256 racing cars and 700 club cars provided the best basis to inspire the more than 11,000 visitors to the 2014 edition of the Grand Prix de l'Age d'Or, and this in the best weather. The steel-blue sky naturally honored the 50th anniversary and put the racing cars in the best light.
Visitors sought shade in these high temperatures, either under trees, parasols or in the pit lane. It only got cooler in the evening after the varied racing action, where the big barbecue took place on Saturday evening and provided a friendly atmosphere to unite visitors and participants. The participants reported that although the temperatures in the cockpits were almost unbearably hot, this was compensated for by the extremely attractive, hilly race track.
50-year tradition
The GP de l'Age d'Or was held for the first time in 1964 as a supporting program to the Formula 1 race at the time, naturally with historic vehicles even then.
Thanks to the good network and many years of experience of the organizer Peter Auto, many special vehicles could be brought to the start, but there were also interesting things to see on the club grounds: for the 25th anniversary of the Mazda MX-5, 100 MX-5s could be admired on site as an attraction.
Almost like 1964
On Sunday, a retrospective was held on the occasion of the 1964 ACF Grand Prix. An American visited the event with his Brabham BT7 to honor not only the 1964 retrospective but also the recently deceased Jack Brabham. For this commitment, the participant received an award from Frederic Vial of the Automobile Club de France
Unfortunately, James King had engine problems with his Brabham BT7, which had won the 1964 Grand Prix de l'A.C.F., and was unable to compete in the first race of the monoposti until 1966. Miles Griffith won the first race in a Cooper T51 from 1959, followed by Sidney Hoole in a Cooper T66 from 1963 and Eddy Perk in a Heron F1 from 1960.
On Sunday, the American King staged a furious comeback in the second race, which saw him finish ninth, while Miles Griffiths once again topped the podium. Peter Horsman finished second in the 1961 Lotus 18/21, while Sidney Hoole took third place.
Lightweight endurance racing cars have an advantage
In the Classic Endurance Racing 1 race, Martin O'Connell won in a 1971 Chevron B19 ahead of David Hart in a 1969 Lola T70 Mk III and Pierre-Alain France in another 1969 Lola T70 Mk III, while Philippe Scemama in a 1972 Lola T290 finished ahead of Martin O'Connell in a 1976 Chevron B36 and Yves Scemana in a 1972 Sauber C5 in the second Classic Endurance race.
BMW and Rover
In the touring car category, BMW and Rover cars fought it out for victory. Eric Mestdagh/Pierre-Alain Thibaut were ahead in the 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL, followed by Richard Postins in the 1983 Rover TWR Vitesse TC40 and Philipp Brunn/Siegfried Brunn in an elegant 1984 BMW 635 CSi.
The magnificent front-engined monoposti
The Formula 1 cars of the 1950s were dominated by Tony Wood in his 1958 Maserati Tec Mec, followed in the first race by Josef Rettenmaier in a 1959 Maserati 250F and Tony Smith in a 1960 Ferrari Dino. In the race on Sunday, Smith was able to improve by one place, while Spaniard Giullermo Fierro in another 1954 Maserati 250F took third place.
Lots of traffic in the Formula Junior
With 34 competitors, the Lurani Trophy FIA once again guaranteed an exciting racing spectacle. In fact, the fastest drivers were constantly taking turns at the front. At the end of the first race, Jonathan Hughes in the 1963 Brabham BT6 was waved off as the leader, followed by Manfredo Rossi in the 1963 Lotus 22 and Pierre Tonetti in the 1963 Brabham BT6.
In the second race, the same drivers finished on the podium again, but Tonetti and Rossi swapped places.
American dominance in the endurance racers of the sixties
The Shelby Cobras were unbeatable in the two-hour race of the sixties endurance racing cars, with the first six places all going to the American sports car. A Porsche 904 GTS only took seventh place and the top spot in the GTP11 class.
The winner was Yvan Mahe, with David Hard/Hans Hugenholtz in second and Jean-Marc Merlin in third.
Italian sports car elegance
An Italian-colored field of sports cars battled for victory in the Trofeo Nastro Rosse. Ferrari 250 LM, Bizzarrini 5300 GT, Maserati T61, Maserati 300 S, Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta, Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1300 SZ and even a Porsche 356 B Carrera Abarth were on the starting grid. Pole-setter Carlos Monteverde won both races in his 1964 Ferrari 250 LM, followed by Michael Erlich in his 1965 Bizzarrini 5300 GT and Josef Rettenmaier in his 1959 Maserati Birdcage.
Hot touring car race
The U2TC race on Sunday was reminiscent of the touring car races of the sixties in the hot 32 degrees in the shade. Alfa Romeo GTA and Lotus Cortina were the rivals for the top spot, but a BMW 1800 TI was also among the front runners. Just half of the 20 cars entered reached the finish line after sixty minutes, with Alain Furiani/Frank Stippler in their 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA in front, Andy Wolfe in a Ford Lotus Cortina in second and Dominik Roschmann in an Alfa GTA in third.
