All entries to Gaydon for non competitors and spectators require an entry ticket These can be purchased on the day or in advance from the Motor Museum direct, Banbury Run (britishmotormuseum.co.uk). Please note that the VMCC are unable to provide spectator entry tickets.
Camping is available at Gaydon for £26 per pitch - for Saturday night only and £34 – to include Friday Saturday and Sunday night camping if required - arrive before 8pm.These prices include an advanced payment discount and includes tents, caravans and campers. Prices on the day will be more. Booking in advance is recommended to secure a space. Advance book via – www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk Banbury Page or call 01926 649649 Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm to book.
The Banbury Run, like all of our events, relies heavily on volunteers to assist the organisers with a multitude of tasks ranging from helping to set up or clear up to marshalling, manning check-points, recovery or simply to help push!! If you are not lucky enough to be able to compete, volunteering still helps you to feel part of this great occasion. If you would like to offer your services as a volunteer at Banbury 2025 or other events please register your interest here. Alternatively download a PDF copy, complete and return to Annie@vmcc.net or post to Allen House
As in previous years, there will be an extensive autojumble with over 100 stalls expected.
We would love for other sections and clubs to come and display their bikes as part of our Avenue of Clubs. Booking forms will be available in due course.
BanBury 2024 More bikes, more riders and brilliant weather – the 74th Banbury Run as a good ‘un.
What a wonderful Banbury! After a very wet start on the Saturday and listening to the rain pouring down all night it was a very pleasant surprise to wake up at 6.30am Sunday morning to be greeted by sunshine and clear skies.
Annie Durrant and Sammy Miller
I’d like to say thank you so much to all the helpers and volunteers who (despite the forecast) were there, as always signing riders on and sorting out parking etc – as I've said many times before, without your help this event could not happen.
The day went off without any problems and drama, and everyone including the spectators had a brilliant day. Thanks to all the entrants, not just for entering, but for your messages thanking the team and telling us what a fantastic time you had.
Thank you to the museum staff and team headed by Tom Curren – without your help and support I would not be able to put on this event. And to all the people working in the background: Harry Wiles for the routes, Sandra, Beverley, Maddie and Terry in Allen House and so many others to many to mention. Next year is our 75th Banbury Run, an important milestone for this historic event which was first run in 1949. I hope to see you all there, ready to celebrate. Annie Durrant: The Organiser
Well turned
out rider
in period
dress, BSA
mounted,
heads off
into the
sunshine
(Peter
Wileman
)
Banbury was far more eventful than any of us could have imagined – David Kendall and myself on bikes which had never done Banbury before, and David Barnes, who I was mentoring on his first Banbury, riding my AJS.
The AJS was already playing up at Gaydon, when a bolt holding the gearchange rod loosened itself and disappeared. We replaced the bolt with a makeshift one, but I had to ‘cheat’ and avoid the start line to ride with the others. Getting caught in traffic, I eventually caught David K, who told me that David B was well ahead, “going like Stanley Woods.”
We pootled on. climbing Sunrising Hill effortlessly, but still no sign of my AJS! Then on the A361 I hit a sunken manhole cover. The girders bottomed out with a clang and looking down revealed that the battery holder lid had fallen off and smashed. I put the box and battery in the pannier as without the lid it couldn't be clamped in place.
Checking my phone I saw missed calls from David B. It turned out he was actually behind us, having gone off-route in Wellesbourne, and was now broken down. We headed back to rescue him, and there he was, catching some rays and having a nice cup of tea. “It just cut out," he reported. Then to my horror I noticed that my pannier was missing! Oil, fuel and spanners, all gone. David K had seen it in the road, unaware it was mine.
Anyway, we put all the spare fuel in the AJS and it started, before repairing to the Merrie Lion at Fenny Compton for lunch (we were ready for it, too). The return to Gaydon was mercifully uneventful, and to finish this memorable day one of us got an award. So not all bad.
So would I mentor again? Yes, because l really enjoyed it, as did David B. Perhaps l should have sacrificed my ride and stayed with him on a proven bike, but l have to say that Banbury 2024 was an excellent one . Many thanks to the organisers, and see you next year. The Mentor: Simon Dudfield
Mentor Simon Dudfield (right) lent David Barnes (centre) his AJS and guided him through an eventful first Banbury. David Kendall on left. All three finished
Many thanks to the VMCC for inviting me to ride in the 2024 Banbury Run on one of the Club's motorcycles, the 1924 Triumph SD 500. To ride such an amazing machine was a privilege for me as I am a lifelong Triumph enthusiast.
