Hillclimb Anniversary 1905-2005 at Shelsley Walsh
100 yrs of hillclimbing at this classic motorsport venue in Worcs.
Fingers were crossed that the weather would hold up for the anniversary meeting over the long weekend of 19-21st August 2005.
I went down to Shelsley, my first trip to this hillclimb, on the Sunday, the main day for the older motorcars. The weather was fabulous and I bet the venue has never looked better than it did on this glorious late-summer day.
The main focus of the day was the history of the course, the cars, and the drivers that have sought success on the twisty 1000 yard climb. Competition cars from many different arenas of motorsport appeared, a few contemporary cars, but primarily cars from the course's past.
An amazing variety of familiar competition cars featured, including single seat circuit cars, rally cars, specialised hillclimb machines, and cars based on more humble roadgoing vehicles. Motorcycles also featured, as did some brave souls piloting the scary-looking sidecar combos.
Below are the photos I snapped during my day at Shelsley Walsh, most feature older cars as that is what interests me most. I don't claim to be a great photographer, as some of these photos will no doubt testify, but hopefully they go some way in capturing the atmosphere of the Centenary Meeting. More photos of older cars can be found here in the event photo section. One day I'd like to get the old Dodge transporter back down there, as it would have been a regular visitor to post-war Shelsley.
Info about this course, and the Midland Automobile Club, can be found on the Shelsley Walsh site.
I've also put together a free screensaver, featuring some of the cars seen at Shelsley - download it free here !
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