Don Barrow

#### Don Barrow – No1 Rally Navigator & Co-Driver

Don Barrow *(born 6th November 1936)* – The former British No 1 Rally Navigator & Co-Driver – ‘The King of the Navigators’ – *Quote by* Eric Bailey – the Motoring Correspondent of the Daily Telegraph 16-12-1995, when writing about Navigators and Co-Drivers.

#### Autobiography

Don Barrow, he started Navigating in car rallies in 1958 where he quickly learned the art of Navigating using Ordnance Survey maps. He competed at the highest level winning the prestigious Motoring News Rally Championships in the years, 1963 & 1964 with Reg McBride and 1967 & 1970 with Jim Bullough. He also won the BTRDA (British Trials and Rally Drivers Association) Silver Star Championships in 1962, 1963 & 1967 and the BTRDA Gold Star Championship in 1970, together with the RAC Rally Championship (Which was the forerunner to the British Rally Championship) in 1967.

#### Motoring News Rally Championship Wins

He scored the all-time record number of 26 outright wins in the Motoring News Rally Championship and the maximum winning points score of 1,175 in the whole MN series of events, never to be beaten. The Motoring News Championship started in 1961 and although he retired from active competition in 1973, the MN Championship ran until 1987 - See his Rally Results.

#### Teams

He Co-drove for several Works Factory Teams, namely Triumph, BMC (*British Motor Corporation*), Ford, Rootes Group and DTV (*Dealer Team Vauxhall*). He Co-Drove for the Finnish ace, Timo Mäkinen on the 1964 Spa Sofia Liege Rally and the 1964 RAC Rally finishing 2nd overall both in a BMC Works Austin Healey 3000 and in 1968 he Navigated Jim Bullough on the RAC Rally into 3rd overall in Jim’s privately entered MK1 Ford Escort Twin Cam, the result clinched winning the 1968 European Rally Championship for Ford.

#### Drivers

He had the pleasure of Navigating - Co-Driving for George Hulme, Reg McBride, Roy Kirkham, Jim Bullough, Roy Fidler, Timo Mäkinen, Andrew Cowan, John Sprinzel, Eric Jackson, Ron Wilson, Frank Grange, Barrie ‘Whizzo’ Williams, Pam Haggie, Derek Astle, Phil Simister, John Bloxham, Ian Harwood, Cec Offley, Arthur Hobson, Peter Barrow, Ron Gammons & Bobbie Parkes and many more – Plus the intense displeasure of Navigating - Co-Driving for *Peter Harper*, the most obnoxious company he ever experienced in a Rally car - See his Photographical Autobiography.

#### Motor Clubs

Don was a member of many Motor Clubs over the years, starting with Lancs & Ches CC, Knutsford DMC, Congleton CC, Stockport MC, Cavendish CC, Knowldale CC. HRCR, MK1 Lotus Register, MK1 Cortina OC and the TR Register. It was essential to be a member of several Motor Clubs so as to receive newsletters with the latest rally information, furthermore to be able to enter Restricted Rallies that had extended their invitation to selected Motor Clubs.

#### Best events

Although Don competed mainly in British Championship rallies he also competed over a fourteen year period in a fair few International rallies too. In comparing the British to continental rallies, they were completely different types of events. The British Championship rallies were normally run on Saturday nights, usually about 200 milers. The routes were plotted using the Ordnance Survey 6 figure Map Reference (M.R.) system. In the early 1960s they used the 1" to the mile scale and in 1974 the 1:50,000 scale was introduced, M.R. were plotted using a Don Barrow Romer and the M.R. were plotted on the move. The routes could be very complex with specified approach and depart directions from the plotted M.R. which would have been a manned Time Control (TC) operated by volunteer marshals. They had several types called Restricted or the more prestigious National rallies and run in remote areas like Wales, Yorkshire, Lake District and Derbyshire. These rallies were timed, on paper, at 30 mph, they were exhilarating high speed events and required great skill from both the driver and navigator. So that the driver could pedal the car quickly, the navigator would keep up a running commentary of the road ahead by reading the map through a Don Barrow Map Magnifier. In the early years when standard cars were used with very little difference in their performance, it was hard to gain an advantage over other competitors. Therefore Don examined a section where they had lost time on and counted up the number of corners and junctions and realised that if you could not gain an advantage on acceleration then you need to gain it on braking. This is where he developed his map reading skills further, by accurately assessing the distance to the next corner/junction, this then allowed the driver to not hesitate or brake too early. The International rallies were completely different and glamourish events. Some long distance rallies would issue beforehand a list of where the Time Controls and the Special Stages are located, this info allowed for better planning ahead. Weeks before, a Team would be sent on a recce to create a Tulip type road book to be used on the rally, together with making Pacenotes of the Special Stages, these would be practised in order to polish up the Pacenotes to perfection. Don confided in me that he enjoyed winning a Motoring News rally than competing on a European International, he found it rather boring to drive over the same route that he had receed weeks/days before.

#### Thankyou

He was eternally thankful to his wife Gill Barrow and his twin children Vivienne Patterson-Barrow and Richard Don Barrow for their help and support in all his Rallying endeavours. Not forgetting Don's parents, George Barrow and Alice Barrow for their following and encouragement in pursuing his Rally Navigating adventures.

#### Business

In between rallying in the late 1960s, he set up his successful Rally Navigation Equipment business where he designed and built his famous Don Barrow Map Magnifiers and his Don Barrow ‘Super’ Romers and many other products. It was a family affair where everyone helped out. In 1993 he was probably the first Rally Navigation business that sold online; thanks to his son Richard who was then at the forefront of web design. Don also developed and programmed his Tulip Road Book editors which were added to the product list together with his extensive range of Don Barrow Pacenote Lights. He also added the full range of Brantz, Terratrip, Halda & Retrotrip Tripmeters plus Timers & Stopwatches which were all sold worldwide.

#### Business Future

In 2020 he successfully sold the business to the new owners who still trade as Don Barrow Rally Navigation Equipment.

#### Later life and today

Now that he has retired from co-driving and his business, he now lives back in Wilmslow.