THE VCC OF GB 1,000-MILE TRIAL ANNIVERSARY EVENT

TO celebrate its 40th birthday and the 70th anniversary of the historic 1,000-Mile Trial the Veteran CC is staging a very exciting and strenuous event, which commences on May 1st. It is a reasonable approximation to the pioneer Trial but whereas that event was obviously confined to pre-1901 autocars, the 1970 event will include cars of up to 1914, the most intriguing of which is Philip Mann’s just-resussitated 1914 GP Mercedes. Mr. W. R. Randolph, one of two surviving participants in the original 1,000-Mile Trial (the other is Mr. St. J. Nixon), will take Lord Montagu’s 1899 Daimler away from the RAC at 8.30 a.m. on May 1st, but the rest of the competitors will leave from the BOAC Speedbird Club at Hayes, Middlesex. The routes will be :

May 1st : Hayes-Marlborough-Cheltenham
May 2nd: Cheltenham-Lichfield-Buxton
May 3rd : Buxton-Preston-Windermere
May 4th : Windermere-Carlisle-Peebles
May 5th : Rest Day
May 6th : Peebles-Berwick-on-Tweed-Gosforth.
May 7th : Gosforth (Newcastle-on-Tyne)-Northallerton-Harrogate
May 8th : Harrogate-Lincoln-Nottingham
May 9th : Nottingham-Northampton-London.

There are bound to be incidents and adventures en route and we hope to recount what transpires next month. If you want to see the veterans, they stop for lunch each day at the “middle” towns in the above-listed routes. Please, however, give them a wide berth when they are under-way and park sensibly if you stop in any of these towns.—W. B.