Classics in the Common, 25th July 2018
Discussion
Hi, I was wondering if anybody was going to this event in Harpende? I first visited and displayed my 2l MGB GT in the mid-nineties. Over the years I have also visited with an RS2000 and various Yanks. Initially it was a relatively small show (~300 cars) but has now grown to well over 1000. I was always a fan until in the late noughties the group running it (it has previously believed been linked to a local pub). It then seemed to lose its soul as it became more about raising money than enjoying classic cars. The rules also changed. If a car was over 20 years old but deemed interesting it was allowed to enter. Since then the age limit has been raised virtually yearly. A friend who previously exhibited has been chasing the age limit for a few years but now says he cannot be bothered. The definition of interesting seems to have become a one-year old Ferrari or similar! I have also stopped exhibiting as early entry (to avoid the horrific jams that build up) is £17 – when you have to spend £30 on petrol to attend it is a step to far. Years ago the event was fully booked months ahead but a friend has told me they still have spacers available! I did go with a friend after work last year but when we arrived at around 5:30 about half the cars had left – hardly an afternoon and evening event!
So, is anyone here attending?
FordFalcon said:
Hi, I was wondering if anybody was going to this event in Harpende? I first visited and displayed my 2l MGB GT in the mid-nineties. Over the years I have also visited with an RS2000 and various Yanks. Initially it was a relatively small show (~300 cars) but has now grown to well over 1000. I was always a fan until in the late noughties the group running it (it has previously believed been linked to a local pub). It then seemed to lose its soul as it became more about raising money than enjoying classic cars. The rules also changed. If a car was over 20 years old but deemed interesting it was allowed to enter. Since then the age limit has been raised virtually yearly. A friend who previously exhibited has been chasing the age limit for a few years but now says he cannot be bothered. The definition of interesting seems to have become a one-year old Ferrari or similar! I have also stopped exhibiting as early entry (to avoid the horrific jams that build up) is £17 – when you have to spend £30 on petrol to attend it is a step to far. Years ago the event was fully booked months ahead but a friend has told me they still have spacers available! I did go with a friend after work last year but when we arrived at around 5:30 about half the cars had left – hardly an afternoon and evening event!
So, is anyone here attending?
I'll definitely be there - not least because I live about 3 mins away from the common...So, is anyone here attending?
No question that the event has changed (my local is the pub that started it all), but when the sun shines it really can attract some quality stuff. Like a lot of events, it is pretty weather-dependent, I think last year many people had already made the decision to give it a miss by mid-morning.
I don't have a problem with the emphasis on charity collection, but I have heard a few people being uncomfortable with the onus being placed on the exhibitors themselves. Makes more sense to me to collect a little more from the people that attend. Yes, there are bucket shakers, but it's hardly high pressure...
Anyway, weather looking good (same can't be said of the common itself - completely parched!) so I'm looking forward to a couple of pints, a hog roast - and a steady stream of interesting classics.
The onus of getting the money from the owners is really hacking some people off. Last time I exhibited I queued in the heat from the rugby club. Then when I parked up I had a bucket rattling under my window before I had turned off the engine. I understand the equivalent event at Croxley Green, Watford, next Wednesday is just turn up in something interesting and no charge!
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