Goodwood was at its best yet again for the 13th Revival celebration. Four days of superb weather made it one of the best in the circuit’s retro history, as large crowds and great racing filled the long weekend.
It was a weekend of special events and tributes, starting with a memorial for Bruce McLaren to mark the 40th anniversary of his death at the circuit in 1970. Many luminaries, including Bruce’s widow Patty and sister Jan, marked the occasion on Thursday. This was followed by the now traditional cricket match and afternoon tea.
Practice and 15 races were spread over Friday through Sunday, with parades to mark 60 years of BRM, which had its first win at Goodwood in 1950, and a three-day tribute to World Champion John Surtees. It was also the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, so incredible aircraft filled the skies and the display areas all weekend.
The main races all produced very close competition, with no serious incidents in spite of the cut and thrust of professionals versus amateurs in some of the events. Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen won the first leg of the St. Mary’s Trophy for saloons in an Austin A95, topping a weird collection of cars that included Gaz Volgas and Tatras. Grant Williams and Derek Bell took the combined result with a Jaguar Mk1.
The other two-driver race featured a billion dollars worth of cars (!) and many professional pilots. Jean Marc Gounon and Peter Hardman took the RAC TT race in a Ferrari. It should have gone to Rob Hall’s Cobra, but an unready co-driver meant they dropped to 4th at the pit stop, which was most undeserved.
Motorcycles, flying and the BRM and Surtees tribute parades meant there was the usual non-stop action—and never a drop of rain. Great weekend!
by Ed McDonough
