FEATURE : FROM THE CHAIRMAN
Burning fossil fuel will become increasingly difficult to justify
Club Chairman Roger Bevan ponders future fuel .
Fuel for thought
Welcome to the 2023 historic racing season with the Historic Sports Car Club . However we look at the coming year , there will be challenges for our sport . The general cost of living rises , global conflict , carnets and the continuing fallout from Brexit are all hurdles to be overcome so that we can once more enjoy the sport we all love . I am confident that the resilience and passion of our racing members will win through and that lots of you will be out enjoying your racing at weekends , just as we have done for half a century . Of course , as ever , we are living in interesting times . While personal and company finances are inevitably an immediate focus , we must also look further ahead to the ever changing fuel situation as our governments lead us towards reduced emissions , electrification and the loss of new cars powered by traditional fossil fuels .
The fact that no new fossil fuel-only vehicles will be available for sale in the UK within less than a decade is a clear reminder that our sport needs to look ahead and address the challenges we will face .
So , I am greatly encouraged that alternatives are being developed and other plans are being formulated to allow our wonderful internal combustion engines to continue to be used into the foreseeable future .
Our magazine editor Paul Lawrence had a long chat with Anders Hildebrand from the Anglo American Oil Company at Autosport International and we are encouraged that opportunities could become available in the coming years .
Importantly , the development of synthetic fuel with little or no carbon emission is high on the agenda . Fuels may be made from agricultural waste or in the case of the work of former F1 engineer Paddy Lowe and his Zero Petroleum organisation , fuel made by direct air capture . This draws carbon out of the atmosphere and is on the way to becoming a reality . It would genuinely be zero emissions from production to consumption if the production process is run from carbon neutral power .
We all recognise that the amount of fossil fuel consumed by historic motor sport is tiny . But we cannot ignore the political and social pressure that is sure to grow as we continue to burn fossil fuels . It is feasible that in five to 10 years we could be running zero carbon fuel in our glorious racing engines . It is a dream , of course , but I believe it is an attainable dream and the club is monitoring developments with keen interest .
If within our membership , we have someone who has better knowledge of this area than we do , I ’ d love them to come forward and perhaps become our go to person as we plot our way through future fuel . It ’ s not a problem right now but it is a future challenge that historic motor sport needs to plan for .
So if you ’ re a bit of an expert in alternative fuels , and would like to become our Special Advisor , I ’ d love to hear from you . In the meantime , I hope you will plan your racing season with us as we have a great line-up of events . I look forward to seeing many of you out and about when the season begins .
The HSCC season starts at Snetterton
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