tales from the tub & adventures with trailblazers

 

Journal

From little road trips to big adventures

19
May

Anne Cecile Itier -The French Speed Queen

First published on Heritage Insurance website High upon the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, a sandstorm blinded many of the drivers who were on the 1937 Morocco Rally. Mrs Marguerite Mareuse and Anne Cecile Itier were racing in a Cabriolet for the Hanomag team, unaware that this German team were also conducting an intelligence mission for […]

29
Nov

Pat Moss- Rally Icon and Trailblazer

Delighted as always to see my work printed. First published in Heritage Insurance. The 2023 Monte Carlo Rally is beginning to take shape. For the first time in the event’s history, five mountain passes in a row will create the longest special stage. Col de ’LOrme, Col de L’Albie, Col de Braus, Col Saint-Jean and […]

18
Aug

Betty Skelton – The First Lady of Firsts

First seen on Heritage Insurance website The year is 1965 and we are at the Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah. The sun is bright with a thin layer of heat hovering above the crystal ground as the Green Monster Cyclops Jet car reaches the speed of 315.74mph. The driver is Betty Skelton, the First Lady of […]

19
Jul

Elsie ‘Bill’ Wisdom: the lap breaker

(As previously seen on  Heritage Motor Insurance website)   In this next instalment of women in motorsport, I would like to introduce you to Mrs Elsie Wisdom, known to her friends and family as ‘Bill,’ a nickname given by her brothers at an early age. Growing up with many of them, Elsie (then Elsie Gleed) […]

19
Apr

Fay Taylour – Queen of the Speedway

First Published on Heritage Motor Insurance website: It is exceedingly rare for a rider to be as fast on two wheels as four, with racer Sir John Surtees remaining the only person to have won World Championships by both motorcycle and car. Tazio Nuvolari is among the same rank, having achieved wins in individual races […]

4
Mar

Mildred Bruce: A passion for speed

As seen on Heritage Motor Insurance website I am so excited to share the story of a remarkable lady: the Honourable Mrs Victor Bruce. Mildred epitomises everything about the trailblazer of the period of the Bright Young Things in the Roaring Twenties. Mildred Bruce, also known as Mary Petre, was born to the youngest brother […]

4
Mar

A Damsel in Distress – Book Review

Previously seen on: Overland Journal Europe. A Damsel in Distress By P.G Wodehouse Everyman Classics – ISBN – 978-1-84159-124-7 I bought this book from Hatchard’s Piccadilly two weeks before Christmas in the hope I would sit by the fire and read it from start to finish. The book didn’t even make Christmas week. Cover to […]

11
Feb

A conversation about Madame Junek

Lara Platman from the Bugatti Owners Club UK is joined by Jan Kralik from the Bugatti Club of the Czech Republic to talk about the life of Madame Junek. Lara says, “We talk a little about the wonderful life of Madame Junek and towards the end of the conversation I realised we only touched on […]

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