My earliest memory of anything to do with sport was being taken to the (now closed) Ingliston Racing Circuit in Edinburgh by my dad at the tender age of 4 years old. Dad wasn’t a huge motor racing fan but he did watch all the Formula 1 races and that particular year, 1971, was rather special for Scottish F1 fans because Jackie Stewart had won the world championship. The trip to Ingliston may have had some other races going on but the main reason to be there was to see Jackie drive a lap of honour in front of his home country fans. As a kid of 4, though, other races were completely irrelevant because I knew I was there to see Scotland’s hero, Jackie Stewart, and I vividly remember that he drove past in a little blue car.
Yesterday afternoon brought back a flood of memories as that same car (or, at least, a Tyrrell 003 of the same model that Jackie drove during the 1971 and 1972 seasons. Apparently he drove this particular chassis in the Monaco Grand Prix during one or other of those seasons.) was taking part in the Vintage Formula 1 practice session out at Circuit of the Americas. While the main F1 practice scheduled following this was cancelled, I was delighted that the storms let off long enough to give me another chance to see this little blue car and many of the other F1 vehicles I fondly remember from my childhood.
Now if I could only bump into Sir Jackie himself…
For the technically inclined...