Last year we were unfortunate enough to lose a few prominent members, and amongst them was Kevin Harvey who passed away after suffering a heart attack in September.
For years Kev had been a firm favourite, helping to orchestrate countless trips across Europe to the Stelvio Pass and around the UK, and after his passing, with the help of Michael Hipperson, SELOC members banded together to raise money to have the Jim Clark Memorial clock tower in Chirnside restored in his memory.
It seemed only right therefore that for the May bank holiday a group of SELOC members should get together for a trip up to the Scottish borders to pay their respects to both Kevin and the man who gave Lotus their first F1 drivers and constructors championships 50 years ago.
With owners travelling from around Europe for the weekend some have already joined up on previous days, but we meet them at The Jim Clark Room on the Saturday morning. Driving in to Duns in a Lotus is always a nice feeling, but that feeling just increases when its accompanied by the sun is shining and a fantastic line-up of cars stretched out in front of the museum.
We park up and chat with a few friends who’ve made the journey up from the south of England and take a look at the cars that have already assembled, including a brand new Exige V6 Cup, two of the rare 340R’s and a trio of Elise Type 25 Editions – one 111S and a pair of the later SC’s.
The Jim Clark Room is just that – a single room – but it’s packed to the brim with trophies and memorabilia from a spectacular career cut cruelly short, and is well worth a visit on it’s own. As an added bonus however their is also a small exhibition being held in the library across the road, with a selection of famous photographs of the iconic Scotsman. Entry to the museum is free with donations welcomed, and I can’t resist picking up one of the Jim Clark World Champion polo shirts while I’m there as well. I later see Clark’s former mechanic, Cedric Selzer, is sporting one as well so I’m in good company.
We leave Duns and take the short drive over the Chirnside see the memorial clock tower, grab a bite to eat from the fish and chip shop across the road, and to visit Jim Clark’s final resting place in the village church cemetery. Following its refurbishment last year the clock tower now also bears a small plaque in memory in Kevin Harvey, and its clear that a number of people are touched as they think back to the trips they’d shared with Kev and his yellow Sport 160 – ‘The Colonel’.
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After Chirnside it was time for the drive down to Floors Castle, where we had been given the chance to park up outside the front of the house for a group shot, with the three Type 25 Editions taking centre stage in beautiful line-up of car outside this stunning 18th century property.
Shots in the bag and it was time to take a break for some teas and coffee and take a look around the grounds of the estate.
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Thirsts quenched and curiosities satisfied, people began to filter off back North to our overnight stop at The Wheatsheaf in Swinton, although a few did fall foul of a rather brutal drain in the road on the way out of Floors Castle – if you’re ever there we recommend you watch out for it!
While others settled in to drinks at The Wheatsheaf we trekked down the road to a windy field to greet one of our guests for the evening, Robs Lamplough, arriving in his Gazelle helicopter.
Robs raced in Formula 2 in the 1960’s and 70’s as well as competing in historic events to this day, and had breakfast with Jim Clark the morning of his tragic accident at Hockenheim in 1968.
Robs joined us along with Cedric Selzer and Ian Scott Watson for the evening meal and to share their memories of and thoughts on the great Scotsman before a raffle to raise funds for the Little Havens Children’s Hospice rounded off the evening.
The morning saw a fairly relaxed start, with many tucking in to full English Scottish breakfasts before setting off at 10:30am to Clarks former home in Edington Mains.
It’s easy to see why Jim used to come back here between races, a lovely house tucked away in peaceful isolation a million miles away from the world of international motor sport.
Although the homestead is no longer owned by the Clark family we get a great reception, with tea and biscuits being served on the patio while the children buzzed around the cars – Moggy’s Candy Red 340R proving particularly popular!
As we left Edington Mains the group began to split up, with some heading on to Allanton for lunch while others plotted a route out for a drive in and around the Scottish Borders, but for us it was time to begin our 7 hour journey back down south. It had been a great weekend though and the perfect reminder of what a superb history and community surrounds these little plastic cars.
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SELOC would like to thank Michael Hipperson for organising this event, along with all who donated towards the refurbishment of the memorial clock tower.
You can find our full gallery of photos from the trip on Facebook.
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