Posts by: National Social Media

FORMULA JUNIOR HISTORIC RACING ASSOCIATION CHARITY AUCTION RAISES £1000 FOR BRITISH MOTORSPORTS MARSHALS’ CLUB

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The 2021 annual Formula Junior Historic Racing Association (FJHRA) charity auction has raised £2000 to be shared between the British Motorsports Marshals’ Club (BMMC) and Air Ambulance UK this year.

It is the second such kind donation BMMC has received in as many weeks in the run up to the festive period and has helped bring a positive end to another challenging year dealing with the additional measures put in place to address the pandemic.

BMMC National Chair Nadine Lewis thanked FJHRA for their generosity and said: “It is always very humbling to hear what high esteem the clubs and their members have for our marshals and the great job they do.

“It is wonderful to hear their contribution and dedication praised and rewarded both in kind words and deeds such as this, we are very grateful to FJHRA for their valuable donation.”

FJHRA Chairman, Duncan Rabagliati said: “ Formula Junior is a family : our Marshal’s are a fundamental part of it and without the generosity of Marshals giving up their time to keep us safe trackside and in their various fundamental roles in a race weekend, none of us would be able to enjoy our passion of racing,  and this is just a small gesture of our gratitude!”

SIM RACERS RAISE £570 FOR BMMC

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British Sim racing group BSR has donated £570 to the British Motorsports Marshals’ Club (BMMC) after hosting a 3-hour SIM race at a virtual (?) Brands Hatch on Iracing on Monday 6th December.

With over 40 cars on the grid on the night, the generous donation from BSR will be ring-fenced for marshal recruitment activity and training.

BMMC National Chair Nadine Lewis welcomed the very kind and generous donation and said: “We were delighted that BSR wanted to raise funds for the club and extremely grateful to them for this very generous donation which will help with our recruitment and training plans in the coming year.”

BSR Administrator Michael Seale added: “We wanted to do something to recognise the terrific work done by marshals all over the UK and to say thank you for what they do to support motorsport. I’m sure this donation will be put to good use recruiting and training even more marshals for the future.”

Clapham North new sponsorship deal boosts BMMC members’ overalls subsidy

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The British Motorsports Marshals’ Club (BMMC) is delighted to announce it has secured a new sponsorship deal with Clapham North MOT that will further boost the BMMC members’ subsidy for PROBAN overalls.

The new deal comes into effect for the 2022 season and will ensure BMMC members ordering ready-made overalls will continue to receive a 100% subsidy, while those ordering made to measure will receive an equivalent grant of £102 thanks to the support of Clapham North MOT alongside existing sponsors.

Commenting on the new deal BMMC Chair Nadine Lewis said: “We’re delighted to welcome Clapham North MOT as our latest sponsor and look forward to their support next year together with all of our partners. 

“It has always been the aim of the Club to be able to provide members with a 100% subsidy and the continued support of existing sponsors and the addition of this new agreement with Clapham North MOT allows us to retain this level of funding.”

Driver and Clapham North MOT owner George Grant added: “We’re delighted that Clapham North MOT and our partners at Downforce Radio are able to provide this additional support to BMMC marshals and we look forward to a positive and mutually beneficial partnership with the BMMC and its members.

“This new agreement is a great opportunity for Clapham North MOT to cement our commitment to supporting the men and women who work tirelessly week in, week out and in all weathers to help us all enjoy our racing safely.”

How did we get to November already?

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Nadine Blog Nov 2021

Hugh Chambers, CEO of Motorsport UK, attended a taster day at Silverstone in October and his write up was in the latest Revolution. Well done to Chris Whitlock (SM Chair) for organising the day for him – although the weather probably could have been better – it meant that Mr Chambers had a full experience of what it’s like to be on the bank all day! He certainly made a point of mentioning it to me when I visited Bicester HQ and has a new found understanding and appreciation of our role.

Taster days are a great way of showing newbies the ropes but certainly isn’t the only route to start marshalling. We are encouraging interested individuals to get started as soon as possible if they wish. Those who need more information are invited to taster days at the earliest opportunity. Please make everyone feel welcome and show them the ropes. We have seen our membership decrease due to the pandemic so let’s hope we are coming out the other side and can boost our numbers again!

