Thousands flock to Chateau Impney Hill Climb

The Hill Climb which returned last year, thrilled thousands of spectators with 238 cars racing around the track on Saturday and Sunday.

Ernest Nagamatsu arrived at the Droitwich-based Climb with a 1964 Shelby Cobra 289 which was used in the film The Love Bug and has been competing with it for 32 years.

As well as this car, Mr Nagamatsu also brought the 1959 Old Yeller II which featured in the film Viva Las Vegas.

His wife Elaine Nagamatsu said: "We go all over the world to do hill climbs, we have been to places like Australia, New Zealand and France.

"I think the Chateau Impney event is great, you don't see the sort of fancy cars we are seeing today in California!

"We are just here to have fun, I am really enjoying it."

There was plenty of action as cars raced around the track.

Edmund Burgess was trapped underneath his Bugatti Type 51 after it overturned during practice for the hill-climb.

Marshals righted the car and he walked to the waiting ambulance.

Another coup for the race was the return of Whistling Billy to race against petrol cars.

Its owner Bob Dyke successfully won his appeal in October 2015 to overturn a 10 year ban on steam cars competing against petrol cars and this was one of the first races it has competed in since.

Elsewhere, a staggering 28.5litre car driven by Duncan Pittaway was also on show. The Fiat S76 'Beast of Turin' was joined together from the 1901 car that had its parts scattered around the world in 1919 to prevent rivals picking up the secret and a 1954 model.

Mr Pittaway bought the 1954 model in 2003 and added the engine of the 1901 car which was all that was left over from the former champion car.

Mr Pittaway said: "This car is all about the engine, nobody would be bothered about it otherwise.

"It is very tough to drive in these hill climbs, the problem I have with it is it is like a bearded women in a circus, everyone wants to see it so I don't have enough time to fix it.

"I drove it for the first long-drive on a road the other day, for 150 miles and that was where you could really tell how good a car it is."

As well as those from further afield, a number of locals were also involved including Dave West from Droitwich, who won the Hill Climb in 1967 although he is not in the record books due to a strange occurrence.

He replaced Fred Jones the owner of a mini last minute, as he was called to an emergency job working as a gas engineer, but everywhere still carried Fred Jones' name.

Last year, Mr West returned to win back his crown in an Austin Cooper S, but missed out by a 200th of a second.

Mr West said before the race: "I don't know what my chances are this year really, anything can go wrong or everything can go right, it's a very precise sport.

"It is a very good local event for Droitwich it is fabulous for the kids as well."

Another local competing was Tracey Cameron, from Malvern, driving a Hale Morgan Racing Car.

She said: "It is very exciting to drive at local events. We are lucky in this area to have this hill climb as well as Shelsley Walsh, Prescott and Lowton Park."

21 year-old Callum Grant from Bolton was competing in his first hill climb, having never even been to see one.

He said: "I am feeling quite nervous, hopefully that will go once I am over the first hill.

"My Grandfather used to do hill climbs, he always wanted me to do it, he'd come to see me and say he needed a big strong boy to do it and I would tell him he had the wrong house!

It is a shame he is not here to see me do it today, he would have loved it."