Gold Cup

what was it like?? worth the trek up North???

Brilliant. The weather was good, and Bernie would have been upset as Over taking happend. Some of the best racing I have seen this. They hope to have it again next year to coincide with Oultons 50th year celebrations, so should be good. Well worth the trek. There was a good crowd too which surprised me.

as saloons were last on the bill I took the view it was too far to go for a 10 lapper! Overtaking is a common feature in HSCC racing! You should come to more meetings! what was the highlight for you?

Andrew,

did any of the big names (JYS, Sir Jack etc) get to drive anything or were they just spectating?

Originally posted by Guy Humpage
Andrew,

did any of the big names (JYS, Sir Jack etc) get to drive anything or were they just spectating?

I know I'm not Andrew but Sir Jack did get to drive, unfortunately he only got as far as Water Tower when the car spilt its guts onto the track. It was towed back to the pits and he then came round all the circuit on the back of a pick-up truck.

Staying trackside during the dinner break I don't know who else famous, if anyone, was around.

:rotate: :rotate: :rotate: :rotate: :rotate: :rotate: :rotate: :rotate:

Originally posted by Guy Humpage

did any of the big names (JYS, Sir Jack etc) get to drive anything or were they just spectating?
MR H I thought you were working hard not surffing the net. Anyway Jack as Kaybee said got as far as watertower before the car sprung a fuel leak. Jakie Oliver did not appear so upset. The other ex-racers like JYS did not appear so it appears they were just rummours. There could be a good chance of them comming next year for the 50th annerversery bash. I will send you some of the pics I have of Jack Brabham.

Originally posted by simon drabble
what was it like?? worth the trek up North???

Pure magic! The perfect antidote to the head-up-the-:censored: shenanigans of the F3 circus the previous weekend.

A well-run meeting, with a great atmosphere.

We spent an hour or more walking round the paddock on Sunday morning; it was like having all your birthdays at once - everybody we met was saying things like 'have you seen.....', 'you must look at.....'.

This was one of the few meetings where I've actually enjoyed qualifying - I could have watched those cars going round all day!

The racing was superb; as usual at an HSCC meeting, there was no pandering to the 'value' or rarity of the cars once the race started!

Highlights? So many.....

Mike Eagles surprising the exotics in the Milano.
The sheer noise made by the Bristol-engined cars.
Mark Gillies drifting the Maserati 300S through Island.
Three 250Fs racing together.
More real Listers than you could shake a stick at.
Seeing a BRM winning again!
The beautiful Cooper Alfa - gorgeous wheels!

.....the list goes on & on! And to top it all, Jack Brabham!

Now all we've got to do is persuade you Southerners to risk falling off the edge of the world & visit Britain's best circuit!
:p

Originally posted by andrew_powell98
Jakie Oliver did not appear so upset.

He was obviously double booked. Was racing at Brands Hatch instead.

Oulton Park was great - after a wet qualifying session that was particularly scary during my session (11 am on Saturday) it all dried out and we had great weather all weekend

Highlights for me were the Listers, D-types and HWMs in the BRDC Historic Sports Cars race, the truly excellent HSCC/HRSR Julius Thurgood Historic Racing Saloons race, the ITD Consultants XK race which was very entertaining - and, of course, getting to race in Historic Roadsports!

I found the circuit very daunting, and struggled to put up good lap times, but enjoyed the race. Seeing Tim Fish's Camaro approaching in the rear-view miror was extraordinary - it flew past as he lapped me and he must have had a good 40 mph on me on the straights!

All-in-all, Oulton Park is well worth the trip - even if you have to drive the race car there from Brighton, as I did - and the the track is great. It's very technical and demands lots of precision and commitment to get a good time. Also the people are very friendly...

I think the Gold Cup will be back at Oulton Park in 2003 and I say don't miss it!

Nick Froome
www.bolide.co.uk (http://www.bolide.co.uk)

Originally posted by bolide
Oulton Park was great - after a wet qualifying session that was particularly scary during my session (11 am on Saturday) it all dried out and we had great weather all weekend

Highlights for me were the Listers, D-types and HWMs in the BRDC Historic Sports Cars race, the truly excellent HSCC/HRSR Julius Thurgood Historic Racing Saloons race, the ITD Consultants XK race which was very entertaining - and, of course, getting to race in Historic Roadsports!

I found the circuit very daunting, and struggled to put up good lap times, but enjoyed the race. Seeing Tim Fish's Camaro approaching in the rear-view miror was extraordinary - it flew past as he lapped me and he must have had a good 40 mph on me on the straights!

All-in-all, Oulton Park is well worth the trip - even if you have to drive the race car there from Brighton, as I did - and the the track is great. It's very technical and demands lots of precision and commitment to get a good time. Also the people are very friendly...

I think the Gold Cup will be back at Oulton Park in 2003 and I say don't miss it!

Nick Froome
www.bolide.co.uk (http://www.bolide.co.uk)

Nick Bolide did you stop for the racing on the Monday or return to Brighton after your race on Sunday?

I too thoroughly enjoyed the meeting although being out at Shell was away from both the public and the commentators so I have no idea how the meeting went. I was disappointed with the report both on the meeting and fringe stuff such as Sir Jack's car dropping its oil in Motor Sport News.

I saw lots of cars struggling with the Shell Oils Hairpin and hope that all those drivers and cars who didn't complete the loop from Island to Foulstons are fit and ready for the next round.

:rotate: :cool: :rotate: :cool: :rotate: :cool: :rotate: :cool:

I stayed for the Monday and spent most of it taking photos between Cascades and the second chicane at Knickerbrook

I loved the Hairpin - great fun in my TR which is great in the slower stuff. By tucking into the inside you get a great launch out towards the first chicane...

