2021 – It’s Going to Be Outstanding…

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Chris Pollitt

I’ve not done a blog for a while, largely because I have been exceptionally busy not only keeping the Magazine running, but also driving up and down the country to shoot cars for the ever-growing Car & Classic Auctions platform. And of course, this is all good. I and the wider Car & Classic team are busy because the classic car world is one that never sleeps, and one that even in the face of what’s been going on in the wider world throughout 2020, is still active and moving forward. And that’s a beautiful thing. It’s great to be a part of a world where determination and passion still run deep, even in the face of unprecedented challenges.

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And that leads me to the point of this blog. 2020 has been rubbish, but man alive, 2021 is going to be better. A lot better. Having been out (when allowed) and interacting with various corners of the classic car world, there is one common theme to be found, and that’s the staunch belief that 2021 will be the year to celebrate the classic car, the events, the social joy that comes with this passion and a whole lot more. You lot truly are champing at the bit to get back out there, to drive, to show, to enjoy. And for me, that’s been a huge mood lifter. I’ve been to see people – both individual and companies – and not once have I been greeted with defeat. Instead, it’s been stories of using the downtime of 2020 to fix cars, to prepare cars or to plan for events next year. The classic car world hasn’t stagnated in 2020, it has instead been a hotbed of motivation.

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And now all that motivation looks to be worthwhile. There has been a question mark hanging over 2021, what with the ongoing pandemic. But now there is the promise of a vaccine, and while it’ll take more than a minute to roll it out, it’s still a positive step. We can now, with a quiet confidence, look toward 2021 with a reasonable amount of confidence. It might be late summer, but we’ll take it. If it means we can get back out there, get to the shows, see our friends, fawn over gatherings of classic cars, that will be bliss.

I think it’s been a welcome thing for many, too. I know that it’s motivated me, even when motivation has been hard to come by. The buzz and the excitement of getting back out into the world has motivated me to keep going with my own cars. When everything started going wrong in March, working on the car seemed to be a pointless exercise – I couldn’t drive it anywhere or do anything with it. However, because there are so many people looking forward, it has stopped me from losing focus. There aren’t many other hobbies or pastimes that can boast such power.

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And yes, you might be reading this and thinking that you’ve left it too late. Maybe, quite justifiably, you have stagnated a bit and lost your motivation. But don’t fret. Winter is here now, and that’s the perfect time to pull the car into the garage and get all those little jobs done. It’s the right time to spend some money and support the myriad classic car businesses that have been so heavily challenged over the course of this year. It’s time to start making plans and to start looking forward with a smile. We are so, so lucky to have the passion and the interest that we have. The classic car world is one full of passionate, joyful people. And it’s a world that, if everything goes well, we can once again immerse ourselves in fully next year.

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From what I’ve seen, 2020 has been a challenge, make no mistake. But it’s been one that has forced our world to adapt and evolve, not fade and diminish. Let’s face it, we bring old cars back from the brink of being scrapped, we might modify them, we might evolve them, we might race them – whatever we do, it’s a challenge. We love it, so why would we let something as trivial as a crap year dampen our enthusiasm? Here’s to 2021.

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