The Goodwood Festival of Speed, Explained

Among all the gatherings on the motoring calendar, few capture the sheer joy of cars quite like the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Held each summer in the parkland surrounding Goodwood House in West Sussex, England, it is, in the organizers' own words, motorsport's ultimate summer garden party, a four day celebration of everything fast and glamorous on wheels.

The Hillclimb

At the heart of the Festival is the Hillclimb, a course that runs up through the estate and past the front of Goodwood House. One after another, the cars take it on, Formula One machines, historic racers, rally cars, and the newest hypercars, driven in earnest by professional racers and celebrated names. There is nowhere else where spectators can stand so close to such a range of important cars being driven hard, and the timed run to the top has become a genuine contest in its own right.

More Than a Race

The Festival is also one of the industry's favorite stages for launching new cars, and the marques regularly choose Goodwood to reveal their most exclusive models to the public for the first time. Between the runs, visitors can walk among the cars and meet the drivers, in an atmosphere far more relaxed than any grand prix.

The Revival

Goodwood's other great event is the Revival, a separate meeting devoted to historic, wheel to wheel circuit racing. There, the cars, the fashion, and the setting are all drawn from motor racing's golden age, and visitors dress in period costume to complete the illusion of stepping back in time. Together, the Festival of Speed and the Revival make Goodwood one of the most beloved names in the entire world of cars.