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Wow, what a blast from the past! ,
found a couple of old photos, the late Jimmy Keats, and Kathy McQinn.
I Googled Kathy, to no avail, then tried Doug, and found your site!
I was taken to Windsor, Westmead (was it actually at Northmead?) and then beloved Liverpool, from only a few months old. To this day, the smell of petrol fumes and
burning rubber make me smile.
I remember when we would put up blankets on the wire fence at Liverpool, and ducked as the cars went around to dodge the dirt.
When the bike track was moved to the infield area, which stopped so many of them hitting the wall.
So many names sprang out from the gallery to me - Johny Stewart,
Howard Revell, Gary Rush, Sid Hopping, Brian Callaghan and the little Gem, Brooke Tatnell, George Tatnell, Gordon Smee, Paul Ash, Bryan Purssell, Gene Welch,
Ed Wilbur, AJ Foyt,(and an American who's name started with M who went on to great things, cannot remember his name!)
Barry Pinchbeck, Jim Airey. I was there for the Rush/Hopping fight.
Somewhere I have a couple of autograph books full, but as I started collecting them when little more than a toddler, and would ask anyone in overalls to sign, half
are probably pit crew! I remember standing around 44 gallon drums of fire in the car park of Liverpool after the crowd was gone.
I can still remember being told about Doug McQuinn's accident in the pits, and getting a post card from them from Fiji after he recovered.
I can also remember going out to see Jimmy Keats' car in the little Service Station at Wallacia, which was in the country back then,it seemed.
After a race meet (I think) he and his friend Arthur Dwyer hit a tree going up to Warragamba, and Jimmy died. Arthur worked with my father (I think) and
when he married some time later, I was his flower girl.
But the Speedway - what a wonderful childhood experience! We did go to Sydney, but I only remember once, and Grandville once, but I preferred Liverpool. And how sad
it was when it closed. Thank you for your site, and the memories it brought back for me. I would love to know how Kathy and Doug got on in life. When I can scan them,
I will send on the pic of Kathy (which she gave me, and has a dedication on the back - taken by EB Cullen, Club Photos, Ranwick) and the one of Jimmy and his FJ stock
car to you. As I remember it, it was British Racing Green. It has on it's mud guard - Drivers M. Pezzutti and J. Keats.
Wendy Laigne-Stuart
Bywong NSW
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