Road Runs 2009

Here is a rundown of what the Helluvit sports car club did in 2009:

Sunday 25th January, 2009 - Sports Car Road Run to Compton Abbas Airfield.  This was a short drive from Bournemouth out to this small but busy airfield (near Guy Ritchie-land) for a coffee and a chat.  There was quite a good showing, in spite of the weather and it was great to see some new faces too.  The planes were grounded, unfortunately, because the runway was waterlogged (that doesn't happen at Heathrow, thank goodness!), but there was still a buzz to the place as a good few people had arrived for their Sunday lunches, including the local Triumph owners club.  We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 11.30 hrs before setting off on the drive to Compton Abbas at about 12.00 hrs.  This gave us enough time to have a quick coffee and a chat before we set off.

 
Left: Andrew Marchington's Aston Martin V8 Vantage.
Right: Aston Martin DB7 Vantage Volante joins the line-up!

 
Left: Mike's Mercedes SLK AMG. 
Right: Some members of the local Triumph Owners' Club members were also at Compton Abbas.

22nd February, 2009 - Social meet and Road Run to the Sir Walter Tyrell pub
We met at 11am at the Orchid Hotel on Bournemouth's East Cliff (near Bournemouth and Poole College) for a coffee and a chat.  David didn't expect to see anyone, because it hadn't been possible to send out an e-newsletter with details of the planned road run, but amazingly, 7 other people were waiting, cars polished and raring to go.  After some preliminary car talk over coffees and teas in the Orchid Hotel, we headed out to the Sir Walter Tyrell pub in the New Forest for some more petrolhead banter and to discuss ideas for future road runs.  Well done and thank you to those people that made it in spite of the IT breakdown!  Incidentally, a special mention should go to little Kai James - at 16 months old, the club's youngest member - for turning out resplendent in his best racing car T shirt!  The Sir Walter Tyrell (website: www.sirwaltertyrell.co.uk ) is located in the heart of the New Forest, just off the A31 Southampton to Bournemouth road.  The famous Rufus Stone is just about 200 yards south of the pub.  The address of the pub is:
Sir Walter Tyrell,
Brook,
Lyndhurst,
Hampshire.  SO43 7HD.
Telephone: 023 8081 3170.

 
Left: the Sir Walter Tyrell Pub - destination for our February 2009 sports car road run.
Right: The Helluvit Sports Car Club's youngest member on his first road run!

Sunday 15th March, 2009 - Road Run to the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum
This was a short drive from Bournemouth out to the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum, Bashley Cross Road, New Milton.  BH25 5SZ.  Entry fee was 5.90 GBP per person.  We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 10.00 hrs for a 10.45 hrs departure to the museum.  This gave us time to have a quick coffee and a chat before we set off.  The run to the museum was enlivened by David's MGF expiring in a gush of steam as its head gasket blew!  (At least it happened on a lovely day and in a picturesque spot!).  Several people met us directly at the museum and enjoyed an excellent tour of some of the golden greats from the heyday of British motorbikes.  There were so many bikes that we hadn't even heard of, but also a lot of names that still elicit nostalgia for the glory days!  Over teas and coffees (and probably more cake than is really wise), we had time for a good natter about cars, bikes, electric bikes and photography before the rescue service turned up to tow away David's MGF!

Sunday 22nd March, 2009 - Road Run to Goodwood Flying Club
Numbers were restricted on this event, so it was first come, first served!  We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 10.00 hrs for a 10.45 hrs departure to the flying club.  Just two cars (John and David in John's Porsche 924S plus Pat and Bob in their Mazda MX5 Mark 1) set off from Bournemouth, but we met up with Carolyn in Midhurst and then blasted down to Goodwood (following in the wake of her awesome Lamborghini!).  Time for a bite to eat with one eye out for the light aircraft constantly taking off and landing just a few hundred yards from the club house!

 
Left: following in the wake of Carolyn's Lamborghini Murcielago.
Right: Lambo, Porsche and Mazda at Goodwood with their crews.

