I was surprised by my reaction to the news that Sir Stirling Moss has hung up the Herbert Johnson after 63 years of racing. I thought I would be sad, for truly an era has ended. But I’m not: I’m overjoyed that Stirling has walked away on his own terms and in a manner of his choosing. A career that so nearly took him from us on more than one occasion has concluded in the happiest way.

Retirement from racing, I know, is something that has been on Stirling’s mind for a while. I think the only fear he ever had behind a wheel was that the day would come when he might hold someone up or get in their way and now it never will. I imagine it has not even occurred to him that almost any one of us would pay a sizeable sum to follow Stirling Moss around a track.

Still the decision to quit must have been terribly tough. More than anyone else I have met save Senna, Stirling is defined by his sport. They even called him Mr Motor Racing for goodness sake. I remember talking to Tony Brooks about why he never looked back after quitting in 1961 and he said simply “racing was only ever going to be part of my life and that part was over. Unlike Stirling: racing is his life”.

How will he take to retirement? Well, he might have retired from racing, but I imagine the rest of his life will continue at the same frenetic pace. He will be as in demand as ever and I cannot see him withdrawing from public life for a moment. And I look forward to seeing what kind of celebration of his career will be staged at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next month.

In the meantime, perhaps you’d care to share your best Stirling moment with us? Mine is watching him coax a Lotus Cortina into a drift through Goodwood’s Fordwater kink at a hundred and goodness knows how many miles per hour. It was pure mastery from a man who, at the time, was just a few days short of his 77^th birthday.

Stirling, I’m not going to say we’ll miss you because I’m sure you’re not going anywhere. Instead I’ll just say thanks for everything and hope to see you, if not actually on, then at least at the track for many, many years to come.

Andrew Frankel

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

The Goodwood Festival of Speed is one of the most important car events of the year. It attracts Formula 1 teams and drivers, fanatical historic racers and some of the most interesting cars to have ever graced a track, and everything in-between. Motor Sport was there with its video camera and spent the weekend chasing down some of the drivers…

We hope you enjoy it as much as we did…

Watch the video now (below) or watch it on YouTube

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

This week has been all about James and Darren.

James and Darren are carpenters. Their task this week has been to give our kitchen what I believe is known as a ‘makeover’. In old money that means ripping the old one out and putting a new one in its place. If only it were so simple.

Right now, James and Darren are grappling with Plan F, or it might be J, I’ve lost count. Plan A looked pretty good but somehow life is rarely straightforward. Like most people I meet, these two lads like to watch a bit of Grand Prix racing and James is a big fan of the Goodwood Festival of Speed. More than that, they listen to Capital Gold while they work and that is music to the ears of my generation.

Now, as we’ve said before, motor cars and motor racing either remain hugely popular or I only come across people who take an enthusiastic interest. Today in Geneva the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) revealed their collective response to the results of a global survey which asked a comprehensive list of questions about what we like – or don’t like – about 21st century F1 racing. You may have completed this internet survey yourself. If so, you will – like millions of us around the world – be hoping that FOTA (and the FIA) have taken note of our opinions.

As the Fat Cats of Formula 1 gathered on the stage for a press conference in Switzerland, they were concerned with two important things. These are cutting costs, to preserve the sport in years to come, and to make the whole thing more entertaining, more fun for the people who pay large sums of money to sit in the grandstands or stand behind the fences. In broad terms this entails more overtaking, more generous access to the cars and drivers, a more thrilling and glamorous day out, and television coverage that leads us deeper into the political labyrinth that is currently the unacceptable face of F1.

The early signs are good. “This is an unprecedented moment in Formula 1 history,” said FOTA chairman Luca di Montezemelo. “We all share one common goal – to work together to improve F1 by ensuring its stability, sustainability, substance and show for the benefit of our most important stakeholder, namely the consumer.” That’s you and me, and the carpenters, so bravo Luca and we’re right behind you.

