Bridge is a sport

Fifty years ago, I was at Cambridge University. Traffic in the city center was so bad that the university banned students from running motor vehicles, and every hour, on the hour, a flock of bicycles appeared as undergraduates, gowns flying out behind them, travelled from lecture to lecture. And I was one of them.

Gowns, yes, Under certain circumstances, you were required to wear your academic gown; most people just wore them all the time, it was easier than trying to follow the rules.

But I owned a moped. A Mobylette, 50cc, top speed 30 mph, one gear, pedals for extra acceleration. A moped that I wasn't allowed to use.

But I found a loophole. The president of a college sporting club was allowed to run a motor vehicle. So I created the Fitzwilliam Bridge Club, which was rather small in membership (i.e., only me) and I was the president. And I went to the Powers That Be with this information, and asked for a motor vehicle licence. And to my amazement, they accepted my claim that bridge is a sport, and granted the licence. So I spent the rest of my time there buzzing about on a moped, which, since Fitzwilliam is at the top of the long, steep and tedious Castle Hill, was a major benefit.

Fifty years later, it turns out that I was right to claim that bridge is a sport.