Latest / BREAK/FIX the Motorsports & Vehicle Enthusiast Variety Show / David Crowther, the Ultimate Weekend Warrior

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David Crowther, the Ultimate Weekend Warrior · BREAK/FIX the Motorsports & Vehicle Enthusiast Variety Show

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Breakfix's History of Motorsports series is brought to you in part
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by the International Motor Racing Research Center, as well as the
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Society of Automotive Historians, the Watkins Glen Area Chamber of
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Commerce, and the Argettsinger family.
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David Crowther, The Ultimate Weekend Warrior, by Alana Roberts.
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Alana Roberts and her husband received a collection from a
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Canadian race driver's estate.
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David Crowther, the driver, competed from the 1960s to the late 1980s in various
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events, including autocross, rallying, and ice racing, participating almost
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every weekend from January to October.
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The collection comprises extensive race results, news clippings,
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programs, and even race banquet menus, offering a remarkable glimpse
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into the life of an everyman driver.
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Alana's presentation discusses how the International Motor Racing Research
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Center supports both researchers and race enthusiasts while preserving the
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legacies of drivers, like David Crowther.
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This presentation will not only celebrate David's extensive racing career,
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but also emphasize the importance of archival research centers in maintaining
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motorsport and driver heritage.
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Alana Roberts is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and the
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University of Buffalo School of Law.
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She is a novice autocross competitor and racing history enthusiast with
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a passion for classic British cars along with her husband Trevor.
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Among their collection are a first year production 1959 Austin Mini and
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a 1958 Austin Healey Bug Eye Sprite.
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Through their connections to the classic mini world, Alana and Trevor
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became custodians of David Crowther's collection of race results, programs,
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and various other racing ephemera.
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While cataloging the collection to donate to the IMRRC, Alana's
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passion for racing history merged with her love of academia, and it is
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an honor to present the collection and her experience cataloging it.
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Alana Roberts, she's going to tell us about David Crowther,
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the Ultimate Weekend Warrior.
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Thank you so much for having me.
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Obviously I'll introduce Dave in a little bit.
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Just briefly, you may have read in my abstract that I was going
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to bring props, and I did.
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Right here we see David Crother's helmet from 1961 and his rallying clipboard.
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It's just, it's cool.
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As you'll see, this collection is comprised of so many papers, so many
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photographs, newspaper clippings.
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But it's kind of cool to see the stuff that was touched by Dave,
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right, that was held in his hands.
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So three years ago today, or rather in September of 2021, I experienced my
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first vintage festival here at the Glen.
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I can still recall how completely enthralled I was with all of it.
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Gorgeous cars, the way they smelled, and the way they sounded.
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It was also the very first weekend that I got to set foot in the IMRC.
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As a book lover, I wish I could say that it was the books that first
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caught my attention, but it was not.
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It was the energy, the passion that goes beyond cars, racing, even books.
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It was the people there.
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I was and I am hooked.
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We are so lucky that a place like the IMRC exists and helps, along with the Society
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of Automobile Historians, host amazing events like the one we are at today.
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Last year I attended as a mere guest, an auditor, and I left with the thought
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that maybe, hey, I could do that too.
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I am not a professional historian.
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Just someone with a love and an appreciation for motorsport.
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But maybe that is why I think it is so cool today that I get to
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share a collection of a driver.
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Not a professional, but a true everyman grassroots driver, who I hope
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you leave today, now having gotten to hear a little bit of his story.
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David Crother, the ultimate weekend warrior.
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In my presentation, I largely introduce David and the context of his cars, his
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races, the tracks he spent time on, and the clubs whose membership's own stories
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are preserved within the collection.
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I then describe why this collection, not of a driver like Sterling Moss or A.
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J. Foyt, has a meaningful place in the IMRC and how I hope it can inspire others.
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to be donated and catalogued.
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My husband Trevor met David through our classic mini friend, Mark Law.
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And after David passed away, Trevor and I were entrusted
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with boxes of his racing life.
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Numerous programs, countless results, club newsletters, and other ephemera.
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Some of it we are still going through.
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So please know that this collection, as I understand it,
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is only going to continue to grow.
