29 replies to this topic

[sergioloro]

hi!! i am looking for information about the kalevi track placed at estonia, if somebody could tellme where find pictures, maps and any kind of info i will really apreciate!!!
thank

sergio loro

[Alexey Rogachev]

Look at this page: http://www.silhouet....s/piritako.html. However, the information there needs some facts to add. First, the track was re-opened in 1959, its length was 8.566 km, later (possibly from 1962 onwards) it was 8.648 km. Not only moto races were held at Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa, but also car races, such as traditional "Kalev Trophy" and a number of USSR championships events (1960, 1962, 1966 etc).

[LittleChris]

& spare a thought for the memory of Joey Dunlop

[Alexey Rogachev]

Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa circuit was rebuild in 1965, with circuit length reduced to 6.026 km.

[Beejay17]

I saw the Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa circuit a few months ago. It is lined by pine trees and embankments, and in its midst is a cemetary...

A rather awkward place to run motorcycle races IMHO.

[Just me]

Originally posted by Beejay17
I saw the Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa circuit a few months ago. It is lined by pine trees and embankments, and in its midst is a cemetary...

A rather awkward place to run motorcycle races IMHO.

As a local i feel the need to add my bit to this thread.

In a sence it's a bit like a TT circuit.The circuit is public roads most of the year and some parts of it are city streets with houses on both sides.

Overall the circuit is fast with plenty sweeping turns.The approach to the bridge in the south part of the track is quite an exciting sweeping blind downhill with a 8 percent gradient.

The bad part is undoubtably the safety.The embankments and the pine forest are a part of a nature reserve so you can't really deal with them.I haven't been to the races but seeing the safety measures i would still consider them inadequate for a motorcycle race.

But allthough a bit relic that circuit gives some impression of how the older;) circuits around the world were and what guts it took to drive round them.

[Alexey Rogachev]

Working at the 1978 USSR racing season, I stumbled upon a 'Kalevi Suursõit' ('Kalev Big Race'), which was held not in Tallinn, but near Viljandi that year. I have the complete results of that race, but almost no info on the circuit. What do I have? A couple of over-simplified maps, a space image from Google Earth, some scrappy data, such as road width and circuit length - and that's all. Nothing on the history of that track, called Vana Võidu. I could hardly find an article in Estonian: http://sakala.ajaleh...eht/5012841.php. Unfortunately I know only two or three tens of Estonian words, so I have only understood that the first race at Viljandi had been held in 1964, the last in 1980, two fatal accidents had happened in 1968 & 1978, and the circuit had been used mainly for motorcycle racing. Can anyone make a summary of the article, please? Are any other car races than the 1978 one mentioned there?

[malvi]

To Alexey
Quick and dirty article summary - i hope you get some answers.

The first official race were organized at V-V in sept. 20 1964 and for a few years it was already regular track for a Soviet championship races(cars & bikes) with 50000-60000 spectators on main events(60s-70s) mostly give thanks to Estonian drivers who were among the best at this time Soviet racing. Track was built voluntarely under the DOSAAF(of course you know what that mean) egide(builders got free tickets etc) and I guess, this was the main reason for Soviet championship races. (Pirita track belonged to "Kalev" sportsclub).)
Estonian legendary bike racer Lembit Teesalu(31 time Soviet champion) can`t count his starts and wins at V-V but his brightest memory comes from 1985 when he won his 22nd title - he even did`nt have to start heat 2 !. He remember, competitors loved this track for it`s speed and good profile - natural hills and curves.
Sadly, accidents have been always part of motor racing. In 1978 2 F-Vostok cars collided and killed one spectator - after that formula-type car races banned at V-V. 10 years before this(1968) famous Estonian driver Enn Kaarneem had fatal accident there. Now is memorial on that place.
The track was closed in the and of 80s - main reason was new Tartu highway building.

I hope it was a little help

[Alexey Rogachev]

!!!

