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Military Honours at Maidstone
Page 63
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WATCH out. Cpl. Readrnan! The WV Service threat to your chances of a hat-trick in the national final this year is building up: while an R.A.F. driver was taking top place at York on Sunday the main trophy at Maidstone was being captured by the Army's Dvr. _ R. McDonald. And Dvr. "McDonald swept his Bedford 4 x 4 through the tests with something of the deceptively smooth skill for which the current national champion is renowned. Least penalized of all drivers in the Kent eliminator was R. J. Cornelius, whose 87 points put him at the head of Class D in which he was third last year.
In many respects Maidstone was a repeat of 1962. The organization was so good that the event finished well ahead of time, the weather was again glorious, and no fewer than four classes had the same winners as last year—Hughes (Class A), Bryer (B), Campbell (F2) and Joseph (H). It looked for a time as though a fifth class, Fl was going to see a complete repeat of last year's form with the three drivers of Fremlins Ltd. scooping the pool with their Bedford artics but, after a minimally penalized run, last, year's winner, A. T. Rose, failed in the final test (width-judging) where 188 points put him out of the running and his teammates W. G. Emery and G. Reynolds moved into the leading positions. An almost exactly similar fate befell W. Mumford of Mumford Transport Ltd. who "fell" at literally the last hurdle and lost the chance of a second-year win in class EL Eight out of 10 entries in this class were hauliers' or removers' vehicles, so it was slightly face-reddening that the Road Haulage Association Cup for the class went to one of the two C-1 icensees! As well as reducing delays, substitution of the present loading-bay test for the contentious right-angled hay test of last year has certainly put the three tests on a more equal fooling and given the bigger vehicles a better chance, though it has also removed much of The needlematch excitement and interest. Now it becomes a test of much colder calculation, though surprisingly few drivers at Maidstone seemed to realize that they only needed to reduce their vehicle-toside-wall gap by 4 in. in order to make a . forward shunt (penalty 10 pt.) worthwhile.
. When G. Campbell had used one shunt to get his enormous Metal Box Co. Seddon artic nicely'square.in the bay, the marshals begged him to leaveits 14-ft. "6-in.-high semi-trailer there to keep off the sun which had been baking them all day. But George Campbell was probably in no mood for talk of sun awnings, having ripped the artic's huge sidecurtain on roadside branches on the country section of the road route "earlier in the day; his works obligingly sent a new semi-trailer over from Strood, so he swapped his semi in the lunch interval.
The biggest single cause of large penalties this year seemed to he overconfidence in estimating the required gaps in the width judgment test. Many drivers spoke in praise of the road test route— which was longer and tougher than hitherto but, they felt, extremely fair and a very well thought-out test.
Altogether a splendid day, with the close-knit " family-and-friends" atmosphere which the Maidstone round seems • to enjoy.
RESULTS OF MAIDS TONE COMPETITION
CLASS A--up to 16 ft. and from 20-5 cwt.: 1. D. S. Hughes (Express Dairy Co. Ltd.), Morris. 229 penalty points; 2, 1, Evans (F. Bourne and Son Lid.). Austin. 304; 3. F. 3. Hayman (Courage and Barclay Ltd.), Austin, 335: CLASS B-16-19 ft.: 1, R. C. W. Fryer (S.P.D. Ltd.), Corm:net, 115; 2, R. D. Rose (Edmund Vaughan Ltd.), Bedford, 220; 3, S. Furling (F. Bourne and Son Ltd.). Austin, 230.
CLASS C-19-22 ft.: 1, W. I. Gunn (A.M. Dockyard, Chatham). Bedford. 122; 2. D. Batcheller (Shell-Mex and B.P. Ltd.). Dennis, 129; 3. P. Holliday (Shell-Mex and B.P. Ltd.), Dennis. 176.
CLASS D-22-25 ft.; 1. R, J. Cornelius (Sohnsorts Ltd.), Thames. 87; 2, V. Dallas (F. Bourne and Son Ltd.). Thames. 111; 3. G. Bareham (British Oxygen Co. Ltd.), Thames. 133.
CLASS El—over 25 ft., two axes: 1, H. H. Ford (Courage and Barclay Ltd.), A.E.C., 130; 2, W. Richman (Richman's Removals Ltd.), Bedford, 181;
3. S. M. Hunt (Conning Bros.), Leyland, 224. CLASS E2—orer 25 ft., more than two alder!
1. E. Surridge (Express Dairy Co. Ltd.). A.E.C.. 130; 2. H. J. Weller (Shell-Mrs and B.P. Ltd.), A.E.C.. 163; 3, J. Bennett (C. K. Bartlett and Son Ltd.). A.E.C., 167.
CLASS Fl—artkolated tractive nets Bader 4 Iona Bat or sided semi-trailer op to 38 ft.; 1, G. Reynolds (Fremlins Ltd.), Bedford, 183; 2, W. G. Emery (Fremlins Lid.), Bedford. 224; 3, J. Howard (Reed Transport Ltd.), B.M.C.. 228.
CLASS F2—ardeulated tractive units under 4 Ions, box or tanker semi-traters up to 30 ft.: 1, G. Campbell (Metal Box Co. Lid.). Seddon. 281; 2, 1. H. Mercer (hsso Petroleum Co. lad.), Bedford, 319: .1, f), Slack (Shell-Mrs and 13.P. Ltd.). Commer. 462.
CLASS G---ardcalated tractive units under 4 tons, flat or sided send-Wailers no to 30 ft.: 1, R. Packham (Reed Transport lad,), Foden, 195; 2, C. Turner (Coulling Bros.), Leyland, 230; 3. G. Collins (Conning Bros.). Leyland. 233.
CLASS H---artleuluted tractive units' over 4 tow=, box or lanker semi-trailers: 1, C. L. Joseph (ShellMex and B.P. Lid.), A,F..C., 219; 2, C. E. Reeves (Esse' Petroleum Co. Ltd.), A.E.C.. 240; 3, L. L. Hall (Regent Oil Co. Ltd,). Bedford. 292 CLASS S—standard Army vehicles. 19-24 R.; 1, Dvr. R. McDonald (12 R.S.M.E. Regt.. Gillingham). Bedford. 157; 2, Spr. A. T. Wickham (36 Corps Eng. Real., Maidstone). Bedford. 287; 3. Stir. L. Weeks (36 Carps Eng. Rent., Maidstone). Bedford. 365.
OVERALL WINNER: Dvr. McDonald (12 R.S.M.E. Regt.), Bedford. BEST MAINTAINED AM-LICENSED VEHICLE: A. Rivers (Mumford Transport Ltd.). Thames. REST MAINTAINED C-LICENSED VEHICLE: T. N. Guinn' (Shell-Mes and B.P. Ltd.), Scammell. BEST FORD DRIVER: R. .I. Cornelius (IohnSonS BEST A.E.C. DRIVER: E. Surridge (Express Dairy Co. Ltd.), TEAM AWARDS Fatness Dairy Co. Lid. (E. Surridge. D. J. Hughes, D. Colvin). Total 577.