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MEDWAY FESTIVAL OF STEAM

Jaguar Drivers’ Club - Kent Area 4 - Regional Magazine

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SPRING LUNCH AT HARTY FERRY

Well done Penny & Vic for organising this year’s

Spring Lunch at Harty Ferry.

A tortuous drive over interesting terrain (you

couldn’t call it a road-surface) led us to the Harty

Ferry Inn which was an ideal setting on a windy

but bright sunny day. Much speculation about

whether or not Ray Tyler was coming in his low-

ered E-Type and if so, would he actually get there

over the bumps. He didn’t! – come in his E-Type

that is.

There was plenty of space to park our Jags. and a

very pleasant atmosphere inside the pub where we

completely occupied the restaurant in very comfort-

able surroundings.

Lunch was an excellent and leisurely affair with

good food pleasantly served and entertainment was

provided by Lou Moore fighting both gravity and a

sash window which refused to stay where he wanted

it. Useless and conflicting advice from the happy

throng was ignored to much amusement.

There were plenty of prizes in the raffle and Brenda

Webb can be seen in the glamour-spot on the front

cover collecting a star prize alongside some pictures

of members’ cars. 11

The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Edi-

tor or the Kent Area Committee – no liability will be accepted in any case of dispute.

KENTISHMAN magazine is available by post only and for an annual subscrip-

tion of £10. New subscribers wishing to receive a regular postal copy please provide

details for our database including name, address, contact telephone number and details of

classic cars owned and send a cheque for £10.00p payable to J.D.C. Kent Area 4 Kent-

ishman to:-

J.D.C. KENT, c/o ‘Ramornie’, Warren Street Road,

Charing,

KENT

TN27 0HL Any reports or items for inclusion in the KENTISHMAN should be sent by post to:-

David Barnes at the above address or by email to Ramornie@uwclub.net

OLD SHAPE XK8 MUD - FLAPS

Brand new full set, front and rear.

Jaguar - supplied.

Never fitted.

Cost £50 per pair, will accept £50 for all four.

Contact Jeff Webb on 01732 822607

FOR SALE

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Medway festival of steam

Easter Monday the 13th April saw the Kent area attend the first show of the 2009 season at the Historic Dockyard Chatham. Five area cars turned out for this event. The weather stayed dry for us if not particularly warm but the wind was light so it didn’t feel as cold as on previ-ous occasions down on the river. There was a good turn out of other cars to look round and the steam section seemed to me larger than ever, with all the usual dockyard attractions. There was plenty to see and do for the day. The only slight problem was that during the steam engine parades, the cars got showered in small specks of black soot. All in all, a very pleasant day out - pictures on back cover. Jeff Webb.

Articles and Pictures.

Many thanks to all those of you who have sent me stuff for

possible inclusion in Kentishman. It really has been a help.

Inclusion obviously depends on space and whether there is a

colour page available for coloured pics. etc. but be assured

that I’ll keep everything by me as a stock of good content is

a very valuable asset . ED

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CLUB NIGHTS

On the 3rd Monday of each month, members meet in a comfortable air-conditioned private function-room with it’s own bar at The Dog & Bear Hotel in Lenham (just off the A20 between Maidstone & Ashford. Meetings frequently fea-ture guest speakers covering a wide range of subjects.

May 18th Richard Pettett gives a talk about the Kent

Badger Group.

June 15th A talk about beer by Brian Hogg, the Land-

lord of The Dog & Bear, who is a ‘Beermaster’.

July 20th All Jaguar night with Barbeque.

August 17th Open evening.

September 21st Cheese & Wine

PUB NIGHTS

On the 1st Tuesday of each month, members get together at a different Kentish Hostelry for a bar meal or just a social evening out. Further details from Trevor Lang Tel:01622-757816 May 5th THE CARPENTERS ARMS at Three Elms Lane, Hadlow,

Tonbridge, TN11 0AD Tel. 01732 850307 From Maidstone, take the A26 towards Tonbridge passing through Hadlow Village. Just after the BP garage, turn left into Three Elms Lane and Pub is a short distance on LHS.

June 2nd THE GEORGE INN at The Street, Egerton, TN27 9DJ

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KENT AREA COMMITTEE 2008-9

Chairman & Area Representative - Jeff Webb, 01732 822607

Treasurer - Vacancy!

