Paddy O'Callaghan, 74, leading Irish rally driver in the 1960s, one of first agents for Volkswagen in Ireland
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http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/obituaries/2010/0410/1224268029858.html
Leading rally driver and enterprising car dealer
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Paddy O'Callaghan with his grand daughter, Emily
Paddy O'Callaghan of Kanturk, Co Cork, who has died aged 74, was a
leading Irish rally driver in the 1960s and one of the first agents for
Volkswagen in Ireland.
He was known in rally circles as “Paddy O”. His car of choice was the
iconic Beetle and he featured consistently as a front runner in the
Circuit of Ireland. He went on to win the first Galway Rally (in a BMW,
as it happened) and continued to compete well into the 1980s in
“retrospective” stages of the circuit featuring older cars.
Immensely proud of his Kanturk roots, he was exceptionally generous in
the community, always ready to extend a helping hand if someone got into
difficulty.
Though tall and well built, he was at home behind the wheel of the
Beetle, a car designed more with the family in mind than high-speed
rallying. Seeing its potential, however, O’Callaghan drove a souped-up
version on the winding rally circuits in the Republic and the North.
Throughout the 1960s, the registration number of his favourite car – CZT
666 – was familiar to aficionados of rallying the length and breadth of
Ireland.
Yet, ever the hard-headed dealer, when it came to the business of
selling a car, he had no room for sentiment. And so, one day, when a
prospective buyer with a longing to possess a special car of his own
walked into the showroom, O’Callaghan had no hesitation clinching the
deal and selling his beloved CZT 666.
Years later, his son, Liam, a top rally driver in his own right during
the 1990s, embarked on a mission to track down the old car. With the
help of willing cousins and nephews, and the aid of the Motor Tax
Office, it was finally traced to a field near Coachford, Co Cork, where
it languished, rusting and battered, amid briars and nettles.
Secretly, they set about salvaging the once-famous Beetle, restoring it
in every detail and remodifying the engine to its former rally status.
It was to be a surprise 60th birthday present for O’Callaghan. When they
drove the gleaming Beetle around the corner on that cold December
morning, he couldn’t believe his eyes.
O’Callaghan continued to race in it for many more years and was
runner-up in the retrospective category of the Circuit of Ireland.
In a poignant twist to the story, he asked that the handbrake of CZT 666
be placed on the coffin at his funeral Mass. It is now a cherished
family possession.
In the heyday of the Beetle, O’Callaghan sold thousands of them to
farmers up and down the country. But when Volkswagen discontinued the
model in the late 1970s, he knew sales of the marque would drop and
changed to a Toyota dealership.
In contrast with the cut-throat commercial business of rallying
nowadays, O’Callaghan loved the thrill of racing and regarded it purely
as a sport. The story goes that he would even stop to help out if a
competitor’s car packed up on the road, disregarding the minutes it
might add to his own time.
Though he was fast on the circuit, he was a safe driver and never had a
serious crash.
O’Callaghan was light on his feet and brought the same dexterity to
driving. At auto-test events, other competitors would gather to admire
his prowess at hand-turns and similar manoeuvres requiring a high degree
of skill. “It was poetry,” was how one driver put it.
The O’Callaghan association with the motor trade goes back to the time
when his father, William, established a coach-building business in
Kanturk. Employing carpenters to make horse-drawn traps and coaches, he
expanded into coffin-making and established a family undertaking business.
O’Callaghan’s passion for cars was to prove invaluable when he took over
the running of the business in his late teens after his father died.
Realising that coach-building was on the way out, he began to sell cars,
ultimately acquiring major dealerships.
Besides rallying, O’Callaghan collected vintage cars and it was only
natural that his collection boasted a dozen Beetles. His love of
rallying lasted long after he stopped racing and he attended the main
events up to last year.
He is survived by his wife, Betty, son, Liam, and daughter, Lisa.
Paddy O’Callaghan: born December 6th, 1935; died March 27th, 2010
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