Calling Competition Organisers

With the renewed growth of recently-formed Clubs and speculation amongst organisers as to how to introduce novelty into Club programmes, we beg to put forward again a suggestion for an entirely novel form of event.

We suggest that if trials hills, rally tests, re-start and braking tests, a speed hill-climb, a timed sprint and a slow-running or easy-starting contest were incorporated in one glorious one-day competition, then the winner would be proved a very fine all-round driver, his or her car would obviously be a highly versatile one and, quite apart from that, competitors, being able to enjoy a wide variety of tests in a day’s motoring, should find such a competition very enjoyable.

The speed trial and speed hill-climb would have to be held at real sprint venues, but no very elaborate organisation would be required, because paying spectators would not be present, nor would the public address system and Paddock marshalling be needed, for cars would arrive as at the foot of a trials hill, would make their timed run, and then motor straight off to the next test. Obviously, a car able to clock a good time up a hill-climb course with corners, be sufficiently well-tuned and highly geared to cope with a quarter-mile or so of sprinting, yet have that elusive weight-distribution and other factors that spell success up slimy hills, together with the divers other qualities necessary to make a good showing in the remaining tests, would be a pretty useful sort of vehicle. One difficulty of organising such an event, apart from rather more elaborate preparations that an ordinary trial entails, would be that of obtaining permission to use known sprint venues and of finding a suitable hill and straight speed course in reasonably close proximity both to one another and to the required trials gradients.

However, the event would be such good entertainment that many drivers would probably feel disposed to devote two months’ standard petrol ration to it, so that a route length of nearly 200 miles would be possible, which would go far towards solving this difficulty, particularly in view of the increased number of sprint venues now in existence in this country.

The event could be contested either against the organisers or between the competitors and we feel sure that a sound marking scheme, calling for equal prowess in all the tests, could be devised, wherewith to find the winner. Such an event might be a pleasing substitute for such “off-the-ration” fixtures as the R.A.C. Rally.

Whether or not any Club will successfully organise such a competition we do not know, but if such does materialise Motor Sport will at least have the satisfaction of saying, “We told you so!”