VVC VIEW - Vintage and Veteran Club › AUGUST 2019i.pdf · 2019-08-01 · against the stock market. His summary was that over the past 12 months the FTSE All-Share Index has risen

THE

VVC VIEWAUGUST 2019 ISSUE 08

E-mail: [email protected] • website: www.vintageandveteranclub.co.zaMail: P.O. Box 35129, Northcliff, 2115 • Clubhouse: 3 Athol Oaklands Road, Oaklands, Johannesburg

Brian Noik :: Tel: 082 416 9584 :: www.oldcars.co.za :: [email protected]

DELIVERING YOUR DREAMS ONE CAR AT A TIME.

Follow me on facebook twitter instagram using @oldcarssa

EXCEPTIONAL CARSOFFERED FOR SALE

1972 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow

1923 Ford Model TTriumph TR6

1966 Corvette

1952 Jaguar XK120 Roadster Oval Window beetle

Investables

Greetings from the dam

So, inspired by our chairman’s article on the worth of our cars, I wondered how, purely theoretically, they would stack up against other long term investments. Google led me to Toby Walne of the UK Daily Telegraph. He looked at other ways to stash your hard earned funds as against putting it up against the stock market.

His summary was that over the past 12 months the FTSE All-Share Index has risen by four per cent – so the returns have been beaten by classic cars, but stocks have just topped stamps and fine wine. However, they trounced returns from gold. He noted that “Over the longer term, shares have been a good investment. The All-Share has risen by a third in the past five years. Experts suggest alternative investments should make up no more than 10 per cent of your portfolio.”

Wine - investors who have been losing money over the past few years can finally raise a toast to profits. The Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 Index, a wine market tracker plotting the hundred most sought after wines, rose 3.4 per cent in the year ending June 2015. It follows a poor run where the index fell by a third from 2011 to 2014.

Experts believe this could be a good time to invest follow-ing a turbulent period sparked by the 2008 banking crisis, which hit wealthy international investors – on top of a string of recent poor vintages – when a harvest was lacklustre or wines did not live up to the mark. One of the best perform-ers in the past year is a 12-bottle case of Mission Haut Brion 2005, which has risen more than 50 per cent in value in the 12 months ending June and now changes hands for £4,310 – £360 a bottle.

Because the wine investment market sometimes attracts rogue traders check out the website investdrinks.org for

AUGUST 2019 Page 3

EditorialBrian Askew

details of potential fraudsters. Note – this assumes you are investing in French wines and have the strength of character to leave the corks alone. Ed.

Verdict: Tastes better than stocks and shares but recent performance may fail to whet the appetite.

Gold - is seen as a safe haven but in recent years it has lost some of its lustre with prices falling as the economy recov-ers. Its value soared almost eightfold from $250 to $1 900 a troy ounce (slightly heavier than a normal ounce) in the decade to 2011. Yet since then it has tumbled 40 per cent to about $1 100. Just over $1 400 this morning. Ed.

The World Gold Council, which represents the industry, in-cludes details of reputable dealers and the latest gold price on its website, gold.org.

Verdict: Safe haven in times of trouble – but offers no guar-antee of glittering returns.

Classic Cars: The heart can rule the head in the classic car

market – with alluring curves and primitive engine growls more important than driving you from A to B. But the finan-cial returns can be tempting too. The HAGI Top Index, which follows values of the top 50 collectable cars in the world, is up 10 per cent this year according to the London-based re-searcher Historic Automobile Group International.

And since the economic crisis of 2008 the index has almost tripled in value. Cars of the 1950s and 1960s tend to lead the market. Ferrari, Porsche and Mercedes-Benz are among the most sought after – but the British E-Type Jaguar is also much in demand. Italian motor racing legend Enzo Ferrari described it as ‘the most beautiful car ever made’. When considering any purchase, you must also include the cost of maintaining an old car. They should be kept in a dry but airy garage. No, really. Ed.

Verdict: An investment to set pulses racing – just as long as you can afford the garage bills

Stamps: This year marks the 175th anniversary of the intro-duction of the Penny Black – and the official birth of stamp collecting. Since then collecting postage stamps has been turned into a serious hobby – philately – attracting 60 million enthusiasts and investors worldwide.

According to the stamp dealer Stanley Gibbons the GB250 – which tracks prices of the top 250 investment-grade stamps of Great Britain – values have risen 166 per cent over the past ten years, though in the past 12 months the index has only gone up two per cent. New investors should stick with reputable traders who can guarantee quality. Organisations that can help include The Philatelic Traders’ Society, Stanley Gibbons and The Great Britain Philatelic Society.

Verdict: Philately will not get you everywhere – he’s worse than me. Ed. However, top stamps offer a financially reward-ing hobby.

AUGUST 2019 Page 4

EditorialBrian Askew

So there you have it – we’re in the game. And I would not

trust any of the VVC members to hang on to their wine

investments.

Editorially many thanks are due to Chris Cardwell for his

epic piece on early motorcycle races, Ian Holme, as ever,

and Patrick Lauson in the UK for his Goodwood pictures.

In this issue, we celebrate the life of Brian Lawlor (cover

pic) who was part of the VVC life for these many years.

Thanks to the contributors.

Your editor is reigniting a project he started a few years

ago. I’m trying to trace the story of SS, Jaguar and Daim-

ler in South Africa. If anyone has any information, stories,

pictures of your personal cars from whenever, please con-

tact me. I will scan and return any pictures, slides or docu-

ments. I’m not sure whether it will turn into a webpage, a

pamphlet or what – but your help would be appreciated.

Enjoy your investments in the halcyon winter sun – the

spring, she’s a comin’.

From the Chairman’s Desk

Recently someone sent me the article from the Chair-

man for an issue of our newsletter nine years ago. The

interesting part was reading that the same issues were

facing us then as are now! The AGM was coming up

and there was an appeal for new committee members

and a chairman and here we are nine years later! Now

there is something to be said for consistency but I am

sure that in this instance that is not exactly a huge

positive.

In any organism change is the best indicator of life and

with our club it is no different. I have enjoyed my times

as your Chairman and if that were not the case I would

not have done the job but I also believe that it is not

in the best interests of the club for that to continue for

too long. Any club needs new interest enthusiasm and

energy and an excellent example of that is how a new

Chairman has revitalized our motorcycle brothers and

sisters. The VMC is enjoying a revival of interest and

activity as a result of new blood on the committee and

we would be no different.

I therefore urge you as members to identify new folk

who could come on to the committee to bring fresh

ideas energy and ability to our team. Having said that

I must thank each committee member most sincerely

for their competent and dedicated efforts as they do

a really great job. We can always do with new blood

however so please give this some serious thought be-

fore our AGM in August.

Our club is sixty years old this year and we recently lost our

second last founder member Mo Skikne who passed away in

AUGUST 2019 Page 5

From thechairman’s desk

Ian Holmes

June. The last survivor is Peter Hyslop who lives in the West-

ern Cape. Brian Lawlor is also no longer with us and in those

people we have lost an important link with our past. We are

planning a very enjoyable celebration of our sixtieth birthday

after the AGM on the 25th August and I urge you to register

for that as we have to have the right numbers for catering

purposes. All paid up members and their partners are invited

but they must be on the list as we will not be able to cater for

walk in’s on the day.

The old cars love the colder weather even if the batteries

don’t so fire them up and drive them as they do so much

better when they are used.

Until next month safe and happy classic motoring.

Ian Holmes

This month I welcome two new members to the club, both are from Fourways. Darryl and Denise Mitchell

with MG’s and an Austin. Peter and Suzette Ryan with

a 1936 Ford. I hope you will be frequent visitors to the

Club on Club Sundays and also to the “Milkbar” of Friday

evening. If you are facebook users you can also join the

group “The Vintage and Veteran Club – VVC”.

Most members have been at the club on Club Sundays

– not so many at the “Milkbar” on Friday evenings. The

bar normally opens at around 17.00 and is closing when

the last person goes home at around 21.00. If it is the

birthday of one of the members present – the birthday

person will be presented with a card – a song and nor-

mally a cake. If John Allison is present the birthday song

will often be succeeded by a “Grandstand” song.

