2024 London to Brighton Veterans Car Run

NOTE: The time stamps in the above video are an hour fast; hadn’t adjusted them for Daylight Savings Time

So I’m talking to my friend and partner in Penny-Farthing crime Christian Richards- the engineer up in Hull who made my 54″ Singer Challenge replica. He phoned me on 28 Oct to ask about our friend Ed Knight’s memorial Penny-Farthing ride. He tells me theVeteran’s Car Rally (“VCR”) is happening in 6 day’s time on 03 Nov 2024 time; do I want to go…

Me: “Sounds nice. How long is the ride & who’s going?”

Christian: “60 miles. Just me and I’m loaning Doug (Reed) an antique Penny-Farthing to ride. You want to join us?“

Me: “60 miles?!?!?!? I’ve done oogatz since Knutsford last September; been too busy with work to do any training. Nah, I’ll pass“

Christian: “You’ll be fine, just go with us!“

Me: “I’m a fat, unfit bastard; I must’ve gained 10 lbs since Knutsford chained to my desk!“

Christian: “You’ll be fine, just go with us!“

Me: OK. Doctor actually just told me exercise will do me some good. Where do I register?“

Christian: “You can’t register. Only bikes 1905 or earlier can be registered.”

So I booked a hotel in Brighton and a rental van for Saturday 02 Nov. On Saturday night I threw my Richards of England “Singer Challenge” replica in it and headed to Brighton with the Wifey & her mom.

I met Christian about 2000 on 02 Nov to fit a new saddle he crafted for me. After he changed the saddle, I had a meal with the Wifey & mother-in-law in the hotel restaurant and I grabbed 3 hours shut-eye.

Sunday, 03 Nov: 0230 alarm goes off on my phone. Got dressed and toodled to Brighton’s train station with wi RoE Singer Challenge PF to meet Christian to travel to London Victoria Station.

After arriving at Victoria Station we hopped on our Penny-Farthings and made our way to Hype Park for the 0645 cyclists start time.

NOTE: The Helmet Camera’s time is off by exactly 1 hour in this screenshot; forgot to set it.

Being an unregistered, outlaw cyclist, I had to wait just outside Hype Park for the registered riders to start pouring out and jump-in with them. It was slightly chilly & most importantly DRY; perfect weather a long cycle like this. When you’re hoofing it for nearly 60 miles, you’ll warm-up soon enough.

Asshole bus driver was intentionally blocking me from passing into the lane.

0657 Parliament Square: This is my first time doing this cycle, so I needed to keep up with the peloton or risk getting lost. The VCR really mark the route well, but it’s easy to miss a sign with your head swivelling to respond to other road users. This as*hole (see how masking a single letter with an asterisk made using that word magically acceptable?!?!) bus driver intentionally tried to block me out and not let me finish passing which would have forced me into opposing traffic. The Highway Code is clear: Road users MUST yield to a more vulnerable road user! But this is typical of cycling in London- or any large city- So not even 15 minutes into the 2024 and not off a great start with another 5.5 hours to go 😉

Crusing through Brixton on our way to Brighton

0719 Brixton: We slip through Brixton while all sensible people are still in their beds at this unreasonable hour on a Sunday Morning.

0734 First Classic Car passes the cyclists:

0750 Thornton Heath, London: Doug had a seat malfunction on his antique Penny-Farthing requiring a short pitstop. Do we have tools? Of course we have tools…

Thornton Heath: Doug posing while Christian is turning the wrenches!

0820 Purley, London: In Purley, Christ Church Purley lays-on tea, bacon rolls & CLEAN toilets for the VCR riders, of which are mainly beautiful classic cars & motorcycles. Antique bicycles are actually a tiny part of the VCR participants. This is mainly an event to celebrate the enduring beauty of classic cars and if that is your thing, this is classic car porn. There are even STEAM powered cars taking part in the rally and they fill their water tanks up here.

1st Tea & bacon roll pitstop @ Christ Church, Purley.

Notice my attire standing next to felow cyclist “Penelope Pitstop” (she was riding a safety bicycle however). One of us is clearly dressed in the wrong uniform and it happens to be me 🙄. Christian failed to tell me that all the VCR participant’s dress in period costume. BTW, she was going so fast that I’m sure she managed to evade her arch nemesis “The Hooded Claw“. Big thanks to www.christchurchpurley.org.uk for all their kind hospitality. After choking down a bacon roll and washing it down with a cup of tea, we were off again.

1031 We reach the Official VCR halfway pitstop. Following Christian into the pitstop. So with a 0645 start, after ~3.75 hours we’re about ~30 miles into the ride. But we had a stop at Purley for ~25 minutes and were pedalling leisurely in a group. After this rest stop, there’s no foofing around and we start picking up the pace until the finish.

1235 Christian & I hit Cuckfield. Doug was still at the Pitstop when we departed it, so just the two of us now.

1326 at Pycombe the VCR joins a busy 4-lane motorway. Which of course is fine if you’re driving a car, but a bit hairy riding a 5′ high Penny-Farthing 😱. Another small detail Christian forgot to mention to me 😉. At some point I lost Christian, so just cycling by myself now and leaning into it.

1331 on the A23: It’s all getting a bit “Wacky Racers” now. Here I’m being passed by some German rally goers. IT was a bit too chilly for lederhosen it must be said.

1332: After about 5 minutes of cycling- at a pretty nippy pace– the cones end and the VCR riders have to merge into the inside 2 lanes to remain on the A23 to travel into Brighton.

Cycling on a 4-Lane Motorway: Not a view most Penny-Farthing cyclists- or any cyclists- ever expect to see…

“And it’s the Anthill Mob in number 7, the Chugga-bug using ‘getaway power’ in the OUTSIDE lane to pass Penny-Farthing Guy!” And the driver in the Range Rover trailing behind me is thinking: “WTF-Am I seeing a Penny-Farthing on a motorway?!?!?” Yes, it was getting all a bit surreal and Wacky Racer-ish by this point…

1333 I finally hit Brighton. I’m still cycling on my own and have never been to Brighton before. So I have no idea how far it is to the finish at the sea front and hoping the route is well marked..

1352 Went Wrong: There were no other cyclists or cars around me and I spotted a classic car (6 cars ahead of the “police” car), so turned and started followed it. Unfortunately, this car finished the VCR much earlier and was now LEAVING. D’Oh! 🤦‍♂️. By the time I realized this and turned around, it cost me ANOTHER 2 minutes (I went wrong a few times after the halfway pitstop…).

The famous Brighton Pavillion just 2 minutes from the finish at the seaside

1359 at the Finish!: Erm, not quite. Remember in the beginning of the story about replica’s not being eligible for registration and me having to wait outside Hyde Park? Well, the finish is equally well marshalled. Here I am getting told-off by a VCR steward for trying to cross the finishline. Ohhhh, she were 10 types of MAD! 😱

Here the steward is shouting at here colleague to close the barrier and not let me in. Which of course is fair enough as I’m unregistered and this is a celebration of beautiful antique cars and bicycles. I could have drafted-in behind a registered vehicle, but that would be shitty and it was the right thing to do as I was told and stop just outside the official VCR finishline. It was wonderful experience being a part of the VCR- albeit as an unregistered outlaw rider-and I really just went to cycle with friends, so I didn’t need to actually cross the finishline.

But the story didn’t end at the finishline….

So I get a message from Christian after Christmas with an image attachment: It is me, the outlaw Penny-Farthing cyclist on the VCR’s official Christmas card riding my 54″ Richard’s of England “Singer Challenge”: