Mysterious Citroen Six Record Solved
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The mysterious 1929 Barcelona-Madrid record of the Citroën Six

We have finally solved the mystery of the 1929 Barcelona-Madrid record in which three brave crew members covered the distance in 8 hours and 42 minutes...

Long time ago I raised in these pages of THE SCUDERÍA the enigma (which remained without explanation) of why they had tried to beat a record of speed, in 1929, on the Barcelona-Madrid route aboard a 6-cylinder Citroën Six. Well, more than 90 years later, we have found the answer. Although he was always there...

The missing magazine The new World echoed the news of the record on April 12 of that year. A publication of the time, the Stadium Illustrated Magazine mentioned, in an extensive article, the event of the crossing in its number 533 of April 15, 1929. In other words, the answer was revealed three days later.

However, and thanks to one of the readers of THE SCUDERÍA, We've only met her for a few weeks. But put to curl the loop, it turns out that the article of Stadium is a 'copy and paste' of a review published by the specialized magazine The Watch of Catalonia, in the "Passavolant" section, where you really he interviewed to the protagonists of that motorsport milestone.

Going into the matter, it seems that Citroën Spain had not tried to break any records with their cars. He took part in regularity and resistance tests, organized by the Real Moto Club, tests that he won easily. Subsequently, the double gallon brand participated in the tough (for those times) races of the Royal Automobile Club of Catalonia, such as the Valle de Arán Grand Prix. Here, according to the chronicles, "It equaled, when it did not beat, cars with much more displacement and price." And yet never They set a record...

Citroen record six

AN OFFICIAL BARCELONA-MADRID RECORD

Be that as it may, the French manufacturer noticed the brand that had set a recordman surnamed Bianchi on that same Barcelona-Madrid route, and he wanted to beat it. To do this, he chose the Citroën C6 Six, a vehicle presented a year earlier, «car of great qualities and effective realities», whose characteristics can be consulted in the previous article referred to this test. And he chose three crew members, as they were called in those years: the gentlemen Sirvent, Puigcarbó and Blasco.

After the test, puigcarbó answered questions posed by The View of Catalonia. From the answers she offered, the feat was not taken by them as such. Moreover, he considers that they were aware of the same «for the general interest that the record has aroused. He even points out:we have not marched with the proper precautions of carrying out a speed test; our trip had the aspect of a long pleasure trip, of a tourist excursion of some fans to the pleasure of speed».

By way of explanation, say that the route was the following: Barcelona, ​​Ordal, Villafranca, Vendrell, Reus, Falset, Gandesa, Alcañiz, Montalván, Molina de Aragón, Alcolea del Pinar, Guadalaraja and Madrid.

THEY COULD HAVE GOED EVEN FASTER!

Having said this, and returning to Puigcarbó, the previous answer is even more specific: «It is natural that we did not fall asleep on the way, but I am convinced that if we now repeat the test we would reduce the time from 8 hours and 42 minutes that we used, because we really lost twenty minutes that could very well be earned ».

Here they refer to the sum of Times lost as a result of a bad registration of the notary at the exit, of a terrible refueling in Gandesa to get gasoline and check one of the «glyceurs» (mixture screws feeding the Citroën Solex carburettors), a «bracing» from the hood in Alcañíz, a road mistake in Camino Real ...

In short, according to them, and in view of these delays, «time can get off in half an hour always with series cars ».

At one point in the interview it seems that Blasco joins the same with some discomfort. Puigcarbó comments that his partner "You are not satisfied with what has been done". On the one hand, due to the loss of time, although he emphasizes that he is very satisfied with the behavior of the car: «What a march, how the Citroën-Six obeyed the command of hands or feet!». Even «there were times when the average was lower than that of Bianchi. What I can tell you is that from Barcelona to Reus we did an average of 94 and from Alcolea to Madrid 99 to save time». Puigcarbó wanted to downplay these statements because despite everything "Luck protected them, since they did not have any tire failure."

citroen c6 record

BUREAUCRACY AND SPORT

On the other hand, the disappointment came because the record was not officially recognized by the Royal Automobile Club of Spain because of some "recent ministerial regulations". At this point, Puigcarbó does not skimp on praise for him and his teammates: “be that as it may, we have established a new timestamp in the distance Barcelona-Madrid and we are convinced that the sportsmanship of all those who are interested in our trip will not be influenced by this question of protocol. Sport is synonymous with good faith, correctness, truth and denial of all conventionalism; well, my honor and that of my friends guarantees the fact». There it is.

Everything is finally clear, although at this point another question arises as full of mystery as the record itself has been until now: Who really were the three crew members of the Citroën? Were they so relevant in the 20s that the French brand gave them the wheel of one of its most recent cars for a sporting event that was not without some risk? I'll just give a hint Enrique Blasco was "Very well-known in the motorcycle clubs as a wild runner, a highly skilled athlete who, when behind the wheel of a car, is capable of great feats."

the neckties Ferdinand Sirvert y Enrique Blasco They were regulars at the races held in Madrid. The former also used to attend some tests in Catalonia, while Blasco was a regular on motorcycles.

* We thank Josep M. Pàmies and Ángel Martín for the material provided.

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Written by Albert Ferreras

Alberto Ferreras (Madrid, 1968) developed his professional career in the newspaper El País since 1988, where he worked as a graphic editor and editor of the supplement Motor until January 2011. Graduated in Photography, he was a finalist for the Ortega y Gasset Award of ... Read more

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