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Paesi
A grand old Brighton: film stars and electric cars make a memorable Veteran Car Run
1901 Adler leads a pack of veterans into Streatham Hill
The 1905 Spyker débuted its new coat of paint, which replicated that worn in Genevieve
Rare 1902 Covert looked pretty on Marlborough Road
We were pleased to see Dean Baker's ex-Harrah Darracq show up for its first ever Brighton
The Museo dell'Automobile di Torino's c.1900 FIAT is one of the earliest FIATs in existence
1904 Vulcan is a familiar sight on the Brighton Road
Imposing 1899 Daimler is also a regular entrant
Wooden wheels, weather equipment and little doors identify this as a 6½hp 'Royal' Humberette from 1904
1904 Cadillac Model B was running on synthetic fuel
Pint-sized 1901 Georges Richard with an attractive unpainted body
Flickering candles and acetylene flames lit the way on Sunday morning
1903 Clément starred in Genevieve 70 years ago
1901 Pick was built in Stamford, Lincolnshire
Genevieve the 1904 Darracq arrived at Hyde Park in fine health
The 1896 Salvesen steam cart never fails to please spectators
With its 3½hp single-cylinder engine, this 1899 Decauville Voiturelle will have appreciated its early start time
Tim Summers's superb commercial-liveried 1897 Daimler wagonette
The Daimler started next to the Loder family's 1898 Peugeot vis-à-vis
The supremely Victorian 1896 Panhard et Levassor private omnibus abounds with character
Tim Payne looked in high spirits aboard his 1898 Marot Gardon, despite the Salvesen's best efforts to render him invisible
Also ex-Genevieve, with front engine, steering wheel, &c., this 1899 Panhard et Levassor 6hp was one of the earliest 'modern' cars on the run
De Dion dwarfed by Daimler
Harrods famously used electric delivery vans in the 1920s - battery vehicles like this 1901 Waverley are part of a long tradition
Unlike Rover, Humber, Singer, et al., Royal Enfield's forays into car manufacture never really took off
A noble Panhard: 'Le Papillon Bleu' was built for Chevalier René de Knyff
1901 Renault was one of a small handful of cars with racing bodywork
Westminster Bridge never looks better than on the morning of the Brighton Run
1901 Gladiator went well with its 6½hp single-cylinder engine
The Georges Richard was going well through Kennington
The Pick pursues the Gladiator through Stockwell
c.1901 Clément-Panhard leads a pair of De Dions out of Brixton
1901 Darracq represented the oily-rag philosophy
1902 Panhard et Levassor 20hp motors swiftly through Croydon
c.1899 De Dion-Bouton sported an admirable patina
Two Titans of veteran motoring, the 1902 De Dietrich 16hp and 1902 Napier 12hp, round the former Volkswagen headquarters in Purley
The third écurie electrique, the c.1902 Waverley from the Netherlands
1902 Lambert 9hp reaches the centre of Redhill
1901 Darracq 6½hp enlivens the greenery in Earlswood
Genevieve approaches Crawley with the Spyker hot on her tail
The PreWarCar Columbia made it to Brighton after a pleasant and relaxed five-hour drive
The c.1898 Rochet-Schneider vis-à-vis débuted by the Ward brothers proved surprisingly quick on the Brighton Road
1901 Panhard et Levassor 7hp had a freshly-restored look about it
Another Ward brothers entry, the 1901 Decauville made it to Brighton in good time
The Automobile Association's 1905 Renault Model VB phaeton by Rothsschild is always handsomely turned out
