Brooklands Bulletin Issue 75 May/June 2022

brooklands bulletin

Land Speed Record at Brooklands100 years on from KLG’s achievement

Welcome

Brooklands has always been a centre for innovation and that delightfully different mindset that brings about advances in engineering and thinking. This is why early World Land Speed Records were set at the Track and why the Museum is marking the achievement of Kenelm Lee Guinness 100 years to the day he raised the bar at the wheel of his Sunbeam.

That same record-setting spirit was also abundantly clear when HM Walters built the delicate Jappic in 1925. Sadly, the car was destroyed in a fire in 1932, but that didn’t stop Adrian Ward from making his wonderful recreation that is as close to the original as is possible, and he brought it to Brooklands to follow in the narrow wheel tracks of those recordsetting pioneers. If you missed seeing Adrian’s car on Secrets of the Transport Museum, I can recommend watching the catch-up on UKTV Play.

To underline the point about Brooklands pushing the boundaries of what is possible, we also have features on Sir Thomas Sopwith and Allen Millyard. Allen embodies the spirit of Brooklands with his amazing garagebuilt motorcycles and is another star of the television series. I hope you are as inspired by the work of these innovators as I am.

Alisdair Suttie Editor Brooklands Bulletin

Become a Member

Brooklands Members is the official support organisation for Brooklands Museum and is dedicated to raising funds for the preservation of the historic Brooklands site.

Members receive the Bulletin six times per year and enjoy free admission to the Museum, except when major events are taking place, in which case additional charges may apply. Club Level Members have access to the Clubhouse Bar on Thursday, Friday and Sunday lunchtimes.

For full details of membership benefits, contact the Members Administrator, Sarah Dover 01932 857381 ext 226; or www.brooklandsmuseum.com/ brooklands-members where you can find the latest news on Brooklands.

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Front Cover photo: F Gordon Crosby

Trustees receive Carmen Award for Merit

The Awards Committee of the Worshipful Company of Carmen has recommended to the Court that this year its Carmen Award for Merit is awarded to the Trustees of the Brooklands Museum Trust. The award recognises outstanding achievement worldwide in the sphere of transport by an individual or group.

Leon Daniels, Chairman of the Awards Committee, said: ‘The award is made in recognition of the extraordinary efforts made by the Trust to overcome the difficulties of the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure the continuance of this fine Museum.’

Sir Gerald Acher, Chairman of the Brooklands Museum Trust, said: ‘I’m very touched by this award. It is particularly kind because in the last two years my trustees have gone over and beyond the call of duty and their expertise has helped put us in the unique position we find ourselves in ready to move forward as covid retreats. I am so lucky to have such a good group of committed, collegiate and competent trustees. The organisation is often thanked publicly by outside bodies but rarely are the trustees singled out, so this is very special.’

Brooklands shortlisted for Beautiful South Award

Mini Day, big success

The Treorchy Male Voice Choir was on its way to Twickenham and stopped off at Brooklands. There were 56 in the group and, after spending some time looking around, they gave a recital in the Vimy pavilion. It was a splendid and very welcome display of singing.

Alan Brooker

Brooklands Museum has been shortlisted for the coveted Beautiful South Awards. The Museum is one of the finalists in the Large Visitor Attraction category. Up against prestigious rivals such as Bletchley Park, RHS Garden Wisley, and Wellington Country Park, Brooklands has been shortlisted for its excellence and high standards of visitor assurance shown during the pandemic.

Tamalie Newbery, CEO of Brooklands Museum, said: ‘We are thrilled to be a finalist. Bringing the history of Brooklands to life is a team effort involving staff and hundreds of volunteers. Every day, they make sure visitors enjoy themselves and are inspired. Being a finalist is testament to the whole team.’

Mini Day at Brooklands was a big success, and Minis of all shapes, sizes, ages and varieties turned up.

As well as the classic and converted Minis was this beautiful red two-seater Mini Cooper S Roadster belonging to my neighbour, David Norman. I persuaded him to bring it along as Roadsters are not particularly common.

The old chap seen in the simulator is David and, at over 80, he may have been the oldest person to use it that day. He was not the fastest but he did keep it on the track! He enjoyed the experience and thoroughly enjoyed the day along with everyone else who attended.

Martin Chandler

Notice of the Thirteenth Brooklands Members AGM

The Annual General Meeting of the Brooklands Members is planned to be at Brooklands Museum on 21 September 2022, with the voting for Committee taking place electronically in July. If you are considering whether to volunteer and stand for Committee, please contact either our Chairman Neil Bailey or Secretary Kevin Lee to find out what is involved and to receive a Nomination Form.

Completed Nomination Forms to stand for election to Committee must be returned to the Secretary no later than Friday 3 June, 2022.

Kevin Lee, Hon Secretary

M: 07816 519461; E: secretary@brooklandsmembers.co.uk

Message from Members’ Chairman

I start this month with good news about membership. Inevitably, membership numbers dropped during covid, and we thought that it would take at least a couple of years to return to prepandemic levels. However, I am delighted to report that at the end of March we have more Members at 6367 than we did in January 2020, when there were 6321. This a remarkable achievement, and thanks are due to all of you who have renewed during the pandemic, the new members who have signed up since we started recruiting again in the summer, and the sterling efforts of the staff in the shop and, of course, our own Outreach Team. Membership is still remarkably good value for money, and it has been gratifying to see so many of you returning to visit us as the 2022 season progresses. By the time that you are reading this, the postponed New Year’s Day event, now renamed as the Easter Classic Gathering on 16 April, will have taken place and hopefully we will have welcomed record numbers of existing Members and new recruits. You will see elsewhere on the news pages a notice from Kevin Lee, our Honorary Secretary, announcing that the AGM is scheduled to take place on Wednesday 21 September. This will be a ‘hybrid’ meeting that will be held on site and online as was the case last year. We will provide full details nearer the time, but it is likely that we will not be able to use the Napier Room at that time,

Brooklands awarded £488,000 grant

Brooklands Museum has been awarded a £488,000 grant from the Museum Estate and Development Fund run by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

The grant has been given to assist with essential renovation works to the fabric of the Grade II Listed Clubhouse, including the restoration of the Members Bar balcony on the south side of the Clubhouse, repairs to most of the windows throughout the building, and making the roof lantern waterproof.

The total grant of £488,000 helps towards a total project cost in the region of £560,000, with the Museum funding the rest of the project itself.

The historic Clubhouse was built in 1907 and was used to accommodate race officials, the Clerk of the Scales, and the Clerk of the Course. It was also used by Barnes Wallis in 1947 as part of the Vickers-Armstrongs Research and Development Department.

as we anticipate that work on the installation of a lift in the Clubhouse will still be in progress. If this is the case, we should be able to relocate to the Vickers Suite.

I again encourage you to apply for election to the Committee, which will be conducted online, with voting opening on 1 July and closing on 21 August. Full details of the arrangements will be circulated towards the end of June. We are particularly keen to broaden the diversity of Committee membership, and welcome applications from groups that are currently under-represented, such as Family Members for example. Please feel free to get in touch with either myself or Kevin Lee if you are considering applying, and we will answer any questions that you may have.

Many of you have asked me about plans for our Annual Dinner and I will update you as soon as I can. At the moment, there are several obstacles to be overcome. Following the removal of the Russian Grand Prix from the Formula 1 calendar, it may be that the availability of our President, Damon Hill, is subject to change, and as mentioned above the timetable for the building works in the Clubhouse is still being finalised, but rest assured that as soon as I know, I will let you know.

Neil Bailey

Director’s Message

With the season well underway already, I hope you are enjoying being able to get out and about and especially enjoying visits to Brooklands Museum. If you came over the Easter Holidays you will have seen, or maybe taken part in, the great drop-in children’s activity in the Motoring Village. And whenever you visit, you can now have a go at the Lego activity in the McLaren Driven by Design exhibition. All our interactives are open again now, so it’s a great time to visit.

The Science Week celebrations in March have been a particular highlight of the year so far, supported by Tom Corry, a secondary school teacher, seconded to Brooklands Museum from Bourne Education Trust, funded by Federation Skills

Railton Terraplane

Trust, to support the development of our learning programmes. We are also grateful to the Walton Charity and Cargill for their support of the learning department.

We are also pleased to be able to be investing in Brooklands future. We have

had two successful funding applications for the Clubhouse, which means that work will be starting this summer to install a lift in the building, as well as to undertake repairs to the Clubhouse Tower and south Balcony. Later in the year, there will also be a programme of repairs to the windows and roof lantern to address the water ingress which has been an ongoing issue. The repaired external staircases will also be painted once the weather is reliably good.

By the time you read this, we will know whether we won the Beautiful South Large Visitor Attraction of the Year Award. Whether we do or not, we are very proud to have reached the finals and it’s a testament to the hundreds of people who help and support the Museum that we got so far.

Tamalie Newbery

were considered beyond salvation and the decision was taken to send them for re-lining. This was also an opportunity to deal with a longstanding problem with one of the hubs. At some time in the distant past, the thread on one of the wheel bolt holes had been stripped and a repair had been made using a Helicoil insert. Unfortunately, the pitch of the thread on the insert didn’t match the UNF thread of the other holes, resulting in damage to the wheel bolts every time they were removed and replaced. The solution was to take the hub to a specialist engineering workshop, where the offending insert was removed and the hub was machined to accept a conical plug. This was then drilled and tapped with a thread which matched the other holes.

As is often the case with old cars, the first sign of a problem was an ominous pool of liquid on the floor. A closer look showed that something black and sticky was leaking out of the rear axle and dripping down the inside face of the tyres. Brake fluid was swiftly ruled out as the car has cable operated brakes. The only plausible explanation was the oil seals at either end of the axle had failed and oil was seeping past them into the brake drums and, from there, onto the wheels and then on to the floor..

After initially considering removing the entire rear axle and sending it to a specialist rebuilder at a cost of several thousand pounds, the Motoring Team decided they would tackle the task. Malcolm Day and Chris Bound showed too much interest in taking on the job and were duly rewarded for their folly by being nominated to do the work.

Readers may know that, under the car’s elegant and very British bodywork, lies a robust but unsophisticated American chassis and running gear. The design of the rear axle is such that the wheel hubs and brake drums are a single composite component. To establish what work was required, the first task was to remove the road wheels and hubs. Despite having a purpose-made hub puller, the left-hand hub put up a considerable fight and it was only after several attempts that it was persuaded to part with the tapered half-shaft.

