Words and Pictures: Peter Scott
There are few involved in motorsport that haven’t experienced either recalcitrant motor cars, a driver getting over friendly with the scenery 50 yards before the finish line or a navigator making a horrendous mistake while leading comfortably. It just goes with the territory and during the last few weeks I had had more than my fair share, but unfortunately much earlier in the events.
When in January I was asked by Phil Stainton, who looks after the motorsporting interests of Lord Irvine Laidlaw, to not just navigate for Irvine in the wonderful Tour Auto, this year from Paris to Biarritz, but to do so in a Ferrari 250 GTO it didn’t take many seconds to accept. Now, we won’t go into sordid things like pounds, shillings and pence, but I am sure that you will all be aware that the 34 GTOs are all owned by those euphemistically described as ‘comfortably off’. Nick Mason has one, as does Ralph Loren and Anthony Bamford has two. I have a 1:43 model, in red of course, on my desk but I don’t think that counts. I was now going to not just spend five days in one, but do so on an event. At this point you may be just getting a little bit jealous but I really don’t care one jot.
To really rub it in, let’s look at the stats for the 250. It is a V12, 3 litre with 6 twin Weber carburetors. It has 300bhp at 7,500 rpm. It weighs 1,040kg and its top speed is 175 mph. And remember, the first of these was made 53 years ago. Irvine’s car is the only one trimmed to road car standards but after a few minutes in Paris traffic trying to keep all 12 plugs clear one is in no doubt that there is no such compromise with the engine.
Tour Auto pre-event formalities were in the wonderful setting of the Grand Palais and here I had to undergo the hardships of champagne parties in both the Sunday and Monday nights, lunch in the Mini Palais on the Tuesday, the worldwide announcement of the new Ferrari 488 and just wandering round admiring the nearly 300 entries. Although there was a Renault Dauphine Gordini running at number 1 and a Mk 1 RS2000 somewhere in the entry list most of the cars are pretty special. They are parked in marque groupings and the collection of multi-million Ferraris was beyond belief – and the Porsches (including a 904 and a 906), Alfa’s, Healy’s and the odd Lamborghini. You’ve got the gist – Enjoy the pics.
5.30 am on start day came very, very early but it takes some time to get all 300 cars out of the Grand Palais before the infamous Paris traffic jams and 80 km south to breakfast and the official start at the Chateau de Courances. From here we departed for the first regularity and a picnic lunch where I met up with Peter Bonham Christie, boss of car transportation company Straight Eight, and hopefully we are going to do a bit of work together. Unlike UK regularities, in France and on closed roads the average speed required is much higher than 50 k/hr, this time 65k/hr and helmets required, so quite exciting.
From there we continued further south to Mangy Cours for a consistency test, this time set at 100 k/hr and a first chance to exercise the GTO. Rather pleased to be the only crew to set exactly the same time on all three laps. On the ‘slowing down’ lap I suggested to Irvine that he should show me just how fast a GTO could go and the answer is ‘very’!!
Anyhow, the adventure, at least the GTO bit, was soon to be over. Irvine wasn’t feeling too good when we reached Vichy for the first overnight and next morning a really bad flu had set in, so sadly it was home to Monte Carlo for him and the car. The team were most kind and hired me a car to follow the rest of the event to the Biarritz finish and take full advantage of the wonderful hotels and Michelin standard meals provided by the organisers. The prize giving dinner was, as you would expect superb and being on my own I had to find a seat at an already nearly filled table. Amazed to find famous French racer Jean Pierre Jarier on one side and Matthiew Lamour, the auctioneer who sold the near 100 car barn find in France last year. Great end to a nearly very good week.
Tour Ireland
I was hardly back before it was off again, this time to Alec Poole’s Tour Ireland starting in Llandudno with Great Orme and this was followed by a trip to Holyhead and the Dublin Ferry. The Irish section featured special stages on the famous Sally Gap roads, a night in the wonderful Powerscourt Hotel and a race in Mondello before returning to Wales for more races and stages. I was doing the event with Bonham’s Auctions man John Polson in a very pretty and quick Lancia Fulvia, at least it felt very good on the 100 metres from car park to the start on the prom and the 0.69 miles to the start of the Orme. Unbelievably a missfire started 20 yards into the stage and by the end we had a blown head gasket and a very sick engine.
Coincidentally and luckily my old friend Ronnie Griffin, servicing for Joe Reynolds in the Magnette, was waiting there and ‘insisted’ I get in with him and make the trip to Ireland anyhow. Guinness, Jamieson Special Reserve, sunny weather and no responsibilities! Who could resist it. This retirement wasn’t too bad either.
One good thing did come out of the rally trip in, that I met up with Silverstone Auctions boss Nick Whale who has been out of rallying for many years but was entered in a brand new build and stunning BMW E30 M3 with racing driver son Harry co-driving. Some time instructing Harry on the complexities of reading pace notes also brought a chat about the future and Nick has asked me to do the Killarney Historic in December with him and a small programme of events leading up to that. Can’t wait.
Finally, my next event, next week is back in Llandudno for the Ian Crammond’s Three Castles Rally. This is back again with Irvine Laidlaw and also again in a Ferrari tho not just as exotic. It is ‘only’ a 246 Dino. More hardship!
