RALLYING TO WALES

RALLYING TO WALES

Rallies continue to attract certain sporting motorists in spite of the expenses involved, and the entry for the Welsh Rally to Cardiff was interesting, if smaller than that attracted last year.

The London contingent started from the Ace of Spades eating-station on the Great West Road.

Gunnar Poppe was obliged at the last moment to drop out of the Talbot Ten team, his wheel being taken over by N. Garrad. A. G. Douglas Clease was first away from the Loudon control with one of these cars. The Llandrindod control announced the non-arrival of A. G. Grimmond (S.S.), Miss Z. L. Burn (Riley) and A. P. R. Rolt (Ford). It was here that all the routes converged, and coloured lights greeted the competitors until mid-night, when the early arrivals were either replenishing their interiors or were well and truly dead to the world. With modern cars the road section is mainly a matter of keeping awake. A little rain fell in Southern England, and on the Welsh roads to Chester mountain ponies and sheep occasionally provided an impromptu test of brakes. The roads were good until beyond Chester, when they gave way to hundreds of miles of narrow country by-ways.

Six retirements actually resulted, the unfortunates comprising Dou. Impani’s M.G., M. Kirby-Roberts’ ArmstrongSiddeley, D. E. Barris’ Singer with gear-box troubles, R. Sandford’s Fiat, P. T. Gifford Nash’s Frazer-Nash, and Grimmond’s S.S. Mrs. Petre found water in the fuel and a radiator leak, but kept her Frazer-Nash-B.M.W. in it, and Alastair More had a frantic search for tyres in Swansea when his Humber burst two covers. Two minutes were allowed for the starting test, which, coupled with a warm night, caused no serious concern. A driving-test followed, cars being required to start, turn round a pylon-marked island, continue down the course, turn into each of two bays and reverse into a third bay, and then accelerate to the

finish. This is a test which shows up ultra-low-geared steering, queer clutch actions and hesitant carburetion. Very good performances were established by A. G. Imhof’s ” Candidus ” Singer (1 min. 10 secs.), J. W. Naylor’s blown M.G. (1 min. 6* secs.) with Onslow Bartlett driving, and A. J. Chaston’s M.G. Midget (1 min. 13 secs.). Other fine efforts were :—H. Davis Aero Minx) 1 min. 21 secs. ; B. W. Fursdon (Wolseley Ten) 1. min. 174 secs ; G. C. White (Aston-Martin) 1 min. 14 sees. ; Joan Richmond (Triumph 5) 1 min. 114 secs. G. L. Boughton (Triumph S) 1 Min. 54 secs. ; the last-named making the fastest run of the morning. J. D. Barnes, A. H. Langley and F. S. Barnes of the 11-litre Singer team wanted 1 min. 9 secs., 1 min. tq; secs., and 1 min. 1 secs., respectively and consistently. Mrs. Petre’S Frazer-Nash-B.M.W. took 1 min. 16 sees., and A. C. Westwood (Fiat Balilla S) 1 min. 12* sees. R. W. Shakespeare’s time with the O.M. was 1 min. 19 secs. and Viscountess Chetwynd took 1 Min. 154 secs. with a Jensen VS Ford. Mrs. E. M. Wisdom (2-litre M.G.) was amongst those

who touched the posts. Rain greeted the drivers after lunch, but Alf Langley nevertheless made fastest time under these conditions in 1 min. 5 secs. while Westwood put his Fiat through its paces in 1 min. 7 secs. When the results were worked out Boughton was seen to have taken the Premier Award, driving a 2-litre Triumph touter with blower and bonnetstrap. The 11-litre crab-tacked Singer team, entered by the Singer M.C.C., took both Manufacturers’ Team Prize, and the club Team Prize.