V.S.C C. at Silverstone

THIS opened with the One-Hour, High-Speed Trial, which attracted 43 vintage cars.  Vessey’s 1927 Lancia misfired, Baillie’s fast 4 1/2-litre Bentley trailed its tail-pipe and spun at Stowe, John Lloyd’s Invicta broke a brake-rod.  Noble’s Aston-Martin overheated, both magnetos of Bailey’s Bentley dies, Fisher’s Lagonda tried to cook its magneto and P. Lockhart’s Lea-Francis shed a front wheel.  McNaughton’s non-vintage looking twin-cam 3-litre Sunbeam front-wheel-slid Stowe, spitting back a bit, and W. Lockhart’s “42/50” Alvis drew away from March’s Type 40 Bugatti.

That over, Parker’s Frazer-Nash “Patience” walked off with the handicap for Driving Members, chased by Marguilies’ fast 1933 Talbot and Chevall’s Alvis. In the first vintage-car handicap Sears’ 1914 T.T. Sunbeam led for three of the four laps from the Itala and Waine’s sporting Isotta-Frasechini.  Then Ewen passed, but, in spite of Waine demolishing tubs at Stowe, he could do nothing about the Sunbeam, whilse the remarkable Itala, seorning f.w.b., had made up its 8 sec, on both of them.  The Seaman Trophies Race followed, Poore’s “3.8” Alfa-Romeo leading Goodhew;s P3 Alfa-Romeo and Clutton going great guns in third place in the 10 1/2-litre Delage.  After about nine of the 27 laps Poore’s engine fluffed and Goodhew passed – incidentally, Poore has a form of petrol injection which comes in towards full throttle.  Poore resumed his lead and Clutton, his brakes weakening, spun at Stowe and let Clairmonte, whose Riley has increased its frontal area distressingly since Dobbs raced it, pass.  Sam, however, won the Vintage Trophy.  The four-lap scratch race was a Bentley benefit, Wilmshurst leading throughout in the ex-Evan-Cook fabric 4 1/2.  Gibbs’ Riley Nine passed inside Hartridge’s 6 1/2 at Stowe on lap two, but vanished from the scene, and Lawrence’s 4 1/2 held third place after lap one.  Arnold-Forster’s well-driven 1925 Frazer-Nash worked through the feild well yo win the second Vintage-car handicap chased by a wheel-sawing Binns in his “30/98,” followed by “Son-of-Mac” McKenzie’s Bentley.

The Vintage and Historic race saw Sears’ beautiful T.T. Sunbeam lead until the end, when Richards’ Riley caught it, and Parker also got by in his quite irrepressible Frazer-Nash.  The Triangle-Special fell sick and a little rain made Binns slide and Merritt’s G.P. Bugatti spin round at Stowe.  The Non-Vintage car handicap was won by Marguilies, who entered Stowe so fast that his Talbot was braked by sheer front-wheel sliding.  Bradford’s “T.C.” M.G. was next, followed by Parkes’ Morgan 4/4 and Spiers’ F.I.A.T. Balilla.  The Motor Sport Trophy Handicap produced a good tussle, Chapmans two-seater 4 1/2 Bentley gained two places on the last lap, to win comfortably from the Morgan, the rapid Talbot just beating Bradford’s M.G. for third place; a good start to what should be an interesting contest.

ONE HOUR HIGH-SPEED TRIAL: Qualified:- 1,100-c.c.: E. J. Kehse, E. W. C. Miller (Rileys); 2,000-c.c.: M. H. Bland (Brescia Bugatti), D. A. Densham (Aston-Martin), W. E. Edgar, W. P. H. Lockhart (Alvis), D. Cobbett, G. Crowther (Frazer-Nashes); 3,000-c.c.: T. W. M. Steele, C. G. Fineken, B. Morgan (Bentleys), T. Goodman (“22/90” Alfa-Romeo), J. G. Vessey, L. M. Austin (Lancias), P. W. McNaughton (twin-cam Sunbeam); OVER 3,000-c.c.: R. H. B. Mason (4 1/2 Bentleys), T. H. Plowman and D. A. V. Aldridge (“30/98” Vauxhall).

DRIVING MEMBERS’ FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, D. Parker (1926 1,496-c.c. Frazer-Nash), 1 min. 20 sec., 67.02 m.p.h.; 2nd. D. Marguilies (1933 2,970-c.c. Talbot), 9 min. 36 sec.; 3rd: B. A. Chevall (1933 4,300-c.c. Alvis), 9 min 16 sec.

VINTAGE-CARS FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, Dr. Ewen (1908 12,000-c.c. Itala), 9 min. 12 sec., 63.29 m.p.h.; 2nd, S. E. Sears (1914 3,215-c.c. Sunbeam), 1 min. 20 sec.; 3rd, S. R. Waine (1926 7,372-c.c. Isotta-Fraschini), 1 min 20 sec.

SEAMAN MEMORIAL TROPHIES 100-KILOMETRE RACE FOR HISTORIC AND VINTAGE RACING CARS: 1st, R. D. Poore (1935 3,800-c.c. Alfa-Romeo), 76.93 m.p.h.; 2nd, J .Goodhew (1934 2,992-c.c. Alfa-Romeo); 3rd, C. M. Clairemonte (1935 1,805-c.c. Riley); 4th, (1st Vintage), C. Clutton (1923 10,688-c.c. Delage).

VINTAGE SPORTS-CARS FOUR-LAP SCRATCH RACE: 1st, H. J. Wilmshurst (1929 7,398-c.c. Bentley), 67.74 m.p.h.; 2nd, C. A. Hartridge (1929 6,597-c.c. Bentley); 3rd, S. J. Lawrence (1928 4,398-c.c. Bentley).

VINTAGE-CARS FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, N. Arnold-Foster (1925 1,496-c.c. Frazer-Nash), 1 min 4 sec., 59.67 m.p.h.; 2nd, P. J. E. Binns (1924 4,300-c.c. Vauxhall), 0 min. 8 sec.; 3rd, D. McKenzie (1927 2,996-c.c. Bentley), 0 min. 28 sec.

VINTAGE AND HISTORIC CARS FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, H. A. Richards (1929 1,087-c.c. Riley), 0 min, 56 sec., 69.31 m.p.h.; 2nd, D. Parker (1926 1,496-c.c. Frazer-Nash), 1 min. 12 sec.; 3rd, J. G. S. Sears (1914 3,215-c.c. Sunbeam), 1 min. 40 sec.

NON-VINTAGE CARS FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, D. Marguilies (1933 2,970-c.c. Talbot), 0 min. 36 sec., 68.32 m.p.h.; 2nd, H. C. Bradford (1949 1,250-c.c. M.G.), 1 min. 12 sec.; 3rd, T. A. Parkes (1947 1,267 Morgan), 1 min. 36 sec.

“MOTOR SPORT‘ SILVERSTONE TROPHY FOUR-LAP HANDICAP: 1st, D. J. R. Chapman (1928 4,500-c.c. Bentley), 66.35 m.p.h.; 2nd, T. A. Parkes (1947 1,267 Morgan); 3rd, D. Marguilies (1933 2,970-c.c. Talbot); 4th, H. C. Bradford (1949 1,250-c.c. M.G.); 5th, D. McKenzie (1927 2,996-c.c. Bentley); 6th, D. Parker (1926 1,496 c.c. Frazer-Nash).