Tag Archives: cars

Rally Stage

I was not feeling at my best the day when I went to the Festival of Speed at Goodwood. Consequently, I always gave myself the option to bail out if I wasn’t up to it. One of the things that I figured was most likely to get sacrificed was the rally stage. This was something I was most interested in seeing but it was quite a trek up the hill and, with a hot day and a slight lack of energy, I thought this might end up not happening. In the end I decided to start walking up there and see how I felt as I went – always having the option to change the plan. As it was, while it was very warm, there was a lot of shade on the way through the woods, and I ended up getting there without feeling bad. Always good when you have options!

I first came to the paddock area and that was so much fun to stroll around. So many older rally cars including some Group B examples along with more modern examples. The selection of Audis, Subarus, Lancias and Peugeots was great. Sure, there were lots of others but my strongest memories of 80s and 90s rallying were these types. A couple of cars were driving around including a Mini that had clearly been rolled recently. A while later, the commentary team mentioned that it had indeed been the case. I guess the participants aren’t hanging around with their vehicles on the stage.

Things were pretty quiet when I first got there, things were pretty quiet. However, it wasn’t long before they started up runs through the custom designed rally stage in the woods. A couple of cars came through before I had got to the woods and then things went quiet for quite a while. I wandered along the trails into the woods and wondered if I had missed something when a truck came along the track towing a car. Not sure what had happened, but it clearly hadn’t ended well. Hopefully they got things sorted before too long.

Then it was back to cars running through the stage. Some of them were really giving it the beans while others were making sure that they stayed within their limits. That’s fine by me. If you have a vintage rally car, being reckless with it really doesn’t make sense. Besides, you might have the cool car but that doesn’t make you the greatest driver so do what makes sense. I’m just glad that they have the car and will bring it to an event like this.

Given how hot and dry it had been, the stage was very dusty. The good spots to watch from were often around bends where you can see the cars doing what they do best. It reminded me of photographing on the ramps at air bases. There you will fit yourself photographing a jet and then, as it turns away from you, you will turn your back to avoid the jet wash. This was the same except it was dust and dirt that was being thrown over you rather than hot air. By the end of my time there both me and my camera gear were coated in dirt!

When getting images, you are looking for something that really emphasises the drama of rallying. I was going with low shutter speeds to try and emphasise the speed of the cars as they hurtle through the woods. You also want something that includes cornering since rally cars do a good job of going sideways. If they are throwing up dust, that is even better. Then you get the more interesting moments when they might catch the bank and throw earth up as they bounce back on course. They won’t all be doing that but, when one does, it does look spectacular.

The course designers also included a small jump along one section. There were distance markers on the ground so you could see how far each car went before touching down. There was a lot of variety in the way in which the drivers approached the jump. Some seemed to be barely airborne while others got a lot of distance. I tried being ahead of the cars for a bit and then went with a side on view. The trees were a bit in the way for the images, but it was more about trying to show off the drama of the location.

Up to this point, I have talked about the location and the cars. However, what I haven’t shared is the relaxed nature of the area. It is a bit like going to Oshkosh in that the main venue is absolutely manic, but you can go to the seaplane base and chill out without the thousands of people. The rally stage is like that. Whether people aren’t as interested or maybe they just don’t want to climb the hill. It’s even possible that they don’t know what is there. Whatever it is, there are just not so many people up there. The woods give you loads of places to check out so it is never crowded, and you really feel like things are a bit more relaxed than down in the main areas. If you go to the Festival of Speed, I would definitely recommend some time up at the rally stage. Even if you aren’t a big fan of rallying (and why would that be??), I think you will enjoy it – once you have cooled down after climbing the hill!

Hypercars Get Ready

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I was down near the start line for the hill climb at Goodwood when the hypercars were coming out. They were exiting the paddock and turning on to the start line. However, there were so many of them that after the initial cars had turned left onto the road, the rest had to turn right and go up to turn before coming back to join the line. There were that many cars. None of these were in anyway cheap under performers!

