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DATES: THURSDAY 25 TO MONDAY 29 AUGUST 2022 INCL.

This is another race meeting that has been off my calendar for a while. The last time I went was in 2018. For those that don’t know, as it suggests, it features all sorts of classic race cars from many different categories, from Formula Ford, through to Classic F1 cars and loads of Touring Cars – “tin tops” to you and me….

The BEST thing about the Classic is that you can get really near to the cars in the paddock (and elsewhere), which is always a very attractive aspect for me – I like to look at the machinery, especially as I remember most of it the first time around ! It’s also a lot less crowded than the full Grand Prix meeting. Most of the time, most of the guys are quite happy to talk about their machines – if they’re not in the middle of a gearbox changing crisis that is !

So (as usual – boring, boring…….) it was the 4 days on-site camping package for me, at the Woodlands Campsite. This time I went posh and had the electric hook up option – no expense spared…… I  travelled up on the Thursday, ready for the “proper” first day on the Friday. The Woodlands Campsite is ideal, as it’s only a quick stroll to the nearest circuit entry point. They also organised a fleet of buses to take people around the perimeter road, so it was easy to get from one viewpoint to another.

This time, there seemed to be a bit more of a “carnival” atmosphere as it had moved to the August Bank Holiday weekend, I guess as means of getting more punters through the doors. Apart from the actual racing, there was plenty of other stuff to see, including displays of all sorts of cars from various car clubs, stuff for the kids, stalls to buy memorabilia, etc, etc.

An added attraction for me was the evening entertainment featuring Bjorn Again, Sister Sledge ( oh yes, definitely my era) and Rick Astley.

So I stuck to my “usual” plan of spending  Friday my looking round the paddock ( less busy than on the actual weekend, obs) and watching some of the practice/qualifying sessions as well, a choose a few to races on the Saturday and Sunday to watch (some cars being more attractive for me than others….) and then have a general schmooze around the displays, etc in between times. No change this year, why fix it, etc, etc.

So here’s a few notes on some of the stuff that caught my eye – in no particular order……….there was lots more, this is but a sample.

  WARNING: LIKE MY EARLIER GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED AND SILVERSTONE POSTS, THERE ARE PAGES AND PAGES OF CARS IN THIS POST….. JUST SAYING…….

One great thing about getting there early – you get your choice of pitch. It certainly filled up later in the afternoon ! 

Friday morning mist……all ready for a cracking day

 

If you know me well, you know I have an ENORMOUS soft spot for saloon/touring cars, especially ones from “my” era…….

There’s always one joker……..Many years ago I had one of these RS2000 Mk 1’s , in black/gold. Wish I’d still got it, would be worth a small fortune now……. 

Whatever, whatever, the Sierra Cossy RS500 still remains on of the most iconic  touring cars of ALL TIME, IMHO anyway. Just look at that engine……

Dolly Sprints were pretty good for their time as well.

Another machine close to my heart. Very nearly the same as the one I used to speed hill climb, many years ago.

Not really my “bag”, but these little 1 lite Formula Junior cars are fun to watch, as they are driven flat out ALL the time- especially on a flowing circuit like Silverstone . Sound like a swarm of bees !

More classic saloon cars……

Then on to the sports car garage. I’m a sucker for a well turned out Austin Healey, beautiful machine

It wasn’t ALL racing cars……..

Beautiful Lotus 15, an ex-works car by the look of it. Still looks good, originally built in 1958. NOt quite sure it should be racing with axle stands as passengers……

Yes, more saloons, I’m afraid. Here’s a nice simple facia, as per RS500.  The current cars are much, much more complex.

The Historic Formula Junior’s put on a bit of a display inside and outside their garages. Also there was a certain Mr Ray Mallock, obviously driving a family created Mallock, bucking the trend in still being front engined.

The next garage along was a mixture of Masters Endurance Legend cars ( eg the sort of machines that raced in the Le Mans 24 hour race in France) and 1990’s

Ligier LMP2, built on 2016, 4 litre engine. A very typical Le Mans style car, all carbon fibre and big wings.

Despite all of the electronic and other gadgets, the suspension  is adjusted using MECHANICAL shims ! Extraordinary !!!! 

