Car Club of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

George Derrick was a part-time and then full-time welding lecturer who had taught at the Tech for a long time and he and his classes were responsible for the construction of the main gates at RMIT. George’s great hobby and pastime was motorbike racing. He also loved watching car racing but never competed himself. When he was asked to become the first President of the RMIT Car Club, he jumped at the opportunity. His enthusiasm kept the club bubbling along in its infant years. Although never directing any events, he was virtually a permanent control official, often moving around to man 2 or 3 controls during any one event.

His Rover 75 was his pride and joy and it was a sad day for CCRMIT when George was forced to retire from his employment at RMIT due to ill health on 6th September 1956. George Derrick, who was married to Stella and had an only child, Barry, passed away soon after on 26th October 1956. He died at the Peter McCallum Hospital of Leukaemia, aged just 42 years. The loss affected the Car Club greatly.

In July of 1959, the club ran the first George Derrick Memorial Trial, an event created to honour our first President. As a special touch, Barry Derrick, the 16-year-old son of George was a third member of one of the crews. The event started from the base of Wheeler’s Hill on Friday 17th July, with Car 1 leaving at 8:00pm. After 215 miles of rally action, down to Warragul and back, the winning crew was in fact that same crew containing Barry Derrick. The club has decreed that it will always run a “Derrick”, and has managed to do this almost every year since.