Oldtimer Festival
Encyclopedia
The Oldtimer Festival (German pseudo-anglicism
Pseudo-Anglicism
Pseudo-anglicisms are words in languages other than English which were borrowed from English but are used in a way native English speakers would not readily recognize or understand. Pseudo-anglicisms often take the form of portmanteau words, combining elements of multiple English words to create a...

: vintage car festival) is a motor-sport event held by the DAMC 05 since 1983 on the Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. The official name of the event is Internationales Oldtimer Festival um den "Jan-Wellem-Pokal" auf dem Nürburgring, known colloquially as the "Jan Wellem".

Character of the meeting

The Oldtimer Festival is a three-day race meeting for historic automobiles, motorbikes and sidecars. The event is mainly for classic vehicles of the post war era up to cars and bikes of the 1970s. Many of the vehicles racing there are well known by the spectators from the times of their youth. The public is allowed free access to the paddock, which enables direct contact with the competitors. To enable the presenting of the respective vehicles in the correct setting, the paddock is divided in sections according to the race series and clubs taking part.

The automobiles compete mainly under the regulations of the international FIA sporting code which means real racing. The motorbikes and sidecars however run in regularity trials according to the national rules of the German Motor Sports Association, the DMSB
Deutscher Motor Sport Bund
DMSB or Deutscher Motor Sport Bund e. V. is Germany's motor racing governing body, formerly known as ONS . It is carried by the clubs ADAC, AvD and DMV, and represents Germany at FIA and FIM....

. Regularity trials are not about the fastest race times and therefore help preserve the historic material.

Last combined event for cars and motorbikes in Germany

Up to the 1970s combined meetings with cars and motorbikes were common in Germany. As a result of the increasing discussions about safety and tightening of safety regulations it became more and more difficult and expensive for organisers to arrange combined events. The Oldtimer Festival is the last big event of its kind with permission of the DMSB.

History

Until 1982 the DAMC 05 organised on the Nürburgring a circuit race called "Rundstreckenrennen um den Jan-Wellem-Pokal". This race was held for modern and historical cars. In 1983 during the recontruction of the Grand-Prix-Circuit, the Oldtimer Festival was held on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring solely for historic car, bikes and sidecars.

In 1984 the "Oldtimer Festival" was part of the opening meetings for the new Grand-Prix-Circuit of the Nürburgring. The event was extended to a three day event.

In 1990 the DAMC 05 together with the ADMV organised during the Oldtimer Festival the one and only heat of the German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...

's championships for formula easter cars and for Trabant
Trabant
The Trabant is a car that was produced by former East German auto maker VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau in Zwickau, Sachsen. It was the most common vehicle in East Germany, and was also exported to countries both inside and outside the communist bloc...

s in the FRG
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

.

In 1995 for the first time the Historic Formula One Championship
Historic Formula One Championship
The Historic Formula One Championship, previously known as the Thoroughbred Grand Prix Championship, is a championship for Formula One cars from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s which is sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, motor sport's world governing body...

 visited the Oldtimer Festival.

In 2008 the Oldtimer Festival took place during the summer month fort he last time.

In 2009 the meeting had to be cancelled because of problems with the international race calendar.

The present

In 2010 the 27th Oldtimer Festival took place from 10th to 12th September 2010 on the Nürburgring. As a part of the Oldtimer Festival in 2010 the tradition and name of the renowned ADAC 1000 km of Nürburgring will be continued. In contrast to former years, the race is organised for older cars and therefore the term “classic” was added to the name.

Jan-Wellem-Pokal

The Jan-Wellem-Pokal (Jan Wellem Trophy) is named after count Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine
Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine
Johann Wilhelm II, Elector Palatine was Elector Palatine , Duke Palatine of Neuburg/Danube , Duke of Jülich and Berg , and Duke of Upper Palatinate and Cham...

(1658–1716), in Düsseldorf commonly known as Jan Wellem.

The trophy is awarded to the victor achieving the biggest time gap in the car races.

As bikes and sidecars compete under the regularity trial regulations, the Jan Wellem Trophy is given to the most consistent driver.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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