took their foot off the pedal to wave
back.
Suddenly I was up there at the finish
line and winning a couple of races
while the bemused faster drivers
wondered what had happened with
their carefully orchestrated handicap
times. Later they would understand
and either cut me up to give me some
rough water or just not wave any
more. It was all in good spirit and a
good learning experience for me.
The club racing was such fun, and
what with the camaraderie at the bar
later, it created an incredibly good
atmosphere. The National meets gave
me much thought for moving on to
faster boats and of course Bristol GP
run by the CMBRC was the ultimate
test for any driver, and I loved it.
It is such a pleasure to know that
members are still out there and with
Fast OnWater on Facebook we are able
to communicate and talk about the
past so easily.
To me racing boats gave me a great
sense of fulfilment and later driving on
that fine, but dangerous edge was
truly exhilarating. I hope by my
sponsoring and organizing the
Bahamas Grand Prix and Bristol, also
run by the club, that I made a little
difference in the sport that I enjoyed so
much.’
Aerial view of the CMBRC circuit at Fairford
The aerial photo above shows what a
fantastic circuit Fairford was. The
water is now used by a waterski club
and there are a few alterations that
would make it difficult to put on any
circuit racing. Although with the new,
quieter four-stroke engines, I suppose
it is theoretically possible that noise
levels would be at an acceptable level
for racing of the smaller classes to take
place. As far as I know the CMBRC as
a company still exists and there are
still shareholders. How great would it
be to see the name of the Cotswold
Motor Boat Racing Club back on the
scene?