David Murphy
It’s all his Dad’s fault, reckons David Murphy, longtime old Ford fan and one of the guys behind the annual Retro Rides Gathering.
H
ow did you get into cars?
It’s all my Dad’s fault. He used to take us to motor racing events, mainly at Brands Hatch and Lydden Hill in various shonky old motors from the ‘60s and ‘70s, and that planted the seed, I guess.This was back in the 80s so you could say he was retro ahead of his time! At one point he had six cars at home, but only one of them worked.
Did you used to pinch his car mags?
Yes! He’d usually have copies ofTriple C, Custom Car and Practical Classics lying around the house. Much to my Mum’s annoyance.
What was your first Ford?
A 1.8 Sierra, which was my second ever car. It was gutless but I loved it because it was invisible to the police and I never got pulled in it, unlike my other cars. It tried to kill me twice; once when it cut out momentarily, just as I was pulling out onto a busy dual carriageway; the second time when it spun slowly turning into a road on a completely dry day.
The main show you organise, Retro Rides Gathering came about from the Retro Rides forum you set up back in 2004.When and where was the first one?
Actually the first event Keith and I organised was the Retro Rides Show at Mallory Park in 2007. It was a two-day event and we decided to go big.ThenThe Guardian ran a preview of it in their Saturday Guide and a load of people turned up, and it got really big. We were running around like headless chickens with no idea what to do, and to this day, it is the most stressful thing I’ve ever been involved with.The next year we held the Gathering — 200 cars in a car park. Much more manageable!
The show has grown a bit since that first one, then?
Yes, but we’ve been able to control it.The idea behind the Gathering has always been to put on a show that we want to go to, so we try and make it as good as possible.
It’s currently held at ShelsleyWalsh — what Fords have you invited to run up the hill this year?
We’re doing a rallying through the ages theme, and for the ‘80s we’ve got a Group B RS200 coming along. I can’t wait to see and hear that running.The UK has so may great classic Fords with motorsport heritage to choose from — if anyone wants to see a particular car at the show, let us know.
Any embarrassing moments?
The first year we did the Gathering, we decided to give out awards, but forgot to tell anyone. So I had to stand in the middle of the car park at Gaydon yelling the results to people.
What’s your favourite motorsport Ford?
Hands down, it has to be the first incarnation of Supervan. I’m a big fan of that, or anything with a DFV in it, come to think of it.
And a road version?
A lot of the cars featured in Street Machine still stick in my mind — I’d love to own Kev Rooney’s purple Consul Capri.
You’ve got £10K to buy and build a classic Ford. What would you do?
Easy, turn to the back of the mag and see what Simon Coulson has come up with this issue. I usually want to build everything he does.The speedster Mk3 Escort Cabriolet from 2015 was a stroke of genius.
What other shows do you enjoy going to?
Goodwood Members’ Meeting and Le Mans Classic are both favourites. Or any event where I bump into friends, basically!