One hippy says his piece...

Sir,

Speaking as a Mk1 hippie and lifelong gearhead, I would like to reply to self-described “grumpy old man” S Campbell’s jeremiad as printed in the December issue (Letters). Sir, hippies existed for years before the late press ‘discovery’ of us in 1967, and they, not us, invented the non-existent ‘Summer of Love’. Since there neither was nor is a standard issue uniform for hippies, I can assure you that there were hippies at Goodwood, Snetterton, Brands Hatch and every other racing venue in the early to late 1960s and afterward.

However, there is a bright spot in all this. I was planning on attending Goodwood, and now I am sure I know what to wear: not only period but actual worn-in-period gear. Look for me in my faded but authentic 1966 green and blue paisley Nehru jacket, velvet trousers and Hare Krishna medallion!

Norman E Gaines Jr, Hartsdale, New York, USA