During the 1970s the British Saloon Car Championship witnessed some of the very best wheel-to-wheel racing as 5-litre American Chevrolet Camaros and Ford Mustangs fought with British Ford Escort saloons while the smaller 1-litre Minis and Hillman Imps proved capable of embarassing the far more powerful cars at circuits such as Crystal Palace and Brands Hatch.
One of the most successful team entrants during this period was Broadspeed, a Birmingham based BMC dealership created by Ralph Broad, that entered the BSCC championship in 1962. Initially racing Minis, the cars were not only immaculately prepared but also competitive. Broadspeed also offered tuning equipment for road cars and even created its own rebodied fastback ‘GT’ version of the Mini. In 1968, however, Broad received an offer from Ford and agreed to prepare and race its new Escort, signing some of the top saloon-car drivers in the process, one of whom was Chris Craft. He had begun racing in 1962 in a Ford Anglia and demonstrated a natural ability in a variety of formulas, from sports cars (finishing third at Le Mans in 1976) to Formula 5000. He was entered in two grand prix but technical problems meant he failed to start either race. He was best known for his saloon car exploits and the photograph shows Chris and his Team Broadspeed Escort Twin-Cam during a round of the BSCC championship at Brands Hatch in August 1970 when he finished the season fifth overall and first in class. After retiring in 1979 he founded the Light Car Company in partnership with the designer Gordon Murray. Together they created the infamous Rocket, Murray’s first road car that was a road-legal ultra-lightweight track and road car that provided tandem seating for two people. With Murray’s engineering talent and Chris Craft’s driving skills, their company went on to build 46 examples of the 1000cc Yamaha-powered cars before the almost inevitable SVA legislation for road vehicles meant it was impossible for the Rocket to pass the new restrictive regulations. Due to its reputation as one the finest drivers’ cars the Rocket has become highly sought-after with one example receiving a winning bid of $295,000 at a recent auction. The Light Car Company survived by diversifying and still exists to help owners keep their Rockets in working order.
From the book ‘Moments in Motorsport’ by Trevor Legate
