1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166 
Arties in Trouble at Windy Weymouth
Page 113
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
WHAT price Peter Willcox as Lorry Driver of the Year, 1962? Following his comfortable victory last Saturday in the eliminating contest at Weymouth the odds against an outright triumph in the Coventry final for 28-year-old Mr. Willcox must have shortened considerably.
This Joseph Lucas, Ltd., team driver romped home in Class A with a mere 61 penalty points, a score which compared very favourably with the lowest (99) recorded at Birmingham in the first eliminating contest of the present year. He also took the prize for the best C-Licensed driver, Mr. Willcox, however, might be well advised to "mug up" his Highway Code before September comes along, for in this part of the competition he was well and truly bottom of his class (10. penalty points!).
This performance provided some cheer on a distressingly grey day. The weather was abominable and this appeared to affect competitors as well'as the 'comparatively few spectators, for the same epithet was used by many blue-nosed gentlemen to describe the well intentioned endeavours of numerous unhappy drivers.
As at Birmingham, the greatest misery was reserved for those attempting meritoriously but vainly to back :large articulated vehicles into a small simulated hay. This difficulty was most pronounced in Class 11 where the vehicles concerned were two vast box semi-trailers.
The drivers of these seemed to think the task impossible; an opinion which it transpired was far from being limited to themselves, for it was later announced that the national steward present, Mr. R. C. Evans, would make a report on this matter.
Though not all of the rigid vehicles were marneuvred with distinction, it appeared that, though permitted only one forward shunt on the bay test, compared with the two allowed the artics, drivers of rigid vehicles, nevertheless held a definite advantage here.
This was most marked in the case of the smaller rigid vehicles, Remarks were passed during the afternoon regarding the eligibility of " vans " for a lorry-driver competition. Though there may be some substance for this criticism one wonders at what stage critics would consider a van becomes eligible to compete with a lorry.
There were many good performances in Class D .(22-25 ft.). This class was won. by Mr. R. J. Hand, who accumulated but three penalty points from two demanding tests. This extraordinary performance was marred only by errors in the width-judging test which• robbed this excellent driver of what otherwise would
have been a fine overall victory. Mr. Hand, however, lives to fight another day in the finals.
• Another good performance -was that of H. Manning, champion driver here in 1959. Mr. Manning won Class E2 with sortie ease, but here again an otherwise fine display was spoiled by faulty widthjudgment (Test 2).
Class S (Service drivers only) boasted a larger entry than any other, Competition here, as elsewhere, was commendably keen, but the standard of drivine (winner and runner-up excluded) was not high.
At the luncheon for competitors, guests and officials, the Mayor, Alderman W. A. Fory, IP., paid tribute to the skill of the competitors. "You set a standard which large numbers of car owners do
not live up to," he said. E.J.M.