N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E B R I T I S H

M O T O R C Y C L E C H A R I T A B L E T R U S T

BMCT News

March 2014 Issue 26

In This Issue:

A Cotton Comes Home

Museum Appoints Director

Festival of 1,000 Bikes Update

Floods Hit Brooklands

Coventry Redevelopment

Bristol Classic Show

Triumph Experimental

Sunbeamland Update

W hat is thought to be the

oldest surviving Cotton

Telstar 250 cc racer (and certainly

the only one remaining in Mark1

specification) has come back to its

home city after fifty years, thanks

to the efforts of The British

Motorcycle Charitable Trust.

The machine, bearing frame no. 5,

surfaced in the USA some years

ago and was restored by Bultaco

West of Kentucky before being

sold as one of a batch of Cottons to

Lee Perry, a noted Californian

Ferrari collector. For reasons

unknown, eight of these bikes were

offered for sale at a 2012 Las

Vegas motorcycle auction.

Telstar no. 5 was purchased at the

sale by John Lawless from

Philadelphia. John is a British bike

enthusiast and huge Derek Minter

fan who saw himself running the

Telstar in vintage racing events

stateside, but the mounting

expense of running his Manx

Norton as well put the mockers on

that plan. John let the Cotton

Owners Club know he might be

willing to sell the Telstar, and in

view of its significance both

parties were keen to see the bike

returned to the UK. The club put

John and the BMCT in touch and a

deal was rapidly concluded, with

the clincher being the willingness

of the Gloucester Folk Museum to

accept the machine on long term

loan (the museum is across the

road from the site of the old Cotton

works on Quay Street, Gloucester).

Cotton announced the Telstar at

the 1962 Motorcycle Show, and a

works team was later set up to run

the bike in UK and International

races. Their big name rider was

Derek Minter, and they also made

a production racing version, the

Cotton Conquest. The BMCT’s

own trustee, John Kidson, was

Minter’s team mate for the 1965

Lightweight TT, but unfortunate-

ly John crashed on fuel leaking

from the tank breather on

Minter’s bike as the pair

approached Braddan Bridge in

close company on the opening

lap of the race. Minter went on to

take 9th place at an average of

84.32 mph.

The Telstar had a short life and

was taken out of production at

the end of 1966, overtaken by the

influx of multi-cylinder Japanese

customer racers. This Mk1

example still retains its wide fin

barrel, twin Amal Monobloc

carburettor set-up and six inch

single leading shoe front brake. It

would have cost £295 when new.

Gloucester Folk Museum is

situated at 99-103 Westgate

Street, Gloucester GL1 2PG and

entry is free. The BMCT will also

show the bike at the Cotton 100th

Anniversary celebrations at

Brooklands on 20th July 2014,

along with the museum’s own

1922 Cotton-Blackburne.

A C o t t o n C o m e s H o m e

P a g e 2 B M C T N e w s

Front page: Pictured at the handover of the Cotton to the Gloucester Folk Museum are (l to r) Sarah Orton

(Curator), Ian Walden, John Kidson, David Rice (Curator), Steve Bagley, Paul Barnes, Councillor Colin Organ,

Andy Bufton and Mike Jackson. (Photo by Noeline Smith).

The collection of eight Cottons in Las Vegas. The Telstar is fourth from the left.

The Telstar ready to be presented to the museum, and (above) leaving the USA

Ltd). His key responsibilities were

managing the organisation, with

over 17,000 members, and

developing and implementing key

strategies including; building a

thorough online presence,

developing new income streams,

creating strategic partnerships,

alliances and sponsorships, and

retaining and recruiting members.

During the decade he spent at the

club, turnover grew by 86% and

membership grew by 25%. Using

the skills and experience he gained

at the VMCC, James will be

primarily responsible for day to

day management of the museum

and increasing income opportuni-

ties by improving the digital

offering, creating a “friends”

programme and developing

relationships with potential

partners and sponsors.

