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MG MG Y Type - MG LIVE 2012

I found the show dissapointing and not helped by some dreadful weather. The driest place under foot was the Register Marquee and the undoubted star of the show was Rob King who bought his freshly restored YA rolling chassis along which looked superb. He was the crown in the jewel of the 'Garage' scene, This was supposed to replicate a car showroom and garage workshop. I was very much looking forward to see how this was going to happen.

The potential was significant and with a Midget and Cooper together with the YA offered much. Sadly, the 'garage' was rather unenterprising, which was a great shame. Moreover, neither the Midget nor the Cooper had any information panels about them and their significance in MG history and no one to answer the many questions asked about them. So as Rob was an ever present he was sounded out but confirmed that he unfortunately had not been provided with any information and was unable to help. A rather unfortunate slip up bythe organsiers in my view.

Rob's YA did attract an amazing amount of interest and he was a great source of knowledge about the car and his trials and tribulations in restoring the chassis. The final outcome when body, chassis and the interior are mated together will result in a stunning top draw Y.

Very well done Rob.

On the Saturday the Y register celebrated the 65th Anniversary of the model with six cars in the main arena. We had a useful chat with the commentator about the drivers and their cars. Peter Storey, who arrived at the Anniversary Celebrations in Abingdon during March seeking advice about Y 's, turned up in a nice YA that he had bought earlier in the week and had had delivered on Friday. He had an event free run up from Harlow. Mike Silk was loaned a rather pokey Y fitted with a midget engine which proved a challenge to start and take around the show ring!

On the Sunday in the Pride of Ownership there were very few cars entered and no Y's or Magnettes. However, I persuaded Chris Callaghan to enter his YA and even though they combined the saloons together Chris's car won through. Very well done Chris.

The Register stand was well visited - especially on the Saturday but numbers were generally down on the Sunday. Nonetheless it was good to chat to a few well known Y faces even though the weather was questionable and the conditions underfoot somewhat unsteady to say the least!

Sincerely

Jerry
J P BIRKBECK

Sounds pretty dire Jerry, still I am sure Bill Silcock and Julian White will confound all your worse worries and soon tell us all that it really was "the best Silverstone ever!" even eclipsing 2011.

I am glad the Y Register stand was busy though on Saturday. When I used to volunteer to do that it was always very busy on all three days and it is fun to meet and talk Ys.

Paul
Paul Barrow

As the keeper of the poky y type I thought I might add a comment. MG live whatever the conditions is still the greatest show on earth. I offered the ride in the parade ring because I was marshalling at the time of the parade. I offered Bob King at first. He tried to fold his magnicent frame into the ugly duckling.The door wouldn't even shut!! When he gets his YA on the road He'll have to drive it from the back seat. This was the first trip the YA has made since last being on the road(1986) It did a round trip of 468 miles and never missed a beat. Its a great car to drive.
I Whyte

Well its true folks...I dont fit....
Mr Whyte asked if I would like to drive his treasure around the parade ring, he was surprised when I told him that I would not be able to drive his YA and probably not even be able to fit in it.

I did give it a go but, as he says, we couldnt even shut the door as my leg was poking out!
Not a shock to me though....I am 6'6" (or 5'18" as I usually suggest) and most of that is legs.

I dont fit into ANY British sports car of the 40s 50s or 60s with the exception of the TR3.
Consequently I bought a saloon... with the added flexibility of being able to sit on the back seat (or close to it).....the accelerator pedal will require some adjustment too!

Anyone else out there too big for their car?

Rob
Rob King

As you may gather from Jerrys comment I had been asked if I would be prepared to display my (only just in time) completed rolling chassis at the show.

It was suggested to me that a chassis with all of the 'gubbins' on show would be a far more interesting display than 'just another car'.

Well...it did attract a lot of attention not least from MGB owners...no less than EIGHT of whom asked why I had fitted MGB front suspension to my car.

I took the greatest delight in telling them that they actually had MGY suspension fitted to their MGBs!

One-up-man-ship can be most satisfying.

Rob
Rob King

This thread has moved away from Jerry’s original comments relating to MG Live. I understand that the ‘Garage ‘ theme where Rob King not only had his car on display but answered numerous questions, was a real ambassador for the MG Car Club albeit organised by the MGCC Y Register and was greatly appreciated by all.

However, to suggest that "MG live whatever the conditions is still the greatest show on earth" is clearly not borne out by the fact that it was reduced to a two day event from previous three day events, presumably to save money for the MGCC! In fact (2 day) weekend tickets were the same price as last year’s (3 day weekend tickets), which was effectively a 50% price hike to paying entrants.

Many readers may not have seen the official Press Release, listed below: of which no less than 9 of the 15 paragraphs are devoted to racing. There is neither mention of the Garage Scene nor the anniversaries being celebrated, but individual successes in race programmes are named! It is clear from the emphasis that success is being determined from this activity rather than the overall experience that Jerry refers to in his initial posting.


PRESS RELEASE 28 June 2012 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MGLIVE! + MGB50 + PADDY HOPKIRK = SUCCESS

MG enthusiasts flocked to Silverstone Circuit to celebrate all things MG, as the MG Car Club's showpiece MGLive! event (23 & 24 June) assumed centre stage for a 62nd successive year.

Despite some challenging conditions, MGLive! attracted thousands of devotees from 24 different nations and provided something for all ages to enjoy.

Visitors were treated to a fine array of arena action, car displays, traders and social activities.

