42 replies to this topic

[Allen Brown]

Have we done this before?  Apologies if we have.  And apologies if I'm dumbing down TNF again.  But ...

 

 

Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen

 

This was a real race and it ran more than once.  NASCAR, in case you were wondering.  And, for our older members, NASCAR is a form of silhouette touring car racing popular in the US.  

 

For those of us used to titles no dafter than the Wendy Wool British Grand Prix or the Bradford & Bingley Trophy, this title does stand out from the crowd.  Anyone like to offer their own favourites?

[Mallory Dan]

Mine at the Gold Cup has raised comments, Allen...

[hittheapex]

I nominate Grands Prix named after different countries than that in which they were hosted. Such as the Swiss Grands Prixs in France and that year a race at the Nurburgring was named the Luxembourg Grand Prix.

[TecnoRacing]

Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen

 

This was a real race and it ran more than once.  NASCAR, in case you were wondering.

 

Well, thankfully for us Americans, sponsorship of Nascar's Watkins Glen round has moved on from such things... to the much more sophisticated/upmarket arena of Cheese Crackers:

P.S. Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips are quite good I have to say

[Ray Bell]

Remember "Belinda's Terrace"?

I'm not sure, but I think it was a brothel in Melbourne, they sponsored a race or two at Phillip Island. But is that any weirder than "Tom's Tourist Trophy," which was held at Geraldton's one and only race meeting in 1965. Tom's was a grocery chain that also sponsored races at Albany.

[Glengavel]

With hindsight, the Gordon Bennett Cup sounds a bit strange.

[Cirrus]

The last rounds of the 2014 Historic FF2000 Championship were sponsored by Affinage International Hair Products - pretty ironic since many of the drivers are the wrong side of 50 and would find suntan cream more useful than conditioner.

[Allan Lupton]

I nominate Grands Prix named after different countries than that in which they were hosted. Such as the Swiss Grands Prixs in France and that year a race at the Nurburgring was named the Luxembourg Grand Prix.

On a similar level there have been Santander GPs which were not in Santander - I think one was at least in the same country.

 

With hindsight, the Gordon Bennett Cup sounds a bit strange.

Please explain - naming the Cup after its donor isn't strange in my opinion.

[Michael Ferner]

I recently read about another NASCAR race sponsored by "First Union", a bank I believe. If it was an annual event, would that make next year's race the "Second Union 400", or the "Second First Union 400"?

An odd name, if perhaps not really daft, was the "United Cerebral Palsy", a major Sprint Car race in Arizona during the sixties and seventies. I think it was officially the "UCP Benefit", though.

[john winfield]

The 1976 European F2 round at Thruxton became something like the 'Moon Williams Trophy', another supporting race the 'Dennis Waterman Cup', etc. etc..  Sounded daft, but DJM records were sponsoring the event and wanted to raise the profile of their promising artistes.

What ever happened to Dennis Waterman anyway?

[Glengavel]

On a similar level there have been Santander GPs which were not in Santander - I think one was at least in the same country.

 

Please explain - naming the Cup after its donor isn't strange in my opinion.

 

Because nowadays 'Gordon Bennett!' is an expression of astonishment. Well, in some parts of the globe anyway.

[Allan Lupton]

Because nowadays 'Gordon Bennett!' is an expression of astonishment. Well, in some parts of the globe anyway.

Oh that case!

Reminds me of the names of various religious figures being used similarly - doesn't make any difference to those who believe in them.

[john winfield]

Because nowadays 'Gordon Bennett!' is an expression of astonishment. 

Perhaps because of the last paragraph, before the comments, in this BBC article, but probably not....

 

http://news.bbc.co.u...ine/6226293.stm

Edited by john winfield, 02 December 2014 - 16:20.

[BRG]

I hesitate to mention Southern Organs...

[ExFlagMan]

So do a lot of folks associated with motorsport at the time.

[Collombin]

Is the Targo Florio (sic) name associated with races on the old Legion Ascot road course as stupid as I think it might be?

[ReWind]

I'd nominate the name for a whole series of races:

 

The races for the Sprint Cup usually last more than three hours.

[Jack-the-Lad]

Remember "Belinda's Terrace"?

 

No, but I have vivid memories of Linda Vaughn's balcony .....

Edited by Jack-the-Lad, 02 December 2014 - 21:26.

[Lee Nicolle]

Remember "Belinda's Terrace"?

I'm not sure, but I think it was a brothel in Melbourne, they sponsored a race or two at Phillip Island. But is that any weirder than "Tom's Tourist Trophy," which was held at Geraldton's one and only race meeting in 1965. Tom's was a grocery chain that also sponsored races at Albany.

Daily Planet too Ray. Plus another sponsored a car. I remember a  t@a photo shoot  above the dam at an Island Magic meeting in the late 90s.

 

Grocery chains still sponsor the occasional race too at club level. Or possibly individual stores.

[Risil]

Few modern era Indycar standouts:

 

The Bavaria Champ Car Grand Prix Powered by Audi, Gant, Hertz, Jumbo & Pioneer (2007). Where was it held? The Netherlands.

