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Perryman Platz......... + + Perryman Platz + +
An Austin Seven tale of skill, daring, and intrigue! Colin Hoile used to own an Austin Seven called ‘Bunny’. It was quite a rare machine; a Gordon England Cup Model, manufactured in 1928. Like all Sevens it had the most direct steering ever invented, coupled with practically no brakes at all. Like a lot of small vehicles of the era the hand-brake operated the front brakes only, whilst the foot brake functioned purely on the rears. About a month after I had passed my driving test, in 1954, Colin rang me up to enquire if I was willing to put my new found skills to good use. The plan was to save him having to pay road fund tax for Bunny to travel just the few miles from Sheen, where he then lived, to Slough Farm. The execution of this plan was to be that he should tow me with the company Morris Minor that he then drove. (Company Morris Minor - how things have changed.) The object was to compete in a production car trial. Well you know how it is. Offer any young fellow a drive in any vehicle at that stage of his driving career and he will jump at the chance! So it was, then, that the following Sunday lunch-time found us tying the two vehicles together with the thickest piece of rope that ever moored a battleship. "We won’t go round the bypass" said Colin "it will be quieter through Kingston." We set off, with me trying desperately to keep the rope tight, whilst steering a very erratic course in the wake of the Minor. All went fairly well for a few miles. I only got within two and a half inches of the Minor’s back bumper about six or seven times, and all the while the brakes were getting warmer. Brake fade is not a term which you hear very often these days, and is an experience to which those who have not driven an elderly vehicle will ever have been subjected. The brakes, when they got hot, were like you did not have any! As we got up Facett Road behind the ‘Tech ( sorry - University now ) Colin had to stop fairly smartly. I had as much chance of pulling up behind him as the proverbial snowball in hell. With quick thinking, or more-probably with just blind terror, I pulled out, avoided his bumper and came to rest alongside him. The rope entwined round just about anything that stuck out! Colin, those of you who knew him will remember, did not flap easily. With great aplomb he wound down his window, bid me a cheery good afternoon, and queried "What are you doing there?" So there we were, parked next to each other, and tied firmly together like a pair of kippers. We dismounted, untangled the rope, realigned the vehicles, tied them back together, and continued the journey. There were a couple of other incidents, by comparison fairly minor, on the remainder of the journey, and finally we arrived at Farmer Telling’s field. The phrase ‘mechanically if not mentally intact’ comes to mind. It was my first visit to a Malden and District event, and thus was both character building and habit forming. I spent the afternoon as bouncer and passenger in a TC MG belonging to Pip ( surname forgotten ). The event was organised I think by Walter Rosson, and the entry of about a dozen or so vehicles included such luminaries as Bill Stabb, Bob Linton, Eve Falkener and Ian Clements.
Then it was time to return home. Tow rope was re-tied, lights were switched on ( do you remember six volt lights? ) and we set of as the dusk came upon us. It was always a necessary part of the plot to attend the local hostelry prior to undertaking the return journey proper. ( Oh! for the days before the breathalyser .) Finally we were on the way. Obviously the forward journey had taught us a lot, for the return was completed practically without hitch. I say practically as there was a fairly major problem when we were only about half a mile from Colin’s home. The problem was a dear old lady. As we were waiting at the Black Horse to turn right into Upper Richmond Road she appeared. She hovered. She dithered. I by this time had learned to keep the rope taught. She stepped between the two cars, tripped on the rope and went base-over-apex down onto the ground. I was out so quickly it was untrue in order to stop Colin pulling away - which I achieved. We picked her up and sat her on a nearby seat. The poor dear was complaining of her arm, which it later transpired she had broken. Colin went off and phoned for an ambulance ( when did they invent mobile phones? ), which I seem to remember took a long time to arrive. Pam comforted the old lady whilst Colin and I moved the vehicles out of the way. Whilst we waited for the ambulance, and the inevitable policeman ( who turned up on a push bike - and no he didn’t cuff us round the ear with his rolled up cape ) I made the tow rope belatedly more visible with my handkerchief. Finally the ambulance arrived , the old lady received good attention, and we all went home. The ramifications of this incident were tremendous. Colin’s firm were not too amused that he was even towing another vehicle with their car, let alone having accidents with it! Colin’s firm’s insurers were even less impressed, and suggested that Bunny’s insurers should become involved!! Then there was the untaxed status of Bunny - the policeman on his bike was quite interested in this particular particular!!! After many months it got sorted out and we put it all down to experience - in my case the first experience of having to produce my new driving licence. So far as we know the old lady received an adequate payment in compensation and her arm was completely healed. Oh! yes. Why the strange title to this little story? Well, the lady was named Miss Perryman. Colin and I always referred to that corner as Perryman Platz from that day forward. Michael Knights-Whittome Malden and District Motor Club Newsletter July 1995
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