1933 – 2017
David Good was born in Berkshire in 1933 and grew up near Maidenhead. He was the third of six children. After leaving school aged 16 he joined a London brokerage firm, but soon left to join the family’s dairy business. Despite being born without a lower right arm, David was an adventurous man and a keen sportsman. He steadfastly refused to be held back by his disability and was determined to excel at everything he undertook – whether in business or sport.
His racing career began in 1955 when he competed at hill climbs with a Triumph TR2. For 1956 he acquired the ex-Richard Seaman ERA R1B and won his class at Great Auclum that year. Having got the racing bug, David bought a 998cc Cooper MK8 JAP twin for the 1957 season, he continued with the Cooper twin for the next few seasons and finished third in 1958 RAC British Hill Climb Championship.
In 1959 he won his first RAC championship round at Stapleford in October and was runner-up to David Boshier-Jones in the championship. He repeated that feat in 1960 again finishing second behind Boshier-Jones.
David’s big breakthrough came in 1961 when he won rounds at Bo’ness and Westbrook Hay and ultimately clinched the RAC title. He entered a Cooper T56 for 1963 which he initially ran with a 1.5 Climax engine before installing a 2.6 Daimler SP250.
David took a different path in 1965 by buying a Lola T70 Spider (chassis no. 5) and, despite its size, he won his class at Great Auclum and set a new record for sports car over 1600cc.
In 1967 David formed a partnership with F1 driver Mike Spence who had a garage in Maidenhead and they acquired the experimental BRM P67 4WD car. The P67 gave David a number of runner-up spots during the ’67 season and he finished third in the RAC Championship.
David again decided to take the sports car route for 1968 and enjoyed many class victories he also set several class records in a 2.0 Chevron B6 BMW. He bought another Chevron for 1969 – a B8 – and again enjoyed success getting in to the top ten run-offs on several occasions.
David returned to single seaters in 1970 when he bought a McLaren M10B from the factory which was sponsored by his business under the Ski (Yogurt) name. Fitted with a 5.5 Chevrolet engine, the car was immediately quick and he took a win at round 3 at Barbon in May. After a season long tussle with Sir Nick Williamson, David Hepworth and Mike MacDowel, David finished fourth in the RAC Hill Climb Championship.
After taking a sabbatical in 1971, he once more entered a sports car for the 1972 season – this time a Martin BM8 with which he broke his own class record at Great Auclum.
For 1973, David and his friend Sir Nick Williamson had cars prepared by Slough-based Lyncar and were sponsored by SGT Motors of Taplow near Maidenhead. David’s car was a 3.0 Lyncar MS4 fitted with a Cosworth DFV engine and he finished seventh that year.
His final year of RAC championship hill climbing came in 1974 when he again entered the Lyncar and this time finished sixth overall. David also achieved a number of class wins in events held in Belgium and Switzerland, such as being awarded first in class in the Mountain Champions at Ollon-Villars 1967 Hill Climb.
David became a member of the prestigious British Racing Drivers Club in 1968 in recognition of his achievements in hill climbing. He was involved in the organisation of hill climbing events as Chairman of the Bugatti Owners Club at Prescott hillclimb. As a long time member of the Hants and Berks Motor Club, he served as president and he was also Director of Wiscombe Park Hill Climb Ltd.
David would have like to take part in circuit racing but the RAC medical panel refused to give him the necessary competition licence, however he never lost his interest in racing and could often be seen in the paddock chatting to old friends.
Away from racing, David enjoyed a varied and successful business career with Express Dairies after it bought the family company, and later for Grand Metropolitan, where he was put in charge of its hotels in the Far East. Later he joined Beacon Garden Centres as a director which was owned by his brother Dudley. David was a director of Country Gardens between 1991 and 1999.
David’s youngest son James recalled trips all over the UK and Europe to see his father race and said it was always a thrill. He added: “He was a unique man and also very courageous in whatever he did. He was a ‘succeeder’ and a ‘doer’ and he had to succeed in everything he did, whether that was racing or even just checking out a hotel.”
David Good died on Sunday 29th January 2017 after suffering from cancer for some time.