I could try naming them all but that is hardly possible. First, there are so many it would get boring. Second, I don’t even know what some of them were. I might have a bit of an idea, but I would really be guessing, and I don’t want to get people giving me a hard time about being wrong when there is no point. Instead, here is a sample of the amazing vehicles that were awaiting their turn to blast along the opening straight and turn up the hill for the large crowds at the Festival of Speed.

Brooklands Museum

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One slightly overcast Saturday, I dragged Nancy along to a museum that I was keen to see. The Brooklands Museum is one I had been to a couple of times before we left the UK. I first went there in 1990 when it wasn’t actually open to the public. I was doing some research for an exhibit that were were putting together in the Department of Aeronautics on Barnes Wallis’s Swallow project. The archives at Brooklands had a lot of material that we could access. The next time I went, it was when I worked in London and we had a team meeting at the museum which then included the chance to have a look around.

A lot has changed since that time, and I wanted to see what it is currently like. The museum sits on the site of what started out as the Brooklands motor racing circuit and then became the Vickers Weybridge factory. The museum reflects this extensive history. The racing circuit had banked curves and, while much of the circuit is now built over, there is still some of the original banking in place behind where the museum is located. The banking does not look that steep either in pictures or even when looking at it from a distance. However, when I was there on the previous work trip, we were allowed out on the banking, and my work shoes couldn’t maintain any traction on the concrete. I just slipped back down when trying to walk up the slope. On this visit, they strongly discouraged any walking on the banking.

The museum has three core elements. The first is the racing history of Brooklands. The infield infrastructure is nicely maintained with old garages for the tenants along with the clubhouse and associated buildings. There are car exhibits as well as bicycle and motorbikes. Apparently, road racing of bicycles was illegal in the UK for many years so races on the track were the only option. Motorbike racing was an obvious option if you were a car racing circuit, so the collection of old motorbikes made sense.

The second element is the aerospace history. The factory was heavily involved in manufacturing aircraft in the Second World War with the Wellington being possibly the most famous product. The site then moved into airliner production post war with the Viscount, Vanguard and VC-10 being well represented. Weybridge was also central to the development of Concorde and one of the pre-production jets is also on show. There are also Hawker jets on display, and I have covered them separately in other posts. There are also some test facilities that are rather unusual including the stratospheric chamber which will get its own coverage in due course.

The third part of the museum is a collection of buses belonging to the London Bus Museum. This is included in the admission, and I was not even aware of it before we got there. Aside from plenty of buses, there are lots of exhibits about the supporting elements of bus operation from years gone by. It was a pretty interesting collection, and I was surprised how much time I ended up spending in there.

The museum proved to be a really interesting day out and I think Nancy, while maybe not quite as enthusiastic as me, also found it reasonably worthwhile. The collection has expanded significantly since I was last there and it is able to provide a full day out if you want to check it out. Here is a selection of images from the day. It won’t surprise some that know me to find out that there are way more images from the day than I have included here!

Coming Across an Old Car Meet While Out on the Bike

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As part of my prep for the long charity bike ride I undertook in September, I was doing some longer rides from home to get some miles in. On one of these rides, I headed from home to the coast. To be honest, I had planned the route on the computer, and I didn’t really know many of the places I was going through. A lot of it was countryside but I did come through some towns. As I was heading out of one of them, I passed a bunch of people and cars parked in a car park.

I stopped and went back to see what sort of vehicles these folks had brought along. There was quite a selection of old vehicles and some that weren’t so old. However, I guess it is a question of perspective because some of the cars that were there seemed recent to me until I thought of when they were registered. Then it was obvious that they were now rather old – just like me! Yes, we had some more familiar “vintage” vehicles but in the background of one of the shots you might spot an Austin Metro! I didn’t hang around too long because I was on a mission, but it was a fun break and rather amusing!

Generations of F1 Racing Cars

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The National Motor Museum at Beaulieu has an F1 exhibit running throughout the summer. There are a number of F1 cars from across the decades on show along with some images and information displays. I imagine that a few competitors were willing to collaborate on this because several of the cars seemed to have the same heritage. For example, the Jaguar is from the team that became Red Bull, so they were probably owned by the same entity and there were some Williams cars too.

