Goodwood will go ahead!!!

[Dan Friel]

Good news for us going... But how will I get there?? Better start walking now..

GOODWOOD REVIVAL WILL GO AHEAD

The Goodwood Revival, historic motor racing meeting on September 15th, 16th and 17th will go ahead despite fuel shortages caused by picketing of fuel depots. We would like to re-assure you that the motor racing will not be affected by fuel shortages, but of course we can not guarantee that every single competitor will appear as scheduled.

Free bus services will run from Chichester railway station to the Goodwood Circuit on all three days of the event. Two fifty-seater coaches will run shuttle services for spectators to and from the circuit from 8.00am – 6.00pm, plus there will be the regular Stagecoach service from Chichester to Goodwood.

An emergency campsite has been set-up at Goodwood Racecourse to accommodate spectators and officials who will need to avoid extra journeys during the weekend. The campsite – with loos and showers – will be in the No.8 car park at Goodwood Racecourse – so bring a tent and save fuel.

[TimD]

Well, I THINK this is good news.

Certainly I have been increasingly agitated about the thought of missing the best weekend in the Historic year, but I do wonder if it wouldn't have been better to pull it and run it again at another date.

I guess the lateness of the date in the calendar rather mitigates against that one.

In the meantime, I have formulated my own game plan. In the light of the campsite announcement (thank God) I shall now be using my remaining two-thirds of a tank to creep down to Goodwood in the dead of night on Friday morning. Never tried a real honest to goodness economy run before.

Hopefully that will leave me with enough to get back on Sunday night.

It may be a close-run thing. I may yet run out of juice on the A3 somewhere, but by then it will be Sunday night, I will have seen my motor racing, and by that stage I won't care.

BTW Dan, where did you get the press release? I've been searching the Goodwood home page all week for information and updates.

[Dan Friel]

Try..

http://www.goodwood.co.uk

You have the same theory as me.. just get down there and the problem of getting home can wait!!

[Marshal]

Well I think i've got enough petrol to get to Arundel from Bristol, and then into the circuit on the 3 days, as you say, going home can wait!

I just hope the competitors can get there.

[SL]

I will be going to Goodwood from Crawley if anyone needs a lift on Friday and Sunday. I am thinking about camping though due to the fuel problem to save the return trips.

If you can get to Gatwick Airport that is.

Simon

[Dan Friel]

Friday - too sodding wet!!!

Saturday - better.

Today - amazing!!!

Really good racing and an excellent atmosphere. And it was good to hear that Nigel Corner should be ok after his terrible accident.. I've never seen someone thrown from a car before - truely aweful.

But at a very good corner (Lavant), and the likes of Gerry Marshall going past us sideways was fantastic....

[TimD]

Glad you made it, Dan.

I was searching the marshals posts trying to figure out which one you were - I probably walked straight past you three times!

Didn't find Jon either.

Thanks for letting us know about Nigel Corner. We hadn't heard about the shunt until right at the end of the day (we were at the flightline waiting for the Spitfires to take off while the F1 race was happening). All we heard on the tannoy at the close of the circuit was that someone, whose name we didn't catch, had a suspected punctured lung, but would be okay, after his Ferrari crash.

I spent an anxious few minutes checking the paddock for missing Ferraris, and narrowed it down to either Nick Mason's GTO or one of the Dino 246s.

I think the fuel crisis was the best thing that could have happened last week. It made me feel inordinately grateful just to have got to Goodwood at all on Friday morning, and the torrential rain which caught me at Fordwater seemed like a small price to pay.

Did you see Grant Williams' Jaguar Mk2? He was the star of last year's wet race, but he was equally spectacular at St Marys this year, taking the entire right/left flick on opposite lock.

Tony Jardine can motor a bit too - not just a pretty face on the telly, he was making lovely four-wheel drifts around St Marys AND Madgwick.

And Bluebottle and I had the pleasure of getting a "Good Morning" greeting from Murray Walker, although maybe he thought we were someone else and was very much mistaken...

But he is a very nice chap.

Stood next to Jochen Mass as he parked up his car in parc ferme and saw him immediately get into conversation with a little child proffering an autograph book.

