SIDE CURTAINS
SIDE CURTAINS The magazine of the
ROTORUA VINTAGE AND VETERAN CAR CLUB
FEBRUARY 2019
WE’RE NOW ON FACEBOOK ! www.rvvcc.org.nz
Lakefront Car Show 2019
SIDE CURTAINS - February 2019 The magazine of the ROTORUA VINTAGE AND VETERAN CAR CLUB
Clubrooms: Neil Hunt Park, Tarawera Rd, Rotorua Postal: PO Box 2014, Rotorua Email: rotorua@vcc.org.nz Website: www.rotoruavintagecarclub.org.nz Vero Insurance: Phone 0800 658 411 and quote your VCC membership number Club Meetings: 2nd Wednesday of month (except January), 7.15pm for 7.30pm start OFFICERS
Chairperson - David Tomlinson Secretary - Dennis Whimp Ph 021 731 678 Treasurer - Terry Fitzpatrick Club Captain - vacant Asst. Club Captain - Kevin Scott Committee Bob Mackay John Peters Terry Wadsworth Ronald Mayes Phil Monk
CONTENTS Chairman’s Report From The Secretary Message from Cliff’s family Thames Wings and Wheels Cliff Wickham Tribute Car In The Room January Midweekers Upcoming Midweek Runs Events Calendar
2 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12
Mid Weekers - Bob Mackay Side Curtains Editor - David Tomlinson rvvcc.editor@gmail.com Beaded Wheels - Ronald Mayes Librarian - Roger Couchman Asst Librarian - John Kirkland Cards/Flowers - Doreen Green
Cover Photos Front - Skelton’s Austin 7s, Lakefront Back - Thames visit, Posh Picnic
CLUB CAR PHOTOS
If you want your club car photo on the clubroom wall then get in touch with Doug Green, and he will organise a time and place for a photo shoot. It would be good if we could have all member’s car photos on display. Side Curtains February 2019
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Chairman’s Report
- November 2018 by David Tomlinson
It is with great sadness I start this column reporting the passing of two branch members. Cliff Wickham passed away in late December and Jack Miller passed away in January. I thank those members who took club cars to their funerals to show our support to their families. December’s car in room was Alan Judd’s lovely E Type Jaguar, we hope we can have some exciting cars on display on club nights this year, let me or Dennis Whimp know if you would like to bring your car along one night. The Posh Picnic run in December was on a lovely day, with just a brief 30 second light shower on the run, followed by a very nice lunch at Bob and Pat Mackay’s. Thanks to our hosts, caterers and organisers. It was a really good day out. The Lakefront Car Show in January continued to improve on previous years. This year, our 7th event, had around 350 cars on display and raised $1500 for St Johns Ambulance Rotorua. Thank you to all branch members who displayed vehicles, I took along five this year, but I suspect I was trumped by a member who may have had six or more vehicles on display. A group of branch members chartered a bus and attended the Wings & Wheels in Thames, which I understand featured up to 100 small aircraft on static display, and many hundreds of classic vehicles. While on holiday in the UK over the Christmas break, Fleur allowed me to visit the Brooklands Museum, the Coventry Transport Museum and the British Motor Museum at Gaydon, and we saw many special and unique cars. We also attended the Trentham Brit/Euro show while on holiday in Wellington last week, and there was a very good selection of cars on display on a very hot sunny day. This really is “car show” season, and in addition to our own busy 2019 calendar, there was the Ellerslie Concours in Auckland last weekend. 2
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Fleur and I will attend Brits At Beach in Whangamata this weekend, and I know other branch members will be at Art Deco in Napier at the same time. There is the Tractor Show up SH5 on the morning of the 24th of Feb with our BBQ run later that day, and there is the big Brit-Euro show in Auckland on the first Sunday in March. Also, the VCC NI Club Captain’s tour will be passing through and having lunch at our clubrooms on March 8th, continuing on to be part of the Taupo Rally the next day. There are entry forms for the Taupo branch rally in the clubrooms. The Sunday of that weekend will see our Chairman’s Run take place too. In April we will have our Night Run, and the NZ Rolls-Royce & Bentley Club’s AGM rally with pass through Rotorua having lunch at our clubrooms on Saturday, April 27th. So there is lots to do and see! Dont forget it is our AGM in May, and we may also do something a bit special at our June Prize Giving rally, to celebrate the Rotorua subcommittee of the Tauranga VCC forming 50 years ago, which led to our branch being formed a few years later. I hope to see you all at various club events while the long hot summer continues.
