Scottish Motor Sport Museum ??

I mentioned the lack of a Scottish motor sport museum and archive in a recent Post which prompted ace photographer Frank Love to ask if something similar had not been proposed for a site near the Rest & Be Thankful some time ago. Indeed a proposal had been announced in 2017 but nothing came of it.

In fact, this was just the most recent attempt to create a lasting and physical tribute to the history and achievements of Scots in motoring and motor sport - and the latest to fail.

As for Scotland’s premier house of historical artefact and information, the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, it has little in the way of a proper collection while the National Library of Scotland has an archive of some motor sports publications and memorabilia but that is in a separate building. As for the Transport Museum in Glasgow, if you’ve been, there’s nowt to be said about that here, but if you haven’t been, don’t build your hopes up – the old Kelvin Hall venue was a far better tribute to Scotland’s automotive heritage.

There are also quite a few smaller transport museums around the country. These include the Jim Clark Room in Duns, the Grampian Transport Museum, the Moray Transport Museum, Dundee Transport Museum and then there is the giant Moulsdale Foundation in Bishopbriggs. Impressive though the Moulsdale collection is, the trustees are more interested in general motoring world-wide, although they do host ‘themed’ exhibitions at times.

Elsewhere there are smaller exhibitions like the display in Hawick Museum to commemorate the achievements of Jimmie Guthrie and Steve Hislop and the Albion Trust which has a small museum presence in Biggar. There are also quite a large number of ‘private collections’ around the country but with very limited access for potential visitors and fans, like the W H Malcolm transport firm’s Donald Malcolm Heritage Centre near Linwood and there are others which are deliberately secretive!

There are also many other smaller individual museums around the country which have automotive exhibits and interesting memorabilia like the Heritage Centre in Cumnock for instance – but as yet, there is no National Centre to commemorate Scotland’s nine World Champions on two, three and four wheels, our other national and international champions and record breakers, as well as Scotland’s motoring pioneers and automotive innovators, BUT - there is no central national repository of such memorabilia, records and information. Shocking, eh?

There have been attempts to try and create a permanent exhibit of some kind for this very purpose but so far none have succeeded for a variety of reasons. For instance, the plan to create a National Motorsports Centre in south Lanarkshire (as mentioned in ‘The Scottish Rally Championship 2000-2009’ book) was thwarted in 2001 because our motorsport’s governing body sent someone who lacked vision and imagination to view the proposed site, and he arrived in anorak, suit and shiny shoes – and promptly turned up his nose! Maybe we should have bought him wellies!

The more recent attempt in 2017 was instigated by Douglas Anderson, the man behind the return of a Glasgow based Monte Carlo Rally starting point. The Rest & Be Thankful site was chosen for its historic connections to speed hillclimbing and rallying with Argyll & Bute Council behind the idea to create another tourist attraction in the area. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, VisitScotland and Transport Scotland were all supportive too while Jackie Stewart, John Cleland and Jim McRae lent some credible sporting gravitas to the scheme.

A Charitable Trust was to be formed to generate the £25 million needed for this ambitious plan as the idea was to ‘burrow’ into the hillside below the established car parks at the top of the Rest & Be Thankful old road. Visually impressive, the glass fronted building was designed to blend in with the surrounding crags and glens, but yet again, a bold idea foundered and nowt came of it.

The photos show a couple of illustrations and models of the R&Be T proposal. Shame, eh?

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Book - Christmas – Sorted !

That’s the website updated. Only a few minor cuss words needed and managed without the help of an unfuriatingly, internetently competent seven year old, although during the process Lady Bunnet was indeed heard to shout up the stairwell to the turret: “Are you OK? 

So if you’re wondering what to get for your rally mad family member, relative or friend then the latest volume in the series of books covering the Scottish Rally Championship is now in stock and available to order on-line.

But a word to the wise – be awfy careful when selecting which book you desire. The latest book covers the period ‘2010 to 2019’, so dinnae go ordering the wrang yin! Some folk managed that last year and it’s quite a kerfuffle (and costly!) sorting out returns, refunds and new dispatches.

Even before this post was posted a couple of sneaky folk had found that the ‘Scottish Rally Championship 2010-2019’ volume was now in the on-line shop and had placed orders! So I obviously managed to do the update successfully myself. Wonders will never cease, eh?

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Book Night

Club Night …. Well that was some club night at the Bears’ Den in Larkhall last night. There was no entertainment, no rally forum and no Jim Barclay videos (remember them?) just a gathering of like minded rally folks. Truth be told I was just a wee bit overwhelmed last year (it’s an age thing!) when so many stars of past and present turned up. And although last night was even less formal it was almost as overwhelming yet again, but I have to keep reminding myself it’s the books that attract the interest. And it’s not just the memories that they contain it’s the personal memories that the stories and photos trigger in each reader and browser.

Amongst the crowd was past British Rally Champion, David Bogie, one of the most winningest drivers in the Scottish Rally Championship with seven national titles to his credit – so far! He didn’t have to be there, but he was, and not just because he was on the front cover, but he thought it just right, even though this was merely a glorified club night. Also in attendance, and he should have more sense at his age, was the CEO of Insch International Airport (and three times Scottish Rally Champion) Ken Wood having made the long trek from the far north, while fresh from his victory at Kinloss last weekend was a pensive looking Mark McCulloch. Pensive? Until last weekend the Proton was up for sale, but after a pretty much dominant weekend, he’s now not so sure!!

The photographers were there too, Alistair and Andrew Farquhar and John Lindsay, without whom the book would be a pretty colourless affair, but in reality there is a cast of dozens behind each book and the front page lists everyone who has found, kept, stored and allowed me to use, much of the information I have needed over the past few years. And more will be needed, much more, going forward. The next job is to record the early years of the championship and even more resources and help will be sought.

