The Wakefield Trophy Races at the Curragh, Ireland, 1947-54

[Jesper Hvid]

This link:

http://www.esatclear.ie/~curragh/motor1947.htm

leads to a small history of this Irish race track, home of the Wakefield Trophy Race in the immediate post-WW2 years. I would be interested in any footage, pics or additional text about this circuit. A few unknown, but very spectacular and sometimes tragic crashes occurred here - I quote from the link:

1947: Dorndorf and Geoff McCrea:

" [...] For the final race of the day, 10 cars took their places on the grid and at the drop of the flag they roared off towards Donnelly’s Hollow with a smell of burning rubber. They were around again in about a minute and a half, all still tightly bunched together, the excitement building up as the faster cars tried to overtake. I watched in horror as German driver Dorndorf in a BMW touched wheels with the Aston-Martin of Geoff McCrea as he attempted to pass on the hill down to Donnelly’s Hollow. The BMW hit the bank and somersaulted into the air and landed upside down on the track. It continued to slide for quite a distance before coming to rest. I thought the driver must surely be dead, but miraculously his injuries were not too serious. The Army Medical Services were quickly on the scene and poor Dorndorf was driven to hospital at a much reduced speed in an old Bedford Army ambulance. [...] "

1948: George Cox (fatal):

" [...] The April meeting was marred by a fatal accident which claimed the life of Dublin driver George Cox. I arrived at the circuit just before practice and took up my position at Lumville Corner. There was a slight hump on the road near to the entrance to the Pitch and Putt Course, which obscured the view of the competitors. As the first bunch of cars approached this section, 1 saw to my honor a little boy running across the track. The first car to crest the hump was the MG of George Cox. On seeing the boy he braked violently. The car skidded and mounted a garden bank and overturned, blocking the road, with the driver trapped inside. The next car was unable to avoid crashing into the wreckage, though Cox managed to creep out from his damaged MG. His only concern was for the boy and only after being assured that he had not even touched him, did he consent to be taken to hospital. Few people realised that his injuries were so serious and it came as a great shock when we learned that he died later that night in the nearby Drogheda Memorial Hospital. [...] "

1949: Roy Salvadori and Gordon Watson:

" [...] As the drivers took up their positions for the feature race in 1949, in cars with exotic sounding names like Maserati, ERA, Ferrari, Sunbeam and Alfa Romeo, a steady drizzle was falling. At the drop of the flag ten powerful cars hurtled like projectiles towards the dreaded Kildare Hairpin. The first car to reach it was Peter Walker’s ERA. His wheels locked on the slippery surface. He was followed closely by the Maserati of Roy Salvadori who had to brake hard to avoid the ERA. The third car to arrive was the Alta of Gordon Watson who slammed into the back of the Maserati. Both cars burst into flames, but with little regard for his own safety, Salvadori stood up in the blazing car and steered it past the crowded enclosure and stands. Then with his overalls ablaze he leaped from the flaming car. He rolled himself on the grass and extinguished the flames. His Maserati careered down the escape road eventually coming to rest near Colgan’s Cut where it burned itself out. To this day I still have a small souvenir piece of molten metal from that car! The race was won by Anthony Powys-Lybbe in an Alfa Romeo. This was the first of many successes for him at the Curragh. [...] "

1954: Joe Quinn, a marshall and a spectator (fatal):

" [...] Thirty-eight cars lined up for the start of the Wakefield Trophy in August. They were sent away in groups according to handicap. The fastest bunch, consisting of the Jaguars of Hamilton and Titterington and the Cooper-Jag of Whitehead, were most impressive when they surged away together, leaving the smell of burning rubber hanging over the start-line At the half-way distance this fast group were rapidly coming up onto the leader board as they worked their way through the field. Then disaster struck, Joe Quinn from Derry. driving a V/8 engined Special, touched wheels with another car that he was overtaking on the approach to Ballymany corner. Quinn’s car left the road and the bonnet shot up and obscured his view as he careered towards the tightly packed spectator enclosure. A young soldier who was acting as a crowd marshal and a spectator were killed instantly when they were knocked to the ground by the car as it crashed through the rope barrier. Several other spectators were injured. Poor Quinn lost his life as the rope became entangled around his neck. I was watching from across the road but only witnessed the final moments as the car came slowly to a halt with the drivers body hanging grotesquely from the cockpit. The accident happened about twenty minutes before the finish and spectators only a few hundred yards away were unaware of the tragedy as the race continued. The Army Medical services attended to the injured at the scene and the more seriously injured were rushed to the nearby Drogheda Memorial Hospital. [...] "

1954: Joe Kelly:

" [...] Three weeks later racing was back again on the ‘short’ circuit with a meeting for cars and motorcycles. This was probably the best ever meeting on this course. No less than five Jaguars were entered as well as a Frazer-Nash driven by Dickie Odlum, from Portlaoise, who had the distinction of winning the handicap race, thus earning a place in history for himself as the driver who won the last ever race on this course. Man of the meeting was undoubtedly Joe Kelly driving a three-litre Ferrari. Lap after lap he thrilled the huge crowd as he smashed his own record which had remained unbroken since 1949. At one part of the course, near Donnelly’s Hollow, his Ferrari became airborne for several yards after hitting a bump on the road. On this exciting note the final curtain came down, to bring to an end the thrilling spectacle of car racing at the Curragh. Speeds had increased dramatically over the previous couple of years, so the organisers, fearing for the safety of both drivers and spectators, decided to call it a day. However, motor cycle facing continued annually there until 1960, with one final meeting in October 1967, an event which had to be abandoned after the third race due to bad weather conditions. The end a chapter in Irish motor racing history was finally closed. [...] "

Please post whatever you may have. Thanks.

[Jesper Hvid]

http://www.theautomobile.co.uk/pages/po ... les-41.php

This contains an image of the firey aftermath of the 1949 Salvadori/Watson incident (Salvadori's car).