Rumblings, May 1954

The “Motor Sport” Club Trophy, 1954
The regulations governing this contest, won last season by Peter Gammon, remain the same as in 1953. The contest is between sports cars at certain club Silverstone race meetings, those drivers being placed in certain stipulated races being eligible to compete in a Motor Sport handicap at the conclusion of each meeting. The first six finishers in this Motor Sport handicap gain marks towards the Trophy and £80 cash prizes., and are eligible to compete, free of entry fee, in the next Motor Sport handicap, for which the remainder of the field still has to qualify.

Last year these Motor Sport Trophy handicaps proved very exciting, because they constituted a “winner’s field” of the faster cars which had competed at each meeting.

The first meeting counting towards the Trophy this year will be the Vintage Sports Car Club meeting at Silverstone on May 1st. Next month we hope to publish the full list of clubs who will include in their race programmes a Motor Sport handicap.

The only adverse factors which intruded last year were a lack of data for handicapping the six invited competitors in the Motor Sport race and a late start of this race in certain instances. To avoid a repetition we would ask those clubs staging the race to time the lap-speed’s of all the drivers in this race, so that data is available for those who have to handicap the next of these races. The late start of the last race was usually due to handicaps having to be worked out and if a couple of scratch races are included in the prograrnme immediately before the Motor Sport race the handicappers should have ample time in which to work, ensuring the lineup for the Motor Sport race taking place at the scheduled time. Those competitors who qualify to run in this race by reason of high placing in earlier races should be notified that they are eligible for the Motor Sport race as soon as they return to the Paddock, either by officials or through the p.a., and not just before this last, race is being marshalled.

With these provisos the Motor Sport Silverstone Clubs contest should meet with even greater success this year. The winner can certainly claim that he has competed with a sports car in club races not only with competence and skill in a fast car, but has done so consistently, which is the object behind the somewhat complex rules governing the contest.

Urge for Hillmans
D. & A. Garage, London Road, Wokingham, Bucks (rear of Plough Inn; Wokingham 1179), have evolved a high-lift camshaft for the Hillman Minx engine. It also fits the Sunbeam-Talbot 80 and earlier Talbot Ten cars and provides a valve timing overlap of 50 deg. instead of the mere 8 deg. overlap of the standard Hillman camshaft, the exchange price is £7 2s. 6d. D. & A. Garage, who stock spares of the 1932-1939 Hillman Minx cars, claim that docility is unimpaired and fuel consumption scarcely increased.

250 R.C.
The 250 Racing Club haa been formed to bring motor racing within the financial scope of enthusiasts with extremely limited means. Club members will race in “home-made” four-wheel vehicles powered by an unblown engine of up to 250-cc, capacity. At the recent formation meeting — attended by members from London and the provinces — a committee was formed, club officers elected, and a specification drafted. Many members are ready to build, and those who are still dubious should be reassured when they hear that all are working within a low price-limit. The specification assures that dexterity counts for more than money.

Full details of the club, and copies of the specification may be had from the Secretary: A. F. Budd, Esq., The 250 Racing Club, “The Hollywood Arms,” Hollywood Road. London, S.W.10.

Aintree Race Track
A visit of the Press was arranged to the Aintree Track on February 16th last. The track was in the process of construction, and although there was much work to be done, the promoters were confident that it would be ready for the first meeting on May 29th of this year.

At the conclusion of the lunch, Mrs. Topham said that it was hoped to hold two Grand Prix meetings per year and possibly two motor-cycle meetings. The track will be constructed on the outside of the existing famous Aintree “Grand National” Racecourse. The circuit will be three miles in length, the longest straight will be three-quarters of a mile, and it is, anticipated that lap speeds will be bet ween 85 and 95 m.p.h. There will be a club circuit available for club members at weekends, the length of this circuit will be 1 3/4 miles. On a clear day the whole circuit can be viewed -all the way round from the top of the grandstands.

All the, facilities which are available to the horse-racing public will also be available to motor-racing spectators. The Press facilities will surpass any motor-racing circuit in Europe. The overall motor-racing organisation will be in the hands of the B.A.R.C. — J. C. M.

A New Morgan
The Morgan Plus Four, hitherto only available with single carburetter Vanguard engine, can now be supplied with the same two, carburetter, high-output Vanguard power-unit as is used in the Triumph TR2. The price of this two-carburetter Plus Four, which has a rev.-counter and bumpers front and back, is £585, -plus p.t.

The 1954 “Motor Sport” Brooklands Memorial Trophy Contest
This year, besides the Brooklands Trophy and replica, a first prize of £75, second prize of £35 and third prize of £15 will be awarded. The contest takes place at the three B.A.R.C. Club Race Meetings at Goodwood, the next of which is on May 1st, at 2 p.m.