Mention of drivers doing a day on the bank was also made in Hugh’s article. And this was echoed in another article in Revolution about Skills for Success for which I was asked to contribute. I think it is a great way to gain understanding of an event and organisation – we probably get involved in more aspects than anyone else at an event. Hopefully this will be something we see more of in the future – I certainly will continue to encourage this!

Our membership renewals are now open – direct debits will be taken in January as usual. Please take this opportunity to log on via the volunteering system to check your details and in particular your next of kin information in line with Motorsport UK requirements.

Having totted up my volunteering days this year at 41 I hadn’t realised I had been so busy. Multiple event days at various locations soon add up! Donington, Oulton, Anglesey, Snetterton, Silverstone, Cadwell and Goodwood have all featured. Next year I hope that I will be able to visit a few different places – but I do need to fit in a twice postponed holiday at some point (COVID permitting!!)

I do have a day job which I sometimes wonder how I fit in but it does enable me to finance my weekends away with a decent meal or two along the way! Having worked from home for the last 18 months it was novel for me to go in the office for a day the other week. Seeing familiar faces in person rather than through a screen and also meeting some new employees in person was great. I might even get the chance to take my team out for a meal next month – oh dear more food!

The rest of my year will be taken up with AGMs and committee meetings. If you do want to get involved remember your regional committees are always looking for volunteers.

I know many of you have plenty more events to go so take care out there.

Another busy month completed….

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Another busy month completed – including my favourite meeting of the year.  Bigger and better than previously the Goodwood Revival returned with a bumper crowd after a years’ absence.  Fabulous racing – a few expensive bumps – mostly driver error or mechanical issues – but good clean racing with decent grids.  What more could you wish for?  We get to do it all again next month at the Members meeting – can’t wait!

CSCC raced into the night at Anglesey at the weekend – more great racing and bumper grids.  If anyone wants to help out, one of our club sponsors the CSCC would welcome more volunteers at Silverstone on Sunday 24 October – 6 races with 60+ cars per race!

Two common themes from these meetings – great racing coupled with very few reports required.  Driving standards are both high and penalised when not adhered to.  This cannot be said for all events and this was discussed at much length at Race Committee meeting – further sub-group meetings to be planned to determine a way forward which can be agreed.  I am sure we all have examples and I would run out of space writing mine here – just to say Motorsport UK are listening and actions will be put in place.

I hope you are processing your Motorsport UK registration renewals – has anyone done the online training too?  Any feedback would be welcomed.  Our own renewal process will be launched in November so please wait until then before trying to renew (those keen ones of you who already have applied will be processed in due course!)

The BMMC regions will be submitting award nominations to Motorsport UK for Volunteer of the Year.  At the same time regions are looking for nominations for their regional awards – these are your awards for our members and it would be great to have more involvement from members in these processes.

Regional AGMs are also being planned – some on Zoom and some in person.  Where possible I hope to attend these and encourage you to do the same – this is your opportunity to hear how your region is doing and get involved.  Into December the National AGM is also being planned via Zoom to encourage attendance.

We recognise that as we have come back to marshalling this year a number of things have had to change and we would welcome your views on these changes in order for us to improve your marshalling experience in 2022.  Please forward your views to your regional committee and maybe there will be the opportunity to put these comments in person as we look to hold some regional informal sessions with our members.  Check out your local news for information.

Out of respect Robert Foote’s funeral took place on 10 September with family and close friends in attendance.  A memorial service to Robert and his late wife Rosemary will be taking place on Friday 15 October which will be attended by Steve Woolfe on behalf of the BMMC.

Nadine Lewis 
BMMC National Chair

TVR award the Scott Moncrieff Trophy to the British Motorsport Marshals Club (BMMC)

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For 2021 the TVR Car Club Committee unanimously decided that the Trophy should be awarded to the British Motorsport Marshals Club (BMMC) This is not only in recognition of their contribution to motorsport this year but to recognise the past and ongoing contribution they make to not only TVR motorsport but all formats of motorsport.  Marshals represent a cornerstone of motorsport and without them in the same way as without the drivers, teams and officials there would be no motorsport. We are all one big family who rely on each other to do what we do. 