 
Left: Carolyn's Lamborghini lures its next victim.
Right: Driving through the Meon Valley.

Sunday 12th April, 2009 - Road Run to the Haynes International Motor Museum, Sparkford, Yeovil.
We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 10.00 hrs for a 10.45 hrs departure to the museum.  What a great set of cars and motorbikes!  Why isn't this museum as well-known as Beaulieu?!  Photos to follow soon.

Sunday 17th May, 2009 - Road Run to the Red Lion pub in the New Forest
This was a short drive from Bournemouth out to the Red Lion pub, near Lymington in the New Forest.  Participation was free.  Dating back to around the 15th Century and mentioned in the Domesday Book, the Red Lion is an amalgamation of an old style forest public house, two old cottages and stables.  Offering cosy beamed rooms, gardens for the summer (fingers crossed!), heated patios, well-kept cask ales and a genuinely warm welcome, this is a classic New Forest pub not to be missed.

We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 10.00 hrs for a 10.30 hrs departure to the pub.  We had a cool, leisurely drive and then a great wide-ranging chat about all things motor-related.  People present included John in his Porsche, Leigh, Leigh's father and Karen in their Jaguar S Type R, Marcus in his Ferrari Scuderia M16 (great noise Marcus!), Bernard and Jacqui in their TVR Griffith (great noise Bernard!).

The address of the Red Lion pub for your sat nav is:
The Red Lion, Boldre, Lymington. 
Hampshire. 
SO41 8NE.
Tel: 01590 673177.

 
Left: Marcus's Ferrari Scuderia M16. 
Right: A very mixed bag of sports cars in the car park at the Red Lion in Boldre!

Sunday 7th June, 2009 - Road Run to Goodwood Circuit for the Supercar Sunday Breakfast Club Meeting
This was a drive from Bournemouth out to Goodwood, near Chichester, to enjoy the free display of modern and classic supercars at the famous motor circuit.  Participation was free. 

We met at the Orchid Hotel, 34 Gervis Road, Bournemouth, BH1 3DH at about 08.00 hrs for an 08.30 hrs departure to Goodwood.  Luckily (or unluckily!), there were only a few of us this time, because there was very little parking space available - hence the need to move our rendezvous point to somewhere with more guaranteed space next time.

As usual at these events, there was plenty of shiny supercar metal on display, including the usual crowd of Ferraris, Lambos, Astons, etc, but this time also including some new blood: a few Nissan GTRs, Audi R8s and Alfa Romeo 8Cs, to mention just a few of the star cars!

 
Left: Alfa Romeo 8C - undoubtedly one of the stars of this year's Supercar Sunday.
Right: Nissan GTR, looking all moody on the track at Goodwood.

Sunday 14th June, 2009 - Road Run to the Empress of Blandings pub, Copythorne (near Southampton).
Our scheduled Helluvit Road Run out to the Empress of Blandings, a great car club friendly pub not far from Southampton with plenty of parking available and really good bar food on offer.

We met at a different location for the 14th June run: ETC International College car park at 22 West Hill Road, Bournemouth.  BH2 5PG.  This is near the Triangle in Bournemouth town centre.  (Don't worry, there are no speed bumps in the area yet!).

The address of the pub for your Sat nav is:
The Empress of Blandings,
Romsey Road, Copythorne.  Hampshire.  SO40 2PB.
Tel: 02380 812321.

If you would like to have a meal at the pub we recommend that you telephone the pub in advance as it is a very popular haunt on Sundays!

 
Left: Helluvit sports car club members assemble in the pub car park to talk about shiny metal things.
Right: Mr M. Schumacher's Lotus Elan and Des Collins's gorgeous (and rare) Renault Sport Spider.

Sunday 19th July, 2009 - Road Run to Sherborne Castle for the annual Classics at the Castle classics and supercar show. 
We met at the Nightjar pub in Canford Cliffs at 09.00 hrs on Sunday morning before driving to Sherborne.  This was a drive from Bournemouth out to Sherborne Castle, to enjoy the huge display of modern and classic cars at the beautiful lakeside setting of Sherborne Castle (the 16th Century residence of Sir Walter Raleigh).

