A HEARTBROKEN Evesham racing driver carried on driving despite the death of her number one fan - her father - she revealed this week.

Joy Rainey was taking part in the three-week Carrera Sudamerica Rally in Bolivia when her car broke down.

"It was a strange day when my mum told me he had died," she recalled this week.

"The tyres on my car had blown out twice and the shock absorbers had also gone.

"So while the service crews were working on my car I thought I'd give my mum a call on the satellite phone only to be told my father had died an hour and 50 minutes earlier."

Although shocked by the news, Joy was encouraged to continue in the rally.

"My mother and the doctor both told me not to come home as my father would not have liked it.

"They told me to finish the rally for him.

"He loved racing and was my biggest supporter. He always encouraged me to pursue my motor racing career and was always involved in helping me fixing the cars."

Joy's father Murray, who was 88, was a former Formula Three champion in Australia between 1956 and 1958 and had encouraged his daughter's interest in the sport since she first became involved almost 30 years ago.

As a further tribute to her dad, Joy took a Cooper, similar to the one he used to race, to compete in a rally in Prescott, Gloucestershire last weekend.

"I competed in the rally to pay tribute to my father who had a great passion for motor sports and will continue racing because this is a world my father introduced me to and that's something I'll always be grateful to him for."

Joy competed in the South American challenge to raise money for The Motor and Allied Trades' Benevolent Fund (BEN).

It will be some time before she finds out how much she has raised.