During the lock-down you may have searched online for motor-related stimulation, and if old Austins are your thing you may have come across a video of the 1939 launch of the Austin 8 in the Lake District. In the video the little Austin, driven by Tommy Wisdom, takes on the challenge of climbing 25,000ft in a day – no mean feat for a car of that time on what can only be described as goat tracks in many instances. Just how many tyres they got through is anybody’s guess!
It really is a fascinating watch, not least because it is the first colour film of the Lakes and shows the area as it was prior to the 2nd World War. If you haven’t seen it, search ‘Austin 8 Introduction movie’ on YouTube.
Obviously we can’t do a present day run following in their tracks because they ‘double use’ many of the passes (this is against Motorsport UK regulations) but Chris Lee has spent hours and hours going through the video to determine where they went (that’s what lock-down does). Chris has now plotted this and prepared a booklet with the history connected to the launch and marked Ordnance Survey maps to give you more detail.
Whilst we can’t exactly follow the route on an organised Club event, we are in discussions with Motorsport UK’s Rally Liaison Officer as to how we can do a run in the spirit of the original whilst complying with present day restrictions.
If all goes well it is something for 2021.