Club news, February 1982
The Vintage Motor Cycle Club
The VMCC certainly takes its rightful place with the older VC, and VSCC, and the HCVC. an a leading organisation looking after and doing infinite good for, the older transport vehicles, in this case those with two or three wheels. Membership is open to any person who owns or has owned a motorcycle which is more than 25 years old or anyone interested in such machines. It was interesting that those joining are expected to maintain their machines in good condition. The Club has more than 4.500 members and is intending to become a limited company, opting for a first call of up to 6,000 members. A magazine, The Vintage Motor Cycle, is issued monthly and contains historic articles, and reports on activities of the 62 Sections two overseas) which the Club fosters, these numbering, for instance, 43 such reports in the magazine issued last December, proof of the wide regional representation of this National Club. It also has Sections devoted to vintage racing including grass-truck, and a new Autocycle and Cyclemotor Section has been granted official status — offering almost the pleasure of riding a Pioneer machine, for about 1/50 the cost! The Racing activities included lint year’s Cadwell Park Meeting, at which 31 classes were contested over two days’ racing, the winning makes numbering a 1930 Colton, a 1928 Morgan and a 1929 Scott among the vintage competitors, Rudge, Morgan, Norton, Velocette and Triumph among the post-vintage contingent, and Norton, Vincent, Triumph and BSA of the post-war racers.
The VMCC also has Marque Specialists to help those with one-make restoration interests, and runs its own library. The Clubs President is Wally Frew and the Membership Secretary is Ken Hallworth, 26, Shrigley Road North. Higher Poynton, Near Stockport, Cheshire. SK12 1TE. A very big meeting is scheduled at Mallory Park next June which should interest others besides those owning old motorcycles in directly connected with the Club.
The Veteran Car Club
The VCC has already announced its fixtures for 1982, which cover a larger number of varied events, to he organised by the eight Regional Sections. These include a Main Event tithe staged by the North West Section on 19th 20th of June, which will be a re-enactment of the 1920 reliability run organised by the Manchester AC. It will be held on the same day and dates as the original event and as far as possible the same route and marking system will be used. We are greatly in favour of the revising of former events of this kind and although at first sight may might seem inappropriate for the VCC to associate itself with a 1920 competition, it is obvious that many prewar cars must have taken part in this Run. The route will run from Manchester via Chester into North Wales, to Llandudno, giving many people a good chance to see veteran and Edwardian cars passing by, over roads typical of such motoring when the cars were younger.
The important Headquarters Main Event will be based on Buxton, from August 11th/15th, and of course the Brighton Run will be held in November. Last year’s Headquarters Main Event in Islay was won by Bob Gregory’s much-travelled 1904 Darracq (AA 1573), by 34 miles from John Carter’s 1912 Sunbeam, the Darracq covering 955 formula miles. The Club has its headquarters and library at Jessamine House, High Siren, Ashwell, Herts, SG7 5NL, and issues a very professional magazine Veteran Car bi-monthly, this having a full-photographic front cover like that of the late-lamented Light Car & Cyclecar.
The Hagley and District Light Car Club
Loton Park features strongly in this Midland club’s competition calendar with the first round of the RAC Hill Climb Championship taking place there on April 11th/12th and three rounds of the Midlands Hill Climb Championship being held on April 11th/12th. June 26th/27th and August 14th/15th. In addition, there is the closed to club members’ day on March 21st and a co-promoted event with the Aston Martin Owners Club on July 24th/25th. Apart from hill climbing, the Hagley calendar for 1982 includes autocross, autumn, production can trial and sporting trial events — a very busy programme for a regional club.
The Launceston and North Cornwall Motor Club
If the “Exeter” Trial had been run this year, no doubt the bulk of the marshals on the famous Fingle Bridge sections would have come from this Cornish motor club, as it has done for many years past. The LNCMC already runs its own brand of Classic Reliability Trial, the “Tamar Trial”, in October each year, and this year is planning to expand its activity to include another such trial earlier in the year — on February 21st. This new event, to be known as the “Launceston Trial”, will be based on Launceston, and should accommodate up to 100 entries, split equally between motorcycles and cars. Details available from L. W. Connett, 23 Gendalls Way, Sr. Stephens Launceston, PL15 75E.
The Lincoln Motor Cycle and Car Club
The citizens of Bourne, in Lincolnshire, have been collecting money in order to erect a suitable memorial to Raymond Mays, the moving force behind ERA and later BRM, who lined all his life in the town. To make their contribution to this fund, the LMCCC have arranged for Rivers Fletcher to give a talk and show some films at their headquarters at the White Eagle Club, Canwick Road. Lincoln on Tuesday, 2nd March. The basis of the talk will be Rivers Fletcher’s involvement with Bourne, his pre- and post-war racing experiences and his involvement with the VSCC. The films will parallel the talk. Tickets and details available from Ben Imm, 26 Washdyke Lane, Nettleham, Lincoln.
The Sunbeam Alpine Club, US
Accompanying their latest newsletter were details of the SAC, proposed tour of Britain during the autumn, in conjunction with the Sunbeam Tiger Owners Club. Starting on Friday. September 17th the participants fly to Heathrow prior to a ten day tour of the West Count, returning to London for three days of sightseeing. We wonder how many will ship their Alpines or Tigers across for the tour and how many will take advantage of self-drive hire cars.