Shelsley Walsh-September 20th/21st

Shelsley Walsh Speed Hill Climb figures heavily in our collection of images but we make no apologies for constantly featuring this special venue. Located only twenty minutes away, Shelsley is a magical place steeped in history that calls us back time and time again.

Set in the achingly beautiful Teme Valley, nothing showcases Worcestershire’s countryside better than Shelsley. The sheer contrast between this stunning rural landscape and the noise, smell and excitement of a weekend meeting is breathtaking.

Now entering its second century, Shelsley Walsh Speed Hill Climb is the world’s oldest continuously staged motorsport event still run on its original track.

My pulse always quickens driving through the lanes near Shelsley Beauchamp as we approach the hill and on an early Sunday morning, as the sunshine starts to flood the entire valley, there is no finer sight.

If you’ve never been before, arrive early to soak it all in. As the first engines rumble and roar into life and the ground beneath you in the paddock vibrates through your shoes, you know you’re in for a day of close contact motorsport. The intimacy of the paddock is unique to hill climbing and a perfect opportunity to see the cars at close quarters and to chat to enthusiastic drivers and mechanics. Climb the hill and sit near the bottom S under the shade of the trees where you can hear the howl of the engines as they haul the cars up towards you.

This is traditional motorsport at its finest. The stopwatch ticks as records are constantly attacked. You’re not hemmed behind twenty foot high fences. The public car park has more classic cars than any museum you’ll ever visit. The oldest competing cars are from the early part of the last century and the newest ones wouldn’t look out of place on an F1 track.

Oh, yes, and the Pig Roast is to die for.