Rileys rattle into Murray Bridge for national rally
Dozens of classic cars and their drivers have come from around Australia to celebrate a British marque in the Murraylands.
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Each year, Riley drivers from around the country take part in the annual Riley Rattle, a showcase of a much-loved brand of car that was once a feature on Australia's roads.
This year, the Riley Motor Club of South Australia hosted the get-together and based the event around Murray Bridge and Monarto.
More than 50 cars, from the world-famous Riley Nine to the very last models made in the 1950s, gathered at Sturt Reserve for a show and shine and gave car enthusiats an opportunity to find out more about these remarkable machines.
Starting in 1890, the Riley Company was originally a bicycle manufacturer which grew out of the ailing weaving industry based in Coventry, UK.
The first Riley car hit the road in 1898 and by 1903, the Riley Car Company was underway.
Roland and Sandra Deery from Victoria visited Murray Bridge as part of this year's national rally.
"Rileys were top-class cars in their day and mechanically well ahead of their time," Mr Deery said.
"The older ones, like the Riley Nine, made their mark on the racetrack at places like the famous Brooklands track in the UK."
"Earl Mountbatten, the late uncle of King Charles, owned the same make and model as we do and spent most of his time driving it around Cyprus," Mrs Deery added.
"They are very comfortable and easy to drive and have four-wheel brakes, something few other cars of their vintage had, especially the inter-war models."
Rileys enjoyed much of their success in the inter-war period, were famous for their reliability and were often chosen for attempts at racing and distance records.
Driving a stock model 1928 Riley Nine, D.H. Antill of New South Wales and B. McGee of Adelaide almost cut the 1929 Fremantle to Sydney driving record in half.
The route took them across the Nullarbor on some very treacherous sand drifts and gravel tracks, and they drove through Murray Bridge on their way to Adelaide, before they set out for Sydney via Melbourne.
In 2029, the Riley Australia Car Club hopes to re-create the route as part of a celebration of the centenary of that drive.
The Riley car company was sold to the Austin car company in the early 1950s and the brand eventually disappeared.
- More information: rileysa.org.au.
