2023 was an extremely mixed year for me ...
A year of beautiful highs and extreme lows is finally coming to an end. I have never longed for a new year as much as the one we are now approaching.
The difficult time with the intensive care of my father up until August 7 was extremely exhausting for my whole family. I also lost two other people in my closest circle of friends far too early, plus four more in the normal time frame.
But, of course, there were also the highs that make 2023 a very positive memory in the end.
The Bugatti meeting in Engelberg was by far the best classic car meeting I have had the pleasure of experiencing so far. It wasn't just the unique cars, but above all the great company. The somewhat special car-to-car photo shoot with Patrick Jordi in a Type 35 for the cover of our current annual magazine (pictured above) brought everything to a head. We also had by far the best raclette I've ever had in my life.
The days in Le Castellet together with the whole Walter Brun family and the Porsche 962 was one of those moments that will surely remain in my memory forever. The fact that the Belgian ex-F1 driver Thierry Boutsen joined us on the last evening, when we had emptied the pub after a good hour, made everything even better.
Interesting that two highlights of 2023 were taking place in my home canton of Obwalden and not in Monaco or Goodwood. In addition to the many Bugattis in Engelberg, the OldtimAir Stanserhorn must also be mentioned. Never before have I been so impressed by historic airplanes, which you normally only see standing up high, or at least far away, and now experiencing them in full action at the same height.
After seven years of total abstinence, being back at a live GP, meeting many old friends in person and increasing my number of photographed F1 races to 554 was of course a very special moment. Now only one more is missing to complete the triple five. Monza is and will remain the Reinhards' second living room, as it is the racetrack that my father and I have visited by far the most over the past 73 years. I was also able to witness Verstappen's 10th consecutive victory live, which now makes him the sole record holder.
But for me, the absolute biggest standout in 2023 was that the name "Reinhard" flew across the pond and can now also be found on the tables of F1 fans in the USA. When the entire first edition of my book "Inside Formula 1" of 2500 copies was sold out within nine months, the congratulations came from GeraMond-Verlag in Munich with the question of having the book translated so that it could also be sold under license in English-speaking countries. Of course, I gratefully accepted the offer......
Now I really hope that the next year 2024 will be better, not in terms of the positive aspects I mentioned, but rather that there will be less negative things to stress our lives. The few highs should smooth out all the lows.
