Mark Verden, builder of the last Reliant-powered Quasar

Mark Verden died early this month (June 2011), after a heart attack a few months after his sixtieth birthday. Mark was one of the FF proponents in Bristol in the late seventies who swapped Velocette Venoms for self-built FFs. Mark based his on the last, incomplete, set of Quasar parts liberated by Malcolm Newell after the Quasar project shut down. He was one of several people who demonstrated the Quasar safety performance, in his case by slamming one into the wall at Waterworks in the Isle of Man.

His FF provides an interesting historical link between the run of production Quasars and the later Voyager project. There were no Quasar final drive parts left and a Moto Guzzi transmission was fitted using the same adapter plate casting as Voyager 002, still running on FJ today. It also connects to Malcolm's later 'Phasar' range, through the Tait HCS (double wishbone) front suspension. As shown, with Mark in the hot seat, it has had the roof tubes and a section of the roof cut out to fit Mark's large frame. Last seen owned by a teacher in a school near Bristol. RC

PNB adds: Mark took part in the Top Gear TV shoot at Wroughton in April 1988 and there is another photo of him and his Quasar in the image gallery entitled 'Top Gear FF filming' here: http://www.bikeweb.com/image/tid/102

Mark Verden, builder of the last Reliant-powered Quasar