Wanted—A Fairy Godmother
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An International Coach Rally in Britain, Given Strong Patronage, Would Find Much Support WIhas a pet scheme has never seen daylight because its author fears it derision, rather than suprt and assistance, will be his yard for discovering it. Others which their -entors have proudly promulgated have failed :ause the right backing has not been available. rnewhere between these two categories falls the )e of plan which, it appears, is at the moment :upying the attention of more than one minent figure in the passenger road transport lustry.
conversations in the past few weeks with reprenatives of the various manufacturing and operrig sides of the industry have revealed that there feeling that an international coach rally should held in this country. Events of this type in ince and Switzerland in the past three years— ported by a small number of enterprising €tish concerns—have proved to be highly sucsful and most. rewarding.
The time has come when some effort should be dc to offer an opportunity to British and Contiital manufacturers to display their products in same way in this country. A static exhibition not nearly as revealing as a properly organized ly and concours d'elegance. Moreover, in this mtry, what are considered as normal conditions operation are admirably suited to the type of ii which is implicit in the word rally.
Enthusiastic Support Needed First, however, support for such a scheme must forthcoming from an organization with the ministrative background and enthusiasm necesy to run a competition of this type. As the jects of the competition would be to sell coach ye!, to publicize British vehicles and to enable products of both home and overseas manufacers to be compared under operating conditions, difficulties of finding a patron are obvious. The Royal Automobile Club concerns itself geiy with private cars. The British Association Vehicle Manufacturers is too restricted an ;anization to concern itself with such matters. rhaps the British Tourist and Holidays Board ski be interested or even the Council of Industrial Design—for which the opportunity of examining British a n d Continental vehicles side by side would be of great practical value.
Best of all, as its annual conference is already looked upon as one of the biggest occasions of the year, perhaps the Public Transport Association could offer a framework into which this type of manifestation could effectively fit. The venue of the conference—always a popular resort--could be the rallying point. Routes could be laid down for the contestants, so that they would have to complete perhaps a 1,000-mile road section before converging on the destination.
Technical Examination There the vehicles would have to undergo a number of manceuvrability trials, braking and acceleration tests and suchlike, aimed at discovering the suitability of the coaches for their duties. Subsequently, the vehicles would be examined by experts who would award points for appearance, finish, structural design, comfort, accessibility and adaptability. The vehicle which, in the opinion of the judges, most closely represented the ideal coach for long-distance travel would then receive whatever prize the organizers care to offer.
At a conference like that of the P.T.A., a sufficient number of knowledgeable and interested people is assembled to make the idea one which would clearly appeal to both delegates and rally contestants. A large assembly of modern vehicles would also create an opportunity for the technicians and engineers which they could scarcely find elsewhere. The Public Cleansing Congress sets an example that might well be followed. Early spring, before the coaching season has got fully under way, would be the right time for such an event, and no doubt the vehicles could then be more easily spared for the occasion. They might even be used to bring tourists to the rally. As, normally, most operators take delivery of new vehicles in the spring, the event might be one in which chassis manufacturers, bodybuilders and operators could join in launching their newest vehicles, trying them out and publicly presenting them at the same time.