I wish to complain in no uncertain terms about the appalling quality of the Croydon Guardian’s article on the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run (Vintage voyagers November 5).
The journalist clearly made no effort to research the subject and any research that they may have done was undermined by their apparent lack of basic comprehension skills.
The article contains four sentences, only one of which does not misinform.
The article is at fault right from the headline, as it describes the cars that participated as “vintage”.
A vintage car is any car produced between January 1919 and December 1930, with a veteran one being built up to 1918 or, as the Run itself prefers, any car built up to December 1904 with those built between 1905 and 1918 classed as Edwardian.
I do not expect the journalist to know that off the top of their head, but when the clue is in the name (the Veteran Car Run), they have no excuse.
They continue: The 118th Run... now in its 118th year... first took place in 1896. 1896 was indeed the year of the Emancipation Run that celebrated the raising of the speed limit and the abolition of the red flag man, but it was just that – the Emancipation Run.
The Veteran Car Run was not held until 1927, as a completely different event held in commemoration of the 1896 run.
After that it has been held annually except for during the war years and the fuel shortage of 1947. I am not a maths expert, but I am quite confident in saying that 2014 marked the 80th run in its 88th year.
The information is all out there and, in the age of the internet, it requires very little effort to find out what I have just written.
Clearly some research has been done with regards to the run “starting” in 1896, but it seems as though the journalist got bored of whatever he was reading and could not be bothered to finish it, because if they had done they would surely have known what I have just pointed out.
I also feel that there was a lot more to be written for one of the most significant events in Croydon’s calendar, with information on some of the participants (eg F1 team principal Ross Brawn), cars (eg Genevieve, the 1904 Darracq from the popular film) and route through Croydon being both of general interest and readily available.
ZACK STILING
By email
- Send your letters to: letters@croydonguardian.co.uk
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