Light Delivery Van Trials, 1905.
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Provisional Regulations for the September Trials, to be held by the A.C.G.B.I., which demand wide publicity.
r. Under the Competition Rules.-These trials shall be held under the competition rules of the Automobile Club of Great
itain and Ireland for the time being in force (hereinafter called the competition rules), and under these regulations, which shall be supplementary thereto. The provisions of competition rules, Nos. 159, 520, and 121, as to alteration and interpretation of these rules and as to the actions of the club, shall apply to these regulations.
2. Nature of Trials.-The trials shall comprise 30 days' service of each vehicle, and subsequent examination by the judges. The length of the daily run shall vary according to the class of vehicle, as set forth in Regulation 6. During part of the trials the vehicles may be run without load. Every vehicle shall stop such number of times as may be directed, for the purpose of testing the stopping and starting powers of the vehicles, and in order that the conditions may approximate to those of actual service.
3. Routes.-Each day's run shall start from and finish at a depot to be appointed by the club, and shall traverse routes selected by the club. All vehicles in the same class shall cover the same routes each day. The depot will be changed from time to time. As much notice as possible will be given to the entrants of the locality of the depots. 4. Entrant Responsible.-It is one of the conditions upon which entries are accepted by the club that the club shall not be responsible for any damage that may be done to or by the vehicle entered, or to its appurtenances, 'either during the trials or while the vehicle is under the charge of the club, either by fire, accident, or otherwise, nor for the.theft of the vehicle, or any of its accessories or appurtenances. The vehicles, and their accessories and appurtenances, shall at all times be at the risk in all respects of the entrant, who shall be deemed by entering to indemnify the club against all legal proceedings, costs, and penalties, whatsoever, relating to or arising out of the trials. 5. Lead.-The loads will be provided by the club in such form as may be determined, and shall be fetched and delivered as directed. The driver and the assistant at the depot may be required by the club to assist in loading or unloading. 6. Classification and Fees.-Entries will be accepted at the fees and in the classes shown in the following table, which also indicates the approximate daily mileage:
No entry will be accepted after 12 o'clock noon on Wednesday, August 23, 5905 7. Limit to the Number of Entries.-Not more than two vehicles of the same type by the same maker shall compete in any one class. A vehicle may be entered by its manufacturer or by his authorised agent, but entries by manufacturers shall have priority. Attention is directed to competition rule 40. 8. Entries.-Entry forms shall state, infer alia, the nature and grade of the fuel employed, and shall give all the particulars required for registration under the regulations of the Local Government Board applicable thereto. The entrant shall supply two photographs and a trade specification of each vehicle to the club on or before Wednesday, September 13. 9. Abandonment of Trials.-The club reserves the right to abandon the trials if the number of entries received by noon on Wednesday, August 23, 1905, does not in its opinion justify its holding them.
General Conditions.
zo. Vehicle under Observation.-Every vehicle shall be under the control and observation of the club from the time at which it is presented for trial until it is released by the judges. Withdrawal or Failure of Vehicle.-In the event of any withdrawal of the vehicle or failure to complete the trial, the vehicle shall be dismantled by the competitor sufficiently to satisfy the observer as to the cause of the failure and to permit such examination by the judges as they desire. 11. Observers.-Every competitor shall place at the disposal of the club during the trials the services of one competent observer for each vehicle entered by him. Such observer shall be one approved by the club, and the competitor shall be in every way responsible for him, for his remuneration and expenses. The observer shall not assist in any way in adjustment of or repairs to any vehicle. An observer shall not ride on the vehicle belonging to the firm by whom he is nominated.
53. Body.-The body with which a vehicle is fitted shall be subject to the approval of the club.
z4. Seats.-Every vehicle shall be provided with a comfortable seat for the observer. The weight of extra: seating accommodation for the observer and that of the observer himself shall count as part of the load. 15.-All vehicles entered for the trials shall conform to all legal requirements.
56. Assistants.-A vehicle shall only carry one man in addition to the observer. One assistant per vehicle may -be on duty at the depot, and with the exception of their substitutes duly notified to and accepted by the Club) no other person shall assist the driver in replenishing fuel, lubricating, adjusting, repairing, or otherwise attending to the vehicle. Provided that, if further assistance is necessary, it may be obtained subject to the observer's consent, and will be recorded.
