DEVOTED MEMBERS CATEGORIES
MATT OLLMAN – ROOTES ARCHIVE CENTRE TRUST NATIONAL CAR CLUB UNSUNG HERO OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Footman James
Matt’s efforts in kickstarting and raising funds for the Rootes Archive Centre Trust made him the ‘behind-the-scenes rock star’ that the judges were looking for, beating ten other shortlisted club heroes to the top spot and being chosen unanimously by the judges. Matt has been involved with the project since its launch back in 2015, and so far has helped to raise more than £180,000 to preserve Rootes’ heritage for future generations, and taking care of the legal work and negotiations with the site’s developers. The Wolseley Register’s Bob Langston was also highly commended for overseeing a successful website redesign and managing the register’s spare parts operation.
NIGEL THORLEY – JAGUAR ENTHUSIASTS CLUB NATIONAL CAR CLUB AMBASSADOR OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Meguiar’s
This was awarded to someone who ‘always extols their clubs virtues with a smile and leaves people feeling enthused and compelled to get involved’, and Nigel Thorley’s definitely put the Jaguar Enthusiasts Club in the spotlight over the past 12 months. In fact he was working so hard for the club that he couldn’t even pick up his own prize in person – he was over at the vast Techno Classica show in Essen flying the flag for Jaguar’s classics at that show instead! Both Peter Lee from the Transit Van Club – nicknamed ‘Mr Transit’ on account of how passionate he is about his specialist subject – and the Volvo Enthusiasts’ Club’s Kevin Price were also highly commended by the judges.
BEN HATTON – MG FWD REGISTER NATIONAL CAR CLUB YOUNG MEMBER OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Lancaster Insurance
A new award for 2018, this prize highlighted just how instrumental younger classic fans can be in their clubs’ success stories. Neal Welch, of the Austin A30-A35 Owners’ Club, was highly commended for ‘living and breathing his marque’, and Benjamin Crosby was praised for getting stuck in with racing-puma.co.uk at the age of just 14. But the overall winner was the MG Car Club FWD Register’s Ben Hatton, who was highlighted by fellow classic enthusiasts as being ‘a joy to work with’ in his role as the register’s chair. He’s been instrumental in organising events and was praised for the restoration of his MG Metro.