After Mutton came Quarhouse, a straight-forward hill with an unpleasant

surface of leaves and another shelving right-hand bend on which Hutchison’s Ford was brought to a standstill. N. G. Watson (Frazer-Nash) and Denis Evans (Magnette) were very neat at this point, and Evans also went very quickly over Ham Mill’s rough surface, which caused nasty things to happen to the transmission of both W. L. Jackson’s FrazerNash and M. Chambers’ Vauxhall. Next on the list was the re-start test on the leaf-mould surface of Old Hollow. After the re-start point, the narrow track

immediately swung right, up a steep bank, then hair-pinned left and continued steeply for some hundred yards. The difficulty here was to get away and gain enough speed to get round the bends. Thus the ” Musketeer ” Magnettes with their locked differentials were at a great advantage and were able to use most of the power at their disposal, while Allard could only just get away from the line and scrape round the bends. The B.M.W.s were as faultless here as they had been everywhere else, H. G. Symmons again being particularly impressive, and K. N. Hutchison’s Ford V8, which had been suffering from petrol starvation during the night, at last got going properly. Total failures here numbered twenty, all stopped by lack of wheel-adhesion. Then came a long main-road detour

round to the north of Cheltenham with one stop for a hill guilelessly labelled as ” Additional.” This proved to be Juniper, the high-light of the day. A lot of hard work had been put into making this hill as safe as possible, as last year, further down the slope, one car had overturned and Bob Porter did not want a recurrence of this happening, especially at the top, where the track shelved over quite a nasty-looking brink. To guard against this, a kerb nearly a foot high had been constructed from stout planks and this was an effective measure against any error of judgment. However, few were even destined to see these planks, so all was well. Dargue’s Riley and Hutchison’s Ford could make nothing of it, both failing in the deep mud about half-way up. At this point, together with the other sixty failures, they were swung bodily round with the help of marshals and sent down to the bottom again. The first to make a non-stop climb was S. H. Allard on his 1934 T.T. Ford, followed shortly after by Miss P. Goodban with the B.M.W. and the greatest credit goes to them and the other early numbers who made the grade, as the surface for the first half of the trial was almost too slippery to walk up ! For later numbers it became decidedly easier, as most of the mud became churned-up, leaving a more stony surface to grip, but even this, together with a 1 in 3i gradient, is not to be sneered at. The most meritorious performance was F. E. Elgood’s run with a 3-litre Bentley, which rumbled up in fine style although he was the next to last to tackle it. K. D. Evans and H. B. Shaw, both ‘ using Magnettes, made good climbs and the B.M.W.s all upheld their reputations nobly. The three Magnettes and the team of

” Cream Crackers ” handled by J. E. Jones, L. A. Welch and A. H. Langley were all successful, Macdermid’s car in particular showing astonishing speed. It was afterwards learnt that his was the only car of the ” Musketeers”‘ team making use of a supercharger. But apart from these stalwarts, successes were few and far between and car after car spun its way to a standstill, a fate which befell W. H. Haden, the only man in the running for a Gloucester Goblet. Very hard luck indeed, as he climbed every other hill on the course. A time check and sandwich stop had been arranged at the White Swann Inn, a few miles further down the main road, and after this came Mill Lane Hill. This is a very long, rather narrow, stony track, with a bad patch of large boulders near the top. The gradient is not enough to stop people unless restraint is used in riding over the rocks, which was the

cause of the twenty failures. It was rather an unnecessary test as success was guaranteed by fast driving, while the result of this was illustrated by the overturning of Onslow-Bartlett’s M.G. Midget and the wrecking of a wheel on Allard’s Ford. Bartlett was not hurt and continued on the trial minus a windscreen. Good climbs of this hill were made by A. J. Bochaton (McEvoy Special), K. N. Hutchison and C. G. Fitt (Ford V8s), and Miss Barbara Marshall’s very sporting little AnzauiNash. After Mill Lane came Ferris Court Hill where a special test was held. This simply consisted of climbing about half-amile of the hill in as quick a time as possible. Three hairpin-bends were included in its length but everyone seemed to have adequate lock, though Mrs. Lylsley got very near the bank on the first hairpin with her Riley Imp. The bends soon got loosened by the ascents of big cars like the Fords, with the result that the corner marshals got well pelted with stones each time a fast car came

round. The best times were made by Allard and Macdermid (33 secs.) followed by J. A. Bastock in 34 1/5 secs., but apart from the ” racers,” very fast climbs were made by all the B.M.W.s, S. Curry (V8 Ford), H. W. Johnson (Ruddy Singer) and Guy Warburton on the Vauxhall, although he was not too clever with the gears. C. G. Fitt added a seasonable touch to the proceedings, his Ford bearing a holly tree in the back while F. M. Shepherd is evidently a believer in fresh air as the bonnet of his ancient M.G. had been discarded completely. A. H. Langley and F. E. Elgood brought things to a close on Ferris Court with two very fast climbs.

Station Lane, next on the list, was only notable for the rather astonishing failure of M. 13. Shaw and his Magnette. Only two stopped out of the whole entry and, that one of them ,should be he, just shows what funny tricks trials’ hills can play.

For the rest it presented no difficulty, and activity was transferred to the last hill of the trial, Nailsworth Ladder.