Thank you to all the members who have paid the

2019/2020 subscriptions. Please collect your member-

ship cards from me at the Sunday Club meeting. If you

have not collected I will post at the end of August. If you

have not received your subscription renewal form (I sent

these out by e-mail) please send me an e-mail and I will

resend the form to you.

The subscription for the e-mailed newsletter is R425 for

normal membership and R300 for country members.

Should you require a printed newsletter the subscription

for both normal and country members are R575 and R450

respectively. The banking details are: The Vintage and

Veteran club, Nedbank Benmore Gardens, Branch code

197305 account numbers 1973038617. Please remember

to insert your name or your membership number as ref-

erence when making payment. I have got one payment

received on the 20th of June with no payer reference. If

this could be you please send me proof of payment.

AUGUST 2019 Page 6

New MembersKaren Kaiser

You should all have received the notification regarding

the passing of Brian Lawlor. A celebration of his life was

held in the club house on the 28th of June. The event

was attended by many VVC members and by Brian’s wife

Angela, their 3 sons and granddaughter. Brian has been

a member of the VVC since 1964, 55 years, and was in-

strumental in the running of the club, inclusive of build-

ing the bar in the clubhouse, designing the club hall,

hanging of the photos and diligently ensuring that all the

names of the DJ winners and other awards got onto the

boards in the hall, serving on the committee for many

years some of these as Chairman. The “jobs” he held in

the club are just too many to mention. Until a year ago

he attended all the committee meetings and opening of

the bar on Friday afternoon’s. When he stopped coming

to the meetings he continued to follow everything with a

keen interest. I am going to miss Brian and him joining

me at the secretary table every Club Sunday.

Our AGM will take place on Sunday the 25th of Au-gust. You will find the notice, agenda and minutes in this

newsletter. In celebration of the club’s 60th anniversary

the morning tea will be replaced by a lunch for RSVP

members – please see the notice from Larina.

SAVVA MAGNUM RALLY 2019 – POMC (Pretoria Old

Motor Club) is the organizer and please visit their web-

site (www.pomc.co.za) for the entry form and regulations

which are now out. The rally will be held from the 15th

to the 17th of August.

Lost Property: Blue Gloves, one pair of

clip on sunglasses.

Karen Kaiser

AUGUST 2019 Page 7

Birthdays Karen Kaiser

AUGUST 2019

Alan Grant

Pat Barclay

Nigel Stokes

Joe Gates

Robert McCutcheon

Dick Sheppard

Meyer Blumenau

Pierre De Villiers

Desmond Sweke

Roger Harwood

Richard Harris

Please join us in Friday evenings at the club, in the“Milk Bar” for a few rounds!

AUGUST 2019

Arlindo Da Costa

David Paulin-Campbell

Joh Maio

Ian Cockerill

Gareth Watt

John Tilley

Gary Kaplan

Graham Vos

Alan Evan-Hanes

Peter Ryan

AUGUST 2019 Page 8

2019 CALENDAR OF EVENTS(Subject to amendment – see Notice board for more current information)

JUL 28 VVC Your Favourite Car or Bike AUG 4 POMC Cars in The Park - ZwartkopsAUG 14 / 18 POMC Magnum Tour Cars and Bikes - MpumalangaAUG 25 VVC Annual General Meeting/Post-Vintage Cars and BikesSEP VVC Parkhurst DaySEP 7 SAVVA SAVVA AGM POMCSEP 15 PR Piston Ring Swop MeetSEP 21 / 24 MTFCOSA SAVVA Veteran/Vintage Nationals - Free StateSEP 24 SAVVA National Drive IT daySEP 29 VVC Post-45 Cars and Bikes and Buick ClubOCT TBA OFSVCC Rendevous TourOCT TBA VVC Johannesburg Historical RunOCT 27 VVC 100 Year Old and Veteran Cars and Bikes NOV 2 RAC London to BrghtonNOV 12 / 14 CVMC Fairest Cape TourNOV VVC Movie EveningNOV 24 VVC Jaguar, Rolls-Royce and Bentley DayDEC TBA VVC Kenjara RunDEC 29 VVC Christmas Meeting

Please be advised that the Jaguar Club in Johannesburg is having a Showday on September 1st at the Jaguar EXPERIENCE in Lonehill. All VVC members are welcome to join us – those bringing a Jaguar and staying from 09:00 to 14:00 will get breakfast on Jaguar South Africa. For more details, please contact your editor.

Monthly breakfasts (usually the second Sunday of the month) We now braai at every Sunday meetingVVC Milk Bar open every Friday eveningFor Gauteng Rallies visit SARRA website – www.sarra.co.za

Don’t forget: Our wonderful club turns 60 this year and we plan to celebrate this at the AGM on the 25th August. Every Paid Up member and a partner is invited to a special luncheon in the Hall to take place after the AGM Meeting and normal meeting that morning. It will be a sit down lunch in the hall and suitable refreshment will accompany the meal. If you have not already booked, please contact our event organiser Larina McGregor at [email protected].

Events Larina McGregor

AUGUST 2019 Page 9

In Memoriam

Brian Lawlor passed away in June after a short illness. He had been a member of the VVC for 56 years of which 45 years had been spent as a committee member. From an early age he developed an interest in things transport – especially steam locomotives. This interest spread to in-clude aeroplanes, ships and of course, veteran and vin-tage cars. His first vintage car was acquired in 1966; a 1928 Austin 12, which he restored and it took to the road in December 1969.

A Civil Engineer by profession, Brian had over the years been involved in major road and railway construction which all helped to keep the interest in transport going. Professionally, Brian was a happy man. As he would say, he has lived and worked throughout the post-war devel-opment in South Africa, which provided a very stimulating side to his working life as an engineer both in construction and consulting. Brian loved working with his hands be it wood or metalwork as could be seen by his Bentley res-toration.

From an early age, he always had a love of music, includ-ing conducting his school orchestra and numerous other aspects of music, both light and classical. And legendary piano performances in the milk bar.

In Memoriam

For many years he represented SAVVA at FIVA meetings overseas, and also during this period was editor of the SAVVA magazine the Automobil-ist. Brian has been chairman of both SAVVA and the VVC over time. He was instrumental in having the present VVC clubhouse constructed to his de-sign and layout, which required him to spend a considerable amount of time on clubhouse affairs. One thing one always had to bear in mind with Bri-an – he is three quarters Irish! This facet gave him a sense of humour (and a quick paddy) which only another Irishman could really understand.

From your Editor:

Brian represented the human side of the VVC to me. I joined the club in an era when, if you did not have a 1920s Bentley or Lancia, you were viewed by some as a lesser being. He always took the time to chat and enquire after our family Austin Seven. I’ll miss him.

From Bill Cunningham:

Brian was a good friend, neighbour and business associate. He had loves in his life, Angela and his sons, and interests in music, old cars, his church and the VVC. If anyone could don the cloak of Mr. VVC, it was Brian Lawlor. He was Chairman of the VVC and SAVVA in both of which positions he was an outstanding success.

The memory of the times we shared a bottle of wine on a Friday evening while he played the pi-ano will last for ever. His involvement in the build-ing of the hall and bar will be remembered by all. If the building of the VVC into the club it is today could be at t r ibuted to one guy, that person is BRIAN JAMES CURTIS LAWLOR. We all miss you my friend.

AUGUST 2019 Page 10

From Goodwood

AUGUST 2019 Page 11

From Goodwood

AUGUST 2019 Page 12

Nursing Thoughts

Obesity

A recent article by Kasumi Iwase in Bloomberg notes that: “When it comes to health issues in Africa, people think of chronic hunger, or infectious diseases such as malaria or HIV/AIDS. But Africa is simultaneously struggling with an increase in noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), most of them related to obesity.

The recently published Global Wellness Index set alarm bells ringing when South Africa scored poorly for life expectan-cy, alcohol use, depression and diabetes. When stacked up alongside the G20 nations and the 20 most populous coun-tries, South Africa – once a shining beacon of economic growth – came last. But for anyone who has worked in health care in the country, or elsewhere in Africa, this is no surprise at all.”

