R.I.P.

[Tom]

I'm embarassed that I didn't start this thread earlier, and surprised no one else has brought it up, but saddly motorsport lost several heroes this weekend.

Jean-Marie Balestre, former president of FISA and the FIA, perhaps not particularely popular in his roll but he did alot for Formula one regardless, including introducing mandatory crash tests and (on the advice of Proffesor Sid Watkins) greatly increasing circuit and car safety, as well as establishing medical facilities and personnel that directly lead to drivers lives being saved where before hand they would not have had a chance. He also banned the Group B catagory of rallying because the cars were so dangerous and drivers were being killed. Many people would suggest this was a bad move and it took alot of courage to put it through.

David Leslie, former BTCC driver and Le Mans competitor, I was a fan of him and Reid in the Nissan Super Touring cars and I understand he showed a great deal of interest in our student run team here in Oxford, as well as lecturing a Motorsport course in Swansea. Saddly he lost his life when a private jet he was passanger to crshed on Sunday.

Richard Lloyd I know little about him apart from that I have a letter sitting on my desk addressed to his team regarding work experience. He ran several racing teams and competed in Le Mans a couple of times and ran the Le Mans Bentley in 2001. Unfortunetly he was in the same plane as Leslie which came down on Sunday.

Of course my condolences to all their families and the families of the other 3 people on board the privat jet, all of whom perished.