Golden Jubilee Celebration – Update – Name the beer – The winner is….  

Well we had a bit of fun deciding what the winning name should be. There were many good suggestions some of which we would like to have used but felt that it may not have been quite the most appropriate way to be remember the event.  

‘Blat Arsed’ was universally liked as was ‘Pist ‘n’ Broke!’

The many variations on the Se7en theme figured highly as did the ‘Golden’ and ‘Blat’ themes.  

Some others which were liked were ‘Backfire’ , ‘Driftmood’ and ‘Opposite Lock’

However we decided that we liked some of the names that used combinations of the ‘Colin’ or ‘Chapman’ theme best, such as ‘Colin’s Ale’, ‘Chapman’s Spirit’, ‘Chapman’s Legacy’, ‘Chapman’s Glory’, ‘Chapman’s Best’ ‘Colin’s Corker’ , ‘Cheers Chapman’ and many others.  

So which is the winner?

Well we whittled it down to 2

‘Chapman’s Glory’ and ‘Chapman’s Best’

But there could only be one winner             Chapman's Best

Well done and a very big thank you to all of you who submitted suggestions and participated in what proved to be an excellent bit of fun.

Congratulations to Simmo for picking the winning name. Hopefully you will be able to collect your prize at the Saturday evening Gala Party on the 15^th of September. 

Sorry, the P.R. officer has run off with the tickets to the Monaco Grand Prix but we do have some very nice bottles of 'Chapmans Best' for your prize.... Cheers !!!

Lotus Factory tour - Fully booked

Due to incredible demand for this event we are sorry to say that the tour is now fully booked.  Numbers have been limited by Lotus for Health and Safety and security reasons and whilst we would have liked to have offered addition spaces the descision is beyond our control.

The Golden Jubilee celebration update in the next edition of Low flying will focus on the Saturday night Gala Party. As part of the celebrations and to further commemorate the 50th event we have commissioned the brewing of a special celebration beer by Buffy's who are an award winning local Norfolk Brewery.

We would like you the members to come up with a witty and apposite name for the brew. We have agreed that the winning name will be printed on the labels so this is your chance to grab your 15 minutes of fame!

The winner will receive the prize of a pair of tickets to watch the Monaco Grand Prix!....................... Well not really but you may just pick up a few bottles of (insert name here) for your delectation at the event.

The closing date for entries will be 9 am on Monday 30th April.

Please post your suggestions on this thread on ChitChat.

The winner will be chosen by the 50th Organising Committee whose decision will be final, so no whinging should you not win!!!!

The winning choice will be published here on our website shortly afterward.

Ticket sales break through 400 and there appears to be no letup in the applications coming by post and email from abroad

Buffy's Brewery 

Buffy's Brewery agree to brew a special bitter especially for the occasion. 

Statement regarding ticket pricing as posted on Club Website

The following statement is the Organisers formal response to questions recently raised on Blatchat:

When the “50 years of the 7” planning group first met over 18 months ago the brief for the celebration was “To provide every owner with the opportunity to attend an affordable event and for this to be a celebration of all things Seven”.

The sheer scale of the organisation is incredible. Everything from food & drink, the bands & disco, the provision of marquees to ensure that we all stay dry in the event of poor weather, to insurance, not to mention the web site and the need to ensure your health, safety and security over the weekend.

Recent comments on BlatChat have prompted the organisers to look again at certain aspects, in response to the sentiments expressed.

1. Following a robust renegotiation with the Royal Norfolk Showground, children under 17 will now be able to camp free of charge.

2. Having listened to your comments, there will no longer be an entrance charge for children under 17. Those people, who may have already paid, will be reimbursed.

3. The celebration is really about the Saturday and this is where the majority of the costs accrue and has been arranged as an open ‘village’ type event with little ticketing security in order to ensure free movement for everyone involved. Most events on Friday and Sunday take place off site and like all Club events of a similar nature there is no spectator charge. As the Club are already providing a substantial financial backing for the event regrettably it is felt that we are unable to offer a reduced price ‘day’ ticket for the Saturday’s events.

Friday is about the track Day and Auto Solo both of which are off-site. It also seemed sensible to offer something in the evening for those travelling from further a field and particularly from abroad. As the facilities will be in place, we decided to offer a meeting place from 4pm, with food and drink for those wishing to buy it and a disco later. There is provision for food purchase on Saturday and Sunday morning because of the site rules. Blat’s entry price only includes breakfast costs, there is no profit element.

Similarly, the activity on Sunday is essentially off site. The Blat to Sandringham, the Sprint and the Lotus factory tour, whilst also allowing those camping on site to recover from what will be the highlight of the event, the Saturday night Gala Party, before leaving for Hethel or home.

We are pleased to say that Caterham 21’s and Lotus 11’s will be able to take part in the Track Day and the Auto Solo at Woodbridge together with both Blats. Both are cars built on the same chassis and ethic and reflect some of the heritage of the marque we are celebrating this year.

The 50th activities are open to all who buy tickets for the event. It would be grossly unfair to those paying if we were to accept anyone for selected elements of the celebration who had not also bought a ticket for the occasion.

We have endeavoured to respond positively to the issues raised but understand that we may not be able to please everyone. However we believe that the revised arrangements will satisfy the vast majority of our members.

We are running a series of articles in Low Flying each month to further expand on certain aspects and to advise you of new activities that may be added as time goes on. So watch this space!

