Gotta look the part when hoofing along to Goodwood. Calf-length riding footwear, stiff canvas trousers, Tweed (Kevlar lined mind you) and a hefty divers watch – Doxa or Seiko.
Utmost Accoutrements
13 Comments to “Utmost Accoutrements”
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Noooooooooooooooooo.!
Tweeds and chino’s. A nice moleskin waistcoat. all to be found in the best charity shops. People actually go and find stuff [it can be soooo expensive buying new.!] Just to go to the Revival.. Period kit is fairly mandatory for good car parking and getting into the best areas. Tickets get you in.. your clothes make the difference. That is the truth.
Sensible, all day comfy brogues.. what shoe size are you.? I’ll see what I’ve got.
But the most essential kit.. a decent hat, either [horse racing style] Trilby in brown only, [ this is NOT the USA] or a traditional tweed cap in a good pattern.. the old fashioned Eric Morecambe style. What size again.. I have several.
Ties aren’t essential, a silk scarf and some element of style and panache certainly is.
Remember this is ONLY for the September Revival.. anything go’s for the summer Festival, Kagools are ever popular.
What fun..
Trust you are well.?
All OK here, except..
I went on to insulin last week, after 20 years fighting a losing rearguard action against the forces of darkness.!!
I am not one to whinge, but this has come as a blow and I know I am quite down. Bugger eh.?
In my innocence, and after all these years, I had always imagined that I would give up taking most of my pills [13 for brekky.!, 6 for tea and 5 for bedtime.!!] NOT a bit of it.. the berluddy insulin is on top of the pills.. as well as.! Damnation.!
So there we are. One seriously fed-up William, tho’ I will say, I have got the hang of self-harming with the needles.
Little if any pain, most times I have gotten dead good at this and although I do know it is there, going in etc, no pain and only any twinge on removal. Good eh.?
Still NOT happy.!
Laughs.
Stay well. Love to both. Give Geordie my best.
WF
Oh yes.. any news on the 675 Street Triple R or Ducati 821 front yet.? Go on.. you know you want to.
Get with the beat Bagghi.!
Laughs. -
Kevlar..?
Have you lost your ..
I give up.
laughs.
WF -
DJ.. I’m with you.!
Watches..
No money.?
Omega Seamaster. Lovely. Blue for everyday use. Black for dress. Good enough for James Bond.?
Some money.?
Rolex. Everyday use.. Submariner or GMT.. your colour choice. Daytona in gold[pearl face and NO JEWELS!] for everything else.
More money.?
IWC Portugese Pilots Chrono. Two.. one in white gold/black strap, one in rose gold/tan strap.. for everything.
Equally.. I rather like Cartier’s Tank Americaine [ in Yellow Gold/black strap]. perhaps the most elegant dress watch.
And for occasional wear it does not matter [to me] that is not an automatic. All others detailed here are of course mechanical automatics.
I sold my [Quartz] gold model approx 4 years ago and have always regretted it.. but it was a dress watch and I was no longer going to Black Tie parties. Damn..
As an everyday watch I use a Zenith El Primero automatic Chronograph, stainless steel with blue dial.. all perfect, I’ve had it nearly 40 years. A beautiful thing. I have other watches, but they rarely see use these days.
Watches, don’t get me started.
Laughs.
WF -
This might be of interest..
Ian Blowers Watches. A UK dealer in really good used high end watches. Great photo’s.
WF -
Erm.. Nine eleven fund.?
Can this be a 911 from Porsche.?
I think we might be twins separated by some space~time thingy.. no.?
I too have the 911 secret wish.
Hey ho..
WF -
I must say I prefer the modern ones so much more, for everyday everything.
However, the dark grey car used by S. McQueen in “Le Mans” would also do very nicely thank you. Speaking of which, have you ever had a look at the UK site.. Paul Stevens Porsche. Give it a go.
Have we space for a small recollection.?
As you know thro’ the 60’s I was the legs for my wheelchair bound friend and mentor, the chairman of the Solway Motorcycle Racing club. A grand man.. and an accomplished car rally driver.
He had a mini Cooper for everyday use and a whizzbang Cooper S for rally use, which he ran in National class events, some autocross [early days then] but not the RAC or the Scottish RAC.. he could do one day events but not multi-day ones. Too much physically, tho’ Jackie, as a former Navy boxer was amazingly fit, and drove his cars with hand controls wrapped along the rim of the steering wheel.
