News & Events

Team Jarrott wins at Vintage Revival Montlhèry 2024

Jun 04 2024

With the discovery some years ago that the original Paris Olympics of 1900 had uniquely included motor racing, with over 20 De Dion Bouton motor tricycles taking part in an epic 1500km road race from Paris to Toulouse and back, as well as velodrome contests in Paris itself, the question was how could the De Dion Bouton Club UK's unique Team Jarrott race team return Tricycle racing to Paris in 2024 to celebrate the Olympics being held in the city of light again after a gap of a century. 
 
After discussions with the Olympic Committee and the Automobile Club de France drew a blank, the decision by the organisers of the Vintage Revival to celebrate the centenary of the Linas-Montlhery track on the edge of Paris just weeks before the Olympics officially opened, presented a unique opportunity. After securing in principle agreement, two years of negotiations with Vincent Chamon and Freddie Frot, together with an overarching agreement with circuit owners UTAC, we set about putting the event together.
 
As in 1900, the aim was to attract 20 Trikes and they signed up, all built in the period 1897 - 1900, not just from the UK, but from France, Belgium, Ireland, Holland and Italy as well. Bosch France, who were celebrating their 125th anniversary, came on board as our headline sponsors, with Bosch UK adding additional financial support. As well as a programme of events to hold a 15 minute "Olympic Cup" race each day on an oval circuit laid out on the finishing straight, echoing the velodrome contests of the period, the trikes made numerous laps of the entire 1.6 mile concrete bowl twice each day. Additional non competing Trikes were displayed in the Bosch supplied marquee.
 
With riders, mechanics, marshals, backup and support, a team of nearly 60 came together to put on a show over the weekend that was the deserving VRM winner of Best Club. The Olympic Cup was awarded to Harry Johnson racing Clive Pettit's 1898 De Dion Bouton. The Club's 5 Mile Trophy was awarded to Geoff Gray on his 1900 De Dion Bouton who covered over 12 miles in total circulating the whole concrete bowl. The Georges Bouton Trophy, for a trike solely powered by fuel in a surface carburettor, was awarded to Benard Holmes' 1899 De Dion Bouton, which was successfully ridden over all weekend events by Bernard, Callum Mate and its mechanic Rod Henton over the course of the weekend. 
 
All Team Jarrott members however were the real winners, as the entire team successfully returned tricycle racing to France for the first time since the period.