Round the Clubs, December 1924

SALE & DISTRICT MOTOR CYCLE CLUB.

This Club’s Annual Hill Cup Trial was run off recently, in an interesting way, on lines which the Committee of the Club have found to be most generally acceptable to the average member. There were no checks on those portions of the route which ran along good main roads. There were some stiff hills to be observed and some short stretches of colonial section had to be traversed in order to reach them. Checks were instituted over the Colonial Section and hills only. The route led over Helsley Bluff and Glyn Cieriog, and lunch was taken at Llangollen. After lunch Allt-yBady had to be negotiated and the run home from there was comparatively easy.

The start was made at 9.30 a.m. from the Sale Hotel. , Out of 28 entries, 25 actually faced the starter. Helsley Bluff was the first observed Test Hill and up this one competitor failed altogether and four were penalised for foot assistance. It was at this point that J. B. Donaldson had the misfortune to lose his chance of retaining the cup, of which he himself was the holder, by putting his foot down in order to balance himself. The next hill, Glyn Cieriog, caused little trouble. E. White (Dot J .A.P.) stopped owing to a faulty plug, and, as events turned out, this stoppage lost him the cup. It is of interest, and somewhat significant, perhaps, to note that all competitors were on time at the lunch check.

After lunch an immediate ascent of Allt-y-Bady was made. The hill was in very bad condition indeed, the surface being a mixture of boulders and grease. E. White (Dot J .A.P.) was the only competitor to make a clean ascent, although D. Galloway (N. Scale and sidecar) had very hard lines indeed. No difficulty was encountered at Conquering Hero, the next hill, and subsequently the competitors had an opportunity of enjoying glorious scenery in the course of a sunny ride on the Llantysilis mountains. A clean and uneventful run home found 18 competitors at the finish.

Tribute should be paid to the careful organisation of the trial which, however, is rapidly becoming a recognised feature of events conducted under the auspices of this Club. One popular feature was the amount of the entry fee, which is 2s. bd., and this we understand is to be the standard amount for all future reliability trials conducted by this Club. In view of the almost total failure on Allt-y-Bady, no competitor qualified for an award, but the Trials Committee have made the following special awards : P. G. Thomasson (398 A.B.C.), Hill Cup. He lost 20 marks. A. R. Coiling (499 Triumph), who lost zi marks, Gold Medal. F. W. Hampson (348 A. J.S.), with a loss of 22 marks, Silver Medal, and Dr, R. L. Halloway

(348 New Scale Bradshaw and sidecar), Bronze Medal, with a loss of 23 marks.

The next event to be organised by this Club is the New Year’s Day Main Road Reliability Trial. This was most successful indeed last year and attracted 50 entries. On the present occasion it is to be followed by a Social Evening at the Club Headquarters, Sale Hotel, and this is invariably the chief social function of the year.

The Hon. Secretary is Mr. E. C. Bramley, Landfield House, Hesketh Road, Ashton-on-Mersey.

WESSEX CENTRE A. C. U.

The Annual General Meeting was held on Thursday, ioth Oct., at the Old Red House, Bath. The Hon.. Treasurer, Mr. C. B. Newman, placed his report before the meeting and commented on the satisfactory financial state of the Centre, having regard to the difficulties experienced during the year. Special attention was directed to Mr. A. B. Fuller’s efforts in connection with the Open Hill Climb, held in August, which produced a profit of £52.

The Hon. Secretary stated that the Centre was in a healthy and flourishing condition, but in order that it should be maintained in that state, continuous keen interest on the part of each individual member was essential.

The Hon. Secretary is Mr. Rex Poweraker, Full Moon Hotel, North Street, Bristol.

BRISTOL MOTOR CYCLE & LIGHT CAR CLUB.

The Trials which this Club had arranged for the 4th ult., had, unfortunately, to be cancelled, and that was the last outdoor event of the year. A whist drive took place on the 24th ult., and another is to be held during the present month, although at the time of writing the precise date has not been fixed. The Annual Dinner takes place on Saturday, the 6th December.

The Hon. Secretary is Mr. Rex Foweraker, Full Moon Hotel, North Street, Bristol.

