The 2014 edition of the Grand Prix Caracciola on June 19-21, 2014 can be considered a great success. Almost everything was new at the three-day event. And the audience joined in. In Kassel's Königsstraße alone, 8,000 spectators watched the start, while thousands lined the route through central Germany.
"Mille Miglia in North Hessian"
The editor of one of the highest-circulation newspapers in North Hesse called the Grand Prix Caracciola "Mille Miglia in North Hessian" and thus accurately described the character of the still young rally. As a crowd-puller, it was clearly reminiscent of the great model from Italy. And the fact that only 1000 km are driven instead of miles is not a flaw, but rather a strength. And the fact that vehicles built up to 1973 are permitted makes the event attractive even for less well-off classic car owners.
Equal opportunities
All the teams praised not only the course, the route and the beautiful hotels, but first and foremost the equality of opportunity achieved by the teams using stopwatches compared to the professional teams using professional (electronic) equipment in the numerous regularity rankings.
The organization evaluates according to the so-called handicap rating, i.e. the electronic clocks, which are mostly used by foreign teams participating in international classic car rallies such as the Mille Miglia and Gran Premio Nuvolari, may only have a deviation of 30/100, otherwise they receive 300 penalty points. The so-called hourglass drivers may have a deviation of 150/100 and only then receive the internationally standard 300 points on their account.
The pre-war cars were assessed with a time bonus of 30 minutes at the time controls. Only after a delay of 30 minutes did the "pre-creeper" receive corresponding penalty points.
This regulation resulted in an extremely large pre-war field, by no means an everyday occurrence at a classic car rally.
The scoring system is to be further refined for the 2015 Grand Prix Caracciola.
Useful aids
The organization of the driver's passes was also very well received by the participants. Every participant found all the start times for the rally on the back of their driver's pass, saving them having to do the math. Drivers and co-drivers found this innovation very pleasant, as there was plenty to marvel at on the 1000 km route. There was also plenty to do on the not-so-easy special stages (up to 5 stages in a row).
A further expansion is planned for next year: All special stages are then to be set up with pressure hose measurement, so that top drivers from southern Europe will also find their way to Kassel The evaluation of the 2014 rally proved that the newly balanced handicap system works. The winner was a team with electronic stopwatches, while places 2-5 went to teams with manual stopwatches. Only the team in 6th place used electronic stopwatches again.
New with prologue
For the first time, an additional prologue was offered, which was very well received, especially by participants with less rally experience. For this reason, there will again be a prologue covering around 250 km in 2015. After all, not everyone drives 1000 km with their automobile heritage. The organization fully understands this.
Great enthusiasm among participants and spectators
The spectators and participants were enthusiastic about the Grand Prix Caracciola, praising the coherent organization and the beautiful surroundings.
However, the organizers are not running out of ideas and are already planning the next event, which is set to become even more international in terms of participants and even more interesting in sporting terms.
The event's website will keep us up to date until the next Grand Prix Caracciola, which is scheduled for June 25-27, 2015. The report on the 2013 event can of course also be found in the Zwischengas archive.
The top finishers in 2014
| Place | Start no. | Vehicle | Year of construction | Nation | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 | Triumph TR3 Sport | 1957 | NL/NL | 1295.25 |
| 2 | 8 | Riley TT Sprite Special | 1935 | D/D | 1755 |
| 3 | 10 | Lagonda M45R | 1935 | CH/D | 1810.35 |
| 4 | 24 | Wartburg 313 Sport | 1959 | D/D | 1874.61 |
| 5 | 41 | Renault Alpine | 1973 | D/D | 2148.66 |
| 6 | 37 | Porsche 911 S | 1969 | NL/NL | 2654.99 |
| 7 | 38 | Mercedes Benz 280 SL | 1969 | D/D | 2952.43 |
| 8 | 47 | Morgan 4/4 | 1980 | D/D | 3112.2 |
| 9 | 32 | Austin Healey MK II | 1963 | D/D | 3308.9 |
| 10 | 28 | Mercedes 190 SL | 1963 | ITA/RUS | 3315.42 |
