luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 10:08:51 GMT
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Thought I'd do a report from the Wings and Wheels show this year for your erudition and entertainment. The gimmick of the show does what it says on the tin, really. It's a car show held at Dunsfold Aerodrome (where they film Top Gear) with the added bonus of some aircraft displays thrown in throughout the day. The car part is split into four main sections, a military display of vehicles dating mostly from WWII; some static club stands of varying interest and awe; a paddock of classic/vintage/sports cars that also do a pair of display runs along the runways during the day; and a hotrod area with some suitably adulterated classics. There are also fairground rides, wall of death, paintball, bands and all kinds of other shiznit to keep the family happy (at a price). It's a good mix of stuff, but I have to say, less good than the last time I went a few years back. Ferociously busy and extraordinarily expensive makes for a slightly sour experience, not to mention the epic fail of marshalling and subsequent queue getting out that cost me a clear hour of my life... but not to gripe, overall a very enjoyable day and the li'l uns enjoyed it no end. The weather even stayed dry except a couple of showers, and the skies were kind enough to put on a superb display of cloudscapes that made taking shock-and-awe pics of the planes stupidly easy even for a lackwit like me with a lens hopelessly inefficient for what was being asked of it. Right, enough chat, on with the pics. On gaining entrance we turned left for no especially reason other than I like going clockwise, it suits my OCD... and arrived first at the Military Zone. The first thing we came to was a Help for Heroes tent and an RAF display where you could make donations in exchange for a goodie bag, which we did. I tend to contribute a bit anyway to HfH, and if you don't why not? The goodie bag had loads of stuff for the kids, especially a windmill that kept Niah amused for a considerable time, even when she was bashing herself in the face with it  A pair of display-painted bikes on the stand showed some reasonable airbursh work celebrating the past of the RAF   ...as well as some distinctly questionable airbrush art. Revenge Of The Zombie Airman, anyone?  and then it was into the military displays proper. There was a mocked-up 1/3rd scale Mustang for the kiddies to sit in and live out their flying ace fantasies (for a price.... getting the idea?). Here's Conrad giving the Red Baron what for  The show areas make use of all the "furniture" that normally lies around the field of Dunsfold, so there are old planes and helicopters mixed in around the proper stands throughout, some of which you can go in and have a look round, like this transport  And this  And in amongst the scenery was a display of military vehicles up to armoured scouts. Mostly Jeeps, to be fair, but there were a few bigger things    It's a Canon with errrr... a cannon! See what I've done there? Thanks, thankyou very much, I'm here all week...  Don't they train you at Rozzer School not to wander in front of pintle-mount machine guns? Slack  Built a few of these in Tamiya World in my time lol  Rather liking this armoured Land Rover. Guessing it's not very quick, though  Ice cream included for scale purposes lol  The thing that appeals about the Military Zone (well, to me anyway) is the way they try to make it feel period, with props and costumes. It gives a cool authentic feel to it, like you've wandered into a staging area before Operation Market Garden or something. Of course, sometimes this genre slips a bit in authenticity   ...I'm not 100% certain what this German BMW outfit is doing in an encampment of the Screaming Eagles US Airborne  But by and large it works really well. Here's one I tried to give the vibe to lol  ...and another   It's a bit surreal seeing all these GI dudes lounging around in amongst the bright modern-dressed families and pushchairs and sunglasses   This is a bit more authentic; a Harley fits better lol   The display of Jeeps was simply littered with cool period touches (or authentic touches, I suppose, if they're original)  Your actual Louisville Slugger lol  Factory-fit dash-mount Coke bottle opener  Plus loads of cartoon detailing and suchlike    .....and then you wander to the edge of the fencing near the runway and there's some blokes firing up a genuine Sopwith Camel!  and plenty of parked-up flight equipment  The Red Arrows liason guys were loitering at the extreme end of the paddock, with some example plane stuff   and they handed out brochures and stuff (free, makes a nice change), pat kids on the head, smile and generally were doing a great job of meeting and greeting. Here's Conrad having got a field promotion to Flight Lieutenant lol (no, I know 1% of *ckall about RAF ranks. Does it show?)  