Goodwood Revival 2012 was great

Goodwood Revival 2012, a real masterpiece 

 This year 146.000 visitors found their way to the Goodwood Circuit to visit the Revival. All kinds of races take place there during the weekend in the style of the fifties and sixties.

 At the St Mary's Trophee, different types of cars race against each other, saloon cars, as they did in the years 50 to 59. Small and large saloons drive against each other. That does not mean that the big cars with the big engines always win. On the contrary. The Jaguars with a cylinder capacity of 3781 cc were not able to stay ahead of small cars such as a BMW 700 with an engine with only 697 cc or the Austin A35 with a capacity of 1235 cc. It was a pleasure to hear the little cars go by with their rock-hard exhaust noise. Jackie Olliver completely squeezed the small BMW 700. It was incredible to see what he could do with that car. Finally the win went to the Austin A40 of Desmond Smail and Rob Huff. Of course there are more races on the weekend. The race where the most expensive cars participate is the RAC TT Celebration. The race lasts a full hour and two riders must participate per car. This year there was again plenty to see. Adrian Newey is the man who gives wings to the cars of the Red Bull Formula 1 team. Thanks to his efforts, the team won the championship in 2010 and 2011. He is the most successful "designer" from the Formula 1. Not many people know that he also likes to race in his spare time. He does that with classic cars. It is in possession of an original Ford GT 40 and a lightweight Jaguar E type from 1963. Both cars have a white and dark red color scheme. With the E type, this year he also rode among the most expensive cars ever built, namely the RAC TT Celebration during the Goodwood Revival. Among the participating cars there were also a number of Ferraris, including the famous 250 GTO and of course a number of other lightweight E types. A special Aston Martin project 214 was severely damaged when he got off the track and almost it was with Adrian too verkeerd afgelopen. In his zeal to stay ahead, he also got off the track and then had to pass almost the entire field before he could start his catch-up race. He succeeded wonderfully and after he came back in the lead, co-driver Martin Brundle was able to take over the wheel to steer the car to a deserved first place. I have been on the track every day with my wife. There was an awful lot to see and that cannot be described in a short article. Even in the parking lots it was great to walk around because there were only old cars together. For an impression of the weekend, visit http://www.jbfreelancejournalistiek.nl/fotos2/revival-2012 There you can see over 100 photos. Of all kinds of cars and of course the drivers. Do you want to be there next year? Keep in mind that finding overnight accommodation is becoming increasingly difficult. The immense camping grounds were completely sold out, as were all hotels in the surrounding area.  

Text and photo: Jacques van den Bergh