Nick Hartland, director of the

National Motorcycle Museum,

said: “Last year was a great year

for us, and we are confident that,

with James on board, 2014 will be

even better. Having worked closely

with him during his time at the

Vintage Motor Cycle Club, I know

he has some brilliant ideas for the

Museum and I look forward to

working with him to create an all-

round fantastic experience for our

visitors.”

James Hewing said: “After nearly

a decade running the largest

membership organisation in the

world dedicated to old motor

cycles, I am delighted to be able to

bring my experience to this new

role at the National Motorcycle

Museum. I have worked closely

with the Museum in the past and

have always had a fantastic

relationship with all the directors,

including the late Roy Richards. I

am both thrilled and privileged to

be joining the organisation at such

an exciting time.”

wonderful weekend.

We would like to take this

opportunity to thank our sponsors

including Michelin, Footman James,

Bonhams and Eriks for all their

support in the past. Also to all the

VMCC members and enthusiasts

who have embraced the Festival and

made it the unique event it has

become. We hope to see many of

you at our other events and shows

throughout the year and look

forward to making an early

announcement regarding the Festival

for 2015.”

As we went to press Mallory Park

announced their own Classic Bike

Fest for 12th-13th July 2014 - the

date originally planned for the

Festival of 1,000 Bikes.

were recently announced and we have

full confidence in them, indeed our

racing arm (BHR) already have a date

in their calendar at Mallory Park this

year. However because crucial

months of planning and preparation

have been lost we are not equally

confident of delivering this

prestigious event with the amount of

time remaining.

We sincerely apologise to all those

members of the Club and to the many

other enthusiasts who look forward

every year to this event. The Festival

of 1,000 Bikes, being widely

acknowledged as one of the premier

events in the motorcycling calendar,

we did not feel we could proceed

without full confidence of being able

to offer an event of the high quality

which is now expected from this

N e w D i r e c t o r f o r M u s e u m

P a g e 3 I s s u e 2 6

T he following is a press

release from The National

Motorcycle Museum:

James Hewing has been appointed

as Museum Director at the

National Motorcycle Museum,

based in Solihull. Following a

successful 2013, particularly for

the conference centre, directors of

the museum are keen to continue

to develop the museum during

2014, its 30th year of operation.

James is a true motorcycle

enthusiast, and has spent the last

ten years as CEO of the Vintage

Motor Cycle Club Ltd (VMCC

The new Museum Director of the National Motorcycle Museum aboard a Norton International

A press release from the

VMCC states: “It is with

great reluctance that the

Management of the Vintage Motor

Cycle Club Limited announce that

the Festival of 1,000 Bikes will not

be taking place in 2014.

Motorsport fans will be aware of

the uncertainty that surrounded the

future of Mallory Park in the latter

parts of 2013, which placed the

circuit operators (Mallory Park

Motorsport Ltd) into administra-

tion in the autumn. The new

operators, Real Motor Sport Ltd,

J ust five days after flood waters

invaded some of its buildings

during the Christmas break,

Brooklands Museum re-opened for

business at 10am on Monday 30th

December.

With the River Wey, which forms

the western border of the Museum

site, rising fast on Christmas Day,

staff and volunteers left their family

celebrations to move exhibits,

vehicles and archives out of

harm’s way, so that the damage

caused by the inevitable flood

waters that rose overnight was

minimised. Boxing Day saw up

to 18 inches (45cm) of water in

the Edwardian Clubhouse and

lower levels in the Motoring

Sheds, but by the weekend most

of the water had drained away and

teams of staff, volunteers and

specialist contractors set to work to

enable the Museum to reopen just

a couple of days later than planned

after the Christmas break.

Museum Director Allan Winn

said: “The damage could have

been far worse than has turned out,

thanks to the Museum team’s

comprehensive disaster recovery

planning, the selfless efforts of

staff and volunteers who came in

on Christmas Day, and to the

massive flood compensation

scheme which was installed in

2006 as part of the Mercedes-Benz

World development next door to

us. And we’ve been hugely

impressed by the speed with which

our insurers and their specialist

contractors have responded to

ensure that our site and buildings

are cleaned and dried out.”

handling of the 650cc

Bonneville twin and

developed the three-

cylinder 750cc engine

used by both Triumph and

BSA to launch 125mph

roadsters, ushering in the

original superbike era.

