Paddy Chambers 1946-2018
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“Paddy" as he was known to all his friends and family was born on 11th January 1946 and passed away on 5th May 2018 after a very short but brave fight against cancer.
His passion for all things with wheels started at an early age with his Austin A40 peddle car (as seen at Goodwood) which when he out grew it and our father sold it Paddy hide the car so it couldn’t be taken away! He started GoKarting at the age of 14, the kart had twin JAP engines, direct drive via chains to the back axle, his competitive edge and determination soon shone through, his trophy collection had started.. As we lived in the Isle of Man at the time he was able to get his driving license at 16 and after that the fun and chaos started, on one occasion taking the family Morris Oxford estate along some of the special stages of the RAC Manx and while (so he said) trying to pass a competitor ended up in a ditch! |
Paddy with Mark Harris at North Weald
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When as a family we relocated to Hampshire Paddy secured a job as car salesman selling Fords. He soon had enough money to buy a new BMC Morris Mini Cooper 997, classic red with a black roof, that too ended up in a ditch one evening after a night out! The Cooper soon became modified for completion and fettled by Richard Longman, the first hill climb was Gurston Down, shortly afterwards it was taken off the road and only used for sprints and his climbs. An everyday car was needed and it had to double as the tow car for the mini and trailer. A white 4 door Mark 1 Ford Cortina GT fitted the bill, as you can imagine it didn’t stay standard for long being prepared by John Wilmot, lowered, stiffened and tweaked it was now the ultimate “Q” car as it was faster than the Lotus Cortina’s of the day. The mini was later traded for a 1380cc super light weight full race prepared mini and Paddy embarked on his racing career competing very successful in the Triplex Saloon Car Championship in the early ‘70s, many class wins and even a couple of outright wins (in the wet) followed. After several seasons he gave up competition due to lack of sponsorship and had to content himself with track days in his various company cars……. VW Golf estate, Ford Capri 2.8i, BMW estate as well as his Austin Healey 3000 Mk3 he was frequently fastest on the day to the amazement of lesser mortals in faster machines!
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It wasn’t until I bought my Chimeara and we went for a Sunday afternoon drive that is desire for a sports car was revived and a couple of weeks later he bought his Chimeara 4.5, his competitive spirit meant his TVR had to be better, faster and more brash than mine! The rest is history.
A lot of you will know Paddy from the TVR Sprint series where he attacked the events with his usual competitive manner and also as the Character he was, dry sense of humour and time for everyone taking an interest in all things wheels! He will be sadly missed by all and leaves behind including his son, daughter and two grandchildren as well as myself and his three nephews and two great nephews. Charles Chambers
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