Helmut Erik "Helm" Glöckler (13 January 1909 in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

– 18 December 1993 same place) was a German amateur

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

Biography

Glöckler raced a Deutsch-Bonnet in

Formula 3 Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One driv ...

in 1951, and won the

sports car racing Sports car racing is a form of motorsport road racing which utilises sports cars that have two seats and enclosed wheels. They may be purpose-built prototypes or grand tourers based on road-going models. Broadly speaking, sports car racing is ...

event at the 1953

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 ...

with a new

Porsche 550 The Porsche 550 is a racing sports car produced by Porsche from 1953 until 1956. In that time only 90 Porsche 550s were produced, and they quickly established dominance in the 1.1- and 1.5- liter classes. The Porsche 550 is a mid-engine car with ...

. He also won the sports car class Alpine Cup trophy in the 1951

Österreichische Alpenfahrt The Österreichische Alpenfahrt (also known as the Austrian Alpine Rally or the Rally of Austria) was a rallying, rally that was part of the inaugural World Rally Championship in 1973 World Rally Championship season, 1973. History Modelled on the ...

rally driving a highly modified

Renault 4CV The Renault 4CV (french: quatre chevaux, as if spelled ''quat'chevaux'') is a rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive, 4-door economy supermini manufactured and marketed by the French manufacturer Renault from August 1947 through July 1961. It was the ...

. He entered the

1953 German Grand Prix The 1953 German Grand Prix was a Formula Two motor racing event held on 2 August 1953 at the Nürburgring Nordschleife. It was race 7 of 9 in the 1953 World Championship of Drivers, which was run to Formula Two rules in 1952 and 1953, rather than t ...

in an Equipe Anglaise

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * Cooper (video game character), in ...

, this being his one and only attempt at a World Championship race, but he blew his engine during qualifying and so did not compete in the race. Had he qualified for the race, he would be the first ever driver to use number 0 in a Formula One race, twenty years before

Jody Scheckter Jody David Scheckter (born 29 January 1950) is a South African business proprietor and former motor racing driver. He competed in Formula One from 1972 to 1980, winning the Drivers' Championship in with Ferrari. Scheckter remains the only Afr ...

became the first to race in number 0 at the

1973 Canadian Grand Prix The 1973 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Mosport Park on 23 September 1973. It was race 14 of 15 in both the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The 80-lap r ...

. He raced a

in the

1953 24 Hours of Le Mans The 1953 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 21st Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 13 and 14 June 1953, at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans (France). It was also the third round of the F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship. British drivers ...

with

Hans Herrmann Hans Herrmann (born 23 February 1928) is a retired Formula One and sports car racing driver from Stuttgart, Germany. In F1, he participated in 19 World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 2 August 1953. He achieved 1 podium, and scored a ...

, and again in the

1954 24 Hours of Le Mans The 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans was a 22nd race for Sports Cars, and took place on 12 and 13 June 1954, at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France. It was also the fourth race of the 1954 World Sportscar Championship. The race was won by José Fr ...

with

Richard von Frankenberg Richard von Frankenberg (4 March 1922 in Darmstadt – 11 November 1973 in Beilstein) was a Germans, German journalist and race car driver. In 1952 he created and published the (later) official Porsche magazine Christophorus (magazine). The visua ...

. Until recently, ''Helm Glöckler GmbH'' in Frankfurt bore his name, running a motorcycle dealer and workshop, and other enterprises.

Family

Glöckler's cousin Walter created the small Porsche powered spyder in 1951 that later inspired the factory to produce the Porsche 550.

Complete World Championship results

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

)

Sources

* World Championship results are derived from

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20060708222456/http://solitude-memorial.de/idx05.htm *http://www.500race.org/Period%20Results/Germany%20Results.htm#1951 1909 births 1993 deaths German racing drivers German Formula One drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers {{Germany-autoracing-bio-stub Porsche Motorsports drivers Racing drivers from Hesse Sportspeople from Frankfurt