'No flying' but RAF still comes out on top
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by Derek Moses • It was appropriate that the site for the Bristol LDoY eliminator on Sunday should be the old airfield at Hengrove Park, Bristol, as servicemen from RAF St Athan produced some of the best performances of the day, and one of two teams entered by this base carried off the team award.
Despite an encouraging increase in entrants from 98 to 123. ample space and availability of volunteer marshals allowed two sets of manoeuvrability test bays to be set up in parallel, allowing two streams of vehicles to keep going through all the time. thus speedingup the event-the competition was completed by the early hour of 3.30 pm. The results were worked out at an encouraging rate-despite the excessive heat-and all the results were posted by 4.30 pm.
A smoke test was incorporated in the road route section of the competition, and this was won by entry no. 33 a BMC of BRS (Parcels), Bridgwater, driven by H. C. Babb. Most unsatisfactory part of the eliminator was in the Highway Code section, where penalties ran very high, and some competitors did not complete their questionnaires. The organizers expressed their regret that more interest was not shown in this section, although someone on behalf of the drivers told me that in his opinion, not enough time had been allowed for them to answer the 30 set questions, which included subjects such as legal responsibilities and maintenance checks.
Rigid Vehicles
Class A: up to 20ft and over 1 ton unladen: 1, Cpl Thacker (RAF St Athan) Bedford. 134 penalty points; 2, H. Fricker (John Harvey and Sons, Bristol) Commer, 149; 3. N. K. Markham INCL. Swindon) BMC. 155.
Class 8: over 20ft to 24ft: 1. Cpl Wickstead (RAF St Athan) Bedford, 73; 2, Cpl Hamilton (RAF St Athan) Bedford, 118: 3, M. J. Noakes (BRS, Bridgend) Ford. 201, Class C: over 24ft to 28ft: 1.0. Brennan (Dept of Environment) BMC. 263: 2. Cpl Leggett (RAF St. Athan) Bedford. 301; 3, I. Lord (Rank Xerox. Mitcheldean) Ford, 332.
Class D: over 28ft: 1, F. Tonge (Rank Xerox, Mitchettlean) Ford, 206: 2. K. Webber (BRS, Bridgwater) Albion, 209: 3. A. W. Smith (A. H. Gore, Clutton) Leyland. 229.
Artics
Class E: flat or sided or drop-frame, up to 40ft: 1, J. S. Clark (NCL. Bristol) Ford, 163; 2, W. J. Mogg (W. D. and H. 0. Wills, Bristol) Ford, 166:
3. H. Young (BRS. Pontypool) Seddon, 175_
Class F: box or tank to 40ft: 1. A. J. Biggs (NCL, Bristol) Ford, 181; 2, M. J. Winn (BRS (Parcels) Bridgwater) Bedford. 211: 3, D. J. Stevens (NCL, Swindon) Ford, 229., Class G: flat or sided, flat or drop-frame, over 40ft: 1, P. A. James (A. H. Gore. Clutton) Leyland, 137; 2, P. W. Shepherd (NCL, Bristol) Bedford, 165: 3, B. Finn (BRS, Bridgend) Seddon, 196.
Class H: box or tank over 40ft: 1. P. A. Boddy (Shell-Mex and BP, Quedgeley) Scammell, 97:
2. M. Bugler (J. Fish, Avonmouth) Guy. 293; 3.
C. Warren (F. A. Baylis, Bristol) Leyland, 338. Overall winners: Rigids: Cpl Wickstead. Artics: P. A. Boddy.
Team award: RAF St Athan (Cpl Thacker, Cpl Wickstead, Cpl Daymond).