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John Wilson |
Chief Technical Official & BMCRC Accountant
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01494 711210 |
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In my youth, my formal “further” education was fatally interrupted by the discovery of 3 major diversions all in the same year. Motorbikes, bitter beer, and the real purpose of girls. So in 1965 I started riding (and falling off), and have been continuously addicted ever since.
I stumbled into training as an Accountant in the engineering industry in 1966, as the means to chase my real desires, and discovered hitherto unknown opportunities and interests that have also stayed with me up until today. My current road bike is a Kawasaki ZX9R, but my fascination for road racing was sparked back in 1967 after going to Brands Hatch on my Ariel Arrow to see the BMCRC “Hutchinson 100” race. Helping and supporting mates who were taking their first steps into club racing led us into the 1968 Bemsee Club Championships and the Greenwich M&MC Club races. By 1972 I had been press-ganged into “scrutineering” which was a job that almost nobody else much wanted to do, but as I did not quite have the means, skill or “bottle” to go racing myself, it was the next best thing.
On the introduction of testing and licensing of race officials in the 1980’s, on behalf of the Greenwich Club I was on the very first ACU course, and in 1986 the first FIM course, as we needed licensed officials for the Easter Transatlantic Match Races, and the October Powerbike International. The Greenwich Club began moving away from road racing, and in 1988 I was invited to bring my FIM License across to Bemsee, to assist and strengthen the scrutineering team. In 1992 my accounting background was called upon to revise and upgrade the Club’s bookkeeping systems to cope with the acquisition of the Lydden Circuit operation. By 1994 the Club was expanding and I was voted onto the Board of Directors, where I was involved in complex VAT changes and producing monthly management accounts. The Club’s disastrous 1995 race venture in the Mediterranean led the Club to the brink of extinction. I was proud to be involved in the very hard decisions needed to successfully drag Bemsee back from the edge, which also involved my taking over all financial and accounting control from the Club’s auditors. By 2000 my livelihood was suffering from my unpaid over-involvement in the Club. That had to change, and another hard decision was needed. I decided to resign my Directorship, reasoning that my accountancy skills were of more value to the Club, than Director skills which other well qualified Club members had in equal measure.
So my involvement continues ; as Club Accountant advising and supporting the Board in financial control and statutory matters ; and as a Senior Chief Technical Official on race days and behind the scenes in consulting and specifying regulations, and in the training of our next generation of race officials.
Contact:
Email: john@alliedaccountancy.co.uk
Tel: 01494 711210 |
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