To be honest, the theme of this issue made itself. Our love for classic race cars was sated this past couple of months by the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix and the Goodwood Festival of Speed over in the U.K. Then there was fine vintage action at Road America and up north in British Columbia, to name just a few.
Of course, we must thank the organizers of such events, but it’s the owners of the vehicles that deserve huge plaudits. They aren’t just displaying their McLarens and Lotuses, Ferraris and Porsches, Alfa Romeos and AMC Javelins at a garden party on well-manicured lawns: they’re willing to put cars of special provenance at risk by throwing them around racetracks, for our entertainment.
Of course, it’s not entirely altruistic: who among us wouldn’t jump at the chance to coil a Cobra through the Corkscrew, or master a Maserati at Madgwick? These folk are clearly finding fun and satisfaction in their endeavors. And they deserve it, for without their enthusiasm, persistence and funding, many of the cars that take part in these wonderful historic events would be immobile museum pieces or – and this is a dreadful thought – would have long since oxidized. This issue feels very much like a celebration of the booming and vibrant historic motorsports scene.
And then there are people who don’t just rescue and revive cars, but whole series! For this issue, we got a chance to speak with legendary NASCAR crew chief and IROC consultant Ray Evernham, the joint architect of the recent IROC Reunion at Lime Rock Park. It was a celebration of the history of this superb one-make series, and it was a star-studded affair, but Evernham explains that he has no intention of it being a one-off. Whether he can raise enough enthusiasm to generate a full-scale revival of IROC or host regular heritage-type events around the country, we wish him nothing but success.
All our coverage of historic racing didn’t squeeze out our regular smörgåsbord of features dedicated to some of the great drivers, series and performances in racing history.
The 60th anniversary of John Surtees’ Formula 1 World Championship could not pass without acknowledgment of his unique achievement of adding said title to a résumé that included seven motorcycle world titles. We’ve delved into why Surtees was so swift and deft at adapting from two wheels to four. It’s a fascinating read.
The great comeback drives in F1 history also went under our microscope and had to include Juan Manuel Fangio’s triumph at the Nürburgring in 1957; tales of that performance still cause goosebumps. But there were grands prix both before and after that epic where the elite drivers showed exactly why we still put them on a pedestal.
There is a different kind of comeback in racing, of course, and that is recovery from serious injury. Can it really be 40 years since Rick Mears’ excruciating and potentially career-ending crunch into the barriers at Sanair? The story of his recovery to become the third member of the four-time Indy 500 winners’ club, and the work he put in to recover his road-course form, despite depleted movement in his ankles and feet, is inspirational.
We’ve also taken great pleasure in delving into the world of Formula Atlantics, a still much-missed series that produced some legendary stars of both open-wheel and sports car racing. It’s an entertaining read, but you will feel a pang of nostalgia as you read of Villeneuve, Rosberg, Rahal, Cobb, Holmes, et al. We trust that such poignant thoughts are more than offset by the revelling in retro made current that is our latest issue’s theme.
The October/November 2024 issue of Vintage Motorsport is now mailing to subscribers and is already available to read in digital format. We hope you enjoy it. And if you’re not a subscriber, you can go to VintageMotorsport.com/Subscribe or call (877) 425-4103. Single copies can be purchased at our online store HERE. Vintage Motorsport magazine is also available at Barnes & Noble bookstores nationwide.