Once both hubs were removed, it became clear that oil had indeed leaked into the brake drums and the linings on the shoes were badly contaminated. Although some bright spark suggested the linings could be revived by soaking them in petrol and then setting fire to them, they

Fortunately for us, not only is there an active Railton Owners Club, holding workshop manuals and stocks of spare parts, but there is also a helpful Spares Secretary willing to dispense advice on how to tackle the job. New inner and outer oil seals were duly ordered, together with a set of four new wheel bolts.

While we were waiting for delivery of new and refurbished parts, we continued our preparatory work. The braking mechanisms were removed completely and the bearing assemblies were unbolted. Using a specially made puller, they were then withdrawn complete with the half-shafts. Once removed, we were able to inspect the oil seals and the bearings. As expected, although the outer seals were known to have been replaced with modern components about 15 years ago, the inner seals were found to be the original type of felt disc. It seems likely that these had been in place since 1935 and they were the root cause of our problems.

A week later, all the parts arrived and were ready for reassembly. Unusually, when old cars are involved, this proved to be a fairly straightforward process. The new inner seals were inserted into the ends of the axle casing and drifted into position. Then the outer seals were fitted into the bearing carriers and the half-shafts refitted. End float was checked and shims behind the bearing cap were added or removed accordingly. After reassembling the brakes, fitting the new shoes and re-fitting the hubs and wheels, it was time for a test drive. After a few laps of the Finishing Straight, the team was satisfied that all was well.

Chris Bound

TOOL CHESTS/ CABINETS

GARAGES/WORKSHOPS

The following were received from the recent MoT on the Bentley 4.5-Litre. There was some play in the offside front wheel bearing, and excessive movement was found in the spring-loaded track rod end.

We decided to rectify the front wheel bearing play first and removed the offside front wheel and hubs to investigate. On fully tightening the wheel bearing, the play was still there. On closer examination, it was seen that the specially shaped washer under the nut was not locating on the taper bearing correctly. A copper shim was made up that permitted the correct loading on the bearing and proper adjustment.

The spring-loaded track rod end adjusting device was screwed in to minimise the excessive movement and locked in place with a new split pin. We will sort out the rear bearings at a future date, but need to sort out a suitable hub puller first.

Roger Horsfield

Please

Liddon remembered

Dear Sir,

With Roger Horsfield driving the Napier Colonial as escort, I took the Salmson for an MoT on Thursday 3 March. It was good to have the opportunity to inspect the underside of the car while up on the lift. Remarkably clean with no oil leaks, it’s a testament to the maintenance provided by Colin Shaw over the past few years.

The odometer read 47,938 miles with a distance of 23 miles recorded since the last MoT in July 2018. The test proceeded without too much of a hitch except that on the first run to check the brake efficiency, the percentage measured was 46.4%. A 50% efficiency reading is required for a pass. On a second run using foot and handbrake together, it measured at 50.07%!

So, a pass with advisories for the rear tyres, rear shock absorbers, and three out of four wheel bearings. A fantastic result for a 97-year old car.

While the Salmson was on the hoist, I took a picture of this plate on the rear axle, which translated reads ‘Fill with thick oil to the level of the plug, Check every 50 hours of running.’ We plan to resolve the issues with the wheel bearings and the shock absorber bushes in the coming weeks.

Paul Wheaton

Bulletin book reviews

Dear Sir,

Your review of Paddy Hopkirk’s recent Talk contained a picture of the Montewinning Mini ‘33 EJB’ in which Paddy’s co-driver and navigator, Henry Liddon, featured prominently. However, there was no caption and I think it right that Henry’s role in the BMC rallying success story is not forgotten. Indeed, Henry has been described as ‘one of the greatest co-drivers in world rallying.’

My father was Managing Director of Bristol Motor Company, the main dealer that was asked to ‘sponsor’ the 1964 Monte Carlo Rally effort and, as part of that support, employed Henry Liddon within the business. He won four times with the great Timo Mäkinen and also competed successfully alongside such drivers as Aaltonen, Fall, Lampinen, Mehta, Mikkola, Munari and Nicolas in the BMC, Ford, Lancia and Peugeot factory teams.

At the end of his competition career, he signed up with Toyota to partner Ove Andersson until the end of 1980. Andersson became the boss of Toyota Team Europe (TTE) and Henry was hired to be his leading management assistant. Alas, though, Henry Liddon died at the age of 55 on 23 September, 1987 when TTE’s Cessna 340 aeroplane, which was supporting the team on the Rallye Cote d’Ivoire, crashed and exploded.

Mini Cooper ‘33 EJB’, meanwhile, is usually to be seen housed in the British Motor Museum at Gaydon in Warwickshire.

Best regards,

Roger B Phillips

In the last issue, Gareth Tarr had written a splendid review on a book by Neal Bascomb called Faster, and with his help I managed to eventually get hold of a copy, and an excellent read it is too. It demonstrates the great value of the Bulletin to Members.

The book is the story of the 1938 Pau Grand Prix, where the French Delahaye beat the W154 Mercedes at a time when it was utterly dominant, and financed by the Nazi war machine, but what made the story all the more poignant was the fact that the driver, Rene Dreyfuss, was actually Jewish.

I won’t review it here, as Gareth did that extremely well in the last issue, but I did just want to say thank you to the Bulletin for publishing his review, which just shows what a useful publication it is, as well as being thoroughly enjoyable.

Very best wishes,

Julian Nowell

forthcoming events

2022 Museum Events

The Events List is subject to change, so please check the website: www.brooklandsmuseum.com. Email events@brooklandsmuseum.com or telephone the Museum on: 01932 857381 for information. Test Hill, car rides and engine runs are subject to operational conditions.

May

6 Scouts, Guides and Cadets: Twilight Opening. A hands-on evening of activities at the Museum to support Science and Air badges. 6-9pm.

15 Jaguar Drivers Club and Jaguar Enthusiasts Club Jaguar 100th Anniversary.

17 Centenary of Speed.

29 Classic and Kit Car London to Brighton Run Start. Participants are flagged off from Brooklands

18-19 June

Brooklands Festival of Motorsport featuring the Double Twelve. One of the highlights of the year at Brooklands, this two-day celebration of motor racing has three Double Twelve Competition events, Test Hill ascents, as well as food, music and entertainment for all the family. Come and enjoy the summer atmosphere and watch the Driving Tests at MercedesBenz World on the Saturday and on the Banking and Finishing Straight on Sunday. And make sure you take part in the Visitors Choice award in the Pride of Brooklands Concours.

26 June

London Bus Museum On The Buses. One of the biggest bus events of the year in the UK with many rare buses, taxis and commercial vehicles on display. This is also a chance to celebrate the re-opening of the London Bus Museum with its new look.

17 May

Centenary of Speed. Celebrating 100 years since the Land Speed Record was last set at Brooklands by Kenelm Lee Guinness in the 350hp Sunbeam. This will be a day of engaging activities to mark this important record, which combined automotive design and aviation engineering to create the fastest car on Earth at the time. Run in partnership with the National Motor Museum and The Transport Trust, you will be able to see the 350hp Sunbeam at Brooklands 100 years to the day it set the record. Other notable cars will be there such as the Napier-Railton and the ‘Beast of Turin’.

June 11 Cosworth Drivers Club Meeting.

18-19 Brooklands Festival of Motorsport

26 London Bus Museum On The Buses.

July 3 The Brooklands Motorcycle Show.

24 Summer Classic Gathering and Auto Jumble. From classic cars to classic clothes, it’s all welcome at this event, which has a

29 Mopar Muscle Association. Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth and all cars with a MOPAR badge gather to make the ground shake to sound of V8s. 10am-5pm.

3 July

The Brooklands Motorcycle Show. From superbikes to the super rare, all sorts of motorcycles will be at this event, and many will be demonstrated by the Motorcycle Team. This is also a chance to see many of the motorcycles and people who feature in Secrets of the Transport Museum. The Test Hill will be in action as pre-war machines are pitted against their modern-day equivalents, and you can book to ride your own motorcycle up the hill.

wide range of stalls to help you find that essential item.

September

4 American Day

11 Emergency Services Day. One of the most popular events of the year pays tribute to all those who keep us safe and save lives.

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September

23 Scouts, Guides and Cadets: Twilight Opening. A chance to get hands-on with activities and demonstrations to find out what happens in a factory at night.

October

9 Autumn Motorsport Day.

6 November

9 October

Autumn Motorsport Day. Racing fans can thrill at the sight of everything from Group B rally cars to Formula 1 machines. Visitors can see competition cars in action on the MercedesBenz World track and on Test Hill, as Brooklands hums to the sound of racing engines. There will also be a large number of motor clubs on the Finishing Straight taking part in an Autotest.

23 London Bus Museum Transportfest. Buses, taxis, military and emergency vehicles make up this amazingly varied day for all the family.

November 6 Military Vehicles Day.

Military Vehicles Day. More than 100 vehicles across the decades will be on hand to tell the story of machinery used in armed conflict. The Paddock and Motoring Village will be busy with displays, and you can see plenty of these military vehicles put through their paces in the Mercedes-Benz World 4x4 course. Test Hill will also be in full swing to show the climbing abilities of many of the hardworking classics.

American Day. Classic metal in all shapes, sizes and power outputs come to Brooklands for this celebration of chrome, fins and motoring muscle. There’s live Rock ‘n’ Roll music and you can treat yourself to a hot dog or burger from the food stalls.

2022 Members’ Events

For Members’ Tours and Trips information, please contact Angela Hume on: angelahume@brooklandsmembers.co.uk Events at the National Motor Museum should be booked directly with Beaulieu. Brooklands Members are charged the Friends of the National Motor Museum rate for entry.

June

2-6 Jersey International Motoring Festival. Organised by Scenic Car Tours, there are spaces available for a superb weekend of motorsport, driving and socialising. This event is open to cars and motorcycles, and we will be staying at the delightful Hotel de France. The Jersey International Motoring Festival is an ideal mix of vintage cars, motorcycles, competitive hillclimb and sprint runs, and picturesque touring roads. Entrants to the tour will also have the chance to display their pride and joy as part of the show.