Midweek Organiser Resigns!
by Bob Mackay
It is now four years since I took over organising the monthly midweek run, other than help from Maurie Crowe who has stepped in when I am otherwise engaged there has been limited assistance from other members. As no one is prepared to take over I am resigning from the position of “Organiser” and appointing myself as “Midweek Coordinator”. This means that I will not organise a run but coordinate a volunteer or a conscript every month to choose and organise a run. The run can be long or short so if the distances or format have been unsuitable to you this is your chance to organise your ideal run. The March run will be organised by Maurie Crowe, April by Angie Brunton so a volunteer for May is now called for. The future of the Midweek run depends on members taking their turn. Side Curtains February 2019
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FROM THE SECRETARY by Dennis Whimp The Lakefront Car Show was a great success with a huge range of vehicles on show. From a 1906 Ford to the latest Rolls-Royce. Great to catch up with the owners and we have signed up four new members. I was also talking to an ex-Otago member who now lives in Atiamuri and has done a number of Irishman Rallies. He had been lamenting the lack of similar back country rallies in the north island. He has organised a casual Mad Irishwoman’s Rally Waikato for 16th and 17th March for pre-1931 vehicles. See an article elsewhere in this issue. Fourteen of our members took a mini bus to the Thames Wings and Wheels that was the weekend after our own car show. Interesting to make a few comparisons. The numbers of cars were probably similar. In addition there were many classic motorbikes, live music, no shade trees as you would expect at an airstrip and many planes, most of which were microlights although they looked like conventional planes. Both events were equally interesting, but different. The live country and western music was great and was far enough away that it didn’t prevent normal conversation. Congratulations to Tom and Jamie Fyfe who have a new addition to their family. It’s not a car but a lovely daughter Violet, a sister to Olive. Our condolences go to Jack Miller’s Family. Jack passed away on 21 January. He joined the Branch in 2010. Those that got to know him found that he was a very knowledgeable and skilled mechanic, having maintained a range of racing and reliability cars for some of NZ top drivers. He had a quiet friendly humorous disposition. What we didn’t know was that back in the days of big sideburns and chopper moustaches, he was one of the hard men forwards of the 1960s Mt Albert rugby league team that was legendary in Auckland. I had probably seen him playing as the club was just around the corner from my home at the time. I had declined to join the club. Boxing would have been easier on the body. Jack had just started to get involved in the club again with his very original 1965 Singer Vogue. He will be missed. 4
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A Message From Cliff Wickham’s Family Shona and family would like to say a huge thank you to all the Vintage Car Club members for their support, caring and gifts for Cliff at the Rotorua hospital and The Gardens rest home of the last eleven and a half months. Thank you for the lovely bouquet of flowers and card we were sent on Cliff ’s passing on the 19th of December. He will be sadly missed. Below is a modified version of the family’s message published in the February 2018 issue of Side Curtains: Our Cliff is a high performance race car. His hard drive had overheated and he had blown some circuits and hit the wall. His body-kit was damaged in the process. His CPU (subconcious) was fully operational. His keyboard (concious mind) got a bit sticky but was intact and worked. He had a great diagnostic team (his doctors and nurses) and a great support crew, but Cliff was the Master Mechanic. He had to do the repairs and bypass the blown circuits. In order to do this he needed his workshop (his mind) to be clean, uncluttered and quiet (free of negativity). He needed high performance tools (positive words), high octane fuel (love), but most of all he needed time and space to perform his repairs. He was out of the race for a while but he was not down and out. His system repair was going slowly but surely and he had himself up on