I am always interested in local motoring stories, even more so if they involve testing racing cars on the road. So I was fascinated when Maserati whiz Sean Danaher mentioned that pre-war privateer Thomas Pitt Cholmondeley-Tapper regularly took his Grand Prix Maserati 8CM out on the roads near Cambridge. “You should read his book, Amateur Racing Driver,” enthused Sean.
I picked up a copy and became absorbed in his colourful first-hand racing stories. Just as Sean had said, Cholmondeley-Tapperʼs sagas of testing his Bugatti Type 37A and Maserati monoposto on the long A1307 hill up to Wandlebury Woods were recorded.
Yearning for a more powerful car to replace his supercharged 1.5-litre Bugatti Type 37 for the 1936 season, Cholmondeley-Tapper did a deal with Lord Howe for his Maserati 8CM, the aristocrat having been unable to come to terms with its whippy chassis and poor handling.
Cholmondeley-Tapper and his mechanic, Maurice, collected the 230bhp, 3-litre titan from London and towed it back to Cambridge, then headed to a road near the Gog Magog golf course for a first test drive. Friends were enlisted to keep a lookout, and after the 8CM had been thoroughly warmed up Cholmondeley-Tapper roared off. The jump in performance over his T37 was spectacular and, once familiar with the Maseratiʼs controls, Cholmondeley-Tapper was soon gunning the 8CM up the incline at well over the ton.
Amateur Racing Driver was published in 1953 and itʼs a cracking read, from Cholmondeley-Tapperʼs childhood in New Zealand to his surprise non-appearance at Monza in 1936 after boss Alfred Neubauer invited him to test for the Mercedes-Benz team.
Racing exploits aside, the book offers some intriguing behind-the-scenes motorsport stories. We are given fascinating insights into the road driving of such luminaries as Jean Bugatti, Rudolf Caracciola and Bernd Rosemeyer, as Cholmondeley-Tapper travels with them across Europe and South Africa for events. Of Auto Union ace Rosemeyer, the New Zealander writes: ʻ[He] drove as fast as his car would go all the time, and his method of negotiating crossroads in town was simply to charge straight across.ʼ Towing sagas provide plenty of drama, too, including the trip for the 8CMʼs debut
