ATHLETICS, TENNIS, SKIING, MOTORSPORTS, GOLF Athletics

My father was an engineer and an international athletics field events specialist coach. I was fast, only ever beaten by one school friend, Rob Carter. I was always going to be fast enough for top rugby but a couple of yards too slow in 100 for an international athlete. My father gave me great tuition in shot, discus, javelin, triple jump, hurdles. As a Junior I was very successful in these events but I was never going to be big enough to compete for senior honours so athletics continued at a club level for Cambridge Harriers

Tennis

I had a great start at Eltham College but at 16 this too gave way to rugby as my international ambition. I enjoyed social tennis and twice had tennis courts installed in our back garden

Skiing

Giving up serious rugby aged forty I was only getting the adrenaline rush for a couple of weeks in winter on the ski slopes. Skiing was fabulous, occasionally competitive with friends! It continued till I had my hip replaced in 2010. I really miss it

Motorsports

With the exception of rugby this sport tends to bring back more memories because so many people and so many places were involved. Anyway this is how it happened. I had been persuaded by my son Tim to invest in a motorsport business, rebuilding and developing Jaguars, especially E types. Suddenly I was being pushed into motor racing and went to Silverstone to race a Morris Minor 1000 in Historic GT. Being lapped by Lotus Cortina’s ensured this was the only race in the Morris. An old Jaguar 3.8 Mk 1 was quickly race prepared and I was able to get amongst the Lotuses The business moved into the serious development of Jaguar XJS cars and was named BLE  – Ron Beaty, John Lewis and Iain Exeter. With the cooperation of Brian Lister we revived the name of the Lister Jaguar and when we launched the new Lister Jaguar XJS Brian came and so to did Stirling Moss, both real gentlemen. A thrill for all the BLE staff Of course, we went racing with it. Jaguar only races were too easy, I had the best car. Racing in Thundersaloons was great – two driver races. We were never able to get in front of the heavily sponsored General Motors Vauxhall Carlton, but we were beating Tom Walkinshaws TWR Mazda. My co driver was either Roger Mac or Mike Jordan. Both champions, Roger in Jaguar and Mike in Porsche. Two great people with whom we enjoyed many weekends At Jaguar race weekends I also raced on several occasions in the ‘production’ class driving my regular road cars, my Lister Jaguar XJS and my Jaguar XJ12 saloon I wanted more serious competition and Mike persuaded me to enter the Pirelli Porsche series. First with a 911, then with a 911 Clubsport. I did not like the engine at the back and moved into a 944Turbo. This was a good move. I loved the car and drove it on the road also and I was competing at the front with the 911’s. My best win was at Silverstone on a circuit better suited to the 911 While I was starting Porsche racing in the 911 the Pirelli Porsche series included a race in the Birmingham Superprix. This was a hell of an experience racing on roads in the opposite direction to the day to day use I was accustomed to. Best of all Mike Jordan won the race and won the season championship Motor racing stopped when we were hit by the ‘machine tools for Iraq’ fiasco

Golf

I had hit golf balls quite a lot, especially when we were in Portugal but my main interest was in hitting further than anyone else – stupid. When I was coaching Blackheath rugby I had the opportunity to be a member of Royal Blackheath Golf Club for three years and played regularly, getting close to breaking 80 but not quite. I then had periods working abroad and golf was very intermittent until four years ago when I realised it was probably the only competitive sport I could do. I hit 80 in May 2022. My next ambition is to break 75 – I’m working at it!