Filed under: Motorsports, Time Warp
2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed: Formula One
by Frank Filipponio on Jun 25th 2007 at 8:09PM 
Goodwood has been an incredible experience and we hope you have enjoyed the coverage as much as we've enjoyed providing it. One of the numerous highlights for us was undoubtedly the Formula 1 cars; from those outrageous beasts of the '30s and '40s, through the mid-engine revolution, and on up to the technically-packed computers on wheels we have today. Friday and Saturday they had a relatively dry track to play with, and most of them seemed to be taking advantage of the conditions. Sunday's rains meant it was a bit trickier to put together a quick time, but it provided a chance for many drivers to just put on a good show for the fans.
And the drivers themselves were a big part of the show. From Sir Stirling Moss, John Surtees, Sir Jackie Stewart, Damon Hill, and Emerson Fittipaldi, to Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, David Coulthard and Anthony Davidson, it was a pretty impressive list. And sometimes the pairings were just magical, as when Damon Hill found himself behind the wheel of one of his father Graham's old single-seaters. As cool as it was to see the older legends in action, the real thrill comes from having so many current drivers and cars on hand.
Davidson drove the 1987 Williams-Honda FW11B that Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet won the championship with. Ferrari had cars from 1960, '68, '93, '98, 2000 and 2006. Honda brought their latest car, the Earth-decorated RA107, in which Christien Klien took on the driving duties until Jenson Button showed up. McLaren-Mercedes, Red Bull, Toyota, and Williams-Toyota all brought out '06 or '07 cars as well. Because the competition was getting a little beyond the safety measures at the event, these cars weren't timed, but drivers like Coulthard and Hamilton really showed what the cars could do. Long burnouts while waving seemed to warm the hearts of the soaked crowd. Some drivers stayed for autographs, but with a race next week and all that rain still coming down, it was understandable that most could only be there for a short time.
All photos © 2007 Frank Filipponio / Weblogs, Inc.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Stephi 2:40AM (6/26/2007)
It was simply amazing to watch Formula 1 cars. Good show, i must say.
http://www.indimoto.com/
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Altairian1 8:44AM (6/26/2007)
Ligthning GTS is a clever Eleconvert of the existing Gas version ,nanosafe powered. This mean the time to mkt is ery short as in essence all they have to do to prototype is a conversion. The demand seems googlishing based on their report in NewsWeek. An Altairnative.com idea.
Eleconvert.com is an affiliate of Alternative.com
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fusen 10:20AM (6/26/2007)
http://fusenn.com/goodwood/pages/DSC00556.htm
that's a picture of Damon Hill at the very end of the day deciding to race in the torrential rain without goggles, which the commentators mocked him for all the way up the hill :D
Was awesome seeing the cars handle the bends near the top of the hill in the soaking wet, including one with what looked like dry tires on not getting any grip and nearly sliding sideways into the bales... Hopefully I'll make it next year when it isn't pouring with rain
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Solo Racer 2:39PM (6/26/2007)
"Formula 1 cars; from those outrageous beasts of the '30s and '40s,"
Formula 1 started in 1950. The earlier cars ARE Grand Prix cars, but not F1.
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