Blue is the colour at Chelsea AutoLegends
In the days before sponsorship, the colour of a team’s racing car often signified its origins. If it was British it was green. If it came from Italy (especially if it had a Prancing Horse on the side) it was red.
And if it came from Scotland, it was Flag Metallic Blue with a white band on its nose. Those were the colours made famous by Ecurie Ecosse, Scotland’s own hugely successful? race team that beat the works teams – not once, but twice – to win Le Mans in the 1950s.
In 1956 and 1957, Ron Flockhart took the team’s strikingly coloured Jaguar D-type to victory in the most famous motor race of them all, to ensure that the Ecurie Ecosse name would go down in motor racing history.
In the 1960s, however, the colour scheme to have was red and gold. Fords of all shapes and sizes – Escorts, Lotus Cortinas, Falcons, GT40s – entered under the Alan Mann Racing banner, were among the most successful touring and GT cars around.
Both teams will be honoured with special displays at Chelsea AutoLegends (Sunday, 4 September), the motoring extravaganza that promises to bring the high-octane excitement of the racetrack to the genteel surroundings of the Royal Hospital Chelsea.
For Ecurie Ecosse, the theme will be Le Mans, and among the cars on display will be a D-type – the sister car to the Le Mans winner – plus the Austin Healey Sebring Sprite and the Cooper T57 raced by the team at the 24 Hours in 1961. There’ll also be the 1962 Tojeiro-Jaguar and, bringing the story more up to date, the Group 2 Ecosse-Ford from 1982. The original team disbanded in 1971, but in the 1980s a group of Scottish enthusiasts led by Hugh McCaig revived the name.
But perhaps the most iconic Ecurie Ecosse vehicle isn’t a car at all, but the original team’s three car transporter, finished – naturally – in Flag Metallic Blue. Now fully restored, the double-deck twin-axle Commer, which is powered by a two-stroke three-cylinder diesel, will also be at Chelsea AutoLegends.
Cars wearing the Alan Mann Racing colours will be almost as diverse. Touring cars will be represented by the Ford Lotus-Cortina used by Sir John Whitmore to win the 1965 European Touring Car Championship, as well as his 1965 Ford Mustang and a Mark 1 Escort from the 1968 British Saloon Car Championship.
Long distance racers include a GT40 and, it is hoped, the fascinating but ill-fated 1968 Ford F3L – also known as the P68 – that failed to finish any race it was entered for, in spite of being driven by stars like Bruce McLaren, Jochen Rindt and Richard Attwood. And, despite poor health, Alan Mann himself will visit the show, happy to share memories with fellow enthusiasts.
Ecurie Ecosse and Alan Mann cars will join a number of other significant cars raced by private rather than factory teams, which frequently beat the works outfits. Honouring these ‘patrons’ will be the legendary 1961 TT-winning Ferrari 250 GT SWB raced by Sir Stirling Moss in Rob Walker colours plus cars entered by John Coombs, Tommy Sopwith and Colonel Ronnie Hoare, the latter being the force behind Maranello Concessionaires which, for decades, represented Ferrari in the UK.
These and other historically important competition cars are what makes Chelsea AutoLegends a ‘must see’ event. “Whether your passion is Le Mans, rallying, supercars, classic cars or motorbikes, there’s something at Chelsea AutoLegends for you,” says Chairman, Eric Verdon-Roe.
“In fact it doesn’t matter whether you’re a petrolhead or not. There’s so much to do and see that there’s something for everyone.”
As well as the special themed displays, there will be cavalcades of supercars and motorcycles arriving at the show during the day plus special tributes to the Jaguar E-type and Mini Cooper – both 50-years-old this year.
The ten most significant road cars of all times, as voted by Autocar magazine, will be on official display with countless other classics in the Showground car parks, while some significant rally cars from the recent past – including a Group B Lancia 037 and a pair of Audi quattros – will also be on show.
It’s not just cars but people, too. Great competition names include event Patron Sir Stirling Moss OBE, multiple two-wheel World Champion Phil Read and rally hero Russell Brookes.
And, in keeping with the venue, just a stone’s throw from the Kings Road and the many displays from the Swinging Sixties, it is hoped that visitors will get into the spirit of the day by wearing mini skirts, kaftans and bell-bottoms and put flowers in their hair.
Tickets for this year’s Chelsea AutoLegends are now on sale either via the event’s new website (ChelseaAutoLegends.com) or from the ticket hotline on 0844 581 0760. Advanced adult tickets are £17 (£20 on the gate) and £10 (£20 on the gate) for 12-16 year-olds. Underlining the event’s family entertainment values, accompanied children aged under 12 will be admitted free of charge.
