SPEED Reviewed: ‘’50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board’’
Written by: Gregg Leary Charlotte, NC – 3/10/2006

‘’50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board’’
DVD Review by Gregg Leary

If you are “on the fence” about purchasing that big-screen plasma TV with home theatre surround sound, I’ve got just the ticket for you to convince yourself or your spouse to take the plunge. The DVD “50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board” puts you “in the driver’s seat” with half a century of Formula One legends—Fangio, Moss, Stewart, Senna, Schumacher and others – all in surround sound! Purchase the DVD and take it to your local electronics store, give their inventory a “test drive” and see what equipment best suits your needs. I guarantee when you crank up the volume you’ll draw a crowd.

The one-hour Ardennes Production (the name of the forest surrounding Spa-Francorchamps) DVD by Robert Nevison is narrated by Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Jackie Stewart, Mario Andretti and Bob Constanduros. Rare, archival car mounted camera footage zooms you through eleven spectacular chapters.

1. Juan Manuel Fangio at the Modena Aero-Autodrome. The “maestro” won 24 of the 51 grands prix he entered. His 250 F Maserati ran 180 mph down the backstretch at Rheims in the 50’s … and rare slow motion footage shows Fangio four-wheel drifting at 150 mph.

2. Stirling Moss at Goodwood and the Nurburgring. Goodwood was the scene of Moss’s career-ending accident. The Nurburgring was 14.2 miles long with 178 corners and one thousand feet of elevation change. Catch the footage of Stirling explaining cornering using a die-cast car … it’s priceless.

3. 1967 German Grand Prix, where 375,000 people watch the “difficult, demanding, dangerous … fantastic driver’s circuit,” where Jackie Stewart claims, he “never ran to the limits of the motor car.”

4. Jackie Stewart at Brands Hatch. Jackie drives AND narrates his laps. Impressive to one who has trouble walking and chewing gum at the same time.

5. Patrick Depailler 1977 Monaco. Patrick drives the six-wheeled Tyrrell through the Monte Carlo circuit. Superb aerials set the scene and English subtitles ride with Patrick. It is amazing how dark the tunnel appears to the camera. The circuit seems extremely narrow for even a single car—how does the entire grid fit through? We see in a later chapter that they often don’t.

6. Jacques Laffite 1978 Monza. Mario Andretti’s narration calls it “The magic track … the tifosi, the Ferrari fanatical fans … the fabulous engine sounds … that’s Monza.”

7. Patrick Depailler at Long Beach 1978. Andretti says the cars reach 190 mph on closed public roads.

8. Ayrton Senna at Suzuka 1989. Watching the onboard speaks volumes as to why he may be the greatest of all time.

9. Damon Hill and Michael Schumacher at Monaco 1995. Watch for the pile up at Ste Devote … from the rear camera on Hill’s car.

10. Mika Hakkinen at Spa-Francorchamps 2000. For any of your friends who claim that Formula One is boring, advance to 35:25 on the DVD and watch Mika “thread the needle” at an obscene rate of speed, then get passed by a pair of F1 fighter jets … breathtaking.

11. Michael Schumacher at Monza 2003. Watch as seven-time champion Schumacher negotiates the world’s fastest grand prix circuit … 230 mph down the pit straight!

The final section of “50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board” takes you on a memory lane tour of “The FIA’s F1 World Championship Drivers Hall of Fame” from Giuseppe Farina in 1950 through Michael Schumacher in 2004.

Tidbits of trivia abound in the narration. For example, Farina’s 1950 Alfa Romeo 158 delivered an uncanny 400 horsepower, but the stallions were extremely thirsty. The Alfa got only 1.7 miles per gallon and often had to stop two or three times for fuel in a three hour race.

Graham Hill is still the only driver to win the Formula One Championship, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500.

How good is “50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board?” I’ll bet you’ll watch it in its entirety… all one hour … in ONE sitting … and probably go back as I did and watch it again. I give it five out of five lug nuts.

50 Years of Formula 1 On-Board is available now from the SPEED bookstore.