Bill and John's Excellent Adventure. Part 2: The Start at Reims

Reims start
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Sorry this isn't a great picture. When I get the original (high-res) file from Jim I'll substitute it for this one.

Friday January 28th was freezing and again there was sleet falling. We struggled back into the overloaded Mini and drove of to the Parc des Expositions for scrutineering. Jim, Juliette and their colleague Steffan from the Luxembourg Mini Club were quite amazing. They unloaded and repacked the car, transferring piles of spare parts, tools and wheels to their Honda CRV. Then they applied the door numbers and stickers as required and helped us through scrutineering. No problems there except Bill had left his MSA competition licence at the hotel and had to return to pick it up (thanks Jim for providing the taxi service). Scrutineering over, the Luxembourg gang proceeded to do an amazingly thorough bolt check on the car. Both Bill and I felt a bit superfluous at this point and went off for a coffee and a bite to eat. Juliette had organized a late check-out at the hotel so once everyone was satisfied that the car was in good order we returned to our room and prepared for "the off". Bill took a shower and a nap. I just paced around nervously. Around 6.00pm we made our way through the wretched Friday evening Reims rush hour traffic to the town center (centre ville) where we were put in our start order place by an ACM official. I didn't fancy the rather dry civic reception and went to set all my clocks and watches to official rally time. Bill hung around the car and took great delight inviting admiring small boys (and one or two girls) to sit in the driver's seat and have their photograph taken. All sorts of last minute panics were going on: the Porsche next to us had a fire in its wiring loom and the crew were desperately trying to make repairs. A local radio station was conducting an outside broadcast and was playing very loud pop music. People were milling around everywhere. The French certainly appreciate classic rally cars and are tres enthusiastic about the sport.

Eventually we made our way up to the start. Our off time was 8.19pm. There was almost another disaster. The officials had set the ramps to the stadium very wide (too wide for the Mini's relatively narrow wheelbase) and as we started to drive up a wheel dropped off the edge. There was much fussing as the ACM people adjusted the ramps. PRX 720B then roared up to the top, announcements were made (I heard none of it, the scene was like the 1969 Steve McQueen film, Le Mans, where the only sound audible at the countdown was the driver's own hearbeat -then as the lights turned green there was a shattering roar from the engines). Well a single BMC A series lump hardly emits a shattering roar, even when Bill has worked his magic on it, but 8.19pm came around and we shot off into the night emitting at least a throaty rasp and doing a lot of horn tooting. We were heading south and had an 18 hour drive and 900 Km in front of us. The Concentration Run stage of the 8th Monte Carlo Historique rally had begun...

Peace!

Bill and John's Excellent Adventure. Part 1: The Departure

Thursday 27th January was a bitterly cold grey day: the temperature was just off freezing and there was intermittent sleet. We had packed up PRX 720B which looked rather fetching with its period roof rack holding two spare wheels shod with studded snow tyres. The weather suggested we were going to need them –how true that would be.

Nevertheless spirits were high as we left Ashford. With our Mini Cooper Register rally jackets (in this regard Bill extends a big "Thank You" to Tony Salter and the MCR) we felt most decidedly cool and ready for anything. The car was filled with Optimax petrol and we headed off for the “Le Shuttle” terminal. The vehicle was in great all round condition having just completed its photoshoot for MiniWorld two days previously and everything was in fantastic working order thanks to Lee McNair’s meticulous preparation. Just look at those pictures. Thankfully my luggage, lost previously on my outgoing flight, had eventually turned up having spent a brief vacation in Chicago. Bill had rebuilt the engine and had fitted a BRR2 Piper cam which was hotter than the one previously used. He had also blagged a set of Dunlop D93J wet tarmac rally tyres which were a tremendous improvement on the Yokohama A008s I used in 2002. In addition we were carrying a set of 5 studded Colway M&S tyres for snow and ice although I can’t say I was confident in driving in such conditions. But Bill was gung ho and described the little Red Devil as “right horny”.

I had plotted the route in detail and made a road book. This level of preparation probably exceeded all the rallies on which I had previously competed. I had also calibrated the Halda tripmeter against motorway markers and a GPS device and concluded it was 4% slow. No problem as a simple correction factor would be applied to all regularity speeds. We were cautiously optimistic and ready for battle.

A quick run down the M20 saw us at the Eurotunnel and we duly drove onto the upper deck of the train. A female “Le Shuttle” official announced to us that our car was “..a bit stinky..”. I simmered a bit and put her remark down to her lack of understanding of classic cars. However I did note there was a smell of petrol although was not particularly bothered as there was always a bit of spillage from a full-to-the-brim tank. Then I noticed Bill mopping at a slight drip from under the rear left wheel arch. I hoped this would stop but to no avail. Another Eurotunnel staff member appeared and said that we had activated the sensor alarms and he was going to reset them. I was willing the train to leave and get on with the journey but suspected this might not happen. Too true! We were then asked to move to another carriage while the problem was investigated. At this point a rather alarming tape loop was activated saying that “An incident had been detected (strange choice of wording) but there was no cause for panic”. I feel it would benefit Eurotunnel to consult a psychologist on the wording of such messages as there is no doubt that this particular one induced significant angst in some of the travelers. The anxiety index increased when we were asked to move to another carriage even further down the train and the arrival of some fireman who proceeded to discharge halon fire extinguishers didn’t help much either. Eventually someone made the decision that the train couldn’t proceed and would have to be evacuated and cleaned. We got back into the car and drove off the train with our tails between our legs. A large and humourless Eurotunnel official enquired as to whether we were the car with the fuel leak and if we had a hysterical woman with us. “Is this a wind-up?”, I thought. The car is a Mini with a full roll cage and every available cubic centimeter of spare space filled with parts, tyres and personal effects. I was tempted to retort that we had a blow up hysterical doll in our luggage but thought better of it as I had no wish to spend the night detained at the pleasure of Folkestone’s finest. As it transpired there had been an incident with a distraught woman on the same train as us; I didn’t like to ask why she had become hysterical.

Ultimately we were shunted into a windswept carpark where we determined that the leak emanated from a pinhole in a (brand new) sending unit. Some frantic phone calls were made back to base and after we were eventually given permission to leave the Eurotunnel hinterland we rushed back to Ashford where Lee changed the tank in 20 minutes. Ironically he “borrowed” the tank from Jim Wirtz’s ex-works Mk II rally car which is undergoing restoration at BRR. We then traipsed back to Le Shuttle and reboarded without incident and arrived in Calais half an hour later. We covered the 280 Km to Reims in three hours, met with Jim and Juliette Wirtz who had agreed to work as our service crew and then whizzed over to the Novotel to attend a splendid party arranged by the Automobile Club de Reims.

All’s well that ends well, I suppose although Bill is still wondering if he’ll get an invoice for £20,000 from Eurotunnel!

To be continued…

Peace!

Back to Reality

Hello again, gentle readers. I'm back after two eventful weeks in Europe, the last of which was spent competing on the Monte Carlo Historique rally. I had intended to post regular reports of the event en route but was thwarted by a total dearth of internet access. In summary, our results were a little disappointing considering the effort we put into preparing for the event but that's motorsport, I suppose. Over the next few days I'll do some retrospective postings of our adventure. Right now I've got to deal with the realities of life; laundry, bills, cats, grocery shopping etc. And of course work! So for now I'll leave you with this delightful picture of PRX 720B storming the Col de L'Echarasson.

Peace!

Niege

Snow at O'Hare
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I'm not sure if this is an omen of sorts but I've spent most of the day being thwarted by the weather and somehow (I think) come out ahead.

Blizzards have shut down most of the eastern parts of the United States. Chicago has been particularly badly hit and O'Hare airport closed. My United flight was cancelled (eventually). I've managed to get re-routed on British Airways which is a much shorter flight and has more legroom. My only concern is whether my bags containing critical rally equipment will turn up in London...

Peace!

Monte Carlo or bust...!

Well I hope it's not really "bust". Later today I head off to the airport for the tedious flight back to Europe. On my December trip I burned up some accumulated frequent flyer miles and upgraded myself with the slightly pompous view that "a man in my position" (namely the recipient of a D.Sc.) should travel in style. No such luck on this occasion. It'll be strictly cattle truck class with one glass of nasty chardonnay with my piece of dead chicken. I don't suppose United Airlines care a great deal whether I'm an official member of the Cooper Car Co team. I bet Paddy Hopkirk never had this problem.