While we were ligging with the Red Arrows dude, the first air display went off overhead, a Sopwith triplane in a pretend combat with a contemporary plane from Ze Germans. These were good because they were really slow and humongous, so comparitively easy to photograph     Cloudscape kindly laid on my the wonders of Mother Nature lol  I tell you what, anyone who flew one of these was a bloody hero, whether under fire or not. Scary, downright scary Heath Robinson lash-ups that look like they'd crumple in a strong wind, let alone under the strain of flight!  All the while the excellent and knowledgeable comentators are informing you of the heritage, specifications, and history of the planes over the PA, redolent with tales of landing half-burnt crates, what, and such-and-such shooting his own propellor off over Flanders  So, leaving the Military Zone behind via some trade stalls selling model planes and cuddly toys (weird) and via another piece of landscape, a Sea Hawk thing  ...we came to errrr, well, a display of buses actualy. Odd, but true  actually, this properly old one appealed to me rather. Though I know there are loads of enthusiasts for these things, they don't generally move me greatly   The next air display was starting around now, first off a Yank Kittyhawk   and then a stunt display in what I understand to be a clumsily-named Sbach 300  Which to be fair put on quite a show, even apparently being able to fly sideways. No idea how that's done but I'm guessing it ain't easy  I didn't manage to get any good pics of it throwing shapes in the sky, so you'll have to be content with these ones with pretty cloud backdrops  |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 10:11:07 GMT
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Round the back of the buses (busses? Bussii? whatever) was some random fenced-off bit with all manner of groovy stuff in it. Like  Got carbon sculpted kickplates!  No idea what it was all about, I think they were trying to suck you into some kind of lottery thing funding Dunsfold, but since the likes of McLaren test there and the BBC have made Clarkson and his fellow performing monkey-buffoons millionaires I figure they make enough money without me contributing my hard-earned, so I just hung on the railings and took pics. Seems to work, lol     I have to say, I found the interior of this Murcielago surprisingly sober. I guess I was expecting a riot to match the bodywork  and speaking of McLarens...  pretty colour, ain't it? These still leave me slightly underwhelmed though. I guess following the F1 GTR was always going to be tricky.  I can't even remember the "name" of these things. It's something that sounds like a Casio calculator, all letters and numbers  Another sober interior  Bonkers Mc-Mercedes thing  Got metalflake! ooooh  ...and then, right in the middle of this gaggle of supercars was this damned great thing...  Which you could let your kids go and climb inside (yeah, for a price, of course). Strange. No idea what it's all about.  great mascot though  Then it was time for what might arguably be considered as the Main Event  I don't care how many times I see the Red Arrows, they never get old. If you've never seen them perform live, then do it. Just incredible, and watching them on YouTube or the telly doesn't even come close  I got about a zillion pics, many of questionable camerwork and ability, so I'll try to just hit some high points  The commentary is brilliant as well, they have their own announcer who takes over from the house old codgers, and really talks you through everything that's going on. Plus they broadcast the radio traffic from the Squadron Leader (or captain, or wingco or head chef or whatever the correct rank actually is) so you can hear the orders to break formation and to perform the manouvres  so that they know how to literally tie knots in the air without crashing into each other at two billion leptons per hour  and now I'll just shut up for a minute and let you enjoy (hopefully) the picktchers        Awesome From the sublime to the ridiculous. There followed a series of club stands, some of which you had to wonder why. There seemed a totally random slection, no real observance of relevance/heritage/cultural significance/any of the criteria a club stand would normally be chucked right in the middle of a show. Some were rpetty cool, though, once you'd waded past hordes of MR2s *spits* and vintage milkfloats (no, honestly). Then there were things like this on the Mini OC stand;  Yeah, an A-team rep MiniMoke. I know it's poor form to diss another man's ride, but you have to be wondering "why!?". Anyway, the Ford stand was cool with some nice old Blue Oval glory  Soooooooooo clean   Consul!  Wonder why this was the least popular bodystyle for the Granny?  