An exhausting start during a late 30's European Gran Prix.

Prewar Alfa Romeo 8C Monoposto

More Italian curves and angles: http://www.alfistas.es/foro-alfistas/clasicos/2-los-alfa-romeo-historicos-ii-los-12c-de-alfa-romeo/45/

"Rétromobile pays tribute to Thomas Parry and Malcolm Campbell, two great drivers with exceptional careers who shared the same passion, the same desire, the same obsession: going further, faster.

In 1925, Thomas Parry, chief engineer at Leyland Motors, decided to devote his time to land speed records. He built the Babs on a racing car chassis. The monster had a huge engine under its bonnet: it came from a First World War bomber, a 27 litre V 12 Liberty packing 500 - 600 horsepower. In 1926, Parry twice became the fastest man in the world, on 27 April at 272.403 kph and on 28 April at 275.271 kph.



But on 4 February 1927, the record was challenged by Malcolm Campbell who reached 281.381 kph in his Bluebird Napier Campbell. Thomas Parry was the first to congratulate him on the new record and went back to work right away to improve the power of Babs. He took her to pieces and altered the carburettor and cooling system.



On 3 March 1927, on Pendine beach in Wales, the weather was dreadful and the sand was waterlogged. Thomas Parry, weak after a bout of the flu and against the advice of his mechanic who told him to cancel the attempt, got behind the wheel of his big white car. During trials, the speed recorded was encouraging: 270 kph, even if the car had to be retuned each time. Thomas Parry roared down the beach, the enormous 12 cylinder Liberty thundering at full power. As Babs tore along the shore, it went into a very long skid and suddenly took off, went into a huge spin, and fell back on its wheels in flames. Thomas Parry was killed instantly. His family decided to bury the car where the tragedy took place, under the sand on Pendine beach.



At the time, there were several theories about the cause of the accident: a broken transmission chain, or a weakness in the front wheelbase. The cause remains unexplained to this day. 42 years later, Owen Wyn Owen heard the sad story of Thomas Parry. He went to the place where the tragedy happened and, having obtained permission, recovered the long fuselage of "Babs" after a few hours' digging.



The bodywork was partly rusted away, but the chassis was still just as strong and all the mechanical components were intact. Babs was entirely dismantled and all the parts repaired, checked or replicated. After eight long years of hard work, on a fine day in 1977, Babs roared once again across the sands of Pendine."



Specifications of "Babs":



- V12 Liberty aero engine

- 27,000 cc

- 4 carburettors

- 500 - 600 HP at 2,000 rpm

- 1,800 kg

- Chains transmission

- Speed reached on 28th of April 1926 : 275,171kph

- Fatal accident and outting on 3rd of March 1927

"Mercedes had a large display (as usual) at the Berlin Auto Show but their Silver Arrows cars were featured even more prominently then the year before. Not in the background the large plaques that had been made to promote their 1935. As it would turn out, 1935 was to be an even better year for the Mercedes Silver Arrows and lead driver Rudy Caracciola."


Image Source: http://www.stasher.us/1935.htm

Driver Erndtmann and his mechanic Blouverstein June 1914 testing an Opel racecar. This was in preparation for the ACF (Automobile Club de France) Grand Prix to be held on July 4th in Lyon, France.

"The 1914 race at Lyon was considered one of the greatest Grand Prix races ever. 37 cars from 13 manufacturers in 6 different countries competed and after 7 hours, German Christian Lautenschlager won in a Mercedes."

Image Source : Bibliothèque nationale de France, département Estampes et photographie, EI-13 (366)

Text source: http://www.f1-grandprixhistory.net/France.html

A sober image to remind us that many lost their lives during the 'golden era' of motorsports.

"After hitting a stray dog, Pietro Bordino, winner of the 1922 Italian Grand Prix (and one time participant at the Indy 500) drowned while practicing at the 1928 Circuito d'Alessandria."

Text and image source: Kurtis @ http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=4480750

A crashed Delage 2lcv at the 1926 Targa Florio. This crash took the life of Giulio Masetti an Italian racing driver from the 1920's.

"He died at Sclafani Bagni, Sicily, during the XVII Targa Florio, while driving as entry #13. Since this incident, the entry #13 is no longer issued at Grand Prix events."

Source: http://www.targaflorio.info/delage.htm & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giulio_Masetti

Title: Automobile racing on curved wood track, probably in or near Washington, D.C.

Date Created/Published:ca. 1922

Image & text source USA Library of Congress: http://www.loc.gov/search/?q=automobile+racing&sp=2

An image of an aluminum-skinned burned Duesenberg race car in 1919. This is one of many wonderful images from Gary Doyle's Book. KING OF THE BOARDS:The Life and Times of Jimmy Murphy.

Read an excerpt from Chapter 3 here: http://www.king-of-the-boards.com/chapter3.pdf or visit his website: http://www.king-of-the-boards.com/index.htm

1922 Targa Florio Race, Sicily (432 km in length equivalent to 268 miles) #43 seen here is a Mercedes, perhaps a model: 28/95 HP.

Grand Prix Peugeot racing through streets of town in France? Can any identify more? Source: http://vintageprintable.com/wordpress/ "Bringing Public Domain to the Public"

A photo of a 1935 Riley Monte Carlo Rally car. First starter from Athens, Greece on 19.01.1935. Crashed off road on descent of Gyphtocastro Pass. Occupants abandoned vehicle, which then ran down 170 metre deep valley, hitting boulders and gullys. Recovered damaged to road. Driven back after minimal roadside repair.
Dismantled by Riley Works APRIL,1935. Source: http://www.riley-prewar-special.com/galerie_gallery/historische_historic_specials/monte_carlo_rally_mph/index.html

The original Marmon "Wasp". The first winner of the Indianapolis 500. Note one of the earliest uses of a rear-view mirror.

1914 Driver and Mechanic for Peugeot. Image source www.Retronaut.com