Anyway the car is 98% ready, the maps are 98% done and I can hardly believe that after 14 months of scheming the rally is upon us. All that remains to be done to the car is a good detailing for the MiniWorld photoshoot on Tuesday, Dymo tape the instruments, obtain a "tax exempt" disc and calibrate the Halda tripmeter with the different tyres. Then we can pack and go, assuming Bill has sorted out the tools and spares. On the navigational front, I want to take some distances off the large scale (1:25,000) maps Willy Cave has procured for me (I'm trusting they'll arrive at Bill's place by Monday) and transfer them to the tulip diagrams. If I don't finish it before the rally starts I can do it on the road. I'll need to study each regularity the night/morning before we do them in any event. Jim Wirtz seems to have the service side of things in order with CB radios and all sorts of equipment. He seems very organised and I'm looking forward to working with him.

We are still dithering about whether we need an intercom or to wear crash helmets for the final night. The former is a question of money (do we really want to spend another $500 when we can simply shout a bit) and the latter issue boils down to whether we want to look like a pair of ninnies (real classic rally drivers bash their brains out on the dashboard). I'm opting for the ninny option but I'm not sure Bill is so convinced. And if we do, I'll have to source and buy a helmet in the UK -another thing to do.

I'm now out of time and have to tidy up the house, pay a few bills, send a couple of emails and pack. I'm not sure when my next post will be. I'm hoping there will be (free) wi-fi access on the road, in which case I'll be sending in rally reports. They should also be available on the Bill Richards Racing website.

A week today we'll be thrashing through the night on the Concentration Run. Wish us luck!

Peace!

Countdown

Rallying
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Despite completing numerous tasks in preparation for the Monte Carlo Historique Rallye next week (Oh God, is it really that close?!) new ones seem to pop up all the time. Preparing for this event is like battling an enormous organizational Hydra. Anyway I can report the following:

• Bill Richards has now put 400 miles on the rebuilt engine and reports the car to be in great shape and "right horny". In the UK motorsport patois this can be interpreted as "looking good and seriously competition ready".

• The Dunlop D93J tyres have arrived (phew, what a relief). Bill also describes these as "horny".

• I've finished plotting the route and have made a route book which I doubt could be described as "horny". However as an aid to high speed navigation I think it will do the job. In all the rallys I've done, the route plotting has never been done in this detail.

• I've bought a digital device for measuring distance on maps. When I've received the 1:25,000 large scale maps from Willy Cave next week (he's sending them to Bill's house) I'll make a detailed assessment of each regularity stage (ZR) and transfer distances to the tulip diagrams in the road book. My aim is to minimize the amount of navigation I do on the ZRs and focus on reading the times form the speed tables.

• The insurance is done. Norton Insurance, Birmingham, UK still offer easily the best deal for rally cover and breakdown service is included.

• MiniWorld magazine appears set for a photoshoot next Tuesday. I'm hoping this will not only raise the profile of the car but increase its value. I'll write the article on the flight out to the UK on Saturday.

• I've written to Road & Track magazine to ask if they'd like a rally report. I'm hoping that if they agree they'll contribute an honorarium to defray expenses.

• I've baked a fruit cake (the best rally rations/survival food imaginable) and purchased an assortment of Power Bars (Atkins of course) and various high energy sugar gloopy things that allegedly will perk us up no end when the going gets rough (I have a suspicions they'll just give us an attack of the jitters). I've also bought some iron oxide hand warmers in case we break down on a Col and end up freezing our behinds off. A lightweight collapsible shovel rounded off my purchases last weekend. I really don't want to be digging my way out of snowdrifts but this item is a necessity.

• Jim Wirtz, the hapless leader of our service crew, has booked all the hotels and has taken care of logistics, tools, spare parts etc.

So it seems that apart from a few last minute items, all the major components are in place. I still have to pick up my (hopefully repaired suitcase), organize babysitting for the cats, do some last minute shopping, bill paying etc. Oh, and did I mention that the transmission in my daily driver failed catastrophically yesterday? And the basement flooded. So for now I'm getting around by cadging rides and I'll deal with the house when I get back on February 8.

Peace!

Tired out (and only two weeks to go)

Dunlop D93J
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I must apologise to my readers for another prosaic post but believe it or not this is a critical issue for me. I fnally got the tyres/tires (sorry but my European roots show occasionally) for the Mini sorted out today. The Maxsport products I mentioned in a previous post were unavailable in the correct size so I finally plumped for Dunlop wet weather covers. The choice of rubber has been one of the biggest issues concerning us as the car has been prepared. Tyre selection has always been as issue on Monte Carlo rally because of the diversity of the road conditions. The crews can expect anything: dry tarmac, torrential rain, black ice, sheet ice, snow (powder), snow (packed), snow (slush), mud, etc. etc. You get the picture. If a surface exists we can expect to encounter it, with the possible exception of sun-baked wadi beds although I won't entirely rule them out either. For the 1965 MC rally, Dunlop famously made 600 assorted tyres available to the BMC Competitions Department. No wonder the works crews did so well. For those of us who have a limited budget (and it still feels like I've melted my credit card of late) we have to be a little more economic in our choices.

In 2002, to the amusement of some of my fellow team members, not to mention Monty Watkins, editor of MiniWorld, I did the rally on Yokohama 008s with a set of Colway studded mud and snow tyres in reserve in the service vehicle. As it happened it was a "dry" rally with virtually no snow and only icy patches for 1 or 2 Km on the Sisteron stage (on which I managaged to slide off: I shall be eternally thankful to the crew in the Citroen who helped push us back on the road). For the most part the Yokies performed admirably. They are brilliant on dry tarmac and unbelievably sticky however in the wet they are less secure and on long fast bends there is disconcerting feeling of slight understeer and I was never quite confident that the car wouldn't "let go". By the end of the rally we'd pretty much worn out all four of them so new covers were needed for the 2005 event. Most of my rally mates opt for the M&S type tyre. Personally I hate them. They are noisy, bounce around too much and worst of all have poor levels of grip. Now maybe they would be fine in mud or wet grass but really these types of conditions are, despite my comments above, are rare to non-existent. They are certainly crap in snow and I can't think why they are so popular. Maybe because they are cheap and a kind of Jack-of-all trades. What's really necessary for 75%+ of the the rally is a really good wet weather tyre. Thus after doing a lot of asking around and searching all over the web came to the conclusion that Dunlop D93Js were the cover of choice. They are out and out competiton tyres and are supposedly brilliant in the rain. Unfortunately I was quoted a price of £75 each. Now as we need six tyres this equated to nearly $1000, given the current Dollar/Stirling excahge rate, and put them outside our budget. To cut a long story short, Bill Richards today announced that he'd negotiated a very deep discount with Dunlop and suddenly these tyres were "affordable". Fantastic news! I'm pretty sure they'll be much better than the compromise retreads we'd planned to use. I'll write something about them while we're en route. let's hope they live up to the claims made by their marketing department (no I didn't say hype). So hopefully we should be ok being armed with the Dunlops and the still unused (please God let's keep it that way) studded Colways we should be ready for all eventualities. Big thanks go to Dunlop Vintage Tyres. Oh, and Monty, if you read this, please no more piss-taking, I've been thoroughly flagellated with the "...did you hear the one about the bloke who did the MC rally on Yokies...?" story!
The rally kicks off two weeks today and I've got an awful lot of things to do between now and then.

Peace!

Rally Country

ardeche
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I've been burning the midnight oil for the last few nights mapping the route for the all-too-rapidly approaching Monte Carlo Historique rallye. It's quite a task. Hopefully I'll finish tonight. Now "all" that remains to be done is to put together my notes and photocopies of the regularity stages in the form of a roadbook. Hopefully this will make information readily accessible and reduce mistakes in the heat of battle. On reviewing the route, the first time from the perspective of the navigator, I can see that it takes us through some classic rally country -the Ardeche, Haute Alpes and the Alpes Maritime. Narrow roads up and down towering Cols. All very scenic although it's a pity we'll be going too fast and focusing on making our times to take it all in. But nevertheless the backdrop to this competition makes it the most popular and prestigious event in the classic motorsport calendar (same goes for the modern WRC event which uses many of the same stages and is also organized by the Automobile Club de Monaco).

