Not just sailing! IMA members at the 2014 Bonhams London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.

Lord Irvine Laidlaw attended yesterday the 118 edition of the "Bonhams London to Brighton Veteran Car Run", driving his 1904 Panhard-Levassor sporting  - a 15 horsepower, 4 cylinder engine. Sir Ben Ainslie was his navigator, and they were first car in.

The Run takes place on the first Sunday of every November and commemorates the Emancipation Run of 14 November 1896 which celebrated the passing into law of the Locomotives on the Highway Act, which raised the speed limit for 'light locomotives' from 4 mph to 14 mph and abolished the requirement for these vehicles to be preceded by a man on foot. The early law required the man on foot to carry a red flag but that requirement was abolished in 1878. The Locomotive Act was still widely known as the 'Red Flag Act' and a red flag was symbolically destroyed at the start of the Emancipation Run as it is today just before the start in Hyde Park.

The "London to Brighton Veteran Car Run" represents a rare opportunity for participants to take their extraordinary automobiles on this historic 60-mile journey from Hyde Park in central London to the seafront in the Sussex resort of Brighton.

Few events in today's international calendar such as the Bonhams Veteran Car Run can claim such individuality, personality and character.

The 500 fine examples of pre-1905 manufactured vehicles that take part in the 60-mile demonstration showcase the pioneering spirit and engineering ability of the early motorist.