by ACourtney » Tue Sep 09, 2014 9:42 am
Like Kelvin, I managed to combine Saturday at Wiscombe Park with Sunday at the Haynes Museum. In fact Kelvin had kindly offered me his spare room for the night, making it a Midas packed weekend.
I hadn't visited Wiscombe Park since my student days, but it doesn't seem to have changed at all. I had forgotten how steep the paddock and spectator areas were, maybe they didn't seem so steep when I was younger.
It was good to meet Steve for the first time and his enthusiasm for competing with his Midas is infectious (where are my old overalls?). It was also good to meet up with Rich again and, of course, Kelvin.
Steve's Gold coupe really is just a standard second hand example, for now at least. It was great to see how easily and cheaply you can get into competition and I look forward to seeing how quickly he catches up with his competitors. He was about nine seconds off their pace on Saturday, but his Sunday times were 2.5 to 3 seconds better and that was just by playing around with tyre pressures and gaining more track experience. His competitors were using much stickier, semi-competition, tyres, so that is one obvious route for finding a few more seconds. I'm looking forward to seeing how he progresses and hope that he keeps us all informed on the forum.
Before we left Wiscombe we all had a good look at each other's cars. Rich had come in his newly acquired GTM K3 and it was interesting to see how Richard Oakes was already developing the composite monocoque design of the Midas towards what eventually became the GTM Libra. There are a few issues with Rich's car that will keep him busy, but hopefully they won't stop him from getting his Midas back on the road soon. We then left in convoy heading eastwards along the Devonshire coast towards Dorset. I led with Rich bringing up the rear, breathing in the fumes from Kelvin's Gold. I'm trying to persuade Kelvin to fill his sump with Castrol R. It may not do the engine much good, but at least following him will be more pleasurable.
The next morning I was awoken by Kelvin's dog Evie barking at the bedroom door. She evidently knew that she wasn't going to get a walk until everybody was up. After exploring the fields behind Kelvin's house, we set off northwards for the Haynes Museum at Sparkford. It was a crisp Sunday morning and the roads were nice and empty so we had a good drive up through Dorset and breakfasted on bacon rolls in the Museum Cafe. The Rare Breeds show covers just about anything that you are unlikely to see on the roads everyday. From big Yank Tanks, that would fit a Midas in their boots (or should that be trunks?) down to a tiny BSA quadricycle, with a fair quota of kit cars thrown in. In fact it looks like kit cars are starting to dominate the show and with a Midas contingent of eight cars present this year, one would be forgiven for questioning how rare our cars really are. A surprise visitor was Steve Hole of TKC magazine, having a busman's holiday in the area. He was impressed by the club's turnout at the show and left with ideas for a feature sometime next year. The day went by too quickly and before we knew it we were tucking in to the cream teas and watching the prizes being given. First prize went to a lovely SS Jaguar saloon and second to an unusual Austin Seven special. Tony missed out on the furthest travelled trophy this year, but still felt his trip from Coventry to be worthwhile. It was then time to head home and more Midas motoring back to Oxford.
Many thanks to Kelvin for putting me up and to the Haynes Museum for organizing a great event. Not only is entry to the show free, but you get free admission to the museum. So the only question is can I keep the date free in next year's calender.
