WORLD'S OLDEST MOTOR SPORT VENUE CELEBRATES 100 YEARS WITH RETURN OF 1930s AUTO UNION
A legendary Auto Union Grand Prix racing car re-visits Shelsley Walsh next weekend (18-20 August) to commemorate the famous hill climb's Centenary celebrations as the World's oldest motor sport location.
Auto Union - the forerunner of the Audi brand we know today - and the Worcestershire hill climb venue are inextricably linked after Hans Stück Senior raced up the hill climb almost 70 years ago (6 June, 1936) as part of the prestigious European Hill Climb Championship.
Stück, crowned the "Bergmesiter" ("King of the Hill"), drove a special 5.3-litre "lightweight" hill climb version of the V16 Grand Prix Auto Union C-Type at the invitation of the organising Midland Automobile Club.
Auto Union dominated the sport by winning 18 out of 23 European mountain climbs between 1934-39 and compared to those mighty courses which varied between 4-13 miles long, Shelsley was nothing more than a 1,100-yard uphill "squirt". These were the Grand Prix cars of their time.
In practice, Shelsley's 10-foot wide farm track shuddered beneath the European Hill Climb champion's Auto Union as its ear-splitting 520-horsepower, six-litre engine punched through the short-wheelbase Bergwagen's twin-rim rear wheels to rocket him to the summit.
The event itself was virtually washed out by heavy rain and Stück, who had driven over from his native Austria in a Horch coupé, had to settle for a tail-wagging fifth place (45.2secs) despite using only second gear throughout his run to lessen wheel-spin.Tens of thousands of spectators filled the hillsides around Shelsley that weekend and another large crowd is expected next weekend.
An original 1939 Auto Union V12 'D' Type Grand Prix racing car, prepared by restoration specialists, Hall and Hall, will run at Shelsley as part of the celebrations.
Shelsley Walsh's Centenary meeting is over three days. Friday is a practice day, Saturday (20 Aug) is a round of the British Hill Climb Championship, whilst Sunday is the highpoint with cars dating from the very first meeting in 1905.
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PICTURE CAPTIONS (available to download from www.audi-press.co.uk/ and/or www.newspress.co.uk/):
In at the birth of motorsport in Britain: An Auto Union competed at the Shelsley Walsh hill climb almost 70 years ago when Hans Stück Senior drove a modified C-Type from the German maker - the forerunner of Audi as we know it today. Shelsley Walsh is claimed to be the World's first motorsport venue with action dating back 100 years.
A legendary Auto Union Grand Prix racing car re-visits Shelsley Walsh next weekend (18-20 August) to commemorate the famous hill climb's Centenary celebrations as the World's oldest motor sport location.
Auto Union - the forerunner of the Audi brand we know today - and the Worcestershire hill climb venue are inextricably linked after Hans Stück Senior raced up the hill climb almost 70 years ago (6 June, 1936) as part of the prestigious European Hill Climb Championship.
Stück, crowned the "Bergmesiter" ("King of the Hill"), drove a special 5.3-litre "lightweight" hill climb version of the V16 Grand Prix Auto Union C-Type at the invitation of the organising Midland Automobile Club.
Auto Union dominated the sport by winning 18 out of 23 European mountain climbs between 1934-39 and compared to those mighty courses which varied between 4-13 miles long, Shelsley was nothing more than a 1,100-yard uphill "squirt". These were the Grand Prix cars of their time.
In practice, Shelsley's 10-foot wide farm track shuddered beneath the European Hill Climb champion's Auto Union as its ear-splitting 520-horsepower, six-litre engine punched through the short-wheelbase Bergwagen's twin-rim rear wheels to rocket him to the summit.
The event itself was virtually washed out by heavy rain and Stück, who had driven over from his native Austria in a Horch coupé, had to settle for a tail-wagging fifth place (45.2secs) despite using only second gear throughout his run to lessen wheel-spin.Tens of thousands of spectators filled the hillsides around Shelsley that weekend and another large crowd is expected next weekend.
An original 1939 Auto Union V12 'D' Type Grand Prix racing car, prepared by restoration specialists, Hall and Hall, will run at Shelsley as part of the celebrations.
Shelsley Walsh's Centenary meeting is over three days. Friday is a practice day, Saturday (20 Aug) is a round of the British Hill Climb Championship, whilst Sunday is the highpoint with cars dating from the very first meeting in 1905.
