The Border’s “original” vintage car club plans to celebrate 50 years in a fully-packed five-day event that will attract hundreds of car lovers to the region.
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It’s expected up to 400 cars will converge on Gateway Lakes on Sunday for the staple attraction of the Antique Car Club of Albury-Wodonga’s anniversary weekend.
Falling on National Motoring Heritage Day, the Council of Heritage Motor Clubs NSW will also hold its 47th annual rally at the event.
Former president Tom Boyd has been part of the club long enough to know the council has not held its rally in the region for over 40 years.
“We did have it here once before, but it was before my time,” he said.
“I originally joined back in the beginning and dropped out after a couple years, as I didn’t have a car on the road, and rejoined in the 1970s.
“We are the original antique car club – the Wodonga Historic Car Club was the first breakaway from us, and that was fairly early in the piece.”
Current president John Hawking said the significance of the 50-year anniversary had in part attracted the heritage council, bringing with it members from as many as 35 different car clubs.
“The Council of Heritage Motor Clubs NSW didn’t have anyone to run their rally, so we thought it would be great to combine it with our anniversary,” he said.
“On the Sunday will be when you get all the different clubs, from Newcastle, Lithgow – all over.”
Rallies will kick off from Friday, with convoys travelling out to Gerogery and Southern NSW and then up to the high country, stopping in Beechworth.
The decorated cars will not be what steals the show on Saturday though, with a Great Gatsby-style evening planned at the Albury Entertainment Centre.
Club member Graham Robb said the real action for the public would kick off from midday at the Lincoln Causeway site on Sunday, with a huge display of cars.
“There’s the heritage day at the Gateway Island and a lot of club members have put a good lot of effort in,” he said.
“Something about the old cars just makes people smile.”