The Great Steamer

The moment it landed in Liverpool, Paul J. Tusek's 1906-model Stanley Steamer turned the first Anglo-American Vintage Car Rally into a private competition with calamity. Like most antique cars, the "Stanley Gentlemen's Speedy Roadster" showed some stubborn and u predictable quirks. Its temperamental burners, which require a mixture of kerosene and gasoline, could not stomach the English brands. Its pilot light went out, steam pressure dropped, and the boiler filled with the fumes of unburned fuel. Tusek (an ex-paratrooper) tried to light things up again, but touched off an explosion that flashed flames all over the car and started the boiler's seams.

After that, there was always the problem of water. Steaming north toward the starting point at Edinburgh, Tusek had to stop every 30 miles to fill his tank at service stations where hoses have not replaced the watering can. By the time he got to Edinburgh he was known as "the man who starts his car with a match and uses a gallon of water a mile."

Paleolithic & Neolithic. As the British Vintage Sports Car Club and the British Travel Association had planned it, last week's rally was to be a leisurely tour. Ten oldtimers from each country--five paleolithic cars (1904 to 1914) and five neolithic cars (1920 to 1930)--would take the Great North Road south through Alnwick and Newcastle, Durham and Dar lington. Along the way they would stop for special competition (i.e., parking, hill climbs, obstacle runs), they would be docked for passing check points early or late, and there would be a Concours d'Elegance (beauty contest).

Such veterans as a 1906 Model K Ford, a 1923 Kissel and a 1925 Alvis made each lap with ease. As far as the spectators were concerned, they were merely pace setters. The crowd was all with Tusek and his scorched, drum-nosed Steamer. Desperately, he got up at dawn each day to tinker with new fuel mixtures. Somehow he managed to keep up with the pack.

Near Cambridge, Tusek won points by proving that his versatile Steamer (a Stanley Steamer once held a speed record of 127.66 m.p.h.) could travel slowest in the "high gear"*contest (0:38.6 for 50 yards). Roadside enthusiasts waited hours in all weather to see him pass. "Do you think it's going to explode now?" hopeful youngsters asked their parents. Cyclists and motorists followed Tusek for miles to see if the Steamer would oblige.

Bright & Brassy. Within sight of Chichester, the Steamer quit for good. Tusek could not work up a head of steam. Polite Britons changed the rules, allowed their opponents to enter a substitute: a bright, brassy 1914 Stutz. Still, the British won almost every event. Even in the Concours d'Elegance, judges looked past the sharp and shiny American paint jobs that dazzled the crowds, lifted hoods, examined brake linings, and awarded the beauty prize to the British. Final score: Britain, 8,376; U.S., 7,001.

*Something of a misnomer, since the Stanley has no transmission. Its engine is geared directly to the rear axle.

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