Hele and his close-knit

team turned Meriden’s

Experimental Department

into a world-class race

shop. Successes included

Daytona 200-winning

500cc twins, Production

TT-winning Bonnevilles

and the howling triple

racers that won the

Daytona 200, the Formula

750 TT, the Ontario

Champion Classic, the Bol

d’Or and the MCN

Superbike series, all in

1971. Some innovative

later projects, including a

V5 engine, had to be

“Doug Hele and his

development team 1962-

1975” tells for the first

time the full story of chief

development engineer

Doug Hele and his men at

Triumph’s Meriden

motorcycle factory (and

later at the Norton-

Triumph research centre).

Hele was Britain’s

brightest and most

progressive motorcycle

engineer of the 1960s and

1970s. He transformed the

dropped when Meriden

closed in 1973. As well as

charting Hele’s

achievements, the book

describes the man, a

brilliant mathematician

and deep thinker with an

open mind and warm heart

who inspired respect and

loyalty from those who

worked with him.

Duckworth gathered first-

hand recollections from

former colleagues in

Hele’s Experimental

Department: Development

engineers Norman Hyde

and John Barton, charge

hand and race team

manager Les Williams and

the skilled fitters who

translated Hele’s ideas into

metal, rubber and glass

fibre. Not merely

technical, the text includes

anecdotes evoking a happy

B r o o k l a n d s S u r v i v e s t h e F l o o d s

T r i u m p h E x p e r i m e n t a l

P a g e 4 B M C T N e w s

atmosphere at Meriden

before things fell apart

through no fault of Hele

and his crew.

Produced for Biker Miles

by Oracle Publishing

Ltd, this 208-page

hardback contains 165

illustrations, some of

them explanatory line

drawings specially

commissioned from

artist John Hancox. It’s a

must-read for anyone

fascinated by develop-

ment engineering or

curious about the old

British industry, as well

as classic Triumph bike

fans.

Available from Norman

Hyde at £30 + p&p on

01926 832345.

understandably, some areas of the

building will be closed to the

public whilst they are being

worked on. Please keep an eye on

our website to find out the latest

information about which areas of

the museum will be open when

you plan to visit us.

Our ambitious project, which has

been funded by the Heritage

Lottery Fund and the European

Regional Development Fund, will

include significantly upgrading

five current exhibition galleries,

the relocation of the shop, the

creation of a new entrance/

orientation space and new

community engagement spaces. It

will also include the redevelop-

ment of our neighbouring Grade 1

listed, 12th Century Old Grammar

School, which will be brought

back into public use as an

exhibition, education and events

space.

When this work is complete, the

Museum and Grammar School will

be world-class visitor attractions

that will bring people from far and

wide to find out more about

Coventry's fabulous heritage, as

well as offering opportunities for

local people to get involved in a

wide range of activities. The

Museum will also be able to run in

a more efficient and sustainable

way, thus helping to safeguard the

future of Coventry's important

heritage.

During the majority of this time,

the Museum will remain open to

visitors, and there will, as always,

be plenty to see and do whenever

you choose to visit. However, as

with any major redevelopment

project, certain areas of the

Museum will be completely closed

to visitors whilst they are being

transformed - with different areas

being closed at different times

throughout the project. There will

also be a small number of

occasions when we have to close

the Museum completely for around

two weeks at a time, although it is

our top priority to keep these

closures to an absolute minimum.

If you are planning a visit, please

be sure to check the website or

phone on 024 7623 4270 for the

most up-to-date information.

power, either single cylinder

or v-twin. Changing their

name to PV, they concentrated

on v-twins for a while, before

introducing in 1915 a

lightweight powered by the

then ubiquitous 269cc Villiers

engine. An interesting Stanger

v-twin two-stroke option was

added to the range post-war,

as well as other proprietary

I n our Stafford Show

report in the last BMCT News we ran a photo of a 2¾

hp PV and promised more

information on its maker.