It was certainly a contrast with my 2022 Triumph Rocket 3R, which I rode to the event. I have never ridden anything like the SD and have to say that I loved every moment. Having transferred to the 100-year-old Triumph the contrast could not have been greater – 98 years between them and 163bhp less! Just shows how far we have travelled in design terms.
But at heart they are both motorcycles and the sense of freedom and adventure we all enjoy as we ride our bikes is as evident on the SD as it is on the Rocket.
Riding in the Banbury Run has been one of the highlights of my biking life and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone who loves motorcycles and motorcycling. The Guest: Jeff Coope - Managing Director, British Motor Museum
As ever, riders were sent off in threes. Later entries (No292
onwards) didn’t appear in the programme but looks like they were all
having a good day anyway (Peter Wileman)
I’ve always wanted to complete the famous Banbury Run but couldn’t afford the entry price – ie ownership of a pre-1931 motorcycle with girder forks, hand gear change, fishtail exhaust and the inevitable rear ‘basket. That is, until one sunny Founder’s Day, I came across ‘Baby James,’ a 1930 James Utility. It appeared that no one wanted a 196cc stroker but for me it was love at first sight – girder forks, hand change, fishtail exhaust, single sprung seat and throttle lever. Better still, being pre-‘31 it was my entry ticket to the Banbury. The James wasn’t a runner but it was all basically there, the engine turned over and the Albion gearbox selected three gears, so the deal was struck.
Three years later, having restored the bike and exhibited it at local shows I finally decided to take the plunge, and entered for my first Banbury Run. Alas, on a test run the week before there was a tremendous bang from the engine so it was clutch in and glide to a halt. The valve of the decompressor had shot backwards into the cylinder after the return spring decided to snap in half, and bits of the assembly were spread along the lane. Fortunately there was no damage to the deflector piston so that was a lucky escape, but attempts at straightening the valve stem proved to be futile. Amazingly, Villiers Services had a right-size decompressor in stock and Steve got it in the post first-class to save the day.
On 16th June, with the bike rebuilt, but not tested, we set off with Baby James on the trailer. Not having entered before, we had no idea what to expect, nuythe stewards were all helpful and friendly, guiding us to a spot in the car park and pointing out the registration marquee.
Signing on formalities completed, route map in hand, we headed for the waiting area. As it was my first time, I had opted for the social run rather than the timed competition. It was some 40 miles, twice the distance I had ever covered on the bike!
Riders set off in waves of three at a time and as we gathered at the start line there were all sorts of frantic efforts to get these elderly machines going including pedalling, running alongside and pushing. Much to my relief Baby James went on the kick start and we were off!
Most of the ride was pretty uneventful as we steadily wove our way through the route, which was surprisingly hilly in places. I only took a wrong turn twice but soon realised the mistake and back-tracked. I am used to riding in groups on club runs but what surprised me was that I was riding alone for the majority of the time. There are a number of different routes and because of the staggered start, riders are well separated.
The bike was running well but annoyingly didn't want to run on small throttle openings or idle. After the halfway mark my bottom and back were beginning to ache due to the relatively small saddle with inadequate support. So it was with some relief that I began to recognise the approaches back to Gaydon.
On nearing the site, once again the stewards were helpful, waving their arms like windmills, but on slowing down to check where I was going, the James decided to stall and refused to restart. It had clearly had enough but fortunately the road down to the finishing straight was a bit of a hill. We glided majestically down and turned into the finish straight, which was on the level so some frantic pedalling ensued. One spectator, seeing my plight, leapt over the fence and pushed me over the finish line. By an amazing coincidence it was my friend John, who had made some parts for me on his lathe during the restoration!
