Gaisbergrennen 2011 - a dog as oncoming traffic at the City Grand Prix
As is tradition, the Gaisbergrennen paper drop-off took place yesterday at Hellbrunn Palace and, as usual, I got lost on the way there. Thank goodness there were enough other participants on the road so that I was able to join them at any time and finally arrive safely in the castle courtyard. Then I quickly collected the start numbers and a rally pack in my rucksack. Next, I attached the start numbers and also got the transponder (for the time measurements) fitted. With all these things done, we could now enjoy admiring the vehicles arriving drop by drop. And there was also a lot to see.
The Ferrari 375 MM from 1953, which had just been admired extensively at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, was parked in the castle courtyard. And the Lancia D24 racing car, which had competed against this very 375 MM in Sebring many years ago, was also added later on the Residenzplatz. While the majority of the vehicles taking part this year were also from the post-war period, a pleasing number of pre-war vehicles such as Invicta, Riley, Buick, Alvis and a whole horde of BMW 328s had also found their way to the castle.
Shortly after 12 noon, we set off for the center of Salzburg with the aim of heading for Residenzplatz in starting number order. Well, it didn't quite work out, but in the end everyone was there and showed off their vehicles. The square is not small, but when 180 vehicles and several thousand spectators come together, there is quite a crowd, as was the case yesterday.
At 3 p.m., in largely dry weather, the City Grand Prix started with the old vehicles in front of 20,000 enthusiastic spectators. And leading the way was the Lohner Porsche from 1901 with hybrid drive. This was probably the first time in many years that it had been presented to the public on the road.
Each participant had to complete five laps with even sections and, thanks to the discipline of the drivers, the only really dangerous situation was due to a dog trying to lap the field against the direction of travel. Thankfully, everyone was able to take evasive action and everything went off without a hitch.
After the City Grand Prix, the vehicles were driven back to the paddock or to the hotels and in the evening, experiences and insights were exchanged over a traditional Salzburgerland meal at the Zistelalm. A number of drivers who took part in the old Gaisberg race in the fifties and sixties were also applauded, including Prince Leopold of Bavaria, Reinhard Fischer and Dieter Quester.
