Hamish was one of the stalwarts of West Surrey. He first rode with the club in 1953 and was Runs Secretary from 1963-69. In 1973 he married Gillian, the daughter of club President and founder member, Bill Inder. In 1987 Hamish’s employer, British Aerospace, was closing its Weybridge site and Hamish was transferred to Filton. At the end of the club’s Annual Report for 1987 Marguerite Statham detailed Hamish’s and Gillian’s considerable contributions to club life. Hamish continued to ride with Bristol CTC, and they both visited Woking from time to time while Bill was alive, not so often thereafter. Hamish joined Russ Mantle on tours to the Lake District etc, both taking boots as well as bikes. He was a good photographer, a regular contributor to W Surrey slide shows. Always good company, Hamish will be missed. Our condolences go out to Gill and the family.
Cycling was Simon’s life. A delightful man with a great sense of humour he was brought up in Guildford and became a leading light in W Surrey District Association (DA) of the CTC (as WSCC was then known) from his teens until he moved north to pursue a full time career in cycling. In 1978 he was the first CTC member to complete the whole route (over 1500 miles) of the CTC Centenary Relay Ride around Great Britain, which he did in 15 days. In 1979 he won the competition to design a new DA enamel badge, a green Surrey oak leaf on a white background with peripheral gold lettering, which proved very popular. Three years later he used the same colours for his design of the first DA jersey. For a few years from 1983 he organised the Tour of the Hills to great effect, showing a flare for publicity and securing sponsorship from FW Evans. He was artistic all his life, providing illustrations and cartoons for numerous cycling publications. He wrote a couple of excellent books – “The Cyclist’s Training Manual: Fitness and Skills for Every Rider” and “The Long Distance Cyclist’s Handbook”. A keen Audax rider, he completed Paris-Brest-Paris in 1983, and in 1984 was one of the successful team that rode from Brindisi to Calais, for which the team won the AUK Merit Award. He became a senior level professional coach with British Cycling, but in 2006 he was hit by a drunk driver as he was cycling to work at the Manchester velodrome. The driver was jailed for 18 months, but that is small consolation for the tragedy which crippled him both physically and mentally for the rest of his life, spent in a care home for the brain-injured. Further information can be found on the Willesden Cycling Club website and CC Woking’s history webpage.