NACC Ninth East Anglian Run

May 20^th 1990 saw the 9^th annual East Anglian Cyclemotor Run with a record entry of over 60 machines.  The run followed the same route as last year, starting and finishing at the Museum of East Anglian Life, Stowmarket and with a lunch stop at Bildeston King’s Head.  There were a few breakdowns, but only one machine had to be rescued: Simon Farrier, riding Derek Rayner's rare Petit VéloSoleX 5000, had a large, unrepairable puncture in the front tyre.  Most of the other faults were the kind where the engine mysteriously stops and then, after several unsuccessful attempts to restart, just as mysteriously begins working again.  One exception was my own Raynal which was on its first outing (excluding the MoT) since I bought it about eight years ago.  It stopped when the carburettor float sank—but limped home with careful use of the petrol tap.  Everyone safely returned to the Museum where the machines were put on display during the afternoon.  The Norfolk & Suffolk Austin A30/A35 Group brought along some of their cars to join us at the Museum.

The club AGM followed the run.  At the end of the meeting the awards were presented, the winners being: Autocycle: Michael Flood’s New Hudson, Cyclemotor: Bob Visser’s Berini M13 powered Simplex, Moped; Alex Mutimer’s Raleigh Runabout.

There was a fine selection of machines on display, including some very rare examples.  I can’t list all of them here so I’ll pick out a few that caught my eye.  Already mentioned above is Derek Rayner’s Dutch-built Petit VéloSoleX 5000—probably the only example in the UK; another unique machine was Chris Franklin’s 1939 Norman Carrier autocycle.  There were two Raynal-Autos on the run—I’ve never seen one at a rally before and now they turn up in pairs!  Bob Visser brought his Simplex all the way from Holland; also from Holland was Paul van Leeuwen with his unusual Mechanica Sinamec.  A splendid turnout combined with fine weather to make an enjoyable day out for all who took part.