Week Eight: Virtual is the New Normal

Thought for the Week

It seems that during this extraordinary time, you can stick virtual in front of any word to make it a thing. Last week I told you about a Virtual Garage tour and this week I have pictures of Virtual VE Day. However, I have a few words of warning about Virtual Track Days, as they can bite you back!

Sammy Miller's Museum

2011 was slim pickings as far as Brooklands was concerned, but in Feb I paid my first visit to Sammy Millers. Here is a selection of bikes from the collection. Sammy has recently expanded the building housing his collection and must therefore be keen to get back to help pay the bills. However, I think that Sammy Miller’s does seem to represent very good value for money, and if you are a member of the British Motorcycle Charitable Trust (BMCT) its free. You could do Sammy Miller and Beaulieu all in one hit for free or if you are counting BMCT Membership £20, yes just £20 per year. Well worth a membership after this madness is over.  Visit the BMCT Website 

Below are some images of some bikes of note. This FN has an interesting leading fork suspension setup.

A 1923 Martinsyde Newman. This bike from the Woking based marque is looking looking a little more concourse than ours at Brooklands. Martinsyde were manufactures of early aircraft at Brooklands.

A 1947 Nimbus. I first saw one of these in a car park in Oslo. It was red and Grey and I thought it must be some sort of Custom Bike. Based in Denmark the Fisker Neilsen Company made bikes between 1919 to 1960. You still see them occasionally, but I guess there are a few more about in Scandinavia. Interesting that Sammy has chosen black as I think the two tone red may have been the more common colour.

  

A very nice very original Quadrant from 1898. Others may be able to comment more on this bike, but I guess the De Dion Bouton engine was an off the shelf model which has been shoehorned in what appears to be a modified ladies bicycle frame with an added cross bar. Gaces Guide confusingly tells me this is a 1.5hp engine motorised in 1900 by Arthur Taylor.  I think this must be some sort of special or prototype hence Sammy's interest. I can't read the display sheet, but if you look at the drive its a chain with the pedal driving some sort of shaft possibly inside the tube. I must get down to Sammy's and investigate further.

We are so used to looking at the Brooklands Grindley its easy to forget about the road versions. This is a very nice looking Model ST1 from 1925. Why do they not command the same interest as Brough Superiors? I think I know the answer which lies in Brough's apitite for self promotion and there are still just about enough about to stimulate insane bidding, whereas the Grindlay's are really quite a rare beast.

No collection of images from Sammy's would be complete without the Porcupine. A future Blog will feature Sammy riding this round his courtyard during a Motorcycle Team visit.

Another Motorcycle made by an aircraft manufacturer. This Verdel from 1912 features a five cylinder 750cc engine in what is essentially a bicycle frame with a single speed and a chain drive. I don't know anything about it, but this bike says speed. (And Scary) after mergers, the company founded the brand Gnome Rhône.

Below is a short 1 minute film of Sammy Miller Running the Verdel

 

Brooklands Auto Italia

The only Brooklands event I have for 2011 was Auto Italia which according to the film date stamp was held in April.

Virtual 75^th anniversary of VE Day

On Friday 8 May and I should have been packing up the AJS to go to RHS Wisley as part of the Brooklands contingent taking part in the VE Day 75 Cavalcade. The Bike was ready, but of course Lockdown prevented the event from taking place. So I was restricted to the front garden and a fly past of a Spitfire from Goodwood which was due to honour several WW2 veterans, one of which lives very close. However, I missed the Spitfire and shared family commemorations via Watsapp.

The most important thing is that we did remember all those who experienced the War and those who sadly did not make it. I watched someone being interviewed about their Wartime experiences contrasted with the current Lockdown. His answer was “it was not as bad as this!”

  

 

Now some absolute gems from the Pathe News Archive

Assembling a bike in 20 Minutes

A lovely little promotional film demonstrating the assembly of a Francis Barnett. Maybe we should try it at Brooklands some day. NO SOUND

Speedsters at Brooklands

First up is a very short clip of a 500cc Scratch race from 1930 won by Burt Denley. Interesting as you get a short comment from Burt at the end. 

It is followed by the opening of Woodley Airodrome in Reading. for those interested in Aircraft there is a good shot of an Auto-gyro.

