Goodwood, 18th September, 2022 |
Three days isn’t enough! The Goodwood Revival Meeting, held
between 16-18 September, has such a broad spectrum of
activities that it is virtually impossible to experience all aspects
within the three days of the event. Apart from a fifteen race
programme, there are celebration parades on the track, together
with a whole host of peripheral activities and entertainment,
such that one is constantly spoiled for choice and at the same
time torn between where you want to be. |
Almost every event this year seems to hold a celebration of
Ferrari’s 75th anniversary, and the Revival Meeting was no
exception, gathering a fine array of classic examples for static
display and parade laps, the most notable of which was an
extremely rare public showing of an example from “Mr E.’s”
collection. It wasn’t just any old classic Ferrari, but the 1951
British Grand Prix winning 375 F1 car, driven to Ferrari’s first ever
F1 World Championship Grand Prix victory in that race by Froilán
González. |
The third and final celebration was the Centenary of the Austin 7, with an enormous display of many
different types in the infield area, together with parade laps each day. On the subject of Austins, the Austin
J40 pedal car races for children on the start/finish straight, have been a popular feature of the Revival Meeting
for a decade, and this year they were augmented by a race track laid out in the infield, where visiting children
could enjoy the cars themselves. |
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This had been preceded by practice and qualifying sessions for all other races apart from the Sussex Trophy,
which preceded the first race on the Saturday morning. Apart from the crowd favourite RAC Tourist Trophy
Celebration Race on the Sunday afternoon, the two-part St Mary’s Trophy saloon car race is always a great
attraction, with professional drivers taking the part in the first race on the Saturday, with the cars owners
taking to the track on the Sunday, which was the last race on the programme this year. Whether it be the
professionals or the owners, these races always provide really intense close racing, much appreciated by the
spectators, who always give rousing cheers on the cooling down lap. Mention should be made of what was
probably the aural delight of the meeting. This was the wonderful wail of the BRM Type 15 Mk I 1952 Type
“Evocation” with its sonorous 1.5 litre V16 engine, driven by Rob Hall in the Goodwood Trophy Race on the
Saturday afternoon. |
As always, theatre is part of the magic of the Goodwood Revival Meeting, and visitors are
encouraged to dress in period costume to add to the ambience of the gathering, with many going to great
lengths to “look the part”. Some do it so well, that one wonders whether they are in fact some of the acts
employed by the organisers to provide the retro theme. There are always the perennial theatre atmosphere
favourites, like the “Mrs Mop” cleaning ladies, the “Glam Cabs” girls, the military camps dotted around the
display areas, the “Mods & Rockers” with their sixties scooters and motorcycles, the road working crew,
and classic police vehicles with uniformed “officers”, plus an array of hot rods, with an anniversary “32 Ford
Garage Display” in Gasoline Alley, together with some more modern dragsters. There were also all the
other popular features including the classic aircraft concours in the infield, the “Earls Court Motor Show”
with a predominantly electric theme this year, although the Aston Martin stand featured their new Valhalla
supercar, whilst adjacent to this was the Sky Cinema live film set. Then there was the classic BMW garage
along with the Porsche Classic one, the latter running up an engine at intervals during the course of the
weekend, a Bonhams auction, “Over The Road” with its broad array of vendors, fun fair, the free to enter
(with free popcorn!) Revival Cinema presented by Sky Cinema, together with a massive classic car parking
area, a show in itself, and plenty more besides without even considering the racing aspect of the meeting! |