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Newsletter August 2023
Newsletter August 2023
We are sad to inform you of the passing in July of Stuart Parker, one of the founding members of the association
Forthcoming Events:
Note: for full details and entry forms for these events:-
- Click on LOGIN at the top of this page
- Enter your user ID and password. This will open your profile page.
- On your profile page click on MEMBERS HOME at the top of the page.
- On the MEMBERS HOME page click on FORTHCOMING EVENTS on the menu.
- On the FORTHCOMING EVENTS page click on the event you are interested in.
- There you will see full details of the event and a link to the entry form.
Dumfries House – NOTE: date change to 7th October 2023.
We are planning a visit to Dumfries House on Sunday 8th October
Starting at Caulders Garden Centre in Newton Mearns, the 35 mile route will head down to Ayshire using mainly scenic country roads to arrive at Dumfries House in time for lunch.
After lunch we will be treated to a 1 hour tour of Dumfries House which is part of the Prince’s Foundation having been purchased in 2007 by a consortium led by HRH The Prince of Wales and, in doing so, saved the house and one of the most important collections of Georgian Scottish and English furniture for the nation.
Annual Dinner – 10th November 2023.
Following on from our previous reunion with guest speaker John Cleland, our 2023 annual dinner will be held on 10th November. We are pleased to announce our guest speaker will be Peter Scott, a well known rally co-driver from Derry in Northern Ireland, who has competed alongside many of Ireland’s top drivers as well as several British drivers including our own Willie Crawford.
Spring Run 2024. Tuesday 16th April – Friday 19th April 2024.
For the Spring Run in 2024, we are heading south of the border to Slaley Hall Hotel Spa and Golf Resort, near Hexham, Northumberland. We decided at the board meeting on Tuesday 4th August to go for midweek since those taking part in the run are mainly retired and the rate midweek is substantially less than the rate for the weekend.
NOTE: The Hotel will only hold the provisional booking until 8th September 2023 so entries placed after that date are not guaranteed a room allocation.
On 8th and 9th July, V.S.M.A. were represented at An outing to Kames with the Eunos Ecosse Club.
Several members were present with their cars and Charlie Young was at the signing on table handing out recruitment flyers for VSMA membership.
The weekend was in celebration of the Eunos Ecosse club’s tenth anniversary and took place on 8th & 9th July. The VSMA were invited to come along to support this new and vibrant club.
It was a fun weekend and a chance for anyone to appreciate the exhilaration of the race track. There were plenty volunteer drivers and passengers for a three lap experience.
The Eunos Ecosse club set up is to provide low cost motorsport in Scotland for Mazda MX5 owners. The club has grown and is MSA accredited and the main reason why we have many more MX5’s competing in hill-climbs and sprints today.
The members are very supportive of each other and when one became severely ill and was unable to continue with the rebuild of his car, the club stepped in. Secretly, with the daughters permission, his car was taken and was rebuilt for him. It was done in accordance with his plans and what a magnificent job they did as it was literally a shell when they took it away.
Some members of the VSMA enjoyed the sunshine along with the fabulous home baking available at Kames. It was also a chance to encourage some youngsters interested and who knows perhaps a future champion!
It was a great couple of days at Kames with fun, friends and fast cars. In the sunshine too!
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Tour
Dumfries House 2023
Dumfries House Lunch and Tour of the House – 7th October 2023.
This year’s Autumn outing features a trip to Dumfries House.
Starting at Caulders Garden Centre in Newton Mearns where tea/coffee and a filled roll will be served, the 35 mile route will head down to Ayshire using mainly scenic country roads to arrive at Dumfries House in time for lunch, consisting of soup, sandwiches and cake.
After lunch we will be treated to a 1 hour tour of Dumfries House which is part of the Prince’s Foundation having been purchased in 2007 by a consortium led by HRH The Prince of Wales and, in doing so, saved the house and one of the most important collections of Georgian Scottish and English furniture for the nation.
Note: We have been requested that flat shoes (i.e. no high heels) are worn for the tour of the house to avoid damage to the fragile floors.
From Dumfries House participants are free to choose their own route home as there is no set finish venue, however there is a recommended route for those returning to near the start of the run.
Full details of Dumfries House can be found on the website HERE.
