Coldest F1Race

[IceMan_PJN]

A friend and I were discussing how much misery we would endure to watch different types of racing, that we wouldn't endure much for local dirt oval racing but would watch F1 in the snow. I don't know that there has ever been a GP in the snow, but I thought one was once close to that sort of cold but can't put my finger on it. I tried Google but just got forum talks about recent years, of which I know weren't that cold. Does anybody know the real answer for the coldest F1 GP?

[Adam43]

Well I know the hottest was the 1955 Argentinian GP, which Fangio won. I believe the story is that he imagined that he was sat in a bucket of ice. Sorry that doesn't help, but you know it must be another GP other than this race.

Talking of ice, it is great that you are asking about the coldest GP.

[Vitesse]

In the championship era, probably some rain-soaked German or Belgian GP: it gets bloody cold up in those mountains in wet weather!

The 1933 Pau GP was run with snow on the ground and the course salted, but the coldest F1 races were probably the Swedish Winter and Stockholm GPs in early 1947. I say "probably" because they may actually be Formule Libre rather than F1.

[nicanary]

Didn't it snow (or at least sleet) at the 1968 German GP which JYS won so convincingly?

[Vitesse]

Originally Posted by nicanary

Didn't it snow (or at least sleet) at the 1968 German GP which JYS won so convincingly?

Are you perhaps confusing that with Jochen's win at the 1969 Eifelrennen F2 race? There was lying snow that day.

I doubt you'd get sleet or snow - even up in the Eifel mountains - in August. The 1968 German GP was one I was thinking of, along with 1960, when from all reports I've seen the rain was even worse than '68. But that was F2 as well.

Even so, for bad weather you'd have to look long and hard to beat the 1938 Spa 24 Hours: the only times it stopped raining was to make way for hail or fog! The 1938 Swiss GP was pretty bloody miserable too, with rain throughout. But Rosemeyer's win in fog in the '36 Eifelrennen probably wasn't all that warm either.

[Hubble]

I attended an F1 test at Silverstone in 2006 where it snowed...

[IceMan_PJN]

Originally Posted by nicanary

Didn't it snow (or at least sleet) at the 1968 German GP which JYS won so convincingly?

Wikipedia mentions it being wet and foggy but doesn't mention cold.

[chunterer]

Donington 1993 was pretty bad, well it certainly was on the Friday!!

For a July date, the '98 British GP was appalling weather wise as well.

[D-Type]

Didn't it snow at one of the Silverstone International Trophy meetings?

[Angus Theape]

Iirc, Goodwood (Glover Trophy?) got snowed off in 65.

[mountainstar]

I seem to recall mention that a race at Solitude in the late 50's early 60's had snow on the ground and one of the Nurburgring races might have had sleet or some snow coming down.

There was a CART race at Nazereth around 2000 that got cancelled due to several inches of snow.

[phoenix]

There was snow before the start of the 1975 Race of Champions at Brands Hatch. It was a wickedly cold weekend.

[Alfie72]

Originally Posted by D-Type

Didn't it snow at one of the Silverstone International Trophy meetings?

IIRC it was 1973 - April 8th if correct - and I was marshalling on the inside of Copse - in the Fire truck accompanied by Arthur Dickens.

It was raining and gradually the rain turned to snow. I seem to recall Ronnie Peterson "enjoying" the weather. It was typical of Silverstone, wet in one area of the track and dry in another.