Claudio Enz and Cristina Seeberger won the Monte Carlo Historique Rally. In their Lancia Fulvia Rally 1.3 S from 1970, they outperformed the competition, especially on snow and ice. Historic racing cars are the professional and private passion of the couple from Celerina.
The Monte Carlo Historique Rally is considered the most important winter rally with historic racing cars worldwide. 278 teams from Europe, Asia and America drove 16 special stages in the French Alps last week. Former World Rally Championship drivers were also present. “Up to four tests were held per day and two more last night,” explained a tired but overjoyed Claudio Enz (32) after the victory in Monte Carlo. “Lack of sleep is one of the biggest challenges.”
The Monte Carlo Historique Rally is a so-called “Regularity Race”: Unlike in the World Rally Championship, the aim is not to drive a stage as fast as possible, but to always be as close as possible to a specified speed. This is up to 50 kilometers per hour. “50 km/h may sound like leisurely driving, but on an icy pass with tight hairpin curves, it's quite a hussar ride,” says navigator Cristina Seeberger (28). Seeberger and her partner Enz had already achieved 13th place overall in the previous year. “Of course you dream of such a big success, but you can never expect it,” says Claudio Enz. “From a technical and driving perspective, everything has to fit together perfectly; not the smallest detail can go wrong for five days and nights.” The two Engadines shone with their regularity. On dry roads, they were able to keep up with the best, but on snow and ice, they made the decisive difference.
Rally racing is team sport
The passenger not only navigates the team through the narrow roads, she also monitors the speed. “All cars are monitored with GPS. If we are too slow or too fast, there are penalty points,” explains Claudio Enz. “Cristina tells me every change of direction and the best speed. She always knows exactly what information I need to drive the car optimally. I can't think of a better passenger.”
Seeberger and Enz prefer to ensure that everything goes well themselves, as both are trained automotive diagnosticians. In their garage company “Auto Engiadina” in Zuoz, they maintain not only normal cars for their customers but also rarities from private car collections from Switzerland and other European countries. They took their mechanic Dario Inhelder (Madulain) and apprentice Seraina Grond (Brail) to Monte Carlo for the rally.
Their own racing car is a Lancia Fulvia Coupé 1.3 S from 1970, which they have been driving for several years. After winning in “Monte,” they could probably sell him dearly. “Not a chance!” , says Claudio Enz about it. “We want to drive to Monte Carlo again next year. Then with number 1.”