Kasumi continues: “South Africa is not alone in facing these challenges. Other parts of Africa have some of the highest rates of high blood pressure in the world, estimated to afflict 46% of adults, while obesity, another risk factor, is on the increase. According to a Kenyan government survey more than 40% of women aged 30 to 40 are overweight or obese.

According to the World Health Organization, NCDs kill 41 million people each year, equivalent to 71% of all deaths globally. Cardiovascular diseases account for most NCD deaths, followed by cancer, respiratory diseases and diabe-tes. Many of the risk factors - tobacco use, physical inactivity, the harmful use of alcohol and unhealthy diets -- are particu-larly prominent in parts of Africa. A quarter or more of adults in many African countries have at least three of these four risk factors. One of the main causes are dietary habits that include too many refined carbohydrates, oils and sugars that have come with the proliferation of convenience foods. Inaddition, there is a traditional belief (not in the VVC, sure-ly? Ed.) that excess weight is a symbol of prosperity andwealth. Often obese people are unaware of the risks until

told by doctors, and most of them say they wish they had known about it earlier.

Support for initiatives to tackle high obesity rates has been patchy. Currently, South Africa is the only country in the region to have a tax on sugary drinks. When the Department of Health announced it also wanted to put front-of-pack warning labels on junk food, the sugar in-dustry complained that the sugar tax is already losing profit and jobs. Meanwhile, South Africa has the highest obesity rates in sub-Saharan Africa, which also impacts on productivity and increases absenteeism. A recent study showed the economic impact of obesity in South Africa is $48.8 bn per year.”

You know who you are.

Anne Askew

“Safely Cared For”Sister Anne AskewCell: +27 82 604 5806Email: [email protected] Website: www.sisteranne.co.za

AUGUST 2019 Page 13

Port Elizabeth to Cape Town

On a Bicycle!

Back in late 1949 and early in January 1950 my old friend Henry and I decided to ride bicycles from Port Elizabeth to Cape Town. Having made this decision, we had to get properly prepared for the trip. That is we had to be fit to do the trip so for a few weekends prior to our departure we rode our bikes to Pretoria, Hartebeespoort Dam and Vereeniging.

Our bikes were ordinary bikes plus lower speed back axle drive for the hills and passes. We knew we would face climbs ahead and needed to be ready for these.

So came the day when we departed from Johannesburg for a train trip to Port Elizabeth. We loaded the bikes onto the train bound for Port Elizabeth and off we went. On our arrival in Port Elizabeth we booked in for the night prior to starting our trip. The hotel we discovered after booking in was rather dubious and the manager’s advice was “lock your door”!!

After a good night’s sleep we headed off up the main road towards Humansdorp (that would have been Cape road Ed.) The road was evenly graded and we made good time. We arrived in Humansdorp late in the afternoon and decided to press on. That night we slept under a bridge and the next morning we continued on our way. The next stop for breakfast was about twenty miles on. This section after a night’s sleep in the open proved to be highly fa-tiguing to say the least and we learned a lesson.

We now realised that for the rest of the trip it was impor-tant that we slept in proper beds and only to start off the next day after a good breakfast the next morning.

The following night we spent at the Storms River Reserve

in very comfortable accommodation and that was fol-lowed by a good breakfast the next morning.

Onwards then to Knysna where we spent the night and also rode into the forest to inspect some well-known trees. From Knysna it was back on the road to the Wilderness. Here the new road was under construction but already at a stage where the surface was smooth and good to us on the bikes. We spent the night at the Wilderness Hotel and also enjoyed a paddle in the sea!

After leaving the Wilderness we headed for the George district and onwards on the main road. Not far from George is a little village called Albertinia just a few miles off the main road where we spent the night. Here we were treated to a supper menu that I have yet to see surpassed anywhere. The menu had seven choices of meat and sal-ads all well prepared and presented. After this magnif-icent supper we were treated to coffee on the veranda served personally by the owner/manager. Breakfast the following morning had the same abundance in the choice of food.

From Albertinia it was back to the main road and after an easy ride we spent the night in Riversdale. The next day we headed for Swellendam with a night stop in Heidel-berg on the way to Swellendam.

We now began to realise how hot the weather had be-come particularly between 11h00 and 15h00 so we decid-ed we would not ride between these times. It was at this stage that we were advised that the pass over to the Cape Flats was heavy going so we turned off at Swellendam and headed for Worcester. The plan was that from Worcester the climb over the Du Toit’s Pass was more suitable to bike transport. So we headed off from Swellendam andas arranged spent the night at an hotel in a little place called Ashton. Here the only accommodation available to

us was on the veranda floor! Believe it or not when you are


Brian Lawlor

AUGUST 2019 Page 14


Brian Lawlor

tired (and young! Ed) you will sleep anywhere even on a

concrete veranda floor as we did.

After a good breakfast we headed off to Worcester where

we stayed at a lodge for the night. The next day we were

off to Paarl over the Du Toit’s Kloof Pass. The gradient

of the pass on the Worcester side as we had been told

proved to be very easy on a bicycle and proved so much

so that we were able to pedal all the way up to the top of

the pass. From the top of the pass it was downhill all the

way to Paarl which we did at high speed. We went so fast

that we over shot the lunch stop by two miles! After lunch

it was into Paarl where we stayed for the night.

The next day saw the final leg into Cape Town where we

arrived without mishap and where we had booked to stay

for a couple of days. Our stay in Cape Town included a

few bike excursions in the area before it was time to return

home with our trusty bikes on the train.

Would I do this again?? We the following year with a dif-

ferent friend we headed off to the Worcester area with our

bikes. Both of us had done a year’s geology as part

of our engineering studies at Wits so we rode around the

Worcester area studying the Cape Fold geological forma-

tions.

Brian Lawlor

Nota Bene: Brian wrote this article a few days before his

passing and another one I had wished I had asked him to

do was an account of a very adventurous trip in a Baby

Austin which he did with a friend. They drove to Kiliman-

jaro from Johannesburg, climbed the mountain and then

returned home in the same little car. What an adventure

that must have been clutching extra fuel cans and the like.

Ian Holmes

AUGUST 2019 Page 15

So What is it Worth??

Ian Holmes


I so often am approached by people who want to buy or

sell a bike or a car and I am asked what it is worth. My

standard answer doesn’t always please or delight the one

who asked. The answer of course must be “it depends”.

So on what does it depend?

That is the million dollar question and as many of us have

experienced it depends on so much. The first question

I am inclined to ask after years of frustration is “Does it

have Papers and are they up to date?” If what is being

offered is not registered I believe it carries a heavy penalty

on the asking price as much as thirty percent or more in

my opinion. It is no secret that it is rather time consuming

and complicated to get something registered which is not

on the system.

There are some very competent and helpful folk about

who can help in obtaining registration but sadly there are

also some serious shysters which I know from personal ex-

perience. A sizeable deposit resulted in my so called agent

immigrating to Australia with my dough and that was the

last I saw of it. This aspect as well as Police Clearance are

very important issues if you ever intend to register the ma-

chine in question. While obtaining such a clearance once

I discovered that a casting number had been used from a

similar machine and the other bike kept coming up on the

system. Luckily a smart cop said look on the frame where

the seat is fitted and we found a non-clashing frame num-

ber which didn’t bring up a fellow member’s Sloper.

The next issue is that of expectations and there are two

matters that mislead sellers in this regard. The first is so

called “expert opinion”. I bought my first DJ Bike from a

chap in Pietermaritzburg and he intended to use the

proceeds from the sale to me to secure another DJ bike

in bits from a widow on the South Coast. He had already

agreed a price with her and when he went to collect the

item she advised him that another “expert” had advised

her to ask much more than they had previously agreed.

This chap said he could not meet that new price and left

empty handed and I understand that the box of bits nev-

er left the garage of the lady in question. She eventually

passed away and the bits were disposed of to a scrap metal

dealer by her family when she passed on. Another DJ bike

left for good. This occurs more often than should be the

case and there are sadly a number of so called experts who

want for some reason to sound knowledgeable and tell a

seller what they think the seller would want to hear.

