HISTORIC HILL FEATURE CLIMB
Big names in motorsport
Aston Hill was active for more than 20 years, hosting 30 events including 22 that were run by HAC – later named Hertfordshire County Automobile and Aero Club( HCAAC); one by Essex Motor Club( 1912); one by Oxford Motor Club( 1921); five Oxford v Cambridge Inter-Varsity events( 1913,‘ 20,‘ 21,‘ 23 and‘ 25); and the Cyclecar Club’ s head-to-head relay( 1914).
The venue’ s popularity reached far and wide and it attracted the great and the good of motorsport from the era – including four individuals who had founded, or would go on to found, some of the great marques in the motorcycling and automotive world – Riley, Bentley, Morgan and ERA / BRM.
The Riley Cycle Company had been established by William Riley Junior in 1890 as a bicycle manufacturer, but expanded into the automotive world and made its first car in 1898. When Victor Riley took over to advance the brand further, he used Aston Hill to make his mark, competing in 1908 using the company’ s newly developed Riley 12 / 18hp machine.
Four years later, in 1912, Bentley founder W. O. Bentley made his competition car debut on Aston Hill, driving a modified DFP( Doriot, Flandrin & Parant). He achieved the fastest time in his class with a new 2-litre record and his success not only showcased his driving skills but his engineering prowess, eventually leading him to form Bentley Motors in 1919.
Another pioneering engineer, Henry Morgan, took to the hill in April 1914, participating in his own creation, a Morgan three-wheeler. Again, his performance impressed as the‘ Morgan Team’ secured overall victory in the relay event and that success played a significant role in establishing the reputation of Morgan cars well into the future.
Raymond Mays made his racing debut on Aston Hill in 1921, winning the event in a modified Speed Model Hillman that he acquired whilst studying engineering at Oxford. He switched to a Bugatti the following year and went on to set a number of Hill Climbing records before eventually becoming the co-founder of ERA and BRM.
It was not just automotive pioneers who drove up the hill – there were many established racing drivers of the era who also took it on. As well as the famous inaugural winner, S. F. Edge, famous names included Goodwood motorcycle record holder Freddie Barnes; Isle of Man TT winner Harry Bashall; and Scottish Six Days Trial winner E. A Colliver.
The event even drew in champions from top international races, including the 1916 Indy 500 winner Dario Resta and the 1924 Le Mans 24 Hour winner Frank Clement, who happened also to be a local, while Britain’ s first female racing driver, Dorothy Levitt, and Rosa Hemmett, the pioneering female motorcycle racer, also both made popular appearances.
However, and after an incident at Essex Motor Clubs’ Kop Hill Climb in March 1925, when a Bugatti went out of control and collided with a spectator who suffered a broken leg, the Royal Automobile Club withdrew all permits for speed Hill Climbs on public roads, and the Aston Hill Climb was no more … until now.
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Revolution- April 2025
Images courtesy of Morgan Motor Company
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