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Alwoodley
Motor Club: Then & Now In the mid
1950s, Jim & Pam Marshal; Arthur & Dorothy Bould; Peter & Ann
Uppington; Peter Watson; Brian Roberts; Gordon Forster; John Cadge; Ron &
Iris Handley and many others, founded the Alwoodley Community Association
Motoring Club or more correctly, the motoring section of the ACA. By 1959 it
was an RACMSA affiliated club with almost 300 members paying two shillings
and six pence per year (12½ pence in today’s money). It was
renowned for its organising skills and had a reputation as a real family
motor club, putting on many competitive and social events. Throughout the
1960s it flourished, but darker days were to come. The 1969 motor vehicle
regulations and insurance restrictions hit all motor clubs, many thought the
days of road rallying were over – but they were wrong! Suddenly
the cost of putting on events escalated with more competitors being needed to
make one event viable. But membership of the ACAMC was open only to Alwoodley
residents, those living outside Alwoodley could only be admitted as Associate
members, with no voting rights or Committee membership and their numbers were
limited to 10% of the total membership. Membership
dropped to below 100 and many of the Associates formed the Trackrod Motor
Club, which attracted many of our more competitive members because the ACAMC
could only promote closed-to-club events. This restriction combined with a
small membership made running events almost impossible. There was however an
even greater restriction, the motoring section Treasurer was (and never had
been) allowed to hold any money in a bank account. All income had to be given
to the ACA Treasurer, and any request for funds made at monthly meetings to
be approved by the whole Committee (comprising a representative from each of
the twenty sections) and then could only be paid by cheque. With the
imposition of VAT on all income the situation became impossible, and
independence was the only route to survival.
The Alwoodley
Motor Club was thus formed in 1973, with Roger Tattersall, as its first
Chairman. Its only assets were the members; the trophies were deemed to be
the property of the ACA, but Jeff Askwith asked each trophy donor to
re-donate them to the new club, all but one agreed to do so. For this act of
impudence the ACA withdrew Jeff’s family membership and threatened
legal action, and so to avoid the new club being involved he did not join,
but with the help of a good solicitor the action finally petered out. At
Alwoodley Motor Club’s first Annual General Meeting Jeff Askwith was
elected President, which he remains to this day. In 1998,
Alwoodley Motor Club celebrated its 25th Anniversary by promoting a weekend
of events that all members, past and present, along with their family and
friends could enjoy. The weekend consisted of numerous events; PCTs,
Autotests, Novices Road Safety Rally, a walking Treasure Hunt and disco with
a buffet. The weather was brilliant and a good time was had by all. The event
was such a success that it has turned into the annual Summer Bash. |
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