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To many, it is just papers, cool papers, but papers that may have been bound
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for the trash if it weren't for Mark recognizing that Trevor and I Racing
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nerds would probably like to see it.
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Thankfully, that was not the case, and it did in fact make its way
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over the Canadian border to us.
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I cannot tell you how cool it was the first evening we really dug in.
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There was so much.
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We quickly realized that this incredible collection belonged somewhere
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it could be appreciated by many.
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So we decided to donate it to the IMRC.
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This collection, at least to me, serves as David's life.
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his racing career, and hold significance.
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And I hope to honor his legacy and encourage others to spend time telling
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grassroots motorsports stories.
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We can't have a racing driver without a race car, of course.
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And Misty, seen here with David behind the wheel, and also Trevor behind
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the boot, is a pretty incredible car.
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A 1964 Austin Cooper S. With the rare 1071 engine, 549 exported
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that year, Misty would have been a pretty competitive car for her day.
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And as you'll see, competitive it was.
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Misty still exists today, in the trusted care of Mark, on behalf of
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David, and his wife Nancy, whose role I will talk about in a little bit,
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or allow her to talk, as you'll see.
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David was not a professional driver, but he approached motorsports
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with passion and dedication.
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Here, we see him taking the flag in a meet at Harewood as a novice.
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From autocross to ice racing, Dave raced in a variety of disciplines from January
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to October, spanning three decades.
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David's career began in the 1960s with events like driving skill
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tests, slaloms, and winter rallies.
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This decade showcases his early involvement and skills building.
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Grassroots motorsports events focusing on precision driving, rally navigation,
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and time challenges reflect the popular style of motorsport at the time in Canada.
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Events that would not break the bank.
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and could be done with an average entry level sports car of the time, such
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as Minis, Triumphs, MGs, and Datsuns.
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The 1970s show a transition into more competitive slalom and solo
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events, as well as continued participation in rallies.
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Slalom racing involved navigating a course of cones, while solo events were
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timed runs on closed circuits, kind of a precursor to autocross as we now know it.
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This period also marks the most prolific period of racing for David,
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with the greatest number of entries.
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In the 1980s, David took his racing to a new area, focusing heavily on ice racing,
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which became one of his specialties, and where I can attest to his competitiveness,
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as we have a box of his trophies at home.
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I am still trying to collect more information from this period of his
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racing life, but when doing a beginning dive into him on social media, I
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This was the period where drivers still around remember Dave from.
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It's a sad reality that we are losing drivers like Dave every
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day, but their collections allow their memories to live on.
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One of the highlights of diving into David's collection was his
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proclivity for keeping everything, or what felt like everything.
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Here we see his provisional racing license from a driver's school he attended
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in 1968, along with a write up of the event and a list of fellow drivers.
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It not only gives us a perspective on grassroots racing education,
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but also the variety of cars and drivers that took part.
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Over the past year, I have spent time at the IMRC as one of the selling
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points I made to Duke and Mark when donating this collection was that I
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would also be the one to catalog it.
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It was difficult picking through four or five archive boxes of
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materials to pick the things that I think Dave would want seen.
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I felt that it was important to highlight the materials that show
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not only his prowess and passion, but also the community that he was a part
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of, of the grassroots racing scene in Canada in the 60s through the 80s.
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Dave possessed a skill I envy even beyond his ability to throw a Cooper S around.
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He was meticulous.
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The next few slides are scans from his photo albums, generously loaned to me
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for this presentation by Nancy Crother.
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In these albums, beside each image, Dave also cataloged his
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results from that particular race.
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And again, we can see the variety of cars that took part.
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Dave was very proud of his results and his racing career.
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Throughout his collection are not only meticulous notes about his
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results and points for the season, but also news clippings featuring
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him and his fellow drivers.
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One great clipping that unfortunately did not make this presentation is a
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clipping about a local solo event.
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causing a stir in the community due to the noise generated, and a letter
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circulated to the competitors apologizing for having to cut the event short.
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These were not events at Gilded Tracks.
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This was true down and dirty hobbyist racing.
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And there he is taking the checkered flag.
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His wife Nancy initially gave him a year to get it out of his system,
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but soon Nancy herself was equally captivated by the racing world.
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Turning what was meant to be a brief phase into a lifetime of
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mutual enthusiasm and competition.