Highlights included:
- over 1,000 cars on display, from Veterans to Supercars.
- arrival of Veteran car tour at 11.30am.
- arrival of Dorset Classic Car Tour at 12.30pm.
- motorsports feature display.
- supercar feature.
- trade stands.
- motor club stands.
- autojumble.
- crafts fair.
- Charterhouse car auction.

The show was open to the public from 10.00 am until 4.00pm, and we all had a good giggle, in spite of the changeable weather (which veered from rainy squalls to bright sunshine!).

 
Right: Helluvit members parking up at Sherborne Castle and preparing for those storm clouds.

Members entered individually but those of us who drove up together were actually able to park up within the show in formation (and thus form part of the display).

 
Left: Aston Martin Vanquish.  Right: Ferrari California.

 
Left: Pontiac Solstice.  Right: Pagani Zonda and Ferrari F40.

Sunday 11th October, 2009 - joint run with Pistonheads for their Sunday Service visit to Rolls Royce HQ.  
The good people at Rolls Royce offered us a rare opportunity to see their impressive facilities, just a short distance from the Goodwood circuit.  You needed to get up early and drive directly to the factory because doors opened at 09.00 hrs and the visit ran through until 13.00 hrs!  Quite a few Helluvit members attended this event, reporting back that it was an excellent day out.  For future reference (if they put on another similar event), the address to aim for is: The Drive, Westhampnett, Chichester PO18 0SH.  Well done Rolls Royce!

Tuesday 20th October - Evening road run and club meeting.
Destination: Drusillas Inn, near Wimborne. 
Mission: to relax with like-minded people and perhaps sample a little amber nectar.
A relaxing evening at this famous local pub.  Drusilla's is situated in rolling Dorset countryside and enjoys uninterrupted views of the 17th century Horton Folly Tower and the lush grazing field across the road.  Enjoy real Ales, fine wines and beers in the 17th Century beamed bar.  Feature Inglenook fireplaces add warmth and character to create a relaxed dining and drinking area.  If you would like to eat at the inn (most people will probably just have a drink), please book a table by calling the management on 01258 840297.  Their current special offer is 3 delicious courses for 10.90 Pounds (Monday to Thursday).
The address of the inn is:
Drusillas Inn,
Wigbeth,
Horton. 
Dorset. 
BH21 7JH.
Here is a map, showing where to go:
http://www.multimap.com/maps/?hloc=GB|BH21%207JH#map=50.86527,-1.90529|14|4&dp=841&bd=useful_information&loc=GB:50.86329:-1.93748:16|BH21%207JH|BH21%207JH

Thursday 12th November (yes, Thursday!) - Morgan Factory Tour - cost: £10 per visitor.
Following a tough drive through wind and rain, we arrived at just after 1pm to take an afternoon tour around the Morgan factory - one of the only remaining all-British car manufacturers!  It was fascinating to observe the factory and its workers in action and witness some of the famous, traditional manufacturing techniques still being employed - together with some very high-tech methods as well, it has to be said - to build these sensational and iconic British sports cars.  For those of you who did not make it this time, this tour is highly recommended.  And taking a tour might be all it takes to tip you over the edge and persuade you to buy a Morgan!
Address of the visitor centre is:
Spring Lane,
Malvern,
WR14 1AJ. 
Allow about 3.5 hours for the journey, if you are travelling from Bournemouth.  It took us longer than we had imagined it would!

December event - Last run of the year!
Sunday 6th December, 2009. 

This was a short drive from Bournemouth out to Compton Abbas airfield for a coffee and a chat.  (As you can imagine if you know a lot of our members, cake was also involved!).  We had a pleasant drive, managing to avoid a few mini accidents on the road and showed off our motors in the packed car park.  It was also fun to watch the planes take off and land from this hill-top airstrip.  We had to wrap up warm though: it was pretty chilly!  (And no-one was brave enough to drop their top!).  Des's Alpine was probably the car that grabbed most people's attention - mainly because you don't see very many of them these days!