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ADAC Eifel Rallye Festival 2018 - Class reunion of cars and stars
The entry list for the ADAC Eifel Rallye Festival is closed and, as usual, the demonstration event for classic rally cars that is taking place from July 19-21, 2018 is fully booked. However, it is not only the number of vehicles that delights the fans, it is also the enormous level of originality that distinguishes the Eifel Rallye Festival from others. "The entry list will not be published before July 1st, but I can already reveal some really sensational details," says co-organiser Reinhard Klein. "The crews coming to the Vulkaneifel come from 16 nations, they drive classic cars from 34 different manufacturers and an incredible 90 (!) different types of cars."
As the head of 'Slowly Sideways', a Europe-wide group of collectors of historic rally cars, what really impresses him is that: "There will be 50 original rally cars with a real history in the start list while all others are faithfully-built copies resembling their famous role models. Our concept of running the Festival without time-keeping or competition guarantees an unbelievable variety. Without pressure on them to perform, it is only the heart that decides which car I choose."
The big rush from rally car collectors presents the Festival organisers with the same problems every year. "Space in the city centre of Daun is finite and every year it is a huge puzzle game to accommodate all cars in the available service areas and along the Rally Mile," says Otmar Anschütz, who, for the second year running, is the Chief Organiser and President of the MSC Daun. "Preparations are in full swing, but absolutely on schedule. All the permits have been obtained and we are now entering the final stage."
SEAT Germany at the start with three absolute rarities
A newcomer to the Eifel Rallye Festival is the German SEAT subsidiary which will make its Festival debut with three cars and three former works drivers. With two twin-engined Pikes Peak VW Golfs running in the Festival Parade, it was a natural choice for the sister brand to bring another twin-engined car to the Vulkaneifel hills. This is the very rare SEAT Ibiza Bimotor which was purpose-built for the 1987 Spanish Gravel Championship. There, the prototypes competed against 'banned' Group B cars such as the Lancia Delta S4 or Ford RS200 and performed well. Antonio Rius was fourth in the final standings, his team-mate Josep Maria Servià second. On one occasion, the Ibiza Bimotors even managed a 1-2 victory.
Rius will take part in the 'Festival Parade' with this prototype while the other two SEAT models will tackle all stages. 1972 Spanish Rally Champion Salvador Cañellas will take the wheel of a SEAT 124D Especial 1800, a replica of the Group 4 car with which he finished a surprising fourth overall in the 1977 Monte Carlo Rally. Ferran Font drives a SEAT Ibiza Kit Car - the car that won the two-litre World Championship three times in a row between 1996 and 1998. This trio of classic cars will be accompanied to Daun by five modern-day SEAT Atecas that will be provided to the Festival organisers by SEAT Germany for the duration of the event.
International class reunion
If the line-up of cars is unique and varied, so also is the line-up of star drivers coming to the town of Daun. They are led by two World Champions drivers, Stig Blomqvist and Timo Salonen, and two-times World Champion co-driver Luis Moya. They will be joined by European and national title winners such as Jochi Kleint, Harald Demuth, Jimmy McRae, Salvador Cañellas and Matthias Kahle. In addition, a whole delegation of well-known drivers will make its way all the way from Kenya to the Eifel Rallye Festival. These include current FIA Vice President, Surinder Thatthi, who has won the African Rally Championship four times as a co-driver and was crowned the Kenya Motor Sportsman of the Year in 1988. Thatthi will be joined by Nissan drivers Mike Kirkland and Jayant Shah who will both take the wheel of 'their' former Nissan 240RS Group B cars in the Festival Parade.
Exclusive co-drive: Win a ride in the twin-engined VW Golf Pikes Peak
When Volkswagen tackled the 'Race to the Clouds' at Pikes Peak in the 1980s, they built two twin-engined prototypes solely for this 19.99 km hill-climb event in Colorado/USA and these were driven by former European Rally Champion Jochi Kleint. The 2018 Eifel Rallye Festival will be the first time that these two VW Golf Bimotor prototypes can be seen in action at the same event. And it will be the first chance to get a co-drive in one of them! During the shakedown, Jochi Kleint will give the highest bidder of an eBay auction a ride in the 500 bhp Pikes Peak Golf from 1985/1986.
The co-drive will take place during the shakedown of the Eifel Rallye Festival in the new, 5.4-kilometre 'Maubach-Arena'. The co-drive will be auctioned on eBay from June 10th, 2018. The proceeds of the auction will be given to a charity project called 'Vor-Tour der Hoffnung' that collects donations for children in need and particularly children suffering with cancer. A strong incentive for bidding high in the auction is that that the proceeds will be doubled by the car's owner, Wolf-Dieter Ihle, before being handed to the charity.
Order now: pre-sale for tickets and programmes has started
Spectators who are keen to visit the Eifel Rallye Festival can obtain their weekend tickets and programmes from the official online shop no matter in what European country they are living. While visiting the 'Rally Mile' in the heart of Daun is free of charge, there are various admission tickets needed for those who like to see the action on the special stages.
The pre-sale of weekend tickets and programmes is open until July 06, 2018 from http://www.eifel-rallye-festival.de/en/rallye-shop.html.
Eifel Rallye Festival - Time Table
Thursday, 19.07.2018
15:00 - 19:00 hrs, Shakedown at the 'Maubach Arena' near Hörscheid
from 20:30 hrs, Welcome Evening in the Rally Mile, Open Air Cinema with film-maker Helmut Deimel
Friday, 20.07.2018
From 08:00 hrs, Scrutineering in the Rally Mile
11:00 - 12:00 hrs, Autograph Session with the VIP drivers
From 14:20 hrs, Super Stage with jump, water splash and gravel action
From 19.30 hrs, proWIN Hilgerath stage in Sarmersbach at night including the 'Festival Parade'
Saturday, 22.07.2017
08:30 - 17:00 hrs, Tarmac Stages in the Vulkaneifel region
inbetween, Rally Mile in Daun with various attractions
From 19:30 hrs, Rally Party & Prize Giving
Info for all journalists: Accreditation is now open and available from:
https://www.eifel-rallye-festival.de/en/Accreditation-Info.html
More information on: www.eifel-rallye-festival.de
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