Interview with…….Gary Franks

Known for flying around Castle Combe in his Mini Gary has had a exciting and varied journey in motorsport which has lead him to running multiple cars and winning his class championship in 2023. Since then it’s been more progression, new cars, new drivers but still the same love of competition and speed!

Question 1 - Who are you and what do you race? - My Name is Gary Franks, I'm a professional High Performance Driving Instructor and Motorsport Coach, and I currently race in club level tin tops, predominantly first generation BMW Minis. I've been branching out recently including some races in a Misty Racing MX-5 in 2025 sharing with some of my clients, and I'm open to any opportunities to broaden my racing portfolio.

Question 2 - What got you into motorsport? - It's certainly not a family thing for me, there were no racers in my life growing up. I'd been obsessed with cars since I was a toddler, fascinated with how they worked, and loved bumper cars and pedal cars etc. I started riding motocross as 9 years old and my attention turned to motorcycles. I was aware of James Hunt in the 70's but I was bitten by the bug watching Nigel Mansell in F1, I remember watching his tyre explode in Australia in 1986, and I was inspired by his "never say die" attitude. Mansell remains my favourite racing driver to this day. 

I got my first road bike at 16, and became keen on MotoGP and Superbikes, following the British and World Championships closely, even meeting some of my heroes like Barry Sheene and Carl Fogarty. I got into Karting quite late, at age 18, and I still kart on and off to this day, but I started racing in European Club Superbikes on an Aprilia RSV-1000 when I lived in Germany. We travelled to places like Magione in Italy, Brno and Croatia to race our bikes. Valentino Rossi being my favorite 2 wheel pilot. A group of us raced for several years around Europe having lots of fun and scoring trophies here and there, but redundancy and self employment curtailed my racing for while.

A mid-life crisis hit me in 2018 and I decided on a career change, embarking on a journey to become a driving instructor - but I wanted to focus on track work. I got my driving instructor qualification and car race licence in the same year and set about getting the experience to become an ARDS instructor. I completed 4 and a half seasons at Castle Combe in my fleet of Minis, netting the class title in 2023, which is a feat I'm very proud of.

Question 3 - What is your dream car, track and era combination and why? - For F1 it's got to be the late 80's and early 90's. Mansell's golden era, and all those V8, V10 and V12 engines. I'd be torn between Brands Hatch in 1986 for Mansell's first GP win, or Silverstone in '87 where he dummied Piquet on the Hangar Straight to pass for the lead. A bit more down to earth might be Jason Plato in BTCC in the green Blend 37 Renault Laguna, perhaps at Thruxton. I loved the look of those cars, and Thruxton is my ARDS school so I have a soft spot for the circuit. Having said that, what about Mansell in the WSR Ford Mondeo at Donington? Amazing stuff!  

Question 4 - The Driven Ohm team was named very deliberately. What's the story behind the name and why is it important to you? - I've worked in a few industries after my time in the military. I was made redundant from an IT job in 2010, and decided to switch tracks entirely. I trained as an electrician and started my business "Ohm Electrics". I was amused that Ohm sounded like Home, but dismayed at the number of people (even in the industry) who asked what O.H.M. stood for! For clarification it was a German Scientist who gave his name to the measure for electrical resistance. After my mid-life crisis I thought Driven Ohm, and then Driven Ohm Racing were good company names that evoked the memory of my past, and the logo in a couple of forms is the same symbol we stencilled on the backs of our vehicles from my time in the army. I'm a mug for nostalgia, I guess!

Question 5 - What do you wish someone had told you before you started racing? - Don't wait for opportunities, go out and find them. Having been on the edge of motorsport in my early years, it never occurred to me that I could go and do it myself. I raced karts whenever I could, but that's really cheap racing, and still good fun. I didn't get into what I'd call proper racing until I was 30, but I wonder what I could have achieved if I'd pushed at 16 or 18? Who knows? However, the second part of my answer is: Don't put it off, it's still not too late to get into racing, whatever age you are.

Question 6 - What's your favourite Rocked-IT product and why? - I've had several of the Rocked-It helmet bags which have proved very useful over the years, but my favourite piece without a doubt is the race kit bag. Loads of room for my race gear, and movable partitions to keep boots away from helmets etc. Easy to lug to the scrutineers and a nice platform for my team branding. Love it.

Question 7 - Motorsport looks like an individual sport but it requires a team behind you. Who deserves a special mention? - I'm not one of those guys who can spin the spanners then jump in the car. I can take care of cars, and I understand how they work, but I've always wanted support in the running of the cars at the track. I'd rather focus on the driving. When I started out, Tom Margetson looked after me and my Minis and I found his guidance very helpful. Nowadays Grantley Woodhatch does a good job of prepping, upgrading and supporting the cars for me. However, the special mention would have to go to my wife, Paula. Without her encouragement to take a chance on my new career I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing now.