My local track is Brooklands, racing there was suspended at the outbreak of the War in September 1939 and never resumed. In recent years there have been considerable efforts to restore Brooklands to some of its former glory. Our Special Correspondent was on hand to witness the re-opening of the Finishing Straight last month. Naturally he found some of the Rare and Interesting to keep us entertained and informed……………<\/em><\/p>\n

\nA superb example of a French B\u00e9d\u00e9lia cyclecar which dates from 1910. The owner had just brought it over from France and it is a Type BD2 with a 990 c.c. V-2 Train air cooled motor. The driver sits at the back with the passenger in tandem in the front. One of these cars won the Cyclecar Grand Prix at Amiens in 1913.<\/p>\n

\nThe outstanding sports car of the late Thirties \u2013 the BMW 328. This is a Frazer Nash\u2013marketed version and is the ex-Hugh Hunter car, albeit re-sprayed German white instead of the grey it was pre-war. It has a rich competition history including coming 4th in the Brooklands 3-Hour production Car Race on the Campbell Circuit in 1938.<\/p>\n

\nEnjoy the view through the windscreen over the long bonnet with the recessed headlights; these cars from Eisenach dominated the international 2-litre class in their time.<\/p>\n

\nThis is the pre-war 2-litre Aston Martin that was raced in the 1948 Spa 24 Hour race by Jack Fairman and Richard Stallebrass. Fairman came in to hand over to his co-driver during the very wet early Saturday evening of the race and the inexperienced Stallebrass lost control on his out lap on the long sweeping bend to Malm\u00e9dy somersaulting off into a field and sustaining fatal injuries.<\/p>\n

\nThis is a Frazer Nash-BMW 319 saloon.<\/p>\n

It had a 6-cylinder engine, an ordinary pushrod version not the special head used for the 328.<\/p>\n

\nIt is always pleasing to see Babs back where she was born.<\/p>\n

\nWe do not often see a 4-seater tourer version of the Alvis front-wheel drive cars, and rarely with the hood up! This is a 1929 long chassis car with bodywork by Carbodies and was raced at Brooklands by Edward Farley.<\/p>\n

\nGeoffrey Taylor made a series of advanced sports and racing Altas with advanced suspension and 4-cylinder twin-cam engines he made himself. This single-seater is the one raced by George Abecassis to good effect.<\/p>\n

\nA 1914 Chater Lea. It used a Singer engine tuned by Lionel Martin who had great success with Singers before launching Aston Martin.<\/p>\n

\nThis beautiful Austin Seven Ulster ran in the 1931 Double Twelve race at Brooklands, driven by Phillip Marriage and HJ Searle.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This was the race where the Austin Sevens were finally outpaced by the new Montlh\u00e9ry C-type M.G. Midgets and this little Austin finished 24th and last.<\/p>\n

\nHere we see Lord March with Alan Winn, the Director of the Brooklands Museum, behind giving his address at the opening ceremony.<\/p>\n

For the first time since 1940, we see the Finishing Straight.
\nTAILPIECE<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nWhere motoring began \u2013 a lovely little L\u00e9on Boll\u00e9e Voiturette made in Le Mans.<\/p>\n

David Blumlein, July 2017<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\t\t