4 Cobham Car Show. The Outreach Team is looking for 12 cars to represent a spread of years across the reign of HRH Queen Elizabeth II. Anyone interested in displaying their car as part of this event, please contact David Norfolk on: david.norfolk@outlook.com

13-14 Anglesey Circuit and Welsh Adventure. An exhilarating trip to Wales taking in great driving roads and a visit to the exciting racing track right next to the sea. A relaxed evening event makes up part of this keenly anticipated event that gives you time to enjoy your car on circuit and in the amazing scenery of central Wales and Snowdonia. Passengers can also come on track in your car for a small additional fee.

August

14 Cranleigh Classic Car Show and Autojumble. Brooklands Outreach Team will be attending and the show’s organisers have also asked if Brooklands Members would like to parade 20 cars and motorcycles. This

is a great classic vehicle show and anyone interested in taking part in the parade should contact David Norfolk on: david.norfolk@outlook.com

September

4 Shere Hill Climb. Come and join us in the Brooklands Paddock. If you want your car in our Paddock, please contact Angela Hume.

24-25 Kop Hill. Brooklands Members put on a great display at this wonderful event. This year marks the 110th anniversary of competition at Kop Hill. Any car or motorcycle registered between 1900 and 1982 is being invited to enter and there will be timed and untimed runs in front a 16,000-strong crowd.

October

7-10 Llanerchindda Farm. This tour is always very popular and books up quickly, so get in early to make sure you have a place as entries are limited. Enjoy superb roads and great hospitality in the company of Brooklands Members.

Brooklands Members Talks: update

The Talks programme is very busy for 2022 and next up is a talk to coincide with the Centenary of Speed about the 350hp Sunbeam. This will cover the 100th anniversary of the Land Speed Record at Brooklands and will be given by a team from the National Motor Museum between 11am and 12 noon on 17 May. Then, on 19 May, we have author of the book Absurd Keith Futcher talking about his adventures riding across Morocco on his Royal Enfield motorcycle.

In June, we are privileged to be in conversation with legendary team boss of West Surrey Racing Dick Bennetts. This is on 16 June and Dick will give insights into the early careers of drivers such as Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and Rubens Barichello, as well as the team’s time competing in the British Touring Car Championship. Following this on 21 July, we have a talk about the de Havilland Mosquito project that was covered in the July-August 2021 issue of the Bulletin. These Talks will all be on BM.tv Livestream for those who cannot attend in person. Previous talks can be viewed on our BM.tv channel. You can find a link on the BM.tv section of the Museum website. The Talks Booking email address is: talks@brooklandsmembers.co.uk Talks can also be booked online at: www.brooklandsmuseum.com/brooklands-members/ member-events

Harry Sherrard and The Talks Team

THE FASTEST PLACE ON EARTH

LG Hornsted was nicknamed Cupid and he managed to charm Benz into loaning him a Blitzen to use at Brooklands. He set the first two-way record in 1914 with an average speed of 124.10mph.

Words: Gareth Tarr Photos: Mercedes-Benz, Gareth Tarr

In more than 120 years since a Land Speed Record (LSR) was first recognised, British names have been to the fore. Segrave, Campbell, Cobb, Noble and Green will be familiar to anyone who has studied the subject. Brooklands is less well associated with the record, but on three instances it was the host for the fastest speed on Earth being established. Additionally, multiple speed records varying by class decided by engine size, method of propulsion, distance, as well as standing or flying starts were established in Weybridge.

In the early days, there was little regulation of speed records until the founding of the AIACR (Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus) in 1904 provided a suitable regulatory body. There were still other claimant organisations and certainly some faster records set in the US were not recognised in Europe, especially after 1911 when the AIACR created the requirement

for a qualifying run to be the average of times set in two opposite directions. This means that while the 1909 record set by Victor Hémery at Brooklands is undisputed as the fastest at that time, the records set at the Weybridge track by LG Hornsted and Kenelm Lee Guinness in 1914 and 1922 respectively had rival, faster one-way claimants. If one accepts the AIACR body as the correct regulator, then Brooklands was continuously the venue for the record from late 1909 until July 1924 when Arjapan, France became the location of a new record.

In 1922, record-breaking at Brooklands started in February and March with AC taking various class records. Then, in early May, Captain AG Miller sharing a 1264cc Wolseley Moth with Claude Temple and 23-year old Tony Vandervell, who was later owner of the Vanwall Grand Prix team of the 1950s, took light car class records. Shortly after, it was time for the big one

On 29 April, 1899, Camille Jenatzy became the first man to exceed 100kph on the road, the name of his car was La Jamais Contente (The Never Happy). It is perhaps this ambition that continues to inspire individuals to pursue the ultimate four-wheeled prize of the Land Speed Record. On the centenary of the last time Brooklands played host to that record, we look back on those history-making days at the Surrey track.

Camille Jenatzy was the first person to exceed 100kph (62mph) on land using his car La Jamais Contente. This simple machine lit the touch paper for all of the World Land Speed Record attempts that have followed.

Victor Hémery – the first record

Victor Hémery was born in Sille-leGuillaume, Sarthe, France and spent the early part of his career as a mechanic at the Leon Bollee works in the nearby city of Le Mans. He subsequently joined Darracq for whom he set the Land Speed Record of 109.65mph at Arles in December 1905 and took part in the first ever Grand Prix at Le Mans in 1906. He joined Benz & Cie for 1907, his most notable race result being 2nd at the 1908 French Grand Prix held at Dieppe.

Late 1909 saw various speed records being attempted at Brooklands and and on 8 November Victor Hémery came to the circuit with the 200hp ‘Blitzen’ Benz. Firstly, using the 21½-litre four-cylinder’s

fabulous power he set the World standing start half-mile, kilometre and mile records, The Autocar commented: ‘Certainly we have never at Brooklands seen a car with such marvellous accelerating capabilities.’ Then he went for the outright speed records; the flying half mile average was 127.877mph, kilometre 125.947mph (202.648kph) and mile 115.923mph. The kilometre distance was recognised by the AIACR as the new Land Speed Record, the first time the magic 200kph had been achieved. This was the first time the record could be tracked to three decimal places using new Holden measuring equipment.

and, on the evening of 16 May Kenelm Lee Guinness (KLG) brought out the V12 350hp Sunbeam for some preliminary runs. The car had been significantly improved since its debut the year before and was now setting prodigious times. Using friends’ headlights for signals as dusk fell that evening, it was estimated that KLG had covered the halfmile at 144mph. Clearly, the Land Speed record was in sight.

Victor Heméry prepares for a run at Brooklands in November 1909, when he set a new Land Speed Record of 125.947mph in the Blitzen Benz.

On 17 May, a high wind was blowing down the Railway Straight where the record attempt was to be measured, meaning Guinness and the Sunbeam team had to wait. Brooklands Clerk of the Course Colonel Lindsay-Lloyd had confirmed with the AIACR that the timing equipment to be used would comply with their requirements for official recognition. Indeed, he had arranged that if the

The Blitzen Benz in its more traditional white livery as used by Victor Hémery at Brooklands to set new records for the standing start half-mile, kilometre, and mile distances.

This is a replica of the Blitzen Benz used by LG Hornsted for his record-breaking runs. It clearly shows the simpler nose cowl and dark blue paint of the car driven by Hornsted.

Sunbeam team’s attempts were successful, the timing equipment would be sealed and sent to Paris for inspection.

Around 5pm, the weather had abated and KLG, bare-headed and wearing a collar and tie, could start his runs, firstly in the reverse, clockwise direction of the 2.75-mile track. He set a half-mile speed of 140.51mph, the highest recorded at Brooklands at that time, and 1-mile and 2-mile speeds of 127.88- and 122.11mph respectively. Then, running against the remaining wind in the anti-clockwise direction, for the same distances he recorded speeds of 131.86-, 130.48- and 125.61mph respectively. The average flying kilometre of 133.75mph was the new Land Speed Record, beating LG Hornsted’s figure by 9.65mph. It was to stand for more than two years.

Guinness’ day was not yet done, however. Inspection of the Palmer tyres showed little wear and KLG was sent out to break the half-kilometre, kilometre and mile standing start records during which he

Lydston Hornsted – the first two-way record

Lydston Granville Hornsted, known as Cupid, was a Brooklands regular and Benz representative. He persuaded the factory to loan him a Blitzen Benz (chassis 9141) for record attempts at Brooklands. The car was modified to Hornsted’s requirements, most noticeably with a simpler radiator cowl that did away with the distinctive snout, and gained staggered seating, an elongated pointed tail, and was painted a very dark blue that earned it the nick-name The Big Black Benz by the Brooklands crowd. Cupid started various successful record-breaking attempts in December 1913, but it wasn’t until the afternoon of 24 June, 1914 that he broke the outright Land Speed Record. His times were 128.16mph one way and 120.23mph the other, giving an average of 124.10mph, the speed variance demonstrating the validity of the AIACR’s two-way average rule and it was the first time the record was recognised using this methodology. It is a sign of the driver’s bravery that the same morning he had tried for the 1-hour record only to have a tyre burst at over 100mph, the debris hitting Hornsted on the elbow.

Although chassis 9141 was subsequently returned to the factory, it came back to Brooklands in the summer of 1922. Its final appearance was on 30 September when driver John Duff crossed the finishing line at more than 120mph and was unable to stop the car going over the banking. The damage put an end to 9141’s competitive career, but two years later John Duff was to win the Le Mans 24 hours sharing a Bentley 3-Litre with Frank Clement.

Kenelm Lee Guinness –beer to spark plugs

Kenelm Lee Guinness, known as Bill, was born in London in 1887, a direct descendant of the Irish brewing family. Starting as riding mechanic to his elder brother Algernon, Kenelm’s first major race as a driver was the 1907 Tourist Trophy at the helm of a Darracq. Having joined Sunbeam in 1913 as a works driver, he took part in class speed records at Brooklands later that year. He scored a major victory in the 1914 Tourist Trophy, maintaining an average speed of 56mph over the 16 laps of the Isle of Man course.

Meanwhile, Bill Guinness’ racing experience had demonstrated the weakness of existing spark plugs and he founded a new company with brother Algy to develop improved designs. By 1914, the Putney-based KLG works was turning out 4000 plugs per week. In 1929, the factory also built Segrave’s Land Speed Record car Golden Arrow

Bill Guinness resumed racing with Sunbeam after the First World War, achieving a 120mph lap at Brooklands in 1921 and winning the 200 Mile race a year later. Following an accident at the 1924 San Sebastian Grand Prix in which he suffered serious injuries and his mechanic was killed, Bill Guinness retired from racing.

This Gordon Crosby painting captures the drama of Kenelm Lee Guinness driving the Sunbeam, which he used to raise the Land Speed Record to 133.75mph.