It's hard to believe that there are only 10 days to go before I'm once again on an airplane heading back to Europe. Despite doing my best to plan eveything in an orderly manner I just know we are going to be in a frantic last minute panic before the event. Why do I put myself in these situations...?

Peace!

Cooper Car Company 2005

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The Cooper Car Company team assembled at Reims, January 2002: this was to be its first competition in 34 years

Preparations for the Monte Carlo Historique rally are now well advanced. I finally ordered tyres and settled for Maxsport soft compound Dunlop SP replicas which should work well in the rain. The service crew will carry a set of studded Colways for snow. We plan to monitor the weather forecasts carefully and also do "recces": if there is a lot of snow on the ground or there appears to be a high liklihood of inclement weather we'll pop the Colways on at a service stop. However I don't think this will happen and I'd rather use the faster rain tyres than the ubiquitous M&S tyres (which I loathe -they are not much good in bad weather and crap in normal road conditions.) I've gambled on the rally being mostly wet with just occasional patches of ice and snow. This should be manageable, even with the Maxsport rain tyres, and we'll carry two spare Maxsports with snow chains in the car if we really get caught out. Traditionally tyres have always been a pivotal issue on the Monte and the situation will not be any different for us. Please keep all your digits crossed.

The car needs some fine detail work which Lee McNair at BRR is sorting out. Bill seems pretty happy with the engine which is something of a relief. Bill, like me, frets about minutiae so if he's content about something it's a good sign. When I arrive back in the UK on January 23 I'll go over the car with a fine toothcomb and make sure it's polished and looking beautiful for the MiniWorld photoshoot on the 24th just prior to our departure for France. I think I've now organized all parts, accessories, clothing etc. I've also booked flights, hotels, the Eurotunnel and ordered my regularity licence from the Automobile Club de Monaco. I think the only bureaucratic item that remains is insurance which I'll attend to next week. Oh and I'll have a last ditch attempt ar obtaining some sponsorship from Road & Track magazine.

I'm actually I'm very proud of being part of the Cooper Car Co team for the second time. There is a certain amount of hoopla about it in the motoring press and Peter Barker has put out a press release. I've reproduced it here:

MiniWorld Rallying/Cooper Car Co team for Monte Carlo.


MiniWorld Magazine and the Cooper Car Company are pleased to announce the entry of a five car team of Mini Coopers for the 8th Rallye Monte Carlo Historique running from Friday 28th January to Wednesday 2nd February 2005.

The team, which includes both Paul Easter, winner of the Rallye Monte Carlo with Timo Makinen in a works Mini Cooper S exactly 40 years ago, and veteran navigator Willy Cave who is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his first works co-drive on "the Monte" in an MG Magnette, will be starting from Reims (3 cars) and Monte Carlo (2 cars).

The 2005 MiniWorld Rallying/Cooper Car Co. team are:

Peter Collier/Paul Easter Mini Cooper S (starting from Reims)
Alain Lopes/Joseph Lambert Mini Cooper S (starting from Monte Carlo)
John Morrow/Bill Richards Mini Cooper S (starting from Reims)
Peter Barker/Willy Cave Mini Cooper (starting from Reims)
Geoff O'nion/John Lindley Mini Cooper (starting from Monte Carlo)

Following a gruelling Concentration Run of nearly 900km over Friday/Saturday night, the team will begin the timed sections high on the Ardeche Plateau early on Sunday 30th January with runs over the famous Burzet and St.Pierreville/Antraigues stages amongst others. Restarting in classification order from Vals les Bains on Monday 31st January cars will cover six further stages on the way to Monaco via an overnight halt in Gap. The final night loop out of Monaco and back, consists of three stages run without a break for 100km from the Col de Castillion, over the Col de Turini the Col de St.Roch and the Col de La Able to finish at St.Laurent du Touet. The Team should arrive back at the Finish in Monte Carlo during the early hours of Wednesday 2nd February all being well.

No Mini mounted team has ever won the Rallye Monte Carlo Historique although Mini Coopers have dominated the 1300cc class for cars built from 1962 to 1965 since the rally's inception. Perhaps the MiniWorld/Cooper Car Co. Team can pull off this feat in 2005?

Updates will be available during the rally from www.MiniWorld.co.uk and the full results of the rally plus details of all stages are shown on the Organisers website.

Ends.

Exciting stuff and I feel honored not just to drive in the metaphorical (and quite possibly literal) tyre tracks of the greats like Paul Easter and Willy Cave but to be on the same team. These guys have been my heros for a long time. More soon on this topic...

Peace!

One Thing Leads to Another

Middx Christmas Party 1979
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I've just read on the BBC website that 2004 was the year of the blog and 32 million Americans are now hooked. It's hard to imagine that so much time and energy is being wasted moving electrons around.

When I signed on to Blogspot back in August 2004, I had no idea where this whole thing would lead. Initially I had the idea that if I could vent my spleen about life events it would be a cathartic exercise. However I have restrained myself writing about work-related issues. It struck me early on that this might not be a prudent thing to do, especially as my blog is not anonymous. First ammendment rights allow me freedom of speech and protect me from persecution from the government (although I'm not entirely sure about even that, these days) but not from my employer. Indeed just yesterday I read of a new word "dooced", meaning, to be fired by one's employer for blogging: a fate I'm anxious to avoid. However writing these posts is therapeutic and for some reason does attract a readership. So I intend to continue for the forseeable future.

Anyway it's also fun to see how one thing leads to another. Last week (see "Enough is Enough", December 29th) I posted an old photograph of my PhD mentor, Jack Harris, and me taken at a scientific conference. On looking at the picture a few times I realized that I recognized the bright eyed young lady standing in front of Jack. Her name is Jan (for the most part I'm withholding surnames to protect the guilty but in this case I don't know it as she subsequently divorced and changed names). A year or so after the conference Jan came to work at the Middlesex Hospital Medical School where I was then employed as a postdoctoral fellow in my day job. My other career was as a jazz/rock musician. The band was started by the department's electron microscopist, Phillip Penfold (Phillip, I'm not going to protect YOU; I know you are lurking down there in Sydney and it would be nice if you'd answer my emails) and did a couple of tours of North London pubs and clubs before calling it quits. So where does Jan fit into the story you ask? Well she was our manager and her husband, a handsome fellow by the name of Nick, played bass. After quite a few gigs we packed it in for the usual reasons: artistic differences, insuffiecient funds to buy half-decent equipent, lack of committment, lack of talent and simply the tedium of schlepping a van load of rock n' roll paraphernalia around seedy dives to play to audiences who only wanted to hear "Summer Loving" (it was the late 70s remember and no we didn't play the bloody song. ) So what happened to the rest of the band? I believe Jan went to work at the University of Sheffield after a stint in California. Penfold is in Australia by all accounts, I'm in Seattle and the drummer, Brian, is still studying malaria at University College London. I've no clue what happened to Nick. Oh and in case you are wondering, I'm on the left of the photo playing alto sax and looking sartorially challenged in white T shirt (it was from Ronnie Scott's jazz club) and jeans. What was I thinking? We played that particular gig Christmas 1979 so please don't ask me why I'm trying to look like a Beach Boy.

Peace!

P.S. Having written this post I started to become very curious as to the fate of Nick, our bass player and Jan's former husband. I remembered he was a scientist and a quick search on Medline indicates that he works for a large, multi-national pharmaceutical company in Switzerland.

P.P.S. The bass player in the photo is not Nick. His name is Julian and he was (and may still be) the husband of a technician who worked for me at the time. For some reason he stood in for Nick at this gig. I recall he played a fretless bass and was pretty good. Sorry if this getting a bit convoluted...

Another Year

London Fireworks
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all my readers, peace, health and prosperity for 2005.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!


P.S. The picture was taken in London at the Millenium celebrations, amazingly now 5 years ago.

An Act of Optimism

Tina and Mel
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I eventually escaped from a cold rainy UK and flew from Heathrow to sunny San Diego, California instead of travelling back directly to Seattle. The purpose of this diversion was to attend the wedding of my old friend Mel Muzio.