The Ladder has always been a fitting conclusion to this, the most sporting of trials, and it proved to be no exception on this occasion. Of the eighty-three competitors left in the running, thirty-seven failed to make the ascent. The most surprising of these, after its previous phenomenal performances, was D. H. Murray’s B.M.W. On coming. to a standstill he found, that absent-mindedly he had started in second gear. Over this, A. B. Langley on his Magnette and H. K. Crawford, also on a Magnette, both leapt with abandon to make clean climbs. A. J. Bochaton was not so lucky with his McEvoy Special, and came to rest amidst showers of stones and a strong smell of oil. J. F. Kemp was so rapid that people by the outside bank got quite alarmed, end were later ” moved-on ” by the local. police sergeant who said that motor cycles find the hill very easy ! W. J. B. Richardson made a very persistent and

successful climb, and quite one of the best ascents of the day was made by Miss Margaret Allen on one of the oldtype V8 Fords. Needless to say, the fastest were Allard, Macdermid and Langley.

And so the twenty-fifth LondonGloucester trial was drawn to a close, and those who were due in at lunch time got in at lunch time and, what is more, they got their lunches and were back in London not long after dusk, which is a much better finish to a trial than some we have attended. Once more may we congratulate all those concerned in the arrangement of this most enjoyable event. PROVISIONAL RESULTS

Gloucester Cup (best performance),—R. A. Macderniki (M.G. Magnettc).

President’s Trophy (up to 850 c.c.).–A. Ti. Langley (M.G. Midget.).

Committee Cup (up to 1,100 c.c.).—M. H. Lawson (Singer Le Mans).

Thomas Challenge Cup (up to 2,000 c.c.).—H. G. Symmons (Frazer-.Nash-B.A.I.W.).

.North-West London Cup (unlimited).–8. H. Allard (Ford V8). Special Supplementary Class Awards (up to

FRAZERNASH B.M.W. CAR CLUB

The arrangement for the affiliation of the Frazer-Nash and the Frazer-NashB.M.W. Car Clubs have now been completed and the terms of the affiliation are published below :—

1. The Frazer-Nash Car Club shall invite the Frazer-Nash-B.M.W. Car Club to participate in all social functions, and to compete in such sporting or competitive .events as may by the supplementary regulations be declared .open to the latter Club.

2. The Frazer-Nash-B.M.W. Club shall in like manner invite the FrazerNash Car Club to participate in all social functions and to compete in such sporting or competitive events as may be determined upon the principles set forth in Clause 1 above.

3. The existing trophies of the Frazer-Nash Car Clubshall remain open to competition only .among members-Of that Club driving Frazer-Nash cars.

1,100 c.e.).–A. 113roadley (Singer) and (up to 1,500 c.c.) j . A. %stock (M.G. Magnette).

Ladies’ Cup.— -Miss J. Richmond (Triumph).

Team Award.–” Three Musketeers” team. Drivers : R. A. Mardermid, .1. A. I’s:Mock, and A • P.,• 1-anvieY ( M .(; , Magnotes).

Runners up.-I )rivers : II . (; symmons. .1.

Tweedide. and L. .Nlax well ( Fritypr.W.$).

Novices Cup.—(). Poppe (M.G. !gel). First Class Awards.—Miss P. (1301.’111nm, 3. Tweed:11e, L. Maxwell (Frazer-Nash-B.M.W.$) ; A. B. Langley,

C. A. N. May, 1). G. Evans (M.G. Magnettes) ; 1′. S. Flower (M.G. Midget) ; A. J. Bochaton (McEvoy Special) ; C. 1). Buckley (Austin). Second Class Awards.—C. Anthony (AstonMartin) ; H. W. Johnson, R. E. Sandland, W. J. B. Richardson (Singer Nines) ; 0. H. C. Goodban (Singer

; G. Warburton (Vauxhall) ; S. L. Chappell, Miss M. Allan (Ford T8s); D. Silcock, J. E. Jones. W. H. Haden, J. E. Orgee (M.G. Midgets) ; TI. K. Crawford, J. F. Kemp, H. B. Shaw (M.G. Magnettes); W. L. Jackson (Frazer-Nash); P’. E. Elgood (Bentley). Third Class Awards.—T. W. DargUe (Riley) ; Mrs. K. R. Lysley (Riley Imp) ; G. J. Rea, F. 1. Allen, L. A. Welch (M.G. Midgets); Miss B. Marshall (Anzani-G.N.) ; R. M. Andrews, H. M. Hutton, N. H. Cole, A. T. K. Debenham, F. A. Frey, J. R. Edwards, A. 0. Imhof, Miss M. Milne (Singer Nines) ; D. E. Harris, W. C. Butler, Mrs. A. E. Moss (Singer ; F. Allott, C. G. Fitt (Ford V8s) L. OnslowBartlett (McEvoy Special Midget) ; R. W. Jaggard (Rover) ,• 0. L. Boughton, J. H. Whittindale

(Triumph Southern Crosses); A. J. Borkett (Standard); D. H. Murray (Frazer-Nash-B.M.W.).

4. In the absence of any intimation to the contrary on the part of the promoting club, invitations for the members of the Frazer-Nash Car Club to take part in events organised under R.A.C. restricted permits shall be deemed to include the members of the Frazer–Nash-B.M.W. Car Club.

5. In respect of each Of its . members the Frazer-Nash-B.M.W. Car Club shall pay to the Frazer-Nash Car Club an affiliation fee of 2s. 6d. per annum. This fee shall not be payable in respect of existing, or future, mem-hers of the Frazer-Nash Car -Club. Committee Members H. G. Symmons H, .T. Aldington (Secretary) L. Maxwell J. D. Botterell H. C. Hunter (Treasurer) H. P. Edwards

The Secretary, Mr. H. G. Symmons, of 76, Woodland Drive, Watford, will be pleased to receive application for membership.