Stumble It!
Brooklands a mecca for motoring enthusiasts
09/09/06 15:34 Filed in: Motoring
As we headed south on the A3 we saw the
sign to the Goodwood Revival and kicked ourselves for having missed
this motoring extravaganza par excellence. We needn't have
worried, Brooklands
Museum had a lot
else to offer for a motoring enthusiast.
Even before entering the museums, just to stand on one of the remaining sections of the banked circuit and imagine what it must have been like for the motor racing pioneers was amazing. In a word... frightening. It was difficult enough to stand on the slope, let alone drive round it at insane speeds.
It was a special feeling however to stand where Italas, the Napier Railton and others had raced all those decades ago.
Brooklands is all about motoring and flying. There's an excellent museum of flying with a reconstruction of the interior of a Wellington Bomber, which gives you the merest inkling of what it must have been like to fly in one of these machines. My biggest surprise was finding how cramped it was inside, claustrophobia must have added to the fear of enemy fire from below and above.
The Wellington from Loch Ness, note the bent propellors
They also have the Wellington that crash landed into Loch Ness. Brought to the surface and partially restored, you can see how the propellors have been bent on hitting the loch. Outside there is a selection of aircraft, the obvious star being one of the decommissioned Concordes.
Brooklands Museum tracks cars throughout the history of Brooklands which a few more recent Formula One cars including one emblazoned with Ayrton Senna.
Ayrton Senna's car at Brooklands
Brooklands is where British motor racing began, it's well worth a visit.
Even before entering the museums, just to stand on one of the remaining sections of the banked circuit and imagine what it must have been like for the motor racing pioneers was amazing. In a word... frightening. It was difficult enough to stand on the slope, let alone drive round it at insane speeds.
It was a special feeling however to stand where Italas, the Napier Railton and others had raced all those decades ago.
Brooklands is all about motoring and flying. There's an excellent museum of flying with a reconstruction of the interior of a Wellington Bomber, which gives you the merest inkling of what it must have been like to fly in one of these machines. My biggest surprise was finding how cramped it was inside, claustrophobia must have added to the fear of enemy fire from below and above.
The Wellington from Loch Ness, note the bent propellors
They also have the Wellington that crash landed into Loch Ness. Brought to the surface and partially restored, you can see how the propellors have been bent on hitting the loch. Outside there is a selection of aircraft, the obvious star being one of the decommissioned Concordes.
Brooklands Museum tracks cars throughout the history of Brooklands which a few more recent Formula One cars including one emblazoned with Ayrton Senna.
Ayrton Senna's car at Brooklands
Brooklands is where British motor racing began, it's well worth a visit.
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