TA EAST NEWS 31ST OCTOBER 2006

To TA East Members & Friends

This coming SATURDAY (4TH) we have a LUNCHTIME MEET at
FRAMINGHAM “STATION” pub.
If you come, I believe you will enjoy it.
A recent visit by our Secretary Geoff Morse confirms that the pub is as good
as ever. It has plenty of room, scrubbed tables, exceptionally good food and
atmosphere. It’s an outpost of the Earl Soham Brewery and I have had some
superb pints there in the past.
Framingham is a very attractive market town, a pleasure to look round on a
Saturday morning, if you have the time.
The “STATION” is on the B1116 (ignore the TA Gazette on this point) on the
right as you leave the town going SOUTH. It’s the former terminus station
buildings, (but the last train left in 1952). Please don’t confuse it with
a pub with a related name on the opposite side of the same road.

Now, what have we in the way of news?
TANDEM TRIKES AT EARSHAM
The clash of the titans – tandem trikes – in the East Anglian CC 10 saw
Roger & Gawain Akers come out on top with 26:49, ahead myself and Martin
Badham 27:48, infinitely clear of Ken Usher and Peter Hopkins, who actually
put in the biggest effort of all – to get Ken’s TT together – but did not
make it to the start. It took Peter 40 minutes to give me a précis of the
saga of setting up Ken’s machine, which hinged around keeping Ken’s heels
clear of the cage around the block – or at least it did on the surface.
After the event I had arranged to let the Hutchisons from Lowestoft try the
tandem trike out. I think they had mixed TT comp records in mind – in
particular on that South Wales 25 course on which Sean Yates/ M HutchiNson
recently took the men’s solo record .It descends a mountain, crosses a
cattle grid and then finishes on the Port Talbot by-pass or somewhere.
Paying only token attention to my suggestion that they walked the machine
clear of other competitors parked cars, they got on and zig-zagged along.
Andy had the strength of character to avoid actually hitting anything, but
they kept going in and out of spaces recently vacated by departing vehicles
and visited an unlikely side-turning before disappearing from view.
They got the machine back safely, but confessed to getting off and walking
it through a T junction. I think the records are safe for a bit.

A TECHNICAL ENQUIRY
A Manchester member, Mike Bamford, was put on to me as an expert on
Holdsworth axles – though in truth I only know about riding them, not what’
s inside.
It’s about the STUB AXLE, the offside idler. I think the wheel hub is an
ordinary bicycle one. The purpose made stub fits into the end of the
tubular axle at the inboard end of the stub Moving outboard, the next
section is usually shaped like a hub cone , and forms the track on which
the inner ball bearings of the wheel hub run.
But the one Mike has got no track for the balls, just a halfway step down to
the smaller diameter needed to pass through the centre of the wheel hub.
He asks – How should this bearing work and is it a recognised Holdsworth
design?

Mike is also asking if anyone knows anything about a Holdsworth trike design
which used a single, large diameter, telescopic chain stay.
Has anyone any information on these points?

I’m pleased to say ALBERT SAUNDERS was due out of hospital last Monday.

On the way to our meet at NAUGHTON on Oct 1st I called on HERBIE NEVILL. He
is 90 and has been a TA member over 50 years. His knees are not at all good,
and it takes him a long time to get about the house, but he doesn’t stop
getting about – he used his electric buggy to take himself from his Ipswich
home to Beccles and back using the train, to have a day out there recently.
Six of us enjoyed a good lunchtime meet at Naughton .

Think I’d better get this out now – so best wishes to you all, and hope to
see several of you at Framlingham on Saturday.

Ferg Muir