SURREY MOTOR CYCLE CLUB. This Club’s Annual Trial was held on Saturday, 18th Oct., amongst the Fox Hills near Pirbright and round Hindhead. A fine Saturday coming at the end of a fine week, had the effect of making the course much easier than might otherwise have been the case. The results were as follows :—

First Prize 21 guineas to A. G. Battley (348 MatchlessBlackburne).

Second Prize i/ guineas to P. J. Dyster (91 Montgomery-Bradshaw).

Third Prize r guinea to H. C. Mansell (348 A. J.S.). The Hon. Secretary of the Club is Mr. A. C. Brooks, Lyngarth, Upper St. Michael’s Road, Aldershot.

MIDDLESEX COUNTY AUTOMOBILE CLUB.

The Annual General Meeting of this Club was held at the R.A.C. and was followed by a lantern lecture on “Roman Remains in Britain,” by Mr. 0. Basil Barham, motoring editor of The Financial News.

A number of social events have been arranged to take place during the winter season, and of these the Annual Dance has already been held on the 8th ult. It was very successful indeed, there being a large attendance of members and friends.

The Annual Dinner is to take place at the Connaught Rooms on Saturday, December 13th; another dance is to be held at the Midland Grand Hotel on Saturday, February 28th, and a whist drive at the same venue on Saturday, March x9th.

The Hon. Secretary is Mr. W. J. Lendrum, 10, Leaside Avenue, Muswell Hill, N. 10.

THE REDDITCH MOTOR CYCLE & CAR CLUB.

This Club held its Annual Open-Centre Trial for the Terry and Enfield Cups on Saturday, the 18th Oct. The course was of a sporting character and very few competitors had “clean sheets” at the finish. The notorious Sandy Lane and Mills Lane Hills did not on this occasion come up to their reputation, proving quite innocuous and causing only a couple of failures between them. Towards the end of the morning a flexibility test was held on Beacon Hill, good performances being put up by B. Kershaw (2-1 Cotton) ; F. Bicknell (8 Royal Enfield) ; B. L. Bird (21 B.S.A. and .sidecar) ; and H. S. Perry (6 B.S.A. and sidecar). During the morning D. L. Dieters (21 New Imperial) and R. G. Beesley (41 Sunbeam and sidecar) retired with carburetter and clutch trouble respectively).

After lunch at the Unicorn Hotel, Butler’s Hill was successfully negotiated by all riders. The water splash on the Bromsgrove-Stourbridge Road caused J. Moose (21 B.S.A.), C. Collins (7 A. J.S. and sidecar) and R. T. Horton (10. Morgan) to lose marks. Good performances were here made by Bicknell, Bird and H. 0. Gibbs (6 B.S.A. and sidecar). Shut Mill and Walton Hills caused but little trouble. In the Stop and Restart test, Horton failed to pass the tape in the prescribed time. Collins came to a stop on the Gravel Pit at Rowney Green, while Hay caused loss of marks to Bird, R. J. Steele (2/ Royal Enfield) and Gibbs.

The results were : Terry Cup and Gold Medal for the best performance of the day : H. S. Perrey (6 B.S.A. and sidecar). The Enfield Cup and Gold Medal for the best performance by a Club Member : B. Kershaw (21 Cotton). The team prize went to the B.S.A. team. Gold Centre Medals were awarded to W. S. Bicknell (8 Royal Enfield), J. Knight (21 A. J.S.), K. J. Davis (21 B.S.A.), N. P. O. Bradley (41 Sunbeam and sidecar), A. Watson (4/ Sunbeam and sidecar), H. S. Perrey (6 B.S.A. and sidecar), and B. Kershaw (21 Cotton). Silver Medals went to B. L. Bird (21 B.S.A. and sidecar), H. G. Gibbs (6 B.S.A. and sidecar) and R. J. Steele (21 Royal Enfield). Bronze Medals to C. Boulton (21 Royal Enfield) and C. Collins (7 A. J.S. and sidecar).

The Hon. Secretary is Mr. C. E. Spooner, Littleworth, Redditch.

THE LIVERPOOL MOTOR CLUB.