I met Mel in 1992 when I was looking for someone to restore my E type Jag (THAT will be the topic of another post). After auditioning quite a few workshops I came across Mel in San Marcos. We immediately hit it off and I recognized him as a kindred spirit and fellow petrol head. Most of all it was apprent that he was totally honest and clearly knew his stuff.

Over the next few years we became firm friends. In the late 1990s the spectre of marital difficulties appeared and Mel underwent a painful and acrimonious divorce: a process that lasted more than three years. But every cloud has a silver lining. Sometime into his separation Mel met Tina, a delightful lady who, like himself originally hailed from England. I watched the romance blossom and wasn't in the least bit surprised when Mel announced, after his divorce was eventually finalized, that he and Tina were going to get remarried.

So on a lovely December Saturday afternnon that he and Tina tied the knot. The service was held at the poolside of their mountain top retreat by a female minister who reminded me of "The Vicar of Dibley" (I don't know why as she bore no physical resemblance to Dawn French -maybe it was her mannerisms?!). Mel and Tina were both very emotional and I have to say appear very well suited. Both said to me privately "this is it!" (meaning for life) and I have no doubts they will succeed. In any case I wish them the best of luck for the future. Mel's son Chris, who was best man, summed things up succinctly (if not exactly diplomatically) in his speech when he announced "She's a lot better than the last one...!" I formally second this motion.

After the wedding I dragged my suitcase full of dirty clothes back to Seattle where it was raining. I was charged $25 for excess baggage (the Tesco Chrismas Pudding I acquired in England tipped the balance) and I'd devloped a cold. Back to reality with a vengeance!

Peace!

Tsunami

Tsunami Map
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

The magnitude and horror of the SE Asia earthquake and tsunami defies belief. With a projected 100,000 fatalaties this is three times more than the infamous Krakatoa eruption of 1883. This is definitely the greatest natural disaster of my lifetime. I feel quite numb about it and wish I could do something about it other than send some money to a relief agency. When I retire I shall consider joining Medecins Sans Frontieres or similar organization.

I have "borrowed' the map from Reuters: the original source is UNOSAT. It illustrates those countries most affected by the Tsunami. It also illustrates approximate land coverage under 30 meters elevation as a zone of potential Tsunami damage. A full size version is available here.

Peace!

Enough is Enough!

John and Jack 1977
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I think I've written quite enough about my DSc so this will be my final major posting on the topic. Actually all I want to do is thank everyone who helped me throughout the course of my career. So I've simply lifted the "Acknowledgements" section from the front of the thesis and posted it below. Oh and I've added a photo of Jack Harris and myself taken at a conference in Aberdeen, circa September, 1977. Jack looks young and I look younger -not to mention that "deer caught in the headlights" look. Incidentally, I think those wide ties are back in fashion again...!
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Acknowledgements

This volume of published material represents work carried out over a period spanning nearly three decades. Its compilation has been something of a reflective process and I feel I should pay tribute to some of the individuals who greatly influenced my scientific development and played key roles in my career. Thus I thank and acknowledge the following:

Professor David Lloyd, University of Wales, Cardiff, for helping me take my first steps in research and suggesting that I should embark on PhD studies.

Dr Jack Harris, University of Plymouth, for mentoring me through my postgraduate studies, instilling me with self-belief in my work and providing me with an early insight into the machinations of the scientific establishment.

Professor Ivan Roitt, University College London School of Medicine, for demonstrating sheer passion for science as well as teaching me the value of tenacity.

Professor David Isenberg, University College London School of Medicine, for educating me in many medical matters as well as helping to show me the value of teamwork in research; also for providing unfailing moral and career support over the years.

Professor Jay Levy, University of California School of Medicine, San Francisco, for training me to think about the "big biological picture" and educating me about retrovirology.

Dr Nabil Hanna, IDEC Pharmaceuticals, San Diego, for demonstrating very clearly, that the simple approach to product discovery is the best.

Professor Pierre Youinou, Centre Hospitalier Régional et Universitaire, Brest, Dr Syamal Raychaudhuri, InBios International, Seattle and Professor George Attard, University of Southampton, for excellent, productive and highly enjoyable collaborations over the years.

All under- and post-graduate students who trusted me to supervise them. Not only did they contribute to my career through their diligence and productivity but they provided me with a constant source of scientific and technical education. Particular mention must be made of Dan Mayes, Chris Swanson, Jacques Homsy, Marcia Wharton, Isabelle Gaston, Tony Ng, Elizabeth Ross, Nadeem Sheikh, Palsingam "Nathan" Rajananthanan, Uzma Hasan and Caterina Hatzifoti. My apologies go to any I may have forgotten.

Finally, I cannot complete this section without mentioning my father, the late A. W. Morrow. He was a virologist by training and worked extensively on Foot and Mouth disease vaccines. Not only did he teach me patience and thoroughness but throughout my formative years provided me with a constant stream of information about microbiological topics. Despite making a great effort in my teenage years to resist following the same paternal pathway, the combination of nature and nurture proved too difficult to oppose. Indeed it was more than a little eerie to discover quite recently that at the end of his career my father was working in the exact same field as I am now (i.e. saponin-like antigen delivery systems). Overall he provided a wonderful example of how inspiration can be achieved through quiet and compassionate leadership: a model I can only hope to emulate.

I am indebted to Sally Warrington and Barbara Droker for helping to compile this volume.
-------------

Peace!

Pomp and Circumstance

Hard to believe that it's been almost two weeks since my big day -doesn't time go quickly when you are having fun (or at least busy).

December 15th was a cold foggy morning in Plymouth. The commute from Jack's house was difficult and the traffic in Plymouth was appalling. After a bit of hooligan driving and storming through a University traffic barrier (than goodness for the VIP parking permit we had for the day) we arrived just in time to get the bus to the Plymouth Pavilions where the award was being held. Plymouth has changed a lot, and mostly for the better, in the 30 years since my student days. But the Pavilions, which were probably a welcome addition to the town in the late 70s, can best be described as "naff". A leisure centre complete with ice rink and an auditorium for rock concerts: not really the best place for a dignified ceremony. Oh well...

Having collected my academic finery (and it really was nice: I now completely understand why Ede & Ravenscroft charge £800 for a DSc gown, hood and cap) I dressed up and was descended upon by numerous smiling individuals who had been delegated to ensure my well being, take my photograph or wanted an interview for the local press. I was also asked to process with the senior staff of UoP and receive my award from the stage. After much clapping (well done Plymouth, you turn out A LOT of great graduates these days) it was my turn. Being the most senior awardee I was presented to the Vice Chancellor dead last. I stood while an embarrassing list of "achievements" was read out. The certificate was presented by the VC, Roland Levinsky and also Jack which was a nice touch.

After the ceremony we decamped to the University where a pretty good lunch was laid on for the VC and other dignitaries. One of the honorary degrees was to Derek O'Neill of surf boards and apparel fame. A nice unassuming bloke considering he must be worth a Zillion dollars. Plymouth runs a well-subscribed degree in "Surf Science" and hence the connection [pseudo-political comment: I totally fail to understand how such degrees remain viable when we are closing down chemistry and physics departments right, left and centre].

All in all it was a fantastic day and I felt honoured, appreciated and respected. Definitely my 15 minutes of fame! I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Jack Harris and all my other mentors for helping me get this far -in fact I think I'll write a full posting to them on another occasion.

Peace!

Jack the Lad

With Jack Harris (L)

I really should say a little about my PhD mentor, Jack Harris. Jack (on left in photo) is really the reason why I'm back in Plymouth. If it hadn't been for his encouragement and direction 30 years ago I may not have climbed to my current dizzy heights of academic achievement! Herr..humm! Seriously though, Jack was a wonderful supervisor. He always steered me in the right direction without ever resorting to micromanagement. He also gave me confidence in my own abilities. I've attempted to emulate his management/teaching style in my own supervision of graduate students although this hasn't always been successful. Many students have wanted a more direct relationship which in my view only leads to PhD graduates who are just technicians and completely lack the ability to think independently.

Anyway my point is that Jack is a superb scientist, immunologist and teacher and has nurtured several generations of postgraduate students of which I was the first PhD. He is also a complete intellectual in that he is extremely knowledgable regarding literature, music, politics, history and social science. Thus I hold in in the highest regard and am very grateful to him for his formative influence.

