The History of Brooklands Motor Course 1906-1940

This comprehensive history of the famous Brooklands Motor Course at Weybridge in Surrey covers the period 1906 to 1940, when the Track was in active use as a venue for motor-racing, testing and record-breaking. This book represents four years' painstaking research on the part of an author and motor-racing historian who is the acknowledged authority on racing at Brooklands. In its pages he takes the reader almost lap by lap throughout every B.A.R.C. Race of importance, quoting lap speeds and results from the official archives of the organising club and thus providing data which render this history unique. Apart from legendary Brooklands' cars such as the F.I.A.T. Mephistopheles, Napier Salmson, 100 m.p.h. Vauxhall, 100-in-the-hour Talbot, the Chitty-Chitty¬Bang-Bangs, 350-h.p. V12 Sunbeam, Leyland-Thomas, Sunbeam Tiger and Cub, blower single-seater 4.5 litre Bentley, Barnato-Hassan, Multi-Union, Duesen¬berg and Napier-Railton, and men like S. F. Edge, Nazzaro, Newton, Percy Lambert, Kidner, Hancock, Count Zborowski, K. Lee Guinness, Sir Henry Segrave, Sir Malcolm Campbell, Parry Thomas, Sir Henry Birkin, Bt., Kaye Don, Chris Staniland, Whitney Straight, Oliver Bertram and John Cobb, who drove them, Boddy deals also with the less famous personalities and obscure as well as famous cars which blended to form the “atmos¬phere” that was Brooklands. Apart from B.A.R.C. Handicaps, the classic long-distance races, such as the R.A.C. Stock Car Races, J.C.C. 200-Mile Race, Production Car Race and Sporting Car Race, Surbiton 150, " Double-Twelve," Six Hours Race, 1,000-Mile Race, International Trophy, British Empire Trophy, L.C.C. Relay Races and B.R.D.C. 500-Mile Races, are covered in detail. The race accounts and technical descriptions are enriched by recollections of narrow escapes, dead-heats, exciting finishes, sensational retirements, odd personalities and all the drama and suspense, humour and tragedy contained in 28 seasons of track racing. Containing 300,000 words of text, the equivalent of three full-length novels, with many appendices covering race results and records, plus 293 illustrations, “The History of Brooklands Motor Course" will be welcomed by students of motoring history, and by present-day enthusiasts for the great sport and science of motor-racing.