SWTVC BULLETIN NUMBER 2/20 FEBRUARY 2020
The SWTVC Website can be found at www.swtvc.org.uk and has up-to-date informationabout meetings.
Registered address of the SWTVC: 80 Barfillan Drive, Glasgow G52
Committee
Alan Brown (Chair) san.soubeyran@hotmail.co.uk
Sandra Brown (Secretary) 07951 732611 80 Barfillan Drive, Glasgow G52
John Stewart (Treasurer
Harry Sherry : (Webmaster)
member
John Young: (Membership Secretary)
Ronnie Johnston: (Editor)
Dave Stewart: (Webmaster)
Monthly meetings:
These take place on the 3rd Tuesday of the month in the Kirkhouse Inn at 08.00PM.
All members welcome.
Dan Gardner will be inviting other car clubs to visit on the May meeting as they did with success last year.
There will be information about this in next month’s Bulletin.
Note:
The opinions expressed in this bulletin are not necessarily those of the committee or any of its members.
EDITORIAL:
As I write this Storm Ciara is “Blawin a Hoolie” and I am indeed glad that retirement means I don’t have any need to venture out in such weather.
In spite of the wintery conditions it is pleasing to think that winter is passing and it won’t be long until we can get the toys out again.
MID-WINTER DINNER:
This was at our usual venue, 1051 GWR on Friday 17th January.
There was a great turn out (43) and everyone enjoyed it.
Winners of Harry Sherry’s automotive quiz were Eilean G, Charlotte G, Ian Wright, Ron Fairweather, and new members George Dow and wife.
The picture shows some members in deep thought as they answered Harry’s questions.
. 
Rallye Monte Carlo Historique & Classique:
The Scottish Start of the Rallye Monte Carlo Historique & Classiquel returned to Glasgow this year and some members braved the weather to watch it.
Thanks to Sandra Brown for the following report.
Braving the wind and rain Alan and I ventured into George Square on 29th January 2020.
The square had many classic and Vintage cars on display to the delight of city workers, who, no doubt, arrived home later than usual having spent an hour or so wandering among the display of more than 80 cars.
A Mini from the 1960s led the vehicles off the start ramp 53 years after its success in the 1967 event, driven by rally legend Paddy Hopkirk.
Monte Carlo is 1273 miles from Glasgow…….and warmer.
2020 sees the 23rd edition of the Historique event and the 5th edition of the Classique event. Both events which are staged by the Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) take place entirely on open public roads.
My favourite car at George Square that night was the white Volvo Amazon from 1960’s (subject to change next year).
Alan’s favourite was a TR 4a from 1967
Note: Pictures of the two events above have been posted on the “Member’s Input” section of the Club website.
MOTORING TRIVIA:
First an apology to Ralph Halley. In the item last month I listed the major Scottish vehicle manufacturers but overlooked Halley Industrial Motors who were a respected manufacturer of commercial vehicles until the mid thirties and, at one time, rivaled Albion.
This month’s little gem of wisdom concerns the Ford Model T. I had always thought the nickname “Tin Lizzie” was a friendly term of familiarity but this was not the case.
The American public, particularly the farming communities, embraced it enthusiastically and found uses for it that Henry had never dreamed of.
Farmers found ways to install a power take off and used it as a stationary engine to power threshing machines and saw benches. A “ T” with a passenger load of pigs going to market was not unusual.The uses it could be put to was limited only by the imagination of the buying public.
Wealthy families, particularly in the southern states, often had a lowly female servant who was allocated all the menial and unpleasant tasks. In earlier times this servant would have been a Negro slave. These individuals were invariably called “Lizzie” regardless of their actual name.
As the T was often used for the menial tasks it became known as a “Tin” Lizzie.
I am grateful to Dan Gardner for this extract from Jackie Stewart’s autobiography. This dates back to 1950 and describes the thrill of motor sport at the time.
” My brother (Jimmy ) started racing by competing in two local hill climbs at Bo’ness and the Rest-and-Be-Thankful. The “Rest” is a special place for me as it is the cradle of my life in motor racing and I feel a great sense of nostalgia whenever I go back.
Our family had some great days there. On the big day of the hill climb my parents and I would arrive early and sit on a grass bank at a particular spot just below the hairpin bend where we knew we would be able to keep sight of up to eighty cars as they screamed their way up the hill, one after the other, in different classes, over the hump and the bump through Bridge corner and on through the Cobbler corner around the hairpin and through to the finish line.
My mother would have prepared a picnic and we would spend the entire day there cheering Jimmy in between slurps of lemonade and slices of thick white bread, bought from the City Bakeries in Dumbarton High Street, with a black crust at the top and a lighter crust at the bottom filled with my mother’s homemade raspberry jam. We would sit on the grass bank among a crowd of several thousand with the public address announcer shouting out the names of the drivers and their cars and all their split times.
There would be Jimmy driving his Healey Silverstone, Raymond Mays wearing his amazing cloth helmet with a buckle and driving a wonderful black ERA with twin wheels bolted together at the back, Ken Wharton with his yellow overalls and helmet in a dark green ERA, Spike Rhiando in the Rhiando Special, Basil Davenport in a GN Spider, Hartley and Sheila Whyte in a Jaguar XK 120, Dennis Poore in his dark green monster Alfa Romeo, Freddie Mort in a metallic blue Jaguar XK 120, Jimmy Gibbon and John Melvin who was driving a Frazer Nash replica in British racing green which was my favourite.
Sydney Allard would be there as well driving a Steyr Allard which was all polished alloy and we would give him a special round of applause as he usually parked his transporter by the side of our garage at Dumbuck during the days between the hill climbs at Bo’ness and the Rest-and-Be-Thankful and we would help him prepare his cars.”
Events:
Plans for our own events are well in hand but Sandra has suggested we list other events which may be of interest to our members.
These are not Club sponsored events and it will be up to individual members to submit their own entries for anything they wish to attend.
Visit to Maid of the Loch.:A few Car Clubs propose to make the Maid their venue for Drive it Day on Sunday 26th April.The Maid will have steam raised to demonstrate her engines turning under their own power.
Cars on the Campus:Sunday 3rd May at St Joseph’s Academy, Grassyards Road Kilmarnock.
Over 200 entries and indoor displays of models. See yearbook for details.
Kirkintilloch Canal Festival:
Sunday 23rd August Contact kdcvc@outlook.com
Other events will be mentioned in subsequent issues.
And finally: This pickup driver has devised a clever way to deter tailgaters.
The heavy plumber’s wrench on the rear is firmly welded to the truck but following drivers don’t know this. Therefore no tailgating, in case it falls off. Good trick by lorry driver.
That’s all folks,
Ronnie Johnston.