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Mark had told us stories about Dave, and I knew his wife Nancy is still alive.
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But up until recently, I had not had the honor of meeting her.
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During a trip this year to Canada for Bronte British Car Day, Mark and Trevor
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surprised me with the opportunity to sit down and talk with Nancy.
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I was only mildly annoyed that I hadn't had a chance to prepare
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questions, but it didn't matter.
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Nancy knew Dave, and Nancy was there for his passion in more ways than one.
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Instead of trying to sum up Nancy's role, I'd instead like to play a
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clip from my time spent with her.
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He had a best friend named Colin, who had an MG.
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And Colin had a, um, a very terrific father.
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Colin's father was born in England.
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And he was just a factory worker, like Colin's father.
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Dave's father was like a manager.
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He was higher up.
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Now it was Colin's father, not Dave's father, but he said to the boys, Colin
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and Dave, I'm going to give you boys 500 each for entry fees to go racing, okay?
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And in those days that was, that was, you know, that was, you know, okay.
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So, uh, both of them, they went as a team.
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Both were red, like, Davis, Misty, and then the MG. And they,
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they, um, raised, and the year before we got married, he did it.
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Uh, we were engaged, but, but I said, You gotta get that out of your system.
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Because once we're married, You know, like, other things, right?
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But I could tell, right from the beginning, like, motorsport was his love.
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So, he decided that's what he wanted.
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A year of racing.
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And he thought he'd sort of get it out of the system.
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But it ended up, immediately went into a driving skill slalom.
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And we did that for a long, long time.
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And did the whole Ontario circuit.
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And it meant traveling along.
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We started out very basic.
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David would change the tires at the event.
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He put the, uh, racing tires in the back seat.
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You knew that now, wasn't it?
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We didn't have a trailer.
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That's how we started.
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I used to always, always go with him.
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Uh, he's more or less a crew.
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You know, like I keep track of all of his scoring.
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I love doing it.
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I enjoy being there.
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That explains why all the scoring is so neatly written.
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Well, I don't necessarily agree with that because he was very neat too.
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But, and he, you know, wasn't he?
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Very, very organized.
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And very meticulous as well, so it was probably him, not me.
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I've seen both your handwritings, they're both pretty good.
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Yeah, yeah, they are.
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But, uh, Now, so when he was road racing, I was always involved.
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Like, I enjoyed timing and lap scoring.
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We belonged to a car club, and I got a reputation for the timing and the
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lap scoring, so when the car club was doing events, I always got stuck in the
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timing and the timing end of things.
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I like right from the beginning.
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I enjoyed, you know, I enjoy cars, I enjoy racing and I was
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happy doing what I was doing.
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I, in those days, it was very, very few girls that actually competed.
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Funny because when I met my husband, he was also Autocrossing and I sort
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of started as crew and then wound up bracing myself and actually wound
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up working in timing for a bit.
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So it's funny, the parallels you find in a collection like this,
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the sort of self insert you find.
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And I really, the entire interview was not an interview, it was just Nancy
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telling stories about Dave for two hours.
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And certainly we're going to find a way to incorporate this two hour interview
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into the collection itself as it exists.
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So I've briefly described the extent of this collection, but I'd like to
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highlight the true breadth of it.
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Single spaced, size 12 font, the catalog extends four pages of
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programs, race results, entry lists, rules and regulations, newsletters,
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and numerous other pieces of ephemera, including correspondence.
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Race results span three decades, documenting not just Dave's finishes,
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lap times, positions and points, but countless other drivers.
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Potentially someone's father, someone's grandfather, or even
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someone's grandmother, as women were not immune to the lure of racing
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in Canada at this time period.
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Throughout these results, we can also track the evolution of drivers
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themselves, with women drivers becoming more common into the 70s and 80s,
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and the types of cars ever changing.
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The collection also includes local club newsletters, capturing the
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efforts taken on by a community of like minded men and women.
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As an autocross competitor myself, It should not have surprised me the
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excitement and sometimes the drama these newsletters captured as well
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as the sheer number of people they revealed that had to be involved
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in order to put these events on.
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Autocross remains a popular motorsport today and having a collection of rules
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and regulations from the 1960s onward helps track the development and the
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evolution of the sport from then to now.