News update as posted on the Club Website

As organisers, we have been working incredibly hard for some 18 months to provide 7’ers from all over the world an unparalleled 50th Anniversary Celebration.
As you will no doubt appreciate, an event of this scale takes some considerable effort and time to organise.

Whilst the vast majority of our exhibitors and activities are now booked, there are still a number of items we still need to finalise before we promise them to you. This is the stance we have taken for the entire organisation as we definitely do not wish to promise something we cannot deliver. However, following a number of posts on Blatchat and discussions we have had within our Planning Group, we feel it best to give you all a full rundown on the event sooner rather than later.
So here it is in all its glory!

Friday
Trackday at RAF Woodbridge airfield (Woodbridge is the third venue that we have had to look at, having been let down at 2 previous locations, this after having been promised on both occasions that the venues would be ours – Talk about frustrating!) This will be open to 21’s and 11’s as well as 7’s!
Accompanying the trackday is an AutoSolo event. For the uninitiated, AutoSolo is being promoted by the BTRDA in order to encourage new competitors into motorsport. It is essentially a timed sprint suitable for both novices and the more experienced through a simple but cunningly designed coned course. An MSA competition license is not necessary and no special car preparation is required. Whilst an Auto Solo is similar, it is not an autotest, so no handbrake manoeuvres are required and the course does not demand any reverse gear action unless you get over excited! We will be opening booking for this very soon.
The Royal Norfolk Showground will be open from lunchtime on Friday for the further travelled of you to arrive and adjust your hearing & hairdos prior to the evening get together. The bar will be open all evening and food will be available on site for most of the evening.
A commemorative brochure will be available upon arrival for everyone who has purchased a ticket.

Saturday
We have the first Blat of the weekend which will take in many of Norfolk & Suffolk’s finest roads before eating breakfast on Southwold Pier, following which will see plenty of replete 7’ers heading back to the Showground for the rest of the day’s activities.
We have a number of trade stands for you to stock up on those essential 7 goodies, demonstrations and competitions throughout the day, plus we will be showing a number of videos and films relating to the Lotus and Caterham heritage over the last 50 years.
A good range of food will be available through the day with under cover seating on hand.
We have secured the use of an amazing Lotus 49 simulator. So who’s going to be fastest round the Nurburgring in Graham Hill’s car then?
We also have a major 8 lane Scalectrix competition and a range of activities for the junior Seveners.
In addition to this, we are arranging a display of every 7 model produced in the last 50 years including a number of pre 1957 cars which we feel will add interest to the day by showing the evolution of Lotus cars up to the 7.

There will be a concourse competition with various categories, so don’t forget to bring your polishing kits with you. You could walk away with a very nice prize !

Caterham cars will be on site with a full range of their latest offering, including the ‘Jubilee’ car.

Clive Chapman will be attending with the Classic Team Lotus team and 3 historic Lotus F1 cars. In order to make you all go weak at the knees we are hoping to hear one of the amazing cars make a hell of a racket during the afternoon.

We have a number of special guests including Hazel Chapman, Graham Nearn and Ansar Ali all of whom have kindly agreed to attend and to round it all off, we have a fantastic under cover evening party arranged with hog roasts, bars, 2 fantastic live bands, a disco, plus something very special occurring during the evening for that added “wow” factor. (no we haven’t hired the Norfolk Lap Dancing Society as they were fully booked for a Barn Dance!)

Sunday
The second blat takes in yet more of God’s own roads and arrives for Breakfast at the Royal Estate at Sandringham. The blat finishes at Hethel where there is the opportunity to tour the Lotus factory (space is limited and booking will be taking place shortly) as well as the final round of the Lotus 7 Club Sprint Championship.

Monday
Lotus 7 Club Trackday at Snetterton – This is being run as a normal Club track day. Booking details will follow shortly so please be patient! We are looking into providing Sunday night camping at the Showground however, there are some issues that we need to resolve but we will let you know if this is going to be possible as soon as we can.

In addition to the main event, we have commissioned a painting to celebrate 50 years of the 7. Brian Ramsey (Tyrone) has kindly produced this for us for free and we will be offering limited edition prints for sale very soon.
The original is first prize in the raffle we are drawing during Saturday evening and we will be offering a run of limited edition prints for sale should you wish to be certain of owning one! Details of this will follow very soon. All profits from this will be donated to the Leukaemia Research Fund.

There are other items we and others are currently working on which will add to the event. As soon as we have finalised these details, we will let you know.

Unfortunately we live in an age where health, safety, security and insurance are costly essentials, and licences for some of our activities are required. Our hosts at RAF Woodbridge, The Royal Norfolk Showground, Lotus Cars and Snetterton all have to deal with these issues, and they have rules and regulations that we have to abide by.
We hope that you will now have a better understanding of some of the significant costs and constraints that are involved in this event and why, despite substantial financial support from the club, we need to charge an entry fee.

So as you can see we are really working very hard indeed to provide something for everyone. We still have plenty to do before the big celebration, so please bear with us if you do not feel we have published every minute detail. If there is something specific that you would like to know please send us an e-mail to the address shown on the 50th website www.50yearsofthe7.co.uk and we will try to give you an answer.

With regard to the recent discussions on Blat Chat, a separate statement answering in detail the questions and issues raised is immanent. This will be posted on BlatChat and on the 50th website.