STIRLING MOSS A TRUE GENTLEMAN

By now, most of the civilised world would have heard of the passing of Sir Stirling Moss after a lengthy battle with illness. He is most often referred to as the most talented driver never to win a Formula One World Championship. Many Australians will also remember Moss as our own Sir Jack Brabham took back to back titles in 1959 and 1960 in a Cooper Climax.

As a patriotic young Australian I could never really warm to the little of knew of the Moss story and the mostly British vitriol of how he had been twice robbed of the World Championship by the colony’s journeyman driver.

It took just one seemingly insignificant moment to change everything.

The year was 1997 and I was in the process of tip toeing my way into the ranks of the professional motorsport media, having served my apprenticeship as a race official at Bathurst and the Australian Grand Prix since the 1980s.\

Sir Stirling Moss had returned to the Albert Track circuit, the scene of his 1956 victory at the Australian Grand Prix, to drive the Mercedes W125 during a historic demonstration run. I took some images of Moss in the car during the early moments of the weekend and later came across him in the pit lane some time later. For reasons that now escape me, Stirling chose to chat with me and I happened to mention that I had taken some images of him in the Mercedes.

Moss asked if I might be able to send him some of the images and duly wrote down the details of his London address. I sent a few images a week or so later and thought nothing more of it.

To my surprise a letter arrived from England a month or so later. Sir Stirling Moss had taken the time to write back to thank me for the images and chose to praise the quality of my work.

For a photographer searching for a niche in the motorsport industry it was like manna from heaven.

To receive a personal reply from the man himself was beyond belief. From some of the tributes that flooded the internet, such acts of acknowledgement and appreciation were not uncommon for Sir Stirling Moss.

It fuelled my interest in his life and achievements, which I hope to share in Velocity Motorsport Magazine issue 37, which is planned for late May. From a farm working son of a part Jewish Dentist, Moss went on to carve out a highly successful career in world motorsport, from Formula One to Sportscar racing and became the forefather of the professional race car driver.

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