The historic race meetings and revival events in summer, the great Italian road events in spring and early summer, the Californian concours week in August, the Paris and Stuttgart retro shows in winter, and the auction weeks that anchor several of these. The car rather than my car, matching numbers, patina, a barn find, the run, the tour, class judging, marque, restoration versus preservation, a good honest example, the trailer question.

November to February, when cars are laid up and owners are in the garage. Restoration season is a real thing and a real spending season, just not on travel.

Old cars and open cars want dry roads, and the concours calendar is built around summer weekends. Entry to the prestigious road events is by application and selection, sometimes a year ahead, and acceptance is itself a status event.

Marque and model clubs, auction-house mailing lists and viewing days, event entry lists that are published and read closely, specialist forums, and the paddock at the event itself.