This was a bit odd, I've no idea if this was an official RR product or a home-brewed concoction  Judging by the new wood inside and othe rmodern bits, it seems at least some kind of resto if it isn't a total garage special  Rear end so sharp you could shave with it  The TVR OC stand was full of the shock and awe you'd expect from Britain's most bonkers marque  get ready for a rhapsody of flip paint lol  Tuscans never seem to age, and still look fine. Which is a good trick for a car with a penod scuplted into the bonnet  Sagaris is just insane from any angle  More flaps than the entire ouvre of Penthouse  Low!  Spoiler by Bathrooms 'R' Us. Weird  Rather oddly in the middle of the TVR wagon circle (awesome parking, top marks to the TVROC for being the most organised club stand I think I've ever seen) was this unexpected but rather sweet MGA   Dunno. Nice though. There were also some older examples of Blackpool's finest, showing they weren't always mad fibreglass swoops, but started a good deal more humble  The next flypast involved one of the most unmistakeable silhouettes in aviation  The defining shape of all those war movies, the AVRO Lancaster bomber, on this occasion accompanied by a couple of Spitfires. Or a Spitfire and a Hurricane, as it was billed, but they look the bleeding same to me?  Dunno. Answers on a postcard lol. Anyway, they made for an properly impressive sight as they clattered along slowly making a right old racket  When you see a Lancaster up close like this you appreciate how bleeding massive they were, and how slow and unmanouvreable. Stripped of fighter escort, they must have been horrifically exposed to attack. Again, true heroes, every single man who crewed one  This took surprisingly little retouching, one of those pics you only fluke once in a blue moon. Looks like a painting!  Still blundering around the club stands, I stumbled over this 1940 Dolomite  which boasted perhaps the most baroque grille in motoring! Looks like a fencing mask  dangerously risque mascot, too.  I guess it wasn't the original fit, but is one put on by an owner  anyway, it's a lovely car in incredible condition  and full of excellent little detail touches   |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
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Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 10:30:01 GMT
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So we've finally made it into the proper car paddock, right up the opposite end to the military zone. It was a bit fristrating, because the marshals wouldn't open this area so we could wander around until the car's demo runs were finished.... and then till the bikes demo runs were finished... and then until the hotrod demo.... By the time we got in it was mid-afternoon and I right royally had the bleeding knock with health and safety. Y'know, I've been crossing the road on me own for forty-odd years, ta. I understand the concept of not standing in front of moving heavy metal objects, thanks. Don't protect me from myself, I'm fine, thanks [/rant] Anyway, let's start on a low note and things can only improve;  Gahhh, why is this so lusted after? Proof in my humble opinion that just cos it's an Italian marque with more heritage than the Byzantine Empire and an Italian styling house with more successes than AC Milan doesn't guarantee beauty. Zagato Alfa, for me anyway, is wrong from every angle. Plus it seems to be upholstered with David Dickinson's spare neck wattles. Horrid. Like the Teledials though  Right, that's out the way, have an Ultima GTR. Just as ugly, but in a good way. And no-one gets duped into pretending otherwise  Tupperware Torpedo!  Funnily enough, I think I saw this one at the Worthing show the other month, and took a spookily similar wheel pic of it too  There was a distinctly odd mix of cars in the paddock, from modern supercars like this Merc SLS gullwing (gullwings not pictured lol)  to cute little old classics (and restomods) like this Sprite...  ...which was sporting something considerably more frisky than it started life with under the bonnet  and proper single-seat race cars and old competition machinery  and even some "humble" family saloons  Then there's the true one-off mad things, for example;  The gloriously insane aero-engined Brooklands Napier Railton  this thing holds the fastest lap that will ever be set around the Brooklands banked circuit (now it's been disgustingly allowed to crumble into ruin in the usual complete ignorance of heritage endemic to Britain) at an AVERAGE speed of 143.44mph set in 1935. Incredible!  amazing what you can achieve with a 24-litre V12 under the bonnet. It makes 535 brake at just 2500 rpm!  mmmm, comfy  The next plane to stop by shook the world.  The solitary remaining Vulcan Bomber, restored after public donations to the tune of £7m. One of these literally changed the course of the Falklands war by taking out the runway at Port Stanley in a something-like-16000-mile single operation, refueling en route.  