Now Jack will, hopefully, forgive me for saying this but he used to be a bit of a wild man in his youth. Now in middle age a certain mellowness has set in. Before I left his house for my journey back to Heathrow, he gave me a bag of sandwiches he had made himself as well as a packet of crisps (potato chips) and an apple. An unbelievably sweet gesture; -I was so touched. A truly great man.

Peace!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas with Crotchet
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Christmas Day has come and gone for another year. It was spent at home in the pleasant company of good friends. I spent the day cooking and eating as well as opening a few presents. The weather was typical Seattle -unrelenting rain. I lit a fire in the grate and a lot of candles. The rather hastily erected Christmas tree looked nice and the cats seemed excited. They were given a can of tuna and some catnip as Christmas treats. Dinner was leak and potato soup, lamb (that turkey really gets on my nerves) with roasted parsnips, artichokes with crabmeat followed by proper English Christmas Pudding (yea, Tesco). The table was set off with crackers from Pier 1. In the process of consuming all of this a great deal of sherry, wine and brandy was imbibed albeit at a very measured and civilized pace: I felt extremely mellow all day.

Today, Boxing Day, I spent lazing around, tidying up and doing a bit of admin. Tomorrow is work again. Ughh! There really is too much to do. Plus I've got to start mapping the rally. I must work on my efficiency (I've been saying this my entire working life). Oh well, I'll just have to get my finger out. On my next post I'll continue with the rest on my saga in the UK's West Country.

So for now I'll sign off by wishing all my readers, family and friends a very Merry Christmas.

Peace!

Friends

Friends
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

It's Christmas Eve (actually the early hours of Christmas Day). I'm sure Santa is somwhere around. I'm baking, making soup, wrapping presents and otherwise getting ready for tomorrow (today). But my brain is in many ways still in the UK thinking of the evnts of last week...

So having arrived in Gunnislake, I was afforded very gracious hospitality by my PhD mentor, Jack Harris and his wife, Dawn. After several cups of tea and chatting about old times we headed on out for a pub, "The Volunteer Rifleman" where I was reunited with several old friends. Ann Pulsford and her partner for-as-long-as-I-can-remember, Pete Glynn, were there. Ann is now the editor of the Journal of the Marine Biological Association, having packed up her electron microscopy work some time ago. She was on excellent form and spent most of the evening baiting Jack. Pete is another recent retiree from the University of Plymouth. He looked very well. He is/was and excellent cell biologist and in my graduate student days gave me a lot of advice on techniques and procedures, particularly electrophoresis and gel filtration. Pete has a sense of humour that is dry as a stick and he had me chuckling all evening, particularly with his Greek Chorus style ripostes to Ann and Jack. Also present was Annette Wrathmell (another UoP retiree) and her husband, Tony.

The evening was wonderful and I enjoyed great food food, scintillating conversation, a lot of excellent Rioja and most of all the company of good old friends. Times like this are precious and must be savoured and remembered.

Peace!

...and Tavistock too

Dartmoor
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

From Totnes my next stop was Plymouth although I was due to stay with my PhD mentor, Jack Harris, in the little village of Gunnislake, East Cornwall, near the delightful market town of Tavistock.

I left Totnes about noon on a gorgeous mid-December morning. I'd decided to cross over Dartmoor rather than the more obvious direct route through Plymouth. This was definitely the correct decision as the views over the moors were breathtaking and I stopped several times to take photographs. Devon and Cornwall have always held a special romance for me, probably through reading "The Hound of the Baskervilles" and various Daphne Du Maurier books when I was young. But there is also something about beautiful fishing villages. rolling countryside and also (don't ask me to explain this) feats of Victorian engineering such as bridges built by the legendary Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Needless to say I savoured the views of Dartmoor and delighted as the landscape changed from gently rounded hills and dales to the bleak, flat expanse that surrounds the infamous prison.

Tavistock sits on the western edge of the moor. By the time I reached it I was feeling quite peckish and stopped at the Bedford Hotel where I lunched on cod and chips (not to mention the mushy peas -a quintiessentially English side dish which is exactly as it sounds) and a pint of "Jail Ale". Delicious! I really don't understand the bad reputation at the UK food has in the US. Granted Brit Grub is comfort victuals but there's nothing wrong with that on a chilly winter's day.

Having scoffed my lunch I made the short journey to Gunnislake where I was met by Jack who piloted me through the village. My thoughts on the reunion with my former supervisor will be the subject of another post. Until the next episode...

Peace!

...and to Totnes

jr and jm drinking in the SU, c1972
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

My travels in the UK's west country continue.

After leaving the pleasant warmth of my brother's abode I loaded up all my luggage (seemingly getting heavier with every stop) into the rental Ford Fusion estate car and set off for Totnes, Devon.

This time I was going to stay with my room mate from undergraduate days, John Roberts. John and I met in a chemistry class at Cardiff University in October of 1970 and have remained firm friends ever since. John is a biology teacher at the King Edward VII grammar school in Totnes. He has been there for 20+ years and has taught two generations of students. Around town he is something of a celebrity and is also know for his acting, golfing and fishing activities. Three years ago John created a biology prize for the final year students. He wanted to name it after an eminent scientist but the only biologist he knew was me! Hence every year the "Morrow Prize" for biology is awarded to the student with the best grades in the subject. I make a modest cash donation.

Anyway I arrived safely and the following day gave a lecture to the A level students on developements and career opportunities in biomedicine. This seemed to be received fairly well and I spotted only I student sound asleep on his backpack. Unfortunately the Morrow Prize recipient, an apparently very bright young man, has sloped off to Sri Lanka so he'll have to receive his cheque from the postman!

Totnes is the UK's centre for alternative culture and comments about it are even made in the Houses of Parliament. After my lecture I wandered around the town. If you want to know about crystals, after-life healing, levitation, making youghurt from Yaks' milk or knitting goat-hair sweaters, this is the place! I'm actually a sucker for this kind of thing and find it very entertaining. That evening John and I went out to a trendy bistro and dined on nice English comfort food (fish pie, yum!) drank a couple of bottles of wine and reminisced about mild misbehaviour. We could have easily been back in 1972 in the Student Union. Happy Days.

Peace!

Onward to Tewkesbury

George and Janet
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I visited Janine and family for precisely two hours. Enough time to consume 1 1/2 bottles of beer ('tis the season for sobriety checks so I was being careful) and a handful of those dried banana crunchy things. The I set of for Tewkesbury to descend on my brother's family.

Twenty years ago George and his wife Janet embarked on an ambitious breeding programme that yielded five very impressive offspring (see blog "Morrow Triumphs": 28th August 2004). I hadn't seen the tribe since my departure for Seattle in October 2001 and was looking forward to observing their development. The eldest son Richard had just returned from his first quarter at the London School of Economics. His grades are in the top 6% of his class and he is on the football (soccer) team. He is obviously having fun and has developed a very dry, drole wit. Apparently his take on life and humour is very similar to my own. I'm pleased to see that he has become politically quite aware in a left-leaning way. Hannah, now 16, is very striking at 5' 10" (whatever happened to the slightly dumpy shy girl I knew three years ago?). She is also excelling academically and has a clear plan to go to medical school in 2006. The other three boys, James, Matt and Chris are all over achieving, especially in sport. I have a feeling that James may make it as a professional football player although he seems to be equally interested in management. Matt and Chris are junior county tennis champions. I'm watching all of them develop with great interest and delight.

Anyway it was fitting to be in Tewkesbury at Christmas. The town was featured in Dickens' Pickwick Papers and has a historic and festive feel. And as it happened Janet's brother and sister-in-law (+ two small children) were also there. In total 13 mouths to feed. Janet is unflappable and never breaks a sweat. Quite amazing. We ate, drank and were merry. A lovely evening.

The next day after a hearty, high cholesterol breakfast (good job, George) the children disappeared to play football, tennis, work, etc. and George went foraging for a Christmas tree. I plotted my route to Totnes, my next port of call, said my goodbyes and left about mid-afternoon contemplating the rosy glow of familial bonding.

The story continues...

Peace!

