I sometimes wonder about the people who write history; to what extent are they getting it right? When one has lived through an event and then finds it recorded differently from the way it is remembered, one has to ask the question: which is correct, my memory or this account?
An example happened to me today. I was thinking about the post for this morning and, for some unknown reason, Avon's brief foray into the world of F1 tire supply came to mind. It occurred to me that few F1 enthusiasts would remember that the little British tire manufacturer once had a go at the big time, so I decided to write about it.
Theodore TR3 on Avon tires at the British GP, 1981
My memory told me that Avon entered the game some time in the early eighties and added the information that they stepped in when one of the big tire companies left in a huff (I think it was Goodyear, annoyed that Michelin were supplying just a couple of teams while they had to keep all the others happy). This would have left most of the teams without tires except for the fact that Avon offered to make up the gap.
Or so my memory reckoned. Obviously, that was a bit sparse to build an article on so I resorted to Google to see what others had to say. And it turns out to be one of the hardest subjects to find solid information on; even Avon is very quiet on the matter in its history of the company.
Eventually I did find a page or two that admitted that Avon had supplied F1 tires in 1981 and 1982 but there was nothing about their bold attempt to fill a gap left by another supplier. It does seem that my memory may be at fault for, as well as Goodyear and Michelin, Pirelli were involved at about the same time.
Be that as it may, I do recall that the teams were not happy with the Avon tires - understandably since Avon were entirely new to F1 and could hardly be expected to immediately supply a tire as advanced as more experienced manufacturers. When the chance came to get tires from another source, teams deserted en masse and poor Avon found themselves without a reason to be in the game anymore. They left, probably saving themselves from bankruptcy at the same time (it's an expensive business developing and supplying F1 tires).
But from where do I get this idea that Avon became involved as a stop-gap measure for a departed supplier? Am I confusing the company with Pirelli, since they too were having a go at the time? Or am I correct and the company is so embarrassed by their adventure that they have expunged all mention of it from the history books?
If anyone knows the answers to these questions, I would be very grateful to hear from them.
An example happened to me today. I was thinking about the post for this morning and, for some unknown reason, Avon's brief foray into the world of F1 tire supply came to mind. It occurred to me that few F1 enthusiasts would remember that the little British tire manufacturer once had a go at the big time, so I decided to write about it.
Theodore TR3 on Avon tires at the British GP, 1981
My memory told me that Avon entered the game some time in the early eighties and added the information that they stepped in when one of the big tire companies left in a huff (I think it was Goodyear, annoyed that Michelin were supplying just a couple of teams while they had to keep all the others happy). This would have left most of the teams without tires except for the fact that Avon offered to make up the gap.
Or so my memory reckoned. Obviously, that was a bit sparse to build an article on so I resorted to Google to see what others had to say. And it turns out to be one of the hardest subjects to find solid information on; even Avon is very quiet on the matter in its history of the company.
Eventually I did find a page or two that admitted that Avon had supplied F1 tires in 1981 and 1982 but there was nothing about their bold attempt to fill a gap left by another supplier. It does seem that my memory may be at fault for, as well as Goodyear and Michelin, Pirelli were involved at about the same time.
Be that as it may, I do recall that the teams were not happy with the Avon tires - understandably since Avon were entirely new to F1 and could hardly be expected to immediately supply a tire as advanced as more experienced manufacturers. When the chance came to get tires from another source, teams deserted en masse and poor Avon found themselves without a reason to be in the game anymore. They left, probably saving themselves from bankruptcy at the same time (it's an expensive business developing and supplying F1 tires).
But from where do I get this idea that Avon became involved as a stop-gap measure for a departed supplier? Am I confusing the company with Pirelli, since they too were having a go at the time? Or am I correct and the company is so embarrassed by their adventure that they have expunged all mention of it from the history books?
If anyone knows the answers to these questions, I would be very grateful to hear from them.