Here are a few shots of the generations of cars that were on display. It is interesting to see how much the size and look of the cars has changed as the rule structures have evolved and the technology has advanced. The 70s cars really do look incredibly flimsy, and it is no surprise that drivers died a lot in those days.

Visit to The Shop

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It is always strange when you have lived somewhere for a few years to find out about a place that is nearby, and you should have heard of but that you knew nothing of. Even more embarrassing is to find out from a friend of yours from another state that visited it while in the area and then told you! Such is the case with The Shop. Located in the SODO part of Seattle, I must have driven close to it more times than I can imagine.

This is a storage location in which people can keep their cars and even have restoration work undertaken (although the waiting list for the restoration guys is quite long apparently). There is a heated shed if you want to pay more or an unheated one if you are less fussed. When you want your vehicle, you let them know and they will retrieve it from the location in which it is stored (which might be above another vehicle or behind one) and you can drop off your daily driver for them to look after while you take out your precious beast.

They provide tours of the facility which, while quite brief, do give you a good look at what is stored there. There are some seriously expensive vehicles kept on site. A Ferrari Dino was one of the more valuable ones but not the most expensive while we were there. The young lad showing us around was happy to regale us with the information on some of the more unusual types on show. Owners were not generally discussed but they were not hiding that some of the vehicles belonged to Macklemore.

While there are some exotic vehicles in there, there are also some rough looking cars that are going to get restored at some point I imagine. They are clearly prized by their owners, but they might not be top of the list for others. Given how they are stored, it isn’t always easy to get a clear look at some of the more interesting vehicles – particularly if they are behind others and in the shade. Doesn’t stop you having a good nose around, though, even if the guide does keep you moving. They are not too officious and seem to welcome the fact you are curious.

Italian Day Brings Out the Wealth

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I have done quite well this year with getting to feature days at Exotics@RTC. The Italian Day is always going to be a popular one and the number of Ferraris and Lamborghinis in the area is going to provide a good basis for the event with a bunch of other cars of varying vintages being able to fill in the gaps with a bit of variety. I do not know much about these cars so, when I walk around, I am either looking for something I recognize or something that looks totally different. Here is a selection of shots of cars that fit those criteria.

Carbon Fiber Details

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The German day at Exotics@RTC included some rather high-end Mercedes and there was one with a lot of little aero details that caught my eye. When I see how someone with a good eye can find the details on a subject in a way that I can’t I am very jealous. It doesn’t stop me from looking to see which details do gain my interest, though. Carbon fiber can be tricky to shoot on a sunny day since it is dark but can also be reflective. I used a polarizer to try and cut the glare and show off the texture of the layup.

Some Vintage Volvos

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Exotics@RTC gets a lot of regular attendees so you will often see the same cars week after week. Getting something a little different is really appreciated. I have seen some old Volvos at Exotics before but whether it was these or not, I don’t know. (The modified one has definitely been before but more of that in a second.)

The P1800 is a cool looking car and, if you are old enough and have seen episodes of the original Saint TV show, you will recognize it. It was partnered with a more sedate vehicle which was also in great condition. Next to it was one that was a bit more tricked out. I don’t think carbon fiber was a key element of Volvos in those days and I imagine under the surface, this one has been uprated a touch. Good to have something a little different amongst the regular vehicles.

The Deferred German Car Day

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I missed out on the beginning of the Exotics@RTC schedule this year. They had several delays due to weather and I was away when the first event finally went ahead. However, when it came to the German Car Day, the weather played to my favor. I would have missed the originally planned date for travel reasons but, when it did happen, I was able to make the trip.

I like the German Car Day. The Italian Day is always impressive but there are far too many people with tons of cash that just buy Ferraris and Lamborghinis, so you end up with a lot of similar stuff. German Day isn’t perfect, but it does seem to pull out a lot more serious enthusiasts. Sure, there are loads of Porsches and BMWs around, but the central area had a bunch of cool looking motors. Yes, you’ll get a modern exotic Mercedes thrown in from someone with an excess of disposable income, but it doesn’t detract from a nice gathering of cool cars. Here are some of those cars!