 
 Midas
TOUCH gets a fast push.
It looks like she's wearing an AKS body in this photo.
 One
of the popular Altereds racing at the drag strips in the
early 70's was Midas Mist driven by Rob Skinner and
which had a Jag 3442cc engine. This was described in the
programmes as a Buckler.
Malcolm now has a magazine article about "The Midas
Touch" entered as a Buckler in the "Competition Altereds"
class at Santa Pod.
It started life as a 1957 Buckler Watling Special, with
Morris Minor 1000 engine, Ford front axle and leaf
spring and Ballamy wheels.
In 1966 Rob actually ran it at Santa pod as found but
with the engine tuned to FJ. After that the Jag unit
went in and eventually it ended up more like a "rail"
car.
Anyone heard of the Buckler Watling Special ???
 Midas
MIST wearing a Falcon? body
'This car was run successfully by Rob and Pete Skinner,
the fibreglass body being a "Falcon", picked up for a
fiver from someone's garden! Its 3.8 Jag engine was a
never-quitter for several years. '
Alan Currans has only two pictures of the car. One is to
be found on page 6 of the competition altereds in the
Alan Currans fantastic Collection, of photos and all
things drag racing. www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk
My award for the best named car would have to be 'Muscle
Sprout' ! (ed)
Many Thanks to Clive Rooms, Martin Gleadow, David
Kipling and Alan Currans. (and to Malcolm Buckler !)
Extract of letter from Chris Dosset
www.trakbytes.co.uk
get a load
of this...
I was aware of Simon Ambrose being interested in knowing
more about Midas Mist because it used a Buckler chassis
- and I probably have stuff from Rob Skinner that will
be of interest (including the fact that Midas Mist is
still knocking about somewhere, I think Rob has the
guy's name and contact details)...
But what is/was so bizarre about the background to the
Buckler was/is this...
When I resumed contact with Rob he inevitably asked
where I was living these days...
I replied "...a place called Millom, but nobody's have
heard of it...."
Rob replied "Never heard of it! I spent many a weekend
in Millom back in the 60's. Know it like the back of my
hand."
Turns out Rob went to Leicester Poly when he left school
and got friendly with a German student called Peter
Evertt...
Evertt's parents had come over to England to run a tiny
Elbeo factory in Millom...
Rob and Peter became friends and Rob consequently came
'home' to Millom many a time to spend the weekend at the
Evertt's house (a big BIG house just outside of Millom)...
AND Evertt was the guy with the Buckler!
So the Buckler originated just a couple of miles from
here!!
(Well actually it might have originated from
Leicester... but that wouldn't make such a good
story....)
The Buckler was Evertt's wheels until it became too
clapped out for the road (probably too many round trips
from Leicester to Millom...)
So when Rob heard about this new fangled thing called
drag racing, it was the Buckler that became their first
race car.
Evertt soon lost interest and Rob's brother (also a
Peter) became the new team member.
The Buckler then went onto to be the basis for their
entire Comp Altered career - from the late 60's to the
mid 70's.
Okay that bizarre enough for you? But the story doesn't
end there...
When I then asked around at work whether anyone
remembered the Evertts, seemed like everyone and their
mother knew them.
The factory closed and the Evertts returned to Germany
many years ago, but I've managed to track down a couple
of locals who still keep in touch with the Evertts. One
is the local blacksmith (I'm not making this up...
honest) and the other is a girl who works with my mate
and her grandmother has their address.
Now I can put Rob in touch with his old pal Peter.
Friends Reunited has got nothing on this story!
Andy
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