Easter Goodwood International 100 Race

Held in dismal weather conditions, with heavy rain falling during the last race, the Easter B.A.R.C. Goodwood Meeting was notable for interesting rather than consistently exciting racing.

The big event of the day was the F.1 “International 100” for the Glover Trophy. Alas, the only Continental entrant, Seifert (Lotus), failed to appear and the field comprised a mere ten cars— admittedly half-a-dozen more than those that started in the premier event at Brooklands on Easter Monday forty years ago, but poor by today’s standards. These ten comprised the two “Snetterton” B.R.M.s for Hill and Ginther, McLaren in the new Cooper-Climax, Ireland and Hall in the British Racing Partnership Lotus-B.R.M.s, Brabham’s Brabham, Raby with the Gilby-B.R.M. bought only five days earlier, Robinson’s Lotus with 4-cylinder Climax engine and Amon and Maggs in Parnell’s Lola and Lotus, respectively.

Naturally, Graham Hill was the favourite and he took the lead after four of the 42 laps, followed by team-mate Ginther, a determined McLaren and Brabham. Gradually Ginther fell back, to 4th place by lap 7, and then, as Brabham coasted down Lavant and all the way to his pit with a dead engine, a lead having become detached from the Lucas transistor ignition system, Ireland came into 4th place. By the twelfth lap Ireland had taken Ginther, while some way behind Maggs and Hall kept close company.

Amon was racing alone, with the rest nowhere. Hall passed Maggs on lap 18, but otherwise the race was processional, except that Maggs had reversed things with Amon by lap 22.

On the 29th lap Ginther came in to retire with the B.R.M.’s engine very sick. Everything now rested on the shoulders of the World Champion—the shoulders were willing but the Lucas fuel injection suffered from a blockage, and Hill stopped on Lavant straight on lap 37. He resumed the race, came to his pit, and went on, well off the leader board.

So Innes Ireland won at 102.44 m.p.h., five seconds ahead of McLaren in the new Cooper, Maggs finishing 3rd, a lap behind. Hall was 5th, Amon 6th, and Brabham 7th with only 40 laps completed. Hill set fastest lap, at 104.85 m.p.h., 0.4 sec. outside the Surtees/Moss lap record. Not a very auspicious race for the big crowd that had braved a wet and misty morning to come and watch, but excellent for novice lap-scorers! Moreover, Surtees was absent, testing Ferraris at Modena, Clark had gone to Pau, and the A. C. Cobra was a non-starter because H.M. Customs would not release its Ford engine and gearbox.

The first of the supporting races was The Chichester Cup, for F.J. and 1964 F.2 cars. It was a turn-up for the Brabham-Fords, Gardner driving very neatly to win by 1.4 sec., at 89.68 m.p.h. from Hulme in the B.R.D. Repco Brabham, Attwood’s Lola-Ford taking 3rd place, ahead of Hawkins in another Ian Walker Brabham-Ford and a couple of Cooper-B.M.C.s, driven by Procter and Rhodes. As the course was still water-logged the hoped-for 100 m.p.h. F.J. lap was out of Gardner’s reach, but he lapped at 93.51 m.p.h. It was significant that Peter Arundell in the Ron Harris Team Lotus was never in the picture. Cole went head-on into the bank when his Cooper failed to take Woodcote but he was unhurt. Bradley spun out of the chicane and his Lola smote the outside bank but continued.

Perhaps the racing the crowd liked best was provided by the St. Mary’s Trophy, for saloon cars—stock-car racing come to Goodwood, for after a race-long ding-dong, which included running side by side down Lavant, between Whitmore and Fenning in their Cooper-Minis, Whitmore pushed Fenning into the chicane wall on the last lap. Fenning started from amongst the debris and pulled out in front of Miss Carlisle’s Mini-Cooper, so that she rammed him in the boot and passed him to finish 2nd in the up-to-1,300 c.c. class. No official action was taken against the wicked Whitmore, but Fenning should certainly challenge him to a duel at a Stock Car Racing Stadium, which I shall be glad to umpire! This exciting and over-enthusiastic incident was, in fact, officially dismissed as “Fenning and Whitmore were in slight collision at the chicane on their 9th lap but both cars continued.” Fenning set a new class saloon-car lap record of 79.56 m.p.h.

