John Targett

[MGBV8]

Sad news from the racing community.

http://www.mgexp.com/phorum/read.php?41,2593376

[Moderator]

I'm very deeply saddened to report that John passed away last night.

[Preform Resources]

John was a very interesting guy,  probably one of the most well known MGB guys ever . Don Munoz and he were close racing buddies,I'm sure he will be missed by all. I hope there will be some kind of perpetual award in John's name created.
Dave

[BlownMGB-V8]

Irreplaceable.

[mowog1]

Here's a picture of Mr.Targett in the driver's seat of the MGB of the B-Stingers race team. Our own Max Fulton is on his right. Not sure who took the picture.

I enjoyed talking with John at BritishV8 2009 in Raleigh/Durham.

May he rest in peace.

[madmax]

Rumour has it there IS going to be a "Targett Award"-- for MGB racers only at this year's Collier Race!   That'll be cool...  

M

PS:  Jim Lathan took that photo.

[Moderator]

[ex-tyke]

Funeral arragements:
http://www.billowfuneralhomes.com/obituaries/John-Targett/

[MGBV8]

Life just sucks, sometimes. I'm glad he had many happy days at the track.

[trmgv8]

This was not a good weekend for John at Watkins Glen Sept 09. Bad water pump pulley,side swipe then plug wire came off.
I will miss this man and good times at the track and car shows.

Cheers John,

[Moderator]

This was not a good weekend...

I remember. One of the remarkable things about John was how quickly he could swing back into an entirely positive mindset. One way or another, he'd get back on track and race hard. When I last spoke to him, his doctor had given him a very gloomy assessment - but John was talking about how to get his green MGB racecar ready for next year's Goodwood festival. (Not the familiar red car. His old green MGB had been raced at Goodwood in 1965, and with that provenance documented it can race there again.) He had me believing that he'd miraculously recover and be there.  I've been tardy when it comes to writing about John's passing-on. I get choked up when I try. He was a remarkable man in many ways. A hero. A genuine friend.

[DiDueColpi]

Just wanted to note how tasteful and refined the Targett banners are.
I never knew the man. But what I've learned from people that I respect and value.
Is that the racing community has been diminished by his passing.
Everyone in this world has merit. But some shine more brightly than others.
As I understand it, he was a genuine beacon.

[MGBV8]

Great Banner, Curtis!  Thanks.

[Moderator]

It was a very difficult banner to make. I hope John would be okay with it.




Now, I have to pass along news that's not so much sad as it is... infuriating!  Some scumbag somewhere is impersonating our dear friend. Here's the text of an e-mail I just received:

From: "John Targett" <jbritcars@aol.com>
Date: February 23, 2014 1:42:15 PM MST
To: "editor@britishv8.org editor@britishv8.org" <editor@britishv8.org>
Subject: News from John
Reply-To: jbritcanrs@aol.com

Did you get a message I sent? I got no answer and haven't heard back. I had a sudden trip out of the country to Turkey, Please let me know if you can be of any help.

John Targett

The name for this sort of fraud is "phishing". They probably think they can con somebody out of payment for a set of Minilite wheels. I've already reported the e-mail to AOL. Hopefully they'll quickly shut down the e-mail account of "jbritcanrs@aol.com"

[MG four six eight]

Yeah I received that e-mail also. This kind of thing really chaps my hide.
I never meet John in person, but we did speak on the phone a few times when I ordered a set of Mini-lites from him. He was always very friendly and helpful answering my questions. A very positive experience indeed and I enjoyed chatting with him about MGs.
He will be missed.

Bill

[Moderator]

The BCV8 Championship honored John with a special "John Targett Memorial Race" last Saturday (May 3rd) at Brands Hatch.  Pam McCarthy copied me on the piece she'll include in the next BCV8 Newsletter, and she invited me to share it here too:

IN MEMORIUM
The cars assembled and drew up behind the course car and stopped on the grid.  Drivers out, and Ron Gammons gave a Speech to the crowd in memory of John Targett who had been associated with the BCV8 Championship in its heyday and had been a friend of many in the MGCC for forty odd years.  He was in fact a friend of mine and Roy's, and I had only seen him last November when he said goodbye to me in his usual smiling way - always kind and considerate.


One minute silence and the drivers jumped back into their cars to take a green flag lap round the circuit and return to take the lights.