History

The first recorded drive between London and Cape Town took place in 1924, when Major Chaplin Court Treatt led a team of 25/30hp Crossley trucks from Cape Town to Cairo and then onto London. The 10,000 mile journey took them 16 months to complete.

By the late 1930’s, the various overland routes from the Mediterranean to Cape Town were no longer the scene of just attempts to get there. The difficulties and dangers were still there, but they had proved surmountable, so speed replaced simple attainment of the goal as the object. This led to dangers of its own, since contempt for obstacles in the interest of haste meant taking risks.

On the 22nd December 1938, Humphrey Symons and Bertie Browning set out from London in an attempt to be the first to drive a ‘high-speed’ run to Cape Town. They aimed to finish in just 17 days.

January 1939

Time: 31d 22h
Car: Wolseley 18/85
Drivers: Humphrey Symons, Bertie Browning

December 1949

Time: 24d 2h 50m
Car: Austin A70
Drivers: Ralph Sleigh, Peter Jopling

January 1952

Time: 21d 19h 45m
Car: Hillman Minx
Drivers: George Hinchliffe, J Bulman

December 1952

Time: 13d 9h 6m
Car: Humber Super Snipe
Drivers: George Hinchliffe, R Walshaw, Charles Longman

January 1963

Time: 13d 8h 48m
Car: Ford Cortina
Drivers: Eric Jackson, Ken Chambers

Historical Photos Gallery