Towo of my all time favourite LM cars are the screaming Peugeot 90X machines from 2011. Essentially an F1 engined machine with 3.7 litres of V10 in the back. Unfortunately. not allowed to get near them today, but I’ve seen them close up before at the Le Mans Classic. Even the bodywork is sexy !!!!

Here’s a 2009, 6 litre Aston Martin DBR1-2. Somebody with a sense of humour obviously allocated the race numbers……

 A few more for you to feast your eyes upon

One of my all time favourite LM cars is the screaming Peugeot 90X machine from 2011. Essentially an F1 engined machine with 3.7 litres of V10 in the back. Unfortunately not allowed to get near them today, but I’ve seen them close up before at the Le Mans Classic. Even the bodywork is sexy !!!!

In the historic GP car garage, these two Lotusssssss caught my eye, a 25 and an 18. Still looking remarkably pretty.

And a Maserati 250 f from 1995. OOOF !

Just off the main paddock was a display of Group C cars, mainly the sort that dominated the Le Mans scene for many years. God knows how much money was sitting there. They did get some period drivers to give them a whizz round. I got the impression that they would have been quite happy to have given them a bit more of a blast, rather than pootling round……Lots of Jaaaaaags and a clutch of Porsche’s . Some pretty useful driver names on many of them.

They look the same, but each one slightly different………

In the Village, a star attraction was a pavillion featuring ALL seven of Lewis Hamilton’s title winning cars. from 2008 up to and including 2020. A mixture of McLaren and Mercedes machines

Interesting to see some of the detail close up, especially all the complexity of the suspension and aerodynamics. Got more fiddly as the years progressed.

Also there was a sort of rally special stage/demonstration, with some rather fine classic machinery, including a Sunbeam Talbot Lotus and various Fords Escorts, amongst others.

Another big feature of the Classic is the collection of car clubs that gather at the circuit, from the Abarth Owners Club, all the way through to one called Zroadster.org ( which seems to be a club featuring the BMW Z  roadsters). CArs everywhere !

One of my favourites ( for sentimental reasons, I guess )  was the Austin 7  club site. A couple of beautiful examples on show. In my youth I had an example of each – but not in this condition !!!!!

I was intrigued how they were able to stuff so much into a Fiat 500 Abarth engine bay – such a tiny car !

Another intriging vehicle was this old Morris JE van that had been converted to battery power. I think this is the on that featured on the BBC Travel Show programme at some time.

So there we are, another Silverstone Classic review completed.   Roll on 2023 !

Oh, by the way Sister Sledge were FANTASTIC !!!!!!!! Can’t believe they are now in their 60’s – such energy……..

DAY 1 – MONDAY 06 JUNE 2022

Having had the misadventures of THE GREAT ESCAPE ( see previous blog posts), I decided to give myself a bit of a “consolation prize” of a few days in North Devon. I haven’t stayed in the Lynmouth/Lynton area for some time (probably decades !) and I needed an excuse to try out the replacement tent.

My “confidence” in it being able to stand up in drafty situations had to be re-established – aren’t we humans silly about such things – it’s only a bloody tent !!!!!! The tent WAS replaced completely and I also got a bonus upgrade to the new Version 2 as well – thank you Zempire.

So it was off down the M5, leaving at the Tiverton junction, then a bit of “cross country” on the A396 north to Minehead, followed by the A39 through Porlock to Lynton/Lynmouth.

Set up camp at the the Camping & Caravan Club  site at Lynton, just outside town  a few hundred feet above sea level – complete with semi-permanent Westerly wind, it seemed ! Found a reasonably sheltered spot behind a fence/bank, which turned out to be a good move later in the week…..

From the information board, I gathered there were plenty of great walks, the issue being how was I going to fit them all in ! The  Warden’s suggestion of a circular walk looked good, taking in some of the more famous “sights”.

Just to cap off a beautiful; sunny day, there was a glorious sunset.

DAY 2 – TUESDAY 07 JUNE 2022

On with the boots this morning, to do the circular walk, apparently 7 miles in total. So a walk down a VERY steep lane into Lynmouth. For those of you old enough to remember, Lynmouth suffered a major disaster in 1952, wiping out loads of houses/businesses and killing 34 people. Obviously all rebuilt, with the river course much wider now.

My first target was the funicular cliff railway which runs between Lynmouth and Lynton above. It opened in 1890 and is the highest and the steepest totally water powered railway in the world – with a spectacular view……..