[Nanni Dietrich]

Please, Alexey and Malvi, can you help me?

Reading this other posting of yours
http://forums.atlasf...485#post2095485
I understand 10 spectators were killed at the 1978 Kalevi Suursõit (at Viljandi, not at Pirita circuit).

But reading Malvi's translation above, from sakala-website, in 1978 one person (not ten) was killed at Vana Võidu circuit of Viljandi.

Did it happen in two separate accidents?

[BlackCat]

i was there, but not at the exact place of the accident. (had walked by that place before.) you can say that "two cars touched" - but bigger problem was that one of those cars "touched" that damn milk-stand-turned-into-tribune. later there were many ambulances busy. and knowing the soviet system - to accept that there was a fatality at all, things had to be much worse. there were all kinds of rumours. worst i heard was 14 fatalities. i think it was exaggerated. but i still think that 10 could be about right. maybe some of them caught pneumonia in hospital and died of it and then it sure is not "racing accident", is it?
ok, it's just my version. and if there is somebody around from medical crew who says no more than one - i will believe it. still the curiosity of the whole accident was that suspended prison sentence for a racing driver involved... (my friend was his racing engineer there, so i was more worried about the driver then and not so much about the public - **** happens, so what...)

[Alexey Rogachev]

I have nothing to add to this, as there wasn't any record of that race and the accident in the press - as it would be expected, though...

[Nanni Dietrich]

It is very controversial.

According to this other message
http://forums.autosp...373#post2192373
just one spectator was killed (one pregnant woman) and others injured.

Probably, as BlackCat said above, several other people died later at hospital, as consequence of the accident.

[Alexey Rogachev]

Yes Nanni, very controversial indeed, but we don't have any sources of information which would be reliable enough to say: yes, that's absolutely true. One of the notorious Soviet traditions was to conceal any accidents from people, and this concerned the Viljandi accident, too. I couldn't find any record of it, even though I had performed a painstaking search in the Russian State Library. So all we have are only some indistinct memories of eyewitnesses. If one of them says that ten people had died, and the other says that there had been one victim, the best we can do is to consider these two points of view to be equally believable and thus try to set up a hypothesis which would conciliate them. My version is as follows: there were about ten victims, including one pregnant woman.

[Alexey Rogachev]

Today I returned from the trip to Tallinn. I visited the Pirita circuit besides the usual town sightseeing and took about 60 photos there. Going by old pics from the 60's and 70's, the circuit in general hasn't changed noticeably from then on. If anyone need these photos, let me know, and I'll upload them somewhere on the web.

[Doug Nye]

Does anybody have information about the location upon the circuit of Joey Dunlop's fatal accident?

DCN

[Aspelund]

Hello Doug,

If you need any pictures from the place of Joey's accident, I can take them for you.

I marked the place roghly with red crest on the map from Alexey's web-site.



With best wishes from Estonia,

Tarmo

[Alexey Rogachev]

Strolling along the circuit, I stumbled upon something like a little Joey Dunlop memorial - the plates dug into the slope on the side of the road. It is situated at the beginning of the start/finish straight, which is nearly the place marked by Tarmo on the map. I took two photos there, here they are:

[Doug Nye]

Lovely tribute to a truly great man. That lazy ess bend looks incredibly fast...

DCN

[LittleChris]

Would love to see your photos of the circuit Alexey.


Chris

[Aspelund]

Actually Pirita cirquit is one of the last "old school" TT cirquits still in use. First competition was held in 1933 and until today once a year a competition for motorcycles is held here. Track is almost the same as in 1933, with very minor modifications over the years. Yes, track is wider and some curves have been modified, but it's still "trees to the edge" type of track.

Doug, you are right: the S is very fast, but also very dangerous then wet. As it was on the time of Joey' accident.