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I was overwhelmed at the project initially, and probably definitely didn't
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take it on more than I anticipated.
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But it was truly a worthwhile endeavor.
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One thing that struck me is kind of odd, but I think helps demonstrate
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David's collection, how unique it is.
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Are the things kept, or maybe you or I might have tossed them.
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Banquet tickets to year end award dinners, and not just that, but the food menus.
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Dave kept it all.
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Events such as the 1962 and 1963 Canadian Winter Rally were extremely
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well documented, including the entry packet, acceptance letter,
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correspondence, and results.
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Again, the novice meet at Harewood was equally well documented.
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A date at Harewood was a chance for amateur drivers to experience a notable
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track, and events held at Harewood are throughout David's collection.
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The Midas Muffler Slalom was one of the slalom events in which David
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participated, offering a platform to better his driving skills.
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These events, popular in the 60s and 70s, required drivers to navigate a
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cone course with precision and speed, testing their car control and agility.
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The event packets included in the collection often have the course
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diagrams as well, offering insight into early and evolving course design.
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Hosted by the British Automobile Racing Club of Toronto.
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The driving skill test was a vital part of early motorsport development in Canada.
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Events like these were instrumental for grassroots racers, providing a controlled
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environment to enhance driving skills.
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and earned recognition in the community.
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Ice racing, particularly through the British Empire Motorsports ice
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sprints, became a significant aspect of Dave's racing portfolio in the 1980s.
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Ice sprints involved navigating a course on a frozen surface,
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which required advanced handling skills and quick reflexes.
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Nimble British cars, like Dave's Ice Racing Mini, a 1962 Cooper
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named Minerva, We're adept at ice racing and the standout tracks.
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Mossport, now known as Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, is a renowned
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motorsport venue located in Ontario.
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Approximately 75 kilometers east of Toronto.
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The circuit was the second purpose built road race course in Canada, and was
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designed and built in the late 1950s.
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We mentioned Harewood.
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Harewood Acres was a popular motorsport venue, also in Ontario.
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Originally an airfield during World War II.
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It was later converted into a racetrack and became a central
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hub for racing events in Ontario from the 1950s through the 1970s.
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Green Acres was a motorsport circuit located near Port Albert in Ontario,
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and it was active from 58 to 62.
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The track hosted various sport car events, attracting numerous enthusiasts and
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competitors during its operational years.
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Unfortunately, it ceased operations in 1962, unable to survive
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for a longer period of time.
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In Waterford Hills, to my knowledge, Dave's only foray into racing
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in the states near Detroit.
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Established in 1958 on the grounds of the Oakland County Sportsman's
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Club, it stands as one of the oldest racetracks in the United States.
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and the sole road racing course in Southeast Michigan.
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Dave was invited to compete in an event hosted by a local Corvette
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club, hoping to expand their horizon.
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He came along with nine other Mini drivers for an event held in May of 1964.
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I don't yet have the results for this particular event, but as I
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was told, the mighty Minis held their own against the larger and
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more outright powerful Corvettes.
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And in true hometown legend fashion, sometimes the story, I think, is
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more important than the facts.
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Before World War II, there was little in the way of organized
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auto racing in Ontario.
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There were stock car races and some dirt track racing as well as motorcycle races.
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Organizations like CASC, The Canadian Automobile Sport Club
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changed that in the 1950s.
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In 1967, CAS was recognized by the FIA as the governing
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body of motorsport in Canada.
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This affiliation allowed CAS to sanction major events, including
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the Canadian Grand Prix, and to collaborate with other sanctioning
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bodies, such as the SCCA in America.
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Today, C. A. S. C. is an association of over 30 member clubs within
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Ontario, sanctioning events, licensing competitors, setting safety standards,
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and handling administrative matters.
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The British Automobile Racing Club, Ontario, B. A. R. C., established in
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1959 by motorsport enthusiasts in the Toronto area, is a volunteer driven
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organization still around today, dedicated to organizing, and participating in
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motorsport activities across Ontario.
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The London Automobile Sport Club, LASC, based in London, Ontario, is a sports
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car racing club affiliated with CASC.
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Established in 1958, LASC remains a hub for motorsport enthusiasts
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in the region, organizing and participating in various racing events.