The company was founded as

Elliston and Fell in 1911 with

premises in Perry Vale,

Forest Hill, London. Their

initial offering was a sprung

frame machine with JAP

engines from Barr & Stroud,

JAP, and the air/oil cooled

Bradshaw, like the one fitted

to the show bike (right). The

company’s last offering in

1924 had a Barr & Stroud

sleeve-valve 998cc v-twin

power unit, but by then the

marque was in failing health

and closed soon afterwards.

C o v e n t r y T r a n s p o r t M u s e u m

F o r g o t t e n M a k e - T h e P V

P a g e 5 I s s u e 2 6

C hanges are coming to

Coventry Transport Museum.

Following an administrative re-

organisation which sees the

Museum merging with the Herbert

Gallery, the displays themselves

are to be re-vamped, as the

following announcement from the

museum explains:

From March 2014 until April

2015, Coventry Transport Museum

will be undergoing a major £8.5m

redevelopment project, which will

transform and re-energise the

museum, enabling us to tell the

story of our City's proud motoring

heritage in a world-class,

innovative new way.

We intend for the museum to

remain open throughout the

majority of this period, although

wedding anniversary and

in lieu of gifts we

requested a monetary

donation to distribute to

charities that are relevant

to those dear to us who are

no longer here to share the

occasion.

My father-in-law took part

in the Manx Grand Prix in

1959 and 1960 on a BSA

Gold Star. He passed his

W e are extremely

grateful to the

Harper family of Evesham

for their kind donation.

Mrs Tracy Harper writes:

“We would like to make a

bequest to the BMCT in

memory of my late father-

in-law Aubrey Harper.

This year my husband and

I celebrated our 25th

love of bikes on to his

three sons who have an

eclectic collection of bikes

between them. In the year

before he died they found

a 1956 Gold Star and gave

it to him, he was able to

ride it up until three weeks

before he died suddenly at

67 years of age in 2002.

My husband still rides it a

couple of times a year with

B r i s t o l C l a s s i c M o t o r C y c l e S h o w

T h a n k Y o u

P a g e 6 B M C T N e w s

great pride”.

Records show that

Aubrey Harper finished a

creditable 52nd out of

the 105 starters in the

1959 Senior Manx Grand

Prix, in a race won by

Eddie Crooks on one of

Reg Dearden’s Nortons.

However, Aubrey wasn’t

among the finishers in

the 1960 event.

The Bristol branch of the Norton Owners’ Club took best club stand with this imaginative shop window, inspired by the date they were formed.

Taking the prize for Machine of Most Technical Interest was this Vincent-HRD, used by Crosss Maufacturing of Bath to test their

prototype 500cc rotary valve engine between 1935 and 1942.

The “Nash Racer” New Imperial 123cc ridden by Harry Nash to seven World speed records in 1934. Later, with 150cc, it was clocked at 93 mph for the

flying ½ mile at Brooklands. This was its first time on show for 34 years.

This beautifully finished Triton was one of many at the show.

61 years separate these two Kerry Capitanos

(left) from their fore-

bear above.

S u n b e a m l a n d U p d a t e

In newsletter no. 22 we wondered

what the future held for

Sunbeamland, the now disused

Wolverhampton factory building

where Sunbeam cars bicycles and

motorcycles were manufactured up

until 1937. Well, it would appear

that a local company has purchased

the property from

the previous

owners, Urban

Splash Ltd, and on

19th December

2013 they tabled a

new planning

application for the

site’s “conversion

and part new build

for residential use”.

If the application succeeds this

would see the survival of the fabric

of the main building, which is

welcome news from a heritage

point of view and for Wolver-

hampton itself.

