The classic scooterists club magazine

EURO VESPA 1958

With special thanks to Mike Cranfield, EuroVespa '58 veteran, 'City Gent' and former Colchester Vespa Club member, for sharing his memories, memorabilia and documents from his trip to Brussels. Mike is my uncle, but it took a chance meeting last summer to remind him of a box of goodies somewhere in the loft...

Brussels was to host EuroVespa during 1958, in what was the event’s fifth year. The Vespa Club of Britain had received a huge number of applications from across the UK, due in no doubt to the rally’s location (just 65 miles from the ferry), but also because Brussels was hosting The Universal Exhibition (EXPO) and a visit was to be included. The number of places, however, was limited and the club had the difficult task of selecting just 48 riders to represent it, a small proportion of whom would be allowed to carry a pillion.

The final selection makes for interesting reading and includes members from across London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow and a small village near Colchester. This was home to Mike Cranfield, then aged 19 and about to start national service with the RAF. He was determined to make the most of that summer and being an active member of the Colchester Vespa Club (No 91 – The Romans), he attended the National and numerous regional events during 1958 (including Felixstowe where he won the hill climb). But EuroVespa was, without doubt, the big one.

“The first thing I have to draw your attention to is the fact that about six members of the team have not, as yet, paid their share of the Channel crossing fare and I shall have to take severe action unless this situation is remedied immediately.”

VCB President, 12 May 1958

The organisation that went into preparing the team would have put the moon landings to shame. Nothing was left to chance. Servicing was arranged through Douglas, ahead of the rally (with no charge for labour), and a timetable and rendezvous points were strategically chosen along the route. It all began on Thursday 3 July, with Mike setting out for the VCB office in Finchley Road to join the London contingent. They in turn, left at 7pm sharp and rode to Dover, where all 48 scooters would assemble ready for inspection by the Team Captain before boarding the ferry. Once in Belgium, complimentary petrol was provided by Esso and a breakfast stop organised in Ostend by the local Vespa club (who had arranged for a café to open early to coincide with the ferry’s arrival time) before inspection and the final leg of the journey into the centre of Brussels, arriving at exactly the appointed hour.

“Herewith I am sending you the sunshine yellow riding suit for your use during the Brussels EuroVespa rally. Will you please make a point of returning the suit to this office immediately after the rally so they can be cleaned and ready for re-issue as the occasion demands.”

VCB President, 16 June 1958

The team’s uniform had been chosen long before the rally began and consisted of a pair of sunshine yellow overalls. These were to be embellished with two sew-on latex patches (the exact measurements for where to sew them were provided), a red scarf (cut from a bath towel and requiring further sewing) and a white helmet (own supply). Black shoes, white shirt and a club tie were to be worn beneath the overalls, which were not to be removed unless instructed to do so by the team captain. If it rained, riders could wear waterproofs beneath but must do nothing to spoil the look – something that other teams had found to their cost during a downpour in Munich two years before. Let me explain:

From the moment the team set foot on Belgian soil its conduct, dress code and line and position while travelling were under scrutiny from a set of judges who awarded points throughout the event. At the end the team with the highest score won the Vespa Cup. The club had won the cup previously in Barcelona, due in no small part to an impressive 1100-mile journey and in Munich, thanks largely to their resistance to the wet weather. Some disappointment had been expressed by the team captain at such a short distance to Brussels, providing so little opportunity to score points, so a well turned out team throughout the event would be critical.

“I’d like all crash hats to be white, try to borrow one for the weekend if yours will be different.”

Team Captain, 25 June 1958

The grand arrival on 4 July must have been quite a spectacle. Vespa clubs from 15 countries throughout Europe descended on Palais d’Egmont square at their allotted time and parked up in formation alongside a massive display of their host club’s scooters – an estimated 1400 in total.

Because of the high numbers, lunch had to be staged across three locations, after which the teams were escorted to their accommodation – the Motel Expo. The motel was brand new, having been built for the Universal Exhibition, and was fitted with all modern conveniences. One feature in the room was described by a scooterist as a ‘footbath’ which he filled with cold water and kept his beer in all weekend. The first day concluded with formal welcome dinner, the exact details of which are a little sketchy, but there were certainly no plans to start again until noon the next day.

After a two-hour lunch on Saturday, there was a procession through the city, followed by a reception hosted by the Mayor. A quick clean-up and then off to the prize-giving banquet, which finished at 3am. Sunday was given over to a speciality Bavarian lunch and a visit to the Expo. It suddenly becomes clear why loose-fitting overalls were chosen as the uniform!

