There’s nothing better than having an adventure in your classic; I get a real buzz from driving to far flung destinations with friends. My MG has taken me to Spa, Le Mans and the Nurburgring, but not without incident. Clutches have given out just yards from the ferry, while fuel pumps have been changed at the side of the road in pitch darkness.
No surprise then that I jumped at the chance to undertake a real adventure: Club Triumph’s biennial Round Britain Reliability Run. Every two years a ragtag bunch of Triumph nuts set off on an epic 48-hour, 2000+ mile tour of England, Wales and Scotland, taking in the extremes of Land’s End and John O’Groats, with the aim to complete the rally with little more than control stops and the odd loo break.
Of course, my MG fails to qualify on two counts: it’s not a Triumph, and is quite obviously unreliable. Fortunately, my friend and co-driver Matt George has just the tool – his 1972 Triumph 2000 saloon, complete with myriad performance upgrades including a gutsy 2.5-litre straight-six. As well as taking a starring role at my own wedding, it’s a proven finisher having completed the RBRR twice before. As has Matt, and third driver Steve Cooper. That leaves me as the only factor to put doubt in the bookies’ minds.
I have to confess to turning down Matt’s invitation to join him on the run at least twice before. Once due to events beyond my control, and once because – and don’t tell anyone – I’m a bit scared. The thought of driving effectively non-stop for nearly two days is an intimidating one, especially for someone who can’t even sleep on a long-haul flight. Eventually, though, I ran out of excuses, so this October we will set off from Knebworth with more than 100 other cars on what will be the drive of a lifetime.
It’s going to be a fractious, tiring and difficult journey, but the one thing that will keep us going long after the tins of Red Bull and Pro Plus tablets have worn off will be the knowledge that our drive isn’t just a bit of fun with friends, but will raise – hopefully – hundreds of pounds for a worthy cause. This year’s chosen charity is Guide Dogs UK, and it’s expected that the club will raise in excess of £50,000, adding to its total tally of more than £500,000 since the first RBRR in 1966.
