The Grass Autotest is an annual affair, held on a large expanse of flat grass in a field recently mowed by the owner, David Marriott, so an ideal venue for a bit of fun. The event this year was postponed from July due to atrocious weather and although not exactly summer at its best the day was nevertheless dry with occasional sunshine and a bit of a breeze.
Last year I volunteered to be a marshal but sensibly this year I offered
to take photographs. This was for a very simple reason; if it rained I could take shelter in the barn, unlike last year when I and the other marshals got soaked to the skin whilst the spectators stayed dry in the
barn and the competitors erected their hoods before coming out to play. Ian was on the start line and also carried out timekeeper duties. Gerald, he of several hats (just in case it rained), was in the field and looked resplendent in his brown “Open all Hours shopkeeper’s coat”, but any other resemblance to Arkwright I leave to your imagination!
About a dozen members participated this year, down on numbers from previous years, perhaps because of the rearranged date, but still sufficient to make for a very competitive day.
Mary Topp, was the one interloper, demonstrating her skills in the newly acquired MGC GT and in fact it was a family appearance as she and Nev brought along their daughter and her friend, Matthew.
There were 6 tests in total and as you can see from the photographs everyone had a lot of fun. This year we had joint winners, Frank Orton and Matthew, with Richard Davies in third.
The Ladies winner was Lizzy Holt (Topp’s daughter) with Jan Fileman second and Mary Topp in third place. Afterwards we retired to the home of Rob and Liz Hounslow for a BBQ where sausages and burgers were offered up to the gods as a burnt offering (only joking as the food
was delicious) and it was only after we started on the desserts that the heavens opened and we dashed indoors.
Very many thanks to our organisers for their time and effort in making this a great day out.
Words and pictures – Brian Lee