Cars

I’m a little bit of a car nut, I always have been. It comes from growing up with brothers who were into cars and from watching endless re-runs of The Italian Job and the car chase from Bullitt as a kid. I have so many memories through my childhood and teenage years of going to countless motor shows and collecting all the freebies on offer. Looking back, it must have irritated the hell out of my mother. We’d bring back armfuls of stuff which would just sit around gathering dust. What did it matter though – I had a carrier bag from Lotus, full of free stickers from Ford – how cool was that! Of all the car shows me and my mates used to go to though, the one which was the most constant was one in our own town in North London and was called the Enfield Pageant of Motoring.

It was only just up the road from where I used to live and we used to go there on our bikes. If you were a kid and into cars, then it was a smorgasbord of adventure. There were traction engines and classic cars from the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s. There was a large autojumble and historic buses and army vehicles and motorbikes. There was even a funfair for children and families. The funny thing with car shows though, is that sometimes the most interesting cars are not in the show at all, but actually belong to paying visitors and can be found out in the car park.

At the age of around 9 or 10 we’d cycle around the car park, trying to see if we could spot a Ferrari or an Aston Martin. Occasionally we’d see something like a 1971 Alfa Romeo Spider, just as the owner would be getting into it. “Corrr nice car” we’d say, as he’d slip on a pair of shades, fire up the engine and give it a rev. I want to be him one day, I’d think as he’d drive off.

I mention all this of course, as I was driving through Enfield last Monday on my way to visit family and remembered that it was the bank holiday that the Enfield Pageant was on. I drive an old MGB Roadster myself and I was curious to see if I could pick up any parts for it at the autojumble and see what cars might be on display – or indeed, in the car park.

I drove in and parked up. Looking around the show, it seemed pretty much as I remembered it. The traction engines were still there, as was the funfair, the autojumble and the historic car clubs. The cars were newer though. The classics from the 50’s and 60’s had now been replaced by those from the 70’s and 80’s. There were more old American cars than I remembered. A large collection was displayed in a tent with a band playing Rockabilly music as a group of brylcreemed geriatric rockers tried their best to rock around the clock in front of the stage. As I spent the best part of a couple of hours walking around the show, I was struck by nostalgia and the memories of past times at the same place – of heading home afterwards and Mum making dinner before we’d get ready for school the next morning.

I bought a couple of things from the autojumble and after completing another circuit of the show, decided that it was time to head to Hertfordshire to see the family. I headed back to my car and put the things in the boot. The sun was starting to shine and I put on a pair of sunglasses as I opened the drivers door. “Wicked car mate!” said a voice. I looked around to see 3 kids on bikes looking at my MG. “That’s sic, I bet it goes well fast” said another. “Thanks” I said as I climbed in. I started the engine and gave it a rev – much to their approval. I reversed out and drove off, grinning to myself as I realised that I was now the guy in the car park that I had always wanted to be.