There are many classic events that can be guaranteed to attract impressive numbers of attendees, either as participants or spectators. Surely, the daddy of them all has to be the Sunbeam MCC’s Pioneer Run.
The 2023 event, On October 1, was the 83rd such occasion when two- and three-wheeled machines, all manufactured before 1915, made their respective ways from (nominally) London to Brighton. Since 1930, when the first run started from near Croydon Airport, the route is now from Tattenham Corner, on Epsom Downs, to Brighton City Airport, changes reflecting the growth of the cities at either end of the run and the colossal increase in traffic volumes.
Both modern era start and finish add to the sense of history. Epsom was the site of the first recorded horse race in 1616, while Shoreham is the world’s oldest commercial airport, and the first flight from that location took place in 1910. Separating the two venues is around 45 miles of mostly veteran
