Morris Lubricants fuels family’s sidecar racing success

It would be fair to say that sidecar racing is in the genes of the Wirral-based Founds family. It all started more than 30 years ago with dad Des, who competed in the British championships as well as the family’s beloved Isle of Man TT.

Des is still keenly involved but now supports his sons, Pete, 38 and Alan, 33, as manager of Team Founds Racing. He’s a very proud dad, as Alan won the British F2 Sidecar Championship last year and now older brother Pete is bidding to follow in his footsteps, as he currently leads this year’s table at the half-way stage.

All three men have the distinction of a podium finished in a TT race, with Pete having a second place to his name this year while both Des and Alan have finished third.

Team Founds Racing is very much a family affair, with sister, Hannah, handling the public relations and social media and uncle Ron a key member of the support team.

Eldest brother Chris also used to compete, with Pete, at that point, opting to man the sidecar. They finished 11^th in the World Sidecar Championships. Youngest brother Alan and family friend Tom Peters continued the racing tradition and finished last season as British F2 champions.

Now Pete, with passenger Jevan Walmsley, are targeting Alan’s title after coming runner up in the British F2 Cup last year. Pete's racing career stretches back to 1993 when he started out as a passenger and continued in the sidecar until 2007. He is now having his most memorable year to date, as he and Jevan have taken the British Championship by storm and also finished second in a TT race in May.

“My main ambition was to make it on to the podium at the TT, which we managed earlier this year,” said Pete, who lives in Knutsford. “We now need to go back and prove that it was not a fluke and it would be great to keep the British Championship in the family.

“I was brought up going to the Isle of Man because dad raced there for 25 years. I didn’t know there was another type of holiday until I had a girlfriend!”

Alan, who began racing at the age of 16 as a passenger for both his dad and Chris, has this year been joined by Aki Aalto from Finland in a new bike and sidecar outfit. It has been a development season for them, as they have been breaking in the bike with plans to contest the British Championship again next year.

As for rivalry between the brothers, Alan says: “On the track, there are no holds barred, but off the track, we share everything.”

Now the brothers are eagerly waiting to see what the ruling body for sidecar racing decides for next season, with a chance that all bikes will be restricted to 600cc in both the British and World Championships.

The brothers are delighted to be ambassadors for the Morris Lubricants Motorsport Programme, which sees the Shrewsbury-based company provide them with all the lubricants they need for racing. In return, they fly the Morris Lubricants flag and promote the company’s quality lubricants at every opportunity.

Britain’s leading family owned lubricants business has had long association with Des and his sons and recently welcomed Team Founds Racing to the company’s headquarters for a photoshoot and mid-season progress report.

“We feel very proud to be representing Morris Lubricants because the company has a lot of heritage and we are passionate about the association,” said Pete, who is a power station engineer when not hurtling at up to 155mph around a track. “We are often asked what oils we use and are proud to say that we’ve always used Morris Lubricants because they have been successful for us.”

Alan, an aeronautical engineer from Little Neston, chips in with: “It’s great for us as a family to be involved with another family organisation. All the Morris Lubricants products that we use, including the chain lube, are fantastic. We have now also converted our engine tuner who has seen the quality of the lubricants at first hand and sings their praises.”

Last word goes to Des who is justifiably proud of his sons’ achievements. “I am gobsmacked at how quick they are,” he said. “Both have proved their TT prowess and they’re 10mph faster around the course than I was.

“I would like to think that I have made a small contribution to their success. The fact that all three of us have been on the TT podium is fantastic.”

Craig Bastable, Morris Lubricants’ marketing manager, said: “We are proud to be associated with Des and his sons who are fantastic ambassadors for our top quality products. The Morris Lubricants Racing (MLR) programme aims to not only help racers like Pete and Alan to achieve success, but also increase awareness of our brand in all areas of British motorsport.”