He played a major role in the development and success of the racing versions of the Shelby Cobra 289 in SCCA, USRRC and FIA sports car racing between 19 as well as the Daytona Coupe and 427 versions of the Cobra and the Ford GT (GT40). With a very pronounced Brummie accent (from his hometown of Birmingham, renowned for car manufacturing) combined with a seemingly obscure and sardonic sense of humour, he was affectionately known by his American racing crew as "Teddy Teabag" (for his tea drinking) or "Sidebite" (as he talked out of the side of his mouth). I should think it would be jolly good fun! I should like to drive a Formula One machine, not for the grand prize, but just to see what it is like. Driving is a hobby, a relaxation for me, like golfing is to others. That has been the direction of my entire vocational life. The resulting car dominated the F Modified class of SCCA on the west coast in the 19 seasons with Miles driving.ĭue to his great skill and talent, both as a driver and mechanical engineer, Miles was a significant member of the Shelby/ Cobra race team in the early 1960s. It was the second successful race car to be known on the West Coast as "the Pooper", the first being an early 1950s Cooper chassis and body powered by a Porsche 356 power train that was built and campaigned by Pete Lovely of Tacoma, Washington. įor the 1957 season (in co-operation with Otto Zipper), Miles engineered the installation of a Porsche 550S engine and transmission in a 1956 Cooper chassis and body. During 1956, Miles raced John von Neumann's Porsche 550 Spyder at most of the Cal Club and SCCA events. Miles was later disqualified on a technical infraction because his fenders were too wide, thus allowing Yedor and Dean to get 'bumped up' to first and second. Miles raced the "Flying Shingle" at Palm Springs in late March, finishing first overall against veteran driver Cy Yedor, also in an MG Special, and novice driver, actor James Dean in a Porsche 356 Speedster. It was very successful in the SCCA F modified class on the west coast. In 1953, he won 14 straight victories in SCCA racing in an MG-based special of his own design and construction.įor the 1955 season, he designed, constructed and campaigned a second special based on MG components that was known as the "Flying Shingle". In 1952 Miles moved from England to the US, and settled in Los Angeles, California as a service manager for Gough Industries, the Southern California MG distributor. Racing career Īfter the war, Miles raced Bugattis, Alfa Romeos, and Alvises with the Vintage Sports Car Club. He was discharged to the reserves on 1 April 1946. He served as a tank commander, and the experience is said to have fuelled a new love in Miles for high-performance engineering. Miles served in North West Europe until the end of the war, by which time he had achieved the rank of staff sergeant. He landed in Normandy on 15 June 1944, and later that year was posted to the Light Aid Detachment of the 15th/19th King’s Royal Hussars. The following year Miles was posted to Guards Armoured Division Workshops, followed by the 29th Armoured Brigade Workshop. On 1 October 1942, as an armament artificer, he was among the founding members of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), and transferred to the REME Training Establishment. Miles' first role in the military was driving instructor in Territorial Army. He raced motorcycles before joining the British Army, during World War II. After a failed attempt to run away to the United States, Miles left school at the age of 15 to work as an apprentice at Wolseley Motors, who sent him to a technical school to broaden his knowledge of vehicle construction. He was the son of Eric Miles and Clarice Jarvis. Miles was born on 1 November 1918 in Sutton Coldfield, then in Warwickshire, now in the city of Birmingham. He is an inductee to the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Kenneth Henry Jarvis Miles (1 November 1918 – 17 August 1966) was a British sports car racing engineer and driver best known for his motorsport career in the US and with American teams on the international scene.
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