10 replies to this topic

[Hans Etzrodt]

Joseph Cattanéo was the unfortunate driver of a 1500 cc racing Bugatti that skidded into the crowd at Château-Thierry on April 7, 1935, just 100 meters from the finish, causing one of the most regrettable accidents during the thirties. Seven spectators were killed and 18 injured. Later that year, Cattanéo was acquitted at the November 1935 trial while the organizer of the event, Victor Breyer, had to pay a fine of 200 Francs and hundreds of thousands of Francs restitution to the survivors, those maimed forever and also the fully recovered as well as to the survivors of those killed.

Questions:
1 – Did Cattanéo ever race again?
2 – When in 1934 and where in France was the other crash at a small hill climb where supposedly six spectators were killed?

[Marcor]

2)- Fontainebleau, 13 May 1934, hillclimb race organised by the AC de l'Ile-de-France (near Paris).
Fatal crash of Eric Lora (Bugatti n°110), also killing 6 spectators. Eric Lora was in fact the pseudo of Cochin. He was 28 years old.

Not the first fatal crash at Fontainebleau hillclimb. In 1930 Namont's Rally somersaulted and poor driver was crushed by his own car.

Fontainebleau and Château-Thierry hillclimb had the same particularity. The competitors had to brake violently before the finishing line as both event were start and finish "stopped"... (in French départ et arrivée arrêtés).

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Marcor
.....Fontainebleau and Château-Thierry hillclimb had the same particularity. The competitors had to brake violently before the finishing line as both event were start and finish "stopped"... (in French départ et arrivée arrêtés).

Very interesting, and a tangent for Hans to go off onto in his resume of the older hillclimb events.

[dretceterini]

Any relation the the Cattaneo family fom Isotta, who also worked for the aircraft section of Alfa, and later, had an engineering firm in Italy called Cabi-Cattaneo?

[Hans Etzrodt]

Marc - thanks very much for giving the details of the 1934 Fontainebleau crash. Is it known how many spectators were injured? Do you happen to know more (date, driver’s first name) about the 1930 Fontainebleau crash?

[David McKinney]

To return to the original question.
I have Cattanéo down as Le Begue's (Talbot) co-driver in the 1937 Mille Miglia, though whether or not that is the same man I am not sure

[Marcor]

The MM co-driver of René Le Bègue was - according The French Sports Car Revolution - Guido Cattaneo, Italian engineer and winner of the unsupercharged division of the 1936 MM in a Pescar Alfa Romeo (He finished 9th)

Other Cattaneo: Pietro (Italian), around 1925...

[Bugatti bourgogne]

Hi,

Do one of you know that Joseph Cattaneo has owned the Bugatti Royale 41111 'esders' ?

this guy was also a garagiste for Bugatti, Ferrari...
do you want details ?

regards,

[dretceterini]

Yes, details please...

and was he related to the Isotta-Fraschini Cattaneos??

[m.tanney]

Originally posted by Marcor
The MM co-driver of René Le Bègue was - according The French Sports Car Revolution - Guido Cattaneo, Italian engineer and winner of the unsupercharged division of the 1936 MM in a Pescar Alfa Romeo (He finished 9th)

  A little OT excursion:
  Guido Cattaneo was a legend in Italian hydroplane racing circles. In 1930-31 he served as riding mechanic on Mille Miglia founder Count Mazzotti's Pavia-Venezia winning hydroglider. He later performed the same service with Count Theo Rossi's winning craft. An innovative designer, his best known boat was Rossi's 1938 Gold Cup winner, Alagi. Cattaneo was also a successful driver in his own right, winning the Coppa Mussolini in 1939 with his self designed, Isotta powered Asso. Cattaneo was a pioneer in the field of stern drives, now a commonplace feature on offshore powerboats. During the war he designed fast attack craft for the Italian navy. After the war he designed Achille Castoldi's beautiful Arno II, which had an Alfa 158 engine with full works support. It was raced on at least one occasion by Achille Varzi. One of Castoldi's later boats, Arno XI, was powered by a works supported Ferrari 375. As you can see, there was a lot of contact between the powerboating and motor racing communities in Italy from the 1930s through the 1950s.

P.S. I don't know the exact connection, but it seems that all of Cattaneo's prewar hydroplanes were Isotta powered. His wartime designs and postwar racers all used CABI-Cattaneo made stern drives.

[Bugatti bourgogne]

In order to sell the roadster Royale (41111) Cattanéo introduced Bugatti to the famous Parisian fashion designer , Armand Esders. To rewar him, The Patron 'E. Bugatti' asked Joseph what he would like . Cattanéo refused to play the coward and answered : un Grand Prix !

Bugatti gave him his first racing car and he bought several others. He set up his business on the bank of the Seine...
(70, Quai Carnot) in St Cloud. Cattaneo formed an association with Duval and they applied for a patent.
They placed a drilled brass sheet filled with grease in between every spring blade. The whole was protected by a cover tied up like a shoe.
Their main customers were Armand Esders, the Chocolate Firm Meunier and Nicolas of Romania (who raced Le mans in 1935)

At Armand Esders's request, he built 2 or 3 small hispanos with engines for children.
In may 1935, 'Catta' took part in the hill climb in Chateau Thierry. He drove a GP equipped with an outside exhaust pipe. Unfortunately, he left the track and killed several specators. He was himself seriousely hurt, sustaining several back fractures. He was in pain for the rest of his life.
In july 1939, Catta became the new owner of the roadster Royale, registered in Seine et Oise 8089 YC 2.
In the 1950's and 1960's, he sold and maintain Ferrari for Brigitte Bardot, Roger Vadim, Christian Marquand, Alberto Rossellini...

Voila !


Thanks to yan Verdier.... a life with Bugatti....

regards,

Julien