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Journey didn't start auspicously. Was going out with the AC Owners Club but as passenger in a Jaguar XK150 that, back in 1950, retired when lying third after 21 hours. First car to average over 100mph for 24 hours (Montlhery) and has just had a mega-buck rebuild.
However, we missed two boats because the fan-belt came off and just disappeared. Eight hours later (!) we got onto a fast ferry to Cherbourg and did the first hour in fine style, till the power dropped away and the car finally died just outside a miniature hotel in Tinchebray, 11.30 at night. Were welcomed royally and most of the village pushed the XK into a shed for the night. Next day we got trailered the rest of the way to the circuit, and were delivered to the show stand where the XK was due to be admired on account of its past endeavours.
We'd reckoned we had to make it to the circuit, not just for the display but to find a particular Jaguar guru, who duly appeared and spent most of the Saturday changing coil, condenser and rotor arm and then diving deep into the whopping great sandcast SU carburettors. Missed my circuits of the track because the car was running then decided to conk out at the last minute.
Anyway, four o'clock on Sunday we rumbled away and only had to stop once - fuel smell, one of the unions less than tight. All topped off by a great night in St Ceneri and a faultless run to Caen yesterday until it got a stone in a front brake drum. Noisy but OK, and we got home safely.
In between? An AC Ace rolled, woman pilot hopitalised. A GT40 hit the chicane at Arnage and demolished itself but is so valuable it will doubtless be rebuilt anyway. And a litle red Lotus Elite rolled in the gravel before the Dunlop Bridge, lost a door and popped out its windscreen - looked remarkably intact but for that. Dunlop Bridge tribune is the best place to watch this historic racing, people going gardening in the gravel, spinning Bizzarinis and drifting Ferrari SWBs as if they weren't worth a million quid.
We think the breakdowns were because the float level in the rear carb was too low, but the "Prince of Darkness" ignition often fails so we had to change everything for safety. This sort of thing makes you appreciate fuel injection, Trionic (and a roof).
Only saw one Saab in four days, and that was British registered.
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