his feet. They changed out his undercarriage and he sported a new bodykit to get him mobile and back onto the track. Unfortunately systems diagnostics did not pick up an underlying problem in his combustion and exhaust system. By the time it was found the system was beyond repair and because of his unique engine design if couldn’t be replaced. He raced his final lap on the 19th of December 2018 at 9.55pm Cliff ’s legacy shifted gear and he has replaced his earthly bodykit for a far superior streamlined heavenly body free from all damage, misfires and burnt out exhaust valves. He is blazing a new trail, building his own tracks and winning every race. Speed Safely our champion! Side Curtains February 2019
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Thames Wings & Wheels
by Mrs Blue
At least 4 mothers , 6 fathers, 8 sons, 6 daughters, 5 grandfathers, 1 driver and 1 hostess set off at 8am from clubrooms for a day out at “Thames Wings & Wheels Show”. 16 of us in all. The weather was fine for this their second show & Tui carefully drove us to the Thames Airfield where crowds of people, acres of cars, motorbikes and aircraft were already assembling. WINGS:- Were well represented with some 100 microlight aircraft each of which was charged $10 landing fee just to be there. Unlike most air displays every plane was unique to the show, individually owned and built from kit sets. Two exceptions were a Tiger Moth towering above the microlights and an even larger Russian aircraft. Both of these planes had 2 cockpits and were used for training pilots. Both were yellow- a colour which may have helped retrieve any mishaps. Public flights were on offer at $50 per trip. WHEELS:- Amongst the many many shown we saw a 1924 Velie in original condition. It fired 1st kick on self starter and ran smoothly. Regularly used even on long trips. Costly at 13 miles to the gallon. A Morris Minor with a V8 under the bonnet. There was an excellent display of Model T Fords including a beautifully restored brass radiator model with not only 2 steering columns but a spare wheel on the seat. Two 1960 Woodies stood side by side displaying their beautifully restored woodwork. L’il bros was a proud Morris Minor. Big Bros was a large Ford which had a homemade bamboo roof rack made simply of 2 lengths of Bamboo diagonally across the car roof - just right for those long surf boards used in that era. By 2pm many cars & planes were heading home, by 3pm we were too, an ice-cream at Hikutaia and back to Neil Hunt Park by 5-30pm
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2021 Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring The 2021 Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring would like announce that our website www.historicmotoring.co.nz is now live. We would like to invite all our members and off-shore friends to go to the site and register your interest in attending the VCC’s showcase event. This will assist us with projected numbers and the type of vehicles we will need to cater for. We would also like to introduce our official accommodation suppliers for the Festival, the Plymouth International Hotel and the Auto Lodge Motor Inn.. Both are offering special discounted rates for Festival entrants and offer a full range of accommodation from self-contained motel type units to luxury suites..You can follow the link from the Sponsors section of our website to contact them. When booking, please ensure you mention that you are attending the Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring at the time of booking Don’t forget we also have a Facebook page, Vero International Festival of Motoring 2021 Like our page and keep an eye out for future updates Tony Haycock, Festival Director
THE STORY OF THE HOLDEN SYMBOL The first Holden symbol was a life size wooden horse above the entrance of Holden and Frost workshop in Adelaide. The Holden lion relates to the time when coach builders had their trade mark engraved on the door sill. At this time Holden Motor Body builders were using a large engraved plate, the foreground represting industry with a background of factory buildings. This was too large and detailed so the “Wembley Lion” was chosen”. According to fable, the principle of the wheel was suggested to primitive man when watching a lion rolling stone. After several sketches, it was a leading Australian sculptor who came up with a design, as well as being used for bodies built before 1948 it was also used on the first Holden car made, a 214/48 or FX as it is called. The design has been updated throu the years but is still used on all Holden cars today. Maurie Side Curtains February 2019
