Greeting The New Year

On New Year’s Day the traditional VSCC meeting was arranged by Mike Garfitt who came with his smart Frazer-Nash BMW, at “The Verzons” just outside Ledbury. Some 55 appropriate cars attended, together with a great concourse of more modern machinery parked without. This hostelry is under new management but the Proprietor carried on the welcome practice of presenting a bottle of whisky to the driver of the pre-war car coming the longest distance. This again turned out to be A. G. Stephens. in his 1935 4 1/2 litre Lagonda, with some 120 miles, from Neath.

Austin 7s and Morgan three-wheelers predominated, one very rorty specimen of the latter breed driven by a girl. so women’s lib was Satisfied. The A7s were of almost every type, from Chummy and early coupe to Ruby and Nippy, the Welsh trio being led by Seymour Price’s Chummy, followed by his Nippy and an Opal two-seater. It was nice to see the Salmson-powered Lombard on the road newly bodied, and the Type 109 Delahaye that came on a trailer last year also roadworthy this year. There was a 3-litre Bentley chassis immodestly displaying its missing mecharacals and body frame, but perhaps that will Sea runner by 1987. An immaculate “Chain-Gang” Frazer Nash and (Ad Model-A Ford coupe defied the “dirty” roads and all the better-known vintage makes were represented — Lancia Lambda, Lea-Francis, Austin 12/4. Alvin, Lagonda, Riley, Humber, MG, etc, with lone examples of 11/22 hp Wolseley tourer and sports Salmson and of course, Moll atts GP Bugatti. Edwardianism was represented by the Buick. Not to be outdone. in the road outside an early Ford Prefect saloon that looked as if it had just emerged from a new car showroom carried in its rear window the slogan, “At The Head of its Class” and a modern Morgan had “Peking-to-Pans” inscribed along its bonnet — W.B.