Never let a chance go by

Press, 5 December 1985, Page 52

Never let a chance go by

By

PETER GREENSLADE

Never let a chance go by. That could well be the motto of Ray Archibald, distinguished World War H airman, racing driver, and Christchurch motor businessman, who will retire this month.

Archibalds, the quality car firm which Ray Archibald brought to national prominence with his Jaguar racing successes, is running a Group A BMW 635CSi in the New Zealand Touring Car Championship as well as the Nissan Mobil international races this season.

Already the Archibalds’ BMW has won the Benson and Hedges series of endurance races in the hands of the Christchurch open saloon car champion, Trevor Crowe, the regular team driver, and the Queenslander, Tony Longhurst. When Ray Archibald heard that Crowe would do some comparative tyre testing with the car at Ruapuna Park yesterday morning, he wasted little time in digging out some old flying overalls and dusting off his crash helmet.

After getting down to a 53s lap, Crowe offered Archibald, the winner of the

forerunner to the Benson and Hedges series, the Wills Six Hours of 1963 a drive in the BMW.

The saloon car racing veteran, who had not even sat in the car previously, had no difficulty in putting in a lap only 6s slower after he had come to terms with the tricky close ratio gearbox with its rather high low gear.

As he released the safety harness and climbed out of the BMW’s cockpit he remarked rather wistfully, “This would have been the right car in my day. Then, again, maybe it wouldn’t, for it would have taken all the fun out of racing. There’s not much fun in being away out in front and on your own.” As he watched Crowe go out again to give a photographer a chance to get some action shots, the man who has driven and won more races in Jaguars than any other in New Zealand said, somewhat dryly, “Maybe if I had had a bit longer, I’d have set a new lap record.”

Maybe he would. Ray Archibald is that sort of man. He never lets a chance go by.