March 30 South of England RealClassic Show, Ardingly, West Sussex

April 21 Red Marley Hill Climb, Great Witley, Worcestershire

April 23 H&H Classic Motorcycle Auction, Imperial War Museum, Duxford

April 26-27 34th Carole Nash Classic MotorCycle Show, Stafford Showground

April 27 Bonhams Stafford Sale of Collectors Motorcycles and Memorabilia

May 10-11 British Historic Racing, Three Sisters, Ashton-in-Makerfield

June 8 VMCC Banbury Run, Heritage Motor Centre, Gaydon, Warwick

June 14-15 British Historic Racing, Mallory Park, Leicestershire

July 20 VMCC Founders Day, Stanford Hall, Lutterworth, Leicestershire

Flat-tank enthusiasts look

away now! This amusing

“retro classic” (left) is the

Sterling Autocycle, made

by Black Douglas in Italy

and powered by a

Zongshen electric start

230cc motor. It weighs in

at just 220 lbs. and

allegedly will do 70 mph

(if you’re brave enough).

Prices start at a somewhat

salty €9,500 inc VAT

M e m b e r s ’

B i k e s

D a t e s F o r Y o u r D i a r y

B a c k t o t h e F u t u r e

P a g e 7 I s s u e 2 6

Have you restored a British bike,

or brought a wreck back from the

brink? Or had one done by a friend

or professional? We’d love to hear

your stories, see your photos, and

share them with our members on

these pages. Anything is of inter-

est, from a humble Dandy to a

thundering SS100. Please send

your pictures and tales to Andy at

the address on page 8. All material

will be returned after use.

New Members

We welcome the following

new members to the BMCT: John Lagerway, Coalville

Catherine Blachford, New Milton Samuel Blachford, New Milton

Miss E Crouch, New Milton

Mrs D Crouch, New Milton Tony Evans, Saltash

Anthony Sharman, Torquay

Robert Penfold, Bournemouth Christian Weir, Stroud

Michael Slater, Tipton

John Cooper, New Milton Mike Fordham, Evesham

Rodney Hann, Sherborne

Daniel Hayward, Wrexham Paul Griffiths, Eastleigh

Ian Brazier, Gosport

David Leggett, Yately Louis Loizos, Harrow

David Kington, Stratford on Avon

Justin Roberts, Tipperary Adrian De Rose, Warwick

Geoffrey Sutton, Warwick

Colin Backhouse, Totton Steve Dorning, Leamington Spa

Dennis Fagg, Newport

Ann Byles, Newport Roger Chapman, Bath

Richard Hodgson, Stafford

Thomas Hall, Wilton Alan Throssell, Chelmsford

Steve Partridge, Lichfield

Tony Barnes, Weymouth David Chamberlain, New Milton

Alan Meredith, Rayleigh

William Barton, Deeside Michael Barton, Mold

Edmund Moore, Preston

Richard Alton, Bromsgrove Paul Holland., Bromsgrove

Daniel Towers, Henley on Thames

Gavin Fagg, Newport Phillip Purkiss, Bromsgrove

Registerered Office:

Holly Cottage

Main Street

Bishampton

Pershore

United Kingdom

WR10 2NH

Phone: 01386 462524

Mobile: 07754 880116

E-mail: info@bmct.org

The Trust was originally formed to

facilitate the building of the National

Motorcycle Museum at Bickenhill, near

Solihull in the West Midlands, but since

1995 the BMCT has been an entirely

separate organisation, a grant - making

Charity dedicated to the promotion of

British motorcycle engineering heritage

through a network of affiliated transport

museums throughout the country.

Membership is open to all, and allows

free entry to all the museums in the

scheme. Our funding comes from

membership fees, bequests, donations

and income from investments. Please

direct any enquiries to the secretary,

Andy Bufton, at the address on the left.

T H E B R I T I S H

M O T O R C Y C L E

C H A R I T A B L E T R U S T

Preserving the past...for the future

Trustees: I N Walden OBE (Chairman) P J Wellings, S Bagley, T P V Barnes, J F R Handley, M Jackson, J N Jeffery, J Kidson,

Registered in England No. 01445196

Registered Charity No. 509420

www.bmct.org

Focussing on the similar machine of Derek Minter just ahead, John Kidson accelerates the works Cotton Telstar out of Quarter Bridge, the only corner he took before coming to grief at Braddan in the 1965 Lightweight TT. Thanks to BMCT member Bill Snelling of FoTTofinders for turning up this photograph.

FoTTofinders