Jackie Oliver took the time to chat with Bluebottle's dad.

Gerry Marshall - what a guy!

Even Alan Jones was personable - I think he liked his Ford Galaxie.

Tiff Needell accusing the usual suspects, Harper and Sytner of behaving like 13 year old Formula Ford drivers for involving him in their accidents in the sports car race!

Paul Jaye and Tony Bianchi joshing each other in parc ferme. "Well done, but then your car is newer than mine" (reference to the Lancia D50 being a recent build from genuine bits).

And a very special "WOW" to Ray Hanna for once again bringing the Spitfire in impossibly low across the airfield. That was worth the price of admission alone. Just fantastic.

And to everyone who missed it all - what were you thinking?!!!

[Rich...]

This was the second year I have attended the Revival Meeting and I must agree it has to be the Historic event of the year. I saw Nigel Corners horrific accident and am so releived to hear he is ok'ish.

Now as there are a few Goodwood'ers on this list may I ask a few Q's?

To add to my enjoyment, which grandstand would you recommend? Last year I selected Woodcote - better than the start line where I was this year, but I'm considering Chicane for 2001.

Also memebrship - is it worth the £60? I was expecting to get prefered parking but just got herded into the normal car parks.

Lastly do any of you stay over if so please recommend a pub/hotel with a bit of "car" atmosphere - I live in Maidenhead which is ok to drive down from but if I could stay closer I would.

Regards

Rich...

[TimD]

Hi Rich, welcome to the forums.

For my humble opinion, I have been to all three Revivals now, and I've become convinced about what I want to spend money on. It has to be said that nothing about Goodwood could be described as cheap, but the bits that matter are still good value for money.

I've not yet spent any money at all on buying a grandstand seat. There is just too much good viewing around the circuit to want to limit myself for a moment. Get to the entry to Madgwick early, and from the right spot, you can see the length of the start/finish straight, and both apices of the corner too.

Fordwater/St Marys is brilliant for a fast straight leading to a high speed corner, and with a predominance of rear wheel drive machines with skinny tyres, that means drifting and tail slides. Lovely.

A drink can be had on the Lavant Straight, whilst watching cars at their absolute maximum velocity. Noisy and spectacular.

I do think the GRRC membership is worthwhile, though. You were unfortunate to get shepherded into the regular car park, but three years of experience has taught me to point very deliberately at the club window sticker when confronted with a copper directing traffic.

The other advantage of club membership is the access to the paddock. There really is the chance of bumping into Murray Walker, Jackie Oliver, Nick Mason as we did this year, and John Surtees, Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham and Damon Hill as we did last year. And it's worth it to get some cracking conversations with the mechanics. Notable was last year, Nigel Hulme's Cobra crew told us PRECISELY what they thought of Willie Green as they were taping up what was left of the Cobra's front wing....

As for staying over, the word is that the b+b's for miles around are already booked up for next year. I stayed with friends in Worthing this year because of the petrol shortage, but normally I will treat the Goodwood weekend as three consecutive daytrips from North London, with a 5 o'clock start each morning.

[Peter Mallett]

Glad you all had a great time. However, what about telling all in the Historic Forum? Maybe a bit late this year though.

[Rich...]

Thanks Tim,

I am already looking forward to next year, I will probabaly go for a couple of seats in Chicane. It's somewhere to keep the hamper, and my bum isn't as young as it used to be!

Regarding the parking I reckon Goodwood forgot to send me my windscreen sticker - certainkly I didn't have a blue/purple memebrs sticker just the green one with the three dates on it. I reckon they owe me something off next year for that!

Regards Rich...

[Marshal]

Sorry I missed you Tim, if you were watching Grant Williams through St Mary's (fantastic!) you must have been very close as I was standing on the flag point on the Apex of St Mary's looking towards Lavant. Just a fantastic weekend of racing, I can't wait till next year, and thank goodness Nigel Corner is OK.

The other highlight of the weekend was having a quick chat with Brain redman who parked his Scarab opposite us and went to help with the haymaking(!) and having good long chats to Bob Constanduros, who was commentating directly behind us and had a chat at the begining and end of each day.