Wendy with the Mazda RX-3
Wendy was a British woman who raced in national saloon championships in the 1970s. She
took part in some international touring car races too, and drove in works teams
for Mazda and Lada.
Her
background was completely unrelated to motorsport; she trained as a dancer, and
performed in musical theatre and comedy, appearing on The Benny Hill Show, among other things. It was only after her
marriage, to racing driver and BMW team manager, John Markey, that she became
acquainted with the world of motorsport.
Her
first race came in 1972, and was apparently the result of a bet. Whether she
won the bet, is unclear. Using a borrowed Honda N600, she drove in the
Production Saloon championship at Oulton Park.
The
following year, she attacked the Production Saloon (Group 1) championship
again, in a BMW 2002 Ti this time, supported by the UK BMW works team. As well
as circuit racing, the team ran her in the Avon Tour of Britain, partnered by
Jenny Dell. She was 19th overall and beat Rosemary Smith to the
Ladies’ award, as well as finishing above Graham Hill in his Datsun Bluebird.
A
change to the rules brought Wendy into the British Touring Car Championship,
then known as the British Saloon Car Championship, in 1974. The BSCC was now
running to Group 1 specification. Wendy had secured another factory-supported
drive, this time for Mazda. Her car was a Savanna RX3. She completed most of
the season, which included too many non-finishes for her to make an impression
on the final leaderboard. Her best finish was seventh, at Mallory Park. Female
drivers were less unusual then in the BSCC than they are now, but Wendy
attracted a lot of attention due to her team’s main sponsor: Penthouse
magazine.
As well
as the BSCC, she competed internationally, in some rounds of the European
Touring Car Championship. She shared the RX-3 with Australian Brian Muir for
the Silverstone TT race, but they did not finish, due to an oil leak in the
gearbox. She also made one appearance in a Ladies’ Shellsport Escort race,
driving a Ford Escort Mexico. She was seventh.
She
drove a Mazda RX-3 for both 1975 British Group 1 Championships, sponsored by
Britax and Radio One. She performed well in both, and was third in her class in
the Britax series, and fourth in class in the Radio One series. Classes for
Group 1 racing were based on the retail price of the car.
There
was more women-only action in 1975, too. Wendy took part in the Shellsport
Escort Series, now a four-round championship run in association with the
British Women Racing Drivers’ Club. She won the last round, at Mallory Park,
and was third overall. This was not her only womens’ event; she was invited to
drive in the Ladies’ Race supporting the Monaco Grand Prix, but crashed out.
She
stayed with Group 1 in 1976, although she changed her car from a Mazda to a Lada
1200, supported by the Lada factory. Her programme included a second Tour of
Britain, in which she won another Ladies’ award. As well as the Lada, she was
scheduled to race a Mazda in the Silverstone 6 Hours, with Georgie Shaw, but
this did not happen.
Her
third season in the Shellsport Escort series gave her a best finish of third,
at Snetterton, and she was enough for sixth in the championship.
In
1977, it was back to Mazda power, still in the RX-3. One of her team-mates was
her husband, John, who drove a sister car, an RX-5. Sponsored by Smith Kendon
Travel Sweets, a slightly less controversial company, she competed in several
rounds of the European Touring Car Championship, with Tom Hunt as her
co-driver. They were disqualified from their first race, at Salzburg, for
receiving a push start, but got to the finish of the Brno round in 19th
place. They were 35th, from 38 finishers, at the Nürburgring, but did not finish at
Silverstone. A planned entry into the Brands Hatch 6 Hours did not transpire.
Wendy’s
chosen car for 1978 was a Mini 1275 GT. Sharing it with John Markey and Alan
Shaw, she managed to finish the Diner’s Club Trophy at Silverstone. For most of
the season, she raced in the Special Saloon championship in the UK, with her
husband and second team-mate. Unfortunately, she had quite a bad accident at
Mallory Park, on a wet track, and broke an ankle. The Mini was a write-off, and
this was the end of her motorsport activities for some time. Divorce also
intervened some time afterwards.
In
1988, now Wendy Amey, she returned to the circuits in a Chevron B8, usually
racing in the HSCC2-Litre Championship, and Super Sports. This lasted for two
seasons, before she hung up her helmet for good to concentrate on family and
business concerns.
More
recently, Wendy was involved in the classic motorcycling scene, as the
business and life partner of former world champion, Phil Read.
She died in February 2021, aged 70.
(Image
from http://www.markeymotorsport.co.uk/)
Wendy was a delight. She and Phil Read came to the USA in September 2018 when Phil was honored at Radnor Hunt Concours. Wendy was his everything and I heard about her exploits behind the wheel but never knew the full story. Thank you for writing this bio.
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