Wroe’s Vintage 1934 Rolls Royce Boat-Tail Triumphs the 2018 CBA Africa Concours D’elegance

The marvel at vintage cars is simply priceless. In what went down as one of the closest podium tussles in recent years, Veronica Wroe’s 1934 Rolls Royce Boatail needed just one point to beat the 1977 Nissan 160J of Sati Gata-Aura to clinch her maiden CBA Africa Concourse d’Elegance.

Such was the drama and glamour which treated an enthusiast crowd to some exhilarating displays of the car and motorbike elegance contest at the Nairobi Racecourse.

This year’s edition of Concours produced a new bike winner in Peter Giraudu in a 1966 Triumph TR 6C. Giraudu garnered 175 points to beat the 1925 Triumph 550 SD of Dominiqie Antoine to the second position.

Third in the motorbike class was a 1964 AJS Cafe Racer of South African Martin Kaiser. The AJS was one of the two motorcycles sponsored by Galleria Mall and entered the iconic event by Vivian Mathew Kuiper and Johannesburg based Keiser.

Keiser is contesting the Concours for the second year running with his 1964 AJS Cate Racer. The bikes category has over the years been dominated by Phoenix Aviation.

In the car category, Wroe’s Rolls Royce savored success on a bright sunny day laden with cheerful spectators, vintage and classic cars and motorcycle competitors and dedicated officials. She had her campaign effectively sewn up when Sati lost his lead in the latter stages of the contest.

Sati beat Wroe by two points on the underside and three on the external finish.  But Wroe savored a 4-point advantage on interior boot which Sati’s MG GT managed 51 points. Sati and Wroe tied on the car roadworthiness with 6 points apiece but the later pipped her car adversary with a solitary mark in the tussle for the engine supremacy.   

Sati Gata-Aura who was the winner in 1988 with a1978 Nissan completed the cars’ podium tussle when his 1977 Nissan 160J garnered 269 points to finish third.

The 1930 Ford Model A of Miner Duder settled for fourth place with 263 points followed by Kevit Desai’s 1968 Jaguar on 260. The 1968 Volkswagen Kombi of Stephen Warui won class 1 for utility vehicles beating Larry Asego’s 1974 Volkswagen Camper by a 13-point margin.

The 1972 Austin Mini entered by Vitaform Products Limited won class 2 for Touring Cars up to 1200cc beating the 1973 Mini Morris of Tumaini Muthiga to second place. Sati Gata-Aura’s Nissan 160J won class 3 of touring cars from 1200cc to 1600vc made after 1970. He beat the 1972 VW Beetle of Bharat Pitrola to second.