Meet the best scooter rallyist in the country. Roy Wilson, 23, who recently started a scooter repair business in Greatham Road, Bushey, “scooped the pot” at the weekend when he came out on top of 3,000 other riders at the Southend International Scooter Rally Finals.

Roy, who hails from Leeds, came to Watford to work for Arthur Francis, the scooter dealer in St Albans Road, about 18 months ago – and three weeks ago he branched out on his own, although he is still under Arthur’s wing to some extent.

He is in good company. Arthur himself won the title of British Rally Champion last year.

Roy is a member of the Ace of Herts Scooter Club and with his fellow clubmen he goes rallying – big rallies, often abroad, about once a month. He uses a 200cc GTS Lambretta.

At the moment he has two minor problems: he is running out of room for his 28 cups and umpteen medals in his St Albans Road home and also he doesn’t quite know what he is going to do with the 100 gallons of petrol he was awarded at the weekend as part of his prize.

[From the Watford Observer of September 10, 1965]

For more stories from the Watford Observer’s archive, go to our Nostalgia section by clicking HERE