Managing Director – Bridge Classic Cars
We understand that every day we should be pushing for diversity and equality across all industries, but especially STEM and motorsport. This is particularly poignant today as it’s International Women’s Day and we wanted to celebrate not only the fantastic achievements of women in our industry but also the talented women we have in our company. This year’s theme is ‘choose to challenge’, a fitting theme for the world of motorsport as we all strive to challenge and change the current narrative.
We have Kath and Lydia who are our hard-working and talented trim shop specialists who work hard on ensuring all of the interior trim work is made and fitted in our restorations. Far from a simple job, the role of trim technicians takes initiative to design elements, modify existing components and fit the interiors in place. With both Lydia and Kath coming from car and design-related backgrounds, they’re talented members of our team.
Ellie is our Marketing Assistant and handles a lot of the website, copywriting, social media and visual production such as the photography you see dotted around the website and our social media accounts, including the headshots below. Coming from a background of journalism, visuals and outdoor enthusiasm, Ellie’s hands-on mentality serves as a great quality when putting together written and visual content to display Bridge Classic Car’s achievements.
Charlotte is the face that you might recognise the most. She’s our talented and knowledgeable presenter who leads our live draws and announces the winners. Her job is far more than just talking in front of the lens, she helps with our live draw content, writes the majority of her script, helps out with over 50% of the competition visuals all whilst balancing it with her full-time job.
We understand that International Women’s Day isn’t just about us, and there are many talented women that have helped lead and contribute to the motorsport industry, both in recent years and since the beginning, however many women’s stories are left untold in the midst of their male counterparts.
The Motorsport industry, much like many others still suffers from a lack of diversity and equality and is still subject to frequent sexism, however it continues to grow and develop at an exponential rate, with more women getting involved and getting recognised.
Jamie Chadwick is one of the many leading women in motorsport and STEM who’s story is less told than others. As a female ambassador for racing, an incredibly talented driver and arguably one of the worlds best drivers. In 2019 she was signed as Williams’ development driver and her contract has just been confirmed to continue this year. Chadwick won the female-only W-Series championship and will be racing in the new all-electric series Extreme-E. She hopes to break into Formula 1 with Williams as it has been 45 years since a female driver, (Italian Lella Lombardi) last took part in a race. At only 22, her success is an unbelievable achievement at such a young age and we look forward to following her career.
Throughout history, more women than you might realise have been pivotal in the development of the industry. From Florence Lawrence in 1910 inventing the first indicator to Mary Anderson inventing the first wild shield wiper in 1903. Queen Elizabeth II remains the only woman in the royal family to have served in the army after she enlisted in 1944 and trained as a truck driver and mechanic. Racing has produced some equally noteworthy female drivers such as Kitty Brunel who still stands as the first and only woman to win Britain’s RAC rally in 1933 to Danica Patrick who was the first to lead the Indianapolis 500 race in 2005, the first to win the IndyCar circuit in 2008, and the first in pole position at NASCAR Daytona 500 in 2013.
Fantastic female photographers such as Amy Shore is also leaving her footprint firmly in the automotive industry with her stunning photography and photojournalism.
Both ‘She’s Mercedes‘, inspired by Bertha Benz, and Venus Veritas are two fantastic platforms that showcase women in the industry, their achievements and leadership.
Tonight at 18:00hr CET (17:00 GMT) FIA Women In Motorsport at holding a Facebook Live where they talk to a selection of influential women in Motorsport, make sure you tune in!
You can read more about the influential women in our industry here:
The history of women involvement in the automotive industry is vast and under-represented. This timeline featured below gives an interesting insight into the women-led achievements in our industry. (click to enlarge and zoom in)
Credit: www.carrentals.com/blog/women-in-motor-history/