Tarmo

[Aspelund]

Some pictures of the place, taken today:













Tarmo

[Alexey Rogachev]

Originally posted by LittleChris
Would love to see your photos of the circuit Alexey.

http://rapidshare.co...pirita.rar.html

The Google Earth KMZ file comes with the pics, containing the placemarks of all of them. The photos from IMAG0129 to IMAG0132 inclusive were taken outside the main circuit, they are of the old building of Kalev automotoclub.

[Alexey Rogachev]

Tarmo,

May I use one or two of your photos of Joey Dunlop's memorial for my web page about the present-day state of the circuit?

And what is the annual motorcycle racing event still held at Pirita? Isn't it the same good old 'Kalevi Suursõit'?

[Aspelund]

Of course you can use them

And the Kalevi Suursõit is still alive (yet). As far as I know, this 14.july is the day this year, but I think, it will certainly change.

Buy the way: Toivo Asmer has published a book, he is talking in interview with Urmas Ott about his life and racing. Some intresting pictures also.

http://www.sejs.ee/

With best wishes,
Tarmo

[Alexey Rogachev]

Tarmo, thank you, one of your photos is now included here. This web page is a general review of the current state of Pirita circuit, and I'm going to make similar pages regarding the present of Bikernieki and Nevskoe Koltso (both before and after its closure).

[gdecarli]

Thanks for your contribution about these circuits. I have just update my website (in English, Italian page is available too), by adding some links and info you posted here.

Alexey, could you please explain me in brief the difference between maps on your page http://www.stop-n-go...cks/pirita.html? It seems very interesting, but unfortunately I can't understand Russian!

Ciao,
Guido

[Alexey Rogachev]

Here is the translation of the text from my Pirita web page:

Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa is a public road circuit, first used for motorcycle racing in 1933; in 1934-1936, motor racing events were also held there - Estonian Grand Prix. The last pre-war motorcycle race was held at Pirita in 1939. The layout of that time was 6.761-km long, about one third of it was comprised of earth roads.

Motor racing at Pirita was resumed in 1959 by the initiative of the republic sport society Kalev. Its automotoclub had been built to the east of the pre-war circuit - as a result of this, the track layout became completely different (see map #1), with start/finish straight being situated near the club building. The circuit length was 8.6 km, roads were 6...8-m wide. The circuit included a number of considerable slopes due to its position in the valley of the Pirita river. That layout was used for motor racing till 1964. Another layout, in general the same than the pre-war one, was used simultaneously (see map #2). Its length was 6755 m, road width 7...8 m.

In 1965-77, races were held on the reduced 6026-m long circuit, with Kalmistu bend being excluded from it (see map #3 - Kalmistu bend is in the northeast corner). In 1977, the circuit was closed down because of the rebuilding of the bridge over the Pirita. Motorcycle racing was resumed there later.

In 1959-77 altogether, Pirita-Kose-Kloostrimetsa was the venue of nine USSR championship rounds (1960, 1962, 1971-73, 1974 - two rounds, 1976 - two rounds) and one touring cars championship (1966). Besides this, the traditional Kalev Trophy was held. In 1969, Finnish drivers participated in it.

The record of the layout #1 was set in 1960 by Lüdvig Kõrge in the Vana Toomas single-seater (4'20" = 118.6 km/h). Two drivers shared the record of the layout #2 (3'53" = 104.38 km/h), they were Vladimir Novozhilov and Ivo Hange. The record of the layout #3 was established in 1969 by Leo Kinnunen in the Titan Mk3 - 2'27" (147.56 km/h). In the course of the unofficial demonstration F3 heat, held in 1987, Toomas Napa in his Estonia 21M had the fastest lap 2'22.1" (152.65 km/h).

[gdecarli]

Thanks Alexey, I have just updated my page!

Ciao,
Guido

[cargo96]

I am very interested in racing on this curcuit in the motorcycle races.
I've noticed that some of the guys on this thread are local.
Please can you help me find a contact details for the organisers of the motorcycle races at Kalevi

Contact me directly at

cargo@roadracers.fsnet.co.uk

Thanks