Goodwood Festival of Speed 2005

We’ve chosen to combine details of our trip to Goodwood along with our advice for getting the most out of your visit to the Festival next year. But rather than just jump right into our report of the Goodwood festivities, I thought I’d tell you a little about the trip down there on the first day:

...to make this expedition in less than an hour is quite an accomplishment – and one Oli’s managed every time.

Let it be known that my UK counterpart is somewhat of an “expeditious” driver. The trek to the Festival of Speed from our starting point is about 60 miles of winding A and B back roads through many small villages, separated by expanses of green pasture as far as the eye can see. In fact, only about 9 miles of the trip amounts to what, in California, we would call a “freeway”. Thus, to make this expedition in less than an hour is quite an accomplishment – and one Oli’s managed every time.

On the first day of the Festival, we were joined by our friends from California, Ivor and John, for the trip down at 0-dark-thirty. (We usually leave around 6am to make sure we’re there pretty close to the time the gates open at 7am.) After a relatively non-eventful leg down the motorway to the A272, we approached a humpback bridge. For those of you who don’t speak “English” English, this refers to a bridge that has a steeply inclined arc on both sides. Usually, you want to approach these carefully, as they often conceal the section of road immediately following them.

So, we’re tooling along the A272 in a “derestricted” speed limit (read 60mph) zone, rapidly approaching said humpback bridge. As we’re about 100 yards away, our illustrious driver turns to me and says, “think we might catch air on this one”. (Mind you, he thought he was joking – as a regular on this particular road, I knew he wasn’t!) As we crest the upper arc of the bridge, our trusty steed (a 1.8T Passat WAGON) goes four wheels off – for what seemed like 5-7 seconds, but was more like 1.5. As we touch down with a big scrape (and minus parts of the mud flaps undoubtedly) on the other side, our pilot…errr….driver and I erupt into relieved laughter. (Seems we found it much more amusing than Ivor and John in the backseat.) Ivor’s clue that something was amiss (since he was looking down at the map at the time) was the map lifting off of his lap and then returning again. Fortunately, we managed the rest of the trip without any more opportunities to be picked up by air traffic control, and arrived at the Festival shortly after 7am.

When you reach the parking areas for the Festival, the first thing you notice is the wide expanse of pasture allocated for parking. This is your first clue that the event has reached mammoth proportions. At this point, you have the option to hop on one of the “tractor taxis” to the event, or walk the approximate quarter of a mile to the front gates. While most people seem to prefer the mechanized transport, it is somewhat of a surprise how many people elect to walk – especially nutters like yours truly, lugging over 50lbs of camera equipment on his back.

Upon arrival at the gates, take a look around and appreciate the sheer size of the event. Even though I’ve had the pleasure to attend this event annually since 2001, I’m always overwhelmed at the number of exhibitors, teams, and enthusiasts who attend. Immediately to your right, there is a massive stage at the foot of a grassy field for those who prefer to relax in the sunshine instead of (or in addition to) joining the throng of people cruising the paddock areas or crowding by the track. Several food vendors are in this location, and it makes a nice place for breakfast before the crowds arrive. It’s a good opportunity to open up the program you’ve undoubtedly purchased at the gate when you entered and plan out your day. (Though, if you’ve been smart, you’ve bought tickets for all three days, which will just about give you enough time to see everything.)

After wolfing down a bagel and tea (this IS England, after all) begin the trek toward Goodwood house and the paddocks beyond. Walk across the track and notice how narrow it really is – then remember this as cars belt past you at well over three-digit speeds. Look ahead and take note of the motoring sculpture in front of the house – every year, the sculpture grows in complexity and drama. Stop for a few moments to appreciate the sheer ingenuity of the artists and engineers responsible for this year’s presentation. In 2005, the theme, “Racing Colors – National Pride and Culture” also included an anniversary celebration marking Honda’s 40 years in motorsport. In tribute, this year’s sculpture had six historical Honda race cars suspended on moving booms. The sculpture was perpetually in motion – kept moving by a large electric motor shifting a ballast, and thus the balance point of the boom. Truly an engineering marvel.

