Trials MG Sixtieth

The MGCC got a very fine response on April 29/30 to its 60th Anniversary of the formation of the MG works trials teams, based on The Bear on Rodborough Common, Stroud, from which so many pre-war trials started and finished with a large marquee housing the historic MGs, and a post-luncheon photo-call on Minchinhampton Common. The line-up included the PA, PB and later TA “Cream Crackers” and the “Musketeers”, plus two works replicas. These MGs, all but one pre-1939, were joined by the A7 “Grasshoppers”, including the ex-Kay Petre car and the works Singer ADU 263.

The hotel car-parks were full of other MGs of every type, and some of the pre-war trials drivers joined in, while Maurice Toulmin’s son Jonathan, in correct leather cap, drove the PA “Cream Cracker” ‘Ft 5000, but unfortunately with so much spirit up the dreaded Nailsworth Ladder in the “Kimber Trial” on the Sunday as to break its differential.

It is significant of the enthusiasm that exists within the MGCC that so many wished to attend this event that “overflow” dinner arrangements had to be made at another hotel, and good that so many of the works trials MGs have survived. Those entered included the Centric-blown ex-Toulmin 1934/35 PA-type “Cream Cracker”, the ex-J A Bastock non-s/c PA “Cream Cracker”, the complete team of 1935/36 Marshall-blown PB “Cream Crackers” driven as works cars by Maurice Toulmin, Ken Crawford and John Jones, two of the non-s/c 1937 TA “Crackers” ex-Crawford and Jones, the ex-Jones 1938 VA-engined 1708cc “Cracker”, the 1935 ex-works “Musketeer” NE Magnette “Artemis” which Sam Nash once campaigned, the TA MG “Aramis” which A B Langley drove for the works in 1937 and Macdermid’s TA-type works car of the same name, used for the 1938/9 seasons. These were backed up by the two works “Musketeer” replicas, one a 1938 TA. Very creditable, in view of the terribly hard competition life these MGs led. They looked like new cars at the reunion, and were of course in their correct pre-war livery.