The reason that people like James love the Festival of Speed is that they feel part of the show, a welcome paying guest at a fantastic party for those who want a great day out surrounded by spectacular sights and sounds. This, in recent times, has not been the case with Grand Prix racing, where you pay a lot of money to see something in the distance and your heroes pass by on the back of a sponsored trailer before they disappear back into the safety of the paddock.

Of course the number of folk who actually go to races is not the prime concern of those who run the show. It is the television audiences that really matter, that bring in the serious money. The survey, sponsored by Renault partner ING, undoubtedly established that a great many viewers wish to be taken closer to the action. It will be interesting to see if Auntie is allowed any further than the previous incumbents.

Next week the electricians arrive. A small bet says that at least one of them will be a motor racing fan. We don’t talk about football – it’s just too edgy and explosive. Just what Grand Prix racing needs to be.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

After Rob has written something on the Festival of Speed, it seems a little bit of a cop-out to write another blog on it.

However, on a quest to get some words out of the Formula 1 drivers I set off for the top paddock and having inhaled two burgers and a hot dog already that morning I really had to go on foot. It turns out that it is, especially when you are part jogging as you can hear “and Lewis is on the hill” over the loud speaker, a long bloody way.

Once there, I managed to get a quick snippet from Lewis and had a good chat with Marc Gené, who is a thoroughly decent bloke by the way.

Anyway, back to the point, just as I was contemplating turning round and trekking back down to the Motor Sport stand, I spotted the Ferrari F1 support van just about to leave, (with more than a handful of people needed to start an F1 car there was a van per car).

Trying my best to remember my Italian I asked if there was room for one more and after some frantic waving of arms and ‘Si! Certo’, I climbed aboard.

What followed was perhaps the most hilarious moment of the weekend for me. With the side door of the van open to the ‘adoring fans’, the driver nailed it down the hill beeping the horn. While struggling to stop the Formula 1 equipment from falling out I watched as the two mechanics on the door waved to the crowd, blew kisses and shouted in their heavily accented, Italian-English, “I love you, I love you”. While all this was going on the others gave certain attractive girls in the crowd marks out of ten.

You’ll be pleased to hear that no one scored less than 8. At one moment, one of the mechanics had to be stopped from jumping out of the van while it was travelling at 30mph, and pursuing a 9 and a half pointer.

Nearing the F1 paddock, I couldn’t resist and gave a half-hearted wave myself. Sorry about that.

Jumping out of the van at the end of my, actually quite bizarre, journey the wrong way down the hillclimb, a six-year-old girl asked me for my autograph. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that I was in fact a meagre journalist who nobody has heard of and gave her little pink notebook the best ‘Ed Foster’ I could muster.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Things ain’t quite what they used to be.

Historically the question has always been: ‘How fast from 0 to 60, Mister? And what will it do flat out?’
Increasingly, the question is: ‘How far will it go on a gallon of fuel, mate?’

Here at the Goodwood Festival of Speed there is love in the air, pure love of speed, and a need for noise. This is where we gather together each summer to indulge our passion for racing cars and to share our passion with folk from every corner of the planet.

Lest we be accused of not caring for the planet on which we live, there have been some interesting developments at the Festival. Away from the noise and the speed I draw your attention to a new attraction known as FOS-TECH, introduced last year to bring new technologies and ‘green’ solutions into the heart of this great event.

Once you’ve had your fix of dragsters, Grand Prix cars, MotoGP motorcycles and Le Mans winners you should perhaps take a look inside the FOS-TECH building in the park. It is here that you will see the cars of the future, learn about new fuels and be astounded by what will be the personal transport of generations to come. There’s also a simulator where you can test your skills, not at speed, but as slowly and economically as possible. The idea is to see just how little fuel you can use to travel from A to B. Makes a fascinating change from the sheer, unadulterated passion for raw power that pervades the event outside.

The sun came out on Friday, the F1 cars shrieked up the hill and the rally cars kicked up the dust in the Goodwood forest. As ever, the legends of the sport walked amongst their fans, barely taking a step without signing their names.

