Lakeland 25000

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.
This is attached click on link.
Lakeland 25000 Book
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.

The First LAC Coast to Coast.

The First Coast to Coast!

THe cars line up for the start at the Norbreck Castle Hotel in glorious sunshine

 

As Mike Wood will tell you anytime this month we were due to run our 28th Coast to Coast Classic Car Run. Mike ran the Lancashire Automobile Club’s first Classic Car Run from Blackpool to Scarborough but that’s not the whole story!

Long before Mike’s run for Classic Cars, in 1991, the Club ran a run not for Classic Cars but for Kit Cars from Blackpool to Scarborough. The run was thought up by Anthony and Carolyn Taylor after a discussion with Chris Lee.

At the time Chris was involved with a life assurance society, the Scottish Legal, who had sponsored the LAC Doninigton Sprint as well as Chris’s XR3i which he had competed in the club’s sprint championship. The Directors of Scottish Legal wanted an event to give publicity to their annual conference to be held in Scarborough. The previous year the conference had been held in Blackpool so running an event from Blackpool to Scarborough made sense.

The only stipulations were that the event had to be held on the Saturday to meet the conference timetable, when most of the conference delegates should have arrived and before the conference started formally, and that the finish be at the Scarborough Spa where the conference was to be held.

This all tied in with Anthony and Carolyn’s involvement with Kit cars and their contacts locally garnered via their own Aristocat Jaguar 120 evocation.

So Chris got on with designing a route and venues along the way which had to have a reasonably timed start in Blckpool, a lunch halt and an arrival time in Scarborough to meet the Directors time constraints.

Norbreck Catle Hotel Blackpool

We had a good relationship with the then manager of the Norbreck Castle Hotel so that was the start venue in Blackpool and the finish was arranged at the Scarborough Spa with adequate parking reserved. Carolyn arranged a lunch halt at the Devonshire Arms at Bolton Abbey so all that was needed was to link the three up with a mileage to ensure a finish at Scarborough on time.

So at 09.00 in the morning a fine array of Kit cars lined up at The Norbreck Castle Hotel Blackpool ready for their journey over to Yorkshire. The cars ranged from a 602cc 2 cylinder Lomax 3 wheeler to the mighty 4.2 litre 6 cylinder Aristocat. Quite a difference in performance and capabilities!

Drivers Briefing

Following a briefing from Anthony Taylor the cavalcade set off in bright sunshine for the lunch halt at The Devonshire Arms using mainly B roads and the A59.

Lunch halt at the Devonshire Arms.

By the time they reached the Devonshire Arms the weather had closed in and there had been some rain so it was hoods up for the second leg to Scarborough.

The route then went over Blubberhouses towards Harrogate then north past Ripon and on to Thirsk before the cars tackled Sutton Bank. For those who don’t know Sutton Bank it is The A170 runs up the bank with a maximum gradient of 1 in 4 (25%), and includes a hairpin bend just to add to the challenge. Vehicles have to keep in low gear whilst travelling up or down the bank, and it is considered so bad that caravans are banned from this length of the A170.

A short breather at the top of Sutton Bank.

After completing the climb, the cars stopped for a bit of a breather at the top of Sutton Bank and enjoyed the views before pressing on to Scarborough.

Then out on the A170 through Helmsley and Pickering then on to Scarborough. The weather was now light drizzle but the crews of the cars were in fine spirits as we were met be the Directors and civic dignitaries at the Spa.

 

Entering Helmsley
Helmsley – back in sunshine.
Following the A170 in North Yorkshire.
Roof off in the Lomax

 

 

 

 

 

The cars arrive at the Spa in Scarborough
Roof back on in the Lomax as the weather changes.
We certainly attracted a crowd.
Judging the cars for the Scottish Legal Pennant award.
The end of a long but enjoyable day.

The winner of the Scottish Legal Pennant

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK so it wasn’t a ‘Classic Car Run’ but it laid the foundation of many runs to come which used the Norbreck Castle for a starting point and finished at the Spa in Scarborough. Over the years things changed and we sought places new to start and finish to give a choice of new and more interesting routes.