The next common cause of confusion is the matter of ask-

ing prices in foreign magazines. A case in point here was

in respect of a former Chairman of our club who knew his

days were numbered. He dictated his wishes in respect of

his bikes and bits in detail and signed off on the document

recording these. In due course he passed on but when the

dust settled one of his surviving family members decided to

AUGUST 2019 Page 16


Ian Holmes

ignore the last wishes set out which had provided for

some of the machines to be auctioned to interested club

members. This family member declared he would do

much better if the items were auctioned by a well-known

auction house in the UK so off they went into a contain-

er never to be seen again. I happened per chance some

time later to see a newsletter from the auction house in

question where the actual prices received on auction were

listed in respect of these same machines. Yes of course

they realised more that they would have realised in SA,

BUT and a big BUT it is after all the shipping handling

charges commissions duties etc. were deducted the seller

realised significantly less than he would have got on open

auction in SA. Moreover once again our members lost the

opportunity to acquire the items and the deceased’s wish-

es were not honoured.

Let’s talk briefly about the next matter which can cause

huge confusion and that is the word “Originality”. What is

original? There is a famous case available on the internet

about a gentleman who bought a very famous Bentley

with Le Mans provenance and then decided he had been

deceived because of various changes and repairs which

had been done to the car. A very erudite and competent

court in the UK went to a lot of trouble to determine that

the car in question had undergone may rebuilds repairs

and the like during and since it Le Mans winning days and

provided there were sufficient components linked to the

claims and the car was essentially still contained some of

the original bits it was fair to claim it was original as far as

possible.

In the case of many of our DJ and other classic machines

the question of originality will always be debated but in

truth nothing can be totally original unless it is a very rare

Barn Find in which case at least the battery and tyres will

no longer be serviceable! Matching engine and frame are

a good start in the quest for originality but ultimately this

becomes a subjective judgement too and depends on

how badly you may want a particular item.

Another factor which can substantially influence price in

regard to a collectable vehicle is the issue of provenance.

If the item in question can be traced or linked directly and

creditably to some racing or a character who is known to

have been prominent at a particular time or genre then

that item will carry a premium. For instance in SA today

bikes which are DJ eligible do carry a price premium. This

of course will only apply while the DJ Commemorative

Run is still happening.

In the UK and elsewhere a 1937 machine and a 1936 ma-

chine have no price differential other than rarity or condi-

tion. Aside I have never seen a 1937 bike in SA!! SAVVA

dating become very important in this situation and only

because of the DJ.

There are many other factors too numerous to mention

here that affect the price of collectable bikes and cars like

availability of spares perceptions of reliability numerical

availability and so many others that it is far too complex a

matter to provide a definitive answer here.

There is however one fundamental and absolute price no

one can argue about. What the seller is prepared to ac-

cept and what the buyer is prepared to pay wins every

time and that will always be the Gold Standard when it

comes to valuing collectables whatever they are.

Ian Holmes

AUGUST 2019 Page 17

Early Motor Cycling in South Africa

Chris Cardwell


(The lesser known Races)

The Ladysmith Race

While the duration of the First World War was a period of intense activity for the many motorcyclists who served on the various war fronts, club life, temporarily denuded of its most virile citizens, was bound to languish.

The first revolt against enforced inactivity was manifested in Durban by the newly formed Durban and District Mo-tor Cycle Club, which in 1918 instituted an event which, unfortunately, has been forgotten and maybe is remem-bered by some of the older motor cyclists.

This was the then famous Ladysmith Race, run from Toll Gate on the then Durban boundary, via the main Johan-nesburg road, to Ladysmith and return, a total distance of approximately 500 kilometres, without a doubt one of the most gruelling races ever staged. As has been the case with all of South African road races, the event was run on handicap, being open to both solo and sidecar machines but although in the case of the first four races, separate classes were maintained, in the last two of the series the two classes were combined.

As though the natural difficulties presented by the appall-ing road conditions of the day, the unreliability of the ma-chines and the prevalence of punctures were not enough the first race in 1918 was run under abnormal weather conditions which reduced the usually dust filled roads to a continuous sea of mud, swelled the rivers to dangerous proportions and froze the unfortunate, exhausted com-petitors to a condition of numb despair.

A field of eight solos and eleven sidecars produced asolitary finisher, T. H. Spargo who achieved the seemingly

impossible on a big Harley Davidson sidecar combination in the significant (but under the circumstances, praisewor-thy) time of nineteen hours.

In 1919, under somewhat kinder conditions, the toll of the road was still so great as to decimate the field and out of a field of seven in each class, only two solos and three sidecars crossed the finishing line. The running time, how-ever, was greatly improved upon with the winning solo machine completing the route in 8 hours and 42 minutes and the sidecar time being a credible 10 hours and 2 min-utes. Both were large machines being a 7/9 Harley and a 7/9 Indian respectively. It is interesting to note the winner was Robbie Blackburn, who was placed in this race no less than three times and, whose untimely, tragic demise came about while touring, and not by his meteoric successes in early road races.

In 1920 the race was taken over by the famous Natal Mo-tor Cycle Club (which at the time had probably staged more road races than any other clubs of South Africa com-bined) and was continued without outstanding incident until 1923 when the growing popularity of the then exist-ing “Durban – Johannesburg” (Rand M.C.C.) and “Natal 100” (N.M.C.C.) together with the inception of the South African T.T.” (M.C.U.S.A.) brought about its demise.

The South African T.T. Races

The proposal for the establishment of Tourist Trophy Rac-es in South Africa came from the Pretoria Motor Club in 1922, It was thought by many of the prime movers in the projected events that it would be centralised in Bloem-fontein and there run every year at a date convenient to all.

The M.C.U. (Motor Cycle Union) accepted the proposal with certain modifications, deciding to run the events every year at the place in which the Executive of the M.C.U.

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Chris Cardwell

might be situated. In 1923, then, the responsibility of hold-ing the first series fell to Durban but that centre was unable or unwilling to accept it and Port Elizabeth stepped in to host the event.

It seems, however, that the Union Executive or Race Com-mittee, which was collaborating with the Port Elizabeth committee in staging the event was over ambitious. It de-cided to run the race in four classes: 250cc, 350cc, 500cc and 1000cc, and as there were insufficient entries in any of these classes the 1923 series of races were abandoned.

The 1924 series of T.T. races was made conspicuous by the number of illogical rules which governed that event. Three classes were catered for: 350cc, 650cc and unlimited. The 350cc class attracted few entries and was abandoned and some of the 350cc bikes entered the 650cc class while one, a 348cc Douglas was put into the unlimited field.

It was then decided that the o.h.v. machines should give the s.v. machines twenty minutes start in the 650cc class and six-minute start in the unlimited class and, so it came about that 348cc Douglas machines and 494cc Triumphs were given starts of six and twenty minutes to 616cc s.v. machines and 998cc twins in races of 320 kilometres.

However, the events run over the famous Kragga Kamma circuit at Port Elizabeth were spectacular enough from an outsider’s point of view. In the 650cc race an inspiring tussle went on between H. B. Loader, of Natal, and Percy Flook until the latter retired.The race was won by Hammerton of Cape Town on a s.v. Indian Scout, who had turned his twenty-minute handicap to good advantage and won from Moore of Natal and H.B. Loader and the rest of the field of nineteen starters, in 3 hours 31 minutes at an approximate speed of 57 mph.

The unlimited class, twelve laps of the twenty-mile (32 kilometres) circuit, was won by Dr. J. W. du Toit of Cape

Town riding a 989cc Harley Davidson, at an average speed of 61mph. A feature of this race was the riding of F.A.R. Zurcher on his light-weight Douglas, who had been forced to concede six minutes to many of the larger ca-pacity machines. He went on to finish fourth, having rid-den furiously to the limit of his bike’s capabilities.New Year’s Day, 1925, brought with it new riders and new enthusiasm to the Kragga Kamma course. It also brought with it a great swirling of dust storm to test the mettle of the men who had come to fight a battle of speed and skill.

