All the yards in my stories so far have motorsport connections running through them somewhere, and my involvement with them. This one is a bit different in that the premises didnt sell cars, but tyres. Wally Darrells' ACE tyre shop in Christchurch supplied not only passenger car tyres but performance tyres for those would wanted that bit extra. Now in those days, as Bob has pointed out, for 'performance' read BIG. However, Wally managed to get a set of Michelin X for me and they certainly transformed the car they were fitted to, the TR2. He also fitted a set of Dunlop C49's to my Dads Jaguar 2.4, the latest in technology even though they were still crossplys. The Michelins, which were those new fangled radials had a fearsome reputation of hanging on in a corner then letting go without warning. Never tested them that far but gave a very good ride, and seemed to last forever. Wally is best know for his A.C.E. specials which he raced in the fifties, always with number 13 and always driven with great gusto. The first A.C.E. was built from the remains of the Hec Green Wolseley, that I saw racing at the Aranui Speedway, through 2 and 3 with vauxhall and standard vanguard engines respectively to the A.C.E. 4 which was Zephyr powered. The A.C.E. 4 used to go like stink in a straight line but wasnt very happy in the cornering department, and one would frequently see Wally in the middle of a corner doing a 360. Couldnt have been a tyre problem as he was in the business, so maybe the suspension wasnt up to Wallys' enthusiastic driving. He did a lot of beach racing and competed at Wigram, Mairehau, and Dunedin circuits usually finishing about mid field. Wally apparently wasnt too concerned about winning so long as he had a good time. One thing I do remember is that he was very good at getting wheel balance right. The balancing machines back then were fairly crude affairs compared to the electronic devices of today, but with his racing experience used to go the extra mile in getting things spot on. The last time I saw the A.C.E. 4 in Wallys hands was at a grass gymkhana, of all places, still doing 360's and still sounding wonderful, and Wally still the Gentleman that he always was. The car survives and is raced in classic racing today. So....Ciao Wally, you were always damn good fun to watch and your cars always a credit to you.