First Road Trip of the Year – Cotswolds Run
- The Sticker Queen
- Mar 23
- 3 min read
We’d actually booked this ages ago but, in typical fashion, it landed on a weekend where pretty much everyone from the Laugharne Sports & Classic Group needed to be in two places at once. So instead of a full convoy, it ended up being just three of us heading up to the Cotswolds for a night with car friends in Milton-under-Wychwood.
This was the maiden voyage for the 924 Turbo following recommissioning and with a fresh MOT, it didn’t miss a beat. Always a bit of a gamble on the first proper run, but aside from a couple of tweaks needed, it behaved perfectly. Alongside that we had the 964 Targa, and Carl brought his 997, so a pretty solid little trio for the trip.
We made a point of avoiding motorways and most of the bigger roads to enjoy the spring sun and dry roads, heading up through Llandovery, Brecon, and then joining the Heads of the Valleys road near Abergavenny. Honestly, it couldn’t have been a better first drive of the year, it feels like it’s been raining non-stop for months, so having a bit of warmth and blue skies, made all the difference.
We stopped off at Ye Olde Ferrie Inn in Symonds Yat on the way, somewhere that never disappoints. Good food, good atmosphere, and a proper pint of HPA from Wye Valley Brewery, which always goes down well.
From there it was more A-road cruising into the Cotswolds. Easy driving, nothing rushed, just enjoying it.
We’d been warned, by multiple people about the state of the roads in the Cotswolds, but we honestly thought it was being exaggerated… it wasn’t - the potholes are something else. Not just the odd rough patch, proper, deep holes that could do some serious damage if you hit them wrong. What made it worse was everyone trying to avoid them, which meant a lot of swerving and second-guessing from other drivers. We genuinely found ourselves driving down the middle of the road half the time just to avoid the worst of it.
Cyclists had it just as bad, overtaking became a bit of a gamble because they’d suddenly swerve to dodge a hole, some of them were deep enough to make you wince. What really surprised me was seeing Range Rovers and Land Rovers creeping around just as cautiously as the rest of us, aren’t they supposed to be built for that sort of thing? 🤔
Still, the scenery and the weather more than made up for it. First stop the next morning was the annual @cotswold_barn Porsche meet, organised by @nurburgsingh. Brilliant venue, and a really strong turnout.
What stood out most was the range of colours, so many greens in particular, which made a nice change from the usual sea of greys and blacks. That said, the slate grey 997 GT3 that we both agreed we’d happily take home without hesitation, and a gorgeous signal orange air-cooled 911 that was impossible to ignore.
We also bumped into a few DNHC members, which was really nice, definitely looking forward to seeing more of everyone over the summer.
Next stop was Classics Motor Hub at Bibury, set on a former WWII airfield and making good use of the old buildings. Inside, there were plenty of cars up for sale, some very tempting ones too. The turquoise Alfa in the hangar was a standout, although like a few others, it seemed to be carrying a bit of “Cotswold tax” if you know what I mean.
We arrived a bit later than planned, and access wasn’t the easiest, apparently this event sells out quickly, and even by the time we got there it was still pretty packed.
The standard of cars at what is essentially a cars and coffee meet was next level - a really eclectic mix as well, not just the usual suspects. We were particularly taken with a Lotus +2 and another Alfa in the car park, and there was a black Lancia parked in front of my car which was worth a snap.
Plenty of Porsches there too, as you’d expect, but it was the variety that made it. Loads of friendly people, great atmosphere, and the kind of event you could easily spend hours at.
The drive home was just as enjoyable. We grabbed a quick photo at Dodington Park before jumping on the motorway, and heading back west.
A proper first trip of the year and hopefully the first of many.
Great write up and lovely collection of cars, looked a fun trip.
Lovely stuff. Love following your exploits.