One thing is certain at no point on that did we realise that Mike would pick up that mantle and organise an event which has now gone on for 27 years and after a break this year will be back in 2021.

Many thanks to all who organised and took part in the event.

Manchester to Blackpool Virtual Concours

Check out the Mayor’s Choice (updated  4.00pm Sunday14th June 2020)
Entries for our Manchester to Blackpool Virtual Concours closed on Friday and we had a fine selection of cars for the Mayor of Blackpool, Councillor Amy Cross, to select her favourite car.
She judged the photos on Sunday 14th June at 4.00pm when the Manchester to Blackpool Classic Car Run Concours and event results would have in normal times been announced.
All the photos were submitted to the Mayor ‘blind’ and did not contain any details of the owner or the car itself!
Her choice was the green Mini Cooper RSP.
Prizes will also be virtual but the winners photo will be published on the club’s Facebook page and Website as well as in our club magazine All Torque.
You can see all the entries below.

             

 

Longridge Motor Racing Circuit – LAC Sprints

It struck me that whilst many LAC members would know the general layout at Longridge for motor racing the sprint layout as used by both Longton and District Motor Club and Lancashire Automobile Club may be unfamiliar to them.

The featured picture is a painting of me coming out of Quarry Bend into Paddock Bend – I seem to have lost the original.

The picture, below, shows the layout of the sprint layout and I thought you might be intersted to have a competitive run round with me.

The paddock is situated along the cliff top at the bottom of the picture. We run down a gentle slope to a collect area by the Start Line (shown red).

As cars depart we slowly move forward to the start line – not to close to the car in front as they kick up stones as they warm their tyres!

Now the marshals call us forward to the start line and carefully align us with the timing beams. The traffic lights flicker red, amber as they rock the car gentley back and forward. It is a down hill start so the car tends to creep forward.

Once the traffic lights are a steady amber we await the green. A car already on the circuit flashes past on our right. Once he reaches Weighbridge corner the lights will go green and we can start in out own time.

The lights go green and we sprint away onto Rock Straight – the quarry wall looms above us to our left.

All to soon we reach Weighbridge Corner a tight right hander. JUst in view to our left tucked behind the barriers is the tow truck and ambulance.

We are now on the short straight after Weighbridge the grid markings for the race start flash past beneath us. In the Esses we pass through the timing beams for the first time.

The Esses is tricky to get right as the exit determines our positioning into Quarry Bend. Get this wrong and the hump on the inside of the corner will spin you round and send us into the barriers which are all to close on our left.

With the line just right we enter Quarry this is the start of a climb which continues into Paddock Bend. Paddock is easy to get right but gmake a mess of it and our speed along Rock Straight will be compromised ruinig our time.

As we leave Paddock Bend the trck drops and as we go over the rise the steering goes light. More than one car has lost it here but we are OK. Back on Rock Straight we are more confident both tyres and brakes are wrmed up and we leave bracking for Weightbridge a littel later and carry more speed. As a result we clip the dirt on the outside of the corner as we exit. It is not simply a matter of going flat out to cross the finish line at the entrance to ther Esses. The marshals on the very end of the pit wall on out right (just where the pit exit for the race meetings is located) wave a chequred flag. Our run is over.

We cotinue into Quarry and exit to our left just before Paddock Bend to return to the paddock.

By the way this layout meant that the timing crew could get a time for a flying lap picking up the car as it past the timing lights at the finish the first time the car passed and then again when it finished it’s run. This is why Kim Mathers time in his BRM at a Longton meeting qualified for many years as the fastest lap of Longridge and remained tied with two others who set their laps at race meetings when the circuit closed.

No photo description available.
 The picture below shows an arial view of the caravan park which is there today. I have marked the spring circuit in red to give an indication of the way it fitted inot the layout.

Latest from Motorsport UK regarding Corona Virus – 27th May

Looks like the first steps towards opening up motorsport. On reading the small print I don’t believe it applies to our kind of event, Touring Assemblies, but it does indicate things are moving in the right direction.

