Miscellani

A reader who still has the MG TC he bought in 1967 has imported a J4 MG Midget formerly owned by Gerald Goyner. It is thought to be the car Luis Fontes ran in the 1933 TT, when it retired with a broken con-rod. The present reg no is TV 8371; confirmation that this is the ex-Fontes car is requested. Fontes achieved fame when he hired a Monza Alfa Romeo and won the 1935 JCC International Trophy race from Dixon and other top drivers. He bought the Alfa but later decided aeroplane racing was more fun.

I hear that the Allard OC is doing well, its rally to a restored steam railway at Pickering in Yorkshire producing three K1 Allards, a K2, a P-Model and a touring L-type, all apparently in nicely restored condition.

The VSCC held its last hillclimb of 2001 at the challenging Loton Park venue last month, that course of many corners. FIT) was made by Spencer Flack’s 1952 Cooper-Bristol, in 62.88sec, a new class record. But a pre-war car (which is what the VSCC should be about), D Wenman’s ERA R12B driven by Tony Stephens, was 0.78sec quicker — with a record for its class of 64.52sec — than a 1964 AC Cobra of 2890cc.

In spite of rising circuit hire charges etc, Graham Chambers’ season of sensible Austin 7 racing was successful, ending with Mike Gilbert the overall winner of the Phoenix Crankshafts Trophy by 1.3sec. Steve Whitby took the Dingo Award for the highest-placed road-going A7 and John Skevington won, from scratch, the Rawson Cup. Chambers was awarded the Dave Rees Trophy, for reflecting the true spirit of A7 racing.