The first "car race"
12/19/2011
The ride from Paris to Rouen on July 22, 1894 went down in history as the first car race.
This first competition took place without any regulations, as there was no idea at the time what and how a race could or should be regulated.
It was written at the time: "The competition is open to all types of vehicles, provided that they are not dangerous, can be easily controlled by the driver and do not cost too much money."
It was probably the only race ever to be held so openly and free of regulations. This first competition was not an actual race, as it was not only judged on speed, but also on ease of use, comfort, safety and convenience for the occupants.
The race was not organized by an automobile club, as there were no such organizations at the time, but by the Parisian newspaper "Petit Journal".
The prize at the time was 5,000 gold francs. At the current price of gold, this was probably more than a GP driver would receive for a victory today.
Numerous entries called for a preliminary round, as vehicles were entered that were only available as drawings. Vehicles that were completely unusable for the road were eliminated in advance.
All possible types of drive were entered. In addition to "conventional" petrol or steam-powered vehicles, there were also vehicles powered by gravity, the weight of the passengers, hydraulics, compressed air, levers or pendulums.
Of the 102 registered vehicles, exactly 26 appeared at the end of the pre-test, all of which were either steam or gasoline-powered. At the start of the 126 km long journey, 21 vehicles lined up at the Port Maillot in Paris. There was a one-hour lunch break halfway through the journey in Nantes.
The Comte de Dion 's 2-ton steam car drove to a clear start-finish victory, but fell behind in the rankings as the car was neither easy to handle nor easy to maneuver. Not only its weight, but also the consumption of 800 liters of water and the necessary heater on board were its undoing.
Two winners were chosen: "Panhard et Levassor" on the one hand and "Les fils de Peugeot Frères" on the other. They completed the 126 km in less than 6 hours at an average speed of 20.47 km/h. Both vehicles were powered by gasoline engines from M. Daimler in Würtemberg.