At the top, I joined the South West Coastal Path for few miles. The path itself is a total of 630 miles long and runs from Minehead right round to Poole in Dorset.

Spectacular views, as you would expect from a path originally created to allow customs officers to patrol the coast on the lookout for smugglers. This section starts off gentle enough, but soon changes to the classic cliff walk – complete with grazing goat….

 

My destination was another”must do” place called the Valley of the Rocks.

It’s a spectacular dry valley running parallel to the coast. Once inhabited, as there are remains of agricultural activity. Formed, it seems by glacial activity. 

You get the picture…….

So far, easy-peasy. I’ve been following  a well trodden path ( literally !) but now it was cross country back to the campsite.  A very useful walking map/guide  for the locality is this:

 

Now working on the principle that what goes down must go up, it was a bit of a zig-zag climb back up to the campsite, past a place called Lee Abbey, which is Christian conference, retreat and holiday centre.

 

They have a fantastic view from their terrace…….. My path goes through and over the trees at the end of the clip, like this:

 

Believe me – it’s quite steep, but with great views over  Lee Bay.

Back at the tent, it was time for some lunch, before venturing out to the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway, just down the road from the campsite at Woody bay station. At present, it’s only a short railway, but they have grand plans to restore it to both Lynton and Barnstaple.

My final “tourist” destination for the day was back in Lynmouth – the Glen Lyn Gorge.

Now very much a site of Special Scientific Interest, it includes an exhibition about the power of water. At one time all the power in the two villages was provided by a turbine generator system, rather mangled during the disaster 0f 1952, but restores somewhat to provide power to the national grid.  The power house and the display jets give an idea of the forces available to be harnessed from nature – if you are careful ! The gorge itself is pretty too.

 

Finally, finally, finally, it was time for tea – a full Devon tea of course, with scones, cream and jam  – cream on first in Devon……..

A busy day with lots stuffed into it, but the sun was shining, so had to make the best of it…..

DAY 3 – WEDNESDAY 08 JUNE 2022

Today it’s steam train time !!!!!! The only fixed item in my schedule was a trip on the West Somerset Railway from Minehead to Bishops Lydeard and back. It’s the longest heritage railway in the UK – 20 miles – going along the coast initially, then diving into the glorious Somerset countryside. Been meaning to go on it for some while.

 

A Wednesday in early June doesn’t seem to be too busy ( especially straight after THAT long, long weekend) so the train was not at all crowded – nice !

On the way back from Minehead, I diverted off the main road to seek out a village called Brendon, which is in the  Doone Valley ( Lorna Doone and all that…). Very pretty and worth a return visit. It’s on the end of a long-ish walk from Lynton, which might be worth trying later in the week. Campsite there as well….

Returning to camp, it became obvious that the weather had turned, pumping up to 35 mph gusts and forecast of ran for tomorrow. Defences were put in place with wind breaks and strategic car placement. Camping is such fun……

 

DAY 4 – THURSDAY 09 JUNE 2022

It rained overnight and continued throughout the day, so no trips out at all.  Got up late, had a late, late breakfast, read a book. Nuf said.

DAY 5 – FRIDAY 10 JUNE 2022

As is the way with weather, it was a BRILLIANTLY sunny day – complete contrast to yesterday.

My target today was Dunkery Beacon, the highest point in the Exmoor National Park. Bit blowy still ( as you can tell from the video !) but a decent pull up to the top. Naturally a great view.

After that dose of fresh air, I motored down to Porlock Weir to have a wander round.  A small village with a harbour and all that goes with it.  At the end of a minor road, it’s definitely a “destination” with pubs, a shop, a big pebble beach and some splendid houses.. Very nice.

The afternoon was devoted to walking from Lynmouth up through Watersmeet, along part of the Coleridge Way, which I think has been featured on the TV on a Kate Humble programme.  It’s a beautiful valley/gorge, now looked after by the National Trust.  Lots of pix, as it was indeed beautiful.

 

As you can see, there is a cafe, where I was joined at one point by  a little fat bird, who obviously was tame enough to scavenge of people’s plates……

Unfortunately….. on the way down I went over on my bad left ankle, which rather spoilt things – bring on the ibuprofen………. 

