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The British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) is one of the biggest organising clubs for auto racing in the United Kingdom.[ citation needed ]
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(January 2022) |
The British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) is one of the biggest organising clubs for auto racing in the United Kingdom.[ citation needed ]
The Cyclecar Club was formed in 1912, running races for the small and light motorbike powered vehicles at Brooklands as well as rallies and sporting trials. Among the founder members of the club were H.R. Godfrey and Archie Frazer-Nash. [1]
In 1919, with cyclecars on the decline, the name of the club changed to the Junior Car Club (JCC). The club was immediately successful, with regional centres being formed in 1921, the same year the 200-Mile Race at Brooklands was organised, the first long-distance race to be run in Britain. The race, a contest for 1,500 c.c. light cars, was won by Henry Segrave in a Talbot-Darracq. Captain Frazer Nash (G.N.) won the cyclecar race. [2] Further long-distance races were organised both at Brooklands and Donington Park, as well as rallies and International Trophy Races.
After the Second World War, due to the demise of Brooklands, the JCC was amalgamated with the Brooklands Automobile Racing Club. The club then based itself at Goodwood Circuit, changing its name to the British Automobile Racing Club in 1949. [3] Over the next 18 years, BARC organised at least one international meeting at Goodwood a year, notably Easter Monday Formula One races and 9-hour sportscar races—the first night races to be run in Britain. The club was also involved in the opening meeting at Crystal Palace in 1953, and organised the British Grand Prix when held at Aintree in the late 50s and early 60s.
In 1951 the BARC Eastbourne Rally was held on 30 June with the best performance by Bancroft in a Ford 10 saloon. The event featured a Midnight Concours d'Elegance. [4] During the period 1956–1967 the BARC organised competitive events at the Firle Hill Climb in Sussex. The event held on Sunday, 2 June 1957, was run in conjunction with the BARC 11th Annual Rally at Eastbourne, a 50-mile road event held the day before, starting at the Grasshopper Inn near Westerham, with intermittent driving tests, including one at Butts Hill, Willingdon, and then on to Eastbourne, via Beachy Head. [5]
Goodwood was closed on safety grounds in 1966. The last event was a club meeting organised by the BARC on 2 July 1966. [6] The club relocated to Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire, opening in 1968, and becoming club headquarters in 1974.[ citation needed ]
Today, the BARC organises a large number of race series. The club is the organising club for the British Touring Car Championship the Silverstone rounds of the World Sports car and Rallycross Championships and the support races at each weekend. Another major commitment is the organising of the annual Goodwood Members Meeting, Goodwood Revival and the Goodwood Festival of Speed meetings.
The club also organises many smaller "club racing" meetings, featuring such classes as Classic Formula Ford, Caterhams, Clubmans and Legend Cars. As well as the many events organised by the headquarters at Thruxton, certain BARC regions organise race meetings too. There are five centres in the UK and one in Canada. the Midlands Centre,North Western Centre,the South Western Centre, the Wales Centre and the Yorkshire Centre.
As well as the BARC's own events, the club frequently is the national appointed club for visiting international series. For example, in 1995 the BARC organised the first ever UK round of the FIA International Touring Car series. The club had a particularly active role in organising A1 Grand Prix and the Grand Prix Masters series, both at home and abroad.
The BARC is also in the unusual situation of running race circuits. As well as the home of the club at Thruxton, in 1990 they signed a 50-year lease on Pembrey Circuit in south Wales and in 2006, the BARC took on Croft Circuit, near Darlington and so bringing the total number of circuits owned to three.[ citation needed ]
The BARC runs more than just race meetings. As well as the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the club organises a number of hillclimbs and sprints. These include meetings at Gurston Down near Salisbury and Harewood Yorkshire both BARC Venues. More recently it organizes the Coventry Motofest and in 2018 it was the first event to be held on public roads since the law change in 2017.
The club also has a social side, with a number of events over a year including regional dinners and the Big Night Out, the latter being held every year in February. It is the club's awards night celebrating the previous years champions.
The BARC partnered with Racing Pride in 2019 to support greater inclusivity across the British motorsport industry for LGBT+ fans, employees and drivers [7]
Due to the existence of a regional 'Centre' in Ontario, Canada, the club has a role in organising Ice Racing events. In 2010 the Kendall Award for the most successful BARC-Ontario driver, in events held outside the region of Ontario, went to Robert Wickens.[ citation needed ]
Brooklands was a 2.767-mile (4.453 km) motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, which also became Britain's largest aircraft manufacturing centre by 1918, producing military aircraft such as the Wellington and civil airliners like the Viscount and VC-10.
Motorsport(s) or motor sport(s) are sporting events, competitions and related activities that primarily involve the use of automobiles, motorcycles, motorboats and powered aircraft. For each of these vehicle types, the more specific terms automobile sport, motorcycle sport, power boating and air sports may be used commonly, or officially by organisers and governing bodies.
