{"id":492525,"date":"2012-08-01T15:00:32","date_gmt":"2012-08-01T22:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportscardigest.com\/\/?p=25864"},"modified":"2024-12-27T03:08:21","modified_gmt":"2024-12-27T03:08:21","slug":"grand-prix-mum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.supercars.net\/blog\/grand-prix-mum\/","title":{"rendered":"Grand Prix \u201cMum\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Di<\/a>
Di Spires
Photo: Mike Jiggle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For me, motor racing became like a drug\u2014the more I attended Grand Prix events in the UK and Europe the more I wanted to get onto the \u201cinside.\u201d At first, I\u2019d go motor racing with my brother, later I met Stuart, my husband. We\u2019d travel to Zandvoort, Zolder, Spa and other European circuits in a VW van we converted into a caravanette. It was at Zolder, in May 1976, where the first seed of our ultimate career was set. While in the paddock we noticed a couple working outside the Lotus motor home. They were simply barbequing food for mechanics, drivers and other team members. I guess it was the start of Formula One \u201chospitality.\u201d Neither Stuart nor I had any experience in hospitality, cooking or any other of the attributes required for the job, but we had the enthusiasm to find out and learn. After an initial abortive start we advertised our \u201chospitality services\u201d in Autosport. To our amazement, Peter Warr, who was then team manager at Walter Wolf Racing, offered us an interview. The job attracted a \u00a3175 per race wage, this would go some way to compensate us as we would have to give up our existing jobs, me as a Civil Servant and Stuart as a factory worker. After an agonizing wait, we were told we hadn\u2019t been successful and another couple had been employed. This wasn\u2019t the news we wanted and we both felt very deflated. Fortunately, we had made some impression upon Peter Warr as we found he had recommended us to John Surtees who was looking for a couple to do the hospitality for him. It was Peter Briggs, the Team Surtees team manager, who phoned us and offered us an interview for the job. The downside to this was the wage, it was not the \u00a3175 offered by Walter Wolf, but \u00a335\u2014how could we live on \u00a335 between us? After the interview, Peter called again and offered us the job. Stuart asked for time to consider the offer. We asked for a little more money and were offered \u00a345 as long as Stuart did some tire work, pit work, and lap timing\u2014some may think us crazy, but we accepted and our Grand Prix career was underway.<\/p>\n

Our first Grand Prix season was 1978.\u00a0 Our initial exercise was to find the Team Surtees motor home that had been parked at Silverstone since the last race of the 1977 season. To our utter dismay, reality soon hit us; the motor home was in a disgusting state both inside and out. Outside wasn\u2019t too difficult to cope with, but the dirty washing up was still in the sink from the previous year and mice had over-run the vehicle. It was just something else\u2014was this our dream job, or the start of a nightmare? Team Surtees wasn\u2019t the wealthiest of teams, and we had what could be said as a \u201crestricted budget\u201d to perform our duties, none of which included refurbishment of the motor home, either decoratively or mechanically. Our personalities were challenged too, the team uniform and motor home were emblazoned with the word \u201cDurex,\u201d our sponsor\u2019s name, and while initially embarrassing we were the first port of call should a driver or other member of the pit lane find themselves \u201con a promise.\u201d As our season would pan out, the vehicle often broke down and John Surtees wasn\u2019t always the easiest person to get on with. However, we made allowances, as he was often in pain from an accident he\u2019d suffered a few years earlier, we greatly admired him for his World Championship success on two wheels and four, the only man who will probably ever achieve that feat.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n