Joe Wright 150 MPH Record in Cork 1930  NO SOUND

Dangerous enough at Brookland's but on an open road which was sort of closed, does not bear thinking of. In this film we get some good rare shots of Joe Wright without his crash helmet on and an insight into the very special protective clothing. There's the back brace and Kid gloves, the knitted  jumper and a pair of shoes. What could possibly go wrong. Nice shots too of the streamlining to the OEC JAP bike and the modified helmet

Old Crocks At Brooklands

A wonderful film from 1931 showing some pioneer bikes being shown off. There is also some very good action shots on the banking. The camera angle is quite high and fairly smooth.

Brooklands 1936

A short 25 second news reel film of a Brooklands Race. 

Brooklands Open Meeting 1938

The bikes appear after 30 seconds. This is a late film and I think this is the first time I have seen bike racing on the Campbell Circuit. Sadly it mad up of loots of very short clips but its forth freeze framing to get a better idea of whats going on. Looks like its our man Fernihough was the winner as he is seen posing at the end.

Brighton Speed Trials 1932

Brooklands in its heyday was of course the place for records and so it is perhaps not a surprise that this film of the Brighton Speed Trials is called Brooklands by the Sea.  A Cotton gets off to a good start narrowly missing some guy nonchalantly strolling down the track. This is followed by Campbell vs Cobb. Again its good to hear the voice Campbell wearing a Bluebird jumper and obligatory fag.

Next time we move on to my archive of 2012/13 and lots of Thursday action with the Museum Vehicles 

Week Seven: I'm Zooming

Its funny how quickly the new normal kicks in. Last week I had several Video conferences via Zoom and a few weeks ago I had never heard of it. Skype calls just seem so yesterday as we get one click access to all our contacts. Other formats are of course available and I was invited to another meeting with Motorsport magazine via Microsoft Teams last Thursday before later catching up with a couple of the Brooklands Team for a chat and a Zoom Garage Tour.  Who would thought 10 weeks ago that virtual garage tours were even a thing?

 

A Real Racer at work

We will get straight into the films this week with a non-bike related item. This is a car race from the USA which I have picked as it demonstrates a real racer at work. The captions also give an insight into what’s going on in the drivers head. There is a crash at the beginning, but otherwise no drama, just pure race craft, driving skill and of course a decent reliable engine under the bonnet.

 

New Years Day Meet 2010

Here are some images from the New Years Day event. Its become very popular over the last few years, but in 2010 I was still recovering from a late night, so people were beginning to head for home.

New Years Day at Brooklands 2010

The 2010 Spring Gathering

Back to Brooklands and the year is 2010 and another hugely successful event is the Spring Gathering. Watch and enjoy as the early morning mist rises over the museum to reveal some amazing bikes including a few visitors from The National Motorcycle Museum. The NMM Grindley would not start and the word was it was just put away after the Brookland’s run the previous year and turned up without any preparation. There is one thing we have all been taught at the museum. Don’t disappoint the spectators (or the rider!) always make sure the bike is prepared.

 

Double Twelve 2010

In June it was the Double Twelve and I took my Sunbeam out for a run to the museum to be included on the BTM (now Brooklands Member’s) Outreach stand.

The 1935  Model 16 Sunbeam on the Outreach stand

JP lotus Display, Just like the pits back in the day. "Bugger wheres that nut".

The 1935 Sunbeam in front of the Brooklands Memorial

This is a film I made of the action from the 2010 Brooklands Double Twelve.

Goodwood Festival of Speed 2010

I have to admit that my trip to FOS in 2010 was driven by my love of F1 racing rather than bikes but I was able to capture a few bike images. I was also able to capture the moment when Adrian Newey  was presented with his very own RB 5 to play with. Just listen to the Williams as it warms up and hits the track. 

Adrian Newey is presented with his own RB5 in front of the Press at 2010 FOS

I made this short film of a young Sam Bird preparing for his run. This was a big deal at the time as it was Williams current car. The run was permitted under FIA Regs as one of their designated a camera (filming) runs.

I still own the F1atHome.com Domain, which is now very appropriate during the lock-down as eSports races are really taking off! 

Goodwood FOS 2010

Goodwood Revival 2010

I was back at Goodwood in September for my first visit to the revival. I saw Stirling Moss in what I think was the last race before the accident at his London flat when he fell into the lift shaft. 

Stirling Moss in what I suspect was his last Race at Goodwood 2010

Stirling Moss still wearing his period crash Helmet at Goodwood in 2010

Also at this meeting was a John Surtees Tribute Parade. I never used this footage as I was constantly diverted by the Hurricanes and Spitfires doing a display overhead. I have now managed to separate them. I hope you enjoy.

