Saturday morning
Serious elation this morning as we headed to the Goodwood Members Meeting, the first and most intimate of the three major motoring events on the grand Sussex estate this year.
Not only were the organizers blessed with a sunny and perfect day, but our transport was also remarkable: WO Bentley’s personal 1930 Mulliner-bodied 8-litre “company car”. In 10 Miles was an experience that spoke volumes about the direction of automotive progress.
On one side, the giant straight-six belched and puffed like a workhorse until it was warm and it took the forearms of a blacksmith to turn the steering wheel. It wasn’t possible to perform a smooth shift (although you’re comfortable with crash gearboxes, I’m not) until the oil was warm enough.
On the other hand, the 8-litre’s level of luxury and style effortlessly matched that of today’s best cars, and visibility was much better. Most striking of all was the incredible mechanical refinement of the (warmed up) engine and its powerful torque from 1000 rpm. In some ways, vintage cars aren’t old at all.
Saturday afternoon
Good afternoon watching a mixture of practice and racing, particularly enjoying the effect the long, fast corners of this unique circuit have on the cars – especially the Gerry Marshall Trophy saloons – which , by today’s standards, have too much weight, high centers of gravity and not enough rubber on the road. From where I was, the sinister slides and generous drift angles looked downright graceful. (I’m sure they felt a little more violent in the cars.)
The whole experience always makes you wonder how modern, non-classic, and non-vintage racing can compete with this spectacle, where the challenges of car control are almost as clear to an observer 100 yards away as they are to the driver. If people want Goodwood crowds on modern racetracks, surely this is an avenue worth exploring…
Tuesday
Half of my income seems to go to club magazines, so I usually throw barely-laminated club organs in the recycling bin. What a treat, then, to spend an engrossing half hour with the latest online issue of Motorsport UK’s Revolution magazine, each cover of which caught my eye. How to buy a race car is an eternal story, but you read it anyway when it’s done right. What he was. I haven’t done much with my competition license so far this year, but it definitely reinforces my desire to make plans.
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Source: www.autocar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-04-20 05:01:24