Eifel Rallye Festival: Diversity from A to Z

• Impressive cross-section of rally history.
• Including: Blomqvist, Rovanperä and Demuth.
• Available to order now: programme booklets and tickets

"The starting field will be very colourful and diverse," is how Reinhard Klein (Cologne) describes the entry list for the 12th edition of the Eifel Rallye Festival. When from August 15th to 17th over one hundred and fifty contemporary witnesses to rally history transform the Volcanic Eifel around Daun into the largest rally museum on wheels, fans will experience an impressive cross-section of the sport's history. "There will be just over a handful of vehicle types that are represented twice. From A for Alfa Romeo or Alpine to Citroën, DAF, Hyundai, MG, Peugeot, Rover and VW, almost every manufacturer that has ever been active in rallying will be represented. In addition, there is an impressive variety of vehicle types," says Klein, the head of Slowly Sideways, who is delighted with the entry. However, though it is pleasing to receive well over two hundred entries, it does cause problems for the organisers. "It's not easy to have to decline so many people who have submitted an entry. The possibilities in Daun simply don't allow for more than around one hundred and fifty teams and, this year, diversity has been the top priority when selecting participants – we owe it to our fans." They will have to be patient until the beginning of July, when the complete entry list will be published. However, the first 'appetisers' will already be available on the Festival's social media channels in May.

On board: Blomqvist, Rovanperä and Demuth
"The preparations are running at full speed and, most importantly, absolutely on schedule," explains Otmar Anschütz (Daun), who, as Chairman of the MSC Daun e.V. in the ADAC, is at the head of the organisation team. "We receive a great deal of support from the region and the relevant authorities, which is a great help in running such a major event year after year." The declared aim of the Eifel Rallye Festival is to provide a platform for original or faithfully rebuilt vehicles from the history of the sport. This gives fans the opportunity to experience these sometimes irreplaceable one-offs in a situation where they are at home, namely on the special stages of the Vulkaneifel. Without the pressure of a sporting competition, the owners of the vehicles can present their 'treasures'. "This is one of the absolutely rare opportunities to see vehicles in action that are otherwise only found in museums or collections," explains Anschütz.

It is already a tradition that Audi Tradition enhances the field of participants with treasures from its collection. This year too, two unique cars from the 'hallowed halls' in Ingolstadt will be at the start in Daun – which ones will be announced later. However, the two drivers have already been confirmed, and they are 'old friends' of the Festival. Stig Blomqvist, the 1984 World Rally Champion, and Harald Demuth, the two-time German Rally Champion, celebrated their greatest successes with Audi. So who better to present the vehicles of Audi Tradition?

When the name Rovanperä is mentioned in rally sport at the moment, almost everyone thinks of Kalle, the 23-year-old double World Rally Champion. However, Harri, his father, is coming to Daun. This is the Finn's first visit to the Vulkaneifel: "I've heard a lot about this Festival and I'm looking forward to finally being there myself." Harri Rovanperä was active in the World Championship from 1993 to 2006 inclusive. He drove cars for the Seat, Toyota, Peugeot, Mitsubishi and Škoda teams. His greatest success was victory in 2001 in Sweden in his first outing in a Peugeot 206 WRC. In the Eifel, he will be driving a Peugeot 307 WRC, a model in which he finished on the podium twice in the 2004 season with second place in Australia and third place at the Acropolis. When he was asked whether he would bring his son with him to the Eifel, no definitive answer has yet been given !

Advance sales of programme booklets and tickets are underway.
Following last year's positive experience, the sale of the programme booklet and tickets will be organised via the RallyWebShop again this year. This means that it is once again possible to offer day tickets in advance as well as weekend tickets. The RallyWebShop also offers payment options via PayPal or credit card. All details can be found here: https://www.rallyandracing.com/rallywebshop/eifel-rallye-festival-2024/.

Eifel Rallye Festival 2011-2022 - The official book
If you want to bridge the time until the next Festival in an entertaining way, you can do so with the official book about the first ten editions of the Eifel Rallye Festival: The highlights of each year are described on more than three hundred pages. There are rally cars that have never been seen since they last competed. In addition, there is a unique cross-section of rally history with the classics from Mini and Volvo PV544, to Group 4 legends like the Stratos and Ascona 400, then the unforgettable Group B monsters, the stars of Group A from Lancia to Subaru and finally the spectacular World Rally Cars. The book’s bilingual text (German and English) and the many photos are completed by numerous tables and overviews of starters and rally cars. The Festival’s long-time patron, Walter Röhrl, summarises his impressions of the Festival in a foreword. Here is the ordering link to obtain copies of this remarkable book from the RallyWebShop: https://www.rallyandracing.com/mcklein-store/buecher/eifel-rallye-festival-2011-2022-das-offizielle-buch?c=1194

More info can be found at: www.eifel-rallye-festival.de

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