Like so many things nowadays, funding is almost impossible and the Powers that be have no interest in preserving any part of heritage they can't adulterate for their own propaganda, so it looks like this might be the last year of flight for Avro XH558. At an estimated £19k per flight hour, it's not the cheapest thing to run! Especially not with the bomb-bay dragging lol  It is, however, downright bloody awesome however you look at it. This was as aerobatic as the pilot was allowed to get;  There is an incredible (though poor quality) YouTube clip of one being barrel-rolled somewhere, which is a humbling sight.... they're not allowed to do it any more because it's also a humbling sound and it allegedly blew out every skylight window on the aircraft sheds! Sadly, this may well be the last sight any of us have of it as it joins so many things flying into a footnote to history  Now a little lesson in the beauty of human nature. I was titting around taking pics and Beth (SWMBO) was sitting in the shade with the kids, the li'l un asleep and Conrad having a rest cos he was tired. He saw some blokes standing by a trailer and display of cars nearby, and decided they looked hot. He said to his mum "I feel sorry for those men out in the sun, I'm going to help them" so he went up and held out his bottle of drink to them and said "I thought you might like to share my drink because you look hot and thirsty" The dude laughed and said "thanks, that's really kind, but I've just got myself a beer actually. But since you were so generous, would you like to come and have a sit in some of my cars?" Of course, asking a five-year old that is a no-brainer, but blimey, what a collection of cars! First off was  yeah, only a Porsche 962 LeMans Group C Racer!  Dunno why they're supposed to be cramped, there's loads of room if you're only four feet tall!   Next came...  Tiff Needell's old SD1  and then the dude's like "there's just the little blue one over there if you want to have a sit in that, too?". The little blue one;  Bugatti Type 37A!  Here's one very lucky little boy! I said to the guy "This must be worth a bomb! There can't be many of these left, you're very kind to let him play about in it!". He just shrugged and said "Nah, not many". (They only made like 63 odd of the supercharged 37A. Let's just say it ain't gonna be a cheap car....) "I don't mind so long as he doesn't fiddle with it too much; last time I only found out someone had pulled the fire extinguisher when I went to start it up for the run and it went off!"  What a touching little epsiode, and the moral is you get what you give. C-man innocently offered the guy a drink without thought of reward, and got one exactly because of that. He got to sit in three motorsport icons whilst several jealous passers-by went green with envy. He doesn't even have a clue how valuable a pre-war Bugatti is, or why a leMans Porsche is cool. Innocence is a marvellous thing. By the way, only a Bugatti would have a tooled leather set of compartments to keep your champagne corks in inside the cockpit!  Moving on then... no idea what this is but I do like the packaging very much. Very neat  Marcos looks completely wrong and yet somehow works  Plenty of Jaaaaaags   I'll allow one E-type though I'm not a huge fan. I think it's the pram-wheel offset fail that upsets me  This C-type is undeniably gorgeous though   I can't offer any intelligence on this old Lea Francis, except to say despite it's obvious age it's still got adjustable suspension via friction dampers. Cool!  ...and a groovy emblem  Nice Healey 3000  By now a lot of the paddock was empty, not sure what happened there but it looked like a lot of exhibitors had cleared off home early. This is kind of a shame, and something that irritated me. People (us included) spent a lot of money to get into a show like this, and I think if someone's showing their car they should show it, not do the fun part and run it up the runway then clear off home. Especially since the show's over two days and they presumably have to bring it back the next day anyway. Show a little comittment, lol Almost all the Ferraris had vanished by now, so I didn't get any pics of them at all. Maybe they were moved to another area, but I can't see why they would, and I certainly didn't catch a glimpse. Fortunately, quite a few cars had stuck around. Plenty of Astons;  The V8 is still my favourite. Brute strength and elegance in a beautiful/ugly package. Splendid  not forgetting the gentleman's club interior, of course  Somehow the modern lumps, extremely capable though they are, don't have quite the same shock and awe in their plastic shrouding  Nice to see one that's obviously used, the patina and grime on this DB4 didn't come around by sitting in a garage   |
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Sept 6, 2012 10:44:09 GMT
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fantastic pics, really enjoyed that ta , comments are good for a chuckle too!
