Dalton was a sportscar regular in the 1950's, who often raced Austin-Healeys. He often appeared in sportscar events in England, predominantly in the Midlands, where Dalton (who came from Derbyshire) was based, but also raced at Dundrod in the Tourist Trophy. He was a club racer who also raced MG's but never wanted to move upward with his career, just enjoying racing for the fun of it, returning to the sport to become a sponsor and team owner and administrator for the Amon F1 effort in 1974, but also supported Tony Shelly's efforts in Formula 1. Dalton raced sportscars between 1950 and 1961 and ran Dalton & Co, in Belper, which made Silkolene lubricants and were sponsors for many years in motorcycle racing. Initially, his father was against him racing and so John had to keep his car hidden in a barn near the home until eventually, his father found out he was racing against his wishes by reading about it in a newspaper at breakfast. The breakfast conversation was never recorded but John carried on racing for a long while afterwards!

Biography last updated 15 Dec 2020