Car trials.

Remember these from the 80s. Thinking about hosting one for the parents 50th wedding anniversary in November. Need some ideas please. adding digits on a road sign. counting how many cow sheds you pass. equations around a school ground. driving forward one wheel circumferences. collecting items.

Yea i remember these, geez prob to much red tape now to run one legit like.
Bout all I remember is a bunch of yobs roaring around the district behaving like nutters in cars, no one died though, prob came close. It always seems to turn into a race.
Poker runs still happen quite abit, same thing I guess.

Too much red tape? It would be mainly friends and family anyway, no yobs or nutters.
Could incorporate a poker run, thanks for the idea

Vintage car club and others still do them plenty. No red tape at all, it's just a Sunday drive with questions to answer and things to solve. No rules against that. I like crossword style clues for street names that you have to find to turn.
Best way is to drive around area you'd like to go and find things to use. Take lots of pics and write stuff up so you can go mad at home.

Thanks for the ideas tamarillo, ie crossword clues and taking pics.

Adding in treasure hunt features is fun too.

Get a bus ticket from XYZ, that sort of thing.

Count the tiles on the floor of somewhere.

Throwing in random trivia questions doesn't work well now that everyone has a smartphone.

First instruction - read all instructions before moving off.
Last instruction - how many light posts/ signs/wording on sign/whatever were in the car park at the starting point.
Amazing how many got to the end of the trial without for filling the first instruction and couldn't answer the question.
Be specific about "stay on this road" (centreline marking) "Straight ahead at next intersection" (may take you straight ahead off the main road into a layby road), Tee intersections, bear right, bear left, turning at misspelt street signs etc. Its important to try and keep people on course and not driving many km's in the wrong direction. Mentioning a few landmarks along the way can help with this. Including odo readings with some instructions can also help. Try to avoid tricky instructions at busy intersections - to dangerous. Print out a sheet with definitions, rules, instructions and places for answers. Consider doing the trial in sections with known stating points for each section, again gets you back on course if you are hopelessly lost. Finish at McD's where everyone can back pat and argue the finer points while you work out the results.
Above all - have lots of fun!

A lot of great tips in there, Slueth. Can't wait to start constructing the trial, although haven't got the approval of parents yet.

Just to add, try and do a checking run the day before. Take someone who is not familiar with your trial and get them to direct you, amazing how something clear in your mind reads totally confusing to someone else. Also roadworks, detours, street signs knocked over or missing, all can be reworked before the event.

Thanks sleuth, will take on board.