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South East Area Drive it Day


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Many thanks to Dave Goswell the Thames Valley GL and the crew for putting on a great DiD at the Hollycombe steam museum near Liphook.

The weather just about behaved itself (a bit chilly early on) and we stayed dry.

Some nice steam Galloping horses, Narrow gauge railway and steam road roller for squashing naughty children.

 

There were many TR's from the SE, plus Kennet Valley.

Citroen 2CV's Stags by the bucket full and a rather noce example of  an Austin A35 van.

 

Roger

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The DiD I attended here, started at Stow Maries (http://www.stowmaries.org.uk), where at 08.45hr the wind did little for our efforts to keep warm.

Like Roger, there was a huge range of cars; TR4's, 4A's and 6's, MGA's Stags, Fords, Morris', MB SL's Porsches, Bentleys and even a RR hearse and 2 accompanying black RR limo's.

Again, like Roger, the weather held up, just, throughout the 53 mile drive to the Museum of Power (http://www.museumofpower.org.uk)

 

A great day, organised by the CCVC

 

John

 

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Not officially drive it day here but Sunday was our club's first driving event of the year. Quite an eclectic mix of British iron that included Jags, MG's, a Jensen Interceptor, a Morgan Plus 4 and an assortment of Triumphs. This is forum member Tom Mulligan and his lovely wife in their 1969 Herald 13/60.

Tom%20and%20Gini-X2.jpg

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If you think about it Triumph made some pretty cars;

TR 4/4A/5 and 6, the Stag and the Heralds (mum had a 13/60), they all stand up well in the looks stakes even today.

Such a pity the management of the companies was so slipshod in the latter years

 

John

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13/60 Herald ("Gerald") was my first car; 21st birthday present. Pretty Italian design, four seats, wooden dash and incredibly easy to work on. When the big ends 'went' in the summer after I left university  I could only afford the cost of the crank regrind and new shells. Blagged an engine crane, bought the Haynes manual and started on the job with "Open bonnet..." (a law degree had not really equipped me for this task). A fortnight later, I did have 2 or 3 bits left over after the rebuild, I spotted an error in the Haynes manual (photo printed backwards) but the car started second time and never missed a beat until I sold it a few years later. Saw an identical one in Endeavour last night and my daughter thought is still looked attractive.

Miles

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The spitfire especially the early ones, The Mark 1 2000 saloon and the Triumph 1600  and 2000 Vitesse were all good to look at. 

With the exception of the Spitfire I have had them all plus the Dolly and enjoyed them all. 

Edited by Derek Hurford
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Looked good and (mostly) performance was good... Not much could live with the 2.5 PI (even a clapped-out one) in a straight line in it’s day.. 

 

Recall someone(!) bought one basis how easy the police 2.5 jam sandwich chased his sports car down on motorway.. only for police Rover 3.5 to subsequently do (not quite) the same to the Triumph 2.5 PI...  

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Took part in Club Triumph's Coast to Coast for Drive it Day. We started in Ravenglass, Cumbria, at 19.00 on Saturday thence over the Hard Knott, Wrynose and Kirkstone passes to Penrith. An unfortunate road closure meant we had to divert south to the A66 and then re-join the route at Barnard Castle so we missed Hartside Summit and the excellent B6277 from Alston to Middleton-in-Teesdale. The route took us on via the A67/A66 and A171 to the east coast at Scarborough where we took a break. We went over the Humber Bridge then via Louth and Horncastle to Sleaford. We were following another crew in a big saloon at the 60 limit on the A15 just north of Bourne when a sizeable deer suddenly ran from the nearside verge straight in front of their car. The driver steered left and braked hard but had no chance to avoid the animal which bounced off onto the right hand verge. We were of course travelling at a safe distance behind so pulled up with no drama. There was considerable frontal damage to the other car but fortunately it remained drivable so the crew followed us by the most direct route to the finish at the Brewers Fayre in Bicester for breakfast, after which we spent a couple of hours at the Heritage Centre Scramble where we enjoyed looking at some mouthwatering machinery. Incidentally another entrant reported two near cervine misses during the event and on Monday this week there was a fatal accident on the A11 near Wymondham involving a deer, two cars and a truck, these animals are quite a hazard in East Anglia it seems.

I covered 740 miles door to door at an average of 33.09mpg and as usual the 4A did not miss a beat. Thirty seven cars started and there were three retirements for mechanical issues.

Tim

Edited by tim hunt
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Don't know Roger, never bothered to check.  it would have been too galling to find that it had survived unscathed!!

Tim

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Deer are surprisingly resilient. I hit one doing north of 80 mph in a rally Audi Quattro, severely bending the pretty robust bush bar and sending the deer spinning across the road. As we sped on, I saw it stagger to its feet and bound off into the forest. 