Had a bit of a mooch round Lynmouth itself before retiring for the night.  These couple of signposts and the sculpture made me laugh, considering I’d just taken myself ( somewhat involuntarily) out of the walking community for a while……

DAY 6 – SATURDAY 11 JUNE 2022

So, base on the fact that the ankle was hurting, I decided to be a motoring tourist, going rouns some of the roads hitherto unexplored . Included Simonsbath, Exford and Dulverton and the Brendon Hills. Dulverton looks nice, but a bit busy today, as the sun was shining !!!!! Another day, perhaps….

Also, did a bit of “campsite spotting” for the future, so not too bad a day really.

DAY 7 – SUNDAY 12 JUNE 2022

Ah yes, a big bruise this morning…….HO HUM…..

So essentially today was pack up and go home day – with a dry tent !!!!!! There had been another beautiful sunset last night, which is always a good way to finish a holiday break.

As usual, I could have done with more time to roam around, as there was plenty to see and some magnificent walking ( haha ). For the future……..

DATES: WEDNESDAY 23 JUNE TO MONDAY 27 JUNE 2022 INCL.

Yes, I know, the event itself  was only from the Thursday to the Sunday, but I arrived early and left late……

For those who don’t know, the Goodwood Festival of Speed  (FOS) is an annual extravaganza of all things motoring, held in the grounds of  Goodwood House, which is the home of the Duke of Richmond and Gordon. He is a speed fanatic and over the years the FOS has got bigger, better and more important as years go by. Many manufacturers reveal new cars at FOS because it has gained a world-wide reputation of being the best “mobile” showcase available.

There is always a theme, which this year was celebrating the 50th anniversary of BMW’s M brand – so BMW’s everywhere …….Hard life, innit ?????

I think this post will be more a “few pix with comments” rather than a more conventional ( dare I say it !) description  of what I got up to.

As per previous visits ( this was my THIRD) I booked the 4 day camping package, but this time selected the Campsite H, which  had electric hook up and was the nearest campsite to the actual event – expensive but worth it !

Still recovering from my ankle issues (see post North Devon – June 2022), I decided that  I would try and survive the 4 days by taking a prodigious and continuous amount of pain killers on regular intervals. Not the best thing to do, but ho hum, been looking forward to this event since buying the tickets in November 2021, so wasn’t going to let a mere ankle get in the way…… Suffice to say that I survived and walked over 80 km in the 4 days, so not too bad really.

Just to add a bit of extra “time spice”, FOS coincided with the a big annual outdoor railway equipment exhibition, namely RAIL LIVE 2022.  So I had a grand morning on the Wednesday wandering around the rail exhibition (getting slightly sunburn and seeing old friends and colleagues) before dashing down to Goodwood in the afternoon. More pk’s……..

My previous modus operandi was to spend one day in the paddock (drooling over all the fantastic machinery, talking to the exhibitors, etc), a day going round the exhibition side of things + the supercars, concourse, etc, a day based on the rally stage at the top of the hillclimb, then the last day on the hillclimb, watching all the maniacs trying to beat the hill record, etc. Then there is always the daily display by the Red Arrows thrown in as well…….. No change this year, why fix it, etc, etc.

So here’s a few notes on some of the stuff that caught my eye – in no particular order……….there was lots more, this is but a sample.

PS: IF YOU ARE NOT “INTO” CARS, A WARNING THAT THERE ARE PAGES AND PAGES OF CARS IN THIS POST….. JUST SAYING…….

On the Jaguar stand they had an example of an e-Prix racer. There is a series throughout the world ( mostly on street race circuits) involving most of the big manufacturers, to promote the idea of electric racing cars.  With a limited supply of energy, there’s lots of strategy involved to make sure the battery last to the end of the race. Seems to be a “home” for ex-F1 drivers, amongst others……..

Then there was this…… A funny three wheel electric car from Italy, called a Solo, made by ElectraMeccanica. Presumably being pushed as a town car; it has a top speed of 80mph.

Then I had a gawp at the rally cars in the Assembly Area, previewing what you could seen on the rally stage further up the hill. All the “normal favourites” (Mini’s, Escorts, etc) plus a Citroen DS !!!!!!! And a Skoda – of course……

Also lurking  were two fire breathing BMW M4 drift cars. Two German guys (known as the RED BULL DRIFT BROTHERS) built two M4’s with 1000 hp and quadruple exhausts coming out where the back window should be, carbon fibre everything naturally. Sounded sweet on tickover.   Will probably see them performing later.