There’s John Surtees! There’s Damon Hill! Look, that’s James Hunt’s son Freddie in the Hesketh! Isn’t that Tom Sneva? And that must be Bobby Unser!

And so it goes on until Sunday when Lewis Hamilton arrives. This is as close to Beatlemania as motor racing gets.

The Festival of Speed has lost none of its glamour and glitter. Where else can you see such a spectacular collection of racing machinery? You can’t. At a press conference on the opening day Lord March introduced World Trials Champion Dougie Lampkin who, of course, rode his bike into the press centre. A short flight of stairs is nothing – later he appeared on top of buildings and made it all look so easy.

So, plenty of noise, plenty of drama and a grand day out as only the British can do. People even stood downwind of the revving dragsters, the methanol bringing tears to their eyes. No matter, they’re here for the crack, and they’ll be back. Why? Because this is motor racing up close and personal. Like it used to be.

Being British at such a very British event there must surely be something to moan about? I’m struggling to think what that might be.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Against his will, Paul Tracy is sitting on the sidelines this year, a victim of the fall-out from the reunification of Champ Car and IRL. When reunification finally came late last winter, Champ Car co-owner Jerry Forsythe’s antipathy towards Tony George was such that he decided he would not run his team in the IRL series. As a result, Tracy’s five-year contract to drive for Forsythe meant nothing and the 38-year old Canadian found himself without a ride and with no options in the IRL.

Through the spring Paul has been looking for a proper IndyCar seat, but none are available. Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IRL chief Tony George talked to Tracy about running four IRL road races in a third Vision Racing entry. George owns the Vision team but in the end he offered Tracy only a one-race deal for Edmonton with no testing. It’s unlikely Paul will take George up on his offer. Meanwhile, Tracy has had plenty of conversations with NASCAR team owners and will make his debut in NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck series at his home track in Las Vegas on September 20th driving a Toyota truck for 2007 championship-winning team owner Tom Germain.

“I really want to stay in Indy car racing,” Tracy remarked. “But there isn’t anything out there. Nobody has any money to spend and nobody has a serious program to offer. It’s very disappointing. I’m talking to people in NASCAR and sports car racing. There’s lots of interest out there but in IndyCar everyone is desperate for sponsorship. Nobody’s willing to pay any serious money. They just ask how much sponsorship I have and, like I say, nobody’s offered any kind of serious program.”

If there’s a good part to all this it’s that for the first time in his career Tracy has the time to fly to England to enjoy this weekend at Goodwood as one of Lord March’s guests. It’s his first trip to Goodwood and Tracy will drive a couple of Penske Indy cars and a replica of Graham Hill’s 1966 Indy 500-winning Lola T90. “I’m really looking forward to it,” Paul said. “I’ve heard so much about it over the years and everyone involved in organising the trip has been so nice. So far, it’s been very refreshing.”

Tracy is a natural showman, in and out of the car. He only knows how to drive flat-out and with his competitive juices still flowing at full force amid a dull year he will be delighted to be back at the wheel of a racing car. I expect Paul will be one of the stars of the show.

If you’re at Goodwood, be sure to get his autograph. And ask him almost anything you like. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, Paul speaks his mind freely, without an ounce of political correctness and with a grin and jab or two of humour, too. He should be in his element at Goodwood.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

Isn’t life strange?

This week, in the sporting headlines, we have Schumacher the cyclist and Rooney the runner. How long before Hamilton the hurdler?

Stefan Schumacher pulverised the opposition in yesterday’s Tour de France time trial at Cholet, a full nine seconds quicker than the pre-race favourite. Sounds familiar for a Schumacher.

Martyn Rooney, having won his 400 metres in style, has his sights set on gold in Beijing. If only Wayne could run like that, what a footballer he would be.

