Why do we love historic racing? Why do loads of people love history racing? The answer is that it exposes talent. We strip away modern technology, we strip away modern amenities, we strip away basically everything and we’re left with racers in awesome machines. It is pure, it is old, and it is awesome.
There are not that many people, not that many talented modern racers that can get in an old car and really wring it out. You have to do things that you’d never even think about doing in a modern car, especially when the machine is on skinny, old, skating rink quality tires. Think we are exaggerating? Watch driver Ollie Bryant set the quick lap for his category in this video and watch how often the steering wheel isn’t being used. You can likely measure the time in fractions of a second.
The way he not only controls the car but also thwarts slower traffic without missing a beat. The Lotus Climax was another in the evolutionary steps that Colin Chapman took his company through over the years. With its Coventry Climax engine making somewhere around 200hp and its lightweight aerodynamic alloy body, it is as beautiful as it is tricky to drive. Ollie does a job that would have ol’ Chapman smiling wide here for sure!
