Phantoms and Shadows: Historical motor sport connections in and around Edinburgh.Scotland has a strong motor sporting tradition with many participants, such as Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart and Jimmie Guthrie, achieving the highest levels of success. Edinburgh’s contribution to motor sport has been considerable although this is not readily apparent. While the former race track at Ingliston and the vanished stadia used by the Edinburgh Monarchs speedway team may be remembered by many, and the successes of the Ecurie Ecosse team are well documented, a little probing is required in order to reveal more about the capital’s motor sporting heritage. This heritage forms a collection of sites and events that can be categorised as phantoms and shadows. The former consisting of failed ventures (the New Ingliston motor sport venue) and pipedreams (hopes of utilising the Queen’s Drive and the Granton-Cramond promenade as sporting venues). The shadows are the vestiges of motor sport connections, such as the role the Waverley Market played in the Thousand Miles Trial, an event that was significant in the development of Britain’s automobile industry. Other examples include a floating restaurant in Leith, which was once the private yacht of racing driver, Kenelm Lee Guinness, and the role Leith Fort played in the formative years of the great Jim Clark’s illustrious career. Important Edinburgh-born figures connected with the sport are discussed, such as David Murray, the patron of Ecurie Ecosse, and Ron Flockhart, who drove for Murray and shared in the team’s double-victory in the famous Le Mans 24 Hours sports car race. The motoring exploits of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Prince Henry of Prussia on the streets of Edinburgh are also revealed.Edinburgh’s historical motor sport connections span the period from the very dawn of motoring in Britain (the Thousand Miles Trial) to the present day, where various venues in the capital have played host to the Jim Clark International Rally and motoring extravaganzas organised by the British Touring Car Championship. This historical overview is brought to the reader in the form of a guided tour, starting in the north of Edinburgh and Leith and progressing in a clockwise direction, finishing in the west in the vicinity of Edinburgh Airport. Published by The Electronic Book Companywww.theelectronicebookcompany.com
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