VSCC DTs at Abingdon

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The lofty, spacious but draughty heights of Enstone airfield not being available this year, the VSCC held its winter driving tests at Dalton Barracks, Abingdon, at what used to be the RAF aerodrome there. Malcolm Elder remained the organiser, but any hope that the new venue might prove less exposed was tempered by heavy rain all day, drenching competitors, marshalls, and any intrepid onlookers who braved the storm. . . The tests started quite early, but there was a break for those still there at lunchtime, at the near-by Fox Inn on Boar’s Hill or other pubs.

The saddest happening was when Mike Kipping borrowed Tony Jones’ well-known A7 Chummy for the tests, and using more pace than its chassis cared for, rolled it, without much personal damage but curtailing the plans of Tony’s stepdaughter. Another regular and usually very successful A7 competitor, Peter Rosoman, had engine failure that put his 1930 saloon out of contention, but, standing upright among the vintage entry, M Croome’s 1904 Wolseley was going well, as it used to do at Enstone, which means splendidly. If anything, the tests, on what proved to be a good location, were trickier than before.

Results: Overall Winner: C Firmin (1930 A7). First Class Awards: Firmin, M Croome (Wolseley), H Colledge (Riley), D Marsh (A7), B Saville (Singer), J Bull (MG), P Bullett (A7), J Baxter (A7). Second Class Awards: A Marsh (A7), C Hamilton-Gould (Morris), H Gibson (Rhode), P Weston (A7), R Firmin (HRG), D Robinson (Riley), P Stainton (A7), J Brewster (A7), W Duckett (A7) Third Class Awards: R Dames-Longworth (MG), P Livesey (A7), T Hallam (AC), J Muschamp (Lancia), T Tarring (Frazer Nash), J Bullock (A7), M Anderson-Boyd (A7), C Ullman (Riley).