Chatsworth House is one of the most famous stately piles in England and has been home to various dukes of Devonshire for more than 300 years. The estate, deep in the Derby-shire Dales, is set on 1000 acres of graceful parkland landscaped by eighteenth-century master Lancelot “Capability” Brown.
Recently, it provided a stunning backdrop for a weekend “garden party” featuring the cream of today’s and yesterday’s rallying–the second Chatsworth Rally Show.
Nearly 25,000 visitors reveled in iconic machines, ranging from Mk I Ford Escorts and Sunbeam Lotuses to a Stratos and a 037 from the Italian stable of Lancia, plus an Audi Quattro S1, the most howlingly madcap engine ever to rip up a rally stage.
And then there were the competitors, including three former world champions: Ari Vatanen, now a member of the European Parliament; recently retired “Super Finn” Marcus Grönholm, and the evergreen Stig Blomqvist, 1984 champion.
This is also the 50th year of the British Rally Championship, and dozens of drivers and co-drivers turned up.
Among them were David Richards, the British champion in 1980 and world No. 1 in 1981, both years with Vatanen; Jim McRae, five times top Brit; David Llewellin, champ in 1988 and ’89, and co-driver Phil Short; 1966 champion Roy Fidler, and Ford World Rally Team boss Malcolm Wilson, who finally won his British title in 1994.
Russell Brookes, champion in 1977 and 1985, was reunited with co-driver Mike Broad in their Opel Manta for the first time since winning the title 23 years ago, while 64-year-old McRae gave the current owner of his old Manta a lesson in how to drive it.
The weekend exuded all the charm of an English village fete (but on a grand scale), with attractions, stalls, food and drinks tents, exhibitor stands and static displays of historic cars. It was blessed with the kind of glorious June weather that usually exists only in British folk memory.
There were two stages on the parkland roads, 1.2 miles on Saturday and a 1.8-mile Sunday version, including a loop up to the house itself.
Grönholm took several guests for high-speed drives in the Ford Focus WRC ’07, while classic-car competitor Steve Rockingham gave rides in his 310-hp Triumph TR7 V8, the same car used by “Flying Finn” Simo Lampinen in 1978.
There was a fast-driven history-of-rallying parade, plus nine competitive events, each involving two laps of the stage.
Perhaps the most pleasing aspect was that the stars, old and new, frequently left their trackside VIP corral to stroll around the park, signing autographs and chatting with the crowd.
If there was a downside, it was the rather limp promotion of the British Championship’s golden anniversary. Apart from the parade of cars, little attempt was made to engage with the fans.
But overall, organizer Malcolm Neill–a former RAC Rally Clerk of the Course–seems to have hit on a winning formula. Chatsworth should grow.
Original article here
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