Wouldn't an onboard camera be great...? (Part 1)

by Riccardo Monza on Mar 20th, 2009

'Hey, let's wait 'til they show the onboard view of that overtake! It'll be fantastic!' How many of us have thought that or even said it? Probably most. The truth is that having views of an F1 race from onboard the car has become the norm in the sport. We now have in the modern era, at the very least, a small camera mounted on the airbox behind the driver's head on all the cars.

Since the dawn of F1 in 1950, people who love the sport could only dream of hitching a ride from their favourite driver and the idea of having an onboard camera recording footage throughout the actual race was the stuff of James Bond and science-fiction. Many attempts were made, some more successful than others. The aims were to have the camera small enough so it wouldn't be obtrusive; strong and durable enough to withstand the vibrations of the car; and securely attached so that the following driver wouldn't end up with it falling in his lap! And cameras did fall off, and were banned from being used during actual Grands Prix. Much of the old footage sitting in the archive is therefor taken from practice sessions or demonstrations and shot on good old celluloid film. Nevertheless, these are still really great to see!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwZe_SWzMJ0

One of the most notable clips from the 1950's, is of Juan Manuel Fangio driving around the Modena circuit in Italy. We see the five times World Champion relaxed and in control of his Maserati, letting it slide round the corners missing the curbs by inches. He doesn't look bothered at all by the close proximity of the hedges to the track! The clip is actually three recordings edited together, displaying different angles of the master at work during a testing session. Note the lovely big steering wheel and short sleeved shirt - well, it was a warm day!

Let's travel back to 1966, and a feature film called Grand Prix funnily enough, was being shot around the world. As the story went from circuit to circuit, the viewer was treated to some truly superb onboard footage. Here we see cars negotiating the ultra high speed Monza circuit. No fiddly first gear chicanes to be seen here, just fast sweeps and the incredible banking! There are several cameras at different positions around the car giving good views of the driver's incredible concentration, and how vulnerable the car seems as it bounces over the bumps. Many of the cars in the film are F3 cars mocked-up to look like F1 cars of the time, as it happens.

One year later it's 1967 and we're at the Nurburgring. The footage is recorded from a camera mounted on a sort of dummy car that follows the real racing car! And in the real racing car which is a Lola-BMW, is Hubert Hahne. What we have here is a fabulous view from of the daunting, unrelenting roller-coaster 14 mile circuit with a splendid old-school commentary and groovy music. Safety wasn't a very big issue in those days! Note the absence of armco crash barriers, tyre walls, or even catch fencing on most of the course. All that the driver had to slow him if he lost control were just a hedges, bushes and trees! It's like being on a normal country lane! For fans of the Nurburgring it's possible to record your own onboard footage these days with your iPhone thingy at one of the circuit's many open days. There's your answer for this year's summer holiday!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xez2zks5Rxw

• Click here for part 2 of onboard cameras