Jüchen/Rhein Kreis Neuss Schloss Dyck Classic Days not only is one of the outstanding classic car and motor sports events in Europe - they are totally dedicated to the good deed.
Since three years every first weekend in August brings a wave of automobile nostalgia to the moated castle Schloss Dyck.
Up to 5,000 visitor classic cars park in the meadows around the castle and make Germany's biggest open air auto museum, while some 40 handpicked collector's vehicles pose as "Jewels in the Park" during the Concours d'Élégance in the castle's parkland. Further 80 historic race and sports cars and pre war motorcycles create a unique atmosphere on the triangle track of the "Racing Legends" right in front of the castle. The beauty of the vehicles, the roaring of their engines and the amazing scenery of the castle attract up to 40,000 visitors every year.
Classic Days are a family friendly festival - visitors enjoy the releaxed mood, pick nick in the parkland, listen to the Jazz music and indulge the unusual combination of English garden style, historic architecture and technique history.
Many visitors dress up matching their car's era. This is how the organizer likes them best because it makes the event a time journey through the different ages of automobilism. Since we talk about 120 years of motorized vehicle history this makes a pretty cross section of lady's and gentleman's fashion covering more than one century. Truely an experience for all senses at summerly temperatures. The old word of "merrymaking" suggests itself.
So much ease and beauty of the venue sometimes let the ambitious objective of the Classic Days at Schloss Dyck fall into oblivion:
Schloss Dyck Classic Days is a non-profit event completely organized by volunteers donating all entrance fees and surplus from sponsoring partnerships to the Schloss Dyck foundation in order to support the enormous expensive restructuration works on buildings and parkland.
Initiated by a single person with a clear vision, convincing a handful of friends it ended up in an association of meanwhile 68 people of different age, social background and skills. Year after year those few realize this classic car event unique in entire Europe during their leisure time. It takes more than 25,000 hours of voluntary work to prepare the Classic Days, organize and realize it. At more than 40 weekends the restless associated members meet Saturdays and Sundays at the castle, work in the organization office or swarm out in order to visit fairs and venues all over Europe and convince participants and collectors.
The patronage of Dr. Ingo Wolf (Federal Minister of the Interior Northrhine-Westphalia), Dieter Patt (District Administrator Rhein Kreis Neuss), Margarete Kranz (Mayor city of Juechen) as well as the host Simeon Count Wolff Metternich strengthens the volunteers and they grateful appreciate the support of management, executive board and employees of Schloss Dyck foundation. A harmonious cooperation has evolved over the years.
Nevertheless it stays a challenge every year making an event for 40,000 people with such a few active club members a success and presenting those visitors the handpicked rarities from vehicle history from international private collections or car maker museums in motion. It fills the organizers with pride that all Classic Days in total left more than 400,000 Euros for the foundation and its conservation works.