The Blitzen Benz used by Hornsted had staggered seating, longer rear bodywork and the distinctive dark blue paint. He used the car to set a new record of 124.10mph.

Kenelm Lee Guinness used his experience to develop a superior type of spark plug. These are the gates from his factory in Putney Vale that were donated to the Museum in 1989.

also set the Brooklands single lap record at 123.39mph. This record did not need to be set during a race in those days. Sunbeam wasn’t finished with records that week, with Henry Segrave taking eight class records in the 5-litre car in the subsequent days at speeds of up to 116mph. The following weekend saw the first Royal Meeting at the track and the successful Sunbeams were presented to HRH the Duke of York, later King George VI.

Initially, the oval nature of Brooklands had assisted in the setting of speed records, giving the driver space to build up speed before going through the measured distance, but in the end the bankings became a limitation themselves. Thereafter outright speed records would require a greater run-up distance that only beaches or other remote locations could provide. Consider that 13 years later in 1935 when John Cobb set the Brooklands outer circuit lap record of 143.33mph, the 535bhp Napier-Railton used 50 percent more power to exceed KLG’s fastest Sunbeam lap by only 20mph and one can understand the limitations. Brooklands was still suitable however for class record breaking and as late as 1938 Chris Staniland established International Class D records. Today, the record setting is largely forgotten, but 100 years ago Brooklands was ‘the fastest place on earth’.

Brooklands Museum will be celebrating the centenary of Kenelm Lee Guinness’s record with a series of talks on the morning of 17 May run in conjunction with the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu. For full details see the Museum’s website: www.brooklandsmuseum.com/whats-on/ 350hp-sunbeam-the-centenary-of-speed

The 350hp Sunbeam – the first past 150mph

In the 1920s, Brooklands saw several specials that were built using ex-First World War aero engines and the 350hp Sunbeam was one such. The 18,322cc 60-degree V12 of the Sunbeam was derived from the Manitou engine and had an output of 355bhp at 2100 rpm. The narrow body of polished aluminium was left unpainted, but the aerodynamic radiator cowl and tail were painted Sunbeam dark grey-green.

The car’s first appearance was due to be the 1921 Whitsun meeting at Brooklands, but in testing the week before Harry Hawker crashed the car on the Railway Straight. In the autumn, it was more successful at the Course de Côte de Gaillon hillclimb near Rouen, France, with driver René Thomas covering the 1km straight climb in a record 20.6 seconds at 108.3mph. The 350hp Sunbeam appeared several times at Brooklands in 1921 driven by Guinness, LG Hornsted, and Jean Chassagne. The car was upgraded over the winter and KLG won the 14th Short Handicap in May at an average speed of 111.42mph and a best lap of 118.86mph. A few days later, Guinness had his outright Land Speed Record run. The 30 September was the V12’s last competitive appearance at Brooklands, with Guinness again winning races.

In 1923, the 350hp Sunbeam was sold to Malcolm Campbell. It was prepared by a Leo Villa-led team and sent to Denmark for the Fanoe Island Speed Trials held on an eight-mile stretch of beach. It achieved a mean kilometre speed of 136.31mph and average mile of 137.72mph, but the timing gear used was not approved by the AIACR and therefore these runs were not officially recognised.

The car was updated over the winter with new bodywork by Boulton and Paul of Norwich, the obvious changes being a long, tapered tail and now painted blue. The last weekend in September saw Campbell and the V12 at the seven-mile Pendine beach course where at last he broke the Land Speed Record at an average of 146.16mph, beating Eldridge’s record by a mere 0.15mph. The magic 150mph was tantalisingly close, and Campbell and the V12 Sunbeam finally broke this on 21 July, 1925 with a two-way mile average speed of 150.766mph.

Afterwards, the car passed through various hands, including big band leader Billy Cotton and was eventually bought by Lord Montague in 1958. The car had a full engine restoration around 10 years ago and now resides in the Beaulieu Motor Museum alongside Segrave’s 1,000Hp Sunbeam and Golden Arrow

The 18.3-litre Sunbeam used by Malcolm Campbell lifted the Land Speed Record to 146.16mph before it went even faster to become the first past 150mph at Pendine Sands.

The Sunbeam 350hp as used by Malcolm Campbell to set a new record at Pendine Sands. By 1923, longer run-ups than Brooklands could provide were needed to achieve higher speeds.

1936/38 Meadows 4ED 1500cc cozette supercharger

In 1936 Rodney Sta ord wrote ‘Probably of something to do with being bored in my daily round of common tasks, I felt an urge to do something positively constructive and the idea was born to build a racing car with which to have some fun’. Born of this premise he started work on what was to become the Sta ord Special, and two years later he raced at Brooklands in the October Handicap. He and others competed in various events over the years up to 1990 (huge history available) when the current owner acquired it. It has since been entirely restored to as near as possible its original spec. It is on the button and in wonderful condition. It is accompanied by a wealth of information including correspondence from Rodney Sta ord, speci cation sheets, photographs, magazine articles and the VSCC Eligibility Document dated 2005. O ers. Please contact John Markey 01428 607899.

Campbell circuit 1938. Brooklands

SCIENCE WEEK SUCCESS

To celebrate Science Week and the theme of Growth, Brooklands Museum organised a unique programme of activities for our visiting school groups to experience the growth behind innovation, a core element of the Museum’s vision: inspiring people to shape the future through Brooklands’ history of innovation and endeavour.

Through its Learning and Engagement Programme, Brooklands Museum provides young people with the opportunity to discover the stories, qualities, skills and ideas of the pioneers and trailblazers working at Brooklands throughout the Twentieth century. Through these stories of what was accomplished at Brooklands, we aim to inspire people, especially those engaged in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects to shape the future and solve the challenges the world faces today.

The Museum hosted several schools as part of Science Week. Here’s what the students got up to during their visit.

Words: Laura Barclay Photos: Brooklands Museum

Students get ready to pressurise the water bottle rockets before launching them across the Track as part of their Science Week experiments at Brooklands.

With this in mind, a brand-new package for Key Stage 3 pupils in Years 7 to 9 was developed. This programme challenged students to build battery-powered propeller racers with design, financial and time restraints imposed on them, mirroring many of the challenges faced by some of the heroes of the Brooklands racetrack and pioneering flying schools. The passion and enthusiasm they put into their mini projects was commendable and showed determination and ingenuity in overcoming these obstacles to create the fastest racers. Our Volunteers were tremendous, giving their time to deliver brand new workshops and tours that centred on four key points of interest:

• The Napier-Railton as a demonstration of how technology of any era is cutting edge and pushes limits to break boundaries.

• The Vickers Vimy, Hawker Harrier, and the First to the Fastest exhibition as

examples of how determination and merging technologies of aviation and motoring can create world firsts.

• The Concorde and McLaren exhibits, to show how the work of many over decades can be distilled into high performance, one-of-a-kind machines that take on iconic status.

Launching water rockets into the sky and across the Track itself was a highlight of the week. Students worked in teams competing against each other using pressurised water in bottles to see who could fire their rockets the furtherst. We even had to make good use of the telehandler to collect some of the more enthusiastic water bottle rockets that tried to break free of the Finishing Straight, only to be stopped short by a rather pesky tree.

The theme of Growth this year really gave us an opportunity to bring to life

the stories of the Museum and Track to show our schools that this site has been the backbone of some of the greatest innovation and endeavour not just within Britain but the world. From the Harrier to the BSA Path Racer, there have been more examples of growth in technology and development at Brooklands than any single site in the country.

All of the hard work was summed up in two bits of feedback we received. The first said: ‘I just wanted to let you know the children had an amazing time on their visit. Their teacher said it was the best trip they’ve had to Brooklands.’ While the second added: ‘It was a brilliant day out at Brooklands for us all. The children had a great day out and the lengths you went to so we could finally visit were really appreciated. We look forward to visiting you again!’ It’s fair to say Brooklands has been an inspiration once again.

Students worked in teams to come up with the best bottle rockets, which they then launched to see which team’s could travel the furthest.

All of the students and Volunteers had a great time learning about the topic of Growth for Science Week, and some of the bottle rockets end up flying over the Finishing Straight.

NOTHING’S IMPOSSIBLE, JUST

the Motorcycle Show for the second series of Secrets of the Transport Museum.

For the 2021 Motorcycle Show, we were very privileged to have as one of our guests Allen Millyard. His name will be very familiar to motorcyclists as Allen has been building all sorts of special motorcycles for many years. His forte is building variations of multi-cylinder machines that look like they might have come out of the factory but are wonderfully unique. For example, joining two cylinder banks of 1000cc four-cylinder engines to make a 2000cc V8, or adding two cylinders to an existing three-cylinder bike to make an inline five. Many examples of Allen’s work can be found on his own YouTube channel, where he engagingly explains how he builds them. The current total of bikes he’s built is 57. Some of them can be found in prestigious museums around the world, such as the Barber Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Alabama in the US.

A week or so before our 2021 show, Andrew Walmsley, producer of the Secrets of The Transport Museum, called me on a Friday evening to ask if I’d mind going up to Allen’s place the following Tuesday to do some filming of us selecting some bikes to bring to the show. Would I mind! What a privilege, and I was almost out of the door before the end of the phone call. Oh yes, and one more thing, could I go by bike so they could film my arrival and departure.

Tuesday saw me leaving bright and early to get to Allen’s place in West Berkshire by the appointed time of 10am. Fortunately, it was a sunny day but I had

IMPROBABLE

Allen Millyard is renowned for his superb motorcycle creations. We go behind the scenes of his visit to

Words: Mark Fielder Photos: Mark Fielder, Martin Gegg, Middlechild Productions

Allen Millyard, left, and Mark Fielder with The Flying Millyard in Allen’s home garage. A unique motorcycle built at home, it looks like it could have been a Brooklands record-breaker.

extra waterproofs just in case as you may remember the heavy rainstorms we were having at the time. Making good time, I arrived slightly early. Allen made me very welcome and showed me round the collection of bikes he has at home, one of which he was working on to cure a petrol leak caused by degradation of a seal by ethanol. His workshop isn’t extensive, comprising a domestic garage in which he has a Colchester Bantam lathe, a small milling machine and a sturdy workbench. However, it is very tidy and well organised, and a lesson for those like me who are much less disciplined.

