The weather forecast for May 1st was bad, very bad, long beforehand and it turned out exactly as predicted. The car thermometer read a chilly five degrees at 6:30 in the morning. To make matters worse, it wasn't going to get much warmer.
The landscape was cloudy and wet on the drive from central Switzerland to the canton of Aargau. A gloomy picture for an eagerly awaited day.
Hardly any cancellations!
It was clear that not everyone would arrive under such circumstances. Nevertheless, the number of cancellations was limited. In the end, only the following eleven cars were not at the start: Lotus Elan, Austin Healey BN1, Alfa Giulia Ti Super, Lancia Fulvia Zagato Sport, De Tomaso Pantera GT3, Enzmann 506, Jaguar E-Type Lightweight, Cooper T77 F1, Martini F2, GRD F2, Amweg BMW AW276 and the Centenari MAC3-02. Whether pneumonia, a severe cold or simply the lack of rain tires - there were certainly sensible reasons for not taking part and of course there was a lot of whispering about it in the paddock.
Pure passion
The priest spoke a lot about passion at the mass and this was exactly what was needed to get up at four o'clock in the morning on a day like this and set off in an open-top pre-war racing car towards Mutschellen with the prospect of spending a day in the cold and rain
When asked about the holy water for the blessing of the vehicles, the priest casually referred to the rain and said: "I think there's enough coming from above!"
Against the weather
But now to the positive part of the event, which, apart from the weather, was one hundred percent positive. Zone 30 was lifted for one day and the racing cars were given free rein.
With smoke and flames, the hill was stormed with much enthusiasm.
The course was the same as it had been for the past six years. The only difference was that the surface was much more slippery. However, this pleased the real racers, including the two Maserati drivers Kurt Hasler and Georg Kaufmann.
Whether in the pre-war or post-war Grand Prix monoposto with the famous trident, the drivers had a great time.
Siffert's son in the Siffert Lotus
For once, Peter Studer gave his Lotus cockpit to the son of its famous previous owner, albeit not entirely voluntarily. In 1962, Trevor Taylor sat in the car, in 1963 Jo Siffert from Fribourg took over the steering wheel and for once his son Philipe was able to take a seat in the monoposto.
He had already demonstrated his father's talent on several previous occasions, and so he once again lived up to his famous name in the Lotus.
The picture of the British-racing-green monoposto with the yellow stripe and the bright red helmet with the Swiss cross in the rain-soaked green landscape with the yellow rape in the background created a wonderful picture that could hardly be better composed.
Rain test
Race director Sepp Ludin, equipped with the brand new black ACS Reitnau rain jacket, would have liked a lot more rain just to put the jacket to a real test, as he was promised that it would not let a single drop through for at least a whole day.
Firebug
The only participant at risk of blisters on Sunday was Louis Frey from Muri. With his Gaggenau Rolls 27 from 1934 and an incredible 27,000 cc and a whopping 1,000 hp, he was the only one with real fire under the roof, or rather under the hood!
With spitting flames and a brute sound, it roared through the overcast landscape. The firebug from Muri quickly became a crowd favorite.
Unbridled enthusiasm
Given the weather, one might have expected a much smaller crowd. But they came anyway, and although they got wet and dirty, they were certainly not disappointed.
Enthusiasm was evident on all faces, whether hidden under hats or hoods and whether old or young.
