The Journey of a Fulfilled Child

Often, I thought I was choosing the right path to live my passion for cars, but obstacles arose as if to prove to me that the path is just as exciting when it multiplies.

The kind of obstacle like finishing second in the Elf car when I was the favorite.

The kind of obstacle like waiting to take over from Anthony Beltoise at the 2011 24 Hours of Le Mans and watching Allan McNish's #03 Audi pulverize against our Ferrari 458. We'll never make up for the forty minutes of repairs. The footage of that accident is still replayed endlessly on video platforms, allowing you to feel, for a fleeting moment, a tiny fraction of the terror that gripped me at that instant. At first, Beltoise was accused of making a mistake in his racing line, but later, the miraculously unharmed McNish apologized and explained his error in judgment. The kind of mistake that can be measured in a quarter of a second and that reshapes a life path you'd hoped was set since childhood.

My dad owned a BMC dealership in Strasbourg, which, incidentally, allowed my mom to ride in the second Mini imported into France in '59. I was one year old. I was pedaling in my first Ferrari at the time. Jean-Daniel, my brother, twelve years my senior, was already successfully competing in local races. He was my role model.

At the age of eight, during a summer holiday in Brittany, I finally made my entrance into the world of motorsport: at the Crio laundry detergent "Grand Prix" in the Quimperlé town square. This detergent brand, well-known for hiding a toy car in each box, organized races to the delight of children in provincial towns. My father had signed me up to compete on this small, makeshift track made of straw bales. There had been some negotiation because I wasn't the minimum age of 10 required to drive the replica racing cars of the time. In the end, I won the qualifying races and was crowned champion after winning the final at the wheel of a Ferrari powered by a lawnmower engine. My first podium finish.

Ten years later, my name in the newspaper "Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace" earned me a good scolding from Mom, much to Dad's amusement and pride. I had just gotten my driver's license and had very discreetly borrowed Mom's car to participate in a slalom race. I won my class , and the journalist covering the event titled the article "The Next Generation, the Little Brother Jakubowski." My Mom knew nothing of my escapades in her own car.

Throughout my travels, I've often crossed paths with my first love: Ferraris. The two-stroke Ferrari I had when I was eight years old has certainly evolved! While managing my own Ferrari dealership, I won the French GT Hill Climb Championship two years in a row, undefeated, in a Ferrari 355. Later, at Magny-Cours, during the same weekend, two Ferraris allowed me to reach four podium finishes. I competed in four races in two days, with the 355 in the Ferrari European Challenge and with the F40 LM in the French Circuit Racing Championship.

Even though I was never a professional pilot, I always managed to live my passion. Regardless of engine power, I rediscover the undiminished pleasure of my sweet childhood memories.

The (red) apple never falls far from the tree!

Thanks to my brother for inspiring me to take such exciting paths.

François JAKUBOWSKI for MyLittleRedCar

Back issues of AutoHeroes are still available: AutoHeroes Newsstand