Despite the weather conditions there was some wonder-ful riding. Don Hall, of Natal, then in the early stages of what was to prove a remarkable racing career, took the 350cc race on an A.J.S. cornering carefully and riding all out on the straights. E.G. Murray won the unlimited class and C.H. Young, of Durban, ran away with the mid-dle-class event on a Triumph.

1926 was a year of outstanding success for Charlie Young who pulled off the 350cc and 600cc events, riding a 344cc Royal Enfield in both races. A novice E.R. Biggs (R.M.C.C.)beat the experienced “Baby” Scott in the 175cc class and Per-cy Flook came back to smash all records for Kragga Kamma in the unlimited class, averaging 63.15 mph on a 490cc Norton.

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The T.T. race the following year came close to being can-celled owing to an Ordinance giving divisional councils power to prohibit road races. The Administrator ruled against the event and by the time he was prevailed upon to change his mind enthusiasm had been so dampened that only two class races were held.

J. Simpson, the overseas crack rider, entered in 1928 but crashed on the first lap of the Senior event which went to “Bunny” Loader.

All the prominent Natal riders had their turn of success in the Port Elizabeth races. First it was Loader, then Cohen and Charlie Young and, finally, it was Don Hall who came down to win the Junior event in 1929 at an average speed of 64.03mph riding his Velocette, a mile or so faster than Sarkis’ time in the Senior race.

After that it was all Sarkis. The man was an implacable master of his machine, a demon of speed and he was riding, riding, riding all the time. He won the 250cc and 600cc races in 1930, with Hall winning the 350cc race. The next year he set a mad pace on a wet and sticky course and all records went by the board.

Sarkis won the 250cc race that time and started off in the Senior event with a first lap of 83mph from a standing start but he cracked up and Grant Lind pulled off the event at an average of 78mph.

So, it went on with the culmination in 1934 and Sarkis, the master, sweeping all before him in one grand burst of speed, lightweight, Junior and Senior – he ran away with them all.

That was the end as far as the Port Elizabeth event was concerned. From 1935 the scene of the National T.T. rac-es were shifted to the Prince George Grand Prix circuit in East London and the date put forward from New Year


Chris Cardwell

to Easter. Rain interfered the first year and the Senior event was cancelled, the 350cc race going to J. Galway, a fast-improving rider, at an average of 73.58mph.

The following year the Junior race was snatched up by an enterprising novice, H.J. Brook, after the favourites had fallen out. Don Hall, then challenging Sarkis’ run of suc-cesses, won the Senior event on a Norton at 81mph.

The 1937 Junior race went to A. Reeve with a fine average of 77.99 mph over 214 miles (345 km/h). The Senior event was a climatic triumph for Hall on a 350cc Norton, who rode the race of his life to average 83.6 mph and send all records flying in his victorious wake.

The “Natal 100”

Although essentially a Provincial event, the “Natal 100” had always been regarded as a South African classic and deserves a mention in respect to the early pre-Second World War motorcycle road races.

In 1921, the Natal Motor Cycle Club of Durban, feel-ing that long distances events like the “Ladysmith” and “Jo’burg – Durban” were not the ultimate expression of road racing enthusiasm, instituted a new event in the form of the “Natal 100”. Run from the outskirts of Durban to Griffin’s Hill, just south of Pietermaritzburg, and return, a distance of approximately 100 miles (160 kilometres) af-forded the organisers an obviously appropriate title, and to competitors an opportunity to think in terms of speed rather than reliability.

Neither of these facts were apparent immediately, for the first race of the series was named (without great original-ity) the “Maritzburg Race”, and the winner’s speed was not greatly in excess of that returned in the contemporary long-distance classics. It must not be overlooked, however, that the fifty odd miles between Durban and Pietermaritzburg

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in those days presented an obstacle of no inconsid-erable proportions to high speed motoring on two or three wheels. The dusty, potholed untarred road wound its sinuous way (more tortuous and full of pitfalls even more than today) in the tracks of the wagon wheels of a previous century, with complete disregard for modern haste. The old “Botha’s”, “Älverstone” and “Ïnchanga” hills were then a present menace, with their steep and washed-out climbs over the summits of the heights and the day was not long past when it had been something of an achievement to climb them at all at the first at-tempt.

Certainly we must salute those stalwarts of earlier days who performed such prodigies of valour with their high-built unstable machines, side-valve engines prone to dis-tortion, narrow section, beaded-edged tyres and brakes that were often too fierce at the start of the event and non-existent at the finish.

Although remarkably free from serious mishaps, the “Natal 100” was always noted for the number of minor spills, which its short distance and consequent diminu-tion of caution engendered and one notable victim of these early hazards, in the first race, was the popular Na-tal figure, Ben North, who lost a thumb as a result of a crash on old Inchanga.

Bobbie Blackburn (Harley), then at the height of his rac-ing career as a rider, was a popular solo winner of the first event in 1921. His name is inseparably connected with this event, not only because he won this race but in view of his tragic death in a road accident whilst touring later in the same year.

As a mark of respect this popular sportsman, the N.M.C.C. purchased a handsome trophy, which as the “Blackburn Memorial Trophy” became the premier award in subsequent events.

Run as a separate class for the first and last time, the side-cars were well represented. The winner being C.G. Smith (Harley s/car), one of the foremost exponents of the day.

During the next five years the race, now firmly established as the “Natal 100”, consolidated its hold on the popu-lace’s imagination. Fields of around about twenty riders were attracted, drawn from the most outstanding solo and sidecar riders of the day and the rapid improvement in machines together with the more gradual improvement of road condition brought about a startling increase in speeds.

Famous names such as Len Cohen, Charlie Young, Don Hall and John Storrie appear with almost monotonous regularity in the yearly record of these races becoming the immortal heroes of not only small boys but also the adult enthusiast whose ears bristled at the sound of a rac-ing exhaust approaching.

Len Cohen and Don Hall each won this famous race on two occasions and are typical of the class of men who possessed a definite flair for speed, combined with an engineering knowledge, and tuning skill beyond the av-erage competitor.

In 1927 principally through the enterprise of Ben North the race took on a different complexion and opened a new era of “big” racing in South Africa. Considerable cash awards were offered in addition to the normal tro-phies, medals and motorcycle requisites. The success of this innovation was reflected in an increased number of participants totalling forty-two.

The weather conditions for this event were appalling with heavy rain and mist which accounted for less than half the entrants completing the race. Don Hall recorded his sec-ond win plus recording the fastest time on his two-stroke Dunelt, a performance, in itself indicative of the severe

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race conditions which resulted in so many of the riders, who on larger and faster machines, failed to finish.

1928 produced even greater enthusiasm in that it attract-ed an entry list of fifty-eight riders and in contrast to last year’s event the weather was perfect. Unfortunately, the day was marred by the death of Bob Smythe, in an inex-plicable and unwitnessed crash on an easy bend which overshadowed the tremendously close racing, one of the closest finishes ever recorded in a big road race. The dense crowd on the concrete stretch at the foot of Black Hill surged and eddied perilously as a black leathered fig-ure, crouching over the handlebars, appeared scudding down the slope. Officials made frenzied efforts to clear a path and brought forward the chequered flag in readiness of the leading rider. It was Norman Brockwell on an O.K. and great cheer of welcome arose as he reached the level section of road. Then, an audible groan was heard as he was seen to be coasting and another furiously speeding figure came into view, swinging down the long sweeping bends towards the concrete strip.

Hearing the roar of the approaching machine behind him, Brockwell leapt from his saddle and pushed his bike des-perately towards the finish but with only a few yards sepa-rating him from success, Len Grey, also on an O.K. swept by, lying flat on the tank, to deprive Brockwell of the win and claiming victory by a mere 3/5 of a second!

It appears that the event was not held in 1929. The dif-ficulties that were encountered with the “Jo’burg – Dur-ban” event was now having serious effects on the “Natal 100” and it was necessary to implement drastic measures by the officials to keep racing on the open road alive. The N.M.C.C. had by long usage the ‘right’ to two race days per year, one of which had been retained for the “Natal 100”, whilst the other was handed to the R.M.C.C. for the “Jo-burg Race”. Sacrificing their own event (a true sporting gesture) the Natal club appeased the anxious

Provincial authorities and, by giving the remaining day to the R.M.C.C., secured the continuance of the more fa-mous race.