Our cameraman Jonny arrived and we set to with filming. Allen’s done a good bit of television work already, so it was familiar to him. Less so for me, but we soon got into the swing of things and it became just the two us being filmed chatting about his bikes. We discussed the various options such as the 8.0-litre bike with a Dodge Viper V10 engine. A little bit too much for Brooklands, bearing in mind the plan was for Allen to ride the bike up Test Hill. The

Viper managed more than 200mph at half throttle on the runway at Bruntingthorpe, where Cold War jets such as the Victor and Lightning do high speed runs.

After some deliberation, we selected The Flying Millyard, a 5.0-litre V-twin built in a 1920s style using two cylinders from a Pratt & Whitney R1830 radial engine and the six-cylinder Honda RC374 replica of the bikes raced by Mike Hailwood and Jim Redman in 1967. Two very contrasting machines bound to be crowd-pleasers at the show. Talk got round to Brooklands and bikes of the era, Allen having made a 1938 Velocette V-twin by joining a pair of 350cc MAC top ends on his own homemade crankcase. Velocette never made a V-twin but this machine looks so authentic

that some marque experts consider it to be the bike the factory could have built. I mentioned that it would be rather nice if he could also bring it along, being perfect for the era and location.

We wrapped up the filming after Jonny filmed me arriving and departing somewhat out of sequence but it all seems to work out in the editing. Allen and his wife Tracy were perfect hosts to Jonny and myself.

I journeyed home having had a most inspiring and interesting day. One of the questions we’d posed to Allen was: ‘Is there anything you might consider too difficult?’

After some thought, Allen smilingly replied: ‘Nothing is impossible, just maybe improbable.’ A perfect summary of his work.

Following the visit to Allen’s workshop,

Filming in Allen’s garage for the second series of Secrets of the Transport Museum. It may be small, but Allen’s garage is very organised and a lesson to all in keeping things tidy.

This is Allen’s Dodge Viper-powered motorcycle that uses a 5.0-litre V10 engine. It’s been timed on Bruntingthorpe’s runway at 200mph using only half throttle.

At the Motorcycle Show, Allen got his eye in on Test Hill using his home-built 1938 Velocette V-twin, which he created by joining two 350cc top ends using a crankcase he made himself.

There was huge interest in The Flying Millyard throughout the day at the Motorcycle Show. Allen spent so much time talking to visitors he ended up hoarse by the finish of the event.

Sunday 15 August saw an early start for the Motorcycle Team and all those helping out. I’d been allocated as Allen’s ‘fixer’ for the day, so when he arrived on the dot at 8am we were able to get his truck and trailer unloaded quickly. Much to my delight, he’d managed to include the Velocette, so we had three of his bikes featured. Allen got his truck and trailer parked up on the Members’ Banking and, like so many visitors, he was very much taken by the circuit and what it must have been like to ride. As can been seen in the photos, The Flying Millyard would have been very much at home as an outer circuit record-breaker.

Gates opened, the crowds came in and very soon Allen and his brother Brian were fully engaged in talking to our visitors about the machines, which they continued to do no-stop throughout the day. From time to time, the bikes were started up and visitors treated to the 135 decibels of the Honda RC374 replica, fortunately only very briefly to protect people’s hearing. We got Allen signed up and briefed for the Test Hill runs, so at the appointed time we took the bikes over to the assembly point. Allen builds his bikes to be used and they are easy for him to start. Having never ridden the hill before, he took the Velocette up first as a sighting run. It romped up with no problems. Next was The Flying Millyard. This went up pretty much on tick-over at maybe 350- to 400rpm. Then it was the turn of the RC374 and this saw the assembled crowds reeling from the wall of sound emanating from the six unsilenced megaphone exhausts. Nobody minded though, and everyone was delighted as it’s a sound that’ll never be heard on racetracks nowadays.

For Allen and Brian, the whole day

was a delight from start to finish. From a Brooklands perspective, we were very pleased to be able to host them and our visitors very much appreciated them being here. Allen talked himself hoarse and willingly posed for many photos. He said to me that he’d had an amazing time. We also managed to fit in a little bit more filming to complete the story of his visit. It makes an interesting feature in the second series of Secrets of the Transport Museum that’s done so much to build up the profile of our museum. BM.tv also took some film and interviewed Allen at the Museum.

Allen and Brian will be coming back as visitors to see more of the Museum, possibly

doing some demo runs with the Motorcycle Team. Could this visit inspire Allen to make motorcycle build number 58 a Brooklandsstyle record-breaking bike? Maybe we’ll see it at the 2022 Motorcycle Show this summer. After all, nothing’s impossible.

Getting ready to ascend Test Hill on The Flying Millyard. The aero-engine design and large capacity means it went up the hill at barely more than 400rpm.

Not a rare factory example, but Allen’s own garage-built replica of the Honda RC374 six-cylinder racing motorcycle. The original was raced by Mike Hailwood and Jim Redman.

Velocette didn’t make a V-twin, but Allen’s interpretation of what it could have been like is so good that many consider it the bike the factory should have made.

Mark Fielder and Allen Millyard with the Honda RC374 replica. One pair of the megaphone exhausts can be clearly seen in this image and explains why this motorcycle is ear-splittingly loud.

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SCHOOLED IN FLYING

Words: Alisdair Suttie Photos: Brooklands Museum Collection

The rapid growth of aviation at the beginning of the 20th Century was bound to appeal to inquisitive minds. Among the many who turned their attentions to flight was a young Thomas Sopwith, who was later knighted in 1953. It was this meeting of intelligence and a new technology that resulted in many of the aircraft that are now considered so fundamental to the development of aviation, yet Thomas Sopwith didn’t limit his ambitions to making aircraft, he also sought to inspire the pilots to fly them. For this reason, he created the Sopwith Aviation School at Brooklands in 1912.

Prior to this, Sopwith’s interest was piqued by the opportunity of a flight with Mrs Maurice Hewlett in a Farman plane at

Brooklands. Sopwith said: ‘I went down to Brooklands where Maurice Hewlett had brought a Farman over from France and was giving joyrides around Brooklands at a fiver a time. So, I thought I would have a fiver’s worth, which consisted of two circuits inside the track. I think that was the start of the bug.’

The flying school was not a whim as Sopwith was already a keen aviator by 1912, though one who perhaps would have benefitted from some instruction before his first attempt at the controls. He bought his first aircraft, a Howard T Wright Avis monoplane with 40hp ENV engine for the considerable sum of £630 in 1910 after he’d been bitten by the bug on that joyride with Maurice Hewlett. He’d already tried hot air ballooning and was a keen

motorcyclist, so he had an affinity with these early flying machines.

Early pilots were encouraged to practice ‘rollings’, where they taxied on the ground at increasing speed until the aircraft was at the point of taking off. Sopwith said about this: ‘It took a certain amount of time, but eventually you made friends with the aircraft. Then you started to roll it along and go a bit faster each time. As happened in several cases, one’s first flight was by mistake, because you looked over the side and found the ground had gone, so you had to try and get back again.’

On 22 October, 1910, Sopwith achieved 300 yards in flight. However, in trying to get back again, he lifted the nose too high and stalled the aircraft. This ended in a crash that seriously damaged the Avis

Sir Thomas Sopwith is rightly famous for his aircraft, but he also ran a flying school at Brooklands that proved just as influential in its short time in business.

Sopwith at the controls of his first aircraft, the Howard Wright Monoplane powered by a 40hp ENV engine. A crash followed Sopwith’s first 300-yard flight, but he was unhurt.

Sir Thomas Sopwith as a young man. He was a keen early motorcyclist and balloonist before he took up flying in 1910, and these pastimes helped him with his understanding of aircraft.

but not himself. Undeterred, Sopwith was back at the controls six days later and completed a full circuit of Brooklands on 4 November. His swift progress to becoming a pilot was matched by his determination to move up to a more powerful machine, which he duly did when he replaced the Avis with a 60hp Howard Wright biplane. It was in this aircraft that Sopwith was awarded his Aviator’s Certificate, number

31, and became a qualified pilot. Sopwith later commented: ‘I seized every opportunity to get into the air and by the time I had 10 hours flying behind me, I began to feel I was a really experienced pilot.’

These adventures had cost Sopwith a lot in buying and repairing his aircraft, so he was inspired to enter competitions to help fund his flying. This saw him flying in many countries and it was after he returned from the US in late 1911 that he

fell upon the idea of setting up a school. Brooklands was the natural place for Sopwith to start this enterprise as it was where he had learnt. Early in 1912, he received his aircraft back from the US and eagerly began to advertise The Sopwith Aviation School of Brooklands.

The school was officially announced on 1 February, 1912 and potential students were told they had a choice of four aircraft to learn on. To enrol, it cost £75 in tuition fees, which handily included any breakage and insurance. With an eye on the growth

After gaining his Aviator’s Certificate, Sopwith quickly upgraded from his 40hp Avis Monoplane to a 60hp Howard Wright biplane in 1910.

An advert for The Sopwith Aviation School with its proud statement that it can offer students four different types of aircraft, including one with dual controls to reduce learning time.

Sopwith sitting in the Howard Wright biplane as used by his flying school. Wright took a keen interest in the alterations to his design needed to fit the controls for a student.

of flying’s military potential, Sopwith offered a discounted rate to officers from the Army or Navy.

The venture was quickly endorsed by the burgeoning aviation press and CG Grey wrote: ‘Sopwith has now got a whole fleet of various machines, he ought to be able to turn out much better pilots than the man who is confined to one type of machine. The two biplanes are fitted with dual controls, so the pupil can learn the controls in the air. With Mr Sopwith himself as Chief Instructor, and that prince of tuners, Mr Sigrist, to keep the machines in order, the pupils at such a school ought never to lack either machines to fly or the best of tuition. To the man who wishes to become a really good all-round flier, Mr Sopwith’s school should appeal at once.’

High praise, indeed, and Grey’s words were prophetic as one of the early visitors to the school was Captain FH Sykes. Sopwith took him for a flight and Captain Sykes left impressed. Six years later, Sykes was Chief of the Air Staff and a useful contact for Sopwith, who by then had moved into aircraft production.

Thomas Sopwith’s inquiring mind meant he was soon looking for other projects to occupy his thoughts and he took up a position as a test and demonstration pilot for Howard Wright. This led to the development of aircraft for military use. In order for Sopwith to concentrate on this new work, he appointed FP Raynham as chief pilot, manager and instructor at his flying school, though Sopwith still gave experience flights to students, which must have been a highlight of their tuition.

