Adolf Brudes von Breslau (15 October 1899 – 5 November 1986) was a
Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
driver from
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and a member of German nobility. He started racing motorcycles in 1919. As an owner of a
BMW and
Auto Union
Auto Union AG, was an amalgamation of four German automobile manufacturers, founded in 1932 and established in 1936 in Chemnitz, Saxony. It is the immediate predecessor of Audi as it is known today.
As well as acting as an umbrella firm fo ...
dealership in Breslau, he had the opportunities to go racing, which he did from 1928 onwards, initially in
hillclimbs
Hillclimbing, also known as hill climbing, speed hillclimbing, or speed hill climbing, is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course. It is one of the oldest forms of motorsport, since the fir ...
. After
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
wiped out his business, he moved to
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
and for a while became a mechanic, wherever he could find jobs. However he soon was back racing, and he continued until 1968, in hillclimbs – an amazing career of 49 years! He participated in one World Championship Grand Prix, the
1952 Großer Preis von Deutschland, but scored no championship points.
He also participated in several non-Championship Formula One races.
Pre-War Career
Adolf was born in Kotulin, near Breslau. Today, Breslau is known as Wrocław, and is in Poland. Back in 1899, it was part of the German Reich.
He began his racing career on two wheels as early as 1919. Between 1924 and 1927, he was the master mechanic and works rider for motorcycle manufacturer
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
. In 1925, the company added a
Root blower to their 2-cylinder
ohv
An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located bel ...
597cc flat engine. A year later, Brudes set a
Land Speed Record
The land speed record (or absolute land speed record) is the highest speed achieved by a person using a vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C ("Special Vehicles") flying start regula ...
of 102½ mph (165 km/h), riding one of these bikes.
Adolf wished to race at a higher level, and with that in mind, he started racing cars alongside the bikes in 1928. He purchased a
Bugatti Type 37A with which he went hillclimbing mostly in Poland, taking a number of overall and class victories.
Meanwhile, he established a BMW and Auto Union dealership in Breslau.
By 1934, he had added a
Bugatti Type 35B and a
MG C-type to his stable, and it was with the MG, he scored a class victory in the 1934
Eifelrennen
The Eifelrennen was an annual motor race, organised by ADAC Automobile Club from 1922 to 2003, held in Germany's Eifel mountain region even before the Nürburgring was built there.
History
Starting from 1922, the first races were held on a 33& ...
at the
Nürburgring.
1936 saw Adolf take part on an Auto Union driver evaluation test, but the driver when to another driver. Not to be put off by this set back, he acquired a
BMW 328. After some excellent results, he earns himself place in their works squad of the 1938
Spa 24 Hours
The 24 Hours of Spa is an endurance racing event for cars held annually since 1924 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium. It is currently sponsored by TotalEnergies.
History
The Spa 24 Hours was conceived by Jules de Their ...
race. Partnered by
Paul Heinemann
Paul Heinemann (February 16, 1916 – June 18, 1996) was a Belgian botanist and mycologist. Heinemann specialized in African mycology. In his long career, he published 435 names, including 2 families, 6 genera, 346 species, and 40 varieties. His c ...
, the finish fourth overall, second in class. Also would also go on to record a podium finish in the 1940
Mille Miglia
The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi, which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 (thirteen before World ...
. The race ran over a shortened course, under the title of
Gran Premio Bescia delle Mille Miglia. Brudes was paired with
Ralph Röese in a BMW 328 spider, finished third.
Post-War Career
With the outbreak, naturally racing stopped. Once the war ended, Brudes' situation was much changed and by 1945, he had lost everything. His family were forced to move to
Sedlitz, a small town in east of Germany where his brothers lived. After numerous odd jobs, he moved to Berlin looking for work. He found work at the BMW dealer in
Halensee
Halensee () is a ''locality'' (''Ortsteil'') of Berlin in the district (''Bezirk'') of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Halensee was established as a villa and tenement settlement in about 1880, in the suburb of Wilmersdorf, which became part of Great ...
, when he was introduced to an American officer who was interested in racing,
Alexander Orley. Brudes was employed to prepared BMW coupés for Orley to race.
When Brudes resuming his own racing career, it was driving one of Orley's BMW Orley Speciale, based upon the
Vertias-Meteor. It was in this car, he took part in his only World Championship Grand Prix, 1952 Großer Preis von Deutschland. His race latest only 5 laps behind him retired with engine problems.
A few years earlier, he received an invitation from
August Momberger to drive the new
Borgward sports cars, in a number of record attempts. In October 1953, in a very streamlined 1500cc sports car with lightweight twin tube chassis, he set a number of speed and endurance records at
L'autodrome de Linas-Monthlhéry.
During the season of 1953, he was finally given a contract by Borgward and became an official works driver. When the team took their steps into international motorsport, Brudes was amongst the squad of drivers. Their first event was the
24 Heures du Mans
4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures.
In mathematics
Four is the smalles ...
, with a trio of Borgward-
Hansa 1500 Rennsport Coupés. Brudes's car would run out of fuel just after three hours of racing.
He would continue to race until 1968, when he made his last competitive appearance on the Taunus Hillclimb, where in an
Alfa Romeo Giulia
Alfa Romeo Giulia () is the name of three not directly related models by the Italian car manufacturer Alfa Romeo. The first is a line of sporty four-door compact executive cars (Type 105) produced from 1962 to 1978, the second is an updated, ma ...
, he finished third in class.
Racing record
Career highlights
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(
key)
Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results
Complete Miila Miglia results
Complete 24 Hours of Spa results
Complete Carrera Panamericana results
References
External links
Adolf Brudes World Championship Careerat
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
F1
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brudes, Adolf
1899 births
1986 deaths
German racing drivers
German Formula One drivers
24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
World Sportscar Championship drivers
24 Hours of Spa drivers
Mille Miglia drivers
Carrera Panamericana drivers