The Team

Left to right: Colin Brady (Club Secretary), Michael Ashcroft (Club Chairman), Alan Minshaw (Saloon racer and one of the Club's original members from the 1950s...and still racing!)), Derek Lawson (Membership Secretary and Chief Marshal), John Bailie (PR and Marketing Director), pictured at The Park Hotel, venue of the Club's monthly meetings.

Derek Lawson

Derek Lawson is a native of Houghton-le-Spring, where he lived there for the first twenty-three years of his life but now lives in Cheshire. His introduction to motorsport came in 1975, after he was invited to a club race meeting at Croft; several more visits followed.

After moving south in 1982, Derek frequented Brands Hatch and Silverstone, mainly for Grands Prix but also the occasional club meeting. A move back north to his present home at the beginning of 1991 introduced him to Oulton Park, and he became a Marshal at meetings there. He is the author of two books about the circuit there and his third book charting the rise and fall and resurrection of Formula 5000 is due out in October. He is currently training to be a Clerk-of-the Course.

Michael Ashcroft

Michael has been a resident of Aintree, Liverpool all his life and first drove his Mother’s Austin 1100 at the age of 12, on the remains of the old Cheshire Lines railway tracks in Downholland, Lancs, having serviced the car since he was 10 years old.

He has been actively involved in all forms of motorsport since 1976, when he passed his test!.

Started spectating at Aintree Race Meetings and later in November, on the R.A.C. Rally in Penmachno Forest,North Wales, where he ended up directing traffic exiting the stage with his best friend, who was a trainee manager in Liverpool with the RAC.

He then joined both Liverpool Motor Club and The Aintree Circuit Club in 1977 and became actively involved in event organisation ranging from Race Circuit construction, race meetings,stage rallies setup and organisation, particularly at the Knowlsey Safari Park, which was stage one on the RAC Rally for several years.

Michael was the youngest ever Director of Aintree Circuit Club, being appointed in 1979 and later becoming Club Secretary in 1984 and Chairman in 1985.

He first competed, in a road rally, in 1979 and made his stage rally and speed event debut in 1982, winning his class at first attempt. In 1988, Michael competed at National level in the factory supported MG Maestro Challenge culminating in a 4th in Class on the European Championship Condroz Rally in Belgium in 1990 followed by the MG Metro GTI Championship in 1991, finishing 4th in his on the Silverstone G.P circuit, his last event before semi-retiring. Since 2004, Michael has competed in the MG Car Club’s Luffield Speed Championship in his road-going MG ZT 190 and recently started to compete in an ex-works race prepared MG ZR 190.

In the meantime, following the cessation of motor racing at Aintree after the purchase of the course by the Jockey Club in 1983, Michael was instrumental in the organisation and promotion of non-racing motorsport activities at Aintree with the first single venue rally in 1984, the first sprint being run in 1985 followed by track days in 1987. The success of the sprint event lead to the Club being the only venue to hold two rounds of the British Sprint Championship during the 1990’s.

In 2003, Michael successfully found a commercial partner to promote the 2004 Aintree Festival of Motorsport, which attracted 300 of the world’s most significant racing machines with a value of £80Million, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Aintree Grand Prix track. This was the first (and only) time that the full circuit had been used since it closed for racing in 1964.

Michael holds a National A RAC Clerk of Course Licence as well as a National A Race and Rally Competition Licence. He also assists Longton and District Motor Club Ltd with the running of their Northern Speed Championship, acting as Championship Scorer and Clerk of Course. He has also served as a Member of the MSA’s Speed Event Committee.

John Bailie PR and Marketing Director

Born in St. Helens, John remembers attending the 1964 Aintree “200″ together with several Club events at Aintree in the early 1980s, and also spectated at many Oulton Park meetings. He is a long standing TVR enthusiast and played an active part in the TVR Car Club, organising their Extravaganza events and designing and producing TVR’s factory sales literature in the late 70s / early 80s.

John was responsible for the marketing and promotion of the Donington Grand Prix Collection and he continues to work on special projects for Tom and Kevin Wheatcroft. His design consultancy ImageCreative also handled creative graphics and presentation print for Jordan Grand Prix and he played a central role in bringing the Jordan team to Donington for their “EJ10″ event in 2000. He now trades as Silver Fox Creative, most recently producing advertising and promotional material for the Vintage Sports-Car Club, to celebrate their 75th Anniversary year.

Graham Hughes

My first association with motor sport was attending the Aintree 200 in1954. I was there courtesy of Mrs.Topham, (the owner of Aintree, at the time), who had asked the local Scout Association to provide scouts to sell the Daily Telegraph, who were sponsors of the meeting. I was allowed to wander wherever I wanted to:the stands, the press boxes, the paddock, the pits,
even the starting line, standing in front of the pit counters, a few feet from the cars. I was absolutely mesmerised. I saw Stirling Moss in his pristine light blue Dunlop overalls and white leather boots and Mike Hawthorn, wearing a green windcheater, a dickie bow and with his trousers tucked in to his socks. Mike became my first motor racing hero… the second being Tazio Nuvolari.

1955, at Aintree, (again with Telegraphs tucked under arm), for the British Grand Prix.
Yet again, wandered all over the place and ended up watching from the Daily Despatch press box. Watched Stirling lead the Mercedes team,(with Fangio,Kling and Taruffi), to a 1-2-3-4 finish.

1956…joined RAF (National Service 2yrs, but signed on for 3 to get the trade I wanted…RADAR).

1957/58/59, two years in Germany. Saw 1957 German Grand Prix,Nurburgring. Belgian Grand Prix, Spa.

1958, German and Belgian Grands Prix, 500 K Sports Cars (Nurburgring). German Motor Cycle GP (N’ring): won by John Surtees…the first time I saw a rider “drift” a motor cycle!

1958/59 Many happy hours spent with RAF Butzweilerhof Motorcycle Club at the Nurburgring, hurtling round the Nordsliefe on my Ex-army Norton Big-4,(sometimes with Steib sports sidecar). It is possible that we hold a lap record on such a machine!!!

May 1959, demobbed RAF. June 1959, joined Aintree Circuit Club. First event for me had nothing to do with ACC. I was navigator with a friend of mine in an Austin-Healey frogeye Sprite (remember the Scouts…I had my mapreader badge !!!)…

It was the 1962 Rhyl & District Motor Club’s Chairman’s Rally and we won the “Novice Award”.

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