 

Indy Japan: The Final (2011), a remarkable way of advertising that your series has been dropped by the race promoter.

 

And was it a coincidence that a year after Wisconsin played host to the Mario Andretti Grand Prix of Road America (2003, Champ Car), something called the AJ Foyt 225 (2004, IRL) materialized an hour down the road in Milwaukee? Probably not.

Edited by Risil, 02 December 2014 - 22:25.

[Thundersports]

Victor Meldrew trophy................

[Vitesse2]

Few modern era Indycar standouts:

 

The Bavaria Champ Car Grand Prix Powered by Audi, Gant, Hertz, Jumbo & Pioneer (2007). Where was it held? The Netherlands.

Despite its name, the Bavaria beer brand is actually Dutch.

 

It didn't take place, but I rather like the Grand Prix de l'Exposition de l'Eau.

 

For sheer chutzpah: the Gran Premio del General Juan Perón y de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. AFAIK that's the longest race title which doesn't contain a sponsor's name.

 

Oh, and there's another Argentine race, called the Copa de la Acción de San Lorenzo. Can anyone think of another motor race named after a battle?

[Allen Brown]

Quite a few Battle of Britain Trophies in the 1960s

[dgs]

"United States Air Force Trophy" a 10 lap minor Formula Libre race held at Silverstone 12th July 1958 

won by Tim Parnell (Cooper T45-Climax) 

[Collombin]

No, but I have vivid memories of Linda Vaughn's balcony .....

I'd love to know what this said before the edit.

[Risil]

Oh, and there's another Argentine race, called the Copa de la Acción de San Lorenzo. Can anyone think of another motor race named after a battle?

 

Not quite a battle, but Daytona held a Paul Revere 250. Wikipedia is frustratingly short on detail but I'm sure I remember something about IMSA starting the race at midnight for its Camel GT series.

[PCC]

I'll nominate another series name. In 1971, there was a season-long Formula Ford series at Mosport sponsored by the retail chain Shoppers World. The series was, alas, called the "Shoppers World Championship." That name conjures up all kinds of images, but as the series was neither a world championship nor a contest among shoppers, the title was rather cringeworthy.

 

Mercifully, the series' title sponsor became Bulova the next year.

[Sharman]

Michael Ferner, on 02 Dec 2014 - 16:36, said:

An odd name, if perhaps not really daft, was the "United Cerebral Palsy", a major Sprint Car race in Arizona during the sixties and seventies. I think it was officially the "UCP Benefit", though.

If tha' cam fert North Of England tha'd know that UCP meant tripe!

[arttidesco]

Did no one go to the Pork The Other White Meat 400 ?

 

I think it might have been run in Movember

[Jack-the-Lad]

 

 

I think it might have been run in Movember

Speaking of which, why didn't they just wait a couple of months for Manuary?  (insert mustachioed emitcon here)

[arttidesco]

Despite knowing far better at the time it took a while to get an image out of my mind of Tennessee filling up with lederhosen clad Austrians singing 'Die Hügel sind lebendig mit dem Klang der Musik' after first hearing about the 1974 Memphis Grand Prix von Österreich

 

I'll get my coat

[Graham Clayton]

The Windsor RSL Speedway ran the "Australian Daylight Speedcar Championship" during the 1957 season.

[BRG]

The USA is a fertile source of daft names, at least to non-US ears - although perhaps to the domestic market they are not so odd.  

 

Just last weekend we had the "Bubba Burgers Sports Car Grand Prix" at Long Beach.  

[Collombin]

I kind of like that Wikipedia thinks that the 1978 Champcar race at Silverstone was sponsored by the Daily Empress.

[Doug Nye]

Aah yes, I recall hearing the rumours about that sponsor...

 

DCN

[Jimisgod]

San Marino GP which has never been held in San Marino. In both F1 and MotoGP.

[DampMongoose]

Birmingham Superprix.

[RStock]

The Hillbilly 100.

[arttidesco]

I kind of like that Wikipedia thinks that the 1978 Champcar race at Silverstone was sponsored by the Daily Empress.

 

I was too excited about seeing the Parnelli, Foyt, Lola, McLaren and Eagle cars running to notice, but was Linda Vaughn actually present at Silverstone, I imagine the cold temperatures that day might have peaked on her balcony.

[TerryS]

A NASCAR event I went to in Texas last year was the DUCK COMMANDER 500.

[DogEarred]

I was too excited about seeing the Parnelli, Foyt, Lola, McLaren and Eagle cars running to notice, but was Linda Vaughn actually present at Silverstone, I imagine the cold temperatures that day might have peaked on her balcony.

 

She was honoured by having her own car at the Indy 500 downtown parade last May. (Possibly for services to Indycar drivers?)

 

The balcony still seemed structurally sound. A marvel of engineering....

Edited by DogEarred, 07 July 2016 - 08:55.

[D-Type]

She was honoured by having her own car at the Indy 500 downtown parade last May. (Possibly for services to Indycar drivers?)

 

The balcony still seemed structurally sound. A marvel of engineering....

 

I think that was another blonde, if I remember Buford's post correctly.

[kento11]

how about the Grand Prix of Gibraltar?