Motorsport UK Opens Throttle on Restarting Motorsport from 4th July

Motorsport UK has announced that in anticipation of motorsport restarting in the UK from 4th July, it is inviting online permit applications from 1st June 2020.

Motorsport is currently suspended throughout the UK until 30th June 2020. Following ongoing positive dialogue with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and having set out its strategy and anticipated conditions for restarting motorsport disciplines, the governing body is now moving to its next phase of getting the sport back on track. Further details will be communicated following the next Motorsport UK Board meeting of 3rd June.

Any resumption of motorsport is contingent on event organisers demonstrating that they can plan in accordance with the recently published, “Getting Back on Track” guidelines of Motorsport UK, while respecting government guidance on social distancing.

Motorsport UK is also acutely aware that different devolved territories of the UK may be moving at different paces in easing restrictions; any application for an event permit will be subject to approval based on the prevailing government advice. The move is also contingent on governments continuing with measures to open up society and that further restrictions resultant of any additional waves of COVID-19 are not required.

David Richards, chairman of Motorsport UK, commented, “In March, Motorsport UK moved quickly and in line with government to suspend motorsport, while everyone’s priority was restricting the spread of this terrible disease and protecting the NHS. It is now right that, as government has set out plans to ease restrictions, we move in step and introduce the next stage of our phased restart. Unlike many sports, motorsport in the UK is an industry in itself, employing tens of thousands and contributing billions of pounds to the UK economy.”

“We always said that, when the conditions were right, we would take a responsible decision to resume motorsport in order to sustain the sport, jobs and the economy. We have explained our plans to government and are fortunate that motorsport takes place outdoors over large controlled spaces. Our plan is that, subject to government advice and ongoing lifting of restrictions, motorsport will resume from 4th July. We are making this announcement now as event organisers, venues, preparation specialists, the supply chain, volunteer Marshals, Officials and Competitors all need time to put in place their plans.”

There will be a number of caveats of granting event permits, including that event organisers commit that their events will be held behind closed doors, appropriate PPE requirements are met, and that each organiser must appoint a COVID-19 officer to ensure compliance with any relevant guidelines. Furthermore, there will be a limit on the number of permits issued for July to 50% of those in the corresponding month of 2019, in order that there are sufficient volunteer Official and Marshal resources available to support the restart in a safe and responsible manner. No national or British championship events will take place in July to reduce potential national and international travel (excludes FIA championships).

To find out more about Motorsport UK – visit motorsportuk.org/restart

British and European Grand Prix May 13th 1950 – Film

It came as quite a shock to realise that May 13th celebrated something rather special in the motorsport world.
This video is rare BBC Newsreel footage of the British and European Grand Prix on 13 May 1950, designated as the first ever F1 World Championship race.
The race took place at Silverstone in the presence of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, and was dominated by the Alfa Romeo cars.
Please click on link below

St Georges Day Event

We thought that with this Sunday being Drive it Day you may wish to relive the 2019 event.

This link takes you to the route information book from last years event which let’s you know where the event went to and places of interest along the way.  St Georges Day 2019 Route Information

These are a few pictures from the event.

Starting with your bacon butties from ‘the girls’.

Then waved away by our offical starter – Noah

Then onto Heskin Hall for some refreshments.

Then up over Rivington and the Anglezarke Reservoirs

To return via Wiswell to Blackburn Northern Sports

  

Where a woderful buffet, courtesy of the Club, awaited the entrants

Not forgetting memories of a wonderful day!

Many thanks to Mike Wood and Nigel Bentley for the pictures.

The Launch of the Austin 8

As part of the launch of the Austin 8, in 1938, this publicity film was produced.

This type of film was not unusual at the time and the idea was to present the car by setting a target – in this case to climb 25,000 feet in a day. The area chosen was the Lake District and the film is worth viewing for the scenery and a glimpse of life (and roads) pre war.

Please click on the link below and enjoy.