Wednesday - August 05, 2009

Beloved brass dog that sat on a car bonnet for 50 years… until elf ‘n’ Safety got a sniff

The place just keeps getting more and more bizarre.  I’m left wondering just who the person was and what they may look like, who took the time to call the authorities about this.  More then likely a person who snoops on neighbors and as a kid was the one to squeal to teacher on other kids.

You may have another take on it so here. See what you think of this.

The beloved brass dog that sat on a car bonnet for 50 years… until elf ‘n’ Safety got a sniff

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:19 PM on 05th August 2009

For 50 years, the small boxer dog Colonel faithfully sat on the bonnet of every car his owner drove.

From Ford Cortinas, to Lotus and even a Jaguar - but sadly no Rovers or Porsche Boxers - the little brass model was a constant companion to 86-year-old former rally driver Raymond Smith.

But now Health and Safety has got its claws into Colonel, and he has been ordered to the dog house as he is ‘a danger to pedestrians and illegal’.

Raymond has now been forced to remove the two-inch-long chrome-plated dog after the police warned him of the dangers.

He was threatened with a £50 fine and having his licence endorsed with five penalty points if he ignored them.

Raymond, from Dorset, said: ‘Nobody has taken any notice of it for 50 years, it was harmless.

‘But someone who I must have crossed swords with over parking or something has reported me to the police. They told them I had a dangerous dog on my car.  ‘I got a call from the police and I thought somebody was having me on.

‘So I called in to the station and a traffic officer told me it was illegal as it was a potential danger to pedestrians and I had to get rid of it.

‘It is stupid - it seems quite ridiculous.’

Raymond, a retired mechanic and test driver for Fiat, had the model dog made in honour of Colonel who he and his wife Faye had as a pet in the 1950s.

The object is screwed firmly onto the bonnet and is similar to the iconic Rolls Royce figurine.

He has had numerous prangs, all of which Colonel survived without a scratch.

Raymond said: ‘We got Colonel in 1949 and had him for about 10 years. I called him that because my sister had a Labrador called Major and so I wanted to go one better.

‘He was such a lovable dog that when he died I sent a photo of him to this company in London and they made an exact model from the picture.

‘I’ve been driving around with him on the front of my car ever since we had him made.  ‘He’s sat on about 50 different cars and attended rallies all over Europe with me. He survived some pretty bad scrapes in his time.

‘When I had a head-on crash with a tractor in the French Alps my main concern after me and the other driver was for Colonel.

‘I nearly lost him in Germany in 1954. Somebody tried to pull him off but he was too well screwed down.’
Raymond and his faithful friend: The former rally driver fell foul of Elf ‘n’ Safety

Raymond, who served with the RAF in World War Two, said Colonel had been in his usual position on the front of his current Fiat Panda until somebody reported it to the police.

He said: ‘I don’t know why somebody reported me. Nobody has ever taken any notice of him before. He’s not a sharp object and he wasn’t doing any harm.

‘But I had no choice.  ‘I feel rather sad about it. Whenever I drive I am used to seeing him sat out on the front of the bonnet leading the way.’

Raymond, who has been driving since 1938, has now positioned Colonel on the parcel shelf on the back of his car.

PC Terry Swain, of Dorchester traffic police, said: ‘Objects on the bonnets of Mercedes and Rolls Royces are designed to bend or come off in crashes.

‘Fixed, solid objects on bonnets are a safety issue because they can cause increased injury to pedestrians if they were in a collision and rolled over the bonnet.’

STOOL PIGEON SOURCE

Posted by peiper     on 08/05/2009 at 06:39 AM   
Filed Under: • Daily Life • Nanny State • UK •  
• Comments (13) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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