Jump to content


Photo

TNF Guide to former premises: Gransden Lodge circuit


  • Please log in to reply
55 replies to this topic

#51 raceannouncer2003

raceannouncer2003
  • Member

  • 2,944 posts
  • Joined: March 05

Posted 14 June 2012 - 05:37

Posted Image

This is Shane Davis with his HRG. This car was raced at Gransden Lodge as follows: "All-comers Handicap 5 laps Captain Hay-Bolton HRG 1.5". Shane is holding a Klementaski photo of Bolton in the race (hope that's okay, Klemcoll)

Vince H.

Advertisement

#52 cooper997

cooper997
  • Member

  • 3,856 posts
  • Joined: December 08

Posted 10 September 2016 - 03:09

With August Motor Sport having just arrived in Oz newsagents and DCN's column about Gransden Lodge, I went looking

 

Short coverage of the July 1947 meeting

http://www.britishpa...ge/query/Romeos

 

Is it correct.that just 2 official meetings were held at this former RAF airfield - 15 June 1946 & 13 July 1947?

 

Stephen


Edited by cooper997, 10 September 2016 - 10:14.


#53 Vitesse2

Vitesse2
  • Administrator

  • 41,776 posts
  • Joined: April 01

Posted 10 September 2016 - 08:26

Yes, just the two. Comments in the press in late 1946 suggested that the Air Ministry weren't all that impressed that the 1946 meeting had actually taken place; both it and the Elstree sprint earlier in the year were described by the ministry as 'a mistake' and - along with the 1945 RAF Long Kesh bike race meeting - it appears that local commanders simply 'forgot' to tell the ministry! A proposed second Long Kesh meeting for bikes and cars in 1946 was forbidden by the authorities.

 

The base commander at Gransden Lodge was Air Commodore David Atcherley, whose twin brother Richard had been in the RAF High Speed Flight and was one of the 1929 Schneider Trophy-winning team. Both brothers had therefore no doubt been acquainted with the likes of John Hindmarsh and Chris Staniland. It was probably one or both of the Atcherleys who arranged for the fly-by by the University Air Squadron and a low pass by a Vampire - Richard, also an Air Commodore, was commander at the RAF College at Cranwell - and David actually landed his own plane (probably a Miles M33 Messenger) on the field during the meeting. They no doubt figured - giving their distinguished records and seniority - that they were bullet-proof and could fend off the ministry's paper-pushers!

 

The 1947 Gransden meeting nearly didn't happen. With just twelve days to go the Air Ministry suddenly told CUAC that they would have to (among other things) gain the permission of the six landowners from whom the land had been requisitioned. This was obviously in collusion with the Ministry of Works, who - when requested by CUAC and the VSCC, who stepped in to help - refused to supply the relevant names and addresses! There's an account of this episode in Peter Hull's History of the VSCC. I think the Air Ministry probably got the idea after the failure of the plan to convert RAF Balado Bridge into a racing circuit, due to just one of the seven owners of requisitioned land refusing permission.



#54 cooper997

cooper997
  • Member

  • 3,856 posts
  • Joined: December 08

Posted 10 September 2016 - 10:54

Thank you Richard for the insight and confirming just 2 events were run.

 

I see the 500race website has part of the September 1947 VSCC Bulletin detailing some of the goings on you mention.

 

If anyone has the June 1946 event programme and could scan, I'd appreciate it being emailed to me please?

 

Stephen



#55 Allan Lupton

Allan Lupton
  • Member

  • 4,051 posts
  • Joined: March 06

Posted 10 September 2016 - 11:27

Some decades ago I met a man who told me a bit about his involvement, on behalf of CUAC, in securing Gransden. He was James Obeyesekere who by the time I met him was a senior Sri Lankan politician, but had been up at Trinity before the war and had stayed on. He was a member of the Cambridge University Air Squadron which doubtless stood him in good stead when negociating with the OC Gransden. I can't remember much of what he told me but George Abecassis' name came into it - he took one of his racing cars there to try the proposed circuit.



#56 Vitesse2

Vitesse2
  • Administrator

  • 41,776 posts
  • Joined: April 01

Posted 10 September 2016 - 12:38

On the subject of the 1946 meeting, to clarify some queries above. The original programme apparently showed thirteen 3-lappers, with a 5-lap invitational final for the fastest six across all classes (plus some bike races). The Edwardian race was cancelled, as neither entry arrived. The two biggest racing car classes were combined as Poore's Alfa was a DNS, leaving Abecassis and his Bugatti T59 with no opposition in the unlimited category, so he was matched against the 3-litres. However, there was a big turnout of Bentleys, so the class for 5 litre sports cars was split into two one-lap heats and a final. So in the end there were fourteen car races.

 

'C Davenport' in the list of results is incorrect.  It was actually Leo H Davenport, who had raced motorbikes pre-WW2 and appears to have been a friend/associate of Reg Parnell.