I'm certainly not saying that they can't be killed (I've seen enough dead ones too) but they seem to survive collisions that one would assume were definitely fatal. 

Back on subject - that looks like a great drive, Tim. Proper TR-ing!!  Well done. 

 

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Yes Tim, the Hard Knott Pass was a particular challenge, in rain with water running in streams across the road. In parts this road is the steepest in the UK at 1 in 3 with a few hairpins for good measure and the surface is nothing to write home about. Fortunately we did this pass in daylight, I wouldn't relish tackling it in the pitch dark. My engine cooling is very efficient and I was running with half the rad blanked off. I forgot this until the Kenlowe cut in half way up the pass to the accompaniment of clouds of steam. I (carefully) removed the blanking and we pressed on with the temperature soon returning to normal. I hadn't spotted the gauge rising, I normally anticipate an overheat and switch the fan on in good time. I junked the mechanical fan when fitting the Kenlowe forty years ago. Frankly the Hard Knott, whilst not over long, is more severe than any pass we have tackled in the Alps or Dolomites on Club Triumph's Ten Countries Run

Tim

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3 hours ago, tim hunt said:

Yes Tim, the Hard Knott Pass was a particular challenge, in rain with water running in streams across the road. In parts this road is the steepest in the UK at 1 in 3 with a few hairpins for good measure and the surface is nothing to write home about. Fortunately we did this pass in daylight, I wouldn't relish tackling it in the pitch dark. My engine cooling is very efficient and I was running with half the rad blanked off. I forgot this until the Kenlowe cut in half way up the pass to the accompaniment of clouds of steam. I (carefully) removed the blanking and we pressed on with the temperature soon returning to normal. I hadn't spotted the gauge rising, I normally anticipate an overheat and switch the fan on in good time. I junked the mechanical fan when fitting the Kenlowe forty years ago. Frankly the Hard Knott, whilst not over long, is more severe than any pass we have tackled in the Alps or Dolomites on Club Triumph's Ten Countries Run

Tim

We do this regularly at least once a year, we once witnessed a van with a trailer full of classic motorbikes trying to go over the Hardknott in the pouring rain but in fact slipping backwards. Roger went to help them and ended up taking the full weight of their-full trailer and preventing it going over the side whilst they reversed their van, needless to say I sat watching this unfold in our TR4A in floods of tears ( I am not usually a tearful female ) but this was around the time of Rogers hip op’.

There is a much better Pass in Scotland at Applecross, “ The Pass of the Cattle” again we do this Pass regularly and at least once a year.

We were once going down when a Travis Perkins Lorry, fully laden, was on its way up and having to do 3 point turns at every very tight steep bend/ corner  in the extremely bad surfaced slipping away single lane road. Imagine becoming a Travis Perkins driver and finding out this is one of your routes. Great fun.

Edited by SuzanneH
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On 4/28/2019 at 5:27 PM, RogerH said:

...There were many TR's from the SE...

I was one of them, had a great convoy to Hollycombe with two '4A's in front of my '6 and two 3A's sandwiching another '6 behind, roof down despite the temperature (it would have been rude not to)

GarethIMG_20190428_200125_387.thumb.jpg.21b6d7dab7800255db2a76c44a863935.jpgIMG_20190428_200125_441.thumb.jpg.e855f21a2d9d74df06950c72848b1b9c.jpgIMG_20190428_200125_391.thumb.jpg.fbce78eacafc4fd8a8925ceb81226072.jpg

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Here are a few of my phone photos of Hollycombe.

7C066B1F-9E79-40A1-90F1-C9A870819636.jpeg

ABACCFBA-2CFF-4776-B991-5817D4E3E65E.jpeg

8FBAFF5E-2F2D-4C4A-86A4-49D80F66FD63.jpeg

19A6F49F-85B9-4AA0-A158-A96D5FEEE019.jpeg

Edited by SuzanneH
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Some nice pictures there, I only saw the woods and bluebells from the train, nice views though

Gareth

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I would love to do the Pass of the Cattle to Applecross in the TR one day Suzanne. Unfortunately the last time I passed the turn on the A896 it was pouring with rain and visibility was very poor so it would have been a waste of time as there would have been no views to appreciate. Incidentally, is it worth taking the white from Applecross north all the way round the cost to re-join the A896 south of Shieldaig?

Tim

Edited by tim hunt
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Hi Tim,

where the south route is  typical mountain pass - hairpin corners,, long ascent. skeletons etc. the north route is a switchback.

It does rise but not a great amount. The majority of the road is up and down. Short duration hump back sections. Mainly single carriageway with passing places.

The scenery in pkaces is like a moonscape - grey boulders with no vegetation. - then into wooded areas.

It really is a good road to cruise down.  Not really possible to go flat out anywhere along the route - far to twist (sideways and up & down) 

Go to Applecross from the North then leave, South,  by the mountain pass.

 

Roger 

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