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RAC connection
Here are the photographs of my grandad, Robert William Hustler, and great uncle Norman George Powling. Grandad was an RAC patrolman while great uncle was from the Powling family of Ipswich, who were builders in and around the Suffolk town, and have a road, Powling Road, named after them.
Mat Swallow, email, East Anglia.
Thanks, Mat, for sight of your family photos. RAC patrol motorcycles are rarer than AA examples, and it is believed the Royal Automobile Club used fewer motorcycles than the Automobile Association. The RAC was founded in 1897 by Frederick Simms to provide roadside assistance and is now owned by CVC Capital Partners and GIC Private Ltd. The AA was formed eight years later, in 1905, and is currently owned by Tower Brook Capital and Warburg Pincus.
Many remember spotting RAC and AA patrolmen on the road driving their BSA M21-powered outfits during the 1950s. Often they saluted members when they saw an appropriate RAC or AA badge proudly fastened to car grills or motorcycle front forks.
After the launch of the Mini van, both concerns soon started replacing their motorcycle outfits with the new, small van. Some patrolmen clung onto their outfits for as long as possible, while a few bought their last outfit from their employers.
1 – CC 5742 – RAC outfit
Grandad Hustler looks pretty pleased