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CLIFF WICKHAM 1948-2018 A TRIBUTE The following is a much reduced summary of the tribute given by Dennis Whimp on behalf of the club at Cliff ’s funeral. Cliff and Shona joined our club 26 years ago and very rapidly got involved in all the activities. With Cliff ’s encyclopaedic knowledge of car repairs and endless supply of jokes/stories, he got to know all our members very well. He was a Ford man through and through. The joining car was a 1952 Prefect that was replaced with the 63 Anglia (alias the Grey Ghost) which was then joined with a 65 Cortina. These cars were rallied the length and breadth of NZ. The socials were a big motivation and many new friends were made. Many articles appeared in our local branch magazine of these exploits all under the heading of “Trip to …………(wherever) by the Grey Ghost”. It started off “my owners Cliff and Shona polished me up, checked my electrics, pumped up my tyres and then took me on a trip to Invercargill where I was able to park beside my sisters and brothers plus near and distance cousins”. And so would follow a funny quirky article that fully illustrated Cliff ’s literary potential. When Cliff and Shona joined, the clubrooms were being extended to provide a catering type kitchen which left room for a bar. Cliff quickly took an interest and started as the assistant bar manager, then the manager, a job that he was very happy to be in for 17 years until the club surrendered the licence in 2013. He excelled behind the bar telling wonderful tales that were totally plausible and making sure we were well lubricated. In 1995 Cliff got elected onto the committee and did a 13 year stint, 5 of them as Chairman. As he was retiring from his business in 2016, he again got elected onto the committee so that he could put more into the branch. Cliff through his contacts kept us informed on what was happening in the motor trade, he helped organise swap meets, organised car shows, plotted rallies, acted as a club Vehicle Identification Certificate certifier and was a sponsor for many of our Rallies. The club has many trophies, mainly for rallies, and Cliff and Shona’s names are on all of them. They may as well have owned the trophy for the most rallied Ford. Over the past year, many of our club members visited Cliff. He may have lost his mobility, but he still had a great store of jokes. Shona has asked me to pass on her thanks to you all for these visits. And finally, to use Cliff ’s own words, “we know you are in a place where Fords don’t need fixing daily, where Fords always beat Holdens, and the tank is always full.” 8
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Car In The Room - December 2018
by Ronald Mayes
We were privileged to see, hear about and get up close and personal with one of those beautiful cars we could only dream about back in the 1960s: Alan Judd’s 1967 Jaguar E-Type Series I 2+2 coupe. The nearest I had got in those days was occasionally seeing Sybil Lupp driving her one about Wellington, and as a car-mad 6th former managing to “score” a copy of the sales brochure from the Jaguar dealer. Alan’s car has some interesting history, some of it unknown. Originally left hand drive, it had been exported new, probably to a middle eastern country, and did not arrive in New Zealand until 1987. The proprietor of Rodney Wreckers (principally a dealer of Rover parts) was the first owner and converted it to right hand drive. In the early 1990s it went to Erin Ganley, son of F1 driver Howden Ganley of Bruce McLaren Motor Racing, who fitted a new XJ 4.2 litre engine. In 2009 it went to Kelvin Spence who did a lot of bodywork restoration on the car. He unfortunately died and Alan heard about the car being for sale from a member of the Bay of Plenty Jaguar Drivers’ Club. Alan didn’t think “The Boss” would approve his purchase of a third big cat but she said “Yes, why not? Go and buy it!” so he was soon it contact with the owner’s widow. With only 17000 miles under its belt with its new engine, the car looks “almost like new” and obviously has a long and happy life ahead.
