Days of Motor racing Goodwood style

The countdown is now on, with only a few weeks to go before the 2009 Goodwood Revival weekend gets underway

The countdown is now on, with only a few weeks to go before the 2009 Goodwood Revival weekend gets underway. The Goodwood Revival – which takes place over 18-20 September will be a weekend of celebration of the halcyon days of motor racing as it used to be with all the accompanying spectacle and glamour of that era, with competitors and spectators alike dressed in period fashions. This is an outstanding event, the Revival is a magical step back in time and is in a league of its own and there is no other motor sport spectacle in the world to compare. It is an enormous theatrical experience with the motor racing at its centre. Grand Prix, sports and GT cars will thunder around the circuit driven by famous names which in the past have included Sir Stirling Moss, Derek Bell and Jonny Herbert.

The Goodwood Revival marks two important 50th anniversaries. It’s half a century since Goodwood staged arguably its single most famous race, the 1959 Tourist Trophy in which Aston Martin won the World Sportscar Championship – and it’s also 50 years since the launch of probably the UK’s most iconic passenger car, the Mini. Both anniversaries will be marked in unique Revival style with Bands playing music from the forties and fifties, shops selling fish and chips wrapped in 1950s newspaper, aerobatics featuring Spitfires and Messerschmitt, The majority of visitors dress in appropriate clothing from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, considering it all part of the fun. The lovingly restored circuit is unchanged from its heyday (1948-1966), and great lengths are taken to ensure that everything on the site is exactly as it was. No modern vehicles are allowed within the circuit perimeter throughout the weekend – period vehicles provide all essential services and competitor support. All ensure that this occasion is an authentic period experience.

This September’s event will offer an action-packed weekend of historic motor racing and period theatre for all the family, as always from this great event the following is a summary of all the on-track activity:

The ‘celebrity’ two-driver races'
Lavant Cup (60 minutes, two drivers)
For World Championship sports cars in the spirit of the Goodwood TT races, 1958-1959 endurance event in the spirit of the famous 1959 Tourist Trophy. It will recreate the classic three-way battle between Aston Martin, Ferrari and Porsche to decide the World Sports Car Championship

Royal Automobile Club TT Celebration race (one hour, two driver)
For closed-cockpit GT cars in the spirit of the RAC TT races, 1960-1964 The one-hour, two-driver Royal Automobile Club TT Celebration race remains the jewel in the Revival’s crown. Nowhere else in the world will you see such a spectacular grid of super-rare GT cars racing in anger, driven by great aces past and present. The grid will once again feature a breathtaking £80 million array of internationally-renowned historic cars. Expect to see Jaguar E-type Lightweight; Ferrari 250 GT SWB, GTO and 330 LMB; Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato and Project car; AC Cobra and original Shelby American Cobra Daytona; plus thundering Chevrolet Corvettes. Drivers taking part include Le Mans winners Derek Bell, Jochen Mass, Emanuele Pirro, Vern Schuppan, Richard Attwood and Jackie Oliver; F1 aces Sir Stirling Moss, Gerhard Berger and Eddie Cheever, plus Red Bull team manager Christian Horner; Indy car legends Bobby Rahal and Desiré Wilson and touring car heroes Sir John Whitmore, Anthony Reid and Stuart Graham. To view WHO'S DRIVING/RIDING AT THE GOODWOOD REVIVAL visit the Goodwood website www.goodwood.co.uk

Following the huge popularity of the inaugural BGC Earls Court Motor Show at last year’s Goodwood Revival, this key new attraction will once again add an exciting element to the annual Revival meeting. The BGC Earls Court Motor Show takes its inspiration from the celebrated London Motor Shows of the 1950s and 60s, with an original Art Deco frontage reminiscent of the glory days of exhibitions of the past. This spacious area will give the expected 120,000+ Goodwood Revival visitors an insight into how motoring of the future might look from a pre-1966 perspective, with a display of ‘futuristic’ 21st century cars.

Goodwood will be swaying to the strains of ‘Happy Birthday’ when the 120,000+ visitors to the Goodwood Revival sing in harmony to wish Sir Stirling Moss – a.k.a. Mr Goodwood – their heart-felt best wishes for his 80th birthday.

Sir Stirling Moss will reach this landmark on Thursday 17 September, the relaxed ‘acclimatisation’ day at Goodwood before the action-packed 2009 Revival weekend gets fully underway the following day. Stirling Moss will celebrate his 80th in style at the Revival along with his many racing friends and adversaries, plus thousands of his most ardent fans.

The Goodwood Revival has given enthusiasts some of memorable historic motor racing performances from competition stars .The Earl of March has turned a dream into the greatest motor racing event in the world, and I must say the one I enjoy the most.

As in previous years, admission to both Goodwood motor sport events will be strictly by advance ticket only. Tickets and further information for the 2009 Goodwood Revival can be ordered by registering online at the ‘My Goodwood’ section of the Goodwood website www.goodwood.co.uk/motorsport), or via the Ticket Hotline as follows:
Telephone: +44 1243 755055