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Pau: no Grand Prix for 2010 ?


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#1 David Force

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Posted 29 October 2009 - 17:17

With an announcement today that there will be no modern Pau Grand Prix next year and that there will be a commitment to return in 2011 where might this leave the Historic event ?

Having been very closely involved with the organisers of the first Historic Grand Prix it was clear that the only way the event could exist was by sharing the infrastructure with the modern races be they F3000, F3 or WTCC.

Pau is a lovely town set in the Pyrenees and the street circuit really is something of a throwback with tight, heavily cambered corners. Unlike many of the updated or new circuits in towns Pau is still very much the challenge it was years ago.

With an illustrious list of winners such as Clark and Stewart it would be sad if this event does not return

:cool:



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#2 Peter Horsman

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Posted 30 October 2009 - 08:10

I think that the new challenge of Pau is more to do with convincing the city authorities that they the race meetings are good for the town and thus permit race meetings to take place without huge circuit hire fees.

#3 Carles Bosch

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Posted 30 October 2009 - 20:44

As far as I know, 'Peter Auto' of 'Le Mans Classic' fame has now also the rights of the 'GP Historique de Pau' and his aim is organising alternatively both events... 2010 is the turn of Le Mans, 2011 would bring back again Pau...


Carles.

#4 MCS

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Posted 30 October 2009 - 21:34

This is most disappointing. Regrettably, I've never seen a race at Pau, but following a visit the other summer whilst on a family holiday I became mesmerised by the place.

I was able to walk and drive around the circuit and hadn't realised what a great track it was. And it really is a quite marvellous town. The Boulevard des Pyrénées with it's magnificent views, the Chateau, the shops, bars and restaurants - all had a lovely ambience.

Various TNFers have waxed lyrical about it subsequently when I've asked them about it and I had been planning a return to see some racing there.

Whilst we were there we also visited the Tourist Office - probably because we found ourselves walking past - and I was amazed to see a rolling video/DVD of the Grand Prix de Pau with film footage and images of Nuvolari, Wimille, Lang, Fangio, Behra, Brabham, Clark, Rindt and Stewart, right up to Reine Wisell’s 1971 victory in the LIRA Lotus. (And if you are wondering how the hell I can remember all of this, it's simply that I wrote most of these words then and left them in a file...)

I also discovered a motor racing bookshop called Motor Mania: an absolute treasure trove – some most unusual French books (including Gerard Gamand's magnificent GRAC opus) and some astounding colour and black & white posters of Formula One and Sports Prototype Cars from the late sixties and early seventies, a number of them signed by the drivers.

Needless to say, I was eventually hauled out by my wife and daughters, but I've have often chuckled to myself since about the prospect of Sterling being in there for days on end!!!

Great place. MUST go in 2011.

Maybe a TNF trip??

#5 Tim Murray

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Posted 30 October 2009 - 21:44

Maybe a TNF trip??

What a great idea. It's 30+ years since I went to the Pau GP, and I've always wanted to go back.

Edited by Tim Murray, 30 October 2009 - 21:45.


#6 Barry Boor

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Posted 30 October 2009 - 22:26

Circumstances permitting, I'd be very interested in that idea, too.

#7 NanningF1fan

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Posted 31 October 2009 - 02:26

Circumstances permitting, I'd be very interested in that idea, too.


Me too. I only went to Pau once as a spectator on a Page and Moy charter for the F3000 teams, in 1993 I think it was, and I have always promised myself that I would go back some day.

Franck Lagorce won the F3000 race followed by Coulthard and Paul Stewart. The sight and sound of those cars coming out of the hairpin in front of the station and then blasting up a steep hill with a stone embankment on one side and a park on the other will live with me for a long time.

One of the great things about Pau was the quality of the support programme. The year I was there they even had an evening session with free admission for the local residents to compensate for the noise and inconvenience. Various French club championships entertained thousands of spectators seated with wine and baguettes on the steep grassy bank overlooking the sation hairpin whilst Renault 5s three wheeled around it. Several rolled to huge cheers from the crowd. The marshals just rocked them back onto their wheels and off they went again.