This Trophy was commissioned for and presented to the Club in 1965 by Avril Scott Moncrieff in honour of her husband Bunty who was a key figure in the early days of TVR. He owned a Rolls Royce dealership in Staffordshire and in 1955 started selling TVRs. In 1958 he was invited to join the board of directors in Blackpool and rapidly became intimately involved in the development of the Grantura, especially in motorsport where both he and Avril were amongst the first regular competitors in TVR motorsport in their brown Grantura Mk1, nicknamed the ‘coffee bean’. In 1962, when TVR first appeared at Le Mans, the Scott Moncrieffs drove one of the support cars to the famous La Sarthe circuit. Bunty was also important in the history the Car Club being appointed its first president when the Club was formed in London in the same year.

The trophy was traditionally awarded to the driver who won the most points in a single season of motorsport in a TVR and has some very famous names engraved around its base including Gerry Marshall, Tommy Entwistle, Rob Farmer and Paul Weldon. About 10 years ago with the rise of interest in all forms of motorsport within the Club, especially the various sprint series in which a very successful driver in one series could regularly win but accumulate far fewer points than a less successful competitor in a rival series that awarded points differently, it was decided by the Committee to change the criteria for the award. It is now awarded to the individual who has made the single greatest contribution to TVR motorsport during the year.

As a driver we all hope never to meet the track side marshals whilst out on the circuit as it means something has gone wrong, and most of our contact is with pit lane and holding area marshals, but we do appreciate the job they all do. Sometimes a driver may not express this very well when climbing from a smoking car but it is always handled well by the Orange Army. 

Speaking after the presentation of the award, BMMC Midlands Chair and National Recruitment Officer Jayne Poston said: “It was a great honour to collect this prestigious award on behalf of the BMMC in recognition of the work and dedication of not just our own members but all club marshals in the UK.”

Karting Legends recognise marshals’ contribution with generous donation

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At a recent meeting at Oulton Park, the Karting Legends recognised the contribution of marshals to their sport with a generous donation to the British Motorsport Marshals Club.

Invited by the Historic Sports Car Club, Karting Legends attended the Oulton Park Gold Cup meeting held over the August bank holiday and displayed 19 historic karts with their age ranging from 1975 to 1990. 

During the weekend Tim Baker Chairman of Karting Legends presented a cheque for £700 to Nadine Lewis, National Chair of BMMC, and Margaret Simpson, Chief Marshal at Oulton Park. 

Speaking after the presentation Tim said: “Whenever possible we like to support the voluntary marshals as they do a great job supporting British Motorsport.” 

Accepting the donation on behalf of BMMC Nadine Lewis thanks Tim and the Karting Legends club members and said: “This is a very thoughtful and generous donation that I’m sure our 2,400+ members will appreciate.”

A delayed start to September……..sorry about that it was my birthday!

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It is good to see so many of you are upgrading.  Motorsport UK are a little behind with processing due to holidays and being reduced in numbers.  Hopefully we will have a new marshals liaison confirmed soon to help with this process – so be patient!

Don’t forget to make sure you have all the necessary signatures when you book your assessment through the Chief marshal of an event.  The Examining grade assigned to do your assessment will check your photo – so if you don’t have one on your PRC make sure you hand over your Motorsport UK registration card for verification – your 2020 card is still valid this year!

And talking of which a few people have had issues with renewing online for Motorsport UK for 2022 – we have been advised there is a timing issue with the new system for some trainees.  This means that you will need to complete the form by post instead this time. Please send your forms to your Regional Grading Officer for authorisation.

For any brand new members, you will be asked to complete the online training with Motorsport UK before you can register – please don’t forget to share your registration number with our Membership Secretary once completed.

