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Moderator
Curtis Jacobson
Portland Oregon
(4575 posts)

Registered:
10/12/2007 02:16AM

Main British Car:
71 MGBGT, Buick 215

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Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Moderator
Date: December 22, 2008 09:04PM

Look what I found!!!

Ian McKean piloting MGB GT V8 #0104 (one of the factory's very few left-hand-drive prototypes) in the Cheltenham Stages Rally:
http://www.britishv8.org/Articles/Images-V16-2/IanMcKean-factory-V8-104.jpg

Construction details of the car appear in this article:
MGB's left-hand-drive MGB GT V8 prototypes


WedgeWorks1
Mike Perkins
Ellicott City, Maryland
(460 posts)

Registered:
07/06/2008 08:07AM

Main British Car:
1980 Triumph TR8 3.5 Litre Rover V8

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Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: WedgeWorks1
Date: December 31, 2008 08:49PM

How about a flying wedgie?
Atmosphere08Ger333.jpg


BlownMGB-V8
Jim Blackwood
9406 Gunpowder Rd., Florence, KY 41042
(6468 posts)

Registered:
10/23/2007 12:59PM

Main British Car:
1971 MGB Blown,Injected,Intercooled Buick 340/AA80E/JagIRS

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Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: BlownMGB-V8
Date: January 01, 2009 12:21AM

Hey! I used to do that with my MGB on the MRRRC! That's Mud River Road Race Course to the uninformed. Totally unsanctioned by any racing organization. YeeHaaaa!

Jim


Moderator
Curtis Jacobson
Portland Oregon
(4575 posts)

Registered:
10/12/2007 02:16AM

Main British Car:
71 MGBGT, Buick 215

authors avatar
Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Moderator
Date: January 06, 2009 02:53PM

The Cheltenham Motor Club is still going strong. I've been in touch with these exceptionally helpful car nuts, and they were able to confirm that the photo above shows Ian McKean (and his navigator J. Kerswell in the orange helmet) competing in the Cheltenham Stages Rally of July 1975 - the jump is on the Cheltenham Racecourse stage. Ian McKean finished 5th overall in his factory-prototype left-hand-drive MGB GT V8!

Incidentally, Cheltenham Motor Club was founded in 1906. As their website says, they're "one of the oldest active Motor Clubs in the United Kingdom and is one of only a handful to own its own Clubhouse." They're in the Southwest of England and they host all sorts of motoring activities throughout the year - they're especially keen on getting new people engaged in all forms of amateur motorsports. In their clubhouse, which used to be The Crown Inn, they have their own licensed bar / pub and it's even listed in the "Good Beer Guide". Their race archives go back to 1920. Very cool, eh?


Bill Young
Bill Young
Kansas City, MO
(1337 posts)

Registered:
10/23/2007 09:23AM

Main British Car:
'73 MG Midget V6 , '59 MGA I6 2.8 GM, 4.0 Jeep

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Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Bill Young
Date: January 06, 2009 06:07PM

Mr. Kerswell, as an experienced and professional navigator would be saying something like "300 yards then hard right" but I'd be screaming for my dear life! Similar to the ride Curtis gave me in his BGT V8 last summer, but I'm not sure we got completely airborne at any time.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/06/2009 06:08PM by Bill Young.


itsawindupuk
Adam New
England
(3 posts)

Registered:
04/08/2009 03:27PM

Main British Car:
1968 MGB GT 1800cc +.030

Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: itsawindupuk
Date: April 10, 2009 09:43AM

the is a priceless photo!!!! i think if i did that in my MG it'll snap clean in two lol


Dan B
Dan Blackwood
South Charleston, WV
(1007 posts)

Registered:
11/06/2007 01:55PM

Main British Car:
1966 TR4A, 1980 TR7 Multiport EFI MegaSquirt on the TR4A. Lexus V8 pl

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Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Dan B
Date: April 10, 2009 12:00PM

The MRRRC was indeed sanctioned by the Mud River Road Racing Club, longtime predecessor to the British American Deviant ...whatever. Another famous course run by the club included the infamous Chicken Farm Road, where pictures like the above could be snapped nightly.