There were several notable Porsche’s too, including this RS Spyder (circa 2005), still beautiful after all this time…… designed by Porsche in conjunction with Penske to compete in Le Mans Prototype Class 2 (LMP2) racing. The car takes its name from the legendary Porsche 550 Spyder of the 1950s, combined with Porsche’s common “RennSport” (lit.: racing sports) designation. Beautiful.

Just up the row a bit was this Porsche 936, circa late 1970’s.

On to one of my all time  favourites, the 1971 McLaren- Chevrolet M8F with 8 litres of stonking V8 in the back….. A car that dominated the CanAM Series in N America.  Just listen to that engine ! Had quite a chat with the owner  who naturally said it cost a small fortune to run (? £10 k per meeting ??????), but apparently very “rewarding” to drive.  I would think up the Goodwood hill it would be necessary for an underpant change after each run….

And here’s another Group C beastie, a Jaguar XJR-6 , circa 1985, 6.2 litres of noisy V12 – glorious !

Then I got amongst the F1 cars, starting with a Lotus Climax 25 ( 1.5 litre V8). This was the first F1 car to feature a fully-stresses monocoque structure, much lighter than more convention tubed chassis of the time. Another brilliant Colin Chapman innovation.

From the sublime to the ridiculous…… not really but Renault’s RS10 was the the successor to their first first turbocharged  F1 car car, the RS01. Twin turbo V6, 1.5 litres, built in 1979. The power delivery was a bit on/off, all or nothing, so the drivers were very brave. Bit basic and crude compared with the ultra modern F1 cars, but much more exciting to watch. Rene Arnoux drove this beast up the hill   

Another classic F1 car, in the form of a McLaren -Cosworth Mp4/1, circa 1981. A F1 pioneer/innovator designed by John Barnard, featuring the first use of carbon fibre monocoque chassis construction – I do like my engineering…….  

Close by was an example of the Benneton – Ford B192, as driven by a Messrs Schumacher  and Brundle in 1992. Still a good looking car IMHO.

In the PIT LANE feature (sponsored by Sky) there were the majority of the F1 “big boys”, showing off more contemporary machinery, including this McLaren MP4/27A, as driven by Sir Lewis in 2002, before he moved to Mercedes.

There were LOTS of Ferrari’s 

Including this 136 “Sharknose” from 1961. I remember these being driven by Phil Hill and Lorenzo Bandini and watching them at the old Rheims circuit on the TV at home. 1.5 litre V6 engine.

 A 639 F1 car, driven up the hill by a certain N Mansell. This car (never raced) developed into the Type 640, in which Nigel won a few races.

Not to be outdone, Mercedes brought an W10 ( I think !) for Mr Russell to propel up the hill

Then there was a current F1 car from Williams, a 2022 FW44 no less – or at least a show car version. What got me was how big it was ! There was also Nigel Mansell’s “RED 5” FW14B on the stand. It was TINY in comparison. I had quite a chat with one of the guys on the stand, who was also a fan of the earlier era cars. Red 5 looked like a go cart in comparison ! But regulations are regulations, I guess…….

Then there was this, a hydrogen powered sports car. Aimed squarely at the Le Mans 24 hour race, to run along side the other hybrid cars in 2024. Very interesting. Looks the business, I must say.

Tucked away at the end of the F1 Pits was this……… the star of the show IMHO. What it was doing here I have no idea, but what a machine. One day it will be beautiful again.

Now a complete contrast, this BEAUTIFUL Mercedes Benz 300 SLR, 1956. Similar to the one used by Stirling Moss/Denis Jenkinson to win the famous Mille Miglia road race in Italy. It has a 3 litre “ straight 8” engine, which sounded glorious when started up and warmed up. The crowds were more than 5 deep around the stand when that happened, as you can see…..GLORIOUS sound.

Now this was something special. The McMurtry Speirling. An all electric machine with fans supplying the downforce, just like Gordon MUrray’s BT46 F1 fan car- that was banned !!!!. Apparently it generates 2000 kg of downforce standing still…  Capable of 200mph and 0-60 in under 2 seconds., ie ”blisteringly quick”. It certainly was and broke the hill outright record, previously held by a McLaren F1 car.

