The Steckborn-Eichhölzli Hill Climb Memorial took place for the fourth time on September 22 and 23, 2018, following the events in 2007, 2010 and 2015.
Around 300 vehicles were at the start, mostly vintage cars and some motorcycles, as well as a few newer vehicles. They tackled the 2.9-kilometer race track in perfect late summer weather conditions.
A village in a state of emergency
Steckborn is a comparatively small Thurgau village with less than 4000 inhabitants who have the privilege of living on the beautiful Untersee, the lower part of Lake Constance. With 7000 visitors, the population doubles or triples at the Memorial.
This means that the village is always very busy and there is hardly an association that is not involved in some way in the preparation or organization.
Lots of local color
Of the 300 participants in 2018, 92 came from the canton of Thurgau and, believe it or not, 23 from the village of Steckborn. Apparently, enthusiasm for old cars is in the blood of the people of Thurgau and Steckborn. And the spectators were also treated to a full dose of Thurgau dialect. Instead of organizing professional commentators, local car connoisseurs commented on the scenery on the Bergrund circuit themselves.
They skillfully passed the ball to each other and divided up the individual topics in such a way that the audience didn't get bored either. However, anyone who couldn't relate to the Thurgau dialect would be best advised to cover their ears in view of the generously sounded racetrack.
Cultivating tradition
The mountain race from Steckborn to Eichhölzli took place for the first time in 1955, back then of course as a real race with timekeeping. After the rather ad hoc first event, it took seven years before the Steckborn hill climb was held for the second time in 1962. This time the Catholics were upset because the date in April coincided with "White Sunday". Apparently the interventions were successful, as there was no further mountain race until 2007, when the "Memorial" was launched for the first time.
In order not to overburden the village, the event was not held annually in the past, but the three-year interval has proved its worth over the last 11 years.
Elaborate organization
The secret of the Steckborn Memorial's success lies in the general organization and the wide range of vehicles on offer. 300 cars and motorcycles is a large number of four- and two-wheeled vehicles for which space must be found in the village and which must be technically approved. However, this was also achieved without any major problems in 2018 and so the first "race" could be started on time on Saturday morning.
There is no timekeeping, as the necessary track safety would be far too complex and therefore too expensive. After all, spectators can enjoy the action in the grandstands for a small fee and the race program is also available for just a few francs.
Broad cross-section
And there was plenty to see. The vehicles were divided into 12 fields, with one for Italian cars, one for German cars and one for British cars. Two further fields were defined for the motorcycles and sidecars.
There were many rare four-wheelers in the Corso, which were less race-like but all the more elegant. They were followed by a small group of contemporary electric vehicles, without which even a classic car event is obviously no longer possible.
The pre-war vehicles also had their own field and everything that did not fit into the groups already mentioned was then found either in the "Miscellaneous and French Vehicles" field or in the "US Cars and Cobra", the racing cars (two-seater and single-seater) and the show program.
From the Alfa Romeo Giulia to the VW Golf
Many of the vehicles taking to the starting grid will certainly have looked familiar to the public, as they shaped our roads a few decades ago or still do today (in a modernized form).
An Alfa Romeo Giulia, a BMW 2002, a Ford Escort, a Porsche 356, an Opel Kadett and a VW Golf were probably familiar to everyone in the audience.
But there were not only these well-known classics on display, but also some rarities that can otherwise only be admired at club meetings or at the Concours d'Elégance.
Who would know straight away what a Simca Aronde Etoile 6 from 1961, a Jawa 600 Roadster from 1940 or a Derby K4 from 1929 looked like?
Two American La France
The two American LaFrance with six-cylinder engines with a displacement of around 14 liters were certainly among the crowd's favourites. The brute-sounding speedsters, which were mostly created from fire engines by shortening the wheelbase, produced around 100 hp (or a little more).
The enormous torque is transmitted to the rear axle via a chain, and brakes were once only available at the rear. Of course, these cars also lacked power assistance, so Opel garage owner Ruedi Schawalder and Roland Britschgi had plenty to do behind the wheel of the two-ton vehicles.
Toni Schais' special
Toni Schai is one of the few drivers who competed in Steckborn back in the sixties.
Just like back then, he let the DKW two-stroke engine of his self-built Special, which he completely restored a few years ago, scream away and rode through the bends up to Eichhölzli quite swiftly.
However, he was not yet the oldest participating driver, as there were other sprightly octogenarians waiting at the start!
Great atmosphere
The atmosphere on both race days was relaxed, the audience was offered a lot, there were only a few interruptions. One, however, occurred on Sunday morning when the organizers received a bomb threat and 300 people had to be evacuated as a result.
The police moved in, but despite the deployment of specialized dogs, nothing suspicious could be found (thank goodness), so it was probably a bad joke. Was it a racing opponent who displayed this unsportsmanlike behavior? The perpetrator has not yet been identified and is still under investigation.
Again in three years?
In any case, the course announcers and the organization around OC President Kurt Krucker were not demotivated and there was already talk of holding the event again in three years' time. The praise of Marcel Fässler, who drove up the mountain in the Audi Quattro Group 4 on Sunday, certainly helped in this respect: "I have rarely experienced such an enthusiastic, enthusiastic audience as here in Steckborn".
One of the track announcers mentioned as a suggestion for improvement that they would like to see visitors in Steckborn dressed in more historical costumes with a view of Goodwood.
However, it must be said that the spectators certainly had good reason to be satisfied, as it is rare to be able to admire so many beautiful and interesting cars (and motorcycles) being used in such good conditions.
The icing on the cake was the "show program", in which Fässler was joined by the famous Swiss motorcycle racer Bruno Kneubühler on a 1963 Honda RC 163R and Eugen Strähl in a 1978 Sauber C5 and Edy Kobelt in a 1964 Ford Cortina Lotus.
And it's not every day that you see a Lancia Stratos or a March 781 Formula 2 in Steckborn.
Over 400 pictures of the participating vehicles can be seen in the specially created picture gallery .