BlownMGB-V8
Jim Blackwood
9406 Gunpowder Rd., Florence, KY 41042
(6468 posts)

Registered:
10/23/2007 12:59PM

Main British Car:
1971 MGB Blown,Injected,Intercooled Buick 340/AA80E/JagIRS

authors avatar
Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: BlownMGB-V8
Date: April 10, 2009 12:16PM

Yeah, but you'd best watch out for the stump! There was also a certain stretch of US Rt. 60 over Sewell Mtn. between Sam Black Church and Lewisburg. 2/3 lanes of the finest quality blacktop that was so deserted the grass grew up in the cracks.

Jim


Bill Young
Bill Young
Kansas City, MO
(1337 posts)

Registered:
10/23/2007 09:23AM

Main British Car:
'73 MG Midget V6 , '59 MGA I6 2.8 GM, 4.0 Jeep

authors avatar
Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Bill Young
Date: April 10, 2009 04:42PM

You good ole mountain boys didn't have all the good roads, there were a few where I grew up as well. The railroad crossing on the "Brick Plant Road" would launch you like an ICBM with a little speed. Have you ever seen a '58 Chevy Impala fly? For the twisties it was the access road to the Kerr Water Research Lab, 2.5 miles of nothing but curves up and down hill and all brand new concrete built by Uncle Sam.


TXS67BGT
jay musgrove
low country
(15 posts)

Registered:
11/16/2008 10:12AM

Main British Car:
1967 MGB GT 1998 LS1

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Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: TXS67BGT
Date: April 12, 2009 02:23AM

I was in Cheltenham last April, had the opportunity to drive a friends car in the local MotorGrass race, a dirt track race, and attended a "boot sale", a swap meet wherein you load what you can in the boot of your car and sell from there. Fauxall engines, inline4 front wheel type was typical. mini coopers with the fauxall mounted in the rear was the car of choice, with modified street tyres these cars would dance around the track, opposite lock steering 90% of the time, great fun. look up MotorGrass racing on the internet.
JM


Ian
Ian McKean

(1 posts)

Registered:
04/05/2010 04:31PM

Main British Car:


Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Ian
Date: April 05, 2010 04:44PM

Hello all,

My son sent me the link to this web forum. Great to see the old yumping "B" on the web. I have a copy of that picture and think it was once on the wall at the Cheltenham Motor Club bar in huge scale. I had two bodyshells after hitting a tree head-on with the first. I guess the picture here was my second bodyshell. It went slightly banana-shaped about a second after the photo was taken!

Gotta go now, but shall look back in soon.

PS Curtis, where did you find the photo and learn I had come 5th on the Cheltenham Stages in 1975?


kaitunes
kai evans

(1 posts)

Registered:
11/17/2018 01:25PM

Main British Car:


Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: kaitunes
Date: November 17, 2018 01:50PM

Not in flight, but here's the same car with two of it's brethren! (The Harvest Gold one was owned by my Grandpa - I remember him saying that it was unusual that the three cars were at the same rally)
20181117_183618-1_resized_2.jpg


Moderator
Curtis Jacobson
Portland Oregon
(4575 posts)

Registered:
10/12/2007 02:16AM

Main British Car:
71 MGBGT, Buick 215

authors avatar
Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: Moderator
Date: November 29, 2018 12:50AM

Wow! That's very cool. Thanks for posting that snapshot!!!


greeneyes84
Tyler Cruise

(8 posts)

Registered:
01/04/2019 07:27AM

Main British Car:


Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: greeneyes84
Date: January 08, 2019 09:04AM

That looks awesome!


landlady101
Philippa Cameron

(1 posts)

Registered:
06/19/2019 01:43PM

Main British Car:


Re: Amazing in-flight photo of factory MGB GT V8 prototype
Posted by: landlady101
Date: June 19, 2019 01:57PM

Just going through some of my Dad's old slides and found this one - the car that's in the centre of kaitunes' photo - difficult to see but that's probably my Dad (John King) with Mick Pearson-Kirk who was a huge, lovely guy, I never worked out how he managed to get in that car! What year is your photo kaitunes?
Rally 1 - smallest.JPG



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