Birthday : 1934-04-10
Deceased : 1964-08-02
Biography Carel Godin de Beaufort
Carol Godin De Beaufort began racing in a Porsche spyder in 1956. As a F1 pilot, de Beaufort made occasional Grand Prix appearances until 1961, when he acquired a Porsche 718. The car saw extensive service over the next four season. His greatest success came in 1963 with two second places in the Syracuse and Rome Grands Prix and a third in the Austrian GP at Zeltweg. He was killed in practice for the German Grand Prix in 1964. The last true amateur driver to compete in Grand Prix racing on a regular basis.
Carel Godin de Beaufort changed from a rather erratic dilettante in his early days into a much more serious and competent and respected driver without losing his perenially sunny disposition.
Race Career
Carol Godin de Beaufort began his racing career with production Porsche spyders in 1956. He was soon itching to pit himself against the stars of the day, racing his Porsche RSK sports car in the Formula 2 category of the 1957 German Grand Prix. One of the races he competed in in 1957 was the Mille Miglia, that turned out to be the very last ever raced. He had to content himself, however, with occasional Grand Prix outings until the 1961 season, when he acquired the elderly ex-Moss Rob Walker four-cylinder Porsche 718. The Porsche was the only contemporary F1 car in which he could insert his large frame and he constantly referred to it as Fatty Porsche
This car saw extensive service over the next four seasons, the broad-shouldered Count, invariably driving in stockinged feet, battling nobly against more powerful fuel-injected cars. He raced the orange painted beast under the banner of Ecurie Maarsbergen, his own team which was named for his chateau, entering in non-championship events all across Europe. His greatest success came in 1963 with two-second places in the Syracuse and Rome Grands Prix and a third in the Austrian GP at Zeltweg.
De Beaufort plugged away into the 1964 season with the by-now veteran Porsche. In the practice sessions for the German Grand Prix, he crashed heavily at the Bergwerk corner. His car ended up in a tree and Carel Godin de Beaufort was thrown out. Medics immediately transported de Beaufort to the nearest hospital in Koblenz. Unfortunately to no avail, Carel Godin de Beaufort died in hospital three days later from his injuries. It was a sad end to the career of this genial amateur who, although regarded as something of a dilettante in his early years, had matured into a competent and responsible competitor by the time of his death.
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