Page 26 - the story of motoring

The Grand Prix

The first national Grand Prix was held in France in 1906. There was great
rivalry then between France, Germany and Italy. Racing then was very different
to today. The cars were monsters weighing 1,000 kgs and having giant engines.
Punctures were very common so a large supply of spare tyres was carried on the
back. Accompanying the driver was a mechanic and they both sat unprotectedfrom
the weather or dust. Special motoring clothes were worn like goggles, facemask
long coat and a cap. The dust on the roads could easily choke and blind a dri-
ver causing him to crash. There were no proper circuits with pit stops,instead
public roads were closed off.' The route would take the driver through country-
side but when he came to a town he would be slowed down and a cyclist wouldlead
him through. Racing was hard and you needed a lot of courage and determination.
The first Grand Prix lasted 2 days and covered 729 miles.

Grand Prix racing encouraged new designs, with more powerful and efficient
engines. The racing car changed from being a lumbering monster to beingsmaller,
streamlined with better roadholding.

During the 1930s Hitler and Mussolini poured a lot of money into theirracing
teams because they wanted to show the world how great their countries were.

In 1950 the drivers world championship was started. The winning driverwould
gain points from a race and the one with the highest total became world champion.
There are now 17 world championship races.

Racing has changed a great deal from the days of just climbing in anddriving
hard. Today a lot of technology is used in racing car design. Grand Prix cars
are called Formula 1 because their engine is kept to a certain size, up to 3,000.
C.C. The latest development is the ground effect car which used the air passing
underneath the car to suck it onto the track. Advanced streamlining with aero-
foils to keep the car from taking off like an aircraft are now fitted. Huge
teams of specialists surround the driving stars. There are mechanics, managers,
trur d E ff to transport the car all over the world.