Ron Clark interviewing a participant on a 1898 Marot Gardon in 2019 .
its unique heritage and preserving the event for future generations ”.
RON CLARK Brighton Commentator After taking part on the Run on 40 separate occasions in the 1904 Oldsmobile his father gave him for his 21st birthday , Ron fancied a change . That ’ s why , 16 years ago , he joined the legendary Malcolm Jeal in the Brighton commentary box ( a double-decker bus ), and Ron ’ s warm and friendly voice has enlivened the finish on Madeira Drive ever since .
“ Over the years I got to meet everyone , and I ’ d sat on the Veteran Car Club ’ s Dating Committee . I ’ ve been so fortunate to know many knowledgeable owners and pioneering experts .”
Ron lives near Brighton , and admits he takes great care of his voice in the weeks before the event . He needs it to talk for seven solid hours .
“ I love the public ,” he says . “ I ’ m there at 9am to get wired up and take a soundcheck . When people start queueing up along the railings I welcome them and keep them entertained until the first cars turn up . I ’ m wandering around on the tarmac talking to people , and I ’ ve met some of them 10 times or more .”
Ron will analyse the entry list before the event , which he says he finds quite easy because he ’ s familiar with about 70 % of the cars and entrants taking part .
“ For my commentary this year I ’ ve been comparing it to the 1953 running list , as we ’ re celebrating 70 years of the film Genevieve with both the Darracq and the Spyker present . People will love that . But I ’ ll still be welcoming all the arrivals and getting the driver to talk about the car and the journey – you know , stopped nine times , been under the car getting soaked , all the little snippets .”
NICK LOVELL Starter Marshal “ My involvement goes back to when my dad got a job with the RAC motoring service as deputy chief engineer ,” says Nick . “ He became chief engineer in 1975 , and with that job came the ceremonial role of starting the London to Brighton . I was 17 when I started helping him . Now I ’ ve done it 48 times !”
Nick is in charge of seeing some 350 cars on their way at the Hyde Park kick-off . He ’ s aided by a team of marshals in the start area . Some of them corral the cars in sectors of 30 vehicles , while others manually tick off each entrant as they go past . “ It ’ s old-fashioned but we ’ ve found throughout the years that it works the best ; we don ’ t have any trackers or anything digital . All we need to know really is that the cars that arrive in Brighton have actually left Hyde Park ; we don ’ t want people joining en route .”
“ Around 10 % of the cars entered don ’ t even reach the start-line , and of those that do start , 10 % don ’ t reach Brighton . Still , the attrition rate is actually not bad for cars that are 120-130 years old ! If they ’ ve passed the start-line then they ’ ve started , in my view , and that ’ s a matter of pride for the owner . I ’ m usually done at 9-ish , although there are sometimes latecomers . It ’ s a fun event , and it ’ s important not to be officious about it .”
TONY PERRETT Senior Hill Official You should find Tony at one of the toughest pinchpoints on the Run today : on the B2114 in West Sussex , the notorious Hammer Hill , which leads the veterans away from the A23 into deep countryside . The entrants will be refreshed by the coffee stop they ’ ve just passed through at Crawley , and a good thing too , because Hammer Hill is too much of an incline for some . So Tony and his team step in .
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