Guus Docen

Guus Docen

The Dutch Auto Union museum in Bergen
Friday, 13 December 2013 21:54
Published in European Desk

The Dutch Auto Union museum in Bergen

In the centre of the picturesque village Bergen in the Netherlands, resides the Dutch Auto Union museum. This small museum houses historic cars and motorbikes of the brands Auto Union, DKW and Tornax, which have been collected over a long period and restored by Mr. Henk Geerts. The vehicles from the collection of the museum are from the 1931 to 1965. It is the only museum that is recognized by Audi AG. Sadly, on the first of November 2013, Henk Geerts passed away, at age 82. What will happen with this unique collection of two stroke-engined motorcars?
21th Spa Six Hours - Francorchamps
Monday, 14 October 2013 18:12
Published in European Desk

21th Spa Six Hours - Francorchamps

With some 109 classic cars on the grid, the 2013 edition of the Spa Six Hours endurance race brought back memories of 1966 Le Mans 24 Hours. In that specific year 3 Ford GT40s finished first, second and third. Also in 2013 the GT40 was the favourite machine for drivers with winning ambitions for the 360-minute endurance race at Spa as 10 examples of this fine machine were entered. Eight of them qualified in the top ten of the grid.
Historic Grand Prix Zandvoort 2013
Tuesday, 01 October 2013 21:30
Published in European Desk

Historic Grand Prix Zandvoort 2013

The first edition of the Historic Grand Prix Zandvoort last year, was a great success . As many as 31,500 spectators enjoyed themselves at Circuit Park Zandvoort. This event thus demanded an immediate permanent place on the historic racing calendar. During the second edition a total of 45,901 spectators passed the gates of Circuit Park Zandvoort. Enthusiasts from all over the country and even abroad celebrated the rich history of the Dutch circuit with races for historic single-seaters, GTs, touring cars and sportscars. Some well-known drivers were present at Zandvoort, German ex-Le Mans winner Jürgen Barth, Dutch drivers Arie Luijendijk, Jan Lammers, Michael Bleekemolen, Toine Hezemans and Tom Coronel and renowned car designers Adrian van Hooijdonk and Harm Lagaaij. Avid racer and car enthusiast Brian Johnson, lead singer of the hard rock band AC/DC, was behind the wheel of a Mini Cooper S.
41st Oldtimer Grand Prix Nurburgring - Part 1
Thursday, 29 August 2013 21:39
Published in European Desk

41st Oldtimer Grand Prix Nurburgring - Part 1

The 41st Oldtimer Grand Prix weekend combined all the ingredients for a world-class historic motorsport event. During this 3-day event the weather was terrific so no wonder that more than 50.000 spectators visited the Nürburgring. Entering the circuit grounds the journey begins in the historic paddock, where the sporting legends from the 20s and 30s like Bugattis, Talbots, Rileys, MGs and Alfa Romeos are parked. Walking from the historic paddock to the Grand Prix paddock the impressive Jaguar hospitality area is spotted on the right. Not only all new models are exposed but also some valuable historic cars. Jaguar Land Rover Germany is one of the main sponsors of this event. As stated by the CEO of Jaguar Land Rover Germany:  "We have been partners for over 10 years with the AVD Oldtimer Grand Prix. For us, this event is the perfect platform to bridge the gap of our classics to the latest models. Even the prototype hybrid-sportscar C-X 75 is displayed”. Sponsors BMW and Opel also presented their heritage cars. Porsche dedicated to the 50th Birthday of the legendary 911 a big parade.
Legend Boucles de Spa - February 2013
Tuesday, 26 February 2013 01:55
Published in European Desk

Legend Boucles de Spa - February 2013

Written by Guus Docen       Photographs by Maurice Volmeyer (www.carlegends.nl)                                                                                                                                                                                The original Boucles de Spa rally was held between 1953 and 1990 in the Belgium Ardennes area and was well known for its typically snowy conditions. The Legend Boucles de Spa is the historic version and one of the biggest historic rally events in Europe. Just like the original rally the Legend event is held in the countryside outside the town of Spa in Belgium. The field of participants is growing year by year and participating are the biggest names from the world of rallying like Didier Auriol, Björn Waldegaard, British rally champion Gwyndaf Evans, WRC drivers Per-Gunnar Andersson, Thierry Neuville and twice winner of the 24-Hours of Le Mans, Andre Lotterer.