Skip to content

Vintage motorcycle run celebrates 75th anniversary

Gavin Kermack
BBC News, West Midlands
British Motor Museum A man wearing a blue crash helmet with motorcycle goggles on it is riding a vintage motorcycle along a road. He is wearing a light brown bomber jacket and is smiling at the camera and waving a gloved hand.British Motor Museum
About 300 vintage motorcycles are taking part in the event

A three-wheeled motorcycle dating from the nineteenth century is among hundreds of vintage bikes taking to the roads and streets of Warwickshire this weekend.

The 75th annual Banbury Run, organised by the Vintage Motor Cycle Club (VMCC) since 1949, will see about about 300 motorcycles setting off from the British Motor Museum on Sunday morning.

All the bikes were manufactured before 31 December 1930.

"It's much more fun to ride a very old bike at 30mph than a modern bike at 70mph," said the VMCC's Bob Clark. "You don't have all the modern aids."

British Motor Museum A number of vintage motorcycles, most of them black but one bright red, standing in a line in what looks like a car park. People are milling around and there is a row of gazebos in the background.British Motor Museum
The motorcycles will be on display outside the British Motor Museum before and after the ride out

Each motorcycle will be take one of four routes, depending on its age.

All bikes except the very oldest - those dating from before the First World War - will brave Sun Rising Hill, near Tysoe, which Mr Clark said was officially classed as "steep" because of its gradient.

It is also where most spectators gather to watch the vehicles pass.

"We have a group of what we call 'pushers' on the steepest part of the hill, just in case anyone fluffs their gears and is about to come to a halt," he said.

Peter Wileman A vintage three-wheeled vehicle being ridden by a woman wearing a crash helmet. Sitting in front of her as a passenger is an elderly woman, also wearing a crash helmet and glasses. They are travelling along a road lined with crowds of people standing behind a barrier.Peter Wileman
The oldest motorcycle in the event dates from 1897

The oldest vehicle in the event is a three-wheeler built in France in 1897, ridden by a woman in her late 70s and carrying a passenger in her 80s.

Another, known as the Dreadnought, dates from 1902 and is the world's oldest-surviving motorcycle built for the long-distance road trials of the Edwardian period.

"This is a bike with one gear, no clutch, and primitive brakes," said Mr Clark. "And they were doing things like London to Edinburgh on that.

"The fascination is copying the early years of motoring, when they were doing these tests to prove to the buying public that the things that they were about to buy – cars and bikes – were reliable."

Bob Clark A man with short blonde hair, wearing glasses, a blue shirt and blue jeans, stands smiling at the camera behind a black and red motorcycle.Bob Clark
Bob Clark - pictured with a slightly older bike than those in the Banbury Run - said the motorcycles taking part lacked most of the features found on modern machines

Speedometers were not required by law until 1936, added Mr Clark, meaning most motorcycles taking part would not have them.

"The core of the run is people competing against themselves to do the distance, without making a navigational error, on the route that is set out for you, at an average speed that's been decided for you.

"With a primitive and temperamental machine, with limited power, and limited brakes, it can really be quite a tall order."

British Motor Museum A man wearing a deerstalker-type hat and a tweed jacket rides a vintage motorcycle. He is wearing red tinted glasses and has a pipe hanging out of his mouth. Another person is sitting on the bike behind him.British Motor Museum

The motorcycles will be available to view outside the British Motor Museum from 09:00 BST on Sunday before they start setting off an hour later.

They will start returning from about 12:00 BST and will again be on display until 16:00 BST.

Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.

More on this story
Related internet links