Crosslé, Lola, and and Mallock

This year, Crosslé, Lola, and Mallock will all celebrate their fiftieth anniversaries. The exact date of each birthday is unknown, as it is difficult to pinpoint when a special builder became a constructor. In the interest of historical accuracy, I have discussed the matter with Eric Broadley, John Crosslé, and the late Arthur Mallock. All three agreed it was around 1958, and they were happy to share the honors.

I would not like to guess how many makers of racing cars have come and gone since 1958, but it must be at least 500; think of all the Formula Ford and Formula V makes. You can make the twentieth best washing machine in the world and prosper—someone is doing it. A team can survive for years in Formula One and not win a race: Look at Arrows, half a century of lucrative failure, but nobody survives long by making even the third best production racing car for a particular category. The fact that these three makers are still in business after fifty years is remarkable.