I am delighted to confirm that John Edwards has accepted the role of National Secretary and we didn’t put him off with our National Council meeting on 1 September!  Some good lively discussion – website updates (any new photos?) / National awards (it’s that time again!) / Marshals Pathway (new registrations and the outline for next year’s plan) plus a round up of regional plans and activities and items to take forward to Motorsport UK.   We meet again in three months time via Zoom and plan to have the AGM on Sunday 5th December virtually as well to enable more members to attend.

It has been brought to my attention that a number of marshals have been subjected to both verbal and physical abuse at events.  This is abhorrent and totally intolerable.  Please report such instances to the Chief marshal immediately if you are the victim or witness such events.  If you do not feel they have been dealt with appropriately, please raise to your local committee or direct to me.  I have raised a number of concerns direct to Motorsport UK already and they have been dealt with very swiftly.


I have been interviewed a number of times as Chair by various groups and for different publications – particularly about discrimination.  I have never felt discriminated against for being a woman and have always had a “why can’t I” attitude but I recognise that we are a very male dominated sport and this can appear intimidating.  Even on taster days I get asked if I actually marshal or if I am just showing people around.  So it would be great to spotlight our differences – as far as I am concerned the only barrier to entry is to be minimum 11 years old!

Another year older then – hopefully a little wiser and I have certainly learned a lot in the last 12 months.

John Edwards new National Secretary elect

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Following the recent application process for role of National Secretary we are pleased to announce that John Edwards of NW region has been successfully appointed.

John currently sits on NW Committee as Membership Secretary and is currently graded Incident Officer.  He will bring to the role experience gained within the club and from his day job as a project manager.

As Secretary elect he will join Council and shadow Paul until his ratification of the position at National AGM in December.

May we take this opportunity to thank Paul for his time in the role and look forward to welcoming John to our next Council meeting in September.

John Nicol winner 2020 – Tyler Sweetman

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This annual award, in memory of John Nichol, is given in recognition of a marshal who has completed less than two years at the time of nomination, but has demonstrated a positive attitude and a range of skills to show their outstanding commitment to the sport

Tyler has certainly continued to prove his worth of the award and the bespoke patches, a club fleece and Cadwell winner cap presented by Paul Woodford (circuit manager) and as you can see, he was really surprised and happy at the surprise!

Bernard Richard Cottrell – 30.8.1953-07.8.2021

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It is too easy to remember Bernard as the man who fought Leukaemia for seven years and finally lost just 23 days short of his 68th birthday. But his legacy is about so much more. His achievements were many and he has been called a legend, a great man and an inspiration. Although he was all of those he was also very humble. He spent his life trying to improve the sport, to help the people he worked with to develop and would go out of his way to help anyone. 

He started his working life in the City and then the Money Markets moving onto event management for Haymarket Exhibitions. He was the brains behind the International Autosport Show, amongst other shows. Although he was event director, he was never too proud to get his hands dirty and muck in with setting up the stands of the show, laying the carpet or even going on the roof of the NEC to put up the radio aerial for the show.  Bernard was given BMMC Honorary membership of the SE region in 2014 for his continued support of the club in particular securing an annual free stand at the Autosport show since its inception.

He had been elected as National Chairman of the BRSCC in 2002 and when he finally “retired” from Haymarket he directed all his energy and drive into being full time Chairman. It was through his leadership that the club became one of the premier clubs in the country.

Bernard started in motorsport as a marshal at the beginning of the 1970s, mainly at Brands Hatch but also all over the country. He moved onto driving a fire truck at Brands Hatch, cutting a dashing figure in his white overalls, yellow marshals’ helmet and shiny silver boots. With his drive to improve and his organisational skills it wasn’t long before he became Chief Paddock Marshal, reaching the pinnacle, Chief Paddock Marshal at the British Grand Prix in 1986.

He was approached by John Nicol, the Chairman of the BRSCC at the time, to become a Clerk of the Course and quickly rose “through the ranks” to become an International A Clerk. Throughout his clerking career he was mindful of the need to bring younger people on. He mentored, guided, encouraged and assessed many of our current clerks of the course.

