Vintage Sports Car Club Spring Start at Silverstone
Spring sunshine greeted us as we arrived at Silverstone for the VSCC Spring Start race meeting. Having spectated and captured mostly rally and more modern circuit racing like the BTCC, British GT and Carrera Cup, getting to see a full day of pre 1966 racing away from Goodwood was an exciting prospect, and the VSCC certainly delivered.
The open paddock and access to spectate from around the whole circuit made for an exceptional day. First up was a stroll through the old Formula One pits absorbing the sounds, smells and sights. The advantage of access all areas is getting to chat with drivers, mechanics and teams, getting to learn more and get an immersive experience.
Having spent a fair amount of time working on cars from 60’s through to brand new competition cars between us we’ve seen some odd design choices that make you go ‘why have they done that?’ but seeing some of the cars from the 20’s took this to a whole new level.
Weird and wonderful mechanical systems with enormous chain drives, spurious shafts and hand fuel pumps with little to no commonality between cars made for an inquisitive look through the paddock.
A stand out in the paddock was this Bugatti Type 35B. Produced as a race car between 1927 to 1930 as a faster evolution of the Type 35.
The Type 35B is powered by a supercharged 2.3-litre straight-eight engine kicking out to 140 horsepower reaching speeds of up to 125 mph. Designs features such as a hollow front axle help reduce vehicle weight.
The Type 35B was incredibly successful in racing, winning numerous Grand Prix events, including the French Grand Prix and the Targa Florio. It also won the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice, in 1929 and 1930, and set several world speed records.
As you can see from these photos, its full of intricate details and a full history of racing.
Practice sessions were the action on track during the morning and it showed the array of cars competing throughout the day with some pre-66 saloons back to some roaring 20’s leviathans.
It was great to see the track speed getting faster with every lap during practice, building the anticipation for the afternoons races.
Racing began with the pre-66 cars going wheel to wheel with the MGA taking victory followed by the Austin Healey pictured here.
As the afternoon progressed we had the Fox & Nicholl Trophy followed by the Silverstone Trophy, Hawthorn & Patrick Lindsay Memorial, Allcomers Handicap, GP Itala Trophy, and the Hawthorn International rounding out the day.
As the day drew to a conclusion, sitting in the BRDC grand stand, we reflected on how much we’d thoroughly enjoyed watching the days action unfold. While cutting edge at the time, compared to modern cars there are some refinement and handling limitations which make the racing so much more exciting. We would recommend getting to some vintage racing to anyone and everyone.
Thank you to the Vintage Sports Car Club for organising some exceptional racing and allowing access through out the paddock to get close to the action. And thank you to Silverstone Circuit for hosting.
Check out more images from the day below.
Images and words by Mitcham Media
