last road sprint on public road in England

[huw.parsons]

The last sprint held on a public road in the uk ( or perhaps just England?) was held 'just outside Hereford' on
4th April 1925. I've been trying to find out exactly where on the Internet but with no luck so far.
Would anybody happen to know the answer to this one?

Cheers

Huw

[jadearling]

I think they used a section of King's Acre Road, the A438, west of Whitecross, there is a photo somewhere on the internet that I have seen and I tried to identify the position once but gave up. I am afraid that I can't back this up with any reliable source now, just something out of my memory and that could never be termed a reliable source. Maybe there are archives somewhere like Hereford library but I know there was quite a lot of motoring activity around Hereford in the pioneering days.

Jade

[PeterW]

I'm not sure of the difference between a sprint and a speed trial but Weston super Mare ran its speed trials on the Beach Road right through to the seventies. Tremendous :¬)

http://www.amoc.org/forum/index.php?topic=18695.0;wap2
http://forums.autosport.com/topic/75483 ... s-sprints/
http://www.progcovers.com/motor/westonspeed771001.jpg

[jadearling]

It annoyed me that I couldn't support my suggestion that King's Acre Road was the venue outside Hereford but after a search through my stuff I found a report that confirmed it. 4th April 1925, a speed trial event won by I.P.Riddoch on a 998cc Zenith averaging 94mph and crossing the finishing line at 107mph, this was recorded in the Hereford Times, there were no Ariels reported competing. Kings Acre was used both in 1924 and 1925 because the road surface was better than that of the previous speed trials at Rotherwas.
Like Peter I don't know what the exact relationships between different speed events that were held on public roads are or even what constitutes a public road. Not only was the Beach Road at Burnham-on-Sea were more recently used but of course from 1905 until last year, Madeira Drive was used for the Brighton speed trials too.

Jade

[huw.parsons]

thanks Peter and Jade, I haven't got any further on the Internet but it sounds like a trip to the library in Hereford to check for any pictures is in order. Perhaps there is an article and picture in the appropriate Copy of The Motorcycle..

I understand a law was passed banning all motor racing on public roads in 1925 which resulted in some manufacturers removing their
sprint models from the line up. Ill visit Hereford and Kings acre next week. shame there won't be a Zenith-jap flying by at 107mph smelling of hot oil!

Thanks again

Huw

[Wali.Badger.Taylor]

Brighton should be back on next year, the hippies that run the city refused to run this year because the result of the inquest on the sidecar passenger killed last year has not yet been published. Madeira Drive is a private road used by the public not a public road. There was a sprint at Ramsgate in the 60s along the Prom but this may have had the same status as Madeira Drive. Until 2004 there was a hillclimb at Saltburn on Sea on a public road, due to interference from a very power hungry gentleman from Cheshire it was closed by the authorities as it had been illegally for many years but no one had noticed, it is running again but not as a timed competition (demo only). The only road race in the country (mainland Britain) is at Olivers Mount Scarborough I am not sure of the legal status of the road and would be grateful for more information. My city, Birmingham, had car racing on public roads in the late 1980s they had to pass an act of parliament Click to alow the event and that bill still stands. I walked the circuit 0n crutches a couple of years ago and there is still evidence of the event including a gravel trap now used as a carpark.
IMHO it is high time that the 1925 ban (after an incident involving a Brescia Bugatti on Kop Hill) is revoked.

[Wali.Badger.Taylor]

Some film of the Birmingham Superprix.

[andyhughesflattankarielpre25]

Hi guys,they used to road race on the prom in new brighton on the wirral up by Liverpool in the seventies, it could have gone into the eighties even ,this was around the rounabouts they had and along the front,they also used to sand race there,,

[Dave.Thomas]

The earth bank outside Bristol Street Motors car dealers in Birmingham still has flower bulbs that vaguely spell out 'Super Prix' every spring

[Wali.Badger.Taylor]

I will go and take a look next spring