Classics on Show 2024
Saturday 15 June 2024 saw almost our biggest ever line-up of classic vehicles accompanied by our worst ever weather. Over 640 vehicles were pre-registered for the show, and including the “on the day” arrivals close to 1000 were on display, with most exhibitors braving the rain and staying on the Showfield until mid-afternoon. The Car Club stands this year were massive, with Retros of Teesside fielding over 60 members and TYMC not far behind. With Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, Rolls Royce, Aston Martin, TVR and Reliant Scimitar owners clubs too, the camaraderie of classic car and ‘bike owners was clear to see. This year’s audience was of course affected by the weather, with most of our visitors arriving during the morning and many drifting away as the rain came in over the Cleveland Hills. With our first double decker bus and the return of a classic motor coach accompanied by fire engines both classic and modern, there was something for everyone this year, and exhibitors told us they were happy with the more open site layout that gave them more space to show their vehicles to best advantage. We will all be back next year and of course we are hoping that the day will be as warm and dry as almost all of our previous shows.
Classics on Show 2023
Saturday, June 17th 2023 was our biggest ever event, with over 1000 classic vehicles on show and an estimated audience of 4500 people. We had everything going for us this year with huge social media coverage, superb weather and our new, much larger, show layout with a decicated entrance and exit for exhibitors. Derek Mathewson and his Bangers and Cash team were in attendance and Derek gave a thumbs up to Stokesley Rotary’s Classics on Show 2023.
Our previous Show in 2022 was a milestone in the history of the Classics on Show classic vehicle event organized by the Rotary Club of Stokesley. That was when the club marked the 10th anniversary of an event which has grown exponentially since its launch in 2012 and this year took on a celebratory air.
“We’ve managed to grow the show in terms of exhibitors, visitors and revenue generated every year apart from 2015 when the weather let us down. A near torrential downpour kept exhibitors and visitors away and our takings sank to their lowest ebb yet – but other than that, we’ve really motored along!,” said Peter Chandler, Past President of Stokesley Rotary.
The 2022 Show included a very, very rare 1925 Ford Model T – an original ‘Tin Lizzie.’ Owner Chris Dunne brought the vehicle, registration number SV8272, all the way from Derby to Stokesley in North Yorkshire for Classics on Show where she was a key attraction on the town’s Showfield. This particular Tin Lizzie, which can reach a top speed of close to 70mph, was built for racing and raced on dirt tracks in America until 1947 before being shipped to France and racing there until 1960 when it was despatched back across the pond to be restored and raced at T Rallies in the USA with great success. She made her way to England in 1990 and ran her last race in France in 1993.
The 2023 show more than lived up to expectations, easily beating the previous 2022 record when visitor numbers were “only” around 2,700 and over 700 cars, plus tractors, buses, army trucks and motorbikes, took to the Showfield in an event which featured a dedicated motorcycle arena with models dating back to 1919. The results were so different from the launch event in 2012, which had attracted just 150 vehicles and 450 visitors.
“2021 and 2022 were both spectacular,” explained Chandler. “We benefitted I think by a huge desire from everyone to get back to near ‘normal’ after lockdowns and the social distancing of the pandemic which had meant that we had to abandon the 2020 show. The 2022 day was something of a hat trick again in that we had another record vehicle turnout which tracked over 100 years of motorised transport, a record number of visitors, and a record gate take. It was also exceptional in the quality of the displays and the range of vehicles – many were rare edition models and some of museum quality. We’ve set our benchmark very high going forward.”
Heading into 2023, the club decided to press ahead with its dedicated motorcycle arena which again proved a big draw. “We are also investigating the possibility of other dedicated vehicle arenas which help visitors quickly reach the vehicle types which interest them most.”
Exhibitors and their vehicles still entered for free, though everyone was encouraged to make a donation and many were very generous The show this year has again raised funds for a range of charities which will be confirmed later in the year. Visitors paid £7.50 each, or £20 for a family ticket, while auto-jumble traders paid £20 for a standard pitch.