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And finally, we have the British Empire Motor Club, BEMC,
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established in 1928 in Toronto.
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It's one of Canada's oldest and most influential motorsport organizations.
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Initially focusing on promoting British motorcycles, the club
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expanded its scope over the decades to include various forms of motorsport.
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In 1939, BEMC began accepting car enthusiasts.
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As full members, and the club's first combined motorcycle and car event
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took place in 1950 at an old airport.
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And this event marked the beginning of their involvement in auto racing.
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Now, I would be remiss if I did not mention that Dave, in fact,
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made several pilgrimages to the Glen like many racing fans.
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These racing pictures come from his photo albums and show drivers, thanks
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to Bill Green for identifying these, such as Jack Ratham and Sterling Moss
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and local meccas like Smalley's Garage.
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I was initially unaware of David's travels to the Glen until I was generously
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loaned some of his photo albums.
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And it was a really cool full circle moment to know that he had journeyed to
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our backyard to take in the sights and the sounds of the Watkins Glen Grand Prix.
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David's collection is far more than a mere assortment of old
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programs, race results, and trophies.
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It's a rich time capsule that offers us a rare glimpse into the history
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of grassroots motorsports in Canada.
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It tells a compelling story of dedication, passion, and the spirit of individuals
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like David Crother, who are not professional racers with sponsorships.
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But ordinary people driven by an extraordinary love for
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competition and community.
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Through this lens, we see how they transformed their weekends
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into competitive pursuits, turning airstrips and frozen lakes into
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racetracks, and challenging each other not for fame or fortune, but
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for the sheer thrill of the sport.
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David Crother was a quintessential embodiment of this
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grassroots motorsport spirit.
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His journey through three decades of racing, from driving skill tests and
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rallies to slaloms and ice races, paints a picture of a man who thrived
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on the camaraderie, challenges, and rare excitement that came with motorsport.
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This was a time when racing was more about innovation and resourcefulness
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than about technology and big budgets.
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By preserving David's legacy through this collection, we do
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more than honor a single racer.
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We safeguard an entire chapter of motorsport history that might
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otherwise fade into obscurity.
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It is a testament to the everyday enthusiasts who built the
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Racing Foundation in Canada.
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Grassroots events required a team of volunteers, as seen by the list
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of volunteers in the center, often comprised of mostly the drivers
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themselves, along with a few good hearted spouses and friends.
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And as seen here by one of Dave's many notes on his racing
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expenditures and budgets, this was not a hobby of unlimited resources.
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While piecing together this presentation, I've come to realize
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that we're only scratching the surface.
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There's more to uncover, more stories to tell, and more details to explore.
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Collections like these may initially come from one driver, but as you
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can see here, there are countless drivers who are just waiting to be
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unearthed from someone's boxes of memories and join the IMRC's archives.
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I can't tell you where we go from here, but I hope this collection reminds
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us all that from humble beginnings, stories worth telling can grow.
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And as you can see, this is what I mean.
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We've got lists of entries.
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They actually have biographies of some of the drivers themselves,
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and this just makes up One hundredth of this man's collection.
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Thank you to the IMRC, to Duke, Bill, Mark, Dwayne, Kip, Kors,
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Nancy and David Crother, Mark Law, Trevor, and all the other drivers
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whose stories are yet to be told.
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Thank you.
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Thanks Alana, that was fascinating and as you point out, this
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is one story of one man.
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Goodness knows how many more are out there.
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We at the IMRC are always ready, willing and quite happy to receive
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material like this and preserve the legacy of those people.
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Does anyone have any questions for Alana?
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The motocross is a, a venue I've heard a lot about.
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I've seen false bannerings.
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You're involved in it.
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How many, would you have a guess, how many people are involved in the event?
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In an autocross?
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Do you mean nationally?
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Like, when we talk about as, as, in the state of New York, or in, or
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county, or Does anybody have any idea?
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Yeah.
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I would say, at every competition, there's probably, what do you
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want to say, 60, 60 drivers.
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Uh, I can tag in on that.
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We generally in the Finger Lakes region have anywhere from a really
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slow weekend of about 85 drivers, upwards of, when we do the national
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tour here, several hundred.
