Relive the Goodwood Members’ Meetings best moments
Goodwood may have had to postpone this year’s Members’ Meeting, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the highlights from the last six years, shot by Lord March’s dedicated camera crew through sunshine, snowfall, and everything else British weather would throw at you in March. Let’s dig in, headphones on…
GT40s
Where else would you see a whopping 26 original 1964–67 Ford GT40s being driven by professionals and dedicated amateurs at race speed for a full hour in honor of Ford racing magician Alan Mann? Nowhere but in West Sussex. You can also watch the entire race by clicking here. Just make sure you don’t violate your local noise restrictions.
Minis
It’s wild how aggressively Minis can get tuned—and subsequently driven by slightly mad people—and the everlasting battle of Nick Swift and Nick Padmore is a phenomenon not to be missed at Goodwood. Three-wheeling through most corners, racing these eco rockets is all about keeping your momentum at all costs, while making sure those ancient engines wouldn’t take offense at how high you dare to rev them. 1960s Minis are just the perfect race cars for those tight situations.
Touring cars
Demonstrating just how quick a 1979 Mini 1275 GT can be, here is Nick Swift once again chasing much bigger touring cars around Goodwood, including a 1979 Volkswagen Golf GTI, a 1977 BMW 530i, and England’s favorite, a 1979 Ford Capri III 3.0S. But how about that 1979 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 in fifth place, chasing the Mini with its fire-breathing 350-cubic-inch V-8? It’s 5.7 liters of American small-block against a 1275-cc four-pot just waiting for the next corner to come.
The best battles of the Members’ Meetings
While most of us have never seen a 1961 Austin Healey Sebring Sprite head-to-head against a 1959 Lenham Sprite GT, as it turns out, these pocket rockets are quicker than … let’s say a ‘62 Ogle SX1000, a ’63 Rochdale Olympic, or a 1966 Williams & Pritchard GT MG Midget. Keep that in mind the next time you’re shopping.
Next up, it’s two Alan Mann-liveried 1965 Mustangs, driven hard by Steve Soper and Craig Davies. The first Mustang was partly developed at the Goodwood Circuit using a debadged prototype driven by Mann himself, and the same can be said about the Mk I GT40. These Mustangs are right at home, then.
When deciding who’s gonna be where on the podium—and the question comes down to a 1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS being chased by a 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/C and a 1963 Morgan Plus 4 SLR—you wouldn’t expect the focus to shift to a pair of 911s battling for fourth. Yet that’s the Members’ Meeting for you.
Duncan Pittaway is the only man I know who is bold enough to race a 1921 “GN Curtiss” cyclecar against giant torque monsters like the period’s Sunbeam and Delage specials. Low center of gravity indeed.
Finally, how about the eternal question of whether the one-off 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB “Breadvan” of Bizzarrini driven by former F1 and touring car driver Emanuele Pirro can keep up with two Jaguar E-Types? Get onboard with him, and find out:
Missing the spins? The blown engines? The motorcycles and Formula 1 cars? Le Mans prototypes and mighty Cobras? Pre-war Bugattis and ’60s Can Am monsters? McLaren F1 GTRs, Ferrari F40 LMs, and all who dare to mess up Lord March’s lawn?
Go wild, and keep counting the days until the next Goodwood Members’ Meeting. I have a feeling it’s going to be a blast:
