A long call from Sussex

An AJS with a hidden history led to a long weekend away for its current owner.

- ALAN TURNER

The Hellingly Festival of Transport is held annually (well, it is in a normal year…) at a suitably large field close to the village of that name on the outskirts of Eastbourne, East Sussex.

Like most of these occasions, from models to full-size traction engines, all types of heritage transport can be found and motorcycles are no exception. For many years, that part of the show was marshalled by Bert Wright, who performed similar duties at other local events, such as Hooe, another local village, and even a show at Drusilla’s Zoo Park. Bert was an arch enthusiast and, supported by wife Betty, would find any excuse to ride or be involved with bikes until he passed away in 2015.

The family involvement with the Hellingly Festival continues yet as Betty handles the paperwork and her granddaughter helps organise the ‘motorcycle pen.’

At the 2019 Hellingly gathering, there was a 1952 500cc, AJS Model 18, perhaps not immediately eye-catching among the lines of assorted classic and vintage two-wheelers. However, in front of the bike was an illustrated information board that revealed some unusual provenance from one particularly interesting period of the bike’s history when it formed part of Bert Wright’s collection.