I had been looking forward to this run for some weeks and I wasn't disappointed. The A sedan had failed to make it to Drayton Manor due to
ongoing problems but I was determined to get the heap to this run. After
much work and plenty of panic I decided that the Rod could manage the 8
mile journey if I took the caravan down first behind the family beater and then returned for it.
The weather alternated between heavy rain and heavier rain during Friday, not an auspicious start to the weekend. I blame the Queen for this as the weather during the previous weekend had been glorious but Billing Aquadrome had been unsure that there would be room for us due to the celebrations. This was a double shame as the N.S.R.A. committee had been hoping to prolong the run for an extra day because of the extended bank holiday.
As is my custom at runs I intended to run the A with open headers
throughout the weekend. Having returned home for the Rod I decided that I wasn't going to get on my knees in the rain, on wet grass to uncap my
collectors. There was therefore only one solution; I took the header caps off in the comfort of my garage and drove down the A45 in noisy splendour, what fun!
This year the M'Hula are a much smaller club [the best things come in small packages] and we were soon all assembled. Mo had his fenderless 5-window model B coupe in matt green, Doug had his fenderless 3-window model B coupe and I, of course, had my fenderless A sedan present and correct. Chairman Mongo left his not quite finished fenderless model B roadster in the garage and attended in his daily, as did Yoda who is currently between cars.
Many people seemed to be making a week of it and there were a number of
cars present already on Friday but I shall single out Steve Hudson for a
special mention. He owns, of course, a beautiful '23 Fad T that has won
many prizes and been the subject of a magazine feature including the front cover picture. Despite the high standard of his Rod, having no weather gear [on the car itself], knowing that it was raining and likely to continue he still drove the Rod to Billing.
As is normal at Billing [particularly on the Friday], the evening was
punctuated by small squeals and chirrups from the tyres of those of us with little self-control. As the Crew stood chatting quietly we watched someone with no self-control perform an unnecessarily long rolling burnout past us. With an almost comical lack of irony we all said 'that'll end in tears', within 5 minutes the blue, fenderless model B roadster came back past us in the other direction doing the same thing. As the rear stepped out, the clearly inept pilot let the car take over and we all watched entranced, as the Rod slid off the road and across the grass before burying itself in the side of a Ford Galaxy. The people carrier suffered a cracked front spoiler as the front wheel had taken the brunt of the impact. The roadster came off considerably worse, suffering a snapped off front suspension A arm and bent steering
arm. It seems that the Rod had been completed on Thursday ... well it was
certainly finished by Friday!
Most people seemed to be chilling out Friday evening and we were no
exception. The marquee was very quiet and by the time we got there the
towels were on. Soon after the arrival of the M'Hula Crew the towels were off again. The D.J. also started up again, although that was of less interest to us. We hooked up with the delightful Loo Wilson who very kindly donated a surprisingly large quantity of her Jack Daniels to Deb.
Saturday morning dawned with a much kinder outlook to the weather and it was time for me to check out the cars. First impression was that metallic paint is back big time, especially in gold. A '47 Chevy coupe the aforementioned colour looked stunning in the early morning sun, as did a '32 Vicky also in gold metallic, but this time set off perfectly by nicely laid out flames and a Moon tank up front. Also sporting a Moon tank between the frame horns was a lovely fenderless model Y sedan in black with a chequered grill insert. Moon discs on the wheels kept the theme going. I have a soft spot for sixties muscle and the sign-written 'Blew By You' was an excellent example of the American gassers of the period. In a similar vein a metallic [told you it was popular] green early sixties Falcon with a Moon tank on the front and sky high front end attracted plenty of interested looks. On the subject of drag racers, the 9 second Prefect of Bob Hancox drew a crowd as he fired the motor up during the morning. He attracted even more attention as the car cruised the site periodically during the weekend, what a sight and sound. What wouldn't I give for an engine that doesn't tick over like that!
The quality of Rods seems to increase each year and despite the weather
many turned up at Billing this year. Steve Lang had his excellent '23 T in attendance, still looking fantastic after a couple of years of use, Jon Golding had his steel, full height roof '32 coupe out, resplendent in pale yellow paint and Keith Atkinson had his '32 roadster out in orange [what else] with blue flames. The detail on this Rod is stunning, from the flames on the underside of the hood to the chrome [or stainless?] strip running across the dash between the instruments. Also amazing was the pro mod style tot rod in orange and flamed coachwork, and complete with working headlights.