A measure of the success of The Sopwith Aviation School of Brooklands is that its first pupil graduated with an Aviation Certificate on 16 April, 1912, which was less than three months since the school had opened for business. The successful student was DG Young, who passed at the controls of a Burgess Wright machine.

Another early student was one Major Trenchard, who went on to be known as ‘The Father of the Royal Air Force’. Trenchard needed to pass as a pilot within four weeks or lose his place at the Central Flying School because he would be over-age. To solve this problem, Trenchard approached Sopwith and explained his predicament, to which Sopwith was very sympathetic. The two agreed to press ahead with Trenchard’s training and flying lessons began on 18 July, 1910. On the last day of that month, Trenchard

Sopwith added a Burgess Wright biplane to his fleet and it was used by the first student to graduate from his flying school, a Mr DG Young who passed on 16 April, 1912.

With the flying school up and running successfully, Thomas Sopwith spent more of his time as test pilot for the Coventry Ordnance Works.

duly passed and was awarded his certificate on 13 August, just in time to meet the four-week deadline.

As if that were not enough, Sopwith added to his impressive list of early student recruits with one called HG Hawker. This was none other than Harry Hawker, who went on to become Sopwith Chief Test Pilot and then founded his own aircraft manufacturing business that Sopwith joined as Chairman of.

In the meantime, Raynham had left the Sopwith school to join L Flanders Ltd, which opened up a place for Mr Copeland Perry to take over as lead instructor at Brooklands. By now, Sopwith was being pulled in a number of directions, not least competing in races to promote the business and earn prize money. His work with Coventry Ordnance Works also kept him very busy and Sopwith was now making his move into aircraft production. The rising popularity of other flying schools such as the Flanders operation at Brooklands, as well as those run by Bristol, Vickers, Ducrocq, and GrahameWhite, as well as schools run at Hendon by Bleriot, Blackburn, Deperdussin, and Ewen, convinced Sopwith the the market was becoming crowded. Thomas Sopwith recognised the time was right to move on as pilot training was already becoming something that was widely available and, to some extent, even routine. Not the sort of thing to hold the attention of a mind that thrived on new challenges.

As The Sopwith Aviation School of Brooklands was allowed to wind down less than a year after it had started, Sopwith, Sigrist and Hawker were well on

their way to completing their first aircraft under the Sopwith banner. Yet even in the brief spell of running his flying school, Thomas Sopwith had proved influential

Seen here in 1913 in a brochure picture for Sopwith Aviation, Thomas Sopwith poses with his first true design of aircraft, the three-seat biplane.

in encouraging more people to fly and teaching some of those who would go on to become key to the development of flying and aircraft.

Harry Hawker, on the right, was a student at the Sopwith Aviation School and went on to be Sopwith’s chief test pilot before setting up his own business that Sopwith joined as Chairman.

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SMALL BUT PERFECTLY FORMED

Adrian Ward’s Jappic recreation is a superb reproduction of one of the smallest capacity cars to set records at Brooklands. Here’s how he built his superbly detailed machine.

Words: Alisdair Suttie Photos: Adrian Ward

Among the many thunderous large-engined cars competing at Brooklands in the 1920s, there is a much smaller machine that grabbed numerous records and just as many headlines. This was the 344cc Jappic ‘cyclecar’, and it continues to capture imaginations today thanks to a superb recreation by Adrian Ward that was the star of episode nine of Secrets of the Transport Museum

The original Jappic, by then known as the HS Special as it was renamed and driven by Gwenda Stewart, was destroyed in a fire at the Montlhéry track in France in 1932. In the intervening years, there have been several people keen to build cars in the image of the Jappic, but none had come to anything. Adrian became intrigued by the low-slung car when he saw the famous photograph of the car being held up by its tail while a mechanic works on the underside. With an existing interest in vintage cars and a Chater-Lea cyclecar in his garage, the seed was sown in Adrian’s mind.

‘As with so many of these projects, it started with me saying to friends that I wondered if someone would build a Jappic recreation,’ says Adrian. ‘They said “why don’t you?” And I thought, yes, why don’t I. Before committing to beginning work on the car, I did a lot of research and studied photos. Luckily, the Jappic was very well publicised in period, so there are plenty of photographs and articles with details of the car’s specification. This formed the basis of the recreation and I thought it would take around two years to make the car. In the end, it was nine years from the start to the car as it is now.’

Adrian makes the process sound remarkably straightforward, but then his background in modern motorsport technology explains his methodical, pragmatic approach to building the Jappic recreation. Those skills and knowledge meant the first step was to come up with scale drawings to work from. Adrian explains: ‘I found the best side view of the Jappic I could and transferred this into a CAD (computer aided design) drawing. As I knew the exact wheel size, I could use that for scale to get the wheelbase, track width and height as accurate as possible.’

Adrian Ward with Brooklands Museum’s Anna Jackson during the filming of Secrets of the Transport Museum, which featured the Jappic running on the Banking.

After measuring multiple times, now was the point to make the first cut. Or, in the Jappic’s case, the first bend as the chassis is constructed from a laminated ash frame. Adrian bent all of the long wooden rails himself and says he was amazed when they came out of the former he built and remained in shape instead of springing back straight. With this base in place, the long work to assemble the Jappic’s running gear began and Adrian used his previous experience with Chater-Lea to assemble the front axle.

At the rear, a solid back axle was common for cyclecars of the period and the Jappic was no different as these cars used a good deal of motorcycle technology and practice. This is easily understood when you realise the original car’s builder, HM Walters, was a motorcycle racer who rode

The famous image of the original Jappic being worked on that inspired Adrian to build his recreation. It shows how light and strong the car is.

Before committing to wood and metal, Adrian made detailed scale drawings. He scanned images into a computer aided design programme and used the wheels for scale.

The seemingly simple chassis is formed from ash, which was shaped into the complex curves using a former. Adrian was relieved when the chassis remained in shape when it was released.

Bringing the ash wood chassis together so that Adrian can start the first stages of assembly of his Jappic recreation. He thought the build would take two years, but it ended up needing nine years.

for Zenith. Metal brackets help support the front and rear axles, as well as the ash hoops that support the lightweight bodywork.

Although very simple and minimal in appearance, the Jappic’s bodywork is all curves, just like the chassis, so it took Adrian a lot of time to get right and had a lot of help from his friend Mark Owen, who also helped with bending the exhaust. Adrian says: ‘With everything on show and no paint, the body has to be right or it’s obvious to anyone where there’s a mistake. I detailed the build all the way on Facebook and this proved invaluable when someone got in touch to tell me I’d made the seat back incorrectly. It was initially flat but should have been staggered, so I had to redo it. It wasn’t disappointing as I wanted the car to be as correct as I could make it. The only small change I’ve made is to sneak a bit more space for the driver. Originally, the Jappic was claimed to be a two-seater, with the passenger perched over the drive chain that runs under the left side of the cockpit. I’ve only ever seen one picture of the car with two people in it and it was not moving, so I suspect it didn’t ever run with more than the driver. Given how light the car is, a second occupant would have had a big effect on performance, too.’

To give the car the power it needed to break records, HM Walters used a 344cc JAP single-cylinder engine running in a high state of tune. With the original engine

The considerable curve of the outer chassis spars is obvious in this overhead shot of the Jappic recreation. Metal brackets help spread the load over the wooden frame.

Finding the correct engine to use in the Jappic recreation was one of the toughest parts of the build. Chris Illman had the exact JAP 344cc single-cylinder motor and rebuilt it for Adrian.

Small car, big records

The Jappic was built with record-setting in mind, which is why HM Walters built the car to be as light and aerodynamic as possible to make the most of its small engine capacity. Running in Class J for cars not exceeding 350cc in size, in 1925 the Jappic took the standing and flying kilometre and mile records at 52.92-, 58.12-, 70.46, and 70.33mph, respectively.

That was far from the end of the car’s record-breaking runs, though, as it went on to set new benchmarks with two-way runs for the 5-kilometre and 5-mile distances of 105.10kph and 69.04mph. It also improved the record for the 10-kilometre and 10-mile distances to 110.86kph and 68.70mph.

As if that wasn’t enough for one car during a single year, Kaye Don used the Jappic fitted with a 495cc JAP engine to set new records for the 5- and 10-kilometre, and 5- and 10-mile distances. These records averaged speeds between 65- and 69mph, so the Jappic was no quicker with the larger engine than its smaller and highly tuned motor.

When the car was sold to Gwenda Stewart, she used it at Montlhéry in France, but the car was destroyed in a garage fire in 1932. The track remained closed for three months after this to make repairs due to fire damage.

destroyed in that fire at Montlhéry, Adrian spent a lot of time looking for an identical motor. He says: ‘I was contacted by several people who said they had just the thing and all I had to do was send them some money. Of course, these were hoaxes, but then Chris Illman got in touch to say he had just the thing lying under his work bench and it had been there for 30 years. After previous attempts to track down an engine, I was sceptical, but when I went to look at it I knew it was right. The only thing was Chris said he wouldn’t sell it to me

‘That could have been the end of this trail, but then Chris said I could have the engine for free for as long as I own the car. What an amazing offer, and I have no intention of ever selling the Jappic recreation. Chris even built the engine for me and it works perfectly. The first time we ever started it was at Montlhéry and it fired and ran beautifully with a short push start. Running on methanol, we reckon it makes about 30bhp, so it’s powerful in a car that weighs 220kg. That’s almost exactly what the original weighed and I’ve even recreated that famous photo by lifting the car up.’

With the jigsaw puzzle of parts coming together, Adrian was still trying to find out more information about the Jappic to inform how he constructed his recreation. A stroke of luck arrived when he was sent a clip of a Pathé news reel about the Jappic, which can be watched at www.britishpathe.com. During the short film shot at Brooklands, there are a few seconds showing the dash of the

The front nose cone of the Jappic recreation was made using a former to shape the aluminium and gives the car its distinctive aerodynamic front end that was needed for setting records.

Adrian had to remake the seat back when someone pointed out the original had a staggered rear. The base of the seat sits just four inches from the ground and bumps of Brooklands’ Track.

car and this proved invaluable to Adrian. He says: ‘Until then, I had no idea of how the dash would have looked and I’ve tried to make this car’s as close as possible. The only change I’ve made is an ignition cut-off switch, which I should have used the first time I drove the car at Brooklands and had a bit of a “moment”!’