He became senior clerk/race director for series such as Super League Formula, FIA GTs, Lamborghini Trophy, Formula Palmer Audi, British GTs, Blancpain and, his proudest achievement as a clerk, the two British Grand Prix of 2020. These championships took him all over the world and the quality of the man meant that his great reputation went before him. His courtesy and engaging personality meant that he treated drivers called to race control to see him after a transgression with respect. They rarely resented his decisions and often become lifelong friends!

As he became older, he decided to take on yet another role and trained to become a Motorsport UK Steward, a role he should have fulfilled for the Silverstone Classic this year but was prevented from doing so by his last illness. He was also approached to become Race Director of the 750 Motor Club, which he carried out for over two years. He loved this role, boasted about the Club and was delighted to work with all involved.

With his knowledge and understanding of the sport it was only natural for Bernard to serve on Motorsport UK’s Council, Race Committee, Rules Committee and was Chair of the Volunteer Officials Committee. It was through his involvement with Motorsport UK that he continued to work to maintain high standards of race management and contributed to writing the Blue Book. 

When he was invited to become one of the few non-racing members of the British Racing Drivers’ Club he was delighted and so proud. He considered this to be one of his crowning achievements.

There have been many wonderful words used to express how so many feel about his passing. The void left by him is enormous. Motorsport has lost an energy and drive that can never be replaced. He truly was a giant of the sport, a decent human being and yes, a legend, a great man and an inspiration. 

Sad start to August

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It’s been a sad start to August – with the tragedy at Brands Hatch resulting in the death of Rob Foote and the sad passing of Bernard Cottrell a week later.

I was at Silverstone the first weekend in August with awful weather to endure and the dreadful events of Brands Hatch unfolding.  Multiple messages and communications to deal with from afar.  Thanks to our President Ben Edwards for the kind words of support at the start of his Sunday commentary and the minutes’ silence observed.  #RIPRobFoote

I was at Snetterton at the weekend for the British GTs – a series associated with Bernie Cottrell – therefore an emotional tribute held on the Sunday morning before racing started.  A well respected and knowledgeable character – Bernie was a huge supporter and lifetime member of BMMC – he will be hugely missed both personally and professionally #RIPBernieCottrell

Tributes to Rob Foote were also observed over the weekend at many venues and many racers sported an orange heart on their cars.  Thank you to everyone who took part and showed your support for Robs family and all those affected by this incident.

At Snetterton a paddock fire in one of the competitors trucks caused a halt to proceedings – marshals posts rushed to assist but the county fire brigade were required to ensure it was completely controlled.  The team raced again on the Sunday and were supported by competitors and others alike – another recognition of our wonderful motorsport family.  Rivals on the track – friends in the paddock.

It was my first trip to Snetterton (after trips curtailed due to COVID) but be assured we will be back.  A lovely welcome, lots of pre-event information and great updates throughout both days despite all the issues being thrown at us – including the weather.  Well done and thanks!

Motorsport UK have issued their latest COVID19 rules update in line with government regulations.  Remember that clubs, events and venues are subject to their own rules and regulations which may be at a higher level than nationally so please ensure you follow accordingly.  And be mindful that many people are still cautious and need reassurance that measures are being followed and precautions maintained.

This also means that regional regalia sales have also restarted so remember to take your cash and get that hat or snood you still need!

After no renewals necessary in 2020 due to COVID – Motorsport UK will be opening registration renewals later this month.  For trainees they will migrated to the new “Registered Marshal” or “Registered Accredited Marshal” to recognise the online training being completed.  Remember that before being allowed to marshal a rally without a buddy the online training must be undertaken to indicate the “accredited” status.  Further details available in the latest marshals bulletin – if you have not received please check your details via the Motorsport UK website

Further information and updates about the roll out of the new Marshals Pathway next year for all other roles will be shared and communicated accordingly over the coming months.

And finally if you would like to get involved in the running of our club have you considered the role of National Secretary?  This is a Director role for the club and key to ensuring the smooth running of our Council and Club rules.  Please apply direct to myself if you are interested – applications requested by Sunday 15 August.