2023, July. Aquae Sulis, Dursley Rotary, Two Rivers Tour and Bobby's Tour

2023 9th July.  Aquae Sulis Tour

Excellent day out with nice weather in the FHC. The route this year was based around the Wiltshire and South Gloucestershire area, including a lunch stop at Chavenage House.

Blue cars at the start

.............................................................................

2023, 16th July Dursley Rotary Cotswold Tour

This tour starts about 100 yards from our house in Dursley so you can't get much more local than that!   This year the route took us up to the North Cotswolds including a lunch stop at Batsford Arboretum before returning to Dursley for the finish. Weather started out nice but deteriorated with a wet afternoon.  

Babdown in the rain. Picture by Phil Johnson

.....................................................................................................

2023, 23rd July. Two Rivers Tour

The Two Rivers Tour is organised by the Forresters Car Club who include many old friends from my rallying days. As a serious rally club we are always assured of a good route and an excellent roadbook. Start was from the David Broome Equestrian Centre near Chepstow and we actually met David himself who lives in the farmhouse there.

Start at David Broome Equestrian Centre

Amongst the cars taking part was one of the very rare RHD TR8 cars driven by James and Trish Duckworth. It is one of the only 18 RHD TR8s ever made by the factory so really nice to see it out and being used. 

James & Trish Duckworth's TR8

Morning coffee stop was at Dingestow village hall where we were entertained by the Abergavenny Borough Band whilst we enjoyed some excellent home made cake!

Abergavenny Borough Band at Dingestow

An excellent day out.

............................................................

29th July.  Bobby's Tour

Nice little charity run of about 80 miles with a car show based at Ruardean in the Forest of Dean. It raises money for the Childrens Opportunity Centre in Coleford which supports children with additional needs.

Cars at the start in Ruardean

The weather was a little threatening so we took the FHC but it improved and was really nice later on. The organiser John Brain is a born and bred forester so knows all the local roads and always provides some surprises along the route, such as taking us to one of the last Free Mines still in production. These are operated by the Free Miners who have the right to dig coal and iron ore by an ancient decree going back to the Middle Ages. They have to be born within the Hundred of St Briavels, be over the age of 21 and worked for a year in a mine within the Hundred. It is hard, dirty and dangerous work so not many still want to do it now.

Morning coffee stop at the Childrens Opportunity Centre

After refreshment the route took us back to Ruardean village hall and playing fields where more cars had arrived to take part in the show.

Lovely Audi Quattro

Rare sight - two Integrales

RS1800 rally car

                                                (Pictures above taken by Melvyn Wilkins)

.............................................................................

2023, May. Bluebell Run and Triumph Centenary Picnic

 2023, 13th May Bluebell Run

Bluebell Run is a favourite little tour based in the Forest of Dean so local to us. The weather was kind with a lovely warm sunny day so we got some nice pictures from top photographer Chris Huish.

TR7 in the wild. Pictures by Chris Huish

.....................................................................................

 21sy May, Triumph Centnary Picnic

This was held at Walton Hall near Wellesbourne and was a baking hot day so perfect for the DHC. We didn't know quite what to expect but drove up in a convoy with about a dozen members of our TR Register Glavon Group. Approaching down the tree lined drive it was obvious that this was a big event with cars from all over Europe present. We had a super day wandering amongst a lovely collection of fantastic cars.  See some pictures just to give some idea of the day.

2023, April. Loose Front Strut insert

 10th April  Loose Strut Insert

Checking the FHC over after the Taith Cymru and the Daffodil Run I noticed a "clonk" from the left front strut. Looking closer it seemed to be inside the strut so it had to come off the car for investigation.  

Using "special tool" to help release bottom ball joint

 I was worried it could be the insert had failed but it turned out it was just the big nut that holds the cartridge in the casing had worked loose. See video.   I should have had more faith in KYB!

I know that big retaining nut had been done up tight because I did it myself so I think that there must have been something inside the casing that stopped the insert seating correctly. I took the insert out and made a thorough job of cleaning out the casing before putting it all back together again.  I double-checked the crimped locking points on the casing before it went back on the car and its been fine ever since.

