The SWTVC Website can be found at www.swtvc.org.uk and has up-to-date information about meetings.
Registered address of the SWTVC: 31 Roselea Drive, Milngavie, Glasgow G62 8HE
Committee
Ronnie Gordon: (Chair & Acting Secretary) 0141 956 2950 07906 042215
H31 Roselea Drive, Milngavie, Glasgow G62 8HE
John Stewart (Treasurer)
Harry Sherry : (Webmaster)
member
John Young: (Membership Secretary)
Ian Stother: (Member)
Ronnie Johnston: (Editor)
Kevin Began: (Events Co-ordinator)
Dave Stewart: (Webmaster)
Note: The opinions expressed in this bulletin are not necessarily those of the committee or any of its members.
Monthly meetings: These take place on the 3rd Thursday of the month in the Kirkhouse Inn at 08.00PM.
All members welcome.
Editorial:
It looks like the good weather has passed for the time being but what a great few weeks it has been.
I hope everyone has been able to take advantage of it and get a few miles on the oldies.
I have had a busy few weeks with the Singer in Hampshire for a Club rally in the New Forest which, of course, included a visit to the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu. It has been a very long time since I was there and by any measure it is great museum but I was disappointed that there were not more Veteran and Edwardian cars. However, on the plus side, none of the cars were on shelves high up on the wall. (!)
I also visited Glamis in the Morris, the drive up the M9 early on a fine summer morning was great fun.
I bumped into a few members including Graham Runciman and Ben Weston, both of whom took awards.
I also managed a sailing on the Waverley. She is looking great with all public areas beautifully decorated in period style. She was so smart she could have taken a Royal visit with no further attention.
Drive it Day 2019.
This usually falls on the Sunday closest to the 23rd April as it commemorates the 1000 Mile Reliability Run of 1900 which started on that date. Using that formula the date would be 21st April but that is Easter Sunday. In consequence Drive it Day will be 28th April.
External events:
I doubt if anyone needs reminding that the Biggar Rally is on Sunday 12th August and the RSAC on Sunday 19th.
The RSAC is in Ayrshire this year based at the Morris Equestrian Centre, Fenwick.
Looking a little further ahead, there are rallies in Linlithgow and Kirkcudbright on 26th August and the spectacular Air Show at Ayr on 1st and 2nd September. I particularly enjoy the Kirkcudbright event, it is a very pleasant town and attracts entrants from south of the border which brings cars not usually seen at other Scottish rallies.
Club Events:
Visit to Scottish Maritime Museum Irvine
I was unable to attend this event and am grateful to Ronnie Gordon for this account.
Thanks also to Liz Young for the photos. (See website for full display.)
Our visit to the Maritime Museum was very well supported with over 30 members attending.
Sunday morning saw 13 cars assembled at the Showcase Cinema, Linwood ready for the run to Irvine.
The overcast sky gave way to pleasant warm weather as we arrived at the Museum just in time for lunch which was served in two sittings due to size restrictions.
The first group enjoyed an early lunch while the second group roamed around the many interesting exhibits which included heavy machinery, a representation of a shipyard worker’s house and a display of maritime related art as well as actual boats.
Lunch consisted of soup and a plentiful supply of sandwiches followed by numerous scones, cakes and tea/coffee. It was a most enjoyable spread and was well received by all.
The pleasant weather encouraged all to go exploring and “rounding up” was a task in itself. A guided tour of the museum followed, again enjoyed by all and superbly informative.
The Maritime Museum has been significantly upgraded in recent years and is a superb visit by any measure.
Thanks to Dave Stewart and Kevin Began for organising the entire event including the route, the quiz, and an excellent lunch which all contributed to an excellent day out.
Results:
First in observation: Peter Martin
Second: Chris Stearn
Booby prize: Kevin Began
Long Distance Shield: George Rome
Congratulations to Dave and Kevin for organising an excellent Club event and thanks to all who came along.
Ronnie Gordon.
Bus run and afternoon tea.
We are still hoping to have this event but are having trouble confirming a date. This will be announced by “News Flash”.
Autojumble: Saturday 13th October
This will be held in the usual venue:
St Cyprian,s Church Hall, Beech Road, Lenzie, G66 4HN.
This is a good opportunity to de-clutter the workshop and make a little money. It is also an excellent social event. There will be a Tombola and hot drinks and bacon rolls are available. If you wish to take a table (No charge.) contact Ian Stother, Persons taking tables should arrive at 09.00 with the hall being opened to the public at 10.00.
AGM: Monday 3rd December.
Come along and have a say on how your Club is run. Kilmardinny House at 07.30.
Mid Winter Dinner: Friday 18th January.
We will be using the same restaurant as in the past two years which has proved very satisfactory.
1051 GWR, 1051 Great Western Rd, Glasgow G12 0XP.
Cost and booking details will follow.
Motoring Trivia:
THE CAR THAT TOOK OLYMPIC GOLD.
The 1936 Munich Olympics were memorable for many reasons but the first thing people usually think about is Jesse Owens the African American runner taking three gold medals and confounding Hitler’s theories over the superiority of his “Aryan “athletes.
However, these games were unique by including a motor sport event which the mighty German auto industry fully expected to win outright. However, they were defeated by a British car driven by Betty Haig, niece of Douglas Haig and a remarkable woman in her own right. She was a successful racing and rally driver who had already shown great promise and subsequently took many prestigious awards driving for several high profile manufacturers.
Driving a 1.5 litre Singer Le Mans she travelled from Britain through a Germany that was already heavily under Nazi influence using one of Hitler’s autobahns on the way.
She passed through southern Germany into Bavaria, only to be ordered back at the Austrian border. Then it was on to Potsdam and the Avus racing circuit, near Berlin, where they learned they were the first car to finish and that their points tally had secured gold.
In the expectation that Germany would win, the presentation ceremony had been planned for the Olympic Stadium. This was hastily rescheduled to a less prestigious venue when it was learned that a woman driving a British car had beaten the pride of the German Auto industry.
Betty Haig died in 1987 but her car has lived on and has been fully restored to its 1936 condition. It was offered on loan for display during the 2012 London Olympics but this offer was declined, possibly because BMW were one of the principal sponsors.
Happily, visitors were not denied the opportunity of seeing this historic car as the Savoy Hotel agreed to display it in their lobby for the duration of the games.
The ‘Singer’ Le Mans sports which won Gold in the Olympic Motor Rally 1936 in Berlin on show outside the Savoy hotel in London, pictured with Savoy representative Anna Sebastian.
Picture David Parker 26.7.12 Reporter Ray Massey
And finally:
With schools resuming shortly this publication should be interesting and informative reading:
That’s all folks:
Hope to see you on the bus run.
Ronnie Johnston.