Brooklands birthday bash

The world’s first motor racing circuit echoed once again to racing engines and the excited chatter of thousands of spectators as Brooklands celebrated its 100th birthday in June. A cavalcade of veteran cars, all centenarians, re-enacted the opening parade a century before to the very day, while hundreds of racing cars and ’bikes, many of which had actually competed at the Track, performed for the crowd. Outer-circuit monsters such as Blitzen Benz, LSR Delage, Parry Thomas’ ‘Babs’, the Birkin single-seater Bentley and the Napier-Railton opened up on the Mercedes World test track, joined by a Mercedes W125, W196 and 300SLR driven by John Surtees, Jochen Mass and Sir Stirling Moss, while Gary Paffett demonstrated a Mercedes-McLaren F1 car. On the Test Hill onlookers cheered the noisiest ascents and marque displays packed the Paddock, while impressive air displays recalled the Track’s aviation heritage. It was almost possible to feel the 1930s had returned.