I was so pleased that we had made it around without a terminal breakdown, and trotted off to register my return and collect my first timers badge. What a great experience, which I would recommend that everyone tries at least once. I hope to be back next year and this time we will cross the finish line, engine running! - The First Timer: Janis Zakis
Once again, a great event with a fantastic turn out of the world’s classic motorbikes and weather to match. I very much enjoyed riding the Barr & Stroud 1000cc V-twin sleeve valve Grindlay Peerless. It’s the only known working example in the world so I was pleased to see that it was much admired.
I found the road route very rough in places which was a bit of a challenge on this 1925 bike but it was great catching up with lots of familiar faces. Also demonstrating the 1913 Verdel f ive-cylinder radial which was a fast and exciting board racer in its day, but only designed to be ridden on the track, not the road.
Gaydon is the perfect venue for this event, also having the autojumble on hand – great work by Annie Durrant and her crew.
As a negative, I felt that the prize presentation could do with being brought forward so that any riders with a long journey home, like myself, could head off a bit earlier. Maybe the timed section riders could get the results once the event is finished? - The Celebrity: Sammy Miller
Who
else but
Sammy Miller,
enjoying a
gallop on the
Grindlay up
Sunrising
(Mike Watling)
“What route are you riding?” shouted Sammy Miller above the din of umpteen veteran and vintage motorcycles. It was Sunday 18th June 2023, the Banbury Run, and Sammy appeared alongside me on his AJS in-line four. “I’m taking Dennis Frost’s route, I replied. “That’ll do me,” he said, smiling. “I’ll ride with you.” I had been riding at Banbury for years, but my mount that year, with its open exhaust, TT gearing and lever throttle, was not suited to a civilised saunter through the pretty villages of north Oxfordshire. After all, Velocette’s 1929 KTT was sold as a race replica.
So in deference to those rural dwellers, I stuck to the main roads. Turning out of the British Motor Museum’s Gaydon start, the old Banbury to Leamington road soon brings us to the Fosse Way – that Roman artery linking Exeter and Lincoln. Straight as an arrow, this now little used ‘B’ rated byway leads to the Stratford-upon-Avon to Banbury road – and the anticipated delights of Sun Rising Hill. At Drayton, on the Banbury outskirts we turn left back onto the Leamington road, returning to Gaydon.
Sammy rang me a few days later. “Thanks for chaperoning me, Dennis. Let’s do it again next year.” So, we did.
It’s now Sunday 16th June 2024 and I’m back at Gaydon with the KTT. Sammy – who owns a rather better choice of machinery than me – is this time aboard his 1925 Grindlay Peerless, powered by a 1000cc Barr and Stroud V-twin.
Turning onto the Fosse Way, I swing open the Velo’s throttle lever and the bark from its exhaust rises to a bellow. A glance behind and Sammy is right there. The air is clear, the blue sky dotted with clouds. What a day to be in the saddle.
Soon we join the Banbury road. Passing the sign to Lower Tysoe, the wooded slopes of Sun Rising come into view. The first corner is an easy, rising left before the road steepens sharply to the right. A notch down a gear using the KTT’s foot change puts me in good stead to tackle the steepest part of the climb past the solitary Sun Rising House and the spectating crowds.
Through the old ironstone village of Wroxton, we are soon in the outskirts of Banbury and in no time back at Gaydon, the first riders to return. As we approach the finish, I wave Sammy past to make his magnificent entrance.
With an empty parking area, Sammy regales the public with details of the Grindlay’s advanced sleeve-valve design while taking time for an interview with John Oakes from the Classic Motorcycle Channel. Meanwhile Jim Devereux, Sammy’s chief mechanic, fires up the five-cylinder radial engine Verdel – another gem from the New Forest Museum. After leaping aboard, Sammy is off, returning beaming.
As Sammy circulates, I remember that my fellow rider is 90 years old. Golly, how could I forget? That’s because when out riding motorcycles, we are all in our prime. Riding with Sammy: Dennis Frost
Duncan Payne (Triumph H) was “looking forward to a trouble
free ride and not getting a puncture!”
Results from the 2024 Banbury Run have now been published on the Results page of this web site and in the August Journal. If were unable to collect your trophy or medal at the event please let us know by emailing events@vmcc.net as soon as possible.
Videos courtesy of Alex Rollings, Classic Motorcycle Channel on Youtube
Please note that the VMCC has no involvement with the photographs taken or sales. All transactions and correspondence should be direct with Peter Wileman photography only.
