Powderham Castle

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PAUL JOLLY: OLD ONES ARE THE BEST

Powderham Castle and its glorious parkland setting saw the 49th
Historic Vehicle Gathering on the 13th/14th of July. It is the largest
single event in the West Country of its type featuring over 1000
diverse and varied vehicles plus stall holders.

The Crash Box and Classic Car Club is to be commended for its
continuing dedication to charitable causes. The weekend is entirely
managed by the members on a not-for-profit basis with over £20,000
going to, among others, the Royal Devon Hospitals Charity, Veterans
with Dogs (Exeter) and Teignmobility.

Over the years, it was estimated over £200,000 was raised for local
charities through this event alone.

The selection of fabulous classic cars was as to be expected, quite
superb and a treat for all, but the other displays were in many ways
more remarkable. To bring along a ‘20 tonne plus’ steam traction
engine built before World War 1 either by slow road under its own
steam (pardon the literal pun) or by low loader HGV requires a
herculean effort by the dedicated owners and helpers with these
incredible machines from our early automotive industrial heritage.
Today’s youngsters will have been in awe at these puffing noisy
monsters and I cannot imagine quite what the children made of them
all. The miniature steamers were also quite fascinating and cute which
again shows true dedication and hours of labour for their owners. We
have to be grateful for the opportunity to witness them all in action.

Sunday provided perfect conditions for arena displays of Commercial
vehicles, Steam Engines, Motorcycles and Scooters, Farm and Military
vehicles, all of which were rewarded with class prizes. Classic Cars
and Car Clubs also received recognition to reflect the immense effort
put in by so many individuals. The icing on the cake was to be
personally awarded their prizes by Lady Devon, Dowager Countess of
Devon who took great interest in each exhibit even if some were a bit
beyond her comprehension. I mean, who actually knows precisely what an
1895 Burrell Single Crank Compound full-size steamer actually was
built for?
Thank you to all contributors.