The Old Crocks run

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Wed 13 Oct 2004 14:58
The Old Crocks run - helicopter
I just realised that the Veteran Cars London to Brighton Run is nearly here again - I believe it is first Sunday (7th) in November.

For anyone who has not seen it I can recommend it as the best free car show in the world, not just for the old motors on the run but also for the exotica driven by the enthusiasts following the cars.I will guarantee a long list for the 'unusual sightings 'thread

A warm coat ,a flask of coffee , some bacon sarnies and stand near any slight upward slope on the A23 and you will have a wonderful day out. The hotel carparks around Gatwick are a good viewpoint as the drivers stop to warm up and do running repairs.

Anybody else in the backroom taking part or watching from the sidelines?
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Wed 13 Oct 2004 22:56
The Old Crocks run - Sofa Spud
Since cars need to have been built before 1st Jan 1905 to enter the Brighton Run, this year all the cars might well be over 100 years old for the first time. OK, there might be one or two 99 year,10 month old ones that slip in.

In fact the London to Brighton website says that one or two 'out-of-period' cars are sometimes allowed to run, at the organisers' discretion. Maybe a 1978 Moskvitch might be eligible!

cheers, Sofa Spud
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Wed 13 Oct 2004 23:40
The Old Crocks run - Imagos
An event i've never ever seen but curious to see ever since watching genevieve as a child. Where 'specifically' would be the best place to view??

On a more general note, as time marches on the cut off date (1905?) seems to be drifting futher and further away. Why not have a rolling qualifying date each year say vehicle has to be at least 95 years old or that is too much of a no no for the old boys?

Just imagine in 2100 any car built today would qualify.. hmmm
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Wed 13 Oct 2004 23:44
The Old Crocks run - Altea Ego
Sorry, went to hyde park to see them off early one morning, and all I got was cold wet and bored.
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Thu 14 Oct 2004 10:26
The Old Crocks run - helicopter
The Hyde Park start is too early for me.

I used to watch at Redhill where ,as the name implies, there is a quite steep hill on the A23 which is a challenge to the average 90 years old plus motors and the passengers often have to get out and push or take a run at it.

There are various hotels at Gatwick which is about half way which offer sustenance to the usually wet and frozen drivers and the car parks are used for running repairs.

Going to the car park to watch the team from Beaulieu brazing a pipe or an old steamer being stoked up for the next part of the run is fascinating to me. You see various famous faces - Derek Warwick when he was driving for Renault took part in the run in IIRC an old Renault incapable of going much more than 10 mph - some would say that nothing much has changed in 90 years ( Sorry RF ).

The other fascination is the various cars which follow - I have seen D type Jags, Old Bentleys, Lagondas, Rileys , Wolseleys in fact just about any old motor you care to mention..
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Thu 14 Oct 2004 17:38
The Old Crocks run - Stuartli
At least the majority of such cars had character, fascinating idionosyncracies and could be serviced "on the fly" unlike today.
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What's for you won't pass you by
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Thu 14 Oct 2004 23:31
The Old Crocks run - Sofa Spud
>>Just imagine in 2100 any car built today would qualify.. hmmm

The Brighton Run qualifying date is fixed at cars built before 1905.

Now there's 16 years' worth of centenarian motoring history, spanning the period 1888 to 1904. It would be interesting to see a new annual motoring occasion to celebrate the cars built exactly one hundred years ago - e.g. next year it would be cars built in 1905 (the oldest cars not eligible for the Brighton run, appropriately), the following year cars built in 1906. The event could be linked with an annual exhibition 'Motoring One Hundred Years Ago'.

Cheers, Sofa Spud
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