17. Sunday.-No repairs, adjustments, or other work of any description will be permitted on Sundays.
18. Stores.-Each competitor shall supply all labour, fuel, and stores required for his vehicle during the trials. r9. Commencement of Trial.-All competing vehicles must be within the gates of the depot (see Regulation 3) by 5 o'clock p.m. on Tuesday, September 19, 1905. Provided that any vehicle arriving at the gates not later than ro p.m. on that date may take part in the trials on the payment of a fine of ‘5. After this hour no vehicle will be admitted to take part in the trials.
20. Order of Running.-The first run will start at 8 o'clock on the morning of Thursday, September 2,, 19o5, and the last run will be on Wednesday, October 25, 1905. The vehicles will be started on their daily runs in such order as the club may decide.
21. Fuel Consumption.-The amount of fuel or electrical energy used by each vehicle during the trials will be recorded. A record will be taken of the time occupied in taking out a set of discharged batteries and replacing them by a set of charged ones, but no account will be taken of the time occupied in re-charging. The electrical energy used by each vehicle shall be the amount of electrical energy used in charging the batteries.
21. Water.-The quantity of water used by each vehicle during the trials will be recorded. The club will provide water at the depot, and the time occupied in replenishing elsewhere will be taken into consideration in making the awards.
23. Manceuvring.-Trials of manceuvring, adhesion, and brake power will be held from time to time by the judges.
Awards.
24-The awards will be determined by the judges, who will take into consideration the performance of the vehicle in regard to absence of noise; accessibility for examination ; appearance during trial; brakes; condition after trial ; consumption (on a price basis); design and construction ; ease of manipulation ; finish ; mareeuvring ; nuisance to public, e.g., smoke; price*.; rapidity of opening up for replacement of parts, subject to renewal or repair ; repairs and replacements; reliability ; restarting on hills ; speed ; steering; ton mileage.
The relative position of all the vehicles under each of these headings will be given in the report.
No allowance will be made for any wear which may have taken place previous to the trials.
25 -The first award in each class will be the gold medal of the club, and the second award the silver medal of the club. There will be additional money awards from a prize fund opened by the club with a donation of £50, and kindly supported by Messrs. W. H. Smith and Son with a donation of £25. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has contributed the sum of £400 towards the cost of the trials, and part of this sum may be allocated to the prize fund. 26.-The diploma offered by the Army Council will be awarded to the vehicle which is considered by the War Office Committee on Mechanical Transport to be, either as a whole, • or in some details of its engines, or other parts, most meritorious from a military point of view, and therefore likely to be of service, even though indirectly, to the Army. 27.—A certificate will be given in respect of the performance of every vehicle, whether it completes the trials or not, and the club may publish any certificate.
Arrangements at Depot.
28.—The time spent each day in replenishing, lubricating, adjusting, repairing, and getting up steam will be recorded on the certificates. The vehicle must be properly washed as often as required, but the time so occupied will not be noted on the certificate. A maximum period of 30 minutes will be allowed in the depot both before and at the conclusion of each day's run for replenishing, lubricating, adjusting, repairing, and getting up steam.
29.—Any time in excess of one hour occupied in replenishing, lubricating, adjusting, repairing, and getting up steam will be added to the running time of the following day's run. 30.—Any vehicle not ready to start by 12 o'clock noon on any day may, at the discretion of the judges, be prevented from taking any further part in the competition or receiving any award. It may, however, continue in the trials under observation, starting at the scheduled time on the following day. 3i.—At the conclusion of the trials every competitor shall dismantle or open out his vehicle as far as is necessary to enable the judges to carry out their examination, and he shall provide all the labour, tools, etc., necessary for that purpose.
Stops.
32.—/N-0 deductions will be made for stops with the consent of the observer for legal requirements, traffic, lighting lamps, fitting non-skids, or for convenience of observer or driver, or for the compulsory stops which may be necessary under Regulations 2 and 23. All other stops will count against the vehicle as involuntary stops.
33.--All vehicles will be tested as to ability to start from rest when fully loaded on an ascending gradient not exceeding i in ; a vehicle failing to do so will be disqualified from receiving an award.
34.—In the event of any adjustments or repairs being made during a compulsory or voluntary stop, the stop will be counted as an involuntary one.
Drivers.
35.—A vehicle shall be driven by the same person throughout a day's run, unless he be incapacitated, when his place may be taken by a substitute, on notice being given to the observer.