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I'm not curse word, i just fell off my shoes
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 11:08:13 GMT
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At times it was tricky taking pics of the cars because it seemed every five minutes there was another flypast and I had stop trying to take pics of big stationary things close up to try to take some decent pics of fast whizzy things a long way away. It's a good job I've no idea how to use any of the settings on the camera, I'd have been completely lost Anyway, here's a Spitfire and a Mustang, I guess two of the most iconic, influential, and defining planes of WWII     Shall we have some bikes in case there are any two-wheeled afficianados out there? It was tricky to photograph them very well because they were a bit squashed in together, but here are some that aren't utterly awful. Let's start with a Vincent, the original superbike  and another that's been adulterated with a sidecar. To be fair, it's a great period ensemble, even if a bit like using a 911 to tow a caravan  This Black Shadow racer was straight-up superb in every respect  Big, brutal air-cooled old turbo Zed must be a bit of a handful! No wonder the builder's put a modern front end and suspension/brakes on it!  I'm a long-time two stroke fan so this one of the ultimates for me;  a square four RG500 complete with original skinny tyres and flexi frame! Because bikes should have four exhausts!  Not forgetting it's younger smaller sister, the RGV250. That seat unit that graced a thousand streetfighters  Lovely example of the GT750 "Kettle", the bike that finally brought all Suzuki's two-stroke experience to the streets after stealing the secrets of the MZ factory racers through the defection of Ernst Degner and the subsequent acceleration of their 2T race bike programme  Someone's put a lot of effort into polishing the rear wheel of this Triumph Daytona. Must have no fingerprints left  Brooklands museum had brought a few of their exhibits along, such as this excellent Earle J.A.P.-engined flat-tracker, complete with brush-painted finish  There were a few of the early Honda four-stroke 125 and 250 GP racers, which I suspect were replicas  Normally you wouldn't see one outside of a museum unless it was accompanied by several immaculately turned-out and polite Japanese technicians, so I guess they are reps. Very, very high quality ones though  I love the bath plugs to stop debris getting into the carb trumpets. Mmmm, four flat-slide Keihins. Nice  Proper. Quad reverse-cone megas. Sound epic Moving on from two wheels, then. How about something a wee bit special?  can you tell what it is yet, lol?  Yep, the Handlye Special  Quite a car, this, featuring as it does a V12, 27-litre Rolls-Royce Merlin engine originally fitted to a Hawker Hurricane  Definitely has presence!  and lots of Webers!  I guess when this thing's on full honk you need plenty of leverage, as afforded by a 36"string-covered wheel  The obvious place to put a temperature gauge is on the radiator, I suppose. Except when the radiator's at the other end of a twenty-foot bonnet! Still a wonderful instrument, finished to an exceptional standard like everything else on the car  the bodywork must have taken hundreds and hundreds of hours to shape  Fit and finish  Draws in all sorts of admirers  Some more aircraft messing about now, then;  In the form of a pair of Red Bull-liveried prop planes. They were amazing, tbh at least as engrossing as the Red Arrows, though clearly at a slower speed. Their nimbleness in the air was astonishing. For example, they could do this;  No Photoshop involved! (admittedly the spectacular sky helps) but look how close they come to each other  Serious skillz  and they could do that flying sideways thing as well. Still no idea how it's done but it still don't half look clever  Right, I'll shut up again now and let the pics speak for themsalves     |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 11:37:37 GMT
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...and back to the cars! Errrr... aperture setting? Gahhh, I'm lost now. Maybe I'll just leave it on auto... OK, plenty of these. The GT40 is one of my favourite cars ever, especially since I was lucky enough to once get a go in one around Goodwood. Fair to say it was a moment of Epiphany! It's funny, one of those cars where now every time you see one you assume it must be a replica, rather like AC Cobras. But when they're as good as these, who cares, frankly!  The "40-in-GT40-stands-for-40-inch-height" cliche being proved by 44-inch high human  Plenty of low noses. It's like Land of the Giants!    I love the way the speedo is considered the least relevant instrument, perched way over practically mounted on the passenger door   Some more Americana, and it's hard to believe this is also a race car from the same company.  a Magnum Ford Fairlane. Brutal!  Usual mid-century rocket thruster rear lights included. Marvellous  Proud logo testament to the engine on the knock-offs  The next car could probably fit into the Fairlane's boot... sorry, trunk... a gorgeously restored Lotus Elan  I've loved these ever since seeing Emma Peel's one in the Avengers... although that might have had something to do with Diana Rigg, of course. Anyway, this was a total shed full of rot judging by the build photos the fella had on the dash, to big respec to him for the standard it's now at  Daimler Dart. I've no idea why they chose one of these for the title sequence of the Antiques Roadshow. Clearly the producer knows less about cars than they do about tables or clocks. Wretched car, badly-laid up fibreglass on a bendy ladder chassis meant enoguh flex that the doors would come open under hard cornering and the wheels were rarely all pointing the same direction at any given time. Still, they do look rather funky, don't they?  Blimey, I must be getting old! Anyone else remember Dan Air? Imp badged as a Commer Van  It wouldn't be a classic car paddock without a Cobra, so we might as well have a slightly different one;  I can't decide if I love or hate the hardtop. Some angles it works, some... not so much  Still no windows, though!   A modern bit of Americana now, a new Camaro  Nice to see one that doesn't look like a Transformer lol. Rockin some serious wheelage  Plenty of Bentleys throughout as well. I have a lot of warm fluffy feelings towards this Tourer and its lovely sculpty bodywork   "fastest lorries on Earth"? Damn right!    Just a quick couple of Beetles and we're pretty much finished with the showcar paddock... Beetle:  Beetle:  Hahaha, you just knew that was coming, didn't you? I couldn't resist. Anyway, by now it was getting late afternoon and the little ones were getting tired and slightly crabby so we started to head back for the exits. Stopped en route a couple of times... once for the family to have a little impromptu dance-up to the band playing in the Hot Rod zone  they're all bonkers, but it gave the people wandering past a laugh at least... and once for an Apache Army attack helicopter to put on a display  Like a damned great insectoid Agent of the Apocalypse  and then, just as I was about to start taking pics of the Hot Rods, this unbelievably noisy hooligan came whizzing past...  more of that, and the hotrods coming soon to a post near you... |
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Joe T
Part of things
Posts: 711
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Sept 6, 2012 11:47:31 GMT
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Ace thread! And a fantastic story about your boy! Nice work!  |
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EmDee
Club Retro Rides Member
Committer of Autrocities.