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Endurance racing is a form of motorsport racing which is meant to test the durability of equipment and endurance of participants. Teams of multiple drivers attempt to cover a large distance in a single event, with participants given a break with the ability to change during the race. Endurance races can be run either to cover a set distance in laps as quickly as possible, or to cover as much distance as possible over a preset amount of time.
Goodwood Circuit is a historic venue for both two- and four-wheeled motorsport in the United Kingdom. The 2.367-mile (3.809 km) circuit is situated near Chichester, West Sussex, close to the south coast of England, on the estate of Goodwood House, and completely encircles Chichester/Goodwood Airport. This is the racing circuit dating from 1948, not to be confused with the separate hillclimb course located at Goodwood House and first used in 1936.
The Thruxton Circuit is a 2.356 mi (3.792 km) motor-racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton in Hampshire, England, United Kingdom, about 30 miles north of Southampton.
Croft Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire, England. The tarmac circuit is 2.127 mi (3.423 km) long and is based on the lands of an airfield, but has long since moved on from being a basic airfield circuit. The circuit holds meetings of the British Touring Car Championship, British Rallycross and Pickup Truck Racing race series.
Pembrey Circuit is a motor racing circuit near Pembrey village, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is the home of Welsh motorsport, providing racing for cars, motorcycles, karts and trucks. The circuit's facilities have also been used for a single-venue rally.
Patrick Peter Mitchell-Thomson, 2nd Baron Selsdon won the 1949 24 Hours of Le Mans together with Luigi Chinetti in a Ferrari 166 MM.
The Great and British Motorsport Festival is a package of motor races organised by the BARC and promoted by Dunlop. The events are a new addition to the motorsport calendar and appears at the Snetterton, Brands Hatch, Pembrey, Silverstone, Thruxton, Croft and Donington Park racing circuits. Despite the title of the events, a race meeting is held at the Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.
Motorsport is a popular sport in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is a key player in the world of motorsport, hosting rounds of the Formula One World Championship and Grand Prix motorcycle racing, amongst others. It is also the home of many of the current teams in Formula One, such as McLaren, Williams and Aston Martin, while teams such as Red Bull Racing, Mercedes, Alpine and Haas are also based in England. There are also a range of popular national series held such as the British Touring Car Championship and the British GT Championship amongst others. The Motor Sports Association is the official governing body of motorsport in the United Kingdom.
British Formula Renault Championship referred to one of two Formula Renault championships that were held in the United Kingdom. The main series was Renault Sport UK's Formula Renault 2.0 UK championship which was held from 1989 to 2011 and was generally recognized as the British Formula Renault championship. However, in March 2012 it was announced that the Formula Renault UK series would not take place in 2012, with the series being ended definitively in September 2012. A secondary championship organised by the British Automobile Racing Club and known as the Protyre Formula Renault Championship was held continuously between 1995 and 2014. The championship was the only Formula Renault 2.0 championship operating in the United Kingdom after the demise of the main series, but was ended after the 2014 season.
The Goodwood Revival is a three-day festival held each September at Goodwood Circuit since 1998 for the types of racing cars and motorcycles that would have competed during the circuit's original period—1948–1966.
The Aston Martin Razor Blade team car was built in 1923 to break the one-hour light car record of 101.39 mph (163.17 km/h) held by AC Cars. Although it failed to break the record, it did have success in race and record attempts in the 1920s.
Michael C. Chorlton was an English film editor and occasional director. He was born in Disley, Cheshire. He particularly worked with Powell and Pressburger, including editing The Silver Fleet and the motorcycle sequences for A Matter of Life and Death
The Thruxton 500 was a motorcycle endurance race for production based road machines, covering 500 miles and ridden by a team of two riders per machine. The first event was a 9-hour race which took place in 1955, organized by the Southampton and District Motorcycle Club (SDMCC) at the Thruxton Circuit near Andover in Hampshire. Two more 9-hour races followed in 1956 and 1957.
Aintree Motor Racing Circuit is a 3.000 mi (4.828 km) motor racing circuit in the village of Aintree, Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. The circuit is located within the Aintree Racecourse and used the same grandstands as horse racing. It was built in 1954 as the "Goodwood of the North", hence the fact the two venues had so many things in common. The track was well surfaced and relatively flat – ranging from 49–98 ft (15–30 m) in elevation.
Firle Hill Climb is a disused hillclimbing course near Lewes, East Sussex, England, sometimes referred to as Bo Peep Hill Climb. The event was celebrated on 20 September 2015 by the Bo Peep Drivers Club.
The event will consist of a timed climb of the metalled road known as Bo-Peep Hill, situated near the village of Selmeston, on a turning off the A27. Map reference No. 183/498053. Each competitor will be permitted two timed runs in addition to practice."
The Junior Car Club 200 Mile race was a voiturette and later Grand Prix motor race, first held in 1921. It was held on various layouts of Brooklands, and twice at Donington Park.
The BARC 200 was an annual motor race organised by the British Automobile Racing Club from 1954 to 1984. it was a revival of the pre-war 200 mile races organised at Brooklands and Donington Park by the BARC's predecessor, the Junior Car Club, and inspired by the construction of the new motor racing circuit at Aintree.