My father, Jim Hardy, who has died aged 81, spent 54 years helping young people find their feet through karting.
He joined Barclay school in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, as a chemistry teacher in 1969, and founded its karting team that year. Even after he stopped teaching in 1997, he remained its team leader.
Jim gave up countless weekends to travel around the country with the team as they competed in competitions run by the National Schools Karting Association (NatSKA), which he was involved in setting up in 1971.
He loved seeing pupils develop their confidence, learn new skills and enjoy themselves on the karting track. It was never just about winning races; his favourite memories were of children coming back from their first race with enormous smiles on their faces, and that was his greatest motivation.
Jim was born in Leeds, to Eric and his wife, Constance (nee Haigh). After his secondary schooling he studied chemistry at Leeds University, followed by teacher training, after which he joined Barclay, remaining there until taking early retirement in 1997 – although afterwards he did some supply teaching, including at Samuel Whitbread upper school in Shefford, Bedfordshire.
The karting team continued for so many because of the work of dedicated volunteers alongside Jim, including his colleague Colin Fenwick. They all knew that, for some pupils, it was much more than a chance to drive a kart. The team was a place to make friends, learn from adults who believed in them and to feel part of something. One former pupil admitted that he had been heading down a difficult path when he joined and being part of the team helped turn his life around.
Jim served as company secretary and director of NatSKA for a number of years. In 2022 Motorsport UK recognised his contribution to the sport’s grassroots by presenting him with a long service recognition award.
To me, of course, he was simply Dad: someone I could laugh with and share a whisky. He loved classical music, travelling, spending time with his family and DIY, and he was always happiest when he had something to do, or a project to work on. He enjoyed people’s company and had a great sense of humour, something that many of his former pupils remember in particular.
In 1986 he married Sue Brosnan, an environmental scientist. She survives him, along with their sons, Rob and me, and his grandchildren, Chloe, Beth, Rupert and Imogen.
