Sport
10 July, 2023
Veteran car club arriving in town on Friday
The Victorian Veteran Car Club is set to embark on a big trip to Maryborough this weekend, holding their mid winter event in the town. The club, formed in 1955, consists of cars, motorbikes and commercial vehicles which were manufactured prior to...
The Victorian Veteran Car Club is set to embark on a big trip to Maryborough this weekend, holding their mid winter event in the town.
The club, formed in 1955, consists of cars, motorbikes and commercial vehicles which were manufactured prior to 1919, with previous rallies held around the state.
This year, however, the decision was made to take the cars through the goldfields, exploring historic towns, while also putting the cars through their paces across the free-flowing highways surrounding the town.
The car club will be taking in the sights and sounds of the town and surrounding areas starting on Friday, July 14, while there will also be an element of competition throughout the weekend when drivers are set to compete in the cold start competition on Sunday morning, an entertaining contest where drivers attempt to start their car in the quickest time using an array of techniques to manually crank start their car.
Members will be driving their cars into town on Friday, with the tour departing from the Bristol Hill Motel, driving through Carisbrook and arriving at the Maryborough Railway Station for coffee and photos.
From there, Saturday sees the cars lined up at Maryborough Velodrome, before driving around the Tullaroop Reservoir into Creswick.
After the cold start competition on Sunday, drivers will embark on a journey to Bung Bong, before finishing at the Talbot Farmers’ Market.
Victorian Veteran Car Club president Ben Alcock believed Maryborough was the perfect location to host the mid winter tour.
“The historic gold mining town is an ideal location with surrounding quiet roads, that their 120-year-old vehicles will be at home at in the tranquil country side,” he said.
Over 40 veteran vehicles are expected to make the trip, with entrants coming from New South Wales, Tasmania and all around Victoria.
The event, while advertised as a rally, isn’t about speed, with most cars travelling at around 55 km/h at their fastest.
Cars that are entered include a 1909 Italia, 1911 Stower, an array of Buicks and Ford Model T’s, widely renowned as the first mass-produced car in 1908.
The rally will also feature event organiser Scott Emmerson’s 1912 Cadillac, which visited the town last week in preparation for the event.
The Cadillac is a four-cylinder motor, with the first electric starter motor and electric lights in a production car.