Festival of Porsche: Celebrating 70 Years of Excellence
Unless you’ve been hiding under a bush or have zero interest in Porsches you cannot have missed the fact that year has been a notable one for the German car marque. Porsche have done a great job of celebrating the 70th anniversary of the first Porsche sports car, built in 1948.
Luftgekühlt GB
This year summer has delivered us weeks of sunshine and heat, you could be forgiven for thinking we were in California. Why then, on the day the Luftgekühlt crew put on their inaugural event outside of LA, does the weather let us down with epic rainfall?
Goodwood Festival of Speed 2018
Celebration seemed to be the unofficial theme of this year’s Festival of Speed. The event itself was marking its 25th year, the centre lawn sculpture was celebrating Porsche 70th birthday and there was also the parade of Land Rovers celebrating their 70th birthday too. And for me, I was celebrating turning up in my ‘supercar’. Two years ago I left the 2016 Festival of Speed saying to myself ‘when I return next year it will be in my own 911’. A year later I had the 911 but didn’t take it to Goodwood as I was driven there by a friend. So this year I had to drive my 911. To make it even more special, I booked supercar parking for the Thursday. We all have things that make us feel good, those little personal fist pump moments, this was one of mine. Driving onto the Goodwood estate in my 911, with the ‘supercar parking’ pass felt great — small pleasures.
Deutsche Fest 2018: A Celebration of German Engineering and Motorsport
Returning for the second year, Deutsche Fest aimed to celebrate all German manufactured vehicles. This year though, they had teamed up with Heritage Parts Centre to bring us a whole weekend of activities. Saturday featured the Heritage takeover – a full track day for German cars only, plus displays and evening entertainment. With Sunday came a full race line-up, club displays, and Deutsche Fest Awards. All the ingredients were there for a perfect weekend – cars, clubs, racing and an amazing venue, but something seemed to be lacking this year. I know first hand that it takes a lot to put on a car show, and it’s even more effort if you include racing of any kind, I take my hat off to the Deutsche Fest team for putting in so much effort. There wasn’t anything wrong, I really don’t have a bad word to say, I just wasn’t feeling it this year and it probably shows in my photos. I’m sure next year will be awesome, if you like German cars then make sure you visit and support the Deutsche Fest team.
American Speedfest VI
The title of this event is pretty explanatory, as it exists to celebrate everything American. American motorsport, classic cars, food and delivers all the pomp
Masters Historic Festival, Brands Hatch
Another month and another trip to Brands Hatch, this time for the Masters Historic Festival. Taking advantage of the full GP circuit the drivers were free to stretch the cars to their limits. The packed programme included FIA Masters Historic Formula One Championship, FIA Masters Historic Sports Cars, Masters Pre-66 Touring Cars and Historic Formula 2. Plus other support races from CSN Group YTCC and a Gentlemen Drivers.
Bike Shed London 2018
Time for a little two-wheel fun at Bike Shed London 2018, held in the wonderful Tobacco Dock. It’s been a while since I last visited this event, so when the chance of snagging a VIP/Press preview ticket came up I jumped at the chance. Turning up early Friday evening I wasn’t expecting such an eager queue of excited people. Pennington Street was awash with low-slung jeans, Redwings and checked shirts. As I waited for the doors to open I chatted with others in the queue. While a selection of riders cruised by on a variety of bikes, giving a taste of what was to welcome us inside.
Long Beach Hi-Po Swap Meet – Automotive Treasures for Every Car Enthusiast
The Sunday of our little LA trip was another early start to get to the Long Beach Hi-Po Swap Meet for its’ 06:00 opening. This swap meet has been running for over 30 years, although we’ve not been going for anything like that long. It takes place at the Veterans Memorial Stadium. While it’s not on the scale of the Pomona swap meet, it’s become world-renowned for its content of antique, vintage, classic and high-performance cars and parts for sale, usually at lower prices than Pomona too. It’s a must-visit for any hot rod, muscle car, street rod, classic car enthusiasts. This months event happened to fall on mothers day, which explained the smaller than usual crowds and vendors. With the lower visitor numbers, there were a fair few bargains to be had.
Donut Derelicts Meet – Huntington Beach’s Classic Car Spectacle
On my recent trip to LA, I managed to visit the famous Donut Derelicts breakfast meet in Huntington Beach. While this has been a breakfast I’d wanted to visit for a long time, I’d never managed to get there on previous trips. This time I was determined to not miss it, even though it meant a very early alarm. This event has been running every Saturday morning since February ’85 in the parking lot of Adams Ave Donuts. Enthusiasts from all over gather to enjoy a doughnut, a cup of coffee and the spectacle of street rods, hot rods, classic and speciality creations.