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30.11.04
The Eastern city limits of Liverpool are home to one of the world’s best known and most evocative horse racing tracks – Aintree, home of the Grand National. However, less well known is that between 1955 and 1962 it also hosted the British Grand Prix, staged on a 3.2 mile purpose-built race circuit within the horse track‘s contours. The design and build of a racing circuit adjacent to the existing horse facility was not new in the UK – Aintree followed Goodwood’s example with considerable success. The 1955 race attracted 150,000 spectators to marvel at the Mercedes W196-mounted quartet of Moss, Fangio, Kling and Taruffi, who were the class of the field and such was their pace that several British entries expired. Moss won the race - his first GP win. The venue also saw the Vanwall team's first GP win in 1957, Moss again taking the chequered flag after swapping cars with Tony Brooks when his own developed a severe misfire. Sadly, the fortunes of the Topham family – Aintree’s owners, nose-dived in the ‘70s and ‘80s coinciding with the end of racing, though a few sprints were held in the '90s. Space and noise constraints mean that circuit racing is unlikely to return to Aintree, but the 19th -21st November saw an on-track Festival of Motorsport to celebrate this once great venue. Fittingly, Sir Stirling Moss was back in the North West to share his memories, along with contemporaries - Le Mans winner Roy Salvadori and Manchester born Tony Brooks. Fresh from back surgery in Austria under the watchful eye of F1’s Doctor, Professor Sid Watkins, Sir Stirling was in good spirits - taking the wheel of Peter Neumark’s Maserati 250F for several demonstration laps along with Tony Brooks in a B Type Connaught and the busiest man at Aintree, retired Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis in a D Type.
With the assistance of the BRDC, TOPS, Top Hat and CRMC organisations, 148 cars and 40 bikes enjoyed untimed, non-competitive demonstration laps in fields of 20. The car attracting most interest was also one of the oldest – Neil Hadfield’s Alfa 12C37 ably driven by historic ace Gary Pearson. I last saw this car on the streets of Monaco in May and, whilst it was definitely warmer outside “La Rascasse “ than the “Railway Straight”, it was a delight to see this fantastic sounding car on full song. There was plenty of Italian machinery on view – Bill Ainscough’s pre-war Maserati 26M, the aforementioned Peter Neumark’s Maserati 250F, Bryn Williams's 206 Dino and long time FOC member Stephen Pilkington’s 250GTO caught the eye. There was lots of variety – where else would you get to see the current works TVR sharing track space with a F1 Williams, a brutish Ford Falcon and a graceful pre-war Lagonda Rapide? For those with deep pockets, long-time Formula 5000 competitor Nick Shrigley-Fiegl has converted his Lola to 2 seats and was offering ciruit rides at £250 for 2 laps! Your scribe along with FOC NW Area Group colleagues took the more cost-effective option and toured the circuit on a former London Transport bus! The organisers of the inaugural Festival of Motorsport did an excellent job. Ably supported by several local dealers and car club area groups along with historic motorsport’s most enthusiastic competitors, the event was a great success. This is planned as an annual event and the ’05 edition will be mid-summer, where hopefully the crowds will be larger and the weather more clement…..maybe it can again follow Goodwood’s example and have timed laps. With such a prospect and the commitment of Jonathan Palmer’s Motorsport Vision to a Historic Festival at the nearby Oulton Park – the future for historic racing in the North West looks very bright! Meanwhile, I've just got time to review the catalogue, book the hire car and buy the winning lottery ticket before my next stop – Bonhams All Ferrari sale in Gstaad!
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