# Brooklands



## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

All this talk of racing circuits and cars related to Roys great new watch has prompted me to post about one of my favourite places ..... BROOKLANDS.

It is a great day out if you like history, aviation and motor racing.

There is loads of stuff if you Google

Here is a great archive of photos put together by the Brooklands Society

http://www.brooklandsarchive.co.uk/index.htm

And a link to the motoring museum

http://www.brooklandsmuseum.com/motoring_exhibits.cfm

John Cobb's 1933 Napier Railton with its 24 litre Railton engine is at the museum, it is awesome to imagine what it must have been like driving around the bumpy banked circuit at an average speed of 143.44 mph.

I think I am right in saying that Cobb's lap record at Brooklands is faster than current Silverstone lap record


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Brooklands today


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## Ironpants (Jul 1, 2005)

A sad demise for such a place.

They have Concord installed there now, but don't seem to have made much progress on their Wellington







.

Toby


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## Silver Hawk (Dec 2, 2003)

John,

Me and my mates often ride up to Brooklands on our vintage bikes.







We went most recently back in August.

So here are a few shots I took then. One of the great secrets of Brooklands and one of my favorite items is the Stratosphere Chamber. It is shame that it is so hidden away and it seems to become more hidden every time I go.









An amazingly large chamber built in the ?1940s; big enough to house an aircraft fuselage or a trawler. Used for conducting extreme pressure and temperature tests on such equipment. I snook through a service door to take the photo below. 

The fat git in the photos is not me....I'm much more handsome than that!


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

Great photo's JoT and Paul







it's a shame that it's fallen into such a poor state. Looks like an interesting place to vist though


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

Phil there is quite a lot left of the old track and the racing infrastructure; however ....... there is now an industrial / commercial estate on what was the airfield









Follow this link for information on Brooklands site today and an aerial view; there is hope for the future as you will see







http://www.brooklands.org.uk/news/Mercedes/mercnews1.htm

The outbreak of WW2 marked the end of Brooklands as a racing circuit; the RAF laid down a long runway and had to punch through the embankment so the Wellingtons that used to fly from here could take off safely, you can see the runway in the picture.

Nice pictures Paul









Here's a picture of John Cobb in a 10.5 litre Delage not far from where your mate was stood, you can see the Members Bridge, the Delage is passing over what was known as "the bump" which used to send the cars airborne









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The second picture is the track in 1926.

[attachmentid=6310]


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

Well I know where I will be going sometime over the next few months for sure


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## Stan (Aug 7, 2003)

Iâ€™ve been racking my memory on this but Iâ€™m pretty certain my father drove on the Brooklands track.

In the 1970s my dad bought a Humber Sceptre (Hunter shape) and we talked about them and how he always liked Humbers. He drove Humber staff cars during the war and was charged with taking his Colonel to chin wags in various places around the country.

I donâ€™t remember if it was before or after he went to France but Iâ€™m certain my dad told me he was sent to Brooklands to test a couple of the new Humber staffs cars that had been tuned by the then RAOC.

I asked him if the Humber staff car was fast and he said they â€œshifted a bitâ€.









I also remember he said that he got stopped by police on the A1 taking the Colonel to a bash whilst doing a lot more than the speed limit. The kind policemen offered to give him an â€œescortâ€ as the Colonel was on â€œurgent businessâ€ but, sadly, the Wolsely police car couldnâ€™t keep up with the Humber.









Itâ€™s a shame he isnâ€™t still alive so I can clarify the details, Iâ€™m certain Iâ€™ve forgotten a lot of them.


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## JoT (Aug 12, 2003)

What a great story Stan







Brooklands would have been in pretty good nick in the early 40's, except for the short section they demolished so the Wellingtons could take off







.... presumably your dad would have known there was a bit missing


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## Stan (Aug 7, 2003)

JoT said:


> What a great story Stan
> 
> 
> 
> ...


A little thing like that wouldn't have bothered him John.









I think there was a lot less traffic on the A1 then too.









I also remember he got straffed by Jerry after dropping the boss off for a weekend at home, I'd be guessing at late 1940 because the bugger's had had enough of Southern England after then.


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## mattjg01 (Jul 3, 2006)

I live pretty close to Brooklands and it is a real shame when you drive past the overgrown track, into the centre and park outside Tescos!!

Something wrong about treating such an historic place like that.


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

mattjg01 said:


> I live pretty close to Brooklands and it is a real shame when you drive past the overgrown track, into the centre and park outside Tescos!!
> 
> Something wrong about treating such an historic place like that.


Let's just hope Tesco's don't get any ideas


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

Just been watching fifth gear, they have just done an article on Brooklands







Mercedes Benz have built this place called Mercedes Benz World







Apparently it's a day out for the whole family


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