Model behaviour

Sir,

I make miniature historic racers for a hobby. Shortly before he died, I wrote to DSJ to ask his permission to measure up the Duesenberg, which I knew he owned, at the Brooklands Museum. I thought he’d write a ‘yes’ or ‘no’. In fact he ‘phoned me shortly after. I found myself speaking to a man I’d admired for 40 years. He was obviously deeply ill but he went into all sorts of rare detail about the car, including the fact that it still stood on 1939 rubber. Not only that, he then wrote me a letter with lovely illustrations of various points such as the angle that George Duller kept the rear-view mirror as against the angle that Whitney Straight raced with. He took trouble for a complete stranger, unasked, and at a bad time in his life. I’ll never get over it.

I am yours, etc

Peter Posner, Todmorden, Lancashire