Roy Walker debuted his big block powered Mk 1 Cortina in an awesome
green metallic finish that reflected gold when the sun caught it. The rest of the car lived up to the standard of the paint and Roy was rewarded with a trophy on Sunday. Saturday morning however he was rewarded with a bollocking from a committee member for some enthusiastic throttle usage.
In addition to the shiny cars of course there were many Rods in matt paint including a number from the East Coast Sidewinders, a club which seems to be increasing in size.
I made my way over to see Paul and Sam as I was getting thirsty and Deb
had gone out for a while. After the smallest of hints the kettle was on and I was soon enjoying a refreshing cuppa. The couple own a mechanically untouched '38 Ford which has some seventies touches such as slot mag wheels, a dralon interior and metallic blue paint. The car has been for sale for a little while and I can't understand why it hasn't sold as it would be the ideal base for a family Rod.
I didn't attend either the treasure hunt or the cruise to Rockingham
Raceway although I'm told that those who did, enjoyed themselves especially as the Rockingham cruise included a drive around the track and the chance to watch some racing.
Saturday afternoon saw Yoda up to his usual antics, starting with some
traffic control along the back straight, aided by a 'you have priority over oncoming vehicles' sign. Having become bored with this he removed his tee shirt and smeared his upper body with tomato ketchup. With the aid of a plastic bread knife Yoda then harangued people coming past in a manner that would make a homeless person proud. With an audience of adults and children laughing hysterically behind him it seemed difficult to see how any one could take this seriously; indeed most passers-by appeared to find the whole thing amusing. Almost inevitably however a SWAT team comprising the N.S.R.A van containing three of the committee, and three security vehicles including the chief of security descended upon us. Fortunately they mostly saw the funny side of the situation and went off laughing. We thought that a member of the public must have raised the alarm due to not being used to the ways of rodders in general and Yoda in particular but I found out later that the call had come from a long time rodder who had at one time been a committee member.
I had been to the N.S.R.A stand to check out the giveaway T which had been delivered by Trev, a long time rodder whom I met many years ago when we attended the Riverside Rod and Custom Club street meets and cruises. At the time he owned a Pop and now runs a neat Mk 1 Zephyr powered by a small block Ford. Trev is part of G & T Motor Services Ltd, a business he and Graham have been running for nearly 8 years.
The T was not quite finished but was complete enough to drive, steer and
stop. Given the short time since it was started the Rod was a credit to those involved in its construction. It was going to be a fabulous prize for somebody and I was certainly keen to win it. My daughter Natalie had decided that I could have the Rover V8 for my A and then fit a Pinto engine so that she could have the T for herself.
Saturday evening comprised the usual drinking, partying and catching up
with friends although I didn't spend as much time as I would have liked to with those people who are still talking to me.
Sunday dawned far too early and extremely wet but that didn't deter the
Sunday drivers from coming including an immense amount of Pops. Geoff
Harris launched the Ford Popular Register a while ago and arranged for the small Fords to park together in a Pop Festival. The standard of these Rods was extremely high and many had a contemporary stance. My favourite of these has for many years the Pop of Ian Armstrong, a car I first saw at the Thruxton Internationals in '82 or '83. Ian and his car won the streetkhana where he beat a Corvette in the finals by pushing the little Rod to the limit. As he made the turn at the end of the course I was sure that the Pop was going over. Ian has made many changes to his car over the years but as far as I can recall he has brought his Rod out to shows for every summer over the last 20 years. I don't think that that is true of any other car and it is surely time that the Pop had another magazine feature.
The oddest sight on Sunday had to be the Rod that was not only roped off, but also had a cover over it. Presumably if the rain had continued into the night the owner was prepared to wait until it stopped before driving home, or was it moved in a covered trailer?
Due to a lack of P.A. system I couldn't really hear who the prize-winners were and I expect that by the time this issue of the Hot Rod Gazette comes out you will all know anyway. Suffice to say that I [and Natalie] did not win the T.
A fantastic weekend despite the weather and even the traffic leaving the
Aquadrome moved freely and we were soon on the open road home. An
enjoyable drive back with the headers still open was enhanced when we
were passed by the 'Elijah Speed Shop' pick up and John Denton's Rover
pick up. Those trucks seem to go everywhere together and look great doing it. Of course they only passed me because I was nursing the A along at
65mph!