The volunteers have been fairly active recently away from
our current restoration project – the 1960 Standard Ensign. Accompanying some
of the Heritage Motor Centre’s collection of cars we’ve attended both the
Stratford-on-Avon Festival of Motoring and the new Coventry Carfest event. Not
only attending and looking after the cars, but also having the opportunity to
drive them to these events.
However, two events worth a more detailed mention were the
Heritage Motor Centre’s 21st Birthday Party and our own Classic Car
event.
To celebrate the 21st anniversary of the opening
of the centre, over 100 VIP guests were invited to drive, or be driven, in 21
of the collections rarest, ground breaking, historic, or just plain odd cars.
The latter category included Lady Penelope’s pink 6 wheeled Thunderbirds car. Other
vehicles for this Ride and Drive event were an Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire,
Rover Marauder, Alvis TE21, Triumph Lynx prototype, the first Morris Minor,
Paddy Hopkirk’s 1964 Monte Carlo winning Mini Cooper and the noisy 1927 Leyland
Straight 8.
Volunteers
ready for duty The
first sod is cut for the new museum
A ballot was necessary as just seven volunteers were
required to assist at this event, which meant we would be given the chance to
drive some of these cars. This presented the lucky ones with the challenge of
learning or re-learning the art of gear changing on non synchro gearboxes and
adapting to some very vague steering systems. As one volunteer Roger King
remarked, his dream came true that day, as he’d been able to tick something off
his bucket list – the opportunity to actually drive Hopkirk’s historic winning
Mini Cooper.
The day ended with the cutting of the first sod for the
construction of the new Museum Collections Centre – something the volunteers
will be a crucial part of when it opens in late 2015. Here you will find details of the 21 Years,21 Icons exhibition which is running at the museum until the end of
September and well worth a look at.
Also worth a look at was our own Classic Car event, held
alongside the Gaydon Spring Classic. Around twenty volunteers brought their own
classic cars to Gaydon which ranged from a tiny 1965 Fiat 500 to a large 1955
Oldsmobile 88. MGs were the most popular with a couple of TFs, a 1971 MGB, a
1955 TD and a 1938 TA. Also making an appearance was a 1955 Standard 10, a 1964
MkII Jaguar, a Ferrari 308 GTB and the oldest, a 1934 Morris 10/4.
Little and large in
the background with 1934 Morris and 1938 MG at the front
The day commenced with bacon sandwiches in the Junction 12
cafe, followed by a series of vehicle awareness tests. Well organised by Roger
King and assisted by Brian Rainbow the tests provided good entertainment and a
worthy winner in John Rathbone and his MG. We then set off on a 40 mile drive
to Kingsbury Water Park. The route was meticulously planned by Brian Jackson
who provided a full “tulip” style rally set of instructions which took us
through some of Warwickshire’s best countryside. On arrival at Kingsbury we had
our own area cordoned off for a welcome picnic lunch in glorious weather.
Special thanks for this and the steam train rides must go to Malcolm Graham,
plus a big thank you to Sonja, our co-ordinator for putting the whole day
together.
If you fancy entering your own classic car in a similar
event then why not enter the Autumn Classic, Gaydon Fringe & Cream Tea Runon 21st September – details here