I mention this as a distraction from rain and recession. Not sure which is worse, though the rain will probably cease before the recession. One man who hopes so is the Earl of March and Kinrara whose considerable powers of persuasion stop short at improving the weather. The 2008 Goodwood Festival of Speed starts tomorrow with a viewing of the Bonhams auction which this year is notable for an extremely valuable D-type Jaguar.

We will be there in force. I am using the royal ‘we’ here as the two chaps who own our magazine will be in attendance as well as the Editor-in-Chief, the Editor, the Publisher and many other lesser mortals from the ‘original motor racing magazine’.

We all very much hope to meet as many of you readers as possible at our tent in Goodwood Park. There will be champagne, a chance to talk to Nigel Roebuck and a complete range of our new DVDs containing the Motor Sport archives. End of plug.

I can tell you that today the Festival arena is looking a little sorry for itself. It’s cats and dogs, and soon to be toads, down here in sunny Sussex. By Friday, though, the place will be humming and this year’s display outside the front of Goodwood House will blow your mind. The supercars will be first out, at 8-45, while the rally cars will venture out into the forest just fifteen minutes later. Then it’s relentless action right through until 6pm when the historic Grand Prix cars will be on the hillclimb course. Pack your wellies and your umbrellas just in case – remember last year? But we all had fun anyway.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Now, a word of advice. You are probably familiar with Dougie Lampkin, the multiple world champion trials rider – if not, you soon will be. Throughout this coming weekend Dougie will be performing some completely insane stunts inside, and outside, Goodwood House. There is nothing this man cannot do with a motorcycle so prepare to be amazed and keep your eyes peeled. And bring your ear plugs – the dragster ‘cacklefest’ on the cricket pitch will demonstrate just how exciting these machines can be without actually going anywhere.

You won’t see any Rooneys or Schumachers, but you will see Lewis Hamilton. On Sunday he will drive his McLaren-Mercedes, a lap of honour in celebration of that wonderful victory last weekend. He must feel like he can walk on water. Perhaps he always has. And I’m personally looking forward to seeing all those Lolas in their 50th anniversary year. Then there’s Petter Solberg, one of the sport’s great showmen, in the WRC Subaru, and the new Airbus A380 will fly just for us, and… it goes on and on…

See you there.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

The beginning of the Grand Prix season in Europe always seems to represent some kind of turning point in the year. It’s Spring time, sunny days are warm enough for sitting in the garden, and even the cats wake up for at least part of the day. Yes, I know there’s lots of other motor racing going on, but somehow the arrival of the transporters in Barcelona seems to mark the end of PREviews, and the beginning of the long stretch before the REviews. Such is the year for those with deadlines.

So, what am I doing to keep myself out of mischief? Writing previews, of course, the last two before the truckies roll across the Pyrenees. There’s Audi versus Peugeot at Le Mans to examine and there’s the Goodwood Festival of Speed to consider, the Earl of March having just held his ‘press day’ at his home in West Sussex.

It’s such a nice day, the Goodwood press day, especially when you’re a guest and not an organiser. I speak from experience. Apart from keeping a hand on the forthcoming TV coverage, and making a short video for the Festival website, I was able to enjoy the special atmosphere of Goodwood Park on a beautiful English Spring day.

The hard work is yet to come. For now there’s time to enjoy a blue sky, the odd fluffy white cloud, and the sound of racing cars warming up in the early morning air. And not just any old racing cars. There’s something very special about a 1906 Mercedes being warmed next to a 1997 Penske-Ilmor, a 1953 Ferrari 375 MM Berlinetta being given its final polish, while a few feet away the oil is warmed within the mighty 12-cylinder engine of a 1990 Le-Mans-winning XJR Jaguar. Fried eggs and bacon are served on a huge barbecue next to the startline on the hillclimb while butlers offer steaming coffee, or Bull Shot, on silver trays. If only every event preview could be like this, but we know that won’t happen.

