1967 Ken Wharton Trophy

KEN WHARTON DRIVING TESTS

ON 28th October the Hagley & DLCC promoted their 11th annual national open Team Driving Tests meeting for the Ken Wharton Memorial Trophy. For 1967, the venue chosen was the immense car park and environs of the Bass, Mitchell & Butler’s Birmingham Brewery.

Televised by the BBC in Grandstand, the event used four out of the eight tests programmed, and the meeting, as is its wont, ran to clockwork precision. The teams, comprising one sports car, one GT and one saloon, were entered from Wales, Scotland, Eire, England and six times previous winners Northern Ireland, together with guest entries from Holland and Sweden.

Class 1 used Spridgets and class 2 Mini-Cooper Ss exclusively, while class 3 comprised VWs and one lone Singer Chamois.

Test 1 featured a double reverse through twin sets of pylons, a spin and reverse in a 36-foot box, and then through a chicane to a flying finish. Penalties for pylon-bashing and kerb-hitting were incurred by England and Holland, while Wales’ number two ran amok, demolished two boxes, mounted a kerb and nearly collected a marshal en route. So far the scoreboard read Northern Ireland 128.9, Eire 133.1, and England 140.7.

The second test comprised a spin and reverse through a gate, then double forward and reverse scissors entering double pylons in reverse. Wales were again penalized, while Holland did it all wrong and lost the maximum 72 marks. This brought the score to Northern Ireland 266.6, Eire 274.3 and England 285.0, with Sweden, helped by some fine driving by international rally man Ake Ytterbring, creeping up fast in a 1300.

Test 3 circled a pylon twice, then criss-crossed up and down a lane of three lines of pylons to finish in the usual box. Here Scotand lost the lot, so now Wales, Scotland and Holland were well out of the running, leaving Northern Ireland leading Eire by 7 marks with England trailing a further 13 in arrears.

The last test entered between two pylons, circled inside a box complete with chicane — both forward and in reverse — and spun round a further pylon to a very fast finish. Eire did their utmost and a magnificent run by Larry Mooney in the VW pulled back two marks, but Northern Ireland’s team of Harold Hagan (Midget), Ronnie McCartney (1.3 Mini-Cooper S) and Robert Woodside (VW) never faltered, finishing just four marks to the good and scoring their seventh win.

FRANCIS PENN.

RESULTS

1. Northern Ireland, 517.9 s;
2. Eire, 521.1 s;
3. England, 543.9 s;
4. Sweden, 587.5 s;
5. Wales, 608.6 s;
6. Scotland, 648.6 s;
7. Holland, 724.1 s.

Class awards: D. Beare (Sprite, England); R. McCartney (Mini-Cooper S. Northern Ireland); L. Mooney (VW, Eire).