I also have a picture of me next to a Rudge on display opposite the pits. I noticed today that asleep in the background is vintage racer Ian Bain. He is someone who will continue to pop up now and again in this blog either racing or with his vintage sand-racer Brough at Brooklands.

Pictured with a Rudge at 2010 Goodwood Revival & Ian Bain Grabbing 40 winks behind

 

VIRTUAL VE Day

We will be having our very own Virtual VE Day at home tomorrow with the AJS on show in the driveway. We get quite a few walkers past the front these days so I hope it will provide a bit of a distraction. Pictures Next Week.

Week Six: And the fuel is already going stale.

Last week we got sentenced to another three weeks for good behaviour and I experienced our car failing to start for its weekly shopping trip. Having had a look at it and I mean look, as I don’t understand modern engines, I think the fuel had evaporated in the line. When I had more time I managed to get it going and the exhaust smell was more like an engine left for seven years than days. It was that tell-tale old fuel smell. So maybe its time to exercise those engines more regularly now the weather is warming up.

My only question about this clip is WHY!

AJS

Well as you saw last week it looks done but the tank is still a bit of a state inside, so it will get another treatment. I also seem to have lost the rear brake rod. I must have put it somewhere safe! The front brake cable needs replacing, and it looks as if Venhill in Dorking are still operating. I have been looking for replacements online but can’t find anything suitable. I tend to avoid making brake cables but am ok on the others. It is now ready to take its place in the Virtual VE Day commemorations next Friday.

Moving to my Brooklands related archives, we stay with 2009 this week.

Test Hill Centenary

The first of these films is a short compilation of runs I made from the centenary of the opening of Brooklands Test Hill held on 22 March 2009. The following images were also taken at the event. Who can ever forget seeing Chris Williams take to the hill in that fire breathing Bentley. During the lunch break there were also other events such as the army cadets pulling an aircraft tyre up the hill.

The second film is uncut (just under 10 min) and exclusively motorcycles. Roger, John Duncan and Michael take part in the action. There is a shot of Dick Standing and his son in the pits and the main reason I kept it uncut was to soak up Michael’s excellent commentary. Also watch out for two Grindleys up the hill in tandem and Jerry Lark (The Morgan Owner) on a new imperial shedding his chain at the bottom of Test Hill.

James May Scalextric World Record

You may remember James May’s Series Toy Stories where James would challenge Sim Oakley to a series of seemingly impossible tasks relating to childhood favourites of days gone by. In August 2009 the challenge was to hold a race on a Scalextric track around the Brooklands outer circuit and in doing so set a world record. 

It did rather meet the description of impossible, but after what was portrayed in the programme as a bit of messing about in one of the empty offices in the Heights an army of volunteers began to build the track. And yes I was there with the help of my wife to capture this event from start to finish. I am particularly pleased with this film as it documents the whole event. It was an exhausting time running round the whole course. I was helped by the fact that the producers had provided about three sets of cars plus some section teams had their own test cars. Watch out for the mini cameras mounted on some of the Scalextric cars.

For maximum impact I went home and edited the film uploading it at 3am the following morning.  By 18 August It was No 14 in the Youtube charts and No 91 for the week. On 23 August it had climbed to No 7 in the news charts only beaten by Sky News items and was No 48 for the month of August 2009 with 30,000 views a mere sip of the cup of virtual fame! The following film has now had over 51,600 views. It turns out people round the world just love a Scalextric World Record.

Perry is now asking himself "why does it now take so long for Martin to edit films." The answer is of course that PB provides so much quality content I just don’t know where to begin!

Wings and Wheels

2009 continued to be a busy year for me and I was also at Dunsfold for Wings and Wheels. The track was just too far away to get any good shots. This was my one and only trip to the event, but watch out for our very own Geoff Brandon flying down the track on his Ariel.

Below there is also an outtake clip I got of a towed aerobatic glider braking a tow rope. A nice bit of work by the pilot to regain control and land safely. I thought this one might also go viral but not dramatic enough I guess.

Next week: We move onto 2010 and another epic motorcycle event at Brooklands and get ready to commemorate Virtual VE Day. I am also missing the weekly Quiz so I will have a go at adding one for the next few weeks. STAY SAFE.

Week 5: I Am Missing The Beach

That was the strangest Bank Holiday I have ever experienced. I should have been down at the beach swearing at the cost of parking and thinking about how soon I can get my new paddle board into the water. Instead I am still at home and taking the weekend off from the workshop. I have spent a lot of time in the garden, the winter weeds are no more and I spent most of Saturday afternoon laying in the sun catching up on my motorcycle magazines.