Secretary – Brenda Webb

Kentishman Editor – David Barnes, 01233 712350

Committee Members – Alan Mobbs, 020 8337 8077

Ray Tyler, 01276 63114

MAIN EVENTS May 3rd “Magnificent Motors” Eastbourne - Contact Ray Tyler 01276

63114 Limited space, ring early. May 4th Swale Vehicle Enthusiasts Show on The Isle of Sheppey -

Contact Vic Booth 01795 880544

May 24th & 25th Masters Series Racing at Brands Hatch. Contact Alan Mobbs 020 8337 8077

June 13th & 14th Wrotham Classic Car Show. Contact Alan Stepney 01634 220874

June 14th Bromley Pageant. Usual restricted pitch-size. First come

first served. £5 per car. Contact Alan Mobbs 020 8337 8077

July 5th Summer Barbeque at Strood Yacht Club. July 12th JDC National Day at Woburn Abbey. Possibly an area event if enough numbers. Contact Jeff Webb 01732 822607

It would be appreciated if members do not telephone com-mittee members before 10:00 am or after 9:30 pm

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BITS AND PIECES

Speaking at Auto Shanghai 2009, Jaguar Cars Managing Director, Mike O'Driscoll

confirmed that:

The all-new Jaguar XJ will go on sale at the end of 2009 - but will officially be

revealed on 9th July in London.

The all-new Jaguar XJ is the first car to feature the next-generation of Jaguar's

aerospace-inspired aluminium body architecture.

All of Jaguar's new ultra-efficient Gen III petrol and diesel engines will be avail-

able in the new Jaguar XJ, including the already acclaimed V6 diesel and 510

bhp supercharged V8.

There will be a choice of standard or long wheelbase models.

The all-new Jaguar XJ will introduce the highest standards of personal luxury

and specification, including a panoramic glass roof.

Full details of the all-new Jaguar XJ including prices will be revealed on 9th July 2009

and orders for delivery in early 2010 will be taken from this time.

Dependent on market, the all-new Jaguar XJ will be in dealerships from the end of 2009.

Jaguar developing Mechanical KERS system

Engineering transmission firm Torotrak announced that is has been working exclu-

sively with Jaguar to develop a mechanical energy recovery system. Unlike several

current regenerative braking systems which store the energy developed when the car

slows down as electrical energy, this system uses a small infinitely variable transmis-

sion, coupled with a flywheel to store the energy.

When the Jaguar brakes, the kinetic energy is sent through the IVT and spins the fly-

wheel at speeds up to 64,000 revs per minute. This energy is stored and when the car

accelerates again it is released back into the drive train, giving an added boost of

power. As the energy is not wasted, this makes the Jaguar more fuel efficient.

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Day 8. – onwards to Albuquerque, New Mexico; 280 miles via Santa Rosa, Glorietta, the Santa

Fe trail and the small town of Las Vegas where we watched a carnival of mixed cultures – Mexi-

can, Spanish and Indian. Reached hotel in Albuquerque early evening and pleased to be staying

two nights.

Day 9. – a free day in the city with visits to museums, the old town and music in the square.

Day 10. - Bound for Holbrook Arizona, a 285 mile drive across the open prairies of the Navajo

Nation with every kind of weather and much to interest us. We had lots of stops, saw wild horses

on the road and arrived at Holbrook after 10 hours to a chaotic meal in our hotel.

Day 11. Northward to the Grand Canyon in Arizona with ever-changing scenery from arid

plains, to forest to mountains. We arrived at the Grand Canyon Hotel after a 233 mile drive

where we had the third group dinner and where we had the good fortune to win the draw to oc-

cupy the Windsor Suite on the Queen Mary.

Day 12. A free day and we took the opportunity of a helicopter flight over the Grand Canyon

which was spectacular and will be remembered for ever, particularly for the wonderful colours.

Day 13. and a long journey ahead towards Las Vegas, Nevada. We had a crisp start from the

mountain village but it became hotter and hotter as we progressed through rocky canyons, dry

arid plains and the Mojave Desert proper. We stopped in a railway town called Williams where

the Historic Route 66 movement was conceived and continued on to reach Las Vegas and our

32nd floor hotel - room at 2000hrs. Las Vegas was a culture shock from the moment we arrived.

Day 14. was a free day where we toured and shopped and took in the atmosphere of this 24hr

city in the middle of a desert.

Day 15. Las Vegas to Long Beach, California; 303 miles, 5hrs actually driving but more than

11hrs door to door; unvaried scenery, salt lakes and surprisingly busy with traffic across the de-

sert. We got a bit lost in Santa Monica but finally found ‘The Pier’ at 1700hrs where we were

treated to drinks and nibbles before going on to Long Beach and our Windsor Suite. This is

where we had the final group dinner and we all felt wonderfully relaxed after such a long and

tiring adventure.

