This thread is for you all to leave your memories of Jeff.

Jeff Theobald will be deeply missed by the steam community worldwide. Jeff and his family stayed at our home in one of their visits to the USA. We found Jeff to be a very caring, generous and polite man. He was very knowledgeable on many subjects, especially steam. His energies seemed endless as his accomplishments will attest. The Steam Car Club of Great Britain is a worldwide tribute to his legacy.

Mike my first memory of Jeff dates to the Welsh Tour of 1993(?) when we had to rebuild the axle of your 30hp in the hotel car park after a differential gear became detached from the halfshaft. Undeterred Jeff really took charge and soon split the axle and had the halfshaft out. All this with the car propped up as best we could on the gravel yard. Then off we went to borrow a welder with which Jeff welded the gear back on (!) so we were able to rejoin the tour later in the day. What would usually have been a major crisis actually became just part of the fun and this was down to Jeff's resourcefulness, good nature and humour. Memorable also for me as with Jeff instructing me in the 30hp, I had my first drive of a steamcar - up the Llanberis Pass, with you, the trusting owner, following in my car. Jeff was always happy to advise or help and just loved it.



Edited 1 times. Last edit at 10/08/10 09:41AM by Mike Clark.

My lasting memory of Smiley Jeff will be his excitement and pleasure finally having a ride in a Doble steam car, thereby fulfilling a lifetime's wish of his. We did this, one evening on the recent Norfolk tour, Jeff taking many photos of the journey as he did. Looking back I am glad I arranged it for him, not knowing what was to happen a few days later.

Jeff also obtained much pleasure driving his Stanley Model 85 which I owned a number of years ago. I continually wound him up about the number of gauges he had fitted to the car since I had it. His response was to place even more gauges on it for the next time I saw him. This was a great joke between us.

He will be sadly missed by many people around the world. He had a lot of knowledge of steam cars, their owners and their history. He was the bible when it came to "Brooks", their history, etc.

I am sure his memory will live forever.

R.I.P Jeff

Lord lead thy soul to its rest Sir,
You never spoke an unkind word to me.
Your Welcome of me as a stranger was
In best of Hospitality. May you find rest
From the toils of this world.

My fond memories of jeff were when he would visit us here in the workshop he always had a tail to tell which usually had us all in stitches and we had many unproductive afternoons listening to his jolly tones . He used to bring unusual leather jobs for me to do for him, many with a typical Jeff improvisation addition. One that sticks in my mind was an old leather coat all stiff and smelly that he wanted the sleeves extending as when he had his hands one the steering wheel of his cars the sleeves were up by his elbows. Yet a week or so later when I had done the job and he bought it back to show me, he had oiled and fed the leather and it looked like new. Always able to make a new pin out of an old penny. I feel very sad that we have lost such a wonderfully cheerful man so early on in his life and I am very sad that he didn't get to see Peter Turveys car that I had just finished trimming as he instigated the job for me. He was a very generous man who was always willing to pass on his huge knowledge of just about anything and everything. I feel sure that when you are all driving your cars he will be there sitting in the passenger seat enjoying the ride with you.

God bless Jeff

We lost a god friend much too soon. He shared his knowledge with a passion I will always remember. My thoghts goes to Pauline and Steve

I am stunned at the loss of such a terrific ambassador for the steam car world. Jeff and Paulines generosity to my wife and myself when we visited and rode in the 30hp Stanley is fondly remembered.

Mark & Pav Stacey
Waipu
New Zealand

We first met Jeff back in 1998 when we first thought of getting a steam car. He invited us to see his collection and the rest is history...On numerous occasions he heped us with the (still ongoing) restoration of our car, solving recurrent storage & transport crises and helping us find good craftspeople to do work on it. He was just about to arrange the pinstriping when he passed away. Its a great pity he will not now see the finished car on the road. His work on the website and car registers was great, and put many museums to shame.

Although we have only known Jeff for two years, since purchasing our first steam car, we were very shocked and saddened to hear that he had passed away. Jeff was always very friendly and helpful, and very willing to share his vast knowledge, right from the start, and it feels as if we have known him much longer. He was always at the end of the phone if we had a problem, and ready to help out if problems occurred when on tour.

When our car broke down on our first Cotswolds tour, and having just met him, he was quick to offer Lesley and I a ride with him and his family in his Stanley model 85. We had such an enjoyable day; it was almost worth breaking down! His excellent work on the website and magazine go without saying, but more than that, he was such a lovely, lovely man, and will be irreplaceable.

Our best wishes and thoughts are with Pauline, Steve and family.

Don, Lesley and Andrew Cook