On October 20, the 2007 Mercedes-Benz Lake Mirror Classic Auto Festival held in Lakeland, Florida, will celebrate its eighth year. Taking a cue from the world-class Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, the Lakeland show features a tribute to a legendary motorsports’ personality. This year’s honored guest will be Sir Stirling Moss, who inherited the role of motor racing’s senior statesman upon the death of Juan Manuel Fangio in July, 1995.
Born in London, England, on September 17, 1929, Stirling Craufurd Moss began his racing career in 1948 at the wheel of a Cooper-JAP F3, a career that rapidly blossomed throughout the 1950s. As his natural driving talent and skills captured the attention of major players in the international racing scene, Moss began compiling an impressive list of victories. During this period, the versatile Moss raced a wide variety of factory-backed and privateer cars including Aston Martin, Cooper, Ferrari, HWM, Jaguar, Lotus, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Vanwall.
One of Moss’ most epic drives was the 1955 Mille Miglia, where he and navigator Denis Jenkinson reset the speed record on the way to victory in a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR. Sadly, upon suffering a blunting of his sharp mental reactions following a crash in a Lotus-Climax V8 at Goodwood in 1962, Moss retired from racing at the age of 31.
In addition to having the pleasure of Sir Stirling Moss’ presence at this year’s Mercedes-Benz Lake Mirror Classic Auto Festival, Founder and Chairman Ford Heacock, President of Heacock Classic Collector Car Insurance, is gathering a select group of race cars representing his career. Included in this group will be The Collier Collection’s OSCA 1.5-liter MT4, the car in which Moss and co-driver Bill Lloyd scored an overall win at the 1954 12 Hours of Sebring. For updates and more information please visit www.lakemirrorclassic.com