Lewes British Motorcar Show

150502 Lewes Brit-04 MK 150502 Lewes Brit-06 MK

One of the neat things about the east coast is being able to run through towns which date back some 400 years or thereabouts.   Founded in 1631, Lewes, Delaware, is like a lot of these old communities in that the town has a well preserved, historic downtown area with a mix of residential and commercial.    This show, the 20th and sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, took place among a collection of several historic structures known as the Lewes Historical Society Complex, at Third and Shipcarpenter Streets.

Now again, I was on my way to Lewes primarily to visit and document the equally historic Fort Miles, a former US Army Coast Artillery installation on Cape Henlopen (and now, appropriately, Cape Henlopen State Park); I only found out about the Brits in Lewes by pure blind luck but I’m glad I did, because it was a great show and I had an absolute ball.

I talked with event organizer Mike Tyler who’s been with the show since it’s start, he indicated about 150 cars total scattered around the historic buildings including several rarities (stand-outs included the two Rileys, an RMA and RMD drophead plus the Jensen-Healey-of-Many-Colors).   Rolls-Royce and Bentley served as the featured marques.

Anyway, I happily found parking in a lot over by the old lightship, grabbed camera and notepad and spent  great two or so hours taking a lot of photos and talking with a lot of people.   More details will show up in the June Exhaust Notes with an expanded article in the next issue of The Vintage Triumph (assuming I can get this project past my boss the editor!).

By the way, Triumph clubs and/or Brit car clubs with a Triumph presence included my old buds with Capital Triumph Register (probably little-known fact, but I’m the official SLTOA rep to CTR, an honor bestowed during my visit to Bowie/Annapolis last September) and Triumphs Around the Chesapeake (TRAC), along with the British Car Club of Delaware-Southern Division; MasonDixon TRA; Positive Earth Driver’s Club (now THAT’s a great name…great logo, too); and undoubtedly several others that I didn’t write down.

Congratulations to all of the participants, the organizers and the Lewes Chamber of Commerce.  This was one fine show!