A Hero

Janine
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Having paid my respects to my parents I set off on my trip to Plymouth to receive my academic accolade. However a four day odessy lay ahead. I had people to visit and places to go beforehand.

My first port of call was Wanborough, near Swindon in Wiltshire. I was dropping in on a friend from my undergraduate days, Janine. Now I hadn't seen Janine since 1973 and I was a bit nervous. We have been corresponding for about 2 years, thanks to the Friends Reunited website. After some initially cautious exchanges Janine and I have maintained a lively dialogue. She did however let slip a a few health related clues and finally disclosed that she was a cancer survivor. But the manner of her suvival is worth noting. After a primary tumour was detected and dealt with over a decade ago she was more or less ok until systemic secondaries were spotted in numerous organs and skeletal sites in the last couple of years. Rather than put her affairs in order and accept her fate, Janine elected to take her medicine (literally) and embarked on a degree in fine art at Oxford Brookes university. This summer she graduated with upper second class honours (magna cum laude to US readers). I remember that it took every bit of my energy to graduate with a 2.1 when I was 22 and healthy. But Janine did it while on chemo, enduring a broken femur and pelvis (ouch! -side effects of the chemo), running a household and maintaining her sense of humour! Impressive or what? Move over Lance Armstrong! Oh and I nearly forgot to mention that her most recent scans have revealed her to be virtually tumour free. As far as I'm concerned this is heroism of the highest order and Janine is a role model for dignity and a fantastic example of positive attitude. I can almost forgive her for not only abandoning me as her date in favour of John (current husband) at a Curved Air concert in 1973 but also relating the story to her daughters in my presence!

Peace!

Paying Respects

Pirbright Churchyard
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Technically I'm now back in the USA. However given my hectic schedule while in Europe as well as the dearth of free wireless hotspots I'm a little behind on my postings. There are a couple of topics related to the UK I want to add to the site so bear with me while I catch up.

The first thing I must mention is a trip to "visit" my now sadly long gone parents in Pirbright churchyard. Pirbright is a delightful village in Surrey. It's close to where I grew up and I always love visiting the place. It has two pubs, a corner shop, a post office and an elementary school or more or less aligned around a large green which is home to a duck pond and a cricket pitch. I always love visiting the place. The churchyard is especially evocative. Not only are my parents buried there but the graveyard is also the resting place of Henry Morton Stanley, the explorer who uttered the immortal and extraordinarily understated words "Dr Livingstone, I presume..." on discovering the latter in darkest Africa after many months of searching. Dr Stanley's grave is marked by a very impressive piece of rock which I understand was hewn from a site in Matebeland (I think). In any case I always enjoy my pilgrimages to Pirbright -the ambience of the church and its grounds is poignant and quite lovely. Hard to believe that Mum has been there for nearly 13 years and Dad for 27. I always feel I'm communing with them when I visit and I find the experience uplifting. Not at all depressing as some of my friends seem to think.

After my trip to Pirbright I continued my journey to the West Country and Plymouth: keep checking this site to follow the story.

Peace!

Mapping the Monte

Maping of Night Loop
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

If you haven't guessed by now, today's posting is going to again talk about my planning for the 2005 Monte Carlo Historique rally. This event is now looming large and preparations are in full swing so I've spent the last two days in Monaco with Bill Richards mapping the the infamout Col d' Turini night loop. On Tuesday evening I marked up the Michelin map and yesterday we drove the route. Twice! As I suspected one of the most difficult tasks is getting out of Monte Carlo at high speed. Getting lost in town is very easy to do and quite humiliating. Anyway I think we got the hang of it and we'll do another run through tomorrow (at least the exit from the town.) Bill now understands what so called "regularity" driving is all about namely keeping to an exact average speed. Now he sees how difficult it is, especially through the mountains, and precisely what his job will entail, I suspect he's going to oversee the rest of PRX 720B's preparation with a much more critical eye.

Anyway the route is quite interesting. The first regularity stage to Sospel is relatively short (15Km) and straighforward on fairly nice roads, mostly flat or downhill. The second is longer, around 25Km, and goes over the Turini. This is a mess of hairpins, dangerous curves and rock walls and quite a lot of detritius from small landslides (in our second run we hit a small rock and punctured a tyre -I hope Europcar don't charge us for this). Fortunately, from a navigation point of view it's quite straightforward. The third stage is much longer (40Km) and goes over some truly horrid small roads. This last section will be our greatest challenge on the event as we will be exhausted by this time and it seems to go on for ever. I'm please we had the opportunity to do this practice as to tackle it at night for the first time is daunting to say the least, especially if the weather is bad and the boy racer element of the rally participants swarming around.

Interestingly there were quite a few people out practicing the route. A Porsche 911 went past our Ford Fiesta at improbable speed as did a Renault Alpine. The latter was smoking a bit and we later found him pulled over at the side of the road with the hood/bonnet up. Something was broken and Bill and I suspected he'd blown a piston ring. I'm hoping that our attention to detail on engine preparations will help avoid this kind of catastrophe.

Later today we head back to England. Tomorrow I'll have another full day working on the car and then I'll need to switich gears (apologies for the automotive metaphor) and start thinking about academic stuff again as I head towards University of Plymouth at the weekend.

Peace!

Back in Blighty

Union Jack
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I've now been back in the UK for five days to do rally preparations and receive my DSc from the University of Plymouth. I've had rather mixed emotions since I've been here.

My first day I spent seeing professional colleagues regarding collaborations. This was really productive and before long I'm going to be writing more about my work rather than rallys and other fun hobbies.

At the weekend I was hosted by the delightful Nicky West and Rob Stacey. These are rally pals. We had a great time together: we each obtained a full set of maps for the MCH rally and then managed to squeeze in a visit to one of my favourite old haunts "La Lanterna" in Mill St.

On Sunday I traipsed off to Bill Richards' place in deepest Kent. The journey was somewhat tortuous but eventually I arrived intact.

My view of Britain is oddly detached. I don't feel a great sentimentality for the place. This is the longest time (2 1/2 years) I've been away and I was curious to see how I'd react. Well it all seems dirty, crowded and aggressive. Not to mention outrageously expensive (this not being helped by the scandalously weak dollar). Larger Loutism is all too alive and well and I witnessed unrestrained littering, public drunkeness and swearing in the three days I was in and around London. In addition everone bloody smokes with absolutely no regard to whether they are exhaling in your face. I thought Tony Blair was going to do something about this revolting practice. There is simply no excuse for allowing public smoking to continue. Shame on the British Government for their inaction. I certainly don't feel I ever want to live in London again. "Been there, done that" is the phrase that springs to mind as the best way to sum things up.

Peace!

The Lord giveth, The Lord taketh away...

Mini shell
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Last week I was jubilant about receiving a tax refund for $4600. Today I had a bill for the bodywork repairs on my Mini Cooper for virtaully the same amount. The original quotation was for £700. I knew there was some rust in the sills but didn't think the repairs would be so expensive. As it turned out the problem was serious. They had been fitted with overpanels to hide the rotten mess underneath. The bodyshop found filler packed around cardboard and bits of metal plate that had been tacked in place. It takes skill do botch a repair that badly! I've got a million things to do before my trip back to the UK on Thursday and I have a feeling sleep is going to be a luxury item between now and then.

Peace!

Mad Dog Rallying

MDR Logo
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Dear gentle (and rather occasional) readers. I hope I won't bore the pants off you for the next couple of months but I'm going to be harping on about the strange world of classic car rallying quite a bit. By now you know that I'm gearing up for the Monte Carlo Historique in January 2005. I've spent a day writing emails to various vendors and individuals regarding the car prepartion. This is going pretty well but I'm concerned about a pencilled in photoshoot for MiniWorld on December 10th. We may not make it. The Mini is back at BRR but Lee McNair has pulled out the subframe again (I'm not sure why) and we still have to drop the motor back in and fit period accessories in the interior. The coming week will be critical. Watch this space.

Peace!

Hold that Tiger (part 2)

Oliver Tiger Mk3
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Now that the euphoria that bubbled up from learning that I'd been accepted for the MC rally has subsided a little I thought I'd complete the story about my teenage hobby, namely flying and building model airplanes. See Hold that Tiger (part 1).