Posts: 5,924
Club RR Member Number: 108
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Sept 6, 2012 11:55:25 GMT
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Some very nice pics there, I went too and it was definitely an awesome day out. I also took a few pics but they're not really up to your standard of photography, also to really put the boot in I've hosted the pics on Face-suck-all-of-the-data-out-of-your-pics-book. I hope you don't mind if I chuck my pictures in this thread? I can't promise the same level of narrative  There is however one thing I will have to start off by addressing... Gahhh, why is this so lusted after? Proof in my humble opinion that just cos it's an Italian marque with more heritage than the Byzantine Empire and an Italian styling house with more successes than AC Milan doesn't guarantee beauty. Zagato Alfa, for me anyway, is wrong from every angle. Plus it seems to be upholstered with David Dickinson's spare neck wattles. Horrid.  You shall see the error of your ways.  A stunning car  I walked past all the Bentleys, Bugattis, McLarens and Ferraris and made a beeline for the SZ. It's the chunky 80's Italian design language that gets me all hot and bothered. I don't expect you to understand, but I feel compelled to fight it's corner. Also, this  is a Lola Here are some of my other pics, I won't post many planes as I was using a built in "zoom" lens that is on a par with most kid's mobiles.                           |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
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Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 12:16:00 GMT
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Blimey, it's all kicked off! I sneak off for some breakfast and a quick fag and look what's happened! Some very nice pics there, I went too and it was definitely an awesome day out. I also took a few pics but they're not really up to your standard of photography, also to really put the boot in I've hosted the pics on Face-suck-all-of-the-data-out-of-your-pics-book. I hope you don't mind if I chuck my pictures in this thread? Thanks, and no, of course I don't mind, thanks for sharing your pics.... or at least I wouldn't mind so much if yours didn't make mine look like the rank amateur I clearly am hahaha There is however one thing I will have to start off by addressing... Gahhh, why is this so lusted after? Proof in my humble opinion that just cos it's an Italian marque with more heritage than the Byzantine Empire and an Italian styling house with more successes than AC Milan doesn't guarantee beauty. Zagato Alfa, for me anyway, is wrong from every angle. Plus it seems to be upholstered with David Dickinson's spare neck wattles. Horrid. You shall see the error of your ways. No, no, no. It's certainly a stunning car... for all the wrong reasons! Now, these are beautiful Alfas;   That Zagato monstrosity? No. Still, at least we can laugh about it (I hope) lol. I was uspet by the drawn-with-a-ruler styling at the time, and it's never grown on me. Some "bold" designs prove their vision over time, but this just isn't one of them for me. At least we can all agree to differ, be boring if we liked the same things and other well-worn cliches! Thanks for the Lola, I thought they were but didn;t want to say in case I was wrong and made myself looks sillier than I need to! Should have known, especially after all the wonderful Rotary leMans-series cars Lola built for Mazda US. |
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EmDee
Club Retro Rides Member
Committer of Autrocities.