1930 saw the revival of the “Natal 100”, the last of the series to be held on the open road and a good quality field of about forty riders was received. However, for this year’s event the turn-around point near Pietermaritzburg had been brought back about a mile to the “Star & Garter Hotel”. This slight shortening of the course made little difference to the race as it only eliminated a short flat-out section in each direction and necessitated pulling up and re-starting at the foot of a fairly steep hill.

Once again, the crowds at the finish were treated to a spectacular finale, this time staged by the two ace Durban riders, Charlie Young and Len Cohen. Both were scratch men, riding respectively a 600cc o.h.v. Douglas and a 500cc o.h.c. A.J.S. and they had put up a tremendous scrap from the word go. It is reported that on the difficult winding sections of the course, south of Inchanga, the short wheelbase AJ.S. had a slight advantage while on the more open northerly sections the Douglas was able to make up for this slight disadvantage and pulled away. So, for close on 100 miles they had battled together, alter-nating the lead, gradually forging their way through the field, until at the top of Black Hill, half a mile from the finish they swung into the acute right-hand bend almost wheel to wheel. Desperately anxious not to yield an inch, Young made his first mistake of the day by keeping the throttle open a fraction too long, with the result that he swung wide, running up the bank and along it for sever-al yards. Apparently, in a superhuman effort he regained control but, in the meantime, the unperturbed Cohen, on his slightly more agile bike, swept around the bend, gain-ing a precious lead of some twenty seconds, which he maintained to the finish.

Cohen, who had held the course record over the slightly

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longer distance for several years, established a new re-cord of nearly 67 mph with Young only fractionally slower.

Despite the absence of serious mishaps, the riders were undoubtedly endangered by the large crowds at either end of the course as well as the traffic on the roads. To-wards the “Star & Garter Hotel” the quicker riders were speeding on their return leg while faster men were ap-proaching it on their upwards rush and, it was realised that to continue with this two-way event under the pre-vailing conditions, was to court disaster. Very wisely, the organisers decided to discontinue the race.

Several years went by, until in 1937 it was apparent that the “D-J Race” was finally finished as an event, the N.M.C.C. then decided it was time to do reassess the situation. The success, both from the riders and specta-tors point of view, of racing on a closed circuit had long been done on overseas circuits and, more recently, at the very popular T.T. Races at Port Elizabeth and, the Parkhill Club’s Bluff Grand Prix, had confirmed that there was in-deed a need for such events in South Africa.

Permission to stage a race in Durban was refused but fi-nally the Club obtained sanction from the Pietermaritz-burg City Council to utilise an excellent section of road, measuring some 3.4 miles on the outskirts of the City, shaped somewhat like a boomerang and incorporating a one-mile straight section of Alexander Road.

The meeting, which included a race for cars named the “Coronation 100”, was a huge success. Public support ex-ceeded all expectations with ample revenue being raised to cover the heavy organising expenses and the very am-bitious prize list.

An entry of in excess of thirty competitors was obtained, not excessively large, but of very high calibre and, appar-ently very interesting racing occurred. The distance was

153 miles or 45 laps of the course and presented a test so severe that practically all the small machines had prob-lems of one sort or another, with the final finishing list down to sixth place being filled by overhead camshaft machines.

Nathan Smith, by now firmly established as a rising young-er generation star, was the winner at a speed of 66.6 mph riding a 350cc Norton. Don Hall, who had conceded two minutes at the start, followed him home less than a min-ute behind in second place having put up the fastest time of 67.6 mph. If it had not been for a binding brake, culmi-nating in a short pit stop in the later stages of the race, the finish might have been very closely fought.

Roy Hesketh, another young raising star at the time, broke down early in the race after putting up a meteoric fastest lap at 73.8 mph on a 500cc Norton.

During the following year, being 1938, an Easter Racing Festival was staged in Pietermaritzburg, with the “Natal 100” on the Saturday and a car race on the Monday.

A record entry of 65 competitors for the solo event was achieved, including internationally famous names such as Joe Sarkis and Jonny Galway. The size of the field pre-sented something of a problem to the lap scorers and timekeepers for the first half of the race. A. Riddle, riding a super-charged two-stroke 175cc James had a handicap advantage of some 54 minutes over the scratch riders, started first as the limit man and, by the time the entry had thinned out after the first half of the race, it was apparent that if he kept on going he would never be caught. He did ride with superb judgment, the small engine buzzing sweetly for almost three hours, to win the second “Natal 100” over the Alexander circuit, at the remarkable aver-age of just shy of 52 mph.

Another two-stroke came in fourth whilst the remaining

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Chris Cardwell

four places were filled with overhead camshaft machines.

Joe Sarkis, who finished sixth, set the fastest time im-proving on Don Hall’s time of the previous year on a sim-ilar machine, by a little over one and a half minutes.

For various reasons a change of course had to be made for 1939 and an excellent, if slightly narrow circuit was mapped out on the Greytown side of Pietermaritzburg, a short section of the main Greytown road being incorpo-rated. The lap distance was 4.3 miles and, with 35 laps for the race, the customary distance for a closed-circuit race of approximately 150 miles was maintained. Appar-ently, the circuit included a number of very tricky bends and the one and a half mile slightly downhill straight past the grandstands afforded the opportunity for the larger machines to be fully extended to their maximum. It was, therefore, evident that the event would be won by an overhead valve machine.

That year the entry was down to approximately thirty riders, nearly all of which were top notch riders, includ-ing the sporting visitors, Sarkis and Galway, by now they were almost as popular in Natal as they were on the Rand.

After a finely contested race the dashing bur rather unlucky Archie Sells ran out an easy winner on a 350cc

o.h.c. Velocette at over 67 mph followed home half a min-ute later by Bob Sibbald riding a 500c o.h.v. BSA who had struck trouble and lost time in the early stages of the race.

No race was possible in 1940 in Pietermaritzburg owing to the Provisional Authorities restriction on roads com-ing under their control but by determined efforts of the N.M.C.C. succeeded in obtaining permission to hold the event in Durban at the end of May. The course was to have been the Snell Parade Circuit, as had been used pre-viously for the very successful Fairfield Handicap car race in 1939.

The stage had been set for another feast of speed, with the added attraction of the proceeds being donated to the then Mayor’s Fund. During May, however, the clouds of war were looming darkly on the distant horizon and disaster in Europe cast its shadow over this events future.

After all factors were considered, the organising Club de-cided that, under these unhappy prevailing conditions, with many riders and officials already serving with the armed Forces or expecting to leave shortly, a successful event in the N.M.C.C. tradition could not be guaranteed and run. Reluctantly, the decision was made to abandon the event.

Chris Cardwell

WINNERS OF THE PRINCIPAL SOUTH AFRICAN ROAD RACES

The Durban – Johannesburg Race (403 miles)

Year Notes Rider Machine Time

Hours Minutes Seconds

1913 3 days A.W. McKeag 500 s.v. Bradbury 14 46 -

1914 3 days B. Adams 500 s.v. Rudge 11 30 19

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1919 2 days P. Flook 350 s.v. Douglas 12 45 45

1920 Solo F.A.R. Zurcher 350 s.v. Douglas 23 18 20

1920 Side car Á. Long 1000 s.v. Excelsior 13 34 8

1921 Solo J.R. Blackburn 1000 s.v. Harley -Davidson 10 12 19

1921 Side car Á. Long 1000 s.v. Excelsior 11 26 55

1922 Solo C.H. Young 500 o.h.v. Ricardo Triumph 10 1 32

1923 Solo P. Flook 350 s.v. Douglas 10 9 55

1924 Solo Á. Long 500 s.v. Sunbeam 9 2 6

1925 Solo C.W. Bower 350 s.v. Douglas 10 34 13

1926 Solo J.R. Gibson 300 s.v. O.K. 10 28 50

1927 Solo P. Flook 350 s.v. Douglas 9 34 40

1928 Solo B.E. Scott 175 o.h.v. Chater Lea 10 13 22

1929 Solo J.G. Lind 350 o.h.v. A.J.S. 8 8 19

1930 Solo W.D. Griebenow 490 o.h.v. Sunbeam 8 20 -

1931 Solo L. Taylor 225 t.s. Royal-Enfield 9 24 1

1932 Solo B.E. Scott 175 t.s. James 8 30 29

1933 Solo B.D.B. Kinsey 499 s.v. B.S.A. 6 54 50

1934 Solo Don Hall 348 o.h.c. Norton 6 42 47

1935 Solo R.O. Hesketh 250 o.h.c. Excelsior 6 51 41

1936 Solo C. Jarman 350 s.v. A.J.S. 6 51 7

The Ladysmith Race (312 miles)



