John Alley

23/1/1930

Record updated 10-Oct-06

John Aley started motor sport after the War. He raced saloons and was part of the European Touring Car Championship winning Fiat Abarth Works Squad. Since retiring from racing he has been involved in the administration and organisation of the sport.

John Alley
Like many of his generation , John Aley started motor sport after the War. He began with motorcycles but changed to four wheels in 1950 having been founder member of a local motor club in Cambridge.

With his MG and HRG he competed in all sorts of events from trials to racing. In the '50's he frequently competed at Snetterton including the very first one organised by AMOC in 1951. He also took part in the first meeting at Brands Hatch on Boxing Day 1954 and the last at Davidstowe, when the organisers went bust.

By 1956 John had become hooked on Touring Car Racing and took part in his first International, the Daily Express at Silverstone. He thereafter became invlolved with BMC, racing A35's and Minis of all kinds untill 1966 when he became a member of the Fiat Abarth Works Squad.

They contested the European Touring Car Championship and won it! During the '60's John was successful with small saloons , Mini, Abarth and DKW, particularly in European races where his win in the Coupe De Paris in 1960 was the Mini's first International outright victory.

John was elected to BRDC membership in 1963 and was the only driver to qualify for membership solely at the wheel of a small saloon at a time when class victories did not count.

In 1965 John took over the management of Snetterton and continued there as Clerk of the Course for several years. In 1968/9 he was the secretary of the European Touring Car Championship having served on its organising committee since its foundation in 1963.

John took part in his last serious race at the Nurburgring, 1968, competing in the International 6hr race resulting in 3rd in Class. For the last 20 years John has been Chairman and now President of the Motor Cycling Club, the country's oldest club for both cars and bikes. This means that in something like over 50 years he has got back to where he started.



BRDC

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