Six drivers representing each country will share two cars, three drivers per car. Both teams will be competing in two new race/road prepared cars: a Morgan + 4 SuperSport, 2.0 with 200bhp and a standard Morgan +4 with 145bhp both of which have kindly been supplied by the Morgan Motor Car Company, Malvern. The Rob Roy class will run simultaneously with other race classes, with a points scoring system in place. The team with the overall highest score will be awarded The Brake Shoe Trophy.

The Prescott Rob Roy Challenge is just one of the many racing classes competing over the weekend, which also sees the 6th Round of the 2013 Midland Hill Climb Championship supported by TTC Group, and the 2nd Round of Prescott Gold Cup. Other competition classes include: Bugatti Car Handicap, Prescott ‘B’ License Challenge, SBD Motorsport HSA Speed Championship, Service Hydraulics Speed Championship, Bugatti Owners’ Club ‘Paul Matty Sports Cars’ Classic Championship.

Prescott/Rob Roy – How It Came About:

Prescott Hill Climb home of The Bugatti Owners Club was purchased in 1937 and at the time was one of only three bitumen surfaced purpose built hill climb venues in the world, the other two being Shelsley Walsh (UK) and Rob Roy (Australia). Prescott held its first proper “invited clubs” meeting in May 1938 where Arthur Baron set the first course record of 50.70 seconds in his Type 51 Bugatti on the original [‘short’] course of 880 yards. The ‘short’ course record today is 41.40 seconds set in 1997 set by Mark Walker in a Parker GN and the ‘long course’ is 36.24 seconds set by Trevor Willis in 2012.

Rob Roy Hill Climb home of the MG Car Club of Victoria is situated on the outskirts of Melbourne, Australia. The course was established by the Light Car Club of Australia in 1937, it is short course of 760 yards, and the steepest 50 yards is 1 in 3.73.  The first course record was 37.39 seconds set by Jack Day in a Type 39 Bugatti with an American V8 engine.  The current record holder is Andrew Howell in a Gould GR55B at 17.30 seconds.

In 2008 the ‘association’ between Prescott and Rob Roy came together to ‘Promote the interests of hill climbing between Australia and the UK’.  The idea came from ex-pat Australian, and long-time Bugatti Owners Club member, John Passmore, who had attended Rob Roy meetings in the mid 1950’s/early 60’s in his MGTC and has also been a Prescott competitor during 1994-98 in a Austin Healey ‘Frogeye’ Sprite. John was soon joined by fellow ex-pat Aussie Joy Rainey, a former Ladies Hill Climb Champion who resides in Worcestershire. Joy’s late father Murray was a class record holder at Rob Roy in various cars during the 1950’s including an s/c Cooper 500. The idea evolved, and soon the Rob Roy Challenge was launched. During the last five years many Rob Roy members/competitors have come across from Australia to visit Prescott and vice versa.

The Prescott/Rob Roy Teams:

Team Prescott (UK): Bugatti Owners Club Director and Chairman of Prescott Marshals Club Greg Dixon-Smith will head up ‘Team Prescott’ consisting of Allan Cameron, Ian Patton, Simon and Jonathan Baines plus a representative from the Morgan Motor Company.

Team Rob Roy (Australia): MG Car Club Vice-President and Rob Roy committee Doug Morrissey, plus members Kenneth Price, Jane Vollebregt, Rodger Chapman, Frank Oostermeyer, Rod Cooper, with first in reserve Lorna Chapman and second in reserve David Anderson.

Additional Event Information:

The NEW clubhouse will be serving a variety of food throughout the day, including a sausage sizzle. On the Sunday there will be a host of Aussie-themed entertainment including the popular stiltwalkers, a didgeridoo player and popular local band “Ain’t Mis’behavin.