“If you do not have a bowler hat but have the rest of the equipment I am prepared to buy that particular item of dress. I have ascertained that a good quality bowler hat can be obtained from Messrs Dunn for 25/-.”

VCB President, 21 May 1958

There was the Cup to be won of course, but there was one formal competition staged during the rally and that was for Best National Dress, where each country was to parade eight suitably attired team members in front of the judges, before embarking on a slow ride through the city. Selecting the costume had taken several weeks and many letters and quite a few more to cajole enough of the team to join in.

“To the eight members of the ‘Businessmen’ team; we are sending herewith the umbrella clips to be attached to your Vespa. The attachment of these clips to both the 92L2 and Clubman is a simple matter, but for the GS Vespa, a certain amount of ingenuity and a little copper wire will be required.”

VCB President, 27 June 1958

The theme was to be ‘City Gent’ and the lucky eight were asked to pack a pinstripe suit, umbrella, gloves, bowler hat and a folded copy of the Times. As only four of the team had bowler hats, the club provided the rest which, judging by the photos, weren’t exactly the right size (Mike can just about be seen under his in the centre of the picture). Umbrella clips (a NOS item from Douglas even in 1958) had been sourced in various colours and sent to the ‘City Gents’ ahead of the rally, together with fixing instructions and a lengthy explanation of the best way to hold a folded copy of the Times under the arm during the rideout.

“In addition to the umbrella we shall want every member of the team to carry a copy of the Times and your captain has been making some experiments and he finds that if Sellotaped, it can be held under the arm without any risk of letting it fall while you are steering.”

VCB President, 21 May 1958

All of this paid off however and the team won, despite stiff opposition from clogs, Viking helmets and crossbows. The story of the ‘City Gents’ exploits appeared in many local papers and trade publications back in Britain, ranging from Vespa News to Men’s Wear Weekly. The club also commissioned a special legshield badge to mark the occasion and produced a souvenir magazine.

“I am sending you herewith one red terry towelling neck scarf to be worn with your sunshine yellow suit at Brussels. These scarves are cut from large towels and have raw edges. Please run down these edges with a sewing machine to prevent them fraying.”

VCB President, 27 June 1958

Sunday was the last day of the rally, and it was off to the Brussels Universal Exhibition. Mindful that this was very much the Cold War era, the super powers had chosen to exhibit the positive aspects of nuclear power and for the Soviet Union (complete with huge statue of Lenin) it was a chance to showcase their advances in space exploration.

The team still had to wear their uniforms, but were at least allowed to break formation once they arrived. Some, surrounded by the latest and greatest inventions man could offer, headed straight for the Whitbread pub (The Britannia) in the British exhibit for a few beers (one of them, struggling from the night before still had his pyjamas on beneath his overalls), while two more blagged their way into a fashion show in the American section and stood at the front armed with cameras snapping away at the models on the catwalk. Neither actually took any photos, they just enjoyed the girls stopping and posing in front of them all afternoon.

This was effectively the end of EuroVespa ’58. I can find no record of who won the Cup among Mike’s letters and newspaper clippings, so I’m guessing we lost on penalties. There were however a few great stories from the riders themselves:

On their first day in Brussels, some of the team stood outside a bar for a while trying to work out how to order in French. Finally sorted, they bravely entered and sat down, only to be served by a cockney waiter.

During the Saturday evening banquet, one of the Belgians got out her waterproof trousers, tied up the ends and filled them with rolls, claiming they were for her dogs.

While on the rideout (complete with gloves, red carnation and folded copy of the Times), one of the ‘City Gents’ broke down and had to change his plug, cheered on by a huge crowd offering advice in a multitude of languages. Still not working, he managed to bump-start it and rode off at speed to join the rest of the team, unaware that his bowler hat was still hooked on the top of his aerial.

On the journey home from the banquet in the early hours of Sunday morning, one of the riders became hopelessly lost. Eventually finding a postman, he was directed to follow the tramlines into the city, which he did – straight into a tram depot. He was then directed onto a different set of lines by a mechanic and eventually found his way back to the hotel.

And finally, on the journey home and to prove a point, the team captain was put on the boat train at Dover and travelled to London Victoria where he was met by a waiting rider who had beaten him there on his GS, despite having to fill up and being attacked by a stray dog on the way. Are you reading this Jeremy Clarkson?

Thanks once again for the memories, Mike.

Stu Chamberlain