PirateJafa
9th June 2009, 22:36
What happened to the days when car racing was actually fun to watch?
Every time I turn on the TV to catch a race, I come away intensely disappointed.
The real racing - which would have actually got me physically there amongst the spectators were decades ago, it would seem. Thi swas again reinforced when I managed to get hold of a good hour of footage of the 1959 Le Mans 24hr race.
These were the days when racing drivers were real men. Manly men. These were the days when the drivers were heroes.
Many of the privateers cars were built literally from scratch, on the surrounding grass fields, days before the event. You had cowboys and men in suits and top hats competing.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25709">
Your car breaks down? No marshals are going to help you - in fact no-one can help you - you have to push your car right back to the pits by yourself before anyone else can lay a hand on the car!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25706">
You crash? You have to dig your fooking way out. No help given, besides a shovel.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25702">
Non of this rolling-start nonsense - you have to gap it over to your wheels, start 'er up and buckle up - or not to buckle up if you wanted that extra second!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25705">
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25708">
And the race pretty much is stopped for NO reason - be it weather or crashes. Even in 1955 when Pierre Levegh's car was shunted off the track (due to Mike Hawthorne swerving to get to the pits at the last minute), crashing through the crowd killing over 80 spectators, the race went on. Admittedly, in this case it was to prevent the 250,000 spectators from clogging the surrounding roads and preventing ambulance access)
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25707">
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25710">
Clearly I was born decades too late.
Bugger.
Every time I turn on the TV to catch a race, I come away intensely disappointed.
The real racing - which would have actually got me physically there amongst the spectators were decades ago, it would seem. Thi swas again reinforced when I managed to get hold of a good hour of footage of the 1959 Le Mans 24hr race.
These were the days when racing drivers were real men. Manly men. These were the days when the drivers were heroes.
Many of the privateers cars were built literally from scratch, on the surrounding grass fields, days before the event. You had cowboys and men in suits and top hats competing.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25709">
Your car breaks down? No marshals are going to help you - in fact no-one can help you - you have to push your car right back to the pits by yourself before anyone else can lay a hand on the car!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25706">
You crash? You have to dig your fooking way out. No help given, besides a shovel.
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25702">
Non of this rolling-start nonsense - you have to gap it over to your wheels, start 'er up and buckle up - or not to buckle up if you wanted that extra second!
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25705">
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25708">
And the race pretty much is stopped for NO reason - be it weather or crashes. Even in 1955 when Pierre Levegh's car was shunted off the track (due to Mike Hawthorne swerving to get to the pits at the last minute), crashing through the crowd killing over 80 spectators, the race went on. Admittedly, in this case it was to prevent the 250,000 spectators from clogging the surrounding roads and preventing ambulance access)
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25707">
<img src="http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/picture.php?albumid=2192&pictureid=25710">
Clearly I was born decades too late.
Bugger.