The town is magic, full of history and with some of the best restaurants in the world and in the midst of fabulous scenery. You can see the snow covered Pyrennes in the distance from the spectator areas. It isn't cheap and the locals speak more Spanish than English. Getting there isn't easy either but if you treat it as an adventure worth it. I went on a charter plane from Stansted. We had radio failure on the tarmac and took off an hour and a half late after some electronics guys from Zytek who were on the plane went into the cockpit and fixed it. The flight included mechanics from many teams. One guy even managed to check in a Reynard 93D nosecone as hand luggage! The airport is primitive and had more or less closed for the night by the time we got there. We sat in the plane for quite a while before a peasant in blue overalls, complete with Gauloise pushed steps up to the plane door by hand for us to disembark. I went to my hotel but the mechanics had to start fettling the cars straight away. They worked in white marquees set up in the market square and the whole atmosphere was very informal and approachable.

Afterwards I had a long chat in schoolboy French in the airport departure lounge with Jean Christophe Boullion who had stared in the Formula Ford race achieving a points scoring finish in a Kent engined car in a Zetec race! I made a note of his name even though he was on his own with no manager or hangers on and seemed very shy and awkward, not like the slick, media savvy, over managed clones you find in British FF teams these days. I wonder how much of that he retained and how much it hindered his later career?

I hope the event does return in 2011 because the heritage of Pau is too valuable to lose. But even if it doesn't the memories are among my most treasured.

#8 Barry Boor

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Posted 31 October 2009 - 08:59

I can see it coming.... soon the local council will decide that they no longer want noisy, smelly racing cars running through (a very small part of) their town.

Years will go by then someone in Pau will come up with an idea "How about a Revival meeting".

#9 Doug Nye

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Posted 31 October 2009 - 10:10

One cannot but notice the irony of this announcement coinciding with the first day's activity at the new-age Formula 1 circuit...at Aberdovey... :mad: :mad:

DCN

#10 KWSN - DSM

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Posted 31 October 2009 - 10:38

I think it a great shame, that we are losing part of auto racing history. Being the age I am, then Pau to me was the "Monaco for F2' race, where the best of F2, would battle it out in a great spectacular city venue.

Pau have slowly slid towards this for some years, it should have remained a single seater race, but the conformity of modern single seater racing mean that the GP2 is only run as support of F1, instead of being a real series sometime on the F1 program, sometimes not.

As an aside I also decry the loss of F3 as a Monaco support race, this was where all F3 drivers off all series would come once a year, and the true F3 champion would be crowned (and yes there were tire rules making it more easy to be a continental Champion than a British).

Basically contemporary Auto Racing have become marketing marvels, which have completely lost the history and pedigree which have gone in to creating the current Marketing Marvels. I know that I am a sentimental old coot, but can not help thinking that were the pedigree held in more esteem by the powers to be, then F1 and auto racing at large would be doing better than what it is.

I fear that Pau not being run in 2010, mean that Pau is gone. A sad day indeed.

:cool:

#11 D-Type

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Posted 01 November 2009 - 00:41

The Pau local council and tourist board have clearly failed to realise that the Pau GP is the only reason that anybody outside France has even heard of their city! I suggest we all contact the Pau tourist information service at otc@tourismepau.fr and ask what date the 2010 race will be on.

Edited by D-Type, 01 November 2009 - 00:44.


#12 Philippe / Paris

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Posted 01 November 2009 - 12:22

I'm impressed to see how many British fans are concerned about the Pau Grand Prix. I went to high school in Pau in the 60's and my classroom overlooked the"virage du lycee". I lived right on the track after the Statue Foch, enough to make me a lifetime auto-racing fan and to have Clark, Brabham, Hill, Stewart and Rindt as my teen idols. The Grand Prix is in danger. Local authorities have announced that there will be no Grand Prix in 2010 but maybe in 2011. Wisdom has it that the Grand Prix will never recover after a 1-year abscence. Many race tracks would love to have the same image: a race circuit which saw Fangio racing on basically the same track. But managing heritage requires talent and will. Apparently the current mayor lacks that vision. If you care as I do about the Pau Grand Prix whcih saw so many British champions win, I suggest you write a letter to the current mayor who will be surprised by the British fans. Thank you, merci.

