Amazingly, I managed to lever myself out of bed at 7:45 on a Sunday morning. I was going to do something that I hadn’t done since I was a kid with my dad – go and watch the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. For those that aren’t familiar with this event, it’s a pleasingly eccentric event that commemorates the Locomotives on Highways act 1896, when the 4 mph (2mph in towns!) speed limit was removed, as was the requirement for an escort to walk 20 yards in front of vehicles in town.  The event has been run every year since, and starts at sunrise in Hyde Park London and finishes in Preston Park, Brighton. In order to be eligible, the cars must be built before 1905 – these are seriously old machines.

Since the route pretty much follows the A23, which is really close to where we live, I thought I should make the effort go and watch. It was a cold but thankfully dry day. I found a spot and it wasn’t long before the first cars chugged into sight. I was lucky to get there in time to see a Darracq named “Genevieve” and a Spyker that were the stars of the 1953 movie Genevieve (images 3 and 4).

It was fantastic to see some really beautifully cared for old cars being used. Some of the passengers looked to be enjoying things rather less than I was – they must have been freezing! Many of the drivers and passengers managed a wave as they went past – some looked to be rather too busy operating some rather complicated control mechanisms!

Below are a few of the photos I took: