Paris–Bordeaux–Paris
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The Paris–Bordeaux–Paris Trail race of June 1895 is sometimes called the "first motor race", although it did not fit modern competition where the fastest is the winner. It was a win for Émile Levassor, who came first after completing the 1,178km race in 48 hours, almost six hours before second place. However, the official winner was Paul Koechlin, who finished third in his Peugeot, exactly 11 hours slower than Levassor, but the official race regulations had been established for four-seater cars, while Levassor and runner-up Louis Rigoulot were driving two-seater cars.
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First race

Paris–Bordeaux–Paris is sometimes called the first
motorcar A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...
race in history or the "first motor race". The 1894 Paris–Rouen had been run over public roads as a contest (''concours'') not a race, and the fastest finisher, a steam-powered vehicle, was judged ineligible for the main prize. Émile Levassor finished first in the 1,178 km Paris–Bordeaux–Paris race, taking 48 hours and 48 minutes, nearly six hours before the runner-up Louis Rigoulot, and eleven hours before the official winner, Paul Koechlin in his Peugeot. Officially, the race was for four-seater cars, and Levassor and Rigoulot drove two-seater cars. The ensuing outcry caused the ''A.C.F.'' to organise their next event, the 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris, so that the fastest finisher was the winner.


Name

The race is sometimes referred to as the ''I Grand Prix de l'A.C.F''. This results from a retrospective political move that began in the early 1920s when French media represented many races held in France before the 1906 French Grand Prix as being Grands Prix de l'Automobile Club de France, despite their running pre-dating the formation of the Club. Hence, the 1906 race was said to have been the 9th edition of the Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France. The ACF itself adopted this reasoning in 1933, although some members of the Club dismissed it, "concerned the name of the Club was lent to the fiction simply out of a childish desire to establish their Grand Prix as the oldest race in the world".1895 Grand Prix and Paris Races
Retrieved on 12 September 2009.


Levassor's progress

Levassor, who drove one of his cars, a 1205 cc (74 ci)
Panhard & Levassor Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks#Military vehicles, Re ...
, started carefully, observing his opponents; he overtook the then leading
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de Dion who stopped to take on water for his
steam car A steam car is a car (automobile) propelled by a steam engine. A steam engine is an external combustion engine (ECE), whereas the gasoline and diesel engines that eventually became standard are internal combustion engines (ICE). ECEs have a low ...
. Levassor led the race since then, stopping regularly to check his car's components. He came to
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
several hours before any driver was expected to come which resulted in the fact that he had to drive back to Paris as well (the driver who was his change was still asleep in a hotel, and no one knew which one). Levassor accepted the situation calmly, waking the organisers up to prove his coming and his time, had some sandwiches and champagne, took a brief walk and set off for Paris at 2:30 am. When
Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...
René de Knyff Chevalier René de Knyff (December 10, 1865 in Antwerp, Belgium – 1954 in France) was a French Innovator, pioneer of car racing and later a president of ''Commission Sportive Internationale'' (''CSI''), now known as Fédération Internationa ...
met him en-route, he was so surprised by Levassor's time that he nearly crashed. Levassor, after spending two days and nights behind the wheel, triumphantly reached Paris, achieving an average speed of 24.5 km/h. He said after the race: "Some 50 km before Paris I had a rather luxurious snack in a restaurant which helped me. But I feel a little tired."


Legacy

The race proved that both the drivers and the cars were capable of such distances and it generated public enthusiasm which indicated that such events were commercially viable.


Results


Overall

The overall results were:


Did not finish

Entrants who did not finish:


Entrants

Entrants in order of departure:


See also

* Motorsport before 1906 * Paris–Rouen, 1894 * 1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris


References


Other sources


Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' Index

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 9 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – Changed route

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 11 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – Race day

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 12 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – Intermediate race report

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 13 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – Race report

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 14 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – Arrival in Paris

Gallica, Online Archive, ''Le Petit Journal'' 15 June 1895 – Voitures sans chevaux – later finishers


External links


Racing Database



Early auto racing, in Spanish




Auto races in France Defunct auto racing series 1895 in French motorsport 1895 establishments in France History of Paris International sports competitions in Paris Sports competitions in Bordeaux 1895 in motorsport June 1895 de:Motorsportjahr 1895 it:Storia dell'automobilismo (1895) nl:Grand-prixseizoen 1895 {{DEFAULTSORT:Paris-Bordeaux-Paris