Chiltern Vintage Tractor Run

OUR last charity tractor run in 2019 was so successful that we broke all fundraising records with our lunch stop at the wonderful Fawley Hill railway station.

During 2020 we were not able to have our run because of the coronavirus pandemic but ran an online fundraising photo competition that raised £968.25, so thank you to all who took part.

As we cautiously entered 2021 there were doubts as to what sort of tractor run we could organise.

Reading the government guidelines, we could see a summer date working and July 4 was selected as it best dovetailed with farming activities. Thus the theme of Independence Day was born.

Fantastic support from our wonderful volunteer teams across catering and marshalling meant that going into the day we were all fired up. We even had portable loos and sanitising stations set up. Thank you, D&P Toilets.

The blessing at the start was led by the Rev Sue Morton and her lovely team. Thank you, Sue.

We still had to operate under covid secure guidelines and we were grateful for everyone playing their part.

The run itself broke some new ground. Going up Lacey’s new track from Nine Acres to Bolter End was a great start. There were some challenging, wet and steep grassy bits at Kensham Farm and the heavens gave us a few sharp showers during the morning stint.

Having lunch back at the starting field was a first and may well set a trend. It gave the opportunity for some breakdowns to be repaired and for a few more friends and relatives to arrive. Great food and impressive prizes for the raffle.

The weather tried to dampen spirits but to no avail. One of the best memories of the day was at lunch. I witnessed a large crowd gathered around the food area and, despite the shower, good banter and laughter was buzzing and no one even noticed the rain (very British).

During the afternoon run we had some great views around the Hambleden Estate. One amazing coincidence was a low flyover by a Hawker Hurricane when passing through the Henley Showground, accompanied by a wing wave.

A few breakdowns were natural but all but one tractor got going again. The main culprit seemed to be dirty fuel. Inevitable when the “old girl” had not really been used for a couple of years.

The theme of Independence Day with red, white and blue on most tractors certainly made the convoy a spectacular site on the roads. So many great outfits and at one point even Donald Trump made an appearance.

The main objective of our run is to raise much-needed money for the Thames Valley Air Ambulance. Yet again the generosity of everyone involved exceeded all expectations.

In what was always going to be a low-key year, we raised a fabulous £7,141.42p. Thank you from the organising teams and the charity.

The Just Giving webpage for our run will be live for the next few months.

Thank you, too, to photographers William Jackson, Sam Malins, Trevor Woodward and Paul Caine, Louise and Andy Meakes for the barbecue and Lacey’s Family Farm the meats.

I must also mention Martin Brake, a handicrafts specialist who made the key rings and the customised wood engraved raffle prizes, and the marshalling teams from Nigel Rogers and Peter Newcombe’s family.

Lastly, thank you to the landowners whose amazing support allows this event to happen.

Gary Anderson