The engine of choice back in the 60s was known as an Oliver "Tiger". It was a 2.5cc, two stroke, diesel motor that was designed by the legendary John Oliver (JO) who lived (and still does) in Dorset, England. The Tiger was an absolutely brilliant design. Very powerful and rugged with a timeless appearance somehow reminiscent of other British classics such as an XK series Jaguar or a Supermarine Spitfire. The Mk 3 version of this motor was the best and it was the mill of choice for combat flying and team race. They are now quite rare (many had a very hard life) and sell for outrageous prices on eBay.

Back in the summer I was offered a Mk 3 Tiger for a mere $80. I bought it sight unseen and without hesitation. The motor I eventually picked up was in very sad condition. Not only was it quite clapped out and missing the correct needle valve assembly but the fins had been squared off (a team race practice, I think) and at some point it had suffered a very hard air-to-air collision with another engine: the crakncase thread was clearly and deeply imprinted on the cylinder head. I pondered for awhile as to how to restore the Tiger to its former glory and came to the conclusion that this would be better done in the land of its birth. So I emailed Clive Sharp and asked him for advice. To my utter amazement, after discussing various engine tuners, Clive offered to ask John Oliver in person if he would do the refurbishment. I wasn't aware that the great JO was still around in earthly form let alone fiddling with stinky diesel engines. Well it turns out that John, who is now in his 80s, is not only alive and well but is still as meticulous as ever and accomplishing feats of engineering genius.

I duly sent my rather sad lump of metal off to the UK (rather insensitively in a box which had once contained a modern Chinese/Australian Oliver copy known as a CS). That was back in August. Then yesterday, out of the blue, I had a message from Clive to say that the motor was finished and he enclosed the picture posted here. Not only has JO rebored it but he has fitted a lighter piston, bushed the conrod, fitted a new cylinder head, needle valve assembly and prop nut (which is anodised black). The prop driver is still the original and a bit battered and the crankcase has an epoxy repair on it. But this patination lends some character. The motor had already been tuned and with JO's touches, I'm convinced it will go like stink when it's run in. When I get it back I'll put in a Dominator and use it for fun flying: it's too valuable to expose to the rigors of open diesel combat. Overall I feel very proud to own one of these classic diesels and indeed honoured that the great JO himself has personally refurbished and tuned it for me. Thank you, John.

Peace!

We're in! Hooray!

Monte Carlo rally
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

The waiting is over. The nervous nocturnal pacings can stop (at least for awhile). Today I got the news that the Automobile Club d'Monaco has accepted Bill Richards and me for the 8th Monte Carlo Historique Rally. This is great news but I'm more than a little intimidated by the amount of work that we have to do. There is an awful lot of stuff to organize and this weekend I'll need to write a million emails. Oh well, at least I have a mission. Watch this site for frequent updates.

Peace!

Hold that Tiger (part 1)

Well still no word from the Automobile Club d' Monaco on whether Bill Richards and I've been accepted for the Monte Carlo Historique rally. I thought there would be an announcement on their website and even got up in the middle of the night (don't forget Monaco is 9 hours ahead of Seattle) but to no avail. I failed to reach Bill by phone but did call Nicky West who also campaigns a Mini Cooper with her husband, Rob Stacey. Nicky hadn't heard anything either and she had Rob had been checking their computer all day too. Let's hope I get some news soon: not only is the suspense killing me but the lack of information is making it very difficult to plan my trip next week.

One delightful piece of news though. I had an email from my friend Clive Sharp in England. As teenagers growing up in Woking, UK, Clive and I used to fly model airplanes together. Specifically something called control line combat in which two fast acrobatic planes fly together in the same circle and the objective is to cut off a streamer towed by your opponent. It's amazingly good fun although the carnage is high and the life expectancy of a combat model is not long. I packed up model flying when I was about 16 to concentrate on school studies (actually I immediately discovered motorcycles but that's a story for another time) and never gave it another thought until recently.

About 18 months ago I was idly surfing and came across a combat website. There is a local group of mostly middle aged nitwits who still indulge in this so-called hobby. Most of these guys have been flying since they were teenagers and use the same engines (diesels as it happens) and model designs from the 60s and 70s: they term this silliness "Vintage Diesel Combat". I made the mistake of emailing one of these combat pilots and almost immediately received a very persuasive phone call inviting me to try my hand at flying. Despite my protestations to the effect that I hadn't held a control line handle in 37 years, I made the journey out to the local flying field and to my immense surprise could remember quite easily how to fly these models. Just like riding a bike I suppose. I was absolutely hooked -quite possibly something to do with the smell of ether and amyl nitrate in the fuel. Actually I'm fairly convinced that I spent a good deal of my teenage years out of my head on solvents: the fuel components along with solvent-based glue and "dope" (it's not called that for nothing, you know) for finishing the wing fabric are very powerful chemicals. So I purchased an engine and a couple of good planes and started practicing. On my third session out I came third in a contest and on my fifth time out I won another competition outright beating some noted pilots in the process. I felt ridiculously pleased with myself -this was by any standards a good result after a 37 year layoff and nearly 40 years since I was Woking and District Model Aero Club junior champion.

Anyway I've digressed a bit and just realised that I don't have time to write anymore tonight so on my next post I'll explain about my email from Clive Sharp and "The Tiger"...

Peace!

Waiting with baited breath...

I can't stand the suspense. I'm hopping up and down on one foot waiting for the Automobile Club d'Monaco to publish the list of entrants for the 2005 Monte Carlo Historique rally. They said announcemnts will be made on November 26. It's currently 11.25pm in Seattle on Thursday 25th November and hence 9.25am on Friday 26th in Monaco. I've been checking the ACM's website every 10 minutes. Come on guys (and gals) the suspense is killing me...


Peace!

Blogging the night away

Wow, there really are some fantastic blogs out there. I'm discovering a whole new world. Apart from the Queen of Sky mentioned in my previous posting there are some truly amazing political sites with highly intelligent and well-reasoned rhetoric (of the left wing type). I would thus like to recommend the following which in my view are truly outstanding:
Conceptual Guerilla's Strategy and Tactics
Baghdad Burning
Mykeru.com

These are well worth a visit -be prepared to spend at least 10 minutes on each. They are highly addictive. You have been warned.

Peace!

Queen of Sky

QoS_2
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I've been following the blog of Ellen Simonetti (aka "Queen of Sky"). This diary is compelling for several reasons:
1) Although the commentary isn't particularly heavyweight, it is witty and engaging and concerns Ms Simonetti's alter ego, Queen of Sky, who is a flight attendant for Anonymous Airlines.
2) Ms Simonetti made the "mistake" of being photographed, in her flight attendant's uniform, in mildly risque poses, and consequently was fired by her real life employers, Delta Airlines.
3) The QoS site, has had a phenomenal number of hits over the last couple of weeks. While the majority of comments have been supportive, QoS has also attracted a large number of creepy, bigoted, misogynistic and right wing morons who have posted an extraordinary amount of nasty hate mail. Some of this is due to the fact that Ms Simonetti is open in her support for the Democratic party.

Overall, I feel Ms Simonetti is worthy of support. Although her photos may have been a little ill-advised, she most certainly shouldn't have lost her job, health care benefits etc. and is the victim of the worst kind of corporate bullying. But more than that she is an example of how big business can stiffle semi-private spleen venting from the blogging community. Please check out her site and leave an intelligent, supportive note.

Peace!

Hypertext Links: Issues with Macs

I got the hang of picture hosting a few weeks ago -well at a basic level at least (one photo per post). Today I figured out hypertext links. The problem was more complicated than I thought although the solution was easy. For some reason I could see only the spellchecker and the image upload buttons on the editing toolbar. I use a Mac and the Apple Safarai browser. When I tried IE Explorer I couldn't see the toolbar at all (another Microsoft winner!). I tried adding code in HTML but to no avail. Eventually I did what all grown men try to avoid: email the HelpDesk at Blogger. I received an immediate acknowledgement and a full reply 24 hours later. It seems that the current version of Safari has a few compatibility issues with the Blogger editor but subsequent versions will support so-called rich HTML editing. The browser of choice is Firefox from Mozilla which is available as a free download for either PCs or Macs. I duly configured Firefox on my iBook and "Hey, Presto" I can now do hypertxt links and get up to all sorts of mischief including a bit of Google Bombing. Firefox appears to be a brilliant product and the Mozilla site is well worth a visit (no, I'm not getting paid for this endorsement.)

