BARC Jersey International Road Race photographs.
Firstly, a traffic scene on the day of the race. This old photo came in a batch that I bought a while back, featuring scenes from the 1948 Jersey International Road Race. This photo though shows not one racing car, but rather a large collection of road-going cars stuck in traffic, either going to, or leaving, the spectator parking areas. The chap on the pushbike maybe has the right idea, so long as it doesn't rain later. There is also a lad with an old bicycle pushing his faithful steed along the pavement, perhaps as a result of a puncture. The location has been identified as Victoria Avenue, part of the circuit.
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There's quite a variety of elderly motorcars visible here. Easiest to spot is the Jersey registered Ford Model Y, with what looks like a Jaguar SS saloon, registration J 2655, alongside. Next to the Model Y is a 1930s Morris, and behind that a Ford Model A, with an early 30s Vauxhall paying close attention to the Ford 8's rear bumper. Behind the Vauxhall is what looks like an E04A Anglia. In the lefthand line of cars is what seems to be a mini-convention of Morris 8 Series E owners, three examples of which can be seen in close formation. Can anyone identify the roadster on the extreme right of this photograph? Visible behind the Model A is what looks like the local fire appliance.
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The 1948 International Road Race was the second time that this event had been held, taking place on April 29th, 1948. The race consisted of
55 laps of a 3.2 mile long road course, totalling 176 miles in all. The race was won by Bob Gerard in his B-Type
ERA, with George Abecassis finishing second, and Reg Parnell finishing in third. As well as old road cars, I've been interested in motorsport-related memorabilia for some time. In a small collection of motoring-related vinyl records I have, there is one, a '78' by Antone, that on side one features sounds from the Grand Prix at Silverstone, and on side two features sounds from the '48 BARC Jersey Int'l Road Race, the event that the spectators shown above were heading to.
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Cars competing in Jersey, 1948
Along with the image shown above, came the following three photographs, showing two of the cars that competed in that year's event. Firstly, two views of Luigi Villoresi in a Maserati 4CLT, car number 2. He would start the race but retire after only 6 laps with gearbox problems. In the first photo, he is stationary in the paddock area, with the temporary pit 'garages' of Bob Gerard (ERA) and Reg Parnell (Delage) in the background. The second photo shows Villoresi driving by, sleeves rolled up, goggles and linen helmet in place.
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[A photo of a 4CLT driven by L. Brooke can be seen here, while an illustration of Baron de Graffenried behind the wheel of a similar car can be found on the cover of a 1963 copy of the Eagle comic].
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The third photograph shows, I believe, John Benett in a Talbot-Darracq, at speed during the race itself. He would finish the race in tenth position.
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Sadly I do not know who took these photographs. Each is framed in a hardback glazed frame, from the Boots Picture Framing Department. I've not had the photos out of their frames, so whether there are any notes on the back of the photos I cannot say.
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Return to Old Vehicle Photos Page 7. More articles about motor racing in byegone times, and collecting motorsport memorabilia, can be found here.
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