Around 12 miles from London, alongside the famed River Thames, sits Hampton Court Palace, once the residence of the eccentric King Henry VIII. That was about 500 years ago; today the palace is a favorite tourist destination in London, well-known for its stunning garden and the encompassing Bushy Park.
On a summer day, the palace grounds are open to the general public through which to benefit from the weather and the quiet atmosphere, but in terms of one particular weekend, it’s not quiet. It reverberates with the sounds of engines of old and recent for the annual Concours of Elegance – a celebration of all the pieces with an engine, starting from cars inbuilt the nineteenth century to those being unveiled for the very first time.
Concours events are generally known to be prestigious affairs, with cars of significance being displayed at stately venues amongst people wearing sophisticated attire. These cars are then judged and awarded in various categories.
This was my first time attending an event of such calibre, and being a lad with a history of falling in love with cars through Need for Speed games and Fast and Furious movies, it was interesting and strange.
But when we’re to understand the current, we must always also learn to understand the past. With the world attempting to move away from internal combustion engines, it’s high time all of us looked back in history to the cars that paved the option to the machines we love, drive and yearn to own. So, provided that I acted like a fly on the wall on the event for three days, it will be a shame if I didn’t share the experience.
The primary day of the event began with typical British weather, and entering the venue I saw all of the cars covered with unique Concours of Elegance covers.
I began looking around and photographing the morning activities, and lo and behold the skies opened up and in just a few minutes I used to be drenched. I ran to the closest stand I could find and ended up within the Bizzarrini tent.
Giotto Bizzarrini was an engineer who began his profession at Alfa Romeo before being headhunted by Ferrari. He later left Ferrari for Lamborghini as a part of the ‘Palace Revolt’. Yep, a really fascinating profession. During Bizzarrini’s time at Ferrari he was instrumental in creating the famous 250 series, including the enduring Ferrari 250 GTO and the 250 GT SWB.
When Bizzarrini went to Lamborghini, he engineered the V12 engine that was utilized in the Raging Bull’s first production automotive, the 350 GT, and until 2010, finally within the Murciélago SV. Following on successes with Italian marques, Bizzarrini established his own design company, which got lost in time but was reborn recently and is now launching some fabulous-looking cars for each the track and road based on the historic designs of its founder. I’m not ashamed to say that it took a downpour for me to learn all in regards to the genius of Giotto Bizzarrini.
The rain wasn’t looking like it will ever end, but that didn’t stop the cars arriving. Most entered under their very own power, where they were introduced on the Concours Stage before being parked in pre-allocated spots.
As 100 years of Le Mans endurance racing is being celebrated this 12 months, the 2023 Concours of Elegance marked the occasion with 4 of the five cars to have seen success at Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans not once but twice. The 1929 Bentley Speed Six ‘Old Number one′ won in 1929 and 1930 within the hands of the Bentley Boys before the corporate was bought by Rolls-Royce; the 1968 JWA Ford GT40 won in 1968 and 1969 battling against Porsche 917s and 908s; and the 1995 Porsche TWR WSC-95 that won in 1996 and 1997 was also driven by Tom Kristensen to his maiden 24 Hours of Le Mans victory – the primary of nine! Official records showed that the 1963 Ferrari 275P present only won Le Mans in 1964, but the 1963 victory was discovered in 2018. How? This automotive raced instead of its sister automotive (which was damaged before the event), but that fact was not officially recorded on the time.
Did you recognize that Ettore Bugatti started off by constructing a motorised tricycle? Not only did attendees get to see this, but also one in every of the ten Bugatti Centodiecis made. This was a part of the Pearl Collection of Fritz Burkard, who also brought along one other very fascinating automotive.
This Aston Martin DB5 continuation automotive has all of the tech from the DB5 in James Bond’s Goldfinger movie. The rotating number plate, guns within the front, retractable bullet shield and a rear smoke dispenser. I used to be surprised to learn that the automotive is road legal in Switzerland where the gathering relies, so long as the number plate rotator is disconnected.
The event also showcased several supercars and hypercars, which together with the above include a Koenigsegg Regera and never one but two Aston Martin Valkyries.
On the ultimate day, just before the gates shut, I discovered myself chatting to a fellow petrolhead while standing in front of the Ferrari 250 GTO and the primary AC Shelby Cobra. We wondered what cars can be sitting on this exact garden in 50 years or so. Surely there’d be plenty of Japanese icons, just like the Skyline GT-R and Supra, and even perhaps a first-gen MX-5. On the Euro side, an E46 M3, Mk1 Golf GTI and perhaps a Peugeot 205 GTi would surely get a glance in, too. What do you think that?
Though the weather didn’t play ball on the primary day, it kept recovering throughout the weekend. But regardless of the weather, the 2023 Concours of Elegance allowed me the pleasure of spending time with a number of the most beautiful cars to grace each the roads and tracks.
Jathu Thillai
Instagram: jtoncars
www.jtoncars.uk
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