1903 Mercedes Simplex 60hp looked a bit lost on the Brighton Run - surely it was looking for the Gordon Bennett?
Sunny spells helped with the happy atmosphere on Madeira Drive
From racing voiturettes to Victorian vis-à-vis and big steam touring cars, the variety was immense
The crew of this 1903 Crestmobile enjoyed a successful run
Charlie Brooks's 1895 Peugeot vis-à-vis was one of three pre-1896 Peugeots
Nowadays, the Brighton weekend starts on the Saturday, with the St. James’s International Concours on Marlborough Road, where we were pleased to see plenty of cars which we’d not encountered before. Dean Baker’s oily-rag 1902 Darracq, a first-time Brighton Runner on which we reported last month, was among them, and so was one of the very first FIATs, a c.1900 vis-à-vis brought along by the Museo dell’Automobile di Torino. It was good to see John Newens’s 1904 7hp Little Star débuting its restoration in period-correct colours ahead of its 65th Run, but it was another fresh restoration which was the concours’ overall winner – the 1897 Daimler of Tim Summers, unusually but attractively finished in the period commercial livery of ‘A. Wright, Carriage Hirer, Bainsford to Stirling’. We were especially pleased to see the Judges’ Overseas Award go to PreWarCar’s friend and technical expert Jos van Genugten and his 1900 Amédée Bollée.
Sunday morning arrived crisp and bright, with Hyde Park awakening to a dawn chorus of chuffs, bangs and whirrs. We were not part of it, though, as the PreWarCar entry, the electric 1902 Columbia kindly loaned to us by Bernard Holmes and driven by Laurens Klein, glided silently through the darkness, its lamps glowing amber, like an apparition from a Victorian ghost story. We hadn’t long to look round the start, though, as our start time of 7.15 placed us among the first cars to depart.
Once underway, it occurred to me that London was practically built for veteran cars. Rolling sedately and with upright dignity past the stuccoed splendour of the Mall, the fanciful Gothicism of the Palace of Westminster and the prosperous townhouses, what could be more natural, horse carriages excepted, than to travel by veteran car through this most historic and elegant of streetscapes? What else could offer the modern thrill of motorised speed and yet still remain appropriately respectful of the serenely beautiful avenues envisaged by John Nash and Decimus Burton?
Our Columbia was one of three electrics on the run, the others being a brace of Waverleys, one brought over from the Netherlands by Fons Jans and the other being the Harrods car, a regular entrant for some years now. Having spent a considerable amount of time at the concours and at traffic lights en route explaining to surprised members of the public that, yes, electric cars were being made 120 years ago, it pleased us to come up behind the Harrods Waverley at one stage of the route and follow it through a couple of towns, confusing spectators with the almost complete absence of noise.
For many participants and spectators alike, however, the stars of the run will have been the 1904 Darracq and the 1905 Spyker from Genevieve, which celebrated its 70th anniversary, as entered by the Louwman Museum. In addition to the two leading ladies, the film’s supporting cast was also honoured and, in total, the 2023 Brighton reunited 10 stars of the landmark film. There was something delightfully sweet about seeing Genevieve and the Spyker running side by side together once again, and the Spyker was even game for some comic misbehaviour. Its refusal to start at the Crawley halfway stop prompted our own Laurens Klein to do his best Kay Kendall impersonation and give it a hearty shove, although fortunately it had not come to rest in an ankle-deep puddle. Ultimately, both the Darracq and the Spyker made it to Brighton, and in very good time, too.
Our own journey aboard the Columbia went smoothly, save for a small issue with the foot switch which was bypassed via the switch in the brake. After driving for five hours or so, not including stops, at an average of about 11mph, we reached Madeira Drive sometime between 1.00 and 1.30, and then whiled away the remaining hours warming ourselves up and swapping notes with the other drivers. Truly, 96 years after the first ‘Old Crocks Race’, there is still no event as fun, as beautiful or as full of camaraderie and goodwill as the Brighton.
Words: Zack Stiling; photos: Morris Klein-Laarman/Zack Stiling
Pubblicato:
giovedì novembre 9th, 2023
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Commenti
Ian Kenny
15 Novembre 2023, 00:39
Like everyone viewing your photos, it was the stimulus for a flood of memories about the film and it was a great sight to see the two stars together once again. Genevieve was resident at Gilltrap’s museum for a number of years until it was repatriated back to England and it was very popular with visitors to the Gold Coast and the highlight of the museum.
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Charles Walmsley
09 Novembre 2023, 13:41
Did you change the batteries half way?
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Laurens
09 Novembre 2023, 17:30
With the current batteries, we made it in one go.
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