1918 Only finisher

T.H. Spargo 7/9 Harley-Davidson sidecar 19 - -

1919 Solo J.R, Blackburn 7/9 Harley-Davidson 8 42 -

1919 Sidecar P. Lawrence 7/9 Indian sidecar 10 2 -

1920 Solo J.P. Booth 2 ¼ Baby Triumph 14 55 30

1920 Sidecar P. Lawrence 7/9 Indian sidecar 10 50

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1921 Solo P. Flook 2 ¾ Douglas 9 43 -

1921 Sidecar C.G. Smith 7/9 Harley Davidson 9 20 -

1922 Combined H.B. Loader 7/9 Harley-Davidson (solo) 7 10 -

1923 Combined T.H. Spargo 3 ½ Norton sidecar 10 17 -

South African T.T. Races – Port ElizabethLight Weight Class – 175cc



1926 A.R. Biggs 174cc o.h.v. Cotton 2 4 12 -

1929 J.Unwin Unknown 2 53 22 -

1930 A.B. Brownie D.K.W. 2 42 53 -

1931 E. Davis Excelsior 1 55 32 -

PS: Distances in this event varied between 100 and 140 miles

Light Weight Class – 250cc

Year Rider Machine Time


1930 J. Sarkis O.K. 2 15 30*

1931 J. Sarkis O.K. 1 32 42**

1934 J. Sarkis O.K. 2 56 _***

Note variation in race distance: * = 140 miles; **= 100 miles; *** = 200 miles.

Junior Event – 350cc



1925 D. Hall 349cc o.h.v. A.J.S. 3 36 53

1926 C.H. Young 344cc o.h.v. Royal Enfield 3 22 49

1927 L.R. Cohen 349cc o.h.v. A.J.S. 3 20 35

1928 L.R. Cohen 348cc o.h.c. A.J.S. 3 41 49

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1929 D. Hall Velocette 3 7 40

1930 D. Hall Velocette 2 52 23

1931 L.R. Cohen 348cc o.h.c. A.J.S. 2 45 34

1932 J. Sarkis 348cc o.h.v. O.K. 2 9 39

1933 Race Not Held

1934 J. Sarkis 348cc o.h.v. O.K. 2 41 28

1935 J. Galway Norton 2 54 29*

1936 H.J. Brook - - - -**

1937 A. Reeve Norton 2 41 13***

Note variation in race distance: * = 214 miles; **= 210 miles; *** = 214 miles.

Senior Event – 500cc



1931 G. Lind A.J.S. 2 33 49

1932 J. Serkis Sunbeam 2 35 3

1933 Race Not Held

1934 J. Sarkis 493cc o.h.v. Sunbeam 2 31 53

1935 Event Cancelled

1936 D. Hall 350cc oh.v. Norton 2 33 -*

1937 D. Hall 350cc o.h.v. Norton 2 33 32*

Note the last two races were held over longer distances, 210 – 214 miles. The rest were run over a distance of 200 miles.

Senior Event – 600 to 650cc



1924 L. Hammerton Indian Scout 3 31 -

1925 C. Young 498cc o.h.v. Triumph 3 22 40

1926 C. Young 344cc o.h.v. Royal Enfield 3 18 34

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1927 P. Flook 490cc o.h.v. Norton 3 10 29

1928 H.B. Loader 496cc o.h.v. B.S.A. 4 5 5

1929 J. Sarkis Rudge 3 10 39

1930 J. Sarkis Rudge 2 41 50

Note distances varied between 200 and 340 miles

Unlimited Class



1924 J.W. du Toit Harley-Davidson 3 54 38

1925 E.G. Murray Harley-Davidson 3 26 40

1926 P. Flook 490cc o.h.v. Norton 3 10 11

The “Natal 100” – 100 miles



1921 Solo J.R. Blackburn 7/9 Harley-Davidson - - -

1921 Sidecar C.G. Smith 7/9 Harley-Davidson - - -

1922 Combined H.B. Loader 7/9 Harley-Davidson 2 15 45

1923 Combined L.R. Cohen 348cc o.h.v. A.J.S. 2 9 45

1924 Combined H. Cummins 750cc s.v. Indian 2 40 45

1925 Combined P. Christie 250cc s.v. B.S.A. 2 30 1

1926 Combined Don Hall 350cc o.h.v. A.J.S. 2 27 -

1927 Combined Don Hall 349cc t.s. Dunelt 2 10 -

1928 Combined Len Gray 348cc s.v. O.K. 2 1 48

1929 Race Not Held

1930 Combined L.R. Cohen 495cc o.h.c. A.J.S. 1 30 45

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Chris Cardwell

The “Natal 100”- Alexander Circuit 150 miles



1937 Solo Nathan Smith 350cc o.h.c. Norton 2 17 50

1938 Solo Á. Riddle 177cc t.s. James 2 57 12

1939 Solo A.C.F. Sells 350cc o.h.c. Velocette 2 14 1

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Brian Lawlor

AUGUST 2019 Page 30

Savva Technical Tip No 145

SAVVA Technical Tip 145 Sagging door handles.

Some years back we touched on this subject, howev-

er, Alf Dolt recently submitted the following remind-

er which is worthy of repeating. Alf is one of those

perfectionists who has rebuilt some magnificent cars.

From Alf:

Cars of the 20’s to 60’s used a square bar to support the

door handles which with the passing of time together

with miss-handling the bar tends to bend resulting in sag-

ging handles. How often does one see concourse cars

with drooping handles which is so easy to correct?

Simply remove the handle. Place one end of the square

rod in a vice and heat it up with a gas flame until cherry

red and carefully bend the handle up until it is horizontal.

When it had cooled down replace in the latch. The trick

is to play with the heat until the handle can be bent up

without too much force. One can also attach a spanner

to the square bar next to the handle to help the bending

process.

AUGUST 2019 Page 31

Classified

The For Sale Table

Don’t forget there is a table at the back of the hall for items

members would like to dispose of. This we feel is better

than waiting for the periodic flea market. Should you have

an item to sell please affix a sticker or label with your name

and how much you want for it. Items with no amount means

it’s a freebie

Please note, items placed on the “for sale table” must have

the price, sellers name and contact number clearly marked

on them. Also, items not sold within three months must

be removed or they will be removed and discarded by the

club.

FOR SALE:

CAR MagazinesI have a complete run of CAR magazines from 1984 – 2008.

If anyone is interested – please contact your editor –

[email protected].

1936 Ford

In original and excellent running condition. Radiator recent-ly rebuilt by Greens. Brakes rebuilt by Wingate, New clutch, Gearbox checked through, new tyres etc. License papers in order.Engine upgraded to 24 stud therefore no overheating.

Yours for R165,000.00. Contact P.J. Ryan 0833034304

AUGUST 2019 Page 32


Chris Cardwell

Insurance Brokers

Specialising in Vintage and Veteran Car Insurance together with Personal and Business Insurances.

CONTACT DETAILS:Gareth Bain

Telephone: 087 736 2222 • Fax: (011) 699 0783

Email: [email protected]

Branch Manager: Mrs N Meier

An Authorised Financial Services Provider

Help/advice wanted

A club member based in Amsterdam, Netherlands, has pur-

chased a replacement door for his Mazda MX5 over there

and wants to send out to RSA to replace a damaged one on

his car stored in Linden. Unfortunately, the shipping costs

by air freight is horrific. Has anyone any idea how to send it

out by container or some other inexpensive way. It’s crated

and weighs around 50 kgs.