Anthony Hamilton was there, straight off the plane from Bahrain, and paying close attention to a McLaren F1 GTR parked a few yards from a replica of his son’s 2008 McLaren Mercedes-Benz. Does this mean Lewis will appear at the Festival in July? Nobody knows. Up in the woods Rauno Aaltonen flung a Mini Cooper S around the rally stage while World Champion trials rider Dougie Lampkin did impossible things with his new Beta bike before appearing on the balcony of Goodwood House, still on the bike. Yes, he rode it up the stairs. Only at a Goodwood press day.

Sir Stirling Moss was there, looking as sharp as ever, and giving interview after interview. The man is a star in every sense of the word. Every young driver should aspire to this.

There were James Bond cars, and Bond girls too. A collection of 007’s cars will be a highlight of the Cartier Style et Luxe exhibition – a tribute to the secret agent’s creator Ian Fleming.

None of this is real motor racing, it is not a series or championship, it is not political and it is not under the jurisdiction of a governing body. It is entertainment. My colleague Nigel Roebuck – who spoke at length to the Earl of March – and I will be previewing the event in Motor Sport in June, by which time the season will be well and truly underway.

Spring is here, the lambs are in the fields, and the trees are beginning to flower. Lots to look forward to, certainly, on and off the circuits. Our Prime Minister still looks pretty miserable so maybe it’s time for votes of confidence in the real world too.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine

This week I bring news of the 2008 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Might this be a little premature, I hear you murmur, and aren’t you a little biased in favour of said event?

OK, let me declare my interests. Very topical just now.

I have a seat on a committee called the Goodwood Motor Sports Creative Committee, a perch I cling to despite having resigned as the marketing director of the Festival and the Revival in the winter of 2005. So, that’s my interest. No cash, no questions.

I must say, first of all, that the Festival of Speed still holds my full attention and that’s not bad after 15 years immersed in the monster. It’s just such an eclectic happening, so much to see, and so many famous faces. And I think this is the secret of its longevity at, or near, the top of what is known as the English social and sporting calendar. There really is something for everyone, especially since the inclusion of the modern Grand Prix cars, the MotoGP bikes and the forest rally stage in among all the historic men and machinery.

This summer’s ‘theme’ is ‘Hawthorn to Hamilton – Britain’s love affair with World Motor Sport’. Bit of a mouthful, this one, not exactly a snappy headline, but you probably get the gist. Hawthorn to Hamilton, that’s fairly straightforward, and there will be cars and drivers from 1958 to 2008. Purists may say that Hamilton has no place alongside Mike Hawthorn – not yet, anyway – but it’s a most useful way of bracketing half a century of Grand Prix racing. Ticket sales are already way ahead of this time last year, almost certainly in the expectation of Lewis making another appearance in his McLaren. From what I hear, the signals from Woking are good.

So, Britain’s love affair with World Motor Sport? What’s that all about? In brief, it gives Charles March and his crew another chance to cast their nets around the globe and haul in another glistening collection of wild cars and legendary racers, not to mention the rally boys and the motorcycle men. For starters, there will be 30 cars from the United States, including a sensational display of dragsters. Be prepared for NOISE! It’s a bit early to confirm the big star drivers, but there will be some big names this year. Nicolas Prost, son of the great Alain, is down to drive the Team France A1GP car, which means that Charles March may at last be able to persuade Alain himself to have a go on the Goodwood hill. Now that would be something. And big efforts are being made to tempt Richard Petty back to Goodwood, this time in the Plymouth Superbird from the Petty Museum.

I’d love to tell you about the central display outside the front of Goodwood House but the news is embargoed. I can tell you it will be highly spectacular and very different from years gone by.

Had I been writing this in my previous existence, I would have ended with, ‘Book now to avoid disappointment!’ Now, all I can say is that if you like the Festival, 2008 is going to be a good one. If you don’t, then there’s always the Revival in September.

More news after the next committee meeting. By that time Lloyd McNeill and his exceptional Goodwood team will have started to haul in their nets.

Motor Sport Magazine - The original motor racing magazine