There used to be a dangerous trend in America for racing at night through the streets in souped-up road cars, nicknamed ‘hotrods’. The official sport of hotrod racing was founded to put an end to racing on the road.
Is it true? Racing cars are not allowed to race in cities any more.
No. Several Grands Prix are still run on public roads. The event at Monte Carlo has been held on almost exactly the same circuit since 1929. The Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne is another example. The streets are cleared of public traffic in advance and crash barriers are set up. Dozens of classic car rallies also run from town to town.
Amazing! In July 1924, Ernest Eldridge broke the World Land Speed Record on a French public road. He was driving a specially built 1907 Fiat called Mephistopheles and reached 234 kph!
What were café racers?
Cafe racers were specially modified bikes, which were raced to and from roadside cafes. This craze started in England in the 1960s. Not surprisingly, cafe racing on public roads is against the law!
Who wears a yellow shirt if he’s winning?
The overall leader in the exhausting Tour de France bicycle race wears a bright yellow shirt. Recently some stages of the race have been run in southern England, Spain and Belgium, as well as France.
Picture Credit : Google