Centenarians roll through Highland County

HIGHLAND COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) - “When they were built,” said Alex Joyce, as the cars trundled by, “they were the best car in the world.”

And to this crowd they’re still pretty darn good.

“My car’s a 1923 Springfield Silver Ghost,” said Gilles Laviolette.

“We have with us today our 1923 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost,”Gary Hunter said.

They all were Silver Ghosts, a model made by Rolls Royce from 1907 – that’s when this one was built – to 1926.

“Different people have different hobbies,” Joyce, who organized the group, said. “My brother hunts, other people fish, or whatever. One of the fun things about this hobby is when you’re finished with it you can sell it.”

Not that any of these folks are taking offers today. Rather, they’re taking their cars out for a 1,200-mile, two-week drive.

“You get to take out your toy and play with it,” Hunter said. “You get to go out with your friends.”

“A lot of tours have been put off a year, and some tours have been put off two years,” said Joyce. “So there’s a real pent-up desire to be out on the road with our friends.”

“After COVID, after the tour being canceled last year, it’s kind of nice to be on tour,” said Laviolette, “especially Virginia since we’ve never been in Virginia in the hills.”

He and Valerie Carew brought their car down from Canada, but cars came from all over.

Gary Hunter’s horseless carriage normally lives in Southern California.

“It’s a very, very usable car,” Hunter said, “and the car is capable of running all day long at probably 50 or 60 miles an hour.”

Leaving one to wonder, why would you want to drive around in anything else?

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