The British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) is one of the biggest organising clubs for

motor racing An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gene ...

in the United Kingdom.

History

The

Cyclecar A cyclecar was a type of small, lightweight and inexpensive motorized car manufactured in Europe and the United States between 1910 and the early 1920s. The purpose of cyclecars was to fill a gap in the market between the motorcycle and the c ...

Club was formed in 1912, running races for the small and light

motorbike A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle steered by a handlebar from a saddle-style seat. Motorcycle designs var ...

powered vehicles at

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...

as well as rallies and sporting trials. Among the founder members of the club were H.R. Godfrey and Archie Frazer-Nash. In 1919, with cyclecars on the decline, the name of the club changed to the Junior Car Club (JCC). The club was immediately successful, with regional centres being formed in 1921, the same year the 200-Mile Race at

was organised, the first long-distance race to be run in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. The race, a contest for 1,500 c.c. light cars, was won by

Henry Segrave Sir Henry O'Neal de Hane Segrave (22 September 1896 – 13 June 1930) was an early British pioneer in land speed and water speed records. Segrave, who set three land and one water record, was the first person to hold both titles simultaneou ...

in a Talbot-Darracq. Captain Frazer Nash ( G.N.) won the cyclecar race. Further long-distance races were organised both at Brooklands and

Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport Race track, circuit located near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England. The circuit business is now owned by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision organisation, and the surrounding Donington Park Estate, sti ...

, as well as rallies and International Trophy Races. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, due to the demise of Brooklands, the JCC was amalgamated with the Brooklands Automobile Racing Club. The club then based itself at

Goodwood Circuit Goodwood Circuit is a historic venue for both two- and four-wheeled motorsport in the United Kingdom. The circuit is situated near Chichester, West Sussex, close to the south coast of England, on the estate of Goodwood House, and completely e ...

, changing its name to the British Automobile Racing Club in 1949. Over the next 18 years, BARC organised at least one international meeting at Goodwood a year, notably

Easter Monday Easter Monday is the second day of Eastertide and a public holiday in more than 50 predominantly Christian countries. In Western Christianity it marks the second day of the Octave of Easter; in Eastern Christianity it marks the second day of Br ...

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

races and 9-hour

sportscar A sports car is a type of automobile that is designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving, and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1910s and ar ...

races—the first night races to be run in Britain. The club was also involved in the opening meeting at

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

in 1953, and organised the

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...

when held at

Aintree Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, northeast of Liverpool city centre. In 2011 the parish had a p ...

in the late 50s and early 60s. In 1951 the BARC Eastbourne Rally was held on 30 June with the best performance by Bancroft in a Ford 10 saloon. The event featured a Midnight Concours d'Elegance. During the period 1956–1967 the BARC organised competitive events at the

Firle Hill Climb Firle Hill Climb is a disused hillclimbing course near Lewes, East Sussex, England, sometimes referred to as Bo Peep Hill Climb. The event was celebrated on 20 September 2015 by the Bo Peep Drivers Club. In 1966 ''The Autocar'' reported: " The h ...

in Sussex. The event held on Sunday, 2 June 1957, was run in conjunction with the BARC 11th Annual Rally at Eastbourne, a 50-mile road event held the day before, starting at the Grasshopper Inn near

Westerham Westerham is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located 3.4 miles east of Oxted and 6 miles west of Sevenoaks, adjacent to the Kent border with both Greater London and Surrey. I ...

, with intermittent driving tests, including one at Butts Hill, Willingdon, and then on to Eastbourne, via Beachy Head. Goodwood was closed on safety grounds in 1966. The last event was a club meeting organised by the BARC on 2 July 1966. The club relocated to

Thruxton Circuit The Thruxton Circuit is a motor-racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton, Hampshire, Thruxton in Hampshire, England, United Kingdom, about north of Southampton. It has hosted motorsport events including the British Touring Car Ch ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, opening in 1968, and becoming club headquarters in 1974.

