Michael Schumacher wasn't there but his Ferrari was and everybody in the Phoenix Park paid due homage, writes Brian Foley.
Like dedicated religious followers at a shrine of their calling, admiring crowds stood in reverent silence in the packed to capacity Phoenix Park paddock on Saturday to pay due homage to the awesome flame-red Ferrari Formula One car, which was raced by the great Michael Schumacher in 1999.
A different Michael, Michael Cullen, the quintessential modern Dublin motor mogul, business tycoon and experienced wealthy amateur Ferrari Modena (GT) motor racer, was entrusted with driving this high tech Grand Prix machine on a circuit that hosted the Irish Grand Prix in 1929-31.
But all was not well as Cullen met in deep consultation with the trio of Italian race engineers to discuss serious problems of double vision, bottoming of the suspension and difficulty of high speed directional control as the huge tyres were in conflict with the vagaries of the Park road surfaces and cambers.
While they set about virtually re-engineering the car, adjusting the ride height, aerodynamics and tyre pressures to make the car driveable on a road circuit as opposed to the billard table smooth Formula One tracks, the whiff of barbeques wafted around the paddock, mixing with the intoxicating smell of petrol and oil.
A relaxed Paul Heavey and Ken Elliott were celebrating a 1-2 success for Heavey's Co Kildare-built Leastone cars in a wheel-to-wheel dice in the Formula Vee race.
There was more success for Irish-built racing cars, in the Crossle-dominated first and last races of the weekend, won respectively by Ulsterman Geoff McConville and Laois-born Ray Moore Brian Hearty (Dundalk) won the Formula Sheane-Rover race in one of David Sheane's cars built down in Blainroe, Co Wicklow.
Father and daughter Gordon Kellett and recently married Jenny both finished fifth in their respective Fiat Uno races, and then Jenny put one over her delighted dad with a third place. Her husband Bob Copeland also had a third place finish. Jim O'Reilly powered his Porsche 911 to a unique triple race win, and the Griffin motorsport Dublin family honour was duly upheld by Bill Griffin driving a Fiat Punto Abarth.
Sunday dawned dull and Michael Cullen glanced anxiously at the cloudy skies, not exactly elated at the daunting prospect of unleashing all 800 wild horses of the Ferrari Formula One car on a wet track. Happily the rain held off, and after the ritual warming- up of the engine, putting on fresh tyres, and removing the tyres warmers, he stepped into the Ferrari. A mechanic inserted the compressed air bottle to fire up the glorious sounding V10 engine.
Top speed on the straight was 167mph. Afterwards Cullen nonchantly remarked: "I just couldn't push it any further." The engineers then raced to Dublin Airport but couldn't get out of the Park with so much traffic, and missed their flight.
As the crowds drifted home, the teams, the exhibitors and the caters packed up their gear, Ken Elliott and Paul Heavey celebrated another Formula Vee 1-2, this time Elliott took the chequered flag in the Leastone borrowed from Crossle race winner Ray Moore.
Elliott and David Heavey will race this weekend in the British Formula Vee Championship at Silverstone, and Paul Heavey is back in Co Kildare making more Leastone Formula Vee racers and trying to get his racing car exports to the USA off the ground.
The Phoenix Park has now been returned to the runners, the families on picnic and the deer. The sight and sound of a Formula One Ferrari will most likely never be experienced again by the Phoenix Park fans, but the Vees will be back in the Park next year and will continue to be the backbone of Irish racing at grassroots level.