Mud-slinging

Sir,

One of my most impressive ‘rides’ of years gone was an extraordinarily quick journey in France as passenger in a low-chassis Invicta, which rode rock-steady at well over the ‘ton’. So I was interested to read WB’s reminiscence about Sammy Davis’ 1931 Invicta crash at Brooklands.

Some years ago, a Brooklands driver told me that the reason for Sammy’s crash was that he was running on an experimental set of tyres, for which he had been paid a retainer. They proved too hard, causing the Invicta to slide. It then tangled with the guy wire of a telegraph pole, which flipped the car on its side.

Though the root cause had been the tyres, loyal Sammy never let on, believing that the acceptance of the retainer placed him under a moral obligation. Sadly, the mud stuck to Invicta instead, gaining the S-type an undeserved reputation for skidding.

I am, Yours etc, David Burgees-Wise, Roding, Essex