Anne Proffit

Anne Proffit writes and photographs motorsport, and has been active in the field for over 30 years. Based in Long Beach, California, her area of expertise has broadened beyond open wheel racing, thanks to her affiliation with Race Engine Technology. Today she is eager to learn about every aspect of the powertrain world, from USAC midgets to NHRA drag racing to NASCAR stock cars and, yes, Indy cars and Formula 1. Blame Ian Bamsey!

Charles Armstrong-Wilson

Following eight years as editor of, Racecar Engineering magazine, Charles is now a freelance journalist specializing in motorsport technology. He has a reputation in the industry for being able to unravel the complexities of the subject and communicate them in clear, accessible form. Based in Kent in the UK, he has a passion for how things work and is a self-confessed innovation junkie. His latest leisure project is building a gravity racer with his two sons.

David Wood

With over 45 years experience in motorsport powertrain engineering, design and development that has covered International Rally Championships, World and National Touring Car Series, Sports Cars and includes some eight years with Cosworth Racing, managing their Formula 1 customer engines division, David has certainly served his time. He now provides an independent motorsport design consultancy service from his based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire and is currently involved with the Powerboat P1 Offshore Championship working with a variety of marine race engines ranging from twin supercharged V8’s, Ilmor V10’s and Seatek high performance marine diesels. “After a lifetime involvement, race engines, whether on land or water, two wheels or four, still give me one hell of a buzz!”

Jack Kane

Jack Kane holds a master’s degree in engineering, and is an accomplished machinist, a commercial pilot and certified flight instructor. In his youth, he was a winning driver in a variety of automobile racing categories including rear-engine formula cars, sports cars, midgets and stock cars, and has won several championships.

He has been actively involved in piston and turbine engine development since the early ‘50’s. He has designed, configured, built and modified successful engines for a wide variety of specialized applications including aircraft and winning race cars. His consulting company, EPI, Inc., specializes in custom powerplant engine and gearbox products for high performance aircraft, both fixed-wing and helicopter applications.

John Coxon

A mechanical engineer by training John has spent a large part of his working life in Research and Development in the automotive industry. A motor sports enthusiast since the age of 5, he now prefers to spend his time either working on or writing about the cars and engines he loves so much. A former competitor in karting, rallying and circuit racing, a return to competition in the form of less arduous but more intense hill climbing is planned as soon as the rebuild of his latest project, a Mallock clubman’s car is complete.

John Stowe

John Stowe is the technical director for ES&S Engineering, a firm specializing in engineered components for advanced powertrain and electronic/instrumentation applications, with a particular emphasis on precision thinwall

casting. “We undertake a variety of application work and/or reverse engineering. Our most recent product is an improved Lotus twincam cylinder head.” Originally trained as a jet engine metalsmith, Mr. Stowe is also a patternmaker and machinist, and has managed many rapid prototyping/manufacturing programs, developing several proprietary foundry processes along the way.

Motorsports have been a lifelong interest area, and John has owned a number of formula cars, winning a regional club championship in Formula Atlantic (FB) years ago. He is currently restoring a Brabham BT-29, and is the developer of the dual swirl porting system reported on in RET.

Wayne Ward

A degree-qualified mechanical engineer with over 10 years of racing engine design and development experience, Wayne brings his expertise to the RET team. Now working as an independent consultant / designer through Vitesse Engineering Services mainly on racing and automotive projects, he has not only worked for some of the manufacturer F1 teams on engine development (including championship winners), but also had a number of years in sportscar engine design with some of the major players.

An early passion for motorcycles fuelled Wayne’s enthusiasm for engineering and motorsport. Now an avid fan of both two and four-wheeled motorsport, he can often be found at motorsport events both large and small.

Tom Sharp

Tom is a consultant mechanical engineer specializing in the design and analysis of four stroke racing engines, through his company TSMD Ltd. Tom has over a decade of race engine design experience, and has operated as an independent consultant since 2005.

Since graduating with a 1st Class Honours Degree from Warwick University Tom has consistently worked at the highest level of professional motorsport; projects include Formula 1, Le Mans Prototypes, the WRC and BTCC to name a few.

Tom also enjoys applying his knowledge and experience to non-motorsport engineering projects.

As of October 2009 Tom will be lecturing in Automotive / Motorsport Engineering at Swansea Metropolitan University. He intends to continue with both his consultancy work and his contributions to RET.