DOWN MEMORY LANE: More about exploits of popular Motorcycle Club

In the white overalls, back row, second from right, is John Cate.

In the front row kneeling and furthest right is Alan Morgan. John Cate was my godfather and together with Alan Morgan and another gentleman, Waller, founded CMW motorcycles in small premises in Lavant. Waller left the partnership to emigrate to Australia and John and Alan moved the business to the Hornet where of course CMW still operates.

My godfather, John left the partnership in the late 1950s and purchased the garage at Elbridge which was a BP garage. This he ran for many years until he retired to a pub in Kington, Herefordshire.

While at Elbridge Garage, BP installed the very first coin-operated petrol pump in the UK! When the installation was complete Graham Hill, the world champion racing driver, was invited to come and officially open it.

He arrived in his Mk II Jaguar and duly inserted two half crowns (two and sixpences) or five bob. And pumped a gallon of petrol into his car.

John died in the early 1980s but Alan Morgan died fairly recently after a car crash near Chilgrove and Alan’s son Richard continues to run CMW motorcycles in the Hornet to this day.

My eldest brother, John Potter, has identified the man smoking a pipe as Bob Goodridge, who had the motorcycle and bicycle shop in Market Road known as Goodridges, opposite the entrance to the Market car park.

More memories

The photographs also caught the eye of Julia Boarer (nee Bennett) of Felpham who sent in the photos above, and writes:

In the photograph of the group I can help with a couple of details.

My father and mother are both in the picture.

My father, Gordon Bennett (born in Bognor in 1906) is in the back row third from right and my mother, Dorothy Bennett, is on the left in the centre of the picture – she used to ride in sidecar events.

They were both members of the club during the 1920s, 30s and 40s.

Some of the other members might be Fred West, Ernie Towers, Vincent Burgess, or Edward Lillywhite, but I cannot tell you which they are.

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