Funny how things start....
Two or three weeks into lockdown I started posting a few old photos from the 1970s of when I was rallying with my late dad, Roy Honeywell. Roy was (almost) a founder member in 1962 or 63 of Clitheroe & District Motor Club (CDMC), always keen on motorsport, especially rallying - which is where I got the 'bug' from - and was later for many years the RAC Motorsports RLO (Rally Liaison Officer) for our area in North Lancashire and a member of the RAC Motor Sports Committee. I hope it's also fair to say that he was generally considered 'a good egg'.
I thought some of the other competitors - from what is now probably an age ago - would enjoy the photos, and perhaps it would bring back a few memories. As I posted the first few, I nearly always seemed to recall a (usually) amusing anecdote. Several of those on Facebook encouraged me to keep posting, and one has gone so far as to say I should write a book!
Well I'm not sure about that, but I will start by telling you a little bit about me - just a quick outline by way of introduction, if you don't know me.
My first rally was as a navigator on the third-ever Tour of Mull in 1971, at the tender age of 19. From there I competed as a driver (when funds permitted) and a navigator - sometimes with regular partners like dad, at other times on a freelance (but unpaid!) basis.
I guess there aren't many from the world of rallying who could describe themselves as true 'all-rounders' but I would (modestly) suggest that I'm one, having several overall wins as driver and navigator, coming ninth overall (as driver) in the 1983 Motoring News Championship (the unofficial national road rally championship) and also co-driving on various international events including the Circuit of Ireland and the Lombard RAC Rally.
Having been Chairman of CDMC for several years in the 70's and 80's I finally retired from rallying in 1994, fittingly I guess, on that year's Mull Rally. I've done a few less competitive events since, such as the Andy Mort Tour and the Fellsman; I still visit Mull at least once (usually more) per year, and I still love motorsport, but when I retired I promised not to go back. It never works out. And after a dice with death through bowel cancer in 1999 I realised you should always move forward - reverse gear isn't for human beings!
So here goes with the first post, and I'll rattle through these until I catch up with today...
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Two or three weeks into lockdown I started posting a few old photos from the 1970s of when I was rallying with my late dad, Roy Honeywell. Roy was (almost) a founder member in 1962 or 63 of Clitheroe & District Motor Club (CDMC), always keen on motorsport, especially rallying - which is where I got the 'bug' from - and was later for many years the RAC Motorsports RLO (Rally Liaison Officer) for our area in North Lancashire and a member of the RAC Motor Sports Committee. I hope it's also fair to say that he was generally considered 'a good egg'.
I thought some of the other competitors - from what is now probably an age ago - would enjoy the photos, and perhaps it would bring back a few memories. As I posted the first few, I nearly always seemed to recall a (usually) amusing anecdote. Several of those on Facebook encouraged me to keep posting, and one has gone so far as to say I should write a book!
Well I'm not sure about that, but I will start by telling you a little bit about me - just a quick outline by way of introduction, if you don't know me.
My first rally was as a navigator on the third-ever Tour of Mull in 1971, at the tender age of 19. From there I competed as a driver (when funds permitted) and a navigator - sometimes with regular partners like dad, at other times on a freelance (but unpaid!) basis.
I guess there aren't many from the world of rallying who could describe themselves as true 'all-rounders' but I would (modestly) suggest that I'm one, having several overall wins as driver and navigator, coming ninth overall (as driver) in the 1983 Motoring News Championship (the unofficial national road rally championship) and also co-driving on various international events including the Circuit of Ireland and the Lombard RAC Rally.
Having been Chairman of CDMC for several years in the 70's and 80's I finally retired from rallying in 1994, fittingly I guess, on that year's Mull Rally. I've done a few less competitive events since, such as the Andy Mort Tour and the Fellsman; I still visit Mull at least once (usually more) per year, and I still love motorsport, but when I retired I promised not to go back. It never works out. And after a dice with death through bowel cancer in 1999 I realised you should always move forward - reverse gear isn't for human beings!
So here goes with the first post, and I'll rattle through these until I catch up with today...
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One of my first ever drives - probably the '73 Devils Own (so maybe a bit early for this group!) - with father Roy Honeywell on the maps in his MkI Mexico. Abbeystead hairpin I think.
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