Right, so, the Hagerty Hill Climb is back, and rather splendidly, it returns to Shelsley Walsh on the 17th of May, 2025.
Now, Shelsley, for those of you unfamiliar, is a place of quite profound motoring significance. It’s been around since 1905 — yes, really — and is still using the same bit of tarmac up a hill. No fiddling about with the layout here. It’s rather like if Goodwood had never stopped, and had a slightly more vertical disposition.
This year’s event is a little bit special, as it also marks the 120th anniversary of the venue itself. That’s older than most countries’ motoring laws.
Among the many delights to be found will be a returning cast of rally royalty, thanks to something called Ralli 22 — which I assume is like a gentleman’s club but with more oversteer. Their contribution includes a frankly outrageous assortment of machinery: an Audi Quattro (Group B, obviously), Ford Escort RS Cosworth, a luminous yellow Lancia Delta, and the monstrous MG Metro 6R4 — which was essentially a small shopping car that had a cathedral dropped into it.
Also making appearances: a Porsche 911 GT3, Renault 5 Maxi Turbo, Rover SD1 (Group A), and, pleasingly, a Subaru Impreza Group N — the car of choice for anyone who had a fleece with too many zips in the late ’90s.
Now, if you fancy having a go yourself — and why wouldn’t you? — the event offers what’s known as “Run What You Brung”. For £150, you can send your own car up the hill three times, whether it’s a Caterham, a Cortina, or indeed a Citroën C4 Picasso (though I might advise against that). No racing licence required, just a sense of mechanical sympathy and a firm grasp of the concept of corners.
If you happen to be a member of the Hagerty Drivers Club, you get 25% off, which is jolly civil of them. There’s even a special enclosure with refreshments, where you can pretend you’re in the paddock at Le Mans while sipping coffee from a paper cup.
General admission is £30 per car — not per person, mind you, per car — which is brilliant, because you can bring your friends, your dog, or even your nan, provided she doesn’t mind a bit of revving.
Camping is available this year for the first time too, meaning you can arrive on the Friday, pitch up, and be ready to watch someone in a TVR attempt to outbrake themselves into the first bend by Saturday morning.
There’ll be plenty of off-track action as well: a paddock crammed with everything from pre-war curiosities to present-day rocket ships, and a rather marvellous Scalextric track operated by the folks at Mission Motorsport. A fiver gets you a go, and the fastest lap of the day nets a prize worth £150 — presumably a Scalextric set, although personally I’d be after bragging rights more than anything.
As Hagerty’s own Mark Roper puts it: “The Hagerty Hill Climb presents a very special opportunity to sample one of the oldest forms of motorsport in a relaxed environment.” Which, translated, means: come for the cars, stay for the atmosphere, leave with tinnitus and a big smile.
There’s even a new classic car show area, trade stands, and club displays. In short: if you like old cars going quickly in a straight line (and sometimes sideways), you’ll be in the right place.
More info is available here. Just don’t forget your earplugs.