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We have this line in Kansas, I mean, it's a, it's a pervasive motor sport.
27:32
It's a great way to get involved from every level, you know, drive
27:36
what you brought, automatic.
27:37
I personally stalled every single start my first event, and I kept coming back with a
27:43
smile on my face It's not just because of the event itself, but the people involved.
27:47
To kind of shift to Alana's last slide here, too, that one picture
27:51
on the left side of the screen is a very, very special picture for the
27:54
fact that that was David's garage.
27:56
He spent hours out there just sitting there, reading, drinking, doing
28:01
whatever, enjoying his cars, even when he wasn't able to drive them anymore.
28:06
One of those blessing moments, he passed away in the chair in the back
28:10
of that photo, in that very garage.
28:12
Looking at his cars.
28:13
With a beer in his hand.
28:14
Yup.
28:15
With a nurse by his side.
28:16
Yup.
28:17
And that was his last warm fuzzy memory about auto racing.
28:21
This is, this is truly a collection that has come to, to not only, I think,
28:27
embody Dave, but so many other stories.
28:30
I was worried I was going to get teary eyed on the last slide.
28:33
And thanks Trevor, you kind of did it.
28:35
But no, this is, this is a really cool collection.
28:37
And just thank you so much for letting me share it with you all.
28:40
How did you become interested in this one particular gentleman?
28:43
So my husband and I, Trevor, met because of our Mini Coopers, and so we
28:46
have a large group of friends, right?
28:48
Mini drivers tend to find other Mini drivers.
28:51
It's a small community.
28:52
And our friend, Mark Law, was good friends with Dave, in fact, kind of like a son.
28:56
They, Dave never had kids.
28:58
And so when, when Dave passed away, Mark is not at all a paper
29:01
guy and was kind of threatening to throw this collection to the trash.
29:05
And we put our foot down and said, absolutely not.
29:07
Please let us hoard it.
29:09
I don't know what's going to happen with it.
29:11
But pretty much instantly, the first time I started looking through the collection,
29:14
I knew it belonged at the IMRS, I see.
29:16
That's great.
29:17
Well, thank you for your interest.
29:18
Thanks for preserving it.
29:20
It's terrific.
29:21
Terry Johnson writes, a question for Alana, but also
29:24
for the historians at the IMRC.
29:26
Do you have any suggestions for the preservation of old documents, programs,
29:30
photos, etc., archival materials used?
29:33
Yes, if it's at all possible, I might punt this to Joe as our, as
29:36
our new archivist here at the IMRC.
29:39
Welcome, Joe, because I think that would be really important, right?
29:41
People want to know how they can preserve their, their dad's, their,
29:44
their grandfather's collections.
29:45
Thank you, Alana.
29:47
First of all, I would say, If you're interested in donating
29:50
things, please reach out to us and let us know what you have.
29:53
You can contact us.
29:55
Our information is online.
29:56
That would be the best.
29:57
Course of action, I would suggest because when you donate it to an organization
30:01
like ours, it becomes public and we can make it accessible to other researchers.
30:06
If you're just interested in caring for things at your house, I mean,
30:10
try to keep them out of the basement, out of the attic, out of the garage.
30:13
Keep them in your house so that the temperature is not erratic and
30:17
not super humid and not super dry.
30:20
Archival materials are expensive.
30:22
If you really want to preserve things, you can look around for acid
30:25
free archival quality materials.
30:27
They're available online through a number of vendors.
30:29
Thanks Joe.
30:30
And I will say just briefly, it's really cool, again, from coming here last year
30:34
as a, as a spectator and, and getting to be involved, I'm just very grateful.
30:38
Yes, Paul?
30:38
Um, not just a question, but just a note of gratitude to you and your
30:41
husband for accepting that material.
30:44
And then for cataloging it and then donating it.
30:47
Uh, as an historian, the work that people like you guys do is absolutely essential,
30:52
because otherwise it gets thrown out.
30:54
And plus, I'm, I'm a Canadian, and this is really Oh, so great!
30:57
This really hits home.
30:58
So thank you very much for a wonderful.
31:00
We're lucky to live so close.
31:01
Thank you very much.
31:04
Okay, thank you again.
31:06
Wonderful.
31:08
This episode is brought to you in part by the International
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