2023, March. Daffodil Run and Taith Cymru

18th March:  Daffodil Run 

The Daffodil Run is our regular first event of the year and this year the weather was kind to us again. The forecast was changeable so the FHC was the car to take.  The run takes place in the Forest of Dean area and started from the Belfrey Hotel in Littledean with a total length of about 80 miles.  This year the hotel was really busy because it was full of guests who had been attanding the Cheltenham Festival horse races but we still got an excellent sausage bap and coffee!

First away was a car type I have never seen before, a beautiful little Peugeot 203 from the 1950s and it looked immaculate.

First car away Peugeot 203

 

The FHC at the start

The Forest of Dean always looks nice at this time of year because all the trees are only just in bud so you can see much more than usual.  There were lots of daffodils to see on our drive up to the coffee stop at Westons Cider in Much Marcle. There were lots of roadworks still in place because it seems the whole world is being dug up to provide fibre optic telecomms cables at the moment but luckily it didn't affect us too much. 

Three TR7s taking part

 There were three TR7s taking part this year, the other two were Jos Way in his red TR7V8 and Henry Brown in his blue TR7V8.  The organisers usually mange to find at least one ford and this year was no exception but it wasn't very deep so I didn't manage to get the photographer wet even though I tried.

 We started to meet some old cars who were taking part in a Vintage Sport Cars Trial. Some super old open wheel cars being driven in anger and not in a museum - brilliant to see. 

Great use for an old car.

Lovely spot for marshalling.

 We had a couple of heavy showers later in the afternoon but it didn't spoil a super day out and we returned to The Belfrey for an excellent Sunday roast at the finish.

Washing the car on Monday afterwards I found a large nail sticking out of the sidewall of a rear tyre. It was right on the shoulder so effectively scraps an almost new tyre. 

Not Happy!

...............................................................................................

26th March:  Taith Cymru 

The Taith Cymru is usually a much more "hard core" event and this year no exception. They promised us a 130 mile route which would visit every major valley in South Wales and it turns out there are 22 of them and we did!   Because of the length of the route and start/finish locations we decided to stay overnight before and after and make a weekend of it.  

Weather was again changeable so the FHC was the first choice.  The route turned out to very different to the usual classic runs.  To get access to all the valleys and use some of the old road rally lanes meant much more urban mileage than usual with quite a lot of narrow streets in the valley towns to negotiate. This also meant some quite detailed navigation and was not popular with quite a few of the entrants. 

The route traversed 8 valleys to morning coffee at Abercynon Rugby Club, which would have been an excellent choice, but it was also the base for a schools rugby tournament that day so was super busy with parked cars abandoned everywhere.  The marshalls managed to get us into the car park eventually but it was all a bit manic.

Arriving at morning coffee Abercynon

The route proceeded via 7 more valleys to the lunch halt at Maesteg Rugby Club where the staff were kept very busy supplying some excellent sandwiches to the hungry crews.

In the afternoon the route headed further west via Baglan and Neath before turning back towards the finish near Hirwaun. One very narrow uphill section needed marshalls stationed at the bottom end to allow only one car at a time to tackle the hill. This was just in case a car stalled on the hill and had the reverse back down!  Some of the smaller roads were in very bad condition and really quite rough and we thought they should not have been included.   

The main thing to report is that the TR7 behaved itself perfectly despite the rough going!

In conclusion it was an interesting idea to try and visit all the valleys but parts of the route were not really suitable for a classic tour. 

2022, October. Autumn Leaves Scenic Tour

 22nd October:  Autumn Leaves Scenic Tour

 The Autumn Leaves is usually the last run of the year and this year the 100 miles route started from Taurus Crafts at Lydney. It had rained overnight and early morning but the weather cleared nicely by the time we had all had our bacon roll and coffee for the 10:00am start.  The changeable weather forecast meant we chose to take the FHC.

Leaving the start in Lydney

 

The run took place mainly in the Forest of Dean area, which like many places is having its roads dug up for the installation of fibre optic cables.  Sometimes it seems like this has been going on for ever and the organisers had to add a couple of last minute diversions to their route to avoid closed roads sections. Two other TR7s were also taking part, Henry & Linda Brown in their Cavalry Blue V8 powered DHC and Jos & Avice Way in their red DHC also V8 powered.