The cost of the outing will be £35 per person and will include tea/coffee and a filled roll at the start venue, lunch at Dumfries House and a guided tour of the house.
The entry form can be downloaded or printed HERE.
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Tour
Spring Run 2024
Announcement.
Spring Run 2024. Tuesday 16th April – Friday 19th April 2024.
For the Spring Run in 2024, we have initially reserved 16 rooms at Slaley Hall Hotel Spa and Golf Resort, near Hexham, Northumberland. We decided at the board meeting on Tuesday 4th August to go for midweek since those taking part in the run are mainly retired and the rate midweek is substantially less than the rate for the weekend.
From Slaley Hall, Beamish, ” The Living Museum of the North”, Hadrian’s Wall and several other venues are readily reachable.
The cost for 3 nights dinner, bed and breakfast is £514.25 for double occupancy of a double or twin room and £422.45 for single occupancy. In each case a deposit of 25% is required for the booking (£130 for double occupancy and £105 for single occupancy). This will require to be sent A.S.A.P. since the hotel are holding the rooms for 4 weeks in the first instance and at that time bookings will require to be confirmed by the Association.
The entry fee for the Spring Run will be £65.00 per person which will include tea/coffee and filled roll at the start (location yet to be decided), Tuesday evening reception, wine with dinner each evening and entry to venues.
All monies are to be paid to the Association and NOT to the hotel.
Payment details can be found on the Entry Form.
NOTE: Entries filled up very quickly and all 16 rooms are now booked. If you have not submitted your entry and would now like to do so please submit your entry form to allow us to contact the hotel. If aditional rooms are available we will ask you to pay the entry fee and room deposit so that you can join the run.
Entry form for the Spring Run and Hotel booking are HERE.
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News
Annual Dinner 2023 – Announcement
The Annual Dinner – 10th November 2023
The 9th ‘get together’ of the Association will be held on Friday 10th November 2023 in The Radstone Hotel, Ayr Road, Larkhall, ML9 2TZ.
We are proud to announce that Peter Scott will be our guest speaker.
Peter is a well known rally co-driver from Derry in Northern Ireland, and has competed alongside many of Ireland’s top drivers as well as several British drivers including our own Willie Crawford.
In his book “Icons of Irish Rallying” author Michael O’Mahoney has dedicated a chapter to Peter and his career in rallying which rapidly escalated from club rallying to his first International win at the tender age of 22 on the 1972 Donegal rally alongside Cathal Curley.
His career spanned many years and Peter remembers the 2013 Cork 20 Historic as being rather special. “Corkman Mark Falvey, invited me to do the International Cork 20 Historic in MEV 36J, the Mk1 Escort in which I did the British Championship events with Billy. We won, 39 years after last sitting in the car”.
We are sure Peter will provide us with a very entertaining evening.
The cost of the event will be £45.
Rooms at the Radstone (note: All rooms are now fully booked).
We have block booked a number of rooms in the Radstone with the discount price of £110 for a double or twin room and £95 for single occupancy. These rooms must be booked through the VSMA by email to vsmasec@yahoo.co.uk and will be on a first come first served basis. Nearer the time you will be able to contact the hotel direct to pay for the room, no money is required for the room at this time.
There are a few more Hotels in the vicinity.
To Book Your Place at the Annual Dinner (sorry, entries are now closed)
If you wish to attend please download this ENTRY FORM which can then be printed or completed using the PDF Fill & Sign function.
OR contact Margaret Smillie, Acting Secretary, at vsmasec@yahoo.com
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News
Gerry Birrell ii
24th June 2023 – Update by Mike Mitchell
Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of Gerry’s accident. These flowers were laid at the memorial at 10.30 yesterday morning. The large Saltire is on behalf of the family, friends and all the other organisations who contributed to the memorial, the smaller Saltire is on behalf of the VSMA, a tribute to the man after half a century, indeed to all these men, thank you all.
June 2023: Gerry Birrell Memorial – an update by Mike How.
Along with many other donors the VSMA donated some money towards the project to create a permanent memorial to Gerry Birrell who died at Les Six Freres corner at Rouen-Les-Essarts in 1973. Five other drivers, all French, also perished at the same corner before the circuit was eventually closed and are also remembered on the memorial. Nothing had ever been done previously to commemorate these losses.
