Last week was all about Goodwood: the ancestral home of Charles Gordon-Lennox – also known as Lord March – who hosts a series of motorsport events throughout the year including the Goodwood Revival in the autumn – a great excuse to dress up in 1950s clothing – and the Festival of Speed during the summer.
Taken at the Goodwood Media Day. Credit: Guest Author.
For those who haven’t been, it’s well worth a visit – but don’t just take my word for it. Former F1 driver Mark Webber described the Festival (which runs from July 11-14) as: “The best event in the world. I don't know who's second, but they’re a long, long way behind.”
The reason for my trip down to Sussex was the Goodwood Media Day, where Goodwood presents its plans for the year and a number of car manufacturers show up to present their products. Being a motorsport event, it was a no-brainer to wear my TAG Heuer Monaco down there, but it soon became clear that I was the odd man out. Not for the first time in my life.
TAG Heuer Monaco Chronograph 39 mm Calibre Heuer 02 Automatic. Credit: Tag Heuer.
Because like many other motorsport venues, Goodwood is all about Rolex, with the two institutions enjoying a partnership that dates back nearly a quarter of a century. With the retro flavour of Goodwood, it’s always fun to see vintage Rolex branding, just as it was back in the golden age – the iconic clock tower overlooking the racetrack providing a prime example.
Rolex ambassadors – such as Mark Webber and of course Sir Jackie Stewart – turn up to the Festival of Speed regularly, with the company overseeing the ‘drivers’ club’: the hospitality venue where the stars hang out in between runs up the famous hill. I managed to sneak my way in there once and it blew me away: the pop-up club, tucked away in a corner of Goodwood House, is a pretty incredible place that wants for nothing, cementing the symbiotic relationship between Rolex and motorsport.
Rolex Clock Tower at Goodwood. Credit: Guest Author.
As Lord March himself put it: “I’m often told by the world’s most successful drivers that nowhere else do they enjoy such incredible hospitality at a race weekend. That’s a great testimony to our partnership with Rolex.” You can say what you like about Rolex, but they do it right.
Goodwood actually has a huge number of other partners too, and that’s entirely necessary with the phenomenal costs of just keeping the place running. “Every time a wall falls down that’s £250,000, and replacing the curtains cost £400,000,” points out Lord March, well aware that these are very much first world problems. “The big challenge is keeping a place like this relevant.”
Yangwang U8. Credit: WatchGecko.
That’s where he excels. The big money in the car industry at the moment is from China, and Goodwood has a partnership with (now Chinese-owned) MG, which showed off its new Cyberster electric roadster. While other – more surprising – vehicles to turn up from China included the Yangwang U8: a somewhat Defender-like SUV that’s capable of more than 1000 horsepower in its ultimate specification. You might never have heard of it, but it’s an offshoot of BYD: the largest electric car company in the world.
But the car I wanted to drive most of all at Goodwood – which turned out to even exceed expectations – was the Alpine A110, and that was partly because the French brand’s Formula 1 team has (to my mind) the most interesting watch partnership of them all.
Alpine A110. Credit: Guest Author.
Alpine has joined forces with Moser, and after driving the 110, it’s actually easy to see why the association makes sense. The A110 is an absolute bundle of joy: light, compact, stunningly pretty, and with a history that’s been faithfully reinterpreted in a thoroughly modern context. Above all, just like Moser, it’s something that’s a little bit different. Those who know, know – as every Moser owner will recognise.
