Bite Autumn 2012

N o one could wish for a better weekend than this. An electrifying two days of racing at the sixth annual Masters Historic Festival held at the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit.With much excitement, adrenaline action and the opportunity to see prestigious period F1 and sports cars, the event held on the 26 th and 27 th May was definitely worth attending. This year, the festival was themed around Formula 1, with cars dating back to the 1930s. Thousands of touring car fans joined organisers of the event to watch Formula 1 racing veterans like Jackie Oliver, Derek Bell and Howden Ganley compete in cars that drove them to victory in previous championships. The three star drivers, who helped shaped racing history in the 1970s, demonstrated their era on the racing circuit. Another veteran who attended the weekend event, racing a Lotus Cortina on the circuit was rally driver and racer John Haugland. The Norwegian legend whose career spans over four and a half decades has rallied Skodas in Norway since the mid-sixties. Through his successful racing performances and classic wins on the RAC Rally, Haugland helped repair the firm’s reputation after Skoda was subjected to negative criticism. It was not just the veteran racing heroes that took to the tracks.Twenty-two year old New Zealander Brendon Hartley joined the ranks in a variety of cars alongside fellow countryman Roger Wills.The young racing driver who got his first taste of Formula 1 at the age of 18 with Red Bull Racing, made his GP Masters debut in RogerWills’ 1983 Lotus 92/5 and raced the 1967 McLaren M1C in the Ocean Independence World Sportscar Masters and the enormous 1965 Mercury Comet Cyclone in the Masters Pre-66 Touring Cars race. Walking around the paddock, the atmosphere was alight with fascinating cars, great racing and memory-provoking sounds, especially for those who have been around the racing circuit for years. The event provided the chance to get up close and personal with racing models such as the pre-66 cars that produced a spectacular and exciting performance in the Gentlemen Drivers Pre-66 race and prestigious cars like the Jaguar XJS and XJ12C, and Rover Vitesse in the Masters 70 s Celebration/JD Classics Challenge. These were the cars that had great success in the ETCC as well as the British Saloon Car Championship in the mid-1980s. There was so much to see and enjoy at the two day event with numerous races such as the Nordea GP Masters, the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association Pre-66 F1 Cars, the CanAm Interserie Challenge and the Royal Automobile Club

Woodcote Trophy.The GP Masters offered a glimpse into the history of Formula 1 in the 1970s and 1980s,while 1950s sport cars added variety to the weekend. Fascinating models were raced in the Nordea GP Masters such as the March 701 and 721 in the Jackie Stewart Class 1969-1971,Amon F101 and Brabham BT44 in the Emerson Fittipaldi Class 1972-1974, Shadow DN5 and McLaren M26 in the Niki Lauda Class 1975-1978, and Arrows A3-3 and Lotus 80 in the Patrick Head Class Post 1978-1985 powered their way around the tracks in their competing heats. However, the race that got me really excited was the CanAm Interserie Challenge. Sport cars from the 1960s, 1970 s and 1980s and the invitation class for C2 cars met together on the Grand Prix circuit and presented a spectacular show as well as a challenge. The series of McLaren, Lola, Chevron, Lancia and Spice models with their varied colours and monstrous stature made the race a heart rendering affair. The tension was high as each driver pushed to beat their competitors. After forty minutes of tearing around the tracks, Roger Wills triumphed in his 1983 Lancia