This old Cotswold Clouds Trial video is oddly mesmerizing

There’s a stretch of rutted dirt trails that plays host to a unique test of mechanical and driving ability. It’s called the Costwolds Clouds Trial and it’s been around since 1963. Randomly, I found this video from the 2013 event and I find myself mesmerized by the aging machinery being urged on up this hill.

You’ll see Beetles, MGs, and Escorts all struggling to complete these two corners. There are Hillmans, Renaults, and Vauxhalls battling for traction.

Here’s a POV video taken from the 2020 event. And around the 2:50 mark the car appears to enter the same section shown above from the 2013 event:

But there are far more tricky sections. One spot makes the driver stop on a steep stretch of hill, pause for a minute, and then get moving again. It must be quite a bit of work on that clutch leg and for these old mills. And in many spots you’ll notice the passenger sets to hopping up and down in an effort to force the rear wheels back down in the search for traction.

It’s an interesting event that I’d never heard of previously. But now I look forward to my YouTube search algorithm serving up many more examples of stuff like this.