The MG Car Club's comprehensive on-track race programme saw 14 well-supported races take place on the full Grand Prix circuit.

The jewel in the MGLive! crown was the Official MGB50 celebration race, which attracted 58* FIA-spec MGBs. All cars were pre-1966, including four original examples built at the Morris Garages competitions department in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

The race, to mark the 50th anniversary of the introduction of the MGB, was for one or two drivers, with a mandatory pit stop.

The overall winner, after 19 laps, was Callum MacLeod, who finished 8.397 seconds ahead of Tom Smith. Third was the father and son team of Jan and Peter Boyes.

The winner on Handicap was Malcolm Gammons, who also earned the coveted MGCC Driver of the Race and Day awards. David Beresford was second and Adrian Johnson third.

Drivers came from as far afield as the USA and Qatar and every participant was presented with a uniquely-personalised crystal plaque by rally legend and former MG driver Paddy Hopkirk, who was the Club's Guest of Honour.

MG Car Club are already in dialog with the Guinness Book of Records publishers to have the 58-car grid included in their next edition. On Saturday evening, 200 guests enjoyed an evening with Paddy Hopkirk and other BMC works competition drivers in Silverstone's Jimmy Brown Suite.

The MG Car Club's charity partner, Macmillan Cancer Support were on site throughout the weekend and it is anticipated that a large sum has been raised for the organisation.

MG Car Club General Manager Julian White said: "MGLive! once again celebrated everything that's great about MG and the MG Car Club. We extended a warm welcome to enthusiasts from around the world and it's clear that passion for the MG brand remains high.

"There are so many people to thank for helping make the MGLive! weekend happen. In particular, I'd like to extend sincere thanks to the traders who attended the event and contended with some tough conditions; we are very grateful for their support.

MGCC Motorsport Director Dave Saunders said: "The Club enjoyed a terrific weekend of on-track action and feedback from the racers has been excellent. The MGB50 celebration race was as spectacular as we'd hoped and I'm sure it will be talked about for many years to come.

"The MGCC's racing programme continues to go from strength to strength and we now look forward to our next meeting at Oulton Park on Saturday 11 August."

* 46 classified, 9 DNF & 3 DNS.

- ends -

For more information or high-res images, please contact:
Chris Seaward
MG Car Club
Email: chris@mgcc.co.uk
Website: www.mgcc.com





David Pelham

The garage scene was organised by David Storer from the midget register. He did a very good job with limited resourses. He asked for items for this in Safety Fast, but I get the feeling he didn't get a great response.I supplied some of the items for the garage scene - Pillar drill, enamel signs, AustinJ40(not really MG),vintage phones, oil cans etc. David only had Friday afternoon to set this up,so I think it was very good for an amateur job - Dave took time off from his very busy day job working on the M1 widening so should be applauded.
I do agree that the show was really disappointing for non racing fans - the trade area seems to shrink alarmingly every year. I failed to find even basic items for some of my MG's. The other "side shows" are also getting very jaded - the stunt flying display is the same every year, as is the Russ Swift demonstation etc. I think that the show needs a major revamp it is to survive - it is certainly not family friendly and does nothing to encourage younger members.
As an aside, I have now sold all my MGY's so have quite a few Y type spares available - doors, wings, rebuilt bootlid,etc Dave
DM Gibson

The photos I have seen do indicate Dave that the garage scene was by far the best item there and it certainly looked good. Lots of nice side items and props as you say that meant that it was more than just a bunch of parked cars so well done to Mr. Storer. As usual it is the volunteers that have done well.

I think Jerry and David P's point though is very much that the rest of the side was let down by everything else and it is very disappointing when all that effort is put in by all the Registers/Centers and then when there is the perfect opportunity to praise and thank, it is all wasted on racing. Apart from the fact that this is going on I see huge parallels between what is happening there at Silverstone and what killed off MG National Day at Beaulieu in the 80s. Every year the price for trader sites went up, so next year there were fewer vendors, so Montague raised the door prize and so fewer people came in the door which made it more financially expensive for the traders ... and a huge vicious circle was established. There was very little planning from the Montague estate into how to rescue the situation and there was little imagination as to how to make the event more interesting for the attendees. The event died.

Several years ago one of the things I said was that the venue of Silverstone is becoming way too expensive and that fewer people would come as a result and that a better venue should be found, like Donnington or Rockingham. I was told that the Silverstone tradition was the most important pull of the event. Perhaps that is why it is now (this year at least) a minimum of 50% more expensive (1.5 days if that as traders left on Saturday apparently) as opposed to when I was going to help on the MGCC Y stand, I would get there before 8am on the Friday and before I had everything set up at 9am I would have made my first couple of sales, met some early birds etc. and I was still being able to sell stuff as I packed up at 5pm on the Sunday and was very busy at all times in between. It is very sad to see volunteer effort being so badly ignored.

Does anyone know how much a pint of Old Speckled Hen was this year?

Paul
Paul R Barrow

Interesting comment in MG Octagon Car Club Bulletin about them considering whether to attend next years MG Live event due to costing them money.

Surely if club representing MG's (Y Type especially) can't attend and operate at profit when it sells useful parts, then what does this say about the cost of the event, must be far too expensive and at the wrong venue only right for those interested in racing.
Better value for money is Sommertreff, I urge owners to book the date for next year.
Richard
R E Knight

This thread was discussed between 27/06/2012 and 12/09/2013

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