welcome to: lancia sliding pillar
about the 2004 edition
about the 2003 edition
about the 2002 edition
about the 2001 first european sliding pillar meeting
about the original sliding pillar rally
the birth of an idea
by Ade Rudler
It was in 1991 that Ed & I decided that we wanted to organise a rally that would get all the early Lancias together. We were thinking of a rally for pre-war cars mainly but wanted to include Aurelias and Appias, really all the ‘Lancia Family’ cars. So we thought about the common denominator and came up with the name for our event: “The Sliding Pillar Rally”.
Our first event was very low key. About 16 cars joined us, starting at Ed’s home near Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire (about 140 km west of London) for coffee. We had a short drive via the Marlborough Downs (Downs are hills in the U.K.!) to the 2000 B.C. stone circle at Avebury. We finished with a barbecue at my home in the small village of Tockenham just South of Wootton Bassett.
The rally was such a success that we decided to repeat it the following year. In 1992 the Sliding Pillar Rally attracted some 25 cars and over the years it has grown and grown. The format has always remained similar, we usually start at a pub in the Wiltshire or Berkshire area for coffee, visit a place of interest where we can picnic (a country house or similar) and finish with a barbecue at a Lancia owner’s home. This gives everyone a good chance to admire the cars present and spend hours talking, eating and drinking without the pressure of a hectic schedule and too much driving.
We have visited some interesting places over the years, some that are not normally open to the public, and have welcomed some very special guests and motoring journalists to our small rally. These have included Rowan Atkinson (Mr Bean/Blackadder) and Carlo Bianchi Anderloni (of Touring-Milano). In fact it is probably what Mrs. Anderloni said about the Sliding Pillar Rally that best sums it up: “Today we had invitations to attend many events, but we are glad we came on the Sliding Pillar Rally as we have been able to see the real England and have spent the day with real friends”.
Our tenth year was in 2000. The event had grown so much that it now attracted over 50 cars and 100 people.
We were wondering how we were going to improve things in the future when Jan Van Hoorick approached me with his idea for a Sliding Pillar Rally in Europe. I thought this would be a natural progression to make it a truly international event, and also give Ed and me a year’s rest so as to come back in 2002 with fresh ideas. Thus it was Jan and his team who welcomed even more Lancisti to the first European Sliding Pillar Rally in the Ardennes in 2001.
For more information on the English Sliding Pillar Rally contact Ade Rudler: ade@rudler.co.uk
Adrian Rudler
P.O. Box 11 – Wiltshire - SN4 7PW Swindon
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 1793 731 107 - Fax: +44 1793 731 109
