A FATHER and son from Southam will go bumper to bumper in a long-forgotten motor-sport event relaunching this summer.
Paul Martin and his son Charlie will be racing each other in pre-war racing cars at the Chateau Impney Hill Climb in Worcestershire this July.
For a decade from 1957, the grounds of the country house hosted a series of uphill speed trials – attracting some notable names in motorsport such as Tony Marsh, Phil Scragg and David Good.
The event will relaunch with more than 200 competitors taking to a brand new 1,000 yard course. Paul and Charlie will be among them, racing in their own handbuilt creations.
Mechanic by profession Charlie will be behind the wheel of a Morgan – nicknamed the RIP Special owning to it being a collection of parts from other cars – which started out as a three-wheeler but was converted to a four-wheeler in 1984 using parts dating from the 1920s and 30s.
He told The Observer: “Since I was tiny, my dad sat me in a seat and made me watch cars, so I’ve been into motor-sport for quite a while! However, I’ve only been competing for six years. While I’ve competed in a lot of hill climbs and sprints in that time, I’m really looking forward to the Chateau Impney Hill Climb and it looks set to be a brilliant event – it’s a wonderful venue with a lot of history.”
Hoping to steal some of his son’s thunder, his dad will be driving the six-cylinder so-called GN Caesar Special, which was built in 1937 and driven by Doc Taylor at the original Chateau Impney sprint events prior to 1967. As well as taking part in the Chateau Impney trials, Taylor took the Caesar Special to many venues during the 50s and 60s, frequently seeing off more modern cars.
Paul, an aeroplane restorer by trade, said: “I’ve been competing for about 25 years, but it was Charlie that helped me to get into motor-sport as much as I am today. I’ve always loved it – I love the noise, and the feeling of going fast.”
The pair rarely compete directly against each other but both father and son will be striving to achieve the fastest time of day award.
Paul added: “We’ve only ever competed against each other once before and it was quite disappointing for me. I thought I’d got Charlie on the last run, but he beat me by a couple of seconds, which is a big difference.
“I’m looking forward to trying to beat him this time – however, I wouldn’t be surprised if Charlie won the Hill Climb as a whole.”
But both will be hoping the other does gets up the hill quickly and safely.
Charlie added “There’s some friendly competitive rivalry between me and my dad, but when we’re at the same event, we always try and help each other out.”
Visit www.chateauimpneyhillclimb.com for more information on the event which takes place over the weekend of July 11 and 12.
