1969 Hardback
Author: T R Nicholson
273 pages
Unique book on the very British sport of Speed Hillclimbing and speed trials up to 1925 when most of them took place on public roads not exactly legally....
Closing the roads in Britain for motor sport was always been against the law (until the Birmingham street race in 1986) but a blind-eye was usual turned in rural areas where all the major names of the time could be found blasting up hills and along straight stretches of road against the clock at hundreds of these events each year.
Famous drivers who were prominent in the sport included Raymond Mays, Malcolm Campbell, Henry Segrave, J A Joyce, Archie Frazer-Nash, Basil Davenport and Parry Thomas.
Venues included Spread Eagle, Kop, SunRising, Caerphilly , Angel Bank, Holme Moss and the wonderfully names Thundersley Church (in Essex) as well as a few private-road venues that are still in use now such as Madiera Drive (Bright speed trials) and Shelsley Walsh.
The sport was so important at the time that works cars from AC, Sunbeam, Vauxhall, GN, Alvis etc were often entered along with hoards of Morgans, Austins, Morris', Bentleys, Bugattis and so forth.
It all came to an end in 1925 when a fairly minor accident led to a spectator's led being broken at Kop Hill and a sudden panic by the motor sport authorities who overnight ceased issuing permits for such events in case they were hit by a legal action (nothing changes , does it?)
Masses of results , reports and descriptions of long-forgotten hillclimbs all over the British Isles plus photos.
Superb book. Very rare these days.
This one is very smart and has a very clean, tidy jacket, a little worn at the edges and with a small price label on the front which we havn't attempted to remove.
Generally as good as you are likely to find
01594 839369 