Racing

Today, the BARC organises a large number of race series. The club is the organising club for the

British Touring Car Championship The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), officially known as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by ...

the Silverstone rounds of the World Sports car and Rallycross Championships and the support races at each weekend. Another major commitment is the organising of the annual Goodwood Members Meeting,

Goodwood Revival The Goodwood Revival is a three-day festival held each September at Goodwood Circuit since 1998 for the types of road racing, racing cars and motorcycles that would have competed during the circuit's original period—1948–1966. History The ...

and the Goodwood Festival of Speed meetings. The club also organises many smaller "club racing" meetings, featuring such classes as Classic

Formula Ford Formula Ford, also known as F1600 and Formula F, is an entry-level class of single-seater, open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held across the world have historically been an important step for many prospective Formula One dri ...

, Caterhams,

Clubmans The Clubman is a class of prototype front-engined sports racing cars that originated in Britain in 1965 as a low-cost formula for open-top, front-engined roadgoing sports cars like the Lotus 7, which had been crowded out of the mainstream by r ...

and Legend Cars. As well as the many events organised by the headquarters at Thruxton, certain BARC regions organise race meetings too. There are five centres in the UK and one in Canada
the Midlands Centrethe South Western Centrethe Wales Centre
an
the Yorkshire Centre
As well as the BARC's own events, the club frequently is the national appointed club for visiting international series. For example, in 1995 the BARC organised the first ever UK round of the FIA International Touring Car series. The club had a particularly active role in organising

A1 Grand Prix A1 Grand Prix Operations Ltd. operated as A1 Grand Prix (A1GP) was a "single-make" open-wheel auto racing series that ran from 2005 until 2009. It was unique in its field in that competitors solely represented their nation as opposed to themse ...

and the

Grand Prix Masters Grand Prix Masters was a one-make motor racing series featuring retired Formula One drivers. The inaugural (and sole 2005) event, at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit in South Africa, took place on 11–13 November, but the series folded after a ...

series, both at home and abroad. The BARC is also in the unusual situation of running race circuits. As well as the home of the club at Thruxton, in 1990 they signed a 50-year lease on

Pembrey Circuit Pembrey Circuit is a motor racing circuit near Pembrey village, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is the home of Welsh motorsport, providing racing for cars, motorcycles, karts and trucks. The circuit's facilities have also been used for a single-venue ...

in south Wales and in 2006, the BARC took on

Croft Circuit Croft Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire, England. The tarmac circuit is long and is based on the lands of an airfield, but has long since moved on from being a basic airfield circuit. The circuit ...

, near Darlington and so bringing the total number of circuits owned to three.

Other activities

The BARC runs more than just race meetings. As well as the

Goodwood Festival of Speed The Goodwood Festival of Speed is an annual motorsports festival featuring modern and historic motor racing vehicles taking part in a hillclimbing, hillclimb and other events, held in Goodwood House, West Sussex, in late June or early July. Th ...

, the club organises a number of

hillclimbs Hillclimbing, also known as hill climbing, speed hillclimbing, or speed hill climbing, is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course. It is one of the oldest forms of motorsport, since the firs ...

and sprints. These include meetings at Gurston Down near

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and Harewood

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

both BARC Venues. More recently it organizes the Coventry Motofest and in 2018 it was the first event to be held on public roads since the law change in 2017. The club also has a social side, with a number of events over a year including regional dinners and the ''Big Night Out'', the latter being held every year in February. It is the club's awards night celebrating the previous years champions. The BARC partnered with Racing Pride in 2019 to support greater inclusivity across the British motorsport industry for LGBT+ fans, employees and drivers

BARC-Ontario Centre

Due to the existence of a regional 'Centre' in Ontario, Canada, the club has a role in organising

Ice Racing Ice racing is a form of racing that uses cars, motorcycles, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, or other motorized vehicles. Ice racing takes place on frozen lakes or rivers, or on groomed frozen lots. As cold weather is a requirement for natural ...

events. In 2010 the Kendall Award for the most successful BARC-Ontario driver, in events held outside the region of Ontario, went to

Robert Wickens Robert Tyler Wickens (born March 13, 1989) is a Canadians, Canadian racing driver from Guelph, Ontario, driving in the Sprint Cup of the IMSA SportsCar Championship for DXDT Racing. In 2009 he finished in second place in the 2009 FIA Formula Two ...

References

External links

BARC official website:BARC Ontario Centre:BARC Wales official site
{{British motor racing circuits Motorsport organisations in the United Kingdom 1912 establishments in the United Kingdom Sports organizations established in 1912