Suggestions to Ruud -

[email protected]

AUGUST 2019 Page 33

RecommendedSuppliers

Paul Koski

We are drawing up a list of recommended suppliers, please feel free to add to this list or make recommendations, notify me on: [email protected]

Body repairs and painting:*Shield Panelbeaters, Manny Bairos 084 506 7237

Restorations & General Workshop* Brian Style, 082 330 1688 * Heritage Workshop, John Allison 011 626 2970, 072 108 4280* Charles Goodman 082 449 6901* Tony Watson 011 875 2101 Dating Club Vehicles:* Eric Mc Q

Car Covers:* Pat Barclay 011 698 3166, 073 263 7982

Powder Coating * African Powder Coating, 13 Fountain St. Eastleigh, Edenvale. John 011 452 3345

Plating* African Electroplating - Peter Posniak 082 553 5032

Auto Trimmers:* Nev’s Auto Trimmers Neville, 011 472 0392, 083 284 9408

Engine & gearbox etc. mountings (same day service)* Nick Mountings, Wynberg 082 445 1489

Seat Springs: * Seat, compression, tension springs etc., Weblor Springs 011 452 8686/7

Instrument Repairs:* Sports car centre, Alan Uzzell 011 646 1631* Nigel Ridley, Clocks and Instrument repairs, 011 803 1319

AUGUST 2019 Page 34

RecommendedSuppliers

Paul Koski

Insurance:* SAVVA Insurance, Glenn Broadhurst Yolande Erasmus Cell: 087 736 2222, Fax: 011 699 0783

Brake, Clutch & Accelerator, speedo cables* Cablecraft, 77 West St., Kempton Park, 011 394 4865* Martin Peach, Bordeaux, 011787 2995, 082 492 7794

Brake hoses, cables, electric window repairs* TK Cables, 627 Ondekkers Road, Delarey, 011 029 5366, 086 552 5514

Piston Rings* Made to size, Industrial Piston Ring Manuf. David Godwin, 011 622 2546/7* Cord Rings, 5 Kruis St. Johannesburg, 011 334 9525

Lenses (reproductions)* Duke’s Car Lenses 083 655 3657

Vintage tyres:* Jeppe Tyres, Roy Greenburg 011 614 0462, 082 491 2025

Refurbishing Woodgrain on steel and wood: * Ivan Cotton 076 034 9482

Chev and Ford Part importers* Mike Leisegang: 082 857 8733

Rolls-Royce & Bentley Spares and repairs * AP Wallis 083 264 1700, 011 609 4652

Ford Parts (F Series)* Gary Dixon 011 609 3631

Carburettor Services* Frank Hackney 011 493 7000 Carburettor Services - 22 Loveday Street South Johannesburg [email protected]

Batteries* Battery Orbit Le Roux Ave &, Richards Drive Halfway Gardens, Midrand, 1686 Ask for either Colin or Nielan (011) 466 9411

AUGUST 2019 Page 35

Always LeaveThem Laughing

Brilliant Beijing Hotel Brochure

Translated as only they can.

An oldie but goodie – Ed. Please note any implication of a suggestive nature is entirely in your own mind.

A friend went to Beijing recently and was given this bro-chure by the hotel. It is precious.She is keeping it and reading it whenever she feels de-pressed. Obviously, it has been translated directly, word for word from Mandarin to English.

Getting There: Our representative will make you wait at the airport. The bus to the hotel runs along the lake shore. Soon you will feel pleasure in passing water. You will know that you are getting near the hotel, because you will go round the bend. The manager will await you in the entrance hall. He always tries to have intercourse with all new guests.

The Hotel: This is a family hotel, so children are very welcome. We of course are always pleased to accept adultery. Highly skilled nurses are available in the evenings to put down your children. Guests are invited to conjugate in the bar and expose themselves to others. But please note that ladies are not allowed to have babies in the bar. We or-ganize social games, so no guest is ever left alone to play with them self.

The Restaurant: Our menus have been carefully chosen to be ordinary and unexciting. At dinner, ourquartet will circulate from table to table, and fiddle with you.

Your Room: Every room has excellent facilities for your private parts. In winter, every room is on heat. Each room has a balcony offering views of outstanding obscenity! .... You will not be disturbed by traffic noise, since the road between the hotel and the lake is used only by pederasts.

Bed: Your bed has been made in accordance with local tradi-tion. If you have any other ideas, please ring for the cham-bermaid. Please take advantage of her. She will be very pleased to squash your shirts, blouses and underwear. If asked, she will also squeeze your trousers.

Above All: When you leave us at the end of your holiday, you will have no hope. You will struggle to forget it.

Dave Valentine

AUGUST 2019 Page 36

Contacts

VVC COMMITTEE FOR 2019

Chairman Ian Holmes [email protected] 083 646 3089 Vice Chairman Paul Koski [email protected] 082 442 6662 Treasurer Anneke de Groot [email protected] TBAClubhouse G Kaiser [email protected] 082 777 1818Registration/Members Karen Kaiser [email protected] 083 307 0581Events Larina McGregor [email protected] 084 949 0937Regalia / Events Steve Martin [email protected] 082 551 8588DJ Finance Bert Lopes [email protected] 083 637 5171Clubhouse Exterior Cindy Rousseau [email protected] 084 969 6993Editor Brian Askew [email protected] 082 601 3021 Ex-officio Portfolio Holders: Social breakfasts John Hassall [email protected] 011 679 2342 Dating Officer Eric McQuillian [email protected] 083 700 0171

CORRESPONDENCEAll correspondence to the club should also be addressed to: [email protected]

PLEASE NOTEDeadline for articles for the next issue is the 7th of the previous month

Please do keep your articles coming in. Your contributions are appreciated!When submitting photographs please ensure that they are high resolution, to do justice to the

pictures, particularly in the printed version.

VINTAGE AND VETERAN CLUB ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION 2019/2020 Joining Fee: R125.00 (including Name Badge) Extra name badges R50.00

ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS:Ordinary Members: Country Members: (outside of Gauteng)R575 including monthly printed Newsletter R450 including monthly printed NewsletterR425 including monthly emailed Newsletter R300 including monthly emailed NewsletterHonorary Life Members: FREE

Banking Details: Vintage and Veteran Club, Nedbank, Benmore Gardens Branch 197305. Account No. 1973 038 617

Affiliated to SAVVAe-mail: [email protected] • website: www.vintageandveteranclub.co.za • mail: P.O. Box 35129, Northcliff, 2115

clubhouse: 3 Athol Oaklands Road, Oaklands, Johannesburg

AUGUST 2019 Page 37

Notice Board

EVENTSThe events are published in the newsletter every month and will also be announced at the Sunday Club meeting

held on the last Sunday of every month. There is a breakfast meet on the 2nd Sunday of the month at various

venues around Johannesburg. These are truly enjoyable and kindly arranged by John Hassal. If you would like

to be on the invite list for these please send John an email on: [email protected] or Karen on:

[email protected]

FACEBOOKNote that you can also join the club’s Facebook: The Vintage and Veteran Club VVC. It is a closed group. If you join, Paul

will accept you as a member. There is a lot of other interesting content posted from around the world. Karen Kaiser.

SHIRTS AND REGALIA Wearing a club shirt. There is a blue short-sleeve shirt with the VVC badge above the pocket and also white

polo shirt with the VVC badge. They will be on sale at the Sunday Club meetings.

There is – ready for winter – a club sweater with the logo on it. R300.

Also, check our cabinet by the bar entrance for VVC badges to enhance your classic car and person.

If you would like to place an order kindly contact Karen on: [email protected]

The club encourages you to make use of the newsletter to move some of the belongings you have

accumulated. With so many members sizing down and moving you are

welcome to advertise here. Remember “one man’s junk...”

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Documents

VVC VIEW - Vintage and Veteran Club › AUGUST 2019i.pdf · 2019-08-01 · against the stock market. His summary was that over the past 12 months the FTSE All-Share Index has risen