I was in car 62, red TR4, and was trailing the field in the Historic Roadsports, race 3. Only my third race - but I'd have liked to be on the pace...

Nick Froome

Originally posted by bolide
All-in-all, Oulton Park is well worth the trip - even if you have to drive the race car there from Brighton, as I did - and the the track is great. It's very technical and demands lots of precision and commitment to get a good time.

Better than a disused airfield, isn't it!;)

Also the people are very friendly...

:beer:

I think the Gold Cup will be back at Oulton Park in 2003 and I say don't miss it!

After such a successful meeting as that, I can only see it getting bigger & even better; when the availablity forms for 2003 arrive the Gold Cup will be the first meeting I'll look for!:D

well lets hope they make the races longer next time to justify the trip!

Originally posted by simon drabble
well lets hope they make the races longer next time to justify the trip!

I was happy with the length of the races - longer races would mean fewer races, which would have denied us the chance to see some interesting machinery in action.

Now if we could start before 12:00 on Sundays........

hhmm all that way for 20 minute race doesnt really do it for me! at least at last yrs Silverstone Historic we had 2x 40 min slots
now that was good value!

Originally posted by simon drabble
hhmm all that way for 20 minute race doesnt really do it for me! at least at last yrs Silverstone Historic we had 2x 40 min slots
now that was good value!

Maybe for you! What about the other drivers who may have missed the opportunity of competing because there were those two races.

Don't forget racing at Oulton Park cannot start before noon on any Sunday and therefore the programme has to be written around this.

:rotate: :rotate: :D :D

at the risk of sounding contrarian I still think that it should be at Silverstone if it has any chance of competing with Goodwood. Oulton Park will not attract the big sponsors and corporate money that has allowed Goodwood to be so successful

Originally posted by simon drabble
at the risk of sounding contrarian I still think that it should be at Silverstone if it has any chance of competing with Goodwood. Oulton Park will not attract the big sponsors and corporate money that has allowed Goodwood to be so successful

Looks like we're into the old north/south divide thing here! If the sponsors & corporate bigwigs would rather put their money into an event at a boring, flat, old airfield than one at Britain's best circuit, so be it. Meanwhile, we in the uncivilised, inaccessible frozen north will enjoy our little local events....;)

well it depends what Octagon are lookingto achieve. If they want a great HSCC meeting then they have by all yr accounts achieved their goal but if they were looking to replace the Historic Festival they havent

Originally posted by simon drabble
well it depends what Octagon are lookingto achieve. If they want a great HSCC meeting then they have by all yr accounts achieved their goal but if they were looking to replace the Historic Festival they havent

Good point; having never been to the Historic Festival, I can't compare. However, it was a great meeting; I ask no more than that!:beer:

the gold cup at oulton park was the best meeting this year(believe me i have been to every one)even my kevin type teenager was impressed with the both cars and drivers.bring back the gold cup for good, oulton park is where it belongs.well done and thankyou to all involved for the best two days entertainment i've had in years

Having done several Coys's meetings at Silverstone and this years Gold Cup - I would say that they are totally different animals.

Coy's was always much bigger - and as it was normally a 3 day meeting so there was time for 2 * 40 min races - perhaps next year they could expand the Gold Cup to the whole three days of the bank holidy weekend so we would get 2.5 days track time.

Silverstone also attracted much bigger 'off-track' displays - Mrs Flagman always spectated at Coys as she enjoyed looking round the infield.

You could not really run a Coy's type meeting at Oulton as there is not nearly enough room - though if they used the field on the outside of Old Hall - Avenue - Cascades, it could be expanded somewhat - though I guess they would need to improve the access considerably to use that area.

Which was better - difficult to tell - but for a first attempt I thought the Gold Cup was superb.

Now if they could only get some of the races from Coy's to next years event it would be great - I reckon the 250 GTO race from the 1997? Coys's would be fantastic round Oulton.

I really enjoyed the whole meeting - that is once my eyes stopped smarting from the methanol fumes from the pre-war single seater race.

that was the point I was trying to make - it seems this was the Northern round of the Brands Super Prix meeting.

Simon - apart from Coy's and possibly Goodwood - at how may historic meetings (or any other formulae for that matter) do the competitors get much more than a 20 min race for their money.

Top Hat, v de V and FIA meetings
obviuosly I am talking abt saloons mainly

Simon, I can appreciate your concern re the short races - that's why we bought the TVR so we can take part in the Cloth Cap, FIA etc longer distance races.

Hubby and I really enjoyed Oulton. We haven't raced there since 1998 - it certainly is a challenging track. Jason and I really enjoyed our races and the whole weekend and think it was worth the trip even for the shorter races.

I concur that it was not in the same league as Coys and to some extent this was a little disappointing. The HSCC did really well but to be fair the lack of publicity (see Marcus Pye's comments in Autosport) and lack of celebs probably didn't help. I would call it a "posh" HSCC do rather than an out of out Coys event. It was all very relaxed and it was wonderful that spectators and fellow competitors a like could wander around and stand in awe at the variety and breadth of the cars competing.

Let's hope the HSCC can build on this for next year. I'll certainly put it in our race calendar for next year.
LAK

I guess the point I am making is that gvn the prep costs are the same for 20 min races as for 1 hr ones the longer races offer better value and therefore attract bigger grids which is good for everyone
look at how successful Top HAt and Gentleman Drivers have become maybe the others should leran from that

by the way
how did you get on at Oulton??? and are you going to Donnington at the weekend?

I've uploaded some pictures taken in the paddock at:

http://www.marshalspost.com/display_user_gallery.php?gallery_id=30

You may detect a certain Maserati bias!:)