 In the event the roadworks did not cause any problems for the participating crews and we all enjoyed the first 35 mile section in the southern part of the Forest of Dean taking us in a loop back to Taurus Crafts for a coffee and a piece of cake.

The second part took us 30 miles and further north beyond the Forest to Garway in Herefordshire for an afternoon tea stop at Kelsmor Dairy, who just also happen to make excellent ice-cream.  The tea was free but we could not resist buying one of their ice-cream varieties as well. It was very good.

Queue for ice-cream  (picture by Dave Price)

 

TR7s at Kelsmor Dairy stop

Starting last leg  (picture by Dave Price)

Final leg was 41 miles and down alongside the beautiful River Wye via Hole in the Wall to a Sunday roast meal at Forest Hills Golf Club in Mile End, Coleford. 

On the way home afterwards it was raining and dark and I found the LED headlights on FHC were not giving good enough lighting, so that will be a job for improvement later.

2022, August - September. Bobby's Tour and Glavon Tulip Run

 13th August:  Bobby's Tour of the Dean

Bob Brain Developments were a well known builder of championship winning rally cars in the late 1970s and early 1980s but Bob sadly died a few years ago. This year, his brother John Brain organised a small classic car show and tour to raise money for a local children's charity in memory of Bob, and invited owners of interesting classic and rally cars that he knew to come along and support the charity. We were one of those owners.  The entry had been deliberately kept small to about 30 cars as it was the first running of the tour and to test out the idea.

The weather was very hot so obviously a day for the DHC as we made the short journey to the start at Ruardean for an excellent breakfast bacon roll and coffee.  This was based at the Ruardean Village Hall and playing fields right in the middle of the village.

John had organised a nice little route of about 65 miles around the Forest of Dean, divided into two sections, with a short coffee stop in Coleford at the Childrens Opportunity Centre who funds were being raised for.   

Many of the roads we drove were in the process of being dug up to provide cables for broadband but luckily they were still passable. The organisers had checked the route just before we left the start and their instructions were to just ignore the ROAD CLOSED signs!  They were spot on and we all got through ok.

The Forest of Dean is a beautiful area and we really enjoyed the vews.

picture by Chris Huish.

By mid-day the weather was really getting hot so I was even forced to bring out my straw hat. It works perfectly well up to around 50mph so perfect for the lanes. Jo had her sun hat on as well.

getting our card signed at a passage control

Back at Ruardean Village Hall they had laid out an excellent ploughman's buffet for us which was enjoyed by everyone.  Also by this time a number of other cars had arrived for the show so we were able to have a good look at those as well.  These included some amazing ex-works rally cars owned by another old mate, Dave Kedward from Cheltenham. He had brought an Audi Sport Quattro S2, a Peugeot T16 and a Lancia 037.  These Group B monsters all competed against each other in the 1980s on the World Rally Championship and a worth a small (!) fortune.

Audi S2 Quattro, Lancia 037, Peugeot T16

 

Audi S2 Quattro

Audi cockpit

Lancia 037

Peugeot T16

There was also a Ford RS200, a Porsche 911 safari car and even the MG Maestro Turbo that was driven by the late great Tony Pond to win the class on the Manx International. 

Tony Pond's much under rated MG Maestro Turbo

 

I almost forgot to mention a couple of the other interesting cars that had taken part in the tour, there were two Lancia Delta Integrale's and a gorgeous immaculate Puegeot 202 that I had never even heard of before.

Beautiful Peugeot 202

Another super day out in the TR7.

....................................................................

7th September:  Glavon Tulip Tour

Noel & Ange Jones had organised another of their excellent tulip tours for the Glavon TR Register Group, this time starting at Highfield Garden Centre at Whitminster.  

 

Glavon cars at the Highfields start

The route of about 100 miles around the Cotswolds took us to a coffee stop at the Cotswold Barn cafe up near Longborough on top of the Cotswolds.  A bunch of Porsche cars also turned up but they didn't speak to us so that was our good luck!

Coffee stop at Cotswold Barn

 

Nice gateway

Not just cars out today

We also met a lot of cyclists out in the lanes, it looked like hard work.

The first half had been mostly smaller roads but our journey back to a late lunch at Fromebridge Mill used some more sweeping "A " roads and we got back before they were ready for us!  No matter, time for more TR chat before an excellent carvery lunch.