CLUB CELEBRATES ITS ANNIVERSARY IN STYLE
The 750 Motor Club’s 80th anniversary meeting at Donington Park last weekend was a fitting tribute which celebrated the very best of the past and present.
A total of 360 competitors took part in a bumper 26-race meeting across 13 formulae, with the majority of grids close to or at maximum capacity.
Many of the races were action-packed with incidents and crashes minimal as just a handful of red flags and safety cars were deployed during the weekend.
To celebrate the anniversary an ‘80 for 80’ parade took place with a plethora of Austin road and race cars – a staple from the early days of the club – taking to the circuit during the lunchbreak.
Giles Groombridge, competitions manager at the 750MC, believes the club is in a good position at the moment but that things can’t be taken for granted.
“We are in a very good place but the most important thing is to maintain that position and that level of customer satisfaction,” he said.
“We aren’t looking just to pursue growth recklessly. It’s very easy in motorsport and running race meetings to get in a position of losing money or over committing to track time.
“What we need to do is to be able to be a commercial success so that we can invest back in the clubs.”
The club has come along way from its first meeting in 1939 – believed to be a sporting trial at Wolsingham – and has gone from strength to strength, doubling its turnover from 2012 and increasing its membership from 1200 to around the 2000 mark during the same period.
Many of the races are now streamed live on social media and effective costcontrol methods have been put in place to make sure championships are financially viable and competitive.
Groombridge added: “We try our best to keep our entry fees as competitive as possible, actually try to implement cost-control methods in our championships and try our best to maintain that club atmosphere.”
Maintaining a club atmosphere is one of the key cornerstones of any racing club and one which the 750MC has got right, according to competitors.
Ian Jordan, a five-time class champion in Formula Vee and a member of the 750MC for 28 years, said: “It used to be tagged ‘the Friendly Formula’ because everyone helps one another, there’s really good comradery.”
Four-time 750 Formula champion Bob Simpson, who has competed for more than 50 years with the 750MC, also believes that a family atmosphere and comradery are key ingredients to helping a championship and racing club be successful.
“The club has changed completely since we started out, people travelled in household cars with a trailer on the back, but now we have motorhomes and the paddock is chockablock,” he said.
“I lent a spare part to a competitor today so there’s still that thing going on. If people here have got a spare part they will almost always let you use it.”
With the club in good health and the majority of competitors happy it appears the 750MC can look forward to what the future holds.