MOTOR SPORT

display_0957d51541

Rolls-Royee,I 911-i. Ntcre(dAs, ISM de Dion, 1905 dc Dim and Austro-Dainiler, Simplex, Hispano-snisa, Simea and Ferrari tars, and Scot ind’s Magazine had a feature about J. C. Sword’s collection, illustrated by photographs of his ex-Prince of Wales, 1010 Rolls-Royce, 1805 Daimler, a 1902 Albion. his 1902 Oldsmobile, 1904 Arrol-Johnston, 1909 Renault, 1909 Albion van, 1912 Sunbeam, 1912 Adlcrand 1912 model-‘l’ Ford. Jane; of Daily Mirror fame, attended, the Cheltenham M.C. Rally and was photographed beside Regent Motors’ Edwardian Clement _Bayard. We were glad to see that Paul Fawcett got a good write-up in the Rhodesia Herald for driving from Salisbury, England, to Ilindura, going across France and from Mombasa down through Kenya and Non i rn lltiodesia to Southern Rhodesia in his t2 1921 Calcott light car. According to the report this WWI .4 journey -which Ralph Sleigh, holder of the London-Cape record, said “would be Madness to attempt.” But then Sleigh used a modern ‘car for

his run !

TRIALS CHAMPION?

. .. Moss tells me he will be seeing Raymond -Mays within the next few days to settle whether he will drive the B.R.M. next winter.”—Ephraim Hardeastle writing in the Sunday Express. In fact, it seems that the outcome of this discussion was that Moss will drive a B.R.M. at Barcelona on October 28th, which we prefer to think of as autumn, and which, in Spain, is more like mid summer

CLUB MAGAZINES

One of the pleasures of being Editor of a motor journal is that one receives Club journals without paying subscriptions. We refer to these praiseworthy publications from time to time and just recently three particularly bulky ones have come to ham!. The V.C.C. Gazette and Bentley D.(‘. Review are up to their usual high standard ; we haven’t time to count the number Of words in the latter hot there must he more than in Many proA,ssional journals, all of intense appeal to Bentley owners. The arrival of the Review at the beginning of each quarter is a happy reminder, too, of the health of one of the most forceful and largest of the one-make clubs-14.1).C. membership is now 1,052. The I” .S.C.C. Bulletin arrived late but was extra bulky to make up for this ; it is in a class of its own for entertainment value, and ii beatit!fully printed and illustrated. The Sunbeam Register hopes to print its magazine Sunbeam as from this month ; its membership now approaches 270. Incidentally, this one-make organisation pioneered the successful idea of members’ cars visiting their birthplace, Wo:verhainpton, as reported in 111.0cin SPORT

last mon t This innovation might well be ei pied by other one-make Re??il yrs.

A GOOD IDEA

The R.A.C. is invit Mg every roaduser who know. of a potential dangerspot on any road in Great Britain to send details to any of its olliees (London

address Pall Mall, S.W.1), whereupon it will investigate and, if it feels anything can be done, will recommend the highway authority concerned to take action. This seems to us a very practical way of reducing road accidents and, however skilled you may be, accidents, even if you reckon to avoid them, put up insurance costs. We are glad to learn that from January to June. 314 complaints were investigated, 243 considered justified and in 217 cases action was, or soon will be, taken. As discerning driVers you should be able to help the R.A.C. in this noble work.

THE SPORT

It is significant of the present high level of interest in motor Sport that the S.M.M.T. has appointed a special committee “to advise the industry on matters relating to the sport and to bring powerful assistance to Clubs which organise sporting events.” This committee comprises S. H. Allard, H. J. Aldington, songster of Rileys, Warren Of

Jaguars and Norman Garrad of Rootes, and we wish it well. Mama SPORT itself joined the S.M.M.T. some time ago and will have a stand at Earls Court.’

DICE

Vauxhall Motors, Ltd., annoimce that at the finals of the Boy Scouts’ Soap Box Derby, at Scarborough, it was hoped to conclude with a special race between the winning soap box and a 1904 onecylinder Vauxhall. From what we saw of the soap boxes at last year’s Brighton Speed Trials our money Would have been on the veteran.

WHEAT FROM CHAFF

Really, this business of whether your car is or is not eligible for membership of the V.S.C.C. is becoming exceedingly complicated. This is actually -a matter on which this august organisation deserves congratulations, for conscientiousness very often brings eolmilesily in its wake—Witness the rides for this year’s MOTOR SPOUT Silverstone Tnylty. celtiehi the Editor was Called upon to devise (me Saturday morning ! lint ft: so tnaitv enquiries reach us about tu VSCC.. which, up to its last .1;.M., kid 1,585 members with 993 vintage ears. let ‘s attempt WV write attempt) to clarify It le position. Those eligible fall into one or other of five categories, viz :— Go Owners of ” Edwardians.” cars whieh need not have heen built while King Edward

reigned but must have been constructed between 1905 and 1936, inclusive.

(C) Owners of vintage ears, i.e., any car built between 1917 and 1930, inclusive. This lets In the bad with the good of that era, but— no names, no . . .

(e) Owners of thoroughbred post-vintage cars, which are approved by the Committee. Such cars include post-1930 models in the Vintage style (example: IMO.), We notit e that the Austin Nippy is acceptable whereas the Committee has doubts about a limiter Of seemingly worthy vehicles. However. members are at present in process of voting on other ” border-line ” cars, so we refrain trom further continent.

(d) litstoric ming ears, i.e., racing cars built be.ore 1936. This admirable attempt to provide for cla,cile racing typeaand the oiler “one-offs “that we once referred to (Mit shall never again 9 as ‘white elephants ” has been confused because this year a nice for ears in this category was won by a 1934 sports car which had been converted Into a racing car twelve years later. Its owner was told that he was perfectly eligible to race it as an historic mem car although it had, in fact, not been a racing car until l946 Or so. Fortunately the club has now Issued a reminder that cars must not Cittblf’ar than 15Ortrirteorlechbut must

manner as to lose their original character.” If owners had to state on their entry forms that they have good reason to believe that, their car took part In some form of speed event prior to 1936 the definition would surely be foolproof ? (e) Asso.lates, i.e., those with the right ideas but the wrong cars or no cars at all—ideal for vintage-minded enthusiasts anxious to

help the Club, read Its Inimitable and able to get to its events on their motor-cycles, push-biacles, or plates of meat. Of these sections, it is the Club’s intention that Sections (c) (d) and (e) shall not total more than 40% of the full membership

When it comes to events, some are naturally restricted to certain sections, others open to all. There is also an additional section, whose events are confined to vintage light cars, which are as section (b) but which do not develop more than 30 b.h.p., do not exceed 1,500-c.c. or 12 h.p. R.A.C. rating and which, if sports models, are prior to 1926. The Club has a monopoly amongst the larger bodies of all the types for which it caters except the Edwardians. In this category the V.C.C. recognises as ” veterans ‘ cars. made prior to 1918. As the V.S.C,C, sets the dividing line prior to 1917 and the motoring world at large seems to think 1914 the limit, this latter date, our lives being so largely overshadowed by wars, might well beciame Universal for Edwardians, ” vintage ” then being from 1915 -80.

However, complex as this matter has become. nothing can obscure the great eminence to which the V.S.C.C. has risen, largely because it organises a frequent and wide variety of events, receives invitations to many more, offers exceedingly good value for money and eaters for cars which, in the words of its President, Kent Karslake, are good as well as old. Its next events are the Welsh Trial on October Othi7th and Nidderdale Trial on November 3rd.