Silverstone VSCC 2000

Our posts were interrupted lately by a mountain of work and three large, nasty dogs but we're back again.

To make things better, we've revved up a nice long video of action from the Silverstone VSCC meet 12 years ago. This is almost four minutes of action from one race, with most of the dull bits stripped out. It's only shot from one corner but hey - we're hobbyists, waddya want?

Though we've stripped out most of the 'boring' stuff, we've left in some rather empty visuals so you can still enjoy the sounds. Please let us know what you think - we have hours and hours more raw footage to edit and it helps to know someone else enjoys this stuff (or not...).

Onboard with Morgans at the Montlhéry 2011 Vintage Revival

"I know its a cliche but 'only in France' could you be chasing a tartan Morgan."

Generally speaking, we're not fans of music in motoring videos. If anything, we find it a huge turnoff.
True gearheads want to hear exhaust notes, intake roar, gearbox whine, valvetrain chatter, screaming tires, not some sap's half-cocked idea of music that suitably conveys the majesty of the moment.

Harrumph!

Call us wrinkled old curmudgeons if you must but when we were little boys, we didn't need the music to swell or the narrator to scream at us in order to understand when something was impressive.

If anything, we resent the implied argument that were we denied suitable direction, we would also be denied any real understanding and appreciation of just how special is a thing or a moment.

The universe is massive. Dinosaurs were huge, incredible beasts. Mountaineering is dangerous. Formula 1 is loud, fast and exciting. We get it, thank you very much. No need for your music or your 'expert' exhortations.

However!

In this case, we think the music isn't just acceptable, it feels like a proper party guest. And, as pointed out in the video's comments section, the level of wind noise on these kinds of recordings inevitably requires some music to drown it out. You cannot, after all, truly install a microphone 'inside' a Morgan three-wheeler.

So, fire up this video (in half-HD if you can) for a fun if rather bumpy ride around l'Autodrome de Linas-Montlhéry, one of the great circuits in motorsports history.

History

After Indianapolis, Brooklands and Monza, Montlhéry is one of world's earliest large banked oval circuits. Perhaps only Spain's forlorn Sitges Terramar circuit, which today lies in a truly fowl state of ruination, suffers a greater disparity between its former glory and its modern abandonment.

If you still don't appreciate the value of Montlhéry, let us know - we'll send over some music and screaming narration.



Have some more

But wait - that's not all!. We've gone off to find some related videos.

Here's Jay Leno reviewing Morgan's new 3 Wheeler:



Porsche 910 tackles the Montlhery circuit:



The 1935 Grand Prix de France:

John Surtees Launches Mercedes W165 at Goodwood

At the 2000 Goodwood Festival of Speed, John Surtees blasts the Mercedes W165 off the line to wow the crowds lining the now-famous hill climb with plenty of noise and speed.

Despite the car's V8 engine displacing just 1.5 liters, supercharging and (we expect) running on dope means it puts out plenty of power and, thanks to that alcohol-based dope mix, a sharp, ripping exhaust note.

This car contested just one race, the 1939 Tripoli Grand Prix. Herman Lang brought the car home in first place in what was to be the penultimate staging of this now largely-forgotten event.

Can you imagine seeing Formula 1 in Libya today? With sections like 'CS Gasworks Chicane' and 'Sniper Alley', 'Defensive Driving Cup' support race, and safety cars equipped to defuse IEDs, it might be a little too exciting.

Anyway, before our over-imaginative brain takes us too far off-course, lets get back to this video. This particular car is a regular to the Festival of Speed.

Here in 2000, we captured Surtees himself lining up at the start line before launching this fabulous piece of Grand Prix history towards the first corner.

We might have preferred to see it accelerating hard out of the first corner but access to that next section tends to be difficult, with too many heads and not enough vehicles appearing in the viewfinder.

Surtees was winning championships at the top of two- and four-wheeled motorsports before most of us were born and here, he's 66 years old. It doesn't seem to have slowed him down much, nor has it dulled his interest in giving it plenty of right foot.

Though the great man was only five years old when this car raced, he doesn't seem to have any problem hustling it along. Enjoy!

 

Barrie Williams Hustles His Connaught at Cadwell Park

A snippet of video in which legendary UK racer Barrie 'Whizzo'Williams is seen hustling his Connaught Type A single-seater round Chris Curve and into the Gooseneck at the UK's Cadwell Park circuit.
 
The UK's Telegraph newspaper has a great interview with Williams from ten years ago. Over at MotorSnippets.com, Carol Corliss, a vintage racing supporter who has long driven a 1929 Alfa Romeo, covers the man's history in even greater depth and color.

Ferrari 360 Challenge Field Exits the Pits

We've been rummaging in our archives and dug out some footage likely to go down very well with the gearheads out there.

Stay tuned for more action from vintage, classic and modern motorsports. To follow up our popular F1 parade video, here's a short clip from the pit lane at Britain's Brands Hatch circuit, shot during the Ferrari Festival back in 2001.

This meet was a particular delight for petrolheads, as it saw the biggest group of Ferraris and Ferrari fans ever assembled in the UK. The garages probably contained more historic Ferraris than you can find even in a single book on the marque.

We hope to bring you some of the mouthwatering sights and sounds in the near future. For now, however, enjoy 30 seconds of F360 Challenge Cup cars making their way out onto the race circuit for their formation lap.