THE Z FACTOR

Having owned six, Mike Gower is well-versed in all things classic Mini and like many such enthusiasts, his first car was also a Mini. “It was a red 1987 Mayfair,” he recalls smiling. “I bought it when I was just fifteen and spent the time leading up to my driving test, rebuilding it. I had a huge amount of help from Hunters Garage, and Mini 7 racer Max Hunter. Max went to the same school as me. Funnily enough, later on, I bought a tuned Mini from Dave Banwell, another Mini 7 racer.” Each of Mike’s Minis proved to be fun to own and fun to drive. Yet, for quite some time, since he started grasstracking in fact, Mike had been harbouring a desire to own a more extreme version. decided that when the opportunity arose, I’d buy one.”