Dave Tooley
by Marten Holdway
Dave was my best pal at the club, I was always round his Dads Garage while he was building his latest Scooter. Dave's Dad was a superb engineer and was meticulous about the reimbursement projects, stripping the machine down to the last nut and bolt. After his LD Dave had a series 2 lambretta bog brushed Grey and Red, in fact if I remember he used this bike at his first outing with the Wildcat 158 engine.
The racing members of the club were really only Dave, Keith Champion and me so we used to join up with the Hampshire Union guys to travel to the meetings, we all used to get on well, very well as I remember on some trips.
Dave at Snetterton

We all used to cram into the back of an old Transit in between the bikes and off to the various meetings around the country.
We continued as friends long after our scooter club days, in fact he was my best man. We both worked for Plesseys, and would often spend a pleasant Sunday Lunchtime at the Clubhouse with our wives and children. (Dave's Claire, and My Mark.
We are both divorced now and I am a Grandad, but I still remember the good old days. Well, most of them. You know what they say about the sixties...
'Dave adds' Summer of '69 My first year of membership in the Solent city Scooter Club was a pretty hectic one.
It coincided with my early June departure from Prices Grammar School in Fareham after completing my 'O' level exams, which left me with a considerable amount of time on my hands through the long hot summer of '69. (isn't that a song?)
I had no intention of returning back for the sixth form regardless of my results, since I desperately wanted some money in my pocket to finance my new found love of 2 wheeled transport, so I was determined to get a job that Autumn. This surplus of summer time allowed me to get involved with pretty much every single meeting, rally, race and social event attended by the club that year. Since club points were dished out on a sliding scale linked to an individuals attendance in club activities, I managed to accrue enough points to achieve 3rd place in the Club Championship. Something I was very proud of considering the large volume of club members and lowly stature of my little Lambretta Ld 125cc compared to the mighty GT and SX200's I was challenging. I was only pipped by the club chairman Mick Estlick (who naturally attended everything, since he organised it all) and Keith Champion who was racing the Works Wildcat 150cc X5 multiport in National events at the time.

Dave Tooley’s life in brief
1970 Started 5 year Machine-Shop apprenticeship at Plessey’s in Titchfield
1974 Moved from Fareham to Portchester after buying a bungalow there.
1975 Married my girl friend of 3 years.
1978 Daughter was born on February 21st.
1988 Moved to a cripplingly expensive detached house in a posher part of Portchester.
1992 Wife bailed out, so brought up daughter alone.
1995 Finally got divorced.
2002 Made redundant from Titchfield location after 32 years – man and boy. Daughter left university and started a career in Teaching. Worked briefly in the Formula One industry.
2003-2005 Worked at Eaton Aerospace as Quality Engineer on Aircraft hydraulics after having a year off.
2006-2007 Working as Quality Engineer with Lockheed Martin on the integration of weapons systems for the British Navy’s Merlin Helicopter.
Dave's 50th he's rat-arsed.
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