I should also mention that the IT Department of the orgnaization in which I am employed is recommending that we all switch to Firefox as it doesn't have the security issues associated with IE Explorer.

Peace!

Martial Arts

Aikido
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

On one of my earlier postings I said I'd write about my training in iaido. For the uninitiated, iaido is a Japanese martial art based focused on sword drawing. However before I get to this I should say a few words about my relationship with the martial arts in general. As an undergraduate in the fair city of Cardiff, Wales, I was enticed into practicing judo and karate by my landlord, Colin Jenkins (where are you now Colin?). After a couple of years fairly avid training I gained a green belt in judo and a brown belt in shotokan karate. However I found both of these disciplines lacking an indefinable 'something". Somehow they were too physical and centered around competition. More martial sports than arts.

Then at some point I attended an aikido demonstration and immediately thought that this was for me although I was certainly terrified of the gymnastic nature of the breakfalls. Aikido, although complex, seemed more evolved technically and philosophically than either judo or karate. Furthermore I was intrigued by the sword-derived movements as well as the use of bokken (wooden practice swords).

Sadly it was another 10 years before I began aikido practice in earnest. I started with Morita Sensei in 1985 when working in San Francisco. Morita taught Yoshinkai style aikido which is a quite rigid but standardised hard style. In 1987 I moved to San Diego and was fortunate to be able to train with Chiba Sensei for nearly five years. I also studied iaido for the last two years I was with Chiba. I found the iaido fascinating and it improved by aikido no end.

I then moved back to the UK and practice took a backseat. There are some excellent aikido practioners in England including some of Chiba Sensei's former students -notably Dee Chen at the London Shinmeikan. But getting through London in the rush hour was always a deterrent and my martial arts practice lapsed.

Now, nearly a decade later I have found a great dojo in here in Seattle that teaches iaido, or more correctly battojutsu, which is a more practical form of swordsmanship and as well as the traditional kata involves cutting rolled straw targets. Aikido is also taught although this is not the main focus of the organisation. The dojo is known as Ishi Yama Ryu (Stone Mountain School) and it has one of the most beautiful practice halls I have ever seen. I'm hoping that I will have a long association and happy association with Ishi Yama and its chief instructor Russell McCartney Sensei is highly likeable, technically accomplished and appears a very sincere person. So all going well my training is set fair for the forseeable future and after years stuck at 1st kyu (brown belt) rank I'm hoping to obtain at least the elusive shodan (black belt) before too long.

So now I've introduced the topic, I'll make regular posts in future...

Peace!

Kilauea

Kilauea
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Have been meaning to add this photo for some time. On my jaunt to the Big Island of Hawaii two weeks ago I took a helicopter ride over Kilauea. This is an active volcano and quite awesome in every sense of the word. The red glow from the molten rock is amazing. The larva flows have changed the shape of the coastline over the last two decades not to mention having destroyed several hundred homes. Beautiful as Hawaii is it seems a stressful place to live. The populace appears to be dodging typhoons, tsunamis (tidal waves) or larva engulfment for a good portion of their time. Anyway for more information on volcanos click here.



Peace!

Heads of the Lakes

olivia_1
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

This morning I got up an unreasonable and anti-social hour and drove across a rainy Seattle to watch my my daughter, Olivia, compete in a regatta. The "Heads of the Lakes" appears to be quite big deal in the rowing season and concludes the autumn program. Approximately 400 crews compete against the clock in sequential starts. Olivia rows for the the University of Washington "Huskies" who have a formidable international reputation. Indeed O seems to be rowing at national level these days having picked up gold and bronze medals at the US Rowing nationals earlier in the summer. Well the Husky women prevailed with both the varsity (O's boat) and the junior varsity teams winning their classes. The varsity crew beat several noted teams en route to their first place including Stanford, UCLA, University of British Columbia and long standing rivals, Washington State. Now that's it for racing until March and Olivia will be getting her nose into the books and concentrating on getting her degree in psychology. Needless to say I'm a proud dad.

Peace!

Do ye ken John Peel...?

John Peel
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Today is John Peel's funeral which will be held in St. Edmunsbury Cathedral, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. There is so little unsaid about this great man that it is hard for me to find appropriate words. His passing two weeks ago was a tremendous shock. I had listened to John for nearly 40 years: initially as a teenager in the UK and more recently, as a resident of Seattle, I would stream in his late night music programme or "Home Truths". I think I had come to think of him as immortal. Or at least an institution like other BBC broadcasts such as the shipping forecast and the football results on a Saturday afternoon. Extraordinaily steady and comforting.

I saw him just once: at the National Jazz & Blues Festival, Sunbury, in the summer of 1968. Yet somehow I felt I knew him as a friend. This was his gift and many of the tributes that poured into the BBC said the same thing. Something to do with the way he could project genuine sincerity, humour, insightfulness and compassion. My record (well OK, now I've replaced most of my vinyl with CDs) collection and indeed my general musical tastes have been very much influenced by Peelie and now I will always think of him when I play Pentangle, Fairport Convention, Jethro Tull et al. He is quite irreplaceable.

John, you left us too early and I don't know who I will listen to now. Apart from your music you were an absolute gentleman and humanitarian. I lament your departure from earthly form however you certainly left your mark on society and you will not be forgotten. My condolences go to your family.

Peace!

Aloha!

Kona beach
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

Talk about lunacy. Having spent three days in DC at the end of October I then flew back to Seattle, stopped for just about enough time to feed the cats and then scurried off to the airport again to catch a flight to Hawaii. The purpose of this jaunt was to attends a friend's brother's birthday party. Tough work I suppose, especially as I wasn't paying for either the ticket or accommodation. Anyway I ended up on the Kona coast of the Big Island (actually Hawaii) -see picture. A very pleasant place and the trip was well worth it despite the confused state of my biorythms. In fact I could have happily spent more than four days there but it was fun nevertheless. One particularly intersting aspect of the trip was a helicoper flight over Kilahuea, an active volcano, however that will be the subject of another entry.

Peace!

The night they drove old D.C. down II

studysection
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I have to say that picture posting makes this whole blog thing much more compelling and possibly interesting for readers too.

This is really a "P.S." to my posting of 10/29/04 which reported on my trip to Washington DC for NIH study section duty. So here's a pic, taken with my cell phone, of the committee (in a 10 minute recess). Chairman Ron Kennedy (center/white shirt) kept proceedings timely.

Rally preparations

goingforit2
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I seem to have finally got the hang of this picture hosting business (Flickr.com is recommended) and I apologize for the apparent overindulgence but pictures can truly be worth a thousand words.

I am waiting with baited breath to hear whether the Automobile Club d'Monaco has accepted my entry for the 2005 Monte Carlo Historique rally. Roll on Nov 25. In the meantime I'm spending a fortune on car preparations. I've fixed a lot of minor bodywork problems which have amounted to a virtual respray of the car. Still all the rust, which was not as minor as I had thought, is now gone and the car is structurally stronger as well as looking very pretty. I've acquired a lot of period BMC ex-works parts and the interior is looking very good. I still need an intercom, a full set (6) of Dunlop 93J tyres (I'm trusting that Bill Richards has managed to negotiate a deep discount as well as a race suit and open face helmet. When I go to England next month I'll get the suit and helmet. I'll also do some fine detail work in preparation for the car's photoshoot with MiniWorld which is pencilled in for December 10th.

I'm also hoping to visit Stamford's (best map shop in the world) in Covent Garden, London, where I'll pick up a set of large scale maps that will cover all the rally's regularity stages. Then all going well Bill and I will make a quick trip to Monaco for a recce of the infamous night loop section over the Col d'Turini. I'm a bit worried about these plans as Mercury will be in retrograde for that period (the fourth bloody time this year). For those of you remotely interested in this nonsense, Mercury is the ruler of my sun sign, Virgo. In this three week phase confusion abounds. It's usually nothing life threatening; just chaotic, irksome stuff. I hate it and it's really not the best planetary aspect for travel or planning a rally.

Peace!

John

Depressed

timemag2
Originally uploaded by wjwmorrow.

I think I'm going to sit down in a darkened room with a bottle of Prozac for the next four years...