Race car man keen to be back on track
A former racing driver who suffered life-threatening injuries in a car crash is preparing to relaunch his business five years after the accident forced him to close up shop.
Michael Windsor-Price raced at some of the world's most famous circuits.
But in August 2011 he was involved in a car accident in the more genteel surroundings of the Cotswolds, when he was the passenger in a vehicle that hit a tree. The driver was unhurt, but Mr Windsor-Price, whose nickname is Mikey Two-Names, was left in a coma for four days.
He also suffered five haemorrhages, a smashed jaw and temporarily lost his eyesight.
But now Mr Windsor-Price, 45, of Highley, said he is ready to relaunch his business maintaining, preparing and racing vintage racing cars for their owners.
He said: "For nine years I ran the business.
"Some of the cars I dealt with were worth a million pounds and I would transport them to race circuits and then share the driving at the actual race with the owner.
"I was paid to drive historic cars around the best circuits and felt like I had the best job in the world.
"I also raced professionally and competed at all the world's major circuits, including Spa, Phillip Island and Le Mans.
"It is ironic that after racing on all those circuits I should suffer an accident on the public road on a regular Sunday night drive."
Following the accident Mr Windsor-Price was forced to close his business. He said that telling his nine employees they had lost their jobs was very difficult.
But now, with the support of his wife Naomi, he is now ready to relaunch and is back specialising in rebuilding vintage racing cars.
Mr Windsor-Price said: "I maintained contact with a lot of the people I used to do work for, people who were more friends than customers.
"I will be at the Chateau Impney Hill Climb on July 11 and 12 to let people see I am back and I am negotiating for a unit to start working in.
"But I couldn't have done any of this without my wife; they say that behind every great man is a great woman and Naomi has been that for me. She has done everything, has always been there when I need her and is an absolute tower of strength."
Three of the favourite cars he drove during his racing career include a Cooper Type 51 that Stirling Moss competed in at the Monaco Grand Prix.
He also took the wheel of a 1910 Mercer Raceabout, an Edwardian car that could reach 100mph and only had rear brakes. That was the sister car to the one that went down with the Titanic.
And he said he loved racing a Maserati HCTF, the only car that competed in both Grand Prix and Indy races.
Mr Windsor-Price said that the post-accident recuperation had left him feeling very depressed at times.
He said: "My life before the accident had been so good that when I thought I had lost all that I felt very down and at one point did try to take my own life.
"I am much better now, but I still struggle to do simple things, things that everyone else does without thinking – like driving a car. Most people do that on auto-pilot, but for me it takes huge levels of effort and concentration.
"The accident knocked my confidence, but also changed my outlook on life, I now know that family life is the most important thing. I don't plan for the future, because if you don't make a plan then it can't go wrong, but I do know that one day I will race again."
Mr Windsor-Price says he is looking forward to the challenge of building up the business again and has set himself an ambitious goal – to buy a Bentley 3.5 litre which he says is the favourite car he has ever driven and which would set him back around £500,000.