Another vital element in the production of these books is the advertising input, and my grateful thanks goes out to each and every advertiser for their support, especially the book sponsor. Ahead of this book I had to make the telephone call and back came the answer – “You know me I’m just a rally fan, I’m in!” And to those folk who think I do this to make money, that’s not quite correct – I do it not to lose money! There is a difference. The advertising revenue actually covers less than half the print production cost but the advertising is limited to ensure the book doesn’t turn into a Sunday magazine – and the other thing is, all the advertisers have a direct connection with the Scottish Rally Championship. Nice one, eh?

Back in the late 1950s, into the 1960s there were no computerised results and no internet, everything was hand written or typewritten and with no photocopiers around then either, multiple copies were virtually non-existent. And yet over recent years I have managed to find a lot of ‘long-lost’ information which is like gold dust to me and the likes of Highland CC historian Neil Moir who echoed my sentiments last night – “don’t throw anything out!” So if you, your parents or grandparents, (great grandparents?) come across dusty, faint paperwork from rallies gone by please seek out someone like Neil or myself who will find a good home for such nuggets of information and rally history.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Scotland needs its own motoring/motor sport museum with a library and reference section to store records and photographs. There are quite a few smaller museums scattered around the country and of course there is the Transport Museum in Glasgow, but that’s more of a shop window display than a ‘get up close and personal’ exhibition for interested visitors and enthusiasts. However, we need a proper and permanent repository for such information and memorabilia – before it’s gone forever.

And finally, thanks once again for Coltness Car Club’s hospitality and tolerance. They even allowed vegetarians and vegans to enter the premises!

One more task – update the website to include the new book ‘Scottish Rally Championship 2010-2019’ so you can place and receive orders well in time for Christmas and I’ll put some on Ebay as well. I’ll let you know where when it’s done – I need a seven year old these days to help with such internetery black magic!!

Oh, and that’s the real front cover in the fotie this time – no real surprise there though, eh?

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Book - Beer & Banter

This Monday 2nd November, Coltness Car Club are once again having an ‘Open Night’ and all are welcome. There is nothing formal planned although this occasion will be used once again to launch the latest volume in the series of books aimed at documenting the Scottish Rally Championship. With three separate volumes already published and covering the 1980s, the 1990s and the 2000s, this latest issue covers the decade 2010 – 2019.

Like the previous volumes this 260 page A4 hardback book features a report on each round of the Scottish Rally Championship with end of season Championship points tables. It also contains over 350 photographs featuring the stars and their cars. When I say ‘stars’ I mean Scottish personalities – and the occasional interloper!

The previous two book launch ‘shows’ almost turned into ‘Rally Forums’ with an interviewer chatting to any guests who turned up, but this Monday none of that is planned or anticipated. This is just supposed to be the normal monthly ‘mix and mingle’ club gathering and swapping of tall tales with no formalities breaking up the chatter and banter. Of course there will be strangers in the crowd but please make everyone feel welcome, the Bears are not ones for standing on ceremony. Just say ‘hello’ and join the chat.

If this doesn’t work we might just have to plan a more formal launch for the next book !!

Anyway, that’s the plan that isn’t a plan!

Having said all that, the author of the books is intending to say a few words. No long speech but there are a couple of ‘controversial’ stories in the book which might need a little justification and explanation and better to do it here than anywhere else – we dinnae want the blazers from Bicester overhearing! Of course, there will also be books on sale at 45 quid each (a third of the price of a tank of fuel!)  for those who wish to beat the Christmas rush! The books will then be available to buy on-line later in the week once the website has been updated.

The doors will open from 7.30 pm at Larkhall Golf Club, Burnhead Rd, Larkhall ML9 3AA on Monday evening. For those coming from the West, South and North the simplest approach is from the East using the A71 from Junction 8 (Canderside Toll) on the M74 at Larkhall.

There’s a set of traffic lights 2 miles along (not to be confused with Larkhall’s annual Christmas light extravaganza) on the A71 between the Motorway and Garrion Bridge, but turn off (North) at this cross-roads junction towards Larkhall and the Golf Club car park is half a mile along there on the right. For those arriving from the East and unfamiliar with the Garrion Bridge approach over the Clyde, it might be best heading via the A74!

What three words:  ///bitter.user.courier

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Book - The Final Cut

 

Having already revealed a few potential front covers which didn’t quite make the final edit for the new book, here is the very last one. An odd choice in the first place, but it was initially selected because someone suggested that I might consider putting a photo of the author on the front cover.

So I thought, why not? Then I thought some more. But since the front cover is designed to attract potential enthusiasts and buyers, I thought not. Such an image would surely put the customers off.

Having said, that, it is a rare photographer indeed who can capture the true likeness of such an ethereal rallying presence, and yet I managed to find one. As you can see this is a true and accurate likeness of the author i.e. the figure on the right of the ramp, crouching down with microphone in hand, to talk to the rally car driver.

Passport quality, eh?

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Book - In the Post

 

 

The first batch of books has now been dispatched and they are in the post – but only to the advertisers. They get to see them first – but they have been sworn, well maybe politely requested, to not reveal who is on the front cover. Many of you will have made a good and no doubt pretty accurate guess as to who it should be going by past covers, but you never know. I can be a wee devvil at times. So here’s another front cover that didn’t make the final edit. Any clues there?

As for the rest of you, you’ll just have to wait, although copies can be purchased at the Coltness CC ‘Open Night’ next Monday, after which I will add the new book to the list already on the wee website book-tique. There is no door charge for entry and all welcome, although best be on good behaviour – this is ‘Bear’ territory !!

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Book delivery

 

First batch of books arrived ahead of launch on Monday