“Dripfeed” NEWSLETTER OF THE BANKS PENINSULA BRANCH OF THE VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF New Zealand (INC) VOLUME 43, No 9 october 2020. Editor: Michael Williams 10 Selwyn Parade Lyttelton Ph 328 8043, email mimiandmichael@yahoo.co.nz
Chairman: Secretary:
Club Officers: Craig Keenan 322 1006 Ron Hasell 942 1105
Branch Address: 27 Showgate Ave, ChCh 8042 E-mail: bankspeninsula@vcc.org.nz Noggin & Natter: 2nd Thursday of the Month • • •
Noggin 7.30 pm at the Papanui RSA. Upham Room – enter either from 55 Bellvue Ave or the first entrance on the left on Harewood Road (Papanui / Main North Road) Thursday 8th of October We look forward to seeing you there. Supper is provided.
From the Editor: In a 1998 edition of Dripfeed, Dave Richardson, who was editor at the time, wrote a self deprecating piece about being stopped by a police car while on his way home from a Noggin. Dave asked, with some indignation, why he had been stopped. “Because your rear fog light is on sir, and it’s too bright”. Dave was blissfully unaware that his1997 Ford Focus had such a thing, but the nice policeman helped him to turn it off and he made his way home. Dave told a friend what had happened and mentioned that a rear fog light seemed unnecessary, given that his car didn’t even have air conditioning. His friend pointed out the little button with A/C on it. Dave then decided that modern cars were too complicated compared to Chug, his 1928 Austin 12/4. I was reminded of this when Craig Keenan, our beloved leader, told a group of us about the perils of owning a very electronic car. Craig recently bought a 5 year old Volvo station wagon with every electronic aid invented. The handbook is 400 pages long, as Craig discovered recently. While waiting at a traffic light, a new warning light flashed on the Volvo’s display. Unable to diagnose it, Craig decided to do what he does when his computer goes wrong, and turned off the engine. But because he’d turned it off in neutral, not park, it wouldn’t start again. After some kind people pushed it to the side of the road, Craig discovered the handbook was 400 pages long. Somehow, he managed to start it again without needing to call Sweden, but is thinking wistfully of his old Toyota.
I was sent the following list of entrants for the 1963 Nelson Beach Races. Current club members Peter Leversedge and Avon Hyde feature, and many of the cars are still running, including the Ace 111, owned by Graeme Hamilton and the Citroen Special owned by the Smith family from Cromwell.
Paul Coghill sent me this photo of his Triumph Vitesse and David Hunter’s amazingly fast MGB V8, taken at the recent Levels meeting. Paul and David are Dunedin members who have been racing various machinery for years. Paul has the HWM /Jag Special and David has raced a Fiat 125T. They both took part in the last Monte Carlo, and in spite of coming last through an inability to read simple instructions, are extremely keen to try again.
And thanks to the crusading zeal of Morganista Giles Gill, the Rallye Monte Carlo will be held next year. It’s official. Giles is assembling a team of highly skilled professionals and any time now will be given the official Monte Carlo brown manila folder that I have had lurking in my desk drawer for the last twenty years or so.
This photo was taken at our recent Awards lunch at Tai Tapu. and shows Andrew Anderson in full flow while Leon Witte listens thoughtfully. Between them these two have participated in every form of motor sport over the last seventy years, owned some remarkable cars, and continue to be an inspiration to us all.
