Rob Walker Centenary Festival

The Rob Walker Centenary Festival at Dorking on 21 October 2018 gave anyone interested in motor racing history, or, come to that, motor racing and/or lovely cars, a thoroughly enjoyable day. Whilst it was quite crowded, it was not too much so.

Walker was the most successful privateer in history. He didn’t build cars, but ran them. In the video below you will see the Ferguson P99, the only four-wheel-drive GP car to win an F1 race. He also ran Coopers, Lotuses, Brabhams, and Surtees. Most notable were the very successful Scaglietti-bodied Ferrari short-wheel-base 250s. Moss drove both to great success.

I saw him win in the 7 SWB one at Brands Hatch in the Redex Trophy in 1960. I met Moss that morning and chatted to him – details in an earlier blog; go to the Old Blugger page. I can still see him drifting around Clearways with the front wheel pointing straight ahead as he went to the right.

A fabulous day then and a thoroughly enjoyable one for the Centenary Festival.

Can it be annual, please Dorking people. We don’t want to have to wait another hundred years.

Well done the marshals, others who helped out such as members of the Lotus 7 Club, especially the poor chap in Moores Road who couldn’t even see the parade, and the organisers. The weather was fabulous.

I have one small criticism. The police bike; come on guys, you could have gone for a liveried Triumph Speed Twin.