36.--The driver must, under penalty of disqualification, declare in writing to the secretary before the next run any replacements that he has made, Speed Regulations.
37.—No speed above the legal limit will be allowed.
38.—No passing on the road will be allowed except in cases of breakdown or by mutual agreement between the observers at the time.
39.—A competitor who may be successfully prosecuted at law for excessive speed may, if the club are satisfied that unreasonable speeds have been used, be disqualified. 40.—The speed within towns and villages and all controls shall be reduced and in no case must a car be driven to the danger or inconvenience of other users of the highway. Infringement will subject the driver and his vehicle to disqualification.
et.--The club shall have power to disqualify a vehicle for travelling in any place at a speed which they may consider excessive.
Regulations as to Driving.
42.—Controls.—Every town and village through which the route may pass shall he a control and unless otherwise stated in the route directions shall he deemed to commence at the first house of such town or village adjacent to the route, and to end at the last house thereof. 43. Road Regulations.—Any competitor who in the trials crosses in front of another, shuts in or obstructs another by any means, so that the latter is prevented from advancing, may be disqualified, unless the obstruction was unavoidable, or the competitor who was obstructed was himself in fault ; the fact that the obstruction was unintentional, or that it did not affect the result of the trials, shall in no case be admitted as a valid excuse.
41.—A competitor who shall endeavour to conceal his official number shall be disqualified. 45.—The passing or overlapping of a motor vehicle by another motor vehicle travelling in the same direction within towns or villages, or in traffic, or on down grades at a speed exceeding four miles an hour, may be made the subject of a protest by the driver of the vehicle so passed or overlapped, and may result in disqualification of the vehicle which passed or overlapped. 46.—The approach of a competing vehicle must be notified by a horn, trumpet, or some suitable instrument.
47.—Competitors must conform to the traffic regulations of the police.
48.—If a competitor fails to stop his vehicle on being requested to do so by the driver of a horse, or otherwise shows himself inconsiderate to other users of the highway, his vehicle shall he subject to disqualification.
Disqualification and Publication.
49.—A vehicle may be disqualified by notice in writing, signed by an official of the club, and served on the driver of the vehicle.
sea—A notice of disqualification shall not become effective unless the person who has entered, or the person who is in charge of, the vehicle has been made acquainted with the act or thing which is alleged to disqualify the vehicle and has acknowledged that thereby under these regulations the vehicle is disqualified.
at.—If the act or thing alleged as a ground for disqualification he disputed, disqualification shall be postponed, and shall be determined by the club, who shall give all parties concerned an opportunity of being heard and calling evidence. A person who enters a vehicle thereby agrees that the decision of the club shall be final, and thereby authorises the club to publish its decision, 52.—On notice of disqualification of a vehicle being served and becoming effective, that vehicle shall cease to run in the trials ; it shall not receive a certificate, but it shall be mentioned in the records as having been disqualified.
53.—A person, by entering a vehicle, thereby agrees that on notice of disqualification being served and becoming effective, he will withdraw the disqualified vehicle from the trials, and immediately remove the official number therefrom. (2) That he, or his servants or representatives, shall have no claim on the club in respect of non-publication of the records of a disqualified vehicle or in respect of publication of disqualification of himself or of a vehicle. (3) That he will accept the official records of the club, and authorises the club to publish them in such manner as the club may think fit.
54.—Any act on the part of a competitor, or a person in charge of a competitor's vehicle, which is in contravention of the competition rules or these regulations, or any wilful disregard of instructions of a club official or contained in the official programme, shall render the vehicle and himself liable to disqualification or suspension from competing in this or other trials held under the competition rules.
55.--If a competitor is disqualified he shall lose all right to any award, notice, or record, s6. Protests.—Protests must be made in accordance with corn. petition rules Nos. 94 to toe.
Finally.
57.—Every competitor shall be taken to be acquainted with the competition rules and these regulations, and by entering undertakes to abide without dispute by all the conditions therein contained affecting tho trials, and by the results to which such rules and regulations may lead. 58.—In the event of a point arising which is not covered by the competition rules and these regulations, the club shall have power to decide upon the point, and their decision shall be final, and shall thereby become a regulation of the trials. Note.—The attention of competitors is particularly directed to the following (among ()there) of the competition rules of the
A.C.G.B.T., which bear upon these trials 6, in, 18, 34, 37, 40, 42