Adrian’s friend Martin Shelley made the wooden steering wheel, which is missing the lower section to help with space for the driver’s legs. The steering wheel is home to the throttle control, while the gear lever and handbrake that works only on the back wheels are on the outside of the body. However, Adrian made one concession

to ease of driving: ‘I added a foot throttle pedal as juggling an outside gear lever with a hand throttle and trying to drive all at the same time would be a bit tricky.’

With the car now running, Adrian has enjoyed using it at Montlhéry, the Festival of Slowth that is run for cyclecars, and Brooklands. ‘It’s geared for 80mph and runs on tyres narrower than some mountain bikes I’ve ridden,’ says Adrian with a smile. ‘The solid back axle can make steering difficult at low speeds, so the more you put your foot down the better the Jappic feels. There’s only four inches of ground clearance, which is the same as the original, so I really felt it over

the bumps at Brooklands. I don’t know how HM Walters managed such high speeds for as long.’

Since completing the recreation, Adrian has also been in touch with the sons of HM Walters. They run a precision engineering company and, with a professional eye for detail, both were extremely impressed with the Jappic recreation. Visitors to Brooklands can also see Adrian’s superb craftsmanship as the Jappic will be at the Centenary of Speed on 17 May. It may well be the smallest car at this celebration of 100 years of record-breaking at Brooklands, but you can guarantee it will attract one of the biggest welcomes.

Every possible effort is made to save weight with the Jappic recreation, just as it was on the original. Adrian’s car ended up weighing 220kg, which is almost exactly the same as the 1925 original.

The fuel tank is small to save weight and was borrowed from a lawn mower. The Jappic recreation runs on methanol, which helps the 344cc single-cylinder JAP engine produce an impressive 30bhp.

Martin Shelley made the steering wheel with cut-off bottom to give the driver’s legs more space. A foot throttle now supplements the hand throttle on the steering wheel.

SATURDAY

THE MAY SALE

VIEWING DAYS

Wednesday to Friday 18th-20th May 9am-5pm each day

1953/1996 JAGUAR C-TYPE ‘TOOLROOM COPY’

A beautiful, full-aluminium example, handbuilt in 1996. UK road-registered and ready for road and track.

Estimate: £150,000-£180,000

REGISTER TO BID

See the website for all entries and to register to bid in-hall, by phone & online

members’ matters

Aston Martin mystery

Member Steve Waddingham is Historian for Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd. He’s currently researching the ownership history of the 1930 factory team car, LM4, and is appealing for information.

LM4 had a short career as factory team car and was sold just a few months after it raced at Brooklands in the Junior Car Club Double Twelve, and then in the Irish Grand Prix, where it came first in class. The first private owner was Henry Leeson, a butcher and property developer from Eastbourne. He only kept the car for a few months, and sadly he was killed at Brooklands racing an MG in 1932.

Our next LM4 owner was called RA Cookson. The Brooklands archive lists four race results for RA Cookson and one for Mrs RA Cookson, all using an Aston

Retromobile Napier-Railton

Martin. The mystery for us is why this person was only listed once as a ‘Mrs’ Cookson? We have discovered two possible RA Cooksons of the right age in 1931. The first was a Mrs Ruby Ann Cookson. Ruby had emigrated from Australia and married a wealthy Scot called Harold Cookson and they first lived together in Burwood, not far from Brooklands. Were they part of the Brooklands scene? By the time LM4 had changed hands in 1931, the couple had moved to Scotland. They owned a large portfolio of property throughout Scotland and that seems to have been their main source of income.

The second possible RA Cookson was a 23-year old man called Rolland Anthony Cookson. Rolland appears to have married in 1931, so maybe his wife was the ‘Mrs’ RA Cookson listed in the first result? They had a baby daughter arrive in 1931, so perhaps

Among the exhibits at the Retromobile show this year was a 1/12th scale model of the Napier-Railton. It’s rare to see a model of this size of Brooklands’ most famous car. Frederic Suber, whose clients include Ralph Lauren, Bono and Nick Mason, makes about eight to 12 of his models each year and quoted a price of €7000 for the Napier-Railton and €3,000 for a model of the Napier’s engine. He told me his next project is the Bentley Blower No.1. If these models take your fancy, don’t expect delivery soon as there’s a two-year waiting list.

Gareth Tarr

that could explain why the racing activity for RA Cookson abruptly ends after the 1932 season? Any thoughts on either of these two people would be gratefully received.

Our third pre-war LM4 owner is Harold Lackland Bevan. Harold was an interesting character and appears to have lived life to the full. He was a sales manager for a paint company and lived in London, working for a business that his father was Chairman of. His short marriage to a lady called Joan ended in divorce, following an affair with a mysterious lady called Marcella Lestrange. Marcella appears to have been an actress and had changed her name by Deed Poll. The couple soon married and they appear in some amazing Second World War propaganda photographs acting as a newly engaged couple, despite already being married at that point. Harold earned a Distinguished Flying Cross as a bomb aimer in the RAF and was a keen aviator, being a lifelong member of the Royal Aero Club. Sadly, his interest in aviation cost the couple their lives, as they were both killed in the 1957 flying boat disaster that happened on the Isle of Wight.

As you can see, the history of this car is quite incredible and it continues with owner number four who was a Battle of Britain pilot. The biggest hurdle, when looking into owners of cars from the 1930s is that forenames were rarely quoted in press reports or racing entries. Trying to find everyone above was quite a challenge and I would be very interested to hear from Members who may recognise any of the names. We have seen the name Bevan associated with Bentley racing cars, but the chap we are interested in is very much Harold L Bevan. Maybe someone owns a car that has Leeson, Cookson or Bevan connections? If so, I would love to hear from you through the Bulletin’s editor.

Steve Waddingham

Geoff Dovey 1929-2022

Geoff Dovey, who died in February, was one of the Museum’s longerserving Volunteers whose name became synonymous with that of the NapierRailton, which he cared for over more than 15 years. Born in Shropshire and growing up on The Wirral, Geoff did National Service as an aircraft electrician with the RAF in Germany, before joining the oil industry, at first on refinery construction and then with Associated Octel and BP. It was with BP that he moved to Shepperton, working at the company’s research centre at Sunbury until he retired in 1989.

He first joined the Museum in 1990 as a Volunteer on the reassembly of the Vickers Viscount Stephen Piercey. He then became involved in maintaining the vehicle collection, becoming a catalyst for the nowtraditional Volunteers’ motoring Thursdays. When the Napier-Railton arrived in 1997, he was asked to take responsibility for it and quickly established a meticulous regime for maintaining and running this unique and priceless machine, helped by a dedicated

Minor miracle

It was a real treat to see the Morris Minor Aero Engine Testbed in action at Brooklands after recent work by the Motoring Team to get the car up and running. It looked spectacular in action as Julian Aubert ran up the engine with propeller attached on the rear of the Morris. We are very privileged to have such great exhibits in working order at the Museum and the people capable of operating them.

Julian Nowell

and enthusiastic team, always as immaculate in their white overalls as the car they cared for. He also built a close working relationship with Paul and Andrew Wood, whose famed restoration company in Essex has carried out all the major servicing and repair work on the car since 1997, and did much research on the history of the car.

The Napier-Railton rapidly became a star at venues like Brands Hatch and the

Goodwood Festival of Speed, where it and Geoff’s team were hugely effective ambassadors for the Museum. This outreach hit a new high in 2007 when Geoff and son Andrew, himself to be one of the few regular drivers of the car, accompanied the Napier-Railton to California for the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. On the morning of the show, driving the car on public roads to the concours site, Geoff ended up chatting to a California Highway Patrolman, who totally ignored its then being non-road-registered, and untaxed.

Four years later, Geoff and Andrew went with the car to Montlhéry in France where all three of us drove it on the proper pre-war banked circuit where it had not been seen since Freddie Dixon crashed it during a record attempt in 1934.

Not long afterwards and now in his eighties and living in Essex, Geoff started handing over responsibility for the NapierRailton to his ‘Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ Ralph Brough, but still tried to meet up with the car at the Museum or elsewhere as often as he could. We extend our sympathies to his wife Margaret and sons Stuart, Ian and Andrew.

In Memory of…

Sadly, each issue we do lose some of our Members and we would like to pass on the condolences of the Brooklands Members, Chairman and Committee to the families of the following who we have been notified have recently passed away.

Mr Peter Simpson, a Member with us since May 2021 who sadly passed away recently.

Mr Kenroy Smith, a Member with us since June 2014 who passed away earlier this year.

Allan Winn

Hospital pass

When former McLaren chief mechanic Neil Trundle gave his recent Talk at Brooklands, he revealed how a chance meeting in hospital brought the Woking team together with British Aerospace Weybridge to pioneer advanced structures technology in Formula 1. As outlined in the feature Composite Learning in the SeptemberOctober 2021 issue of the Bulletin, McLaren designer John Barnard worked closely with BAe Weybridge stress office engineer Arthur Webb to create the world’s first carbon-composite Formula 1 chassis, the 1981 MP4-1. However, Neil explains how his appointment for a routine medical procedure had originally brought

Steve signs off

Neil Trundle’s superb Talk at the beginning of March also marked the last time one will be presented by Steve Clarke. After interviewing many guests at Members’ Talks, Steve has decided to pass on the baton to Harry Sherrard.

Steve has worked tirelessly over the years to promote the Talks and brought in thousands of people to attend these eagerly anticipated events. Among the many names Steve has attracted to Brooklands are Sir Stirling Moss, Steve Parrish, Richard Noble, and most recently Paddy Hopkirk. This has helped to raise a substantial sum for the Museum, and we’d all like to thank Steve for his hard work and professionalism.

the two sides together. At the time, Neil was working for Ron Dennis’s Project Four team in Woking where Barnard was studying potential advanced structures technology for his new Formula 1 creation.

Neil said: ‘I’d like to put it on record that I was the person who introduced John Barnard to British Aerospace. I met a guy from British Aerospace in hospital when I was having my tonsils out, and I told him we needed some advice on doing a honeycomb chassis.

‘So, we went down to British Aerospace and when we sat around the table, they said you’re not looking at honeycomb, you should be looking at carbon composite. So British Aerospace put us onto building a carbon chassis.’

This led Project Four, and subsequently McLaren after the two companies merged in 1980, to pioneer carbon-fibre composite chassis design in Formula 1. Barnard and his team were guided all the way by Arthur Webb, who headed the Weybridge factory’s Structural Applications Development Programme in Carbon Fibres.