It’s construction only happened through the dedication of Mike Mitchell who lives in France and raced against Gerry. He raised the money, jumped through all sorts of hoops to have it made by a local stonemason and with the support of the local Mayor of Orival it has come to fruition. Our thanks and those of Gerry’s friends and relatives as we are so grateful for what he has achieved.
It’s taken a long time but this photo was taken just a few days ago and can now be seen by the public exactly 50 years after Gerry’s death on 23rd June 1973.
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News
Newsletter – 2023 April
Newsletter April 2023
Membership
The club’s aim is to bring together those who have been actively involved in Motor Sport in a variety of forms, be it competitive or organisational. The camaraderie and friendships continue since the first meeting in 2001 and the formation of the VSMA in 2006. The mix of membership is wide with many members continuing to compete alongside those who fondly remember past participation. This echoes the ethos of the VSMA, and also an encouragement for anyone to join us, if they haven’t already done so! Membership of the Association is open to any person who has had an active involvement with any branch of motorsport held in Scotland.
We are sad to inform you of the passing of the following Members:
George Cooper in December, 2022.
George Head in February, 2023.
Netta Young in April, 2023.
Alan Muir in April 2023
Arlene McInnes also in April, 2023.
Apologies for any missed announcements.
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Other Events
AGM 2023
VSMA AGM 2023
Please Note: change of date, the 2023 AGM will be held on 10th November.
The meeting will be held in the Radstone Hotel prior to the Annual Dinner.
Full details to follow.
Reunions
Annual Dinner 2023 Report
The Club met once again to enjoy our Reunion Dinner, now an annual event, at the Radstone Hotel near Larkhall where 70 members were welcomed by Chris Paton who had been installed as the new Chairman of the VSMA earlier in the evening at the AGM.
We returned to the Radstone again this year as they had looked after us so well last year and the venue is ideally placed right next to the M74.
Unfortunately there were some empty seats as some had to call off due to illness. Sadly missing from the proceedings was outgoing chairman Bob Baillie who had taken ill earlier in the week and was at home recuperating and hopefully will be feeling well again soon.
The day started in the early afternoon as there was work to do setting up for the AGM and also finalising the table plan for dinner.
Charlie Young, the newly installed treasurer, had brought along the last remaining club clothing and some of his own books and was asking not for a payment but only for a donation. He raised £85 for club funds.
Before our meal was served Nancy Crichton presented a bouquet of flowers to Adele Paterson in recognition of her 18 years service on the board of directors as she and husband Duncan have both decided it is now time to step down.
As always there was a good mix of rallying and racing buffs and a few hill climb fans joining together for an excellent meal and several refreshments.
A new and popular innovation this year was an “all ladies” table to sit alongside the normal “all men” table.
Hugh MacKinnon had brought along his ex-works Mini Cooper S to display at the front door of the hotel and once again we had the on-screen display of photos taken from the Club’s website with almost every photo being connected in some way with those in the room.
Our guest speaker was Peter Scott who has had a quite prolific career in rallying as a co-driver at all levels right up to the very top with many national and International wins. He has also competed as a driver in local events. Peter is originally from Derry in Northern Ireland but now lives in England where he and his wife Victoria had travelled from to be with us.
In attendance were several important regulars of the Veteran’s Dinner including founder of the Club and Honorary Vice President, Jimmy McInnes. Our Honorary President, Sir Jackie Stewart, had sent his apologies as he had a previous engagement but he sent his best wishes for a successful evening.
Once again there was a souvenir programme with a centre spread detailing the guest speaker’s background story but also there was an excellent article written by Mike How on the career of Gerry Birrell and the recently installed memorial to Gerry and the other five drivers who perished at the infamous Six Freres corner at the Rouen-Les-Essarts circuit in France in 1973.
Click on the image below to view the Programme.
The directors have agreed that provided there is the support then the event will be held every year. Provisionally we are looking at 15th November 2024 but when a firm date is set and a venue decided we will make an announcement.
Tour
Tour – Autumn Run 2023
VSMA Autumn Run 2023
The Autumn Run will be held on 8th October – details to follow