Coach Drivers Show Their Paces at Blackpool
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AFTER completing the 80-I-mile road circuit and the keenly
' fought eliminating tests of the National Coach Rally last Saturday, Mr. N. Tatlock (J. B. Tatlock and Son Ltd., -Bedford-Plaxton 37-seater) qualified as one of the six drivers to compete in the Sunday afternoon final.
From the short but strenuous deciding test he emerged with the title of National Coach Driver of 1963. Sunday morning's Concours d'Elegance provided the judges with a difficult task, their decision ultimately going to the A.E.C.-Harrington 45-seater of Yelloway Motor Services Ltd., driven by Mr. W. Grundy.
There were 38 entrants for this year's rally, competitors setting out from Wigan at 9 a.m. and after on a road circuit which included Belmont, Whalley, Longbridge and Broughton, before reaching the venue at Blackpool. The competitors had to follow the precise route laid down on the official card.
Near Broughton came a regularity test over 10 miles at 30 m.p.h. for which the limit of tolerance was 20 sec. Five drivers who came through this test without penalty were B. Goodwin (Stanley Spencer's Tours (Manchester) Ltd., Albion-Duple), J. F. Aspinall (Holmeswood Coaches Ltd., Thames-Plaxton), R. Goodfellow (Stanley Gath, BedfordPlaxton), G. Slater (Slater's Coaches, Thames-Duple) and J. Pulford (Bloomfield Coaches, Bedford-Plaxton).
However, at the end of the morning the leader on the road was J. Vickers (Warburton Bros. (Bury) Ltd., BedfordPlaxton) who was closely followed by W. Grundy (Yelloway Motor Services) and R. Goodfellow (Stanley Gath).
Five tests faced competitors in the Saturday afternoon eliminators on the promenade. Speedy starting was demonstrated by the driver standing apart from his vehicle, entering and driving forward to stop astride a given line. Acceleration and braking tests necessitated travelling forward as quickly as possible to halt with all four wheels inside a 45-ft. by 9-ft. rectangle.
Next came parking, with the coaches moving forward and then reversing to a kerb-side with only two movements (forward and reverse) being permitted. Round the island was the next problem, vehicles running forward on the nearside lane of a long central reservation, backing down the offside, then running
forward on the nearside again. Finally came a test in which the coaches went forward into the open end of an H-plan box, reversed out, went forward around the outside and backed into the opposite opening. All were timed.
Most drivers displayed a high degree of skill but occasionally there were surprising instances of misjudgment on width. Quite outstanding on figures was J. T. Wareham (Cash's Coaches Ltd., Bedford-Plaxton) who lost 193-2 marks but, as he was driving an 18-seater, Wareham did not qualify for entry into the final. Those who did qualify were J. Hancock (Sheffield United Tours Ltd.. A.E.C.-Plaxton), 217.4, W. P. Bostock (E. J. Rostock and Sons, BedfordPlaxton), 218.8, Tatlock, 219.9, R. Hall (Wardline Tours, Bedford-Plaxton), 229-7, E. Patrickson (Wallace Arnold Tours Ltd., Leyland-Plaxton), 233-3, and R. S. Redfern (Hanson Buses Ltd., Thames-Duple), 235.
Earlier the judges of the Concours d'Elegance had selected six finalists for re-inspection. They were the A.E.C.Harrington of Yelloway Motor Services Ltd., Bostock's Bedford-Plaxton, the Bedford-Plaxton of J. B. Tatlock and Son Ltd., driven by C. Hodgson, Jos. Longhouse's Bedford-Plaxton, driven by E. S. Davenport, the A.E.C.-Plaxton of Sheffield United Tours Ltd. and the Leyland-Plaxton of Wallace Arnold Tours Ltd. Searching examination was needed to decide the winner out of this sparkling selection of British coachcraft.
A.T.