Bentleys due back in city on June 18

Millions of dollars worth of vintage Bentley touring automobiles arrived in Whitehorse on Wednesday afternoon as part of the Bentley Drivers Club Alaska Tour 2009.

Millions of dollars worth of vintage Bentley touring automobiles arrived in Whitehorse on Wednesday afternoon as part of the Bentley Drivers Club Alaska Tour 2009.

The tour began May 31 in Vancouver and will end June 26 back in Victoria, covering more than 10,000 kilometres of vintage driving.

The British have long held the lead in the world market of luxury automobiles. Nameplates like Jaguar, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin and of course Bentley defined the world standards of luxury.

Today, most of these storied nameplates have been sold or gone out of business.

Planning for this trip began in 2007 with trip planners first driving the route in October 2007 turning back in Teslin when they hit the first winter snow.

In June 2008, the planners drove the total route again, checking facilities and scouting the roads to see if the vintage cars would be able to survive on them.

While the route planning was advancing, arrangements were made to ship the venerable cars to Vancouver.

Participants came from all over the continent, so a variety of arrangements had to be made with specialized shippers and insurers to clear Canada Customs.

The rally is one of a continuing series of trips planned and executed by the Australian Bentley Club.

In the past, members have travelled a number of trips through Africa, Europe, South Asia and Australia.

Anywhere from 10 to 50 cars participate in these journeys. The current rally has 32 vintage cars along with support crews, baggage vans and a specialized Bentley mechanic.

The trip is also a rally with specific road rules and etiquette. The ability to afford a $1-million (euro/dollar) car isn’t always accompanied by big-budget driving skills.

In the 1990s, during a similar tour of Australia, a fender-bender resulted in the establishment of the Rear Ender Award, a tail light from a vintage 1934 Bentley.

The award is presented daily to the last Bentley arriving at the end of the daily drive. The award can also be given to the driver who exhibits poor navigation - for example, heading south out of B.C.‘s Liard Hot Springs and ignoring the 10 or 15 Bentleys heading north up the road.

Most of the drivers were coy when asked how reliable the cars are on   northern roads.

Most are mechanically doing well,  but on the run from Watson Lake to Whitehorse, one car suffered 11 tire punctures. Since most, if not all of the Alaska Highway is chip sealed, the Top of the World and the Taylor Highways will be a bit of a challenge with 70 kilometres of gravel to traverse.

Almost all the cars are open roadster style and the rules of the rally read,  “The drivers are expected to drive and experience all weather conditions, whether rain, hail, snow or sunshine, therefore all driving is with the (canvas) top down.”

Drivers must follow all rules of the road, which can sometimes be problematic when breaking down in avalanche zones.

With an average price of more than $1 million per copy and topping out at more than $2 million for the ultra-rare models, the drivers and owners are not your average car owners. Most are successful entrepreneurs and businessmen with their spouses. Many of the cars are from Europe, but there are also cars from New Zealand and Australia.

These models introduced in the 1930s were sensational. The eight-litre Le Mans Tourer was comfortable at 200 kph with eight people inside.

Like the current state of the car industry, in the 1930s in Britain, companies were going broke. In 1931, when W.O. Bentley went into receivership, Rolls-Royce, in a asurprise move through proxy, bought the assets of their primary competition, turning the Bentley brand into another Rolls-Royce nameplate.

On Wednesday evening, the parking lot at the Westmark Klondike Inn attracted all kinds of Yukoners fascinated with the vintage automobiles.

There was a continuous stream of people and their cameras exploring this fleeting visual feast of peak 1930s technology. There was even a rare 1934 supercharged version that had raced in Le Mans.

The tour will be back in Whitehorse on June 18, heading south through the Stewart-Cassier Highway, where they will turn right at Kitawonga and catch the ferry.

The cars have a rest day scheduled for Whitehorse June 18, so there is another chance to see these automotive artworks again.

Dodging the RVs and tourist traffic has become a regular Yukon pastime. Nothing like a landscape-struck tourist stopping in the middle of the road to admire a view to remind you to drive safely.

These vintage drivers though awestruck with the vistas in the Yukon have few intentions of stopping. There is Rallypoint waiting in Dawson City and no one wants to be awarded the Rear Ender for the day.

Astounded Yukoners may find themselves heading for the toolies unable to tear their eyes of these vintage automobiles.

Be forewarned: they are in the North for a few more weeks spreading the vintage car culture of the rich and famous North of 60.

Mark Prins is a Whitehorse writer and photographer.