Posts: 5,924
Club RR Member Number: 108
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Sept 6, 2012 12:36:21 GMT
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Thanks, and no, of course I don't mind, thanks for sharing your pics.... or at least I wouldn't mind so much if yours didn't make mine look like the rank amateur I clearly am hahaha This is untrue but appreciated nonetheless ;D At least we can laugh about it (I hope) lol. I was uspet by the drawn-with-a-ruler styling at the time, and it's never grown on me. Some "bold" designs prove their vision over time, but this just isn't one of them for me. Nah of course we can, I grew up in the 80's and the drawn-with-a-ruler stuff really does it for me  Since I drive a bug-eye Multipla every day I do realise that I am not quite with the rest of the population when it comes to my taste in automotive design ;D |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 12:42:30 GMT
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Right, so the final instalment... I took the opportunity to sneak some pics of the Tornado display while Beth took my lad on the Twister. Very difficult things to take pics of, they're sooooooooooooo damned fast! And LOUD! Not that you can tell that from the photos, take my word for it. Here we go, FWIW; I like this one, you can see the wings tearing slices out of the air!   They were doing pretend bombing runs on the runway, but I totally failed to have quick enough reactions to get any photos of them in the same frame as the explosions. I suck. never mind, have some more flight pics anyway    So, on to the hot rods. We got to watch them doing a demo drive around a little arena bit. Which was a bit odd, cos it's not as if they were doing Russ Swift/Terry Grant style demo driving. But at least we got to hear some V8 (and straight-8) thunder. Again, none of that immense noise comes out in the pics, sorry Giant pickups always move me. Chevy Task Force (I think)  Ford F100  This Apache apparently belonged to the band who were playing on a stage in the Hot Rod Zone. Living the genre!  Three very different expressions of Ford separated only by three years; a '31;  '32;  and '33:  I've got no idea what this bucket rat started life as, but it is exceptionally cool!  and exceptionally low  open wheels make for convenient seating  The two that excited me the most were a pair of sleds, starting with this '50 Lincoln Cosmopolitan  in a fetching shade of patina and studied neglect   The interior was properly well finished, in contrast. New leather everywhere in gleaming white  but with fantastic wear on the original fitment switches and controls  the other was a Buick Eight Super  which was simply stunningly presented  had to tone down the chubby bloke with the orange shirt who refused to move out of the bleeding way lol  shiny VentiPorts  and bizarrely green interior. Very Art Deco  And that was us done pretty much. We made for the exits and the hour-long queue getting out of the carpark, stopping only to pick up a scale model of the Vulcan bomber for the li'l un. On the way the last of the air displays (that we saw) was taking place  a pair of wing-walking lunatics!  performing the sort of gymnastics I reckon anyone in here would struggle to do stood on the floor, let alone stuck on top of a moving biplane!  it's not even as though they were hanging around!  Yeah, I know they were strapped in, but at one point they released the straps and did it just standing holding on. And even with straps... you telling me this ain't monster bravery?  and even on the way through the carpark there was still stuff to look at. Scattered amidst the sea of identikit people carriers and econobxes you'd stumble across little treasures like this;   and this awesome T-Bird that rocked my world for a while  It was immaculate inside and out  just parked up nonchalantly, top open despite the threatening clouds  love the swing-over steering cloumn to make it easy for ....errrr, generously proportioned... Yanks to get in and out easier!  and on one final rocket nozzle rear light, my work here is done  Overall, an excellent day out, slightly soured by a few niggles like the insanely massive queues and the horrific expense. Not perhaps the most kid-friendly show despite all the attractions, but worth the effort I think. As always, thanks for looking and reading my humble drivel. Now go away ;D ....edited for spelnilg  |
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Last Edit: Sept 6, 2012 13:05:27 GMT by luckyseven
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EmDee
Club Retro Rides Member
Committer of Autrocities.
