Championship Type: Hill Climb

Motorsport UK British Hillclimb Championship

The British Hillclimb championship is ready to tear-up hillclimb venues across the British Isles this season with a busy, packed calendar organised in conjunction with the British Automobile Racing Club.

The art of hillclimbing is very different to that of circuit racing. Rather than racing each other on track, drivers fight each other on the time sheets across picturesque and challenging hillclimb venues of about a mile or so in length.

Competitors only get a handful of practice runs before official timed runs – which provides and ranks the top 12 runners for a reverse order shootout from slowest to quickest. The top 12 run-offs are an exhilarating, nail biting affair with the order expected to get faster and faster – mounting the pressure on every driver for every run. One run, one shot and one small mistake could be the difference between coming home with a win and a hill record or just a handful of points. Hillclimbing at the top end can only be described as Formula One up a garden path.

2025 will welcome trips to England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Jersey and Guernsey in the Channel Islands with the season starting in April at Prescott and ending at Loton Park in September.

The championship is also home to road going saloons, modified production, Sports Libre as well the  state of the art – bristling with technology single-seaters form small bike engined powered machines to the over 2000cc category. The top 12 run-off is normally dominated by the large engined single seaters – but depending on the hill, weather and driver at the wheel – expect to see the odd smaller engined car sneaking into the run-off order.

All eyes will once again be on the top category in 2025. Watch out for names such as Matt Ryder, Wallace Menzies, Scott Moran,Trevor Willis and Alex Summers and many more in cars from Gould, OMS, DJ and AFS battling it out at the top of the timesheets – fighting for the converted number one on the car for the following year.

The 2025 season for the British Hillclimb Championship in partnership with the British Automobile Racing Club gets underway at Prescott in Gloucestershire on the weekend of the 26th/27th April.

Family, friends and motorsport fans will be able to watch some of season’s hillclimbing action on the Hillclimb.TV YouTube channel – with a comprehensive day of racing coverage planned from Shelseley Walsh and Prescott rounds at the very least.

2025 British Hillclimb Championship Calendar
Event 1 – 26th/27th April – Prescott
Event 2 – 3rd May – Craigantlet
Event 3 – 11th May – Harewood
Event 4 – 24th/25th May – Gurston Down
Event 5 – 7th/8th June – Shelsley Walsh
Event 6 – 21st/22nd June – Doune
Event 7 – 5th/6th July – Harewood
Event 8 – 15th July – Bouley Bay
Event 9 – 19th July – Val des Terres
Event 10 – 26th/27th July – Wiscombe Park
Event 11 – 9th/10th August – Shelsley Walsh
Event 12 – 6th/7th September – Prescott
Event 13 – 20th/21st September – Doune
Event 14 – 27/28 September –  Loton Park

For more information on the British Hillclimb Championship – head to www.britishhillclimb.co.uk

BARC Speed Championship

The British Automobile Racing Club Midlands Centre has put together an exciting collection of events for the 2025 BARC Speed Championship season with 24 rounds ready and waiting for entries across a plethora of iconic venues in England and Wales.

The BARC Speed Championship is designed for low-cost, easily accessible motorsport with the emphasis of inclusion for all, as the series is aimed at creating an enjoyable, engaging and truly competitive environment for seasoned drivers, as well those starting out on their motorsport journey.

The championship format is one car at a time, racing against the stopwatch rather than cars together, fighting for the same piece of track. Competitors can enter all 24 events, but they can pick and choose up to eight rounds to count towards the final award of which two must be sprint, two hillclimb and one organised event by the BARC Midlands Centre.

Scoring is based on established class records, thus providing the opportunity for all competitors to accumulate points. Whether you are in standard road cars or top-end single seaters, everyone has a fair chance of taking home a prize. Venues range from sprint courses, hillclimbs and circuit based events to provide a real variety for the drivers across the campaign.

Old favourites such as Cadwell Park, Prescott and Gurston Down are joined by some new or returning events in 2025. One of Britain’s oldest hillclimb venues Shelesely Walsh is on the billing twice, while a new location in the breath-taking Epynt Hillclimb joins the itinerary this year.

The 2025 season for the BARC Speed Championship gets underway at Cadwell Park on the 29 March – with full details available at the BARC Midlands Centre website – www.barc-midlands.co.uk

2025 BARC Speed Championship Championship Calendar
Round 1 – 29th March – Cadwell Park
Rounds 2-3 – 5th/6th April – Trac Mon Anglesey
Rounds 4-5 – 26th/27th April – Gurston Down
Rounds 6 – 3rd May – Shelsley Walsh
Rounds 7-8 – 17th/18th May – Loton Park
Rounds 9-10 – 7th/8th June – Pembrey
Rounds 11-12 – 14th/15th June – Epynt Hillclimb
Rounds 13-14 – 28th/29th June – Curborough
Rounds 15-16 – 5th/6th July – Harewood
Round 17 – 20th July – Prescott
Rounds 18-19 – 23rd/24th August – Snetterton
Round 20 – 7th September – Hethel
Round 21 – 13th September – Shelsley Walsh
Round 22 – 27th September – Goodwood
Rounds 23-24 – 27th-28th September – Blyton Park

Gurston Down Speed Hill Climb Championship

Tucked away in picturesque Salisbury, Gurston Down Speed Hill Climb is one of the country’s leading hill climb venues and is operated by the British Automobile Racing Club’s South West Centre. 

Iconic for its notable decline off the start before ascending up the tarmac on the course, Gurston hosts all manner of events throughout the season including its own championship. Comprising of a handful of rounds, points are awarded on the basis of how fast competitors are on the day relative to their opponents as drivers and machines are pit against the stopwatch. 

Awards are up for grabs in the overall championship winner and also each class in the championship too, so there is plenty of competitive action throughout the whole field as drivers vie for position. 

Running in parallel with The Turbo Dynamics Gurston Down Championship and at the same meetings, is the Top Ten Challenge which sees points being awarded to the ten fastest registered competitors at each meeting, irrespective of what class they are in.

Harewood Speed Hill Climb Championship

Organised and run by the British Automobile Racing Club’s Yorkshire centre, the Harewood Speed Hill Climb Championship consists of several rounds of competition over the course of the year.

Providing a unique challenge like no other hill climb venue, Harewood’s picturesque scenery has become renowned for being the ultimate haven for drivers to test themselves behind the wheel as they race against the stopwatch.

The overall championship will pit road-going, modified saloon and sports cars against single seater thoroughbreds, with all competitors competing against the best time from their respective class.

In the FTD Championship, which runs parallel to the main category, points are based on the fastest times set at each round, predominantly dominated by those piloting single seater machinery too.