Miss Motor Show 1959

Attractive young women are essential to publicity nowadays, and the Earls Court Motor Show is no exception. Apart from the model girls, the London Centre of the Motor and Cycle Trades Benevolent Fund has organised a beauty competition in connection with the BEN Motor Show dance and cabaret.

They aim to find “Miss Motor Show” and have enlisted such personalities as Lady Docker, Geoff Duke, Stirling Moss, Carole Carr and Reg Harris, compered by Jack Train to select the winner at the Lyceum Ballroom on October 27th. Entries have closed.

Miss Motor Show will receive the Babs Henly rose bowl, a Lambretta scooter, National Benzole fuel for 1,000 miles, a scooter outfit, a Sklar swimsuit, a Smith’s watch, and a Rootes travelling rug, and probably other joys unspecified.

Shelsley Walsh (August 30th)

Splendid weather conditions saw Boshier-Jones break the Shelsley Walsh record on two occasions, his first in the 1,100-c.c. racing class was 35.56 sec., against the existing record of 35.60 sec. and in the R.A.C. Hill Climb Championship event he improved this to 35.47 sec. driving on the top of his form, as he has done all season. Among the well-supported entry were Davenport in his 2-litre V-twin G.N.-Spider who did 41.39 sec. and the very potent redesigned two-stage supercharged V-twin J.A.P. Farley Special which Summers took up in 36.63 seconds to equal his record for Shelsley “Specials.” Among regular Shelsley runners Frank Norris got his s/c. Alta-engined Special up in 37.70 sec. to win his class, and Marsh tried very hard to challenge Boshier-Jones but just failed. In the 1,500-c.c. racing class Patsy Burt broke her own Ladies’ Record on both her runs with her Cooper-Climax, leaving it at a new excellent time of 37.63 sec. and in the sports classes Fielding broke the sports car record on both his runs in his immaculate Cooper-Climax, recording a final 38.85 sec.

As is traditional this meeting was a combined car and motor-cycle event, but the bikes could not put up a challenge to the cars as the resurfacing of the hill did not suit the two-wheelers, there still being some pretty violent bumps to throw them off line.

Results (Fastest twelve irrespective of class or category of climb):

1st: D. Boshier-Jones (Cooper-twin 1,100) 35.47 sec. (New record) (F.T.D.)

2nd: A. E. Marsh (Cooper-twin 1,100) 35.70 sec.

3rd: D. R. Good (Cooper-twin 1,100) 36.53 sec.

4th: C. Summers (Farley Special s/c.) 36.63 sec. (Fastest Shelsley Special)

5th: D. Henderson (Cooper-twin 1,100 s/c.) 36.79 sec.

6th: R. B. James (Cooper-twin) 37.01 sec.

7th: M. Hatton (Cooper-twin) 37.05 sec.

8th: Miss P. Burt (Cooper-Climax 1,500) 37.63 (New Ladies’ Record)

9th: G. H. Keylock (Cooper-Climax 1,500 s/c.) 37.66 sec.

10th: F. Norris (Norris Special s/c.) 37.70 sec. (Class winner 2,500 c.c.)

11th: R. Phillips (Fairley Special s/c.) 37.86 sec.

12th: A. Owen (Cooper-Climax 1,960 c.c.) 38.17 sec.

Solo Motorcycles:

1st: G. Brown (Vincent Special 998 c.c.) 38.10 sec.

2nd: H. A. Voice (Excelsior J.A.P. 498 c.c.) 39.79 sec.

3rd: B. S. Cuff (J.A.P. Special 498 c.c.) 39.80 sec.

Sidecars:

1st: W. G. Boddice/W. Canning (Norton 499 c.c.) 42.49 sec.

Females and Heaters

Last April we remarked on a clever series of advertisements, headed “Worth Looking At . . .” wherein attractive young women were posed beside well-known modern cars to draw attention to the fact that such vehicles communicate with their owners through the medium of Smith’s instruments. Denis Fastnedge, Smith’s Publicity Manager, is responsible for these pleasing layouts and we were sorry when they terminated with the outbreak of the printing stoppage — had Mr. Fastnedge been wise he would have placed them in Motor Sport to ensure continuity!

Now that the dispute is resolved, however, Mr. Fastnedge’s young ladies are carrying on the good work and, we note, have extended their magnetism to cover heaters, an item of motor-car equipment of which the female is at least as appreciative as the male.

Two of these young women seem to have an even greater aversion to rain than most of the fair sex because each has opened her umbrella even before stepping out of the house for a brief walk to her car, and in both instances the girls are tapping a barometer in the hope that the wet weather will soon give over. One wears a full-skirted sleeveless vee-neck frock and long white gloves to travel in a new Vauxhall Cresta (with simple slide controls for its Smith’s heating and ventilating equipment), the other a short tight-skirted belted frock with the bodice having a pouched-blouse effect [I have taken advice over this! — Ed.] for a drive in her new Austin Se7en 850, with its button-controlled Smith’s heater and demister that is an optional extra on these little cars. The girls may even be sisters who have been borrowed one another’s white spike-heeled shoes and long umbrella!

The new B.M.C. mini-cars have inspired another of the Fastnedge young ladies, impishly attired in tight jeans and T-shirt, to strike an attitude like a ballet dancer, standing on the open boot of her B.M.C. mini-car, which has a centrally-placed Smith’s speedometer.

We took forward to many more of these advertisements featuring well-known modern cars accompanied by eyeable young things sartorially suited to each particular make. And we suggest Mr. Fastnedge issues them all in book form to his friends and trade associates when Motor Show times come round. Enthusiasts of both sexes would enjoy the opportunity of looking at them again. —  W.B.