Comments on: Ronnie Grant, Racing Driver https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/ In the midst of life I woke to find myself living in an old house beside Brick Lane in the East End of London Mon, 07 Oct 2019 21:17:19 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: Jonathan https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1317215 Mon, 07 Oct 2019 21:17:19 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1317215 Believe it or not, I call him uncle Ron. He has been my neighbour since I was 3 (22years). I saw him last week and at 94 he’s just the same as he has all ways been. I hope I’m still going as strong at 94. He is as amazing in real life as this report suggests. Still as sharp as ever.

]]> By: Paul Heath https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1313237 Fri, 13 Sep 2019 11:35:58 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1313237 Great to read this and see Ronnie is still going strong. We raced against him in F3 in the 1980s and he was a senior figure then! Hope he is successful in the fight, really interesting to read his full story.

]]> By: Peter Metaxas https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1298398 Sun, 14 Jul 2019 18:06:03 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1298398 What a great story. Part of my daily routine apart from eating, sleeping and breathing is to read the Spitalfields Life. My Mum [94 years] lives just off Valance Rd. near Rinkoff’s .
Wonderfull stories and photos.
Best Regards
Peter Metaxas
Iona, Prince Edward Island Canada

]]> By: Ron Bunting https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1298348 Sun, 14 Jul 2019 09:24:38 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1298348 I run my own tiny restoration business here in Australia and can relate to excessive rents. It’s hampering businesses of all sizes here as overseas investors buy up industrial properties and expect to get a high percentage return on their investments. Often those returns are the entire turnover of a business .Ronnies point about BMW charging 150 per hour is reflected here. The main dealers charge out at $250/hour here whereas I can only charge out at a fraction of that.
Greed seems to be the business model of a lot of organisations in the 21st Century but as Ronnie also says,there are two arches near him which have been empty for years. I know of similar places near me because the rents ,often in 5 figures per month are simply too high. It seems like poor practice to me to own an empty building.
The only thing London seems to have is electricity costs which are a fraction of the incredibly high prices we have been stuck with recently.

]]> By: Marcia Howard https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1291481 Thu, 06 Jun 2019 21:02:18 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1291481 Good luck to the Guardians of the Arches in their continued campaign. If anyone should overcome such greed shown by Network Rail, it is this amazing man and his fellow residents at the Arches who truly deserve to win.

]]> By: Paul Butt https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1290001 Thu, 30 May 2019 08:37:08 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1290001 I started as a race marshal in the late sixties and remember Ronnie from those early days at various circuits and meetings around the country. Formula Vee/Supervee were important racing formulae at that time and started a number of drivers in careers that resulted in competing at the highest level
I am still involved in motorsport as a volunteer after 40 years + and currently run rescue units for the BARC and other Clubs.

I read the background and history with interest and it was good to recall those days when motorsport was less commercialised and more fun!

Best wishes

Paul Butt.

]]> By: Jill Wilson https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1289993 Thu, 30 May 2019 07:56:03 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1289993 Go Ronnie!

While racing is definitely not my thing I can relate to this story because I have worked in a railway arch in Bethnal Green and I know that the event business which was based there could definitely not have survived such an exorbitant increase in rents.

I do hope that the Guardians of the Arches are successful in making Network Rail see sense and don’t destroy all the small businesses currently using their premises.

Good luck with the campaign!

]]> By: Richard https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1289790 Wed, 29 May 2019 10:26:24 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1289790 Enjoyed this great story. All the best to you.

]]> By: Paul Loften https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1289656 Tue, 28 May 2019 15:56:33 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1289656 These old time racers really were “The devil may care brigade “. There was nothing much in the way of safety where they sat. . Very few left of them, specially at 93 so well done Ronnie!
Although the great Murray Walker is still with us . I wonder if he was the only person to ever meet his father on the battlefield . In 1945 he was driving a tank in battle in the final stages of the war in Germany where shots were still being fired popped his head out of the turret and standing there was his father who was a war reporter . He could not believe his eyes when he said “Hello Murray “. Isn’t that something ?

]]> By: Anthony Finerty https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/05/28/ronnie-grant-racing-driver/#comment-1289639 Tue, 28 May 2019 13:50:59 +0000 http://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=167051#comment-1289639 Loved your post today. As a motor racing fan never thought I would see a post like this on Spitalfields Life. I love the posts you do each day. Keep up your good work for a wonderful historical area of London.

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