This is a fabulous opportunity to see both the team and individual entries begin preparing their cars for the day’s events. Perhaps the most amazing part of the paddock area is how close you can get to priceless historical machinery. If you’re patient and courteous, you can often speak with some of the individuals responsible for preparing these cars and gain more insight into these rolling pieces of history.

At least once during the weekend, wander around and take a few moments to watch the crowd’s reactions to the cars in the paddocks – you’ll see waves of recognition as members of different generations recall the machines their heroes piloted to fantastic success.

Often, if you hang around long enough, you may very well see the drivers themselves reunited with their fabulous machines. Emerson Fittipaldi, for example, drove his Lotus Type 72 Formula One car at several times during the weekend.

We spent a significant amount of time loafing around the Classic Team Lotus paddock on all three days – special thanks to William Taylor and Lotus 76 driver Jim Bennett for patiently tolerating our questions. I can’t stress enough how approachable the teams are – as long as you’re polite, almost all of them will tirelessly answer any questions you have about their cars, team or drivers. For the average enthusiast, this is the closest you will ever be to cars, teams and drivers, and thus the best opportunity to learn everything you can about them.

Once you’ve had your fill of static cars, open up your program and determine when your favorites will be taking the hill. While Oli and I make sure we see all the classes at least once on each one of the three days, it’s much easier to start out by identifying your favorites and making sure you’re trackside when they go by. (NOTE: all classes run in conjunction with other classes, so make sure you pay attention to the timetable.) The best course of action for seeing the event is to lash out the extra money for grandstand seating – on Friday, it entitles you to sit in each one of the grandstands. For your first trip to Goodwood, Oli and I recommend you get tickets either for Crossroads or Phesantry as it gives the best opportunity to see the cars tackle the corners as well as the leading-in straights. Even with grandstand seating, however, make sure you get trackside at least once over the three days to feel the cars as they fly past – only fifty feet or so from where you’re standing. If you want to be trackside for the modern Formula One cars, however, make sure you get there several classes before they run, as the F1 cars are probably the most popular component of the Festival, and trackside access fills up rapidly. (People often crowd in five or six deep in the hopes of catching a glimpse of Jenson, Fernando or Takuma as they do burnouts and doughnuts on the track.)

This year, attendees were also given the opportunity to experience a forest rally stage as a spectator. Both vintage and modern rally machines tore up the stage, cut into the forest at the top end of the Goodwood site. Much like being trackside, you’re very close to the action as the cars kick up dust and dirt only feet from where you’re standing. If you decide that watching isn’t enough, you can wander a few yards downhill to the Bowler exhibition and be a passenger on a similar stage (for a small fee, of course).

Set aside some time in the afternoon to walk through the exhibitor stands. Traditionally, Ford, Toyota, Honda, BMW and Mercedes show up en masse with several of their cars (both racing and consumer) on display. Many component and service vendors (tires, trackdays, insurance etc.) are also at Goodwood in a big way, so it takes quite a long time to make the rounds. Lots of free promotional handouts to be had (if that’s your kind of thing.) If you’re looking for hard-to-find motoring memorabilia or even team shirts, jackets and/or hats, it’s all here as well – and the prices, though not inexpensive, are not as marked-up as you might expect.

Make sure you don’t wear yourself out on Friday – there’s two more days to enjoy!

When it comes time to go, you have two choices – either leave around 4:30pm and beat the crowds leaving, or wait until closing time (they practically have to throw us out in the evenings!) The Festival ends at 6pm on Friday, 6:30pm on Saturday and 7pm on Sunday. We would recommend against trying to find food in the immediate area (unless you’re hoping to hang out with one of the teams), as everywhere is packed. Either head further west toward Portsmouth or East toward Worthing. Make sure you get an early night, however, as 7am Saturday comes VERY early!

If you’re interested in coming to the next Festival of Speed, drop us a line, as we’re working on organizing a group trip for coming years. If we could arrange 12-15 enthusiasts to come with us, it’s likely we could negotiate reduced airfares and hotel rates for our group.

Keep a close eye on www.goodwood.co.uk/fos for the 2006 dates! You don’t want to miss it!

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