Posts: 5,924
Club RR Member Number: 108
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Sept 6, 2012 12:58:14 GMT
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insanely massive queues and the horrific expense Funny how people can go to the same event and have a completely different experience. We were lucky enough to be given free wristbands that got us in all weekend (I'm a jammy sod), so the expense thing didn't apply for us - lunch was reasonably priced and very nice (hog roast and a pint for about £8) and for some reason we didn't queue for anything except the traffic getting in (about 20 minutes). Were you there on Sunday or Monday? |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 13:14:20 GMT
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We went on the Sunday, it looked like Monday was going to be rubbish weather (though it turned out OK, sod's law). The food was actually quite well priced (although £2 for a bottle of water! ) and good quality, to be fair. The queues I guess is something unavoidable when everyone decides to leave at more-or-less the same time, but the marshalling was shocking. Or mostly non-existent which made it much worse. I maybe came over a bit harsh; some of our issues were self-inflicted, but I'd have thought that for a show that's specifically designed to be family-friendly then at the very least mowing the grass so people stood a chance with pushchairs would be reasonable. The things that enraged me more than anything was the way they'd just close off huge sections for hours on end so you couldn't get in. TBH, it's OK seeing (and hearing) the cars on the runway, but they're a bloody long way away and I'd rather have more time to mooch around them in the paddock. Possibly it's a victim of its own success in that the crowds are hatefully thick at times/at certain points which makes it a chore, maybe spreading the show area out a bit would help. It's not like it's pressed for space lol. And as for the exhibitors leaving at like two p.m, well that's just unacceptable to me. The organisers should state that if you're showing your car, it stays start to finish, end of. IMHO that ought to go for any show. but I don't want to sound overly negative. These are niggles rather than a full-on whinge lol; it's a truly fantastic mix of machinery you're not going to see in one place anywhere else and I'd recommend anyone pays a visit. |
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Sept 6, 2012 16:44:16 GMT
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Il Monstro ugly? Ultima ugly?
Dude were you dropped on your head as a baby? they're both stunning automotive yumminess!
You got it right with the Red Arrows though. Seen them a couple of times and every time they do that high speed close pass I get fully clenched in fright!
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Koos
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Sept 6, 2012 20:05:04 GMT
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Fantastic pictures, thanks for posting them. I helped run the garage on the airfield with another mechanic for 9 years for Bae systems from 1992 - 2000 and we used to have a family day every year that was very much like the shows now but it was free. I've never bothered to go back because of the cost of entry but your pics have made me think that next year may be on for a visit. Be good to get a run of our cars together for it............
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Smiler
Posted a lot
I no longer own anything FWD! Or with less than 6 cylinders, or 2.5ltrs! :)
Posts: 2,492
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Sept 6, 2012 22:08:50 GMT
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What an awesome thread! Thanks for taking the time to share.
I still haven't seen the Vulcan flying yet, I must sort that!
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www.Auto-tat.co.uk'96 Range Rover P38 DSE (daily driver) '71 Reliant Scimitar SE5 GTE 3.0ltr Jag V6 Conversion '79 Reliant Scimitar SE6A 3.0ltr 24valve Omega Conversion '85 Escort Cabrio 2.0 Zetec - Sold '91 BMW 525i - Sold '82 Cortina 2.9i Ghia Cosworth - Sold '72 VW Campervan - Sold '65 LandRover 88" - Sold
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 6, 2012 23:44:38 GMT
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Il Monstro ugly? Ultima ugly? Dude were you dropped on your head as a baby? they're both stunning automotive yumminess! You got it right with the Red Arrows though. Seen them a couple of times and every time they do that high speed close pass I get fully clenched in fright! Lol, isn't that how everyone raises babies nowadays?  never did me any harm ;D OK, I'll give you the Ultima... more "clumsy" perhaps than "ugly". Don't get me wrong, I'd have one, like. But it's not the most coherent thing ever, is it? That big bulging roofline is much too high for the low nose for a start... (please read these comments with some sense of detatched irony. I'm not trying to insult anyone's dream rides here, and as already established, be dull if we all lusted after the same things. I mean, I owned a Ford Probe once, and whilst I liked it meself I don't realistically expect anyone to treat that statement with anything but pity ;D ) Chuckling at "clenched in fright" though ;D Anyone who hasn't seen the Vulcan I'd advise you not to hang about; as I said in the text the consortium running it fear this may be the last year they can afford to do so. Bloody shame if it gets grounded again after all the time and money resurrecting it  |
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hak074
Part of things
Posts: 446
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Sept 7, 2012 10:38:37 GMT
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Oh Wow! What a show! And fantastic pictures. Makes me feel like I was there ;D How good is this red arrows one too. Do you have a desktop size version of it? I'd love to see that all day on my PC. Thanks again for all the quality pictures. |
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luckyseven
Posted a lot
Owning sneering dismissive pedantry since 1970
Posts: 3,839
Club RR Member Number: 45
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Sept 7, 2012 10:57:06 GMT
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Errrmmmm, not sure about "desktop size"? I can email you the original pic if that's any use to you? If you, like PM your email address or something Hahaha, I'm not exactly a computer genius, does it show? ;D Thanks for the compliments, though! |
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Sept 7, 2012 11:24:59 GMT
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Great pics! Are we allowed a 'retro planes thread' or is it against the rules?
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never did me any harm ;D 
