Video of the Week: Scary Lime Rock Crash

I hope my parents aren't watching because here is a rather unpleasant crash at Lime Rock Park featuring the exact same number 34 car that      I drove earlier that season in racing school!  Crazy!

Thankfully everyone was all right, demonstrating the safety of the circuit and of the Skip Barber Formula Cars.  Enjoy the carnage from multiple views!

Video of the week: Clark and Hill Debut the Sensational Lotus 49!

This fantastic promotional video on the Lotus 49's maiden victory is well worth a watch!  Historians remember the Dutch GP of 1967 as one where Jim Clark won in a car he had never even driven before the race weekend.  Watching this video, one is reminded that Graham Hill not only qualified on pole, but was leading the race until a mechanical failure put him out of contention.  Clark might have been holding back at the start, but once Hill was out, he poured on the speed, taking the innovative new car and brand new Ford DFV engine to victory right out of the box!

I love the moment at 6:32 where Hill, now out of the race, pats the engine's designer Keith Duckworth on the shoulder as if to say "No worries, mate! We'll get her right!"

Video of the Week: Sauber Mercedes C11 hot lap at Le Mans

Continuing our "Silver Arrow" theme:

The C11 is, to my mind, one of the cleanest, most purposeful-looking sports racing prototypes of its time.  And boy was it ever fast! Let's watch as a very skilled and brave driver laps Le Mans in the now-vintage C11 in 2010.  His bold passing maneuver at 1:30 might take your breath away for a moment...

Video of the Week: Aston Martin DBR1 at Dijon-Prenois

Here is another video from Gregor Fiskens. The audio is not so great but the footage shows a lovely dice with a Maserati Birdcage.

I think the DBR1 is perhaps the prettiest of all 1950's sports cars. It's more Italianate and flowing than any Jaguar, more emotional than the Mercedes 300SLR, yet more understated and refined than any Ferrari. I would say the car it compares most closely to in looks is the Maserati 300S. But I happen to like the lines of the Aston more. Truly a wonderful machine!  At bottom is a photo I took of Dr. Simeone's DBR1 in Philadelphia.

Video of the Week: Over 8 Minutes of Vintage Racing Sexiness at Monza

I found this gem of a video in the dark corners of youtube and am thrilled to share it with you (only has 176 views as of now!).  There is so much absolutely fantastic footage of the Monza Historic Races from 2010, both on-track and in the pits.  My favorite part are the awesome powerslides you can see as the cars exit from Ascari and head down the backstraight to Parabolica. Simply magical!  Also, the low drag E-type Lightweight Coupe is pure sex on wheels.