Turning back the racing clock
SA HISTORIC GRAND PRIX FESTIVAL Hannes Pickard will be there in his two-seater Aston Martin.
Of the 31 Aston Martin Ulster racing cars built by the British company in 1934, 28 are still in running order and their whereabouts in the world is well known. One of them happens to be in Stellenbosch and it’s getting ready to race for the first time since before the Second World War.
The gleaming black 1500cc Ulster will be taking part in the South African Historic Grand Prix festival, which gets under way in East London on November 25. The Eastern Cape town’s racetrack was home to the original South African Grand Prix.
Taking part will be nearly 20 pre-war Grand Prix cars, many of them the actual cars that raced in the three annual South African GP events (the SAGP and accompanying races in Cape Town and Johannesburg) held before the outbreak of WW2.
These include the Maserati 8CM that won the inaugural event and the super-charged MG K3 that placed fifth despite running badly throughout the race.
Other confirmed entries include two ERA R4As (one of which won the SAGP in 1937) and the Riley Ulster Imp that ran second the same year, two Bugattis, an Alfa-Romeo, a Frazer Nash and Talbots.
Local entries include three MGs, including the famous “Hoodoo” Montlhery C-type Midget currently being restored in Mpumalanga and the two-seater Aston Martin hailing from the Winelands.
“I’ve always wanted to own a pre-war racer,” admits its 50-year-old owner, mall-developer Hannes Pickard, “but finding one in this country was extremely difficult.
“Most of them had either been crashed or left South Africa over the years. However, one day a guy who helps me source old cars said he knew of a man in Cape Town who owned an old Aston Martin that had been standing unused in Europe for years.
“I spoke to the owner and he said I could buy the car for the same price he’d paid for it. I told him, there and then, that he had a deal.” That was three years ago. Ten of the cars were produced for the Aston Martin factory team and they were very serious competitors, especially in endurance races.
The model got its popular name from the 1934 Ulster TT, in which Aston Martin placed third, sixth and seventh.
The remaining 21 were essentially replicas that were not built to the full Grand Prix specification of the initial factory racers.
They were, nonetheless, still seriously quick (for the time) and Aston Martin sold them to amateur racing drivers for the princely sum of £750.00.
This led to the vehicles being described as “gentlemen’s” racing cars. They were capable of nearly 200km/h.
“One of the nicest things about this car is that it’s ‘street legal’,” adds Pickard. “I bought this car to drive, not as an investment.
“Please don’t ask me about horsepower and torque … things like that?” he begs.
“I’m a bit of a romantic; what gets me going is the way it looks
One of the nicest things about this car is that it’s ‘street legal’.
and sounds, and how I feel when I pull on my old leather flying cap and goggles.”
Ironically, Pickard was considering an offer to purchase the Ulster when the organiser of the GP festival, Mark Woolley of UKbased Speedstream Events, invited him to participate.
Factory Ulsters raced in several South African GP events, which were billed as the “winter season” for northern hemisphere drivers.
Woolley believed the presence of the South Africa Aston Martin would add authenticity to the festival, especially since an Ulster took part in that first race at East London.
Pickard’s car strutted its stuff at Brooklands and other amateur events in Germany and France events before the arrival of WW2 ended its racing career.
“Racing this car will be the realisation of a childhood dream,” says Pickard. “You read of classic races such as the Mille Miglia, Le Mans and Pebble Beach but never dream that one day you might get the chance to be a part of something that harks back to that era.
“It wasn’t hard for me to say ‘yes’ to the opportunity.”
The sale, he says, has been postponed indefinitely.
Given the history (and monetary value) of the vehicles taking part in the festival, it’s unlikely that the racing will be particularly cutthroat – “although you never know on the day …” laughs Pickard.
For more information about the festival, go to