2012 Motorsport at the Palace Photo Gallery

Motorsport at the Palace, aka the Crystal Palace Sprint, is a mini Goodwood Festival in the making. The Bollinger : Spectator ratio may never rival that of the Sussex event but it has real charm

Set in a green and welcoming oasis in grimy South London, Crystal Palace park is a surprising venue. Spectator access is generally good and the off-track displays have grown year-on-year to make it a great day out. There are many factors that have made it such a great event – particularly support from the local council and Mayor, a good turnout of cars (including many that ran here in period), good marketing, support from the Ancaster motor group and great weather. But the key thing has been superb organisation by the Sevenoaks and District Motor Club

On the track a new record of 33.80 seconds was set by Gary Thomas in his 1070cc Force. Gary is a Midland Auto Club member who competes in the British Hillclimb Championship so the tight, technical Crystal Palace course would have been an appropriate challenge

The final, long right-hander before the finish line is off-camber and is a real challenge to the heavier cars. Bob Searles (AMOC) in his 1972 Aston Martin DBS V8 did well to hang on on Sunday afternoon after a tank-slapper saw him approach the finish line with all four wheels off the track

Day 1 – Saturday 26th May 2012