These Trials results show the close contest that has developed over the last three events. The deciding event will be at Reefton on the first of November, and I’m going as a spectator, to be in charge of Avon’s support team, which may well slow him down.. Thigh waders are compulsory.. The Governors Bay Fete is on the 18th of October, at the Allandale Domain, from 10.am – 4pm, and members are encouraged to bring their interesting Vintage car (no Austin 7s) over to join a display organised by Gavin Bain. It’s always a very pleasant day and all profits go the Governors Bay Wharf Restoration Fund. Just turn up on the day, or for more information ring Gavin at 3299712. Welcome to new members Tim McIver, with a 1972 Morgan Plus 8 Roadster, originally owned by his father, and Gary Sturgess, with an 1960 Austin Healey 3000 and a Triumph TR5T motor bike. We look forward to seeing you at future events. The first edition of Dripfeed in 1999 broke the exciting news that 1999 was “The International Year of Older Persons, celebrating the diversity and richness of our older population.” Peter Croft, one of the older and richer committee members, fell upon this news with a glad cry, because he had discovered a section on Funding and Grants, and hoped to get some new shorts and razors. Having seen Peter recently, I fear his application was unsuccessful. The 1999 Pomeroy Trophy results were equally interesting. The Pomeroy Trophy was won by Brendon Cook in a Lancia Beta, closely followed by the much maligned Peter Croft in his Bond
Equippe. In the Class B Haggitt Trophy, Craig Pidgeon was first in his Hillman Avenger. In 1999 you could enter your modern if you wanted to, and I duly entered my Citroen 2CV. Looking further down the list to the lower places, I note that the 2CV beat Frank Renwick’s 3 litre Bentley over the standing quarter by .40 of a second, and best of all, beat Gordy Routledge in his Austin 7 Special by a massive .50 of a second. The 2 CV’s time was 23.50, slightly slower than the winning time by Phil Mauger in the Stanton Special at 15.40.
Future Events: .
Vauxhall Rally, Timaru 23rd – 26th of October. Contact Ross Luscombe 027 4359620
Ruapuna meeting, 31st October – 1st of November. Don Gerrard is organising a display and demonstration of Old Race Cars so if your car qualifies, get in touch with Don at 0212123074 or gerrards2@yahoo.com
Hawkswood Sprint, 8th of November. Peninsula Run, 22nd of November. Picnic Day at Little River, 1st of January. Pomeroy Trophy, Ruapuna, 16th of January. Art Deco in Napier 18 – 21 February 2021 The 2021 event will feature Veterans, and is also the 90th anniversary of the Napier earthquake. There are lots of events, go to the HBVCC website, www.hbvcc.orh.nz or stevetrott@xtra.co.nz
Highland Fling, 24th – 26th of April Contact Kaaren Smylie kaaren@smylie.co.nz 021 664341 07 5764180
Past Events. Opening Run. The day did not dawn clear, as these reports often say, and with the weather forecast predicting gale force winds, storms, plagues of locusts, and general mayhem, we were pleasantly surprised that ten carloads of intrepid members arrived at the Tai Tapu store for fortifying coffee before venturing into the vortex. Michael and Louise were there in their newly acquired TR2, Andrew McGuire was in his lovely Alvis 12/50 and the Gills were in their 4 wheeled Morgan. MG, Jaguar, Citroen, Triumph, BMW and Mazda were also represented, and Barry Jones was there on his 1924 Dunelt motorbike, which he has built out of bits. It could be generously called a re creation. and it goes amazingly fast. It’s a 500cc single and the engine is a Sturmey Archer, the people that made 3 speed gears for pushbikes.
Messers Dunford and Elliot founded Dunelt Motorcycles in Sheffield in 1919, and produced a variety of motor cycles throughout the 1920s. They tried three wheeled motorbikes but without success and in 1935 produced their last motorbike. They then produced outboard motors. Barry’s bike is the only one in New Zealand, and he’s raced it for many years The route took us round Southbridge, Taumutu and environs. Andrew McGuire found that the Alvis was wanting to fly, so took the hood down, but the rest of us got the Rakaia bridge without mishap, and then turned left and went through some new roads to end up at the Ashburton Aviation Museum where we were shown around their very interesting display of a wide variety of aircraft. The most interesting for many of us was a sort of a microlight thing made by the Stanton Brothers once they had sold their cars. A classic home made flying machine that showed yet again what clever and creative designers Charlie and Maurice Stanton were. The whole museum is very well presented in two different hangers and is well worth a visit for those interested in aircraft. But outside, the wind was rising, the sky was looking threatening, so we scampered off to Lake Hood for lunch which we managed to have before the wind rose considerably, the hail started to fall, and hasty retreats were beaten to shelter. An interesting day, thanks to Craig Keenan and Pat O’Connell for their organisation.
The Mighty Dunelt
The O’Connells waiting for the Tow Truck........
A Triumph of British engineering, from the people that brought you The Austin Allegro
The Triumph TR with highly tuned motor from.......
The Guardsvan
Craig’s non-electronic car