Fantastic All Ford Day

23 February, 2016

 

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If you are a fan of the blue oval, and the fine machinery produced by Henry Ford’s team of merry men, then the Christchurch 2016 All Ford Day was a must-do event.

Hosted, once again, by the Canterbury Mustang Owners Club, the February 20–21 event had a great turnout of vehicles — no doubt encouraged out by the beautiful weather.

Ford owners celebrated a weekend of their cars, starting with a cruise, held on Saturday afternoon, which involved taking part in the Henry Ford Memorial Run. This cruise was attended by a large group of owners. 

With rain causing problems for the 2015 event, this year’s host club would have been very happy to be greeted by the polar opposite of bright sunshine on Sunday. Held at the Wigram Airforce Museum grounds, cars flooded the field with many clubs well represented, such as the Falcon Fairlane Car Club, Classic Cortina Club, and, of course, the Canterbury Mustang Owners Club, as well as the many individual owners who took the opportunity to get their rides out of the garage. 

As well as food stalls, there were a number of vendors selling hats and clothing, and the two local Ford dealers ventured to the event to showcase the latest offerings from Ford, including the new right-hand drive Mustang. 

It was great to see such a diverse range of vehicles on show. With a large number of Mustangs, including a black Super Snake, there was something to suit everyone’s taste, whether it was an Escort, Cortina, Falcon, GT40, or a T-bucket, the day had it all. 

Well done to the organizers for another great show, and a little shout-out to Mother Nature for helping out this year with the sunshine. 

The actual Formula One

Seeing, in a shed in Hamilton, New Zealand, the Darracq 120 racer that Louis Wagner, also a pioneer aviator, drove to victory in the 1906 Vanderbilt Cup race felt a little like finding a Rembrandt at a garage sale.
For historical significance, I’d say this car ranks with Ray Harroun’s Marmon Wasp, the first Indianapolis 500 winner. Unlike Harroun’s Wasp, which has been lovingly cared for at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum over the years, this historically pivotal machine wound up half a world away from its home in France and, to most of the motoring world, largely forgotten. Sadly, so is the story of how the car got to Aotearoa in the first place.
More often than not, a racing car that is a few years old is regarded as obsolete and relegated to a shed somewhere. As far as racing drivers and team owners at the cutting edge of the sport are concerned, the cars are virtually worthless at that point. They can’t be driven on the street; at best they can be reconfigured for lower levels of the sport, so few people care about them until their historical significance becomes more apparent.

Dad will love this!

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A seriously good prize for anyone who loves keeping their car looking its best.