A commemoration of the Paris-Rambouillet race of 1899

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Drive past the Eiffel Tower, over the Champs-Elysees, around the Arc de Triomphe, stop at the Château de Versailles and finish at the Château de Rambouillet. And do it all in one day with a car from before the First World War. These are the ingredients for the Paris-Rambouillet rally. This year, the 6th event takes place to commemorate the 1899 race. Nowadays, it is no longer a competition, but in 1899 it was and the participants wanted to win.

Fête des Voiturettes

The event was part of the two-day Fête des Voiturettes organised by the magazine Le Sport Universel Illustré and took place on Thursday 19 October 1899. The race, covering 104km, was divided into three categories and there were a total of 35 participants, of which 23 finished. It was a successful day for Louis Renault in Category A (2hp or less) who triumphed in 2 hours and 49 minutes and his brother Marcel, who finished 42(!) minutes later but still 18 minutes ahead of the third vehicle. Category B (2 to 3hp) was won by Mr Doriot in a Peugeot and Category C (for big engines of 3hp and over) was won by a Hurtu in 3 hours 11 minutes. The route they took in 1899 is more or less the same as this year. But they started in Paris (Suresnes), drove to Rambouillet (also passing Versailles) and returned to Paris, where they finished at Porte-Maillot instead of finishing after a little tour in Rambouillet.

On Sunday 29 May, the commemoration will not be about racing but more about sightseeing and friendship. There will probably be more cars in category C than in 1899, but it will still be a fantastic event to look forward to. On Sunday morning, the cars will start at the École militaire in the centre of Paris. PreWarCar.com is sponsoring the rally and our team will be participating. We hope to give you some updates during the day, but for now here are some pictures from previous events to get you excited.

For more information send us your questions below and we will ask the organiser to give us the answers. And yes, participating is still possible.

Source: Autosport.com.

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