Adolf Lang

Adolf Lang was born in May 1913 in Ebelsbach, Bavaria and was a regular competitor after becoming one of the first Germans to acquire a new Cooper Mk V part way through 1951, Toni Kreuzer being the first with a Mk IV. Adolf took some reasonable results in the West German races and a win in the East at Sachsenring in September. 1952, started, unusually with a trip to England for a  respectable sixth (Moss winning in his Kieft) and a full season resulting in a number of podiums at Avus, Essen and Norisring to earn Lang seventh overall in the West German series. He also did most of a season in the East, taking three wins and a second though, as a Westerner, he wasn't eligible for points in the DDR.

Still in the Cooper Mk V, Adolf took his first outright win at Hockenheim on the 10th May 1953 and although it would be his only victory of the year, this was mostly down to the invading English with their Norton powered Coopers, Moss wining at the 'ring and John Cooper at Avus in the streamliner. Lang's placing were enough to make him West German champion. He only took in a couple of races in the East, second at Rostock and a DNF at Dresden, but included a couple of races in Sweden, fifth at Falkenberg and ninth at Skarpnäck.

Lang bought a new Cooper Mk VIII for 1954 but 500 racing in West Germany was on the wane and he had competition from Theo Helfrich in a similar car so he travelled extensively, winning at Porrentruy in July, Montlhéry in September 1954 and Agen in the same month plus seconds at Sachsenring and Skarpnäck.

He doesn't appear at all in 1955, '56  and '57 and only makes one race in 1958, a fourth at Sachsenring but then reappears to do four races in the DDR and take his final win at La Châtre in France in July 1959.

Adolf at Dresden in in July 1953. Photo Courtesy Guenter Geyler.

Some results for Adolf:

Cooper Mk V

Nürburgring (West) 29th July 1951 Grand Prix, 7th

Freiburg (West) 5th August 1951, 10th

Grenzlandring (West) 9th September 1951, 7th

Sachsenring (East) 29th September 1951, 1st

 

Goodwood 14th April 1952 Earl of March Trophy, 6th

Rostock (East) 20th April 1952, 1st

Hockenheim (West) 11th May 1952, 4th

Luxembourg Grand Prix 22nd May 1952, 8th in heat

Nürburgring (West) 24th May 1952, DNF

Avus (West) 1st June 1952, 2nd

Halle Saale Schleife (East) 8th June 1952, DNF

Kiel (West) 22nd June 1952, 4th

Essen (West) 20th July 1952, 2nd

Norisring (West) 17th August 1952, 2nd

Sachsenring (East) 7th September 1952, 1st

Schwerin (East) 21st September 1952, 1st

Halle Saale Schleife (East) 5th October 1952, 2nd

7th overall

 

Hockenheim (West) 10th May 1953, 1st (see photo below)

Nürburgring (West) 31st May 1953, 3rd

Rostock (East) 21st June 1953, 2nd

Avus (West) 12th July 1953, 5th

Falkenberg 19th July 1953, 5th

Dresden (East) 26th July 1953, DNF

Freiburg (West) 9th August 1953, 6th

Skarpnäck 13th September 1953 International, 2nd in heat, 9th in final

1st Overall

Cooper Mk VIII

Vaxjo 16th May 1954, 2nd in heat, 3rd in final

Nürburgring (West) 23rd May 1954, 4th

Nürburgring (West) 27th May 1954, 3rd

Falkenberg 11th July 1954, 3rd

Porrentruy, Switzerland 18th July 1954, 1st in heat, 1st in final

Sachsenring (East) 15th August 1954, 2nd

Skarpnäck 5th September 1954, 2nd

Montlhéry 19th September 1954, 1st

Agen 26th September 1954, 1st

 

Sachsenring (East) 17th August 1958, 4th

 

Halle Saale Schleife (East) 26th April 1959, 3rd

Helsinki 10th May 1959, 10th

Dresden (East) 5th July 1959, 6th

Circuit de La Châtre 12th July 1959, 1st

Sachsenring (East) 30th August 1959, DNF

Please get in touch if you can tell us any more about his career.