Jonathon Provost, Clerk of the Course, MSVR, started out his motorsport journey around the Christmas tree…

How did you get into motorsport?

A Christmas tree!! When I was much younger, my dad and I were out getting a Christmas tree. In the background I could hear some cars so I asked my dad what it was. He said it was Oulton Park. After that. We went to a few events and I was hooked!

We spectated a lot of events that year and came across the marshals tent at a BTCC round. I had to wait a few years before I could become a cadet but as soon as I hit the right age, I was straight into marshalling. It turned out to be a VERY expensive Christmas tree.

What made you decide to become a clerk of the course?

When I was a cadet, I always wanted to be more and more involved. After I got into motorsport, and watched more and more races, I became really interested in race control and the operations side of motorsport. As well as helping in the assembly area, I helped more and more as a race control runner helping wherever I could. There was plenty of time spent in race control watching what was going on and helped out the secretaries of the meeting (Tom Dooley, Gemma Mole, Alan Jones to name a few), a massive thank you to them because they made it possible for me to get the itch for becoming a clerk.

From there, I asked David Scott of MSVR if I could become a clerk. Fortunately, his answer was no. He was worried my age at the time would mean I would not get the respect from drivers. I am so happy that he said no to me. It gave me a chance to get another couple of years’ experience being a marshal (mainly flag marshalling) which has been invaluable for me.

After a couple of years, at a MSVR meeting, David asked if I wanted to become a clerk. Of course I said yes and then the rest is history.

Now I am senior clerk of course at several MSVR meetings, Deputy Clerk of the Course for Formula E London, Deputy Clerk of the Course for GB4 Championship, Deputy Race Director for GB3 Championship.

Whilst in my probationary training period, I was able to create what is now called GT Apps. This is a software for race control management and judicial process which is now used by a huge number of race clubs across the UK.

Do you have any advice for anyone considering volunteering?

Go for it! Try as many roles as you can and find what is right for you. You can do as much as or as little as you want to. Never be afraid to ask questions and get involved. Volunteering can lead to some amazing things if that is the path you would like to go down. Gain your experience, give yourself time to learn and grow.