Day 16. was spent showing our companions the Royal Suite’s furnishings and fitments and gen-

erally relaxing on board. We enjoyed a guided tour ashore and did some shopping and then the

evening was a western themed party with country music and the usual dressing up. There was a

speech from David Render and some presentations.

Day 17. Bound for home after saying goodbye to our trusty MKIX

Alan & Judith acquired their cream & regency red MK IX in June 1994 in a fairly poor mechanical state

but with quite good bodywork. They had the mechanics brought up to scratch and since then, they’ve

obviously had some happy adventures in it.

They actually drove 3003 miles in America with daily fuel consumption varying from 16mpg at worst and

21.6 mpg at best.

There were 60 participating Jaguars from the UK and 5 locally - hired 4x4s carried the organisers, tour

operator and other support.

The cars were safely shipped back to the UK via the Panama Canal to Chatham in Kent.

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Alan Mobbs gave us a fascinating slide-show and talk about his adventurous journey with Judith

across America from Chicago, Illinois to Long Beach, California in his MK IX using the ‘Historic

Route 66’ and this brief account will hopefully be enjoyed by those members who were unable to

be at The Dog & Bear to hear it at first hand.. Most of the copy is a précis of Judith’s excellent

tour diary.

Route 66 officially began its long journey in 1926 covering more than 2,400 miles and eight states;

Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. The last sec-

tion of Route 66 was also known as the Main Street of America and the Mother Road was finally

decommissioned in 1985 when an association was born in the town of Williams, Arizona to keep

the “Historic Route 66” alive.

The tour was organised by two couples who are members of the Jaguar Enthusiasts Club with the

help of a tour operator and the first task once their plans were in place was to ship the cars in con-

tainers from Southampton to Newport, Virginia from whence they were shipped by rail to Chi-

cago, unpacked and stored in a warehouse to await collection by the intrepid tourists who flew

direct to Chicago on Day 1. of the tour.

Day 2. saw the collection of the cars from the warehouse and then there was a sightseeing coach

tour of the Windy City with a group dinner in the evening.

Day 3. is when we started in earnest with a 308 mile journey to St Louis through miles of sugar-

cane fields. We were frustrated by wrong turns and traffic chaos but finally claimed our hotel

room which overlooked the 630ft high Gateway Arch.

Day 4. - a 231 mile leg to Springfield, Missouri, the greenest state we passed through. We drove

through heavy rain and we later learned that we’d just missed a tornado behind us. We passed

through towns and communities where we saw murals, double-decker trains and houses with

pretty verandas and visited a delightful toy museum.

Day 5. Set off at 0900hrs with 339 miles to go to get to Oklahoma City. Heavy driving but won-

derful pastoral surroundings and an interesting stopping point at Hemi’s Café where we experi-

enced the local ‘Beef on Bread’ and bought some souvenirs.

Day 6. - across the western half of Oklahoma and into the Texas Panhandle bound for Amarillo.

Endless high desert plains little changed from what was the experience of the early settlers 150

years ago. We crossed the famous ‘Pony Bridge’ built in 1933, visited a Route 66 museum in Elk

City and stopped in Texalo , a real little ghost town, the last town in Oklahoma. From our hotel in

Amarillo we were picked up by a stretched limo and taken to our second group dinner at the Big

Texan Steak Ranch where we were entertained with music at our tables and offered the challenge

of a 72oz steak – no takers!

Day 7. - on to Tucumcari, New Mexico via the flatlands of Texas also called the ‘Staked Plain’

referring to how pioneers marked the route for those that followed. We passed through the Duro

Canyon State Park, a deep canyon created by the Red River and erosion from the desert winds. We

went through many small towns and passed dilapidated motels & service stations which were vic-

tims of the new highway and resulting loss of traffic. The mid point of Route 66 was Adrian and

the Mid Point Café where we were made very welcome by everyone we met. The day continued

through emptiness and abandoned places. Reached hotel early evening only to be asked for our

passports before we could buy a drink as per New Mexico law.

CLUB NIGHT on 20th APRIL

Continued on page 8

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1920s Route 66 1930s Route 66

Mk IX and typical murals

MK IX in Oatman Arizona

Queen Mary with MK IX Windsor Suite Judith & friend

Texolo - last “ghost” town

in Oklahoma

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Hotdog Muffler Man. Atlanta Illinois Pre. & Post 1937 routes part

Sinclair Gas Station, Missouri

MK IX on Pony Bridge, ¾ mile long