There were motor bikes as well – lots of them… Not really my cup of tea, but I had to leave something out, there was so much to see, as usual.

This sidecar  outfit is from the Birchill Brothers, who have dominated the Isle Of Man TT sidecar races for the last decade or so. Some beautiful engineering involved, so please indulge me with a few pix…

Maria Costello (another TT stalwart) was also there with her sidecar outfit. She was giving various journalists, etc rides up the hill and probably scaring the bejazzus out of them…….

Aha, a Mr John McGinness no less. He is, I believe, the current Isle of Man TT lap record holder and the second most successful TT rider of all time with 23 wins and 44 podiums. Not bad for an “old man” of 50 years +……

Casually parked in the middle of nowhere was this class winning Porsche from the previous weekend’s  Le Mans 24 Hour race, complete with flies and other assorted loads of s**t ! 

Talking of Porsche’s, here’s a 917K, 5 litre, flat 12 engine. This one is normally in the National Motor Museum.  A classic design, that won at Le Mans, Daytona, Monza, etc.  Also featured in Steve McQueen’s epic film of the Le Mans race.

Ex-F1 driver Karun Chandhok seemed to be driving lots of cars this weekend. Here he is in a very nice Brabham-BMW BT52, as part of the BMW theme. 1.5 litre, four cylinder turbocharged motor, sounding gorgeous.  

Then there was this -Ford Supervan 4.  As it’s name implies, this is the fourth iteration of Ford’s mad idea/design exercise of taking a Transit van and sticking in a stonking big engine. This one  is up to date, with 4 electric motors (allegedly producing 2000 hp in total !), carbon fibre everything, bespoke chassis, lots of racing technology. It was fast, acquitting itself very well in the Sunday Shoot out – however much power it has it’s still brick-shaped  though…… Spectacular to watch though !

Off to the Supercars…  FOS “is the only place where you can see such a remarkable selection of  exotic  machines in one place”. They sit there in the paddock but also run up the hill as well. Bit of a difficult one this, as there were SO MANY !!!!!! It goes without saying that all cost a zillion pounds each – minimum.

Near the top of my desirability list was the the Mercedes-AMG ONE, basically a slightly detuned Mercedes F1 engine with a carbon body thrown round it. Not the prettiest from the front IMHO, but still very purposeful no doubt.

Various sorts of Veyron’s naturally….

This Aston Martin Valkyrie looks more like an aircraft inside ! Apparently this version is £2.6 mil, but already sold out – 2 years production already taken up. Awesomeness on sterioids…….

A nice little runabout – Aston Martin V12 Vantage Speedster…

This Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR  from Manthey included a E50k upgrade – on top of the basic  price… Not the prettiest of cars but this Zenvo TSR-S features a rear wing that tilts as it goes round corners – presumably to “optimise” downforce. Looked a bit strange when it was being driven up the hill ! 

Quite a few McLaren variants ( indeed 6 off) including the latest called the Artura – who makes up these names ???????

On the Bentley stand there was what I will call a “recreation” ( or continuation, if you like) of the old Le Mans winning Speed 6. Just 12 of these Speed Six continuations will be made by Mulliner, with all spoken for at a cost of £1.5million each.  OOOF !

Another low flying aircraft/hybrid hypercar called a Czinger 21C, from America, with a claimed top speed of 253 mph – quite quick then….

Naturally enough Mr Koenigsegg ha d a couple of his beasts on show….. Looked almost tame in comparison to some of the more radical-looking stuff….

And then there was this. A Radford 62-2. A project between Jenson Button and Ant Anstead, it’s essentially an updated Lotus 62, but with lots of up to date stuff added. Looked good. Sorry about the pic, the sun was in the wrong place….

Of course there were Lambo’s, including this Aventador Ultimae.

Next was a Pagani Huayrs R. Didn’y bother to paint it – that’s extra weight.

Where would supercars be without Ferrari ?

There were tons of others as well, too much really….. I think most people there were salivating wildly to see such a collection all in one place.

Another section is  the Cartier Style + Luxe Concourse d’elegance.  This features all sorts of machines judged by an expert panel to be the “most elegant”.  This year’s selection was featuring Austin 7’s ( yes really !). Ferrari’s and Gordon Murray’s McLaren F1  machines.