Brooklands and NLG

Just before I could get back in the workshop there was the Brooklands Members Bulletin to finalise. The next edition includes a motorcycle related piece about the first year of Brooklands motorcycling. We have managed to get some stunning shots of Charlie Collier setting a record at Brooklands in 1908 as well as images of McMinnies and Oscar Bickford who took part in the first ever motorcycle race at Brooklands. 

The first official race was of course won by William Cook on the famous NLG. North London Garages followed this bike up with the mammoth 2700cc JAP powered motorcycle that proved to be just too powerful, even for the outer circuit only managing a top speed of 84.247mph over a flying kilometre (in 26.553 seconds). Although this was a new unlimited speed record for Brooklands it was not recognised as a world record.

I did not realise that Parvel Malanik’s recreation of this bike was built specifically to beat Cook’s Brooklands time and prove that the bike could have reached 100 mph. Several of us witnessed this run at the 2017 Montlhèry Vintage revival. The following film gives some idea as to what this beast is like to ride. 

Back in the workshop 13-19 April

The bike is in the final stages of completion. I seem to have been saying that for the last six months, but I think I really mean it now. The tin-work is always a bit fiddly, but it went ok, the only issue being that I had temporarily lost the chain guard. Some of you will have seen it when I got it going at Brooklands last year. Since then I have fixed the massive oil leak. 

So here it is finished and ready for 8 May VE Day tribute. Some of you will spot there are no brake cables or linkages and I need still need to fit a period 1" mag lever. The double leavers are also still working the throttle as I have a guide missing from the twist grip.

Silverstone and the Birkin Memorial

In 2008 I got a look behind the scenes at Silverstone. I broke my foot falling off the winners podium so went back the following year to see the BRDC Clubhouse rather than the very impressive medical facilities! It seems that when they moved the club from Brooklands to Silverstone they took the original Brooklands gates (no image) and take a look at the plaques on the wall below you may recognise the Birkin memorial which is also on the Brooklands Clubhouse. I am assured by Andrew Lewis that ours is the original. The other things I took away from the visit was the number of people it takes to run a club meeting and the amount of kit the racers have these days.

Matchless Restoration 2009

I Just found some pictures of the 1956 Matchless 3GL when it first arrived at Brooklands. I could not get away from work when it was being worked on, so the next time I saw it was in the presentation picture. I gather it was not a straight-forward job. I remember Duncan saying it looked as if they must have just been grabbing random items off the shelf when it was built. I fear this was the case with a lot of manufactures as they merged during the twilight of the British motorcycle industry.

Vickers Vimy

We have all got used to seeing the Vimy in the shed at Brooklands and even running its engines sometimes. This particular replica was built in America  in 1994 and flew several fights culminating on 2nd -3rd July 2005, when the Vimy achieved the ultimate goal successfully re-enacted Alcock & Brown’s trans-Atlantic flight from St Johns, Newfoundland to Clifden, Ireland, in just under 19 hours piloted by Steve Fossett and Mark Rebholz.

However, in 2009 it arrived at Brooklands after a short flight from Dunsfold where it had been stored following its last flight. I will have to check but I guess that this aircraft may have been due to run out of time on its airworthiness certificates so had to be moved to avoid a later undignified trip on a lorry.

I was there to capture its return on 15 November 2009. I recall it was overdue and the light was fading. In the distance were the two dots of the Vimy and escort Shorts Skyvan. The Vimy did a couple of sighting passes before dropping out of the sky over MBW and onto the airstrip. It was quite dramatic and you will see it (luckily) has a very short landing capability. 

As a postscript to this story I understand that there was an earlier replica. We now have some images and more research is being carried out to feature it in a future edition of the Brooklands Bulletin.

Check out the film of the Vimy's return:

1935 Sunbeam Model 16

As I mentioned in last weeks blog I got my Sunbeam in 2009. This was my first British bike and was acquired after losing out on a hand-change Royal Enfield and a Norton. I got it from an antique dealer up north who had a choice of two. This Sunbeam has had a hard life but is full of character and quite rare being the only year that they featured the bulbous silencer. The silencer's patches now have patches and I need to get a new one made. I am very slowly replacing worn out bits and the next stage will be to take a look at the smoking engine. I have not ridden it for three years, but it still started first time when I had it out last year.

See you next week.