From September 2 to 4, 2022, Solitude GmbH is reviving the acceleration race at Samedan airfield under the umbrella of the International St. Moritz Automobile Week. Sprinting from a standing start over 1000 meters as in the founding year of 1929, around 80 selected motorcycles and cars will be at the start.
Heavyweights and long-distance travelers
The active circle of friends of American La France riders around Christoph Karle will be putting on a special spectacle. Six of these displacement giants from the 1920s will take on the route over the 2284-metre-high Julier Pass.
Michael Barbach from Vienna has to cover almost 700 kilometers to St. Moritz in his Volkswagen Type 60, the so-called Berlin-Rome car designed by Ferdinand Porsche in 1939. Back then, around 35 hp was enough to accelerate the 650-kilogram lightweight aluminum car to 145 km/h. Stephen Murkett has gone even further. He is driving his Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupé from England to Stuttgart this week in order to then drive the seven-liter eight-cylinder the remaining 400 kilometers to St. Moritz next week.
A prototype of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster has also been announced. With prototype number 6 - immediately recognizable by the additional headlights mounted in the radiator grille and the still first official letter-digit sequence of the license plate - Eberhard Mahle took eight first places, four second places, one third place and one fourth place in 14 races between 1960 and 1962. This makes Mahle the most successful racing driver in Europe in a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. The current owner acquired the unrestored roadster in spring 2021 and will be presenting it at the Kilomètre Lance at Engadin Airport from September 2 to 4, 2022.
Fast two-wheelers
With starting number 1, the Brough Superior SS 100 takes the sprint under its wheels. Until the Second World War, the motorcycles with the 70 hp twin were considered the world's fastest and best-finished machines. Ewan Cameron brings the 1926 superbike from England to Samedan airfield near St. Moritz to compete with Harley-Davidson "Two Cam" and Indian "Daytona".
All in all, the Kilomètre Lancé will be a journey through motorcycle history. In addition to Benelli, Ducati and MV Agusta, there will also be two Münch bikes at the start, commemorating not only the birth of the "big bikes" in the 1970s, but also Gunter Sachs, who lived in St. Moritz for a time. His extroverted lifestyle made him the prototype of a playboy in the 1960s and 1970s. His fleet of vehicles also included a Münch 4 TTS.
Beauty in motion
For the first time, the "Driven by Design" design award will also be presented, in which the vehicles will be judged at full speed. This is when a car or motorcycle appeals to all the senses. An international jury of six designers will evaluate the participating vehicles on Saturday. On Sunday, jury members Tony Hatter, Prof. James Kelly, Harm Lagaaij, Stephen Murkett, Britta Pukall and Frank Rinderknecht will discuss car design using the Porsche 959 as an example.
You can find more information about the event at www.kilometre-lance.com. All six events of the Intern. St. Moritz Automobile Week are summarized on the community homepage www.i-s-a-w.com.
