Paris-Madrid inter-city road race, 1903
No windscreen, no cockpit coaming, no protection from flying stones or airborne debris – the madcap, murderously dangerous Paris-Madrid would be the last of the top-level city-to-city road races governments would permit. Having just checked in at the stage finish line in the background, Darracq driver ‘Edmond’ and his weary riding mechanic make their way to overnight parc fermé. Their travel-stained jackets, caked and bruised faces and, above all, the state of their hands bear testament to what a challenge to human endurance – never mind the car’s – this type of pioneer racing posed.
Grand Prix de l’Automobile Club de France, Le Mans –La Ferté-Bernard –Saint-Calais, 1906
This would prove to be a race of tyres when high temperatures caused the surface to break up, releasing stones and tar. In practice Renault experimented with the new lightweight all-metal wire wheels seen here, but fearing they would not stand up to racing stresses reverted to artillery wheels. The regulations forbade changing an entire wheel so like other manufacturers Renault tested alternatives, and just prior to the race Michelin introduced its detachable rims, allowing a car to carry inflated spares
