother. His death in 1958 ended a career that started in 1935 – however, he was lucky to survive an air crash in 1948. Early life and pre-war racing Yorkshireman Whitehead, coming from a wealthy background, gained from the wool industry, started racing in a Riley when he was 19. He moved up to an ERA B-Type the following season and then scored the first major result for the Alta, when he finished third ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