Madame LIGNIERES-CASSOU
Maire de Pau
64000-PAU
France

#13 ensign14

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Posted 01 November 2009 - 12:34

Wisdom has it that the Grand Prix will never recover after a 1-year abscence.

That is the worry. What is the logic behind this decision?

#14 Philippe / Paris

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Posted 01 November 2009 - 15:03

For Pau to survive, the decision lies with the local politicians. They will respond to economic pressure of voter concern. There is a local election in the spring of 2010 in Pau. As one of your contributors points out, nobody would know Pau exists if it wasn't for the Grand Prix. A Grand Prix = tourism =income. There is not much industry left in Pau and also not much imagination I'm afraid.

Does Jackie Stewart know?

#15 Barry Boor

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 07:37

Having watched some of the Pau weekend last Sunday, it seems to have been a bit of a mish-mash of events.

I saw modern F.3, Historic F.3 and electric cars that seemed to find the armco very appealing. Race won by Tambay (The Younger) I believe.

A sad, far cry from what Roger and I saw there a few years ago, although I don't know what was run on Saturday as I was on my way back from holiday.

#16 Giraffe

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 08:00

For info:

http://gppau.alkamelsystems.com/

Use the drop-down menu for the Historique.

Edited by Giraffe, 27 May 2011 - 08:02.


#17 john ruston

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 08:52

The idea of the Patrick Peter event was that it was to be run every two years and was not the event shown on Motors last weekend.It ran the previous week.

Peter Auto cannot run Pau and LMC in the same year.

The entry was pathetic two years ago and not much better this year.

It also costs if you have an incident there.The kerbs are inside the ARMCO in some places.

With entrants seeming to start consider the costs they do not want to spend the types of entry fees and potential damage costs of a Pau type race.They are now very pickey.

Goodwood,Le Mans Classic ,Monaco are the major race meetings and then there are the rest.

Aberdovey, excellent idea,great Golf Course.

#18 Peter Morley

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 09:46

According to this weeks La Vie de l'Automobile Patrick Peter announced that the GP de Pau historique will happen every year from now on.

#19 john ruston

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 10:59

Pau original track.Peter Auto every year,must be a good money spinner!

That was not original intention.

They have the permanent track 10 mins down the road.

It's not that bad for one of these new tracks.

Used it on Tour Auto couple of times..

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#20 Alan Cox

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 16:28

Nice quality on-board video from this year's FJ race filmed from Alex Morton's Ausper - on it, you can see what John Ruston means about the kerbs and the Armco.

Poorer-quality offering from John Fairley's Brabham in the pre-'66 GP cars race
http://www.youtube.c...feature=related
http://www.youtube.c...feature=related
Same race seen from the stands
http://www.youtube.c...feature=related
Pre-'66 GTs
http://www.youtube.c...feature=related
Pre-war
http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

#21 delta44

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 18:56

I went this year and had a great time as usuall.Patrick Peter said that it will run next year.Its a street circuit with a lot of history I had no problems with the kerbs.Just stay off them. Roll on next year.Might be able to do Pau then on to Monaco.Better start saving.

#22 David McKinney

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 19:34

Poorer-quality offering from John Fairley's Brabham in the pre-'66 GP cars race

He'd do well to brush up on his heel-and-toe technique :)


#23 LittleChris

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Posted 27 May 2011 - 21:15

Looks like the grandstand by the start finish line has been demolished since 2009 :|

#24 jonbt11

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Posted 31 May 2011 - 09:20

He'd do well to brush up on his heel-and-toe technique :)

Unfortunatley, size 11 feet, gnarled by years of competative football in a car made for feet half that size, together with an array of chassis tubes and bulheads makes it impossible to bridge the two pedals under braking. Never mind I still came second however the camera does need a clean. :)

Edited by jonbt11, 31 May 2011 - 11:02.


#25 David McKinney

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Posted 31 May 2011 - 11:42

Thanks Jon

Hope I didn't offend :)

And welcome to the forum :wave:

#26 jonbt11

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Posted 31 May 2011 - 11:59

Thanks Jon

Hope I didn't offend :)

And welcome to the forum :wave:

No offence taken, I wasnt designed to fit into the Historic cars. We have moved the pedals as far back as they will go and also cut the throttle and moved it out but i still manage to hit both brake and throttle at the same time now and again. :)