The sun shone and the crowds flocked to watch the 110th Anniversary LBVCR, lining the 60-mile route to cheer and clap the 492 participants and their pre 1905 veteran cars. All down the route people flocked to the roadside to see these magnificent machines in action.
Classic Car Clubs got into the spirit of the event, lining the route with their own car displays, while children dressed up and held aloft homemade signs saying ‘Honk if you’re happy’ and ‘We love the London to Brighton’.
While the LBVCR is not a race, there is always the challenge of being the first car to Brighton while keeping to the average 20mph speed limit required by the rules. The first car to reach the finish on Madeira Drive was John Bentley (323) from Mexico City driving a 1903 Berliet Closed swing-seat tonneau arriving in the sunshine at 10:35, three hours, forty minutes after leaving Hyde Park. “It was beautiful! Clear roads, nice weather and lots of people out on the route cheering us along. It was great.”
“The crowds that we’ve seen along the route today have been biggest for many years,” said LBVCR Event Director Roger Etcell. “This event is a visual spectacle and the sunny weather has helped encourage people to come out in their thousands. The participants, many from Australia, United States, Canada, South Africa and China, have really enjoyed the atmosphere along the route and have got into the spirit by returning peoples waves, some have dressed in period costume and they all enjoy talking to the public about the unique history of their cars. In Regent Street yesterday, Hyde Park, Crawley and here in Brighton today, the public have witnessed one of the greatest motoring events in the world, an event Britain should be very proud of.”