Anyway, thro’ the good offices of a top local rally driver and national level star, a car dealer.. Jackie got the chance of a Saab 96 [ I forget these days which model exactly.. a ford V4 engine.?] which had been used in the UK by a prominent racing driver for UK events. This was 1968.
So, in those days, personalised [private ] plates could be fitted as today, but cars were registered with the local authority, not a national database. The car was registered V V 30, and the plates had to go back to the prominent racing driver. There being no
e-mechanisation to do such transactions as there is today, so, plates off and send back to owner. Except the owner was away on competition duty at events in Europe and the USA and had a base near to his employers in Germany. Hmmmmm..
The Car dealer and top local rally driver [ a lovely man, one of my faves’ and a hero to me ] [ remember.. I was 16~ 20 in this period]
Mike Telford, was in touch with Jackie and would call round and collect the plates [what a going-on for a set of plates.! but it was how it was done..Jackie had either to go into the council offices and sign them over, which he couldn’t do being wheelchair bound, lots of steps to get over or.. a car dealer could do it all. Enter Michael ..]
So Mike would call round.
I was also Jackie’s gofor, legs, everything.. and generally having the time of my life.
This involved rally practice drives and especially wheel change practice.. that’s me then.!
The Saab had steel wheels, alloys being largely unavailable except for the mini-lite style [ gorgeous.!] as used on.. Mini’s. Except when they were doing rough stuff rallying.. then steel wheels were used.
So, there was a yard beside the Bungalow and there we were doing wheel changes. . moi.! And I was sweating cobb’s whilst Jackie timed me with a stopwatch. Bugger.!
A car pulled up. A porsche 911, a red one. Oooer.! And out got Mike Telford, driving. And a very famous racing driver personage.!
Berluddy hell.
And there was I, so NOT looking a picture.!
I can’t remember what was said all these years later, but Mike was delightful and good to me all the years I knew him.. “Now Jackie”.. [ Jackie had met the famous racing driver years ago..] You remember Vic.?
I swear I was sweating worse than before and so uncomfortable.. out of my depth.? And this was the same me used to being around GP stars and UK race hero’s..
“Hi Billy.. have you met Vic Elford.?”
I promise you I was so overcome with.. everything.! that I was close to fainting.. here was racing royalty walking toward me, saying hello with his hand out.! I swear I can see it yet.. I mumbled something about hello and can I have a look at the car. “sure go, have a sit in it.. it’s open” I just wanted to get out of the way.. looking back I must have had some sort of gurly moment.. the vapours.?
So there I am looking, far too polite to get in.. and over walks Vic.. “have you been in one. ?” Moi.. “No never. I’ve only ever seen them in paddocks and and track car parks.. they are lovely tho’ ”
Him.. “get in” and I shot into the passenger seat.. ” Is there a run we can do for 10 minutes while these two talk about their rally.?”
“Yes.. this way.”
Now I do not kid myself I was ever a rally marksman, but I did give him directions around our [Jackie’s] test route.
And what I got was a 10 minute masterclass in precision driving at huge speeds without ever being silly or dangerous.
More gurly.. I giggled and squealed all the way round.. and he clearly enjoyed it because he laughed hugely. At me.!?
Sideways.
Showing off.? Perhaps.. I like to think he was being nice to a teenager who was awestruck.
What a dude.. a star.
So then, back to wheel changing.. and cheerio’s . This I do remember.. “see you son.” And a London accent.
There is a postscript..
Years later, I attended an early Goodwood Festival and there was VE in the paddock having demonstrated some motor or other.
In those early tho’ well attended years, there was not the crowds of today.. an open paddock and no scrum to get at drivers.
I slowly moved in and said hello, and held out my hand which he took.. with a quizzical look.? “I wonder if you remember.? I said to him.”
And the penny dropped at the mention of Mike Telford and the number plates going-on.. yes indeed. Much smiling and laughter ensued.
And I was delighted all over.. again. A lovely man.. a hero for 30 odd years then.
1968, when he came to our little corner of the world and gave me such a memory. was the year when he won everything in Rallying and World Sportscars alike.. check him out. My favourites are the Monte Carlo and his Targa Florio.
Along with Moss and Fangio, who I cannot separate.. VE is in my top 3 of all time because, they were all-rounders and could, and did.. do everything and win at the very highest level. Only M. Loeb comes anywhere near them today.
Good tale eh and a true one, as best as I can remember the events? Tho’ startlingly it is almost 50 years ago and that is scary.!
Now go and get a coffee and wind down.
Regards ever
B xAnd a ps.. I don’t know whether you know, but VE drove the camera car for the movie “Le Mans”. How cool is that.?
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