Although the weather for the 2000 event wasn't as bright and warm as the last
gathering of the twentieth century, at least it remained principally dry apart from
a couple of short showers on the Saturday morning. However the dull skies did
not diminish attendance, as a new record was set. The figure for the weekend
was 109,461 which was nearly 4,500 up on last year's record figure.
What attracts such vast numbers is the garden party atmosphere, the freedom
to wander virtually everywhere. There is also the star line-up of international
racing drivers from a number of eras, including this year, current F1 drivers Jean
Alesi, Johnny Herbert and Jenson Button, whilst the "ancienne pilotes" included
former World Champions Phil Hill, John Surtees and Emerson Fittipaldi, to
name but a few. Then there is the vast gathering of an incredibly diverse array of
racing cars and motor cycles from many fields of the sport, the likes of which
one is unlikely to witness at any other gathering. The combination makes for a
wonderful weekend mixing nostalgia with current technology. Sadly John
Dawson-Damer fatally crashed his Lotus 63 on Saturday afternoon, a track
marshall also losing his life in the incident, with a second seriously injured. This
tragedy halted proceedings for the day and cast a gloom over the event.
In 1997 there was the great arch on the front lawn of Goodwood House, within
which a Ferrari F1 car was suspended, in 1998 we had the Porsche "lollipops",
in 1999 the Audis on the Avus banking and for the year 2000 it was "the cat's
cradle", an impressive structure from which a number of Jaguars were
suspended at various angles.
Within the eclectic collection of superb machinery in the paddocks, the Cartier
"Style & Lux" concours, Brooks auction and trade areas there were a number
of Ferrari gems, to satisfy the appetite of the ardent fan of the "Cavallino
Rampante". Perhaps the rarest in terms of being displayed in public was the
1964 Le Mans winning 275P that came over from the Bardinon Collection to be
driven by Jean Guichet, one of the winning driver pairing in 1964. Another
famous pairing was Jacky Ickx and the 312PB from Modena Motorsport, in
which he was so successful during the 1972 and 1973 seasons. 512s were out
in force with a trio of examples taking to the hill, including the 512M Sunoco
now owned by Lawrence Stroll and driven on this occasion by Gary Pearson.
In the single seater groups could be found the 312 B3 of Ernst Schuster who
recorded the fastest historic car time of the event with 53.14 secs, on his way
to third in class. There was also a 126 C2B running, whilst a 312T, chassis
number 023, was displayed on the Haymarket Publishing stand in the main
trade area.
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