Having owned a couple of Austin 7’s in my early motoring days, these were my favourites

In the PRE-WAR POWER paddock there was this monster. Not really my thing these older racers, but you couldn’t fail to be impressed by something like this 23.9 litre W12 configured beastie. The drivers must’ve been very brave in those days……..It sounded magnificent when it was being warmed up.

Looking at these C type and D type Jaaaaaaaaaaaaag’s ( as a certain Mr Clarkson would say), it easy to see where the road-going E type got it’s DNA…….

In one of the “tin top “ sections, I had a bit of a chat with the driver ( and his Dad….) about the TCR series, being run all over the place.   TCR UK is very much a production car based championship. I did not appreciate that the cars are very much based on standard “metal” base machines, whereas the BTCC ( British Touring Car Championship) cars are very highly modified in comparison – you live and learn……..

Quite a few famous Subaru’s around…. including Prodrive’s re-imagining it for 2022, called a P25. A cool £@50 a pop !!!!

Look at the size of that turbo –  on one of the drift cars. Lag must be horrendous !It wasn’t all cars. There was a woodwind based orchestra playing near the main house. Very pleasant.

I spent quite a while up at the rally stage, a separate course to the main hill, winding it’s way through the trees, to simulate a rally stage. All the cars are bases at the top field, so drafty ie a proper rally paddock !

A good selection of machinery, including a Ford Escort Mk 1 Twin Cam, a Ford Escort Mk 2 1800, a Ford Escort Mk 1 Mexico, a Ford Escort Mk 2 RS1800 – for a start ! Ford Escort variants dominated the UK stage rally scene for many years.

Naturally there was a Mini, the sort that Paddy Hopkirk used to drive  and win the Monte Carlo Rally, amongst others.

A bit more “exotic” is this 1972 Alpine A110 Berlinette.  Still looking good after all these years. The A110 has recently been resurrected by Renault/Alpine, but this is the real thing, IMHO….

Another quirky machine from France  a 1976 Citroen DS23 IE, still being regulkarly used in rallies and regularity events by its Dutch driver/owner. What happens if it springs a leak ??????

A few more well known faces…..including 6R4’s, various Subaru’s, Lancia’s, Mitubishi EVO’s, Hyundai’s, etc, etc.  Even an Aston Martin !!!! Too many to photograph.

Another Feature is the FIRST GLANCE section, featuring newly release/most anticipated cars and concepts. Amongst them was this Mercedes concept saloon. It had just broken the record for doing the most miles on one charge, 700+. Very sleek…….

At the other end of the insanity scale was this V8 Mini. Somehow they’d manage to squeeze a BMW 4 litre set of kit into a very small space. – maintenance must be a right b*****r ! Intriguing…….

What have I missed out ? Oh yes, a feature called ELECTRIC AVENUE, which, as you would guess, featured all cars electric, including city cars, saloons, SUV’s and hypercars. No pix, sorry, but a very interesting look at what we’ll soon be driving, I guess.

Half way up the main hill was another arena featuring extreme off-road type vehicles, including desert-style machines, including specialist buggies and converted Land Rovers, etc.

One that caught my eye was this monster, called an ORA Eurofighter IFS 2.0. Incredible machine   with everything BIG or duplicated. Incredible engineering. Sounded fantastic and went like a scalded cat…….e

Another major attraction was Nigel Mansell. He was driving all sorts of machinery including Ferrari’s 639 and Williams FW14B RED 5. He also drove a Lotus F1 car , which he described as “ the best car I’ve ever driven”…..Here’s a few pix of his activity throughout the day. All “stolen”, not taken by me………

As I said before, not all cars – just look at that fudge…… no, I didn’t buy any !

And finally…… Just to show some drivers are more human than others. While waiting in the queue at the hillclimb start line (after a delay due to an incident), a certain Mr J Button jumped over the straw bale barriers to give a young fan his autograph – made the young lad’s visit, I guess…. Mr B probably got into trouble from the officials, but hey…..

It’s impossible to do the whole extravaganza, even in 4 days. However, the only thing I’d like to do in conclusion is to encourage you to go and enjoy ! It’s GREAT !!!!!!