Neil, who was reunited with Arthur, on the left, at the Brooklands Talk given by McLaren driver John Watson, centre, in August 2021, publicly recognised the contribution Arthur made to the MP4-1’s creation: ‘Arthur helped John to design that car and that hospital meeting brokered the amalgamation.’

Max Kingsley-Jones

You can read more about Neil Trundle’s fascinating story in the accompanying piece in this Members’ Matters, and it was a great evening. As a pioneer in Formula 1’s development, Neil had the audience in the room and online in awe.

Following this was Fiona Easter’s Talk about her amazing adventures in a Volkswagen Beetle as she travelled through Morocco. Finding out how to cajole a classic car across tough terrain while remaining safe and entertained, everyone who attended Fiona’s Talk left feeling inspired. In April, we were then treated to Steve McCarthy’s Talk about Dr Gardner who was the Brooklands circuit

physician and founder of the Weybridge Museum.

These Talks are now available to watch on BM.tv for those who could not attend in person or watch on the Livestream on the evening. You can find a link to the BM.tv channel on the Members section of the Museum website. Please note the new number for the Talks Booking Line is: 07955 462393. The email address is: talks@ brooklandsmembers.co.uk . Talks can also be booked online at: www. brooklandsmuseum.com/brooklandsmembers/member-events

Thanks to Cliff Bolton for the images.

If you are interested in selling your car or motorcycle and are looking for a prompt, hassle-free cash buyer! I am always very keen to add to my current stock, so please feel free to contact me for a no obligation discussion about your vehicle.

I am particularly interested in purchasing prestige, sports, classic, vintage, racing and competition cars and motorcycles, as well as any interesting or unusual models. Complete collections purchased and all conditions considered, from barn-finds to concours. I will travel any distance for the right vehicle/s, and discretion is always assured. I am a cash buyer not an agent.

If you are looking for a specific vehicle then please also get in contact as I may have or could source what you are looking for?

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Looking for a venue for your club or friends in 2019 or 2020 contact us to discuss packages and dates

We already have 18 clubs booked in 2019 & 7 for 2020 Tours include dinner, bed & breakfast, drinks reception on 1st night, a welcome pack containing a memento of the weekend, rally plate, window sticker, Ordnance Survey Mid & South Wales road map, road books containing the route for each day & entry to a local attraction

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We think of the 1960s as a time of great change, when new ideas challenged the established order to lead us to a brighter and more glamourous future. This was as true in the car industry as elsewhere and particularly when it comes to designers’ dream cars. In Yesterday’s Future, Concept Cars of the 1960s, Richard Heseltine looks at nearly 200 cars, each illustrated by contemporary photographs and described with a brief history. Sensibly arranged by year, we see how inspirations evolved over the decade. Some of the cars at the start of the book seem like hangovers from the 1950s jet age, but by the end we see precursors of 1970s supercars.

Greenwood Family are directly involved in the running of the Company, ensuring that your wishes are carried out with the utmost dignity and a�en�on to detail.

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Several entrants were dead ends, impossible fantasies such as the glorious ultra-low Bertone Alfa Romeo Carabo of 1968 but the previous year the same design house gave us the Lamborghini Marzal which inspired the Espada and in 1969 the Runabout, the starting point for the Fiat X1/9. Fabbrica Autoveicoli e Rimorchi Torino’s crude off-roader, the Break, might seem unlikely but the similar Ferves Ranger shown the following year was produced, and you may have seen the example that appears at Brooklands’ Italian Car Day.

West Surrey Area Office 01483 210 222

In the foreword, Heseltine describes the history of the concept car and says the genre’s origins were in the USA. There are plenty of examples in these pages that illustrate the confidence of Detroit at that time, and I particularly love the outlandish GM GM-X of 1964 which would turn heads in any street.

Several of the cars illustrated here may be familiar to fans of this particular automotive topic and I have been fortunate to see a few of them in the flesh, but there were plenty that were unknown to me. This is a book you will enjoy dipping into time and time again. The author’s Introduction suggests that it could be the first

Best of both worlds

In recent years, there has been a fashion for ‘restomod’ cars in which say, a 1960s or ’70s classic is not only restored but also enhanced using modern technology for improved performance, reliability, and functionality. This best of both worlds approach has been adopted for Porter Press’s update of the original Vanwall book published in 1975. The Jenkinson and Posthumus text remains largely untouched and with those two as writers why would you?

Instead, the book is updated to a modern format with lots of wonderful photographs on high quality paper. In addition, between each chapter there are new pages of documentation from the race team’s archives, mostly correspondence with drivers, organisers and suppliers, but also invoices and other documents that reveal the inner workings of a Formula 1 team in the 1950s. These additional pages are the work of Doug Nye, and again, there is no-one better

able to do this. Those familiar with Porter Press’s Scrapbook series will know the approach.

At £90, Vanwall is not cheap but at 12-inches square it is a hefty tome and limited to 1000 copies. It is undoubtedly the definitive work on the subject, telling the story in thorough detail without ever getting tedious and the update imaginatively enhances the 1975 original. Those interested in the Vanwall team, 1950s F1 racing or motorsport history in general will find it a worthwhile addition to their collection.

Yesterday’s Future, Concept Cars of the 1960s by Richard Heseltine is priced £45. Published by Porter Press International: ISBN 978-1-913089-34-4

Vanwall - The Story of Britain’s First Formula One World Champions by Denis Jenkinson and Cyril Posthumus with Doug Nye is priced £90. Published by Porter Press International: ISBN 978-1-913089-25-2

Gareth Tarr

of a series of books. Yesterday’s Future, Concept Cars of the 1960s is unlikely to suffer from that difficult second album syndrome. Gareth Tarr

AROUND THE COLLECTION

Brooklands Members

Members’ Administrator

Sarah Dover 01932 857381 ext 226 Mon-Fri members@brooklandsmuseum.com

Chairman

Neil Bailey 07970 206778 chairman@brooklandsmembers.co.uk

Secretary Kevin Lee 01932 562246 kevin@abbeywalls.com

Tours and Trips

Angela Hume 07884 184882 Angelahume@brooklandsmembers.co.uk

Outreach

David Norfolk 01372 373929 david@davidnorfolk.wanadoo.co.uk

Talks

Steve Clarke 07860 355525 steveclarke@brooklandsmembers.co.uk

BM.tv

Mark Jarman 07710 783536 nonesuche@gmail.com

Bulletin Editor

Alisdair Suttie 07768 372440 brooklandsbulletineditor@gmail.com

Contributors

Laura Barclay, Clifford Bolton, Martin Chandler, Debbie Crawt, Sarah Dover, Mark Fielder, Martin Gegg, Angela Hume, Max Kingsley-Jones, Andrew Lewis, Julian Nowell, Harry Sherrard, Gareth Tarr, Mike Venables, Steve Waddingham, Adrian Ward, Allan Winn

Advertising, Design and Production:

Hine Marketing, Tel: 01452 730770

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Norton Gloucestershire GL2 9LN

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Address change and Bulletin distribution

queries

01932 857381 ext 226 members@brooklandsmuseum.co.uk

Brooklands Museum, Brooklands Road, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0QN

01932 857381 Fax: 01932 855465 www.brooklandsmuseum.com

Brooklands Museum

Chairman Sir Gerald Acher CBE LVO gerryacher@brooklandsmuseum.com

CEO Tamalie Newbery ext 243

Director of Collections, Interpretation and Heritage

Alex Patterson ext 247

Visitor Experience Manager

Jenny Pettit ext 302

Head of HR and Volunteering

Aimee Nelson ext 303

Learning Officer

Laura Barclay ext 257

Curatorial and Archive Enquiries

Andrew Lewis ext 246

Chief Operating Officer

Amanda Squires ext 255

Head of Track and Air Events

Steve Castle ext 244

Concorde Bookings ext 266

flyconcorde@brooklandsmuseum.com

Hospitality and Sales Manager

Andrew Webber ext 251 hospitality@brooklandsmuseum.com

Marketing Director

Sam Hart ext 225

Email addresses are available on the Museum website www.brooklandsmuseum.com/about/ contact-us

One of the most common items you’ll see all around the Museum is also one that is paid almost no attention. This is the tyres that are used by every motorcycle, car and many of the aircraft in the collection. Yet tyre development goes hand in hand with Brooklands’ active period as a track and airfield.

In the early days of motoring, air-filled pneumatic tyres were rare, but they were becoming the norm as Brooklands opened in 1907. They allowed for much greater comfort and, most importantly for those taking part in racing, increased speeds. Durability was another rapidly evolving element of tyre design that Brooklands played a key role in because as speeds increased so did the stress on the tyre.

Developments in tyre design for motorcycles

Parking arrangements

were also pushed forward by racing, especially as the Brooklands track surface was not the smoothest. With aviation, better tyres allowed for smoother take-offs and landings, and with more safety.

Some of the tyre designs used on early race cars can look unusual to the modern eye as we are used to grooved road car tyres and slick patterns for racing machinery. However, the innovative spirit of Brooklands meant tyre designers such as Dunlop and Michelin were experimenting all the time, often finding out what didn’t work just as much as what did.

The next time you visit the Museum, take a moment to look at the tyre treads and designs of the cars and motorcycles. It’s a microcosm of the development of motorsport during Brooklands heyday.

Please note that for all events marked ‘Parking in The Heights’, designated vehicles only can enter via the Campbell Gate, off Brookland’s Road. All other Members including Club level and visitors please park in The Heights or main public car park unless otherwise specified.

Parking arrnagements for other weekend events are:

Club level Members: entry via Campbell Gate and parking outside the Paddock. Period and classic vehicles only inside the Paddock by invitation. Please abide by staff directions.

All other Members and visitors: entry via main public entrance off Brooklands Drive.

This issue of the Brooklands Bulletin (incorporating The Spirit) is published on behalf of Brooklands Members, supporters of Brooklands Museum Trust Ltd, by Hine Marketing, Hill Farm Studios, Wainlodes Lane, Bishops Norton, Gloucestershire GL2 9LN.

The statements and opinions expressed in the Bulletin are not necessarily those of the Brooklands Members’ Committee or Brooklands Museum Trust Ltd.

While every effort has been made by the Publishers to include correct information, they are unable to accept responsibility for errors or omissions. The Publishers, Brooklands Members and Brooklands Museum Trust Limited cannot accept responsibility in the event of misinformation or lack of source relating to images supplied by a third party by electronic or other means.

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