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MID-WEEK RUN, 30 JANUARY
by Ronald Mayes
This time it was to yet another café for lunch (how do Bob and Pat manage to find so many great places to eat?) and it was to Julian’s Berry Farm and Café on the outskirts of Whakatane. The heatwave with 30+ degree temperatures meant that household management wasn’t really keen on the idea of a long Triumph drive in the blazing sun and hinted upon the idea of using our modern (well, 20 years old) car with air conditioning. I didn’t complain. As it happened there were two classic Honda Accords on the run (the other one 28 years old so not far off being VCC-eligible) and a Corolla, plus several of the regular participants in their club cars. The drive was easy in light traffic and on good roads. The TR6, despite being not as powerful as our 200 bhp Honda, took off into the distance and we didn’t see Rocky and Rebecca again until we arrived at the venue (well, we were held up for some time by a big lorry..) Whakatane members Les and Thelma were at the venue to meet us and before entering the cafe everyone headed to the “Children’s Farm”: a chook with her chicks, bunny rabbits to coo over, budgies and finches in a big cage and sheep, calf and alpaca to feed. Lunch was promptly served at our reserved first-class table (solid timber table and padded chairs while lesser mortals had plastic furniture) and enjoyable it was. Afterwards, some decided to drive home via the coastal road and Paengaroa, I detoured through Kawerau to see if there was any interesting railway activity (well, there were long lines of container wagons in the yard, but nothing on the move.) Another enjoyable run and good company! On the road were Bob and Pat (Triumph Vitesse), Maurie and Shirley (Holden EJ Special), Angie, Des, Lois and Shona (Morris Minor Traveller), Rocky and Rebecca (Triumph TR6), Bill and Adelai (Toyota Corolla), Wynn and Evan (1991 Honda Accord LXi) and Gloria and I (1999 Honda Accord VTi-L V6.) The car which attracted most attention was Les and Thelma’s 1930 Ford Model A roadster. 10
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CLUB NIGHT - February 13th Neil Hunt Park - 7.30pm Car In The Room: TBA! Followed by tea, coffee and biscuits
Upcoming Midweek Runs
by Bob Mackay
February Midweekers - 27th February 2019 Meet at the Ngongotaha Fire Station 10.15am. We will then drive to the Fantail Café on the Old Te Aroha Road, followed by viewing the memorial of the DC3 which crashed into the Kaimai Ranges on approach to Tauranga Airport. For casual callers Fantail Café normally serves a very good Devonshire Tea but caters for booked groups with a lunch of ‘a savoury, club sandwiches, scone with cream and tea and coffee’ (cost $20 per person). In fine weather seating is under the trees in the garden. Fantail Café is situated in a rural area with limited internet connection making Eftpos payments is very slow so please bring cash, I’m sure that being an older group we know what that is!
BBQ Run - Sunday February 24th Meet at the clubrooms by 2.30pm. The run will finish back at the club rooms for a BBQ dinner, BYO drinks. Price for those staying for the BBQ will be $10 per person.
Mad Irishwomen’s Rally Waikato - 16-17 March 2019 For 1931 and earlier vehicles with rego and WoF, some travel on public roads. Organised by a VCC member who has shifted north from Otago, this two day backroad rally will be based loosely on the Irishman Rally in the South Island. Headquarters will be at the Wharepapa South School. Arrive Friday afternoon or evening. This is not a VCC branch rally but arranged by a group of like minded vintage car owners. Accomodation can be woolshed, camping or motel. Cost is $50 per vehicle plus accommodation and meals. For more details contact the organiser, Trevor Appleby ph 021 027 11049 or trevappleby@gmail.com (email recommended). Side Curtains February 2019
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WANTED Exhaust gas analyser in working condition, suitable for use on an older car. Phone Maurie - 07 345 6540
Contributions to Side Curtains This is your magazine! Please feel free to share anything you think might be of interest to the membership by sending it to the editor, preferably by email, and a picture says a thousand words, so include photos where possible. Members taking part in club runs or events hosted by other branches are encouraged to pen a short piece about their experience to include in the next issue going to print. All items to the editor by the end of the month. 12
Side Curtains February 2019
Lakefront Car Show 2019 Vanden Plas Princess 1100 and 4 Litre R
Austin Champ Ford Corsair “Crayford”
Thames Wings and Wheels 2019
Posh Picnic, December 2018