Making way for horseless carriages

The eighth Annual Red Flag Horseless Carriage Tour will kickoff on Thursday, Sept. 26. The event, which celebrates the anniversary of the widespread adoption of motorized vehicles in England in the late 1800s, will include daily tours up through Saturday, Sept. 29, a car show with vehicles that date back to the early 1900s and a free showing of Francis Coppola's 'Tucker, the Man and His Dream,” which will begin at 5 p.m., on Thursday, Sept. 26.

Jeff Krug, president and organizer of the event said the tour in Iowa is special because of its ability to mimic the tour in England.

'It runs from London to Brighton every year in England … in Iowa we go from New London to Brighton, which is a similar distance to the tour in England, so it's a nice opportunity to recreate it in the States,” Krug said.

The tour was started in London after a repealed law raised the speed limit from 4 miles per hour to 14. Krug explained that the tour is called the Red Flag Horseless Carriage Tour because before the adoption of motorized vehicles, an officer would have to wave a red flag on the street to notify horse-pulled carriages that a horseless carriage (a car) was coming.

The daily tours range at about 60 to 85 miles. This year, in addition to the annual tour from New London to Brighton, a special rededication of Convict Road, the first road in Iowa built using convict labor, will be part of the tour on Friday, Sept. 26. The road was completed in 1914.

According to Krug, there are close to thirty vehicles preregistered for the event this year, all of which are pre-1927. Krug also noted that a sizable crowd often joins in on the fun.

'Folks travel in from around the country, lots of people travel a great distance to come to our event,” Krug said.

Krug, who was on the Henry County Tourism Board, said the event was started at the suggestion of a Des Moines resident who had heard of the tour in England. The first tour took about two years to organize.

Krug noted that the event, in addition to being a great place to view older vehicles, has built a special community of people.

'A lot of participants come back year after year after year. It's a close-knit group, and of course, we're always open to new participants,” Krug explained.

'It's obviously seeing the uniqueness of the automobiles that were built back a 100 years ago and the marvels in how they built them and then of course it's the people,” Krug said about his favorite part of the horseless carriage tour.

'If people are at all interested in history and automotives and want to see it live, this is the premier place to be,” Krug said.

This year, signature tour will begin at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28 in New London. Krug says it's a 'fantastic place for the public to come.” In addition to car enthusiasts, the kick off the main tour is a fundraising opportunity for local nonprofits and civic groups. Other items on the tour itinerary include a trip to Ft. Madison to view the Iowa State Penitentiary and the historic 1839 prison structure, as well as a banquet at the Mt. Pleasant Golf and Country Club. For more information on the event or to register a vehicle, participants can visit www.redflagmotortour.com.