1921 Avus-Rennen Article - Published!

[PTRACER]

Super proud of this one. It's been 2 years in the making. This is the first ever detailed English account of the inaugural race meeting at AVUS held in 1921. Since it's pretty much a translation of the original reports, it retains all the original flavour and captures all the excitement too. 6000+ words. Tons of pictures, which were previously unidentified or identified incorrectly. Couldn't have done it without the help of a few friends. If anyone spots any glaring errors in the text, let me know.

Link: http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/the-first-races-at-avus/



@hollie3sa @Andy

[Everso Biggyballies]

Wow..... what a great looking article @PTRACER That will be a great read I am sure, but not tonight for me. Looking forward to it though, as it is an era and track by my own admission I know little about. Will be deservedly read soon though.

Thanks for the time you have put into compiling such a comprehensive looking piece, and thanks also those that helped with the material.

[Andy]

Super proud of this one. It's been 2 years in the making. This is the first ever detailed English account of the inaugural race meeting at AVUS held in 1921. Since it's pretty much a translation of the original reports, it retains all the original flavour and captures all the excitement too. 6000+ words. Tons of pictures, which were previously unidentified or identified incorrectly. Couldn't have done it without the help of a few friends. If anyone spots any glaring errors in the text, let me know.

Link: http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/the-first-races-at-avus/



@hollie3sa @Andy

Brilliant mate, congrats
A minor grammar mistake came to mind after a quick glance at the first section under Practice

Since practice times did not count for anything, very little was documented, however the Opels and the Benz cars looked fast, while number of spectators – who were mostly gathered in the paddock and at the Südkurve – demonstrated that this was to be a popular event.

My guess is, that it should have been either 'a number of spectators' or 'numbers of spectators'

[Andy]

And I seem to have discovered a flaw with the /mention tag
Sorry that I abruptly finished aboves post but I couldn't use the enter-key anymore because the site insisted that I would have to enter hollie3sa as well. The little blue box with his name remained standing unless I hit enter a couple times and ruining my text as well.

I'll have a closer look later tonight but it looks really good already!

[Manfred Cubenoggin]

I caught wind of this over at TNF. Only had time for a quick skim but the piece looks thorough, informative and entertaining.

Well done, PT. Take a bow.

[Michael Ferner]

Me, too. Looks like a through piece of work, Paul. :bravo: Need to find the time to read it properly, though.

[erwin greven]

Amazing piece of work Paul!!

[sadsac]

Great job PTRACER that must have taken some research

[PTRACER]

Thanks all, I'm so happy this has been so well received. It's not often you come by a lap-by-lap account of a race meeting that happened 100 years ago. It's kind of a niche moment in racing history so if anyone gets any future use or enjoyment from it I'll be happy.

I made the edit last night Andy, thanks for spotting the mistake.

[Cheeveer]

Very interesting, thank you for all your hard work, Paul! It is very intersting to see how standards in how to host a motor racing event were formed, especially this kind of proto formula.

However, noticed something:

The First Race

Since the early hours, the starting point at the Nordschleife was the site of the typical pre-race chaos. Side-by-side, drivers and mechanics worked to refine their machines, checking and rechecking the engines, pipes, plugs, valves, and pressure gauges to ensure reliability. Individual cars went out for a sighter lap, albeit at a reduced pace.

Nordschleife?

[PTRACER]

Very interesting, thank you for all your hard work, Paul! It is very intersting to see how standards in how to host a motor racing event were formed, especially this kind of proto formula.

However, noticed something:

The First Race

Since the early hours, the starting point at the Nordschleife was the site of the typical pre-race chaos. Side-by-side, drivers and mechanics worked to refine their machines, checking and rechecking the engines, pipes, plugs, valves, and pressure gauges to ensure reliability. Individual cars went out for a sighter lap, albeit at a reduced pace.

Nordschleife?

Yes, the original newspapers sometimes say "Nordschleife/Südschleife" instead of "Nordkurve/Sudkurve". Perhaps a German speaker could correct me, but I took this to mean 'Northern Loop' and 'Southern Loop'....because those hairpins were kind of 180-degree loops rather than tight hairpins. I edited them all out, except for this one. The word hairpin isn't mentioned once, anywhere, so I presume that word wasn't in use yet.

[Cheeveer]

I see, also interesting.

[hollie3sa]

First page, 3rd picture: Is it really called the "Nördkurve"? Or is it the "Nordkurve"?

[sebbbl]

Thanks a lot! I will read it during the weekend.

[Michkov]

Yes, the original newspapers sometimes say "Nordschleife/Südschleife" instead of "Nordkurve/Sudkurve". Perhaps a German speaker could correct me, but I took this to mean 'Northern Loop' and 'Southern Loop'....because those hairpins were kind of 180-degree loops rather than tight hairpins. I edited them all out, except for this one. The word hairpin isn't mentioned once, anywhere, so I presume that word wasn't in use yet.

Seems like a perfectly viable option to me. Nordschleife means literally northern loop. The Nürburgring has just made the term it's own over the years, but from a linguistic standpoint there is nothing special about the term Nordschleife.

EDIT:
Should this line:

he entries were to be divided into six classes – VIA and VIA, VIIIA and VIIIB, XA and XB

not be VIA and VIB?