The race proper was dominated by Graham Hill in Coombs’ 3.8 Jaguar, who was just out of reach (by 1.4 sec. at the finish) of Salvadori in Tommy Atkins’ 3.8, both having disposed of Salmon’s 3.8. Hill made fastest lap at 87.27 m.p.h. The 1,301-2,000 c.c. class was won convincingly by Jack Sears in a striking white and red Willment-tuned Ford Cortina, which cornered on a commendably level keel. This pleased those people who are anxious to see me eat my words over the Cortina and this one I gladly acknowledge as a goer! Indeed, Sears set a class saloon-car lap record of 81.82 m.p.h. and averaged 79.82 m.p.h. Another Cortina, this one the new G.T. model, driven by Blumer, was 2nd, 24 sec. behind, these Fords outclassing the Sunbeam Rapiers of Leston and Jopp, while the Vauxhall VX 4/90s were nowhere. Hutcheson’s Riley 1.5 was nearly pushed into the chicane wall by Fenning on lap 3, and Dubler’s Volvo PV544 looked very out-of-date but obligingly got on the grass to give passage into the chicane to the leading Jaguars.

In the Sussex Trophy Race for G.T. cars Graham Hill led all the way in Coombs’ “Sebring” lightweight fuel-injection Jaguar E-type, but Parkes pursued him manfully in Marenello Concessionaires’ Ferrari 250GTO, being 1.4 sec. behind after the 15 laps. Moreover, Salvadori, in Atkins’ Jaguar-E of the same type was unable to catch the Ferrari, finishing 3rd, 4 sec. behind it. Protheroe, in his special Jaguar E-type coupé, deputising for the A.C. Cobra, was 4th, but a lap in arrears. Hill averaged 96.62 m.p.h. and made fastest lap at 97.74 m.p.h. The class winners were Hill, Hutcheson’s M.G.-B, which vanquished a couple of A.C.-Bristols and Lawrence’s Morgan Plus-Four, Whitmore’s Lotus Elite which set a new class G.T. lap record of 89.07 m.p.h. and Hedges in a Jacobs’ M.G. Midget. Banks drove his Turner splendidly, right on the open boot of Lucien Bianchi’s Fiat Abarth until he spun at the chicane on the final lap. The Marcos lost a wheel. Piper’s Ferrari non-started, Kerrison’s ex Moss/Walker Ferrari Special “bread van” looked extremely fearsome but never got higher than 6th and retired on lap 6 but Salmon in the old 3.6-litre Aston Martin Zagato held 5th place.

The Lavant Cup Race was contested in heavy rain, Salvadori in Tommy Atkins’ 2.7-litre Cooper Monaco Climax beating the previously invincible Lotus-Climax driven by Ireland. Rees (Lotus-Ford) was 2nd, Greene’s Lotus-Ford 3rd. Salvadori averaged 84.14 m.p.h. but Ireland, who led for 12 of the 21 laps, made fastest lap, at 88.16 m.p.h. Rees took the 1,151-2,000 c.c. category in spite of a spin, Minoprio (Elva-Climax) the up-to-1,500 c.c. class. Interesting runners were Summers’ 5,360 c.c. Cooper-Monaco-Chevrolet V8, which spun and retired, Turner’s 3,475-c.c. Lotus-Buick V8, 2nd in the unlimited class but a lap behind Salvadori, and Blumer’s 6,230-c.c. Andrews Special-Rolls-Royce V8, which retired on the 3rd lap.—W.B.

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The Willment Ford Cortina at Goodwood

One of the features of the Saloon Car Race at Goodwood on Easter Monday was the speed and stability of the 1,498 c.c. Willment Ford Cortina driven so well by Jack Sears that it won the 1,301-2,000-c.c. class of the race at nearly 80 m.p.h., beating Jim Blumer’s Ford Cortina GT by 24 sec. and setting up a new class lap-record of 81.82 m.p.h., bettering the previous record, held by Hutcheson’s Riley 1.5, by 1.8 sec.

Prepared by John Willment Automobiles Ltd., this Cortina was virtually to G.T. specification, its engine carefully assembled and the compression ratio raised to 11 1/2 to 1. Standard gear ratios were used, with the 4.1-to-1 axle ratio.

Having seen the level manner in which the Cortina took the chicane, I was interested to learn that the rear springs were flattened, lowering the car 1 1/2 in. and the shock-absorbers were up on bumps but down on rebound by adjustment of the valves. The front suspension was standard, but with 150-lb. in place of 140-lb. springs and lowered by 1 1/4 in. The whole car was lightened by, perhaps, 50 lb., consumed Shell 100-octane fuel and was on Dunlop R6 tyres.—W. B.