Yes, you wouldn't want to overturn in a stark open car of that sort. The possibility must exist of truly horrendous injury. But it's surprising how often people get away with rolling those cars, although the financial cost must hurt a lot. Bugattis are very light by vintage standards of course. Ettore Bugatti famously called Bentleys 'lorries'.
Hillclimb drivers are very gung-ho. The most intrepid I saw on my one visit to Shelsley Walsh was the driver of a vast, very high but completely stark Edwardian racer, more or less just a chassis - rails above the roadwheel (wooden artillery wheels too) centrelines - with some sort of snorting 4 cylinder 24-litre Zeppelin engine under a bonnet, long steering column, driver, no helmet, sitting in a bucket seat on top of that monster. It didn't display any handling vices though so perhaps he wasn't really trying. Unlike a thing called a Bentley/Royce, vintage Bentley chassis with a RR V12 engine. That understeered and oversteered in rapid succession like a forties American jalopy, looked a real handful.
Hang about near the Shelsley Walsh hairpin at a VSCC meeting. You are sure to see a couple of things.
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He's very, very lucky. In period, plenty of cars got crashed and repaired - their drivers got killed.
I disagree with the MSA rule whereby you have to wear fireproof overalls for against the clock competition. In an unbelted situation and without a rollover bar, you are better off wearing leathers as for motorbike racing. In the USA, many old competition cars that are still competing get roll cages added, but the weight of all that metal high up makes a roll a more likely event.
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Bugatti - Classic escape - Armel Coussine
