Émile Louis Mayade (21 August 1853 – 18 September 1898) (sometimes misspelled Mayard) was a French motoring pioneer and racing driver. He drove a Panhard et Levassor in the world's first 'city to city' motoring contest from Paris to Rouen in 1894 and went on win the world's first open motor race, the

1896 Paris–Marseille–Paris The Paris–Marseille–Paris race was the first competitive 'city to city' motor race originating in Paris, where the first car across the line was the winner, prior events having selected the winner by various forms of classification and judging. ...

, where the first driver across the line was the winner.Driver Database – Internetseite:

Biography

Émile Mayade was born in

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

in 1853 and by the 1890s was working as 'Chef d'Atelier' at Levassor in Paris, looking after the workshop and machinery, plus participating in the development of the cars. He was married to Jeanne Marie Louise Dussutour of

Tarbes Tarbes (; Gascon language, Gascon: ''Tarba'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of southwestern France. It is ...

and they lived above the Levassor workshop in the 'Avenue d'Ivry' in the

13th arrondissement of Paris The 13th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of Paris. In spoken French, the arrondissement is referred to as ''le treizième'' ("the thirteenth"). The arrondissement is ...

.Mercedes And Auto Racing In The Belle Epoque, 1895–1915 By Robert Dick
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Racing

1894 Panhard No 64 driven by Emile Mayade in the Paris-Rouen

1896 Panhard Levassor of Emile Mayade - Winner of Paris Marseilles Paris - GG

Mayade drove a Panhard et Levassor Phaeton 8 hp in the world's first motoring event from Paris to Rouen in 1894 where he finished seventh after eight hours and nine minutes. In 1895 he finished sixth in the Paris–Bordeaux–Paris race after 72 hours 14 minutes. His greatest success was the victory in the

where he won three stages and finished in 67 hours 42 minutes 58 seconds, almost 30 minutes ahead of Merkel in another Panhard et Levassor 8 hp. The Panhard had been extensively upgraded for 1896, using their first four-cylinder engine which provided double the horsepower of the 1895 model. It was equipped with tiller steering and candle lamps. The brakes were a spoon-lever pressing on the solid rubber back tyre plus a belt that tightened onto a drum on the transmission. This was the same vehicle in which Émile Levassor had won 2 of the first three stages before suffering what would become fatal injury during stage 4.Genesis2Scale LLC Museum – 1896 Panhard-Levassor Vehicle
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/ref> On 14 November 1896 he finished 6th (or poss. 4th) in the inaugural

London to Brighton Veteran Car Run The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is the world's longest-running motoring event, held on a course between London () and Brighton (), England. To qualify, participating cars must have been built before 1905. It is also the world's largest ...

(''Emancipation Day Run'') to celebrate the Emancipation of British motorists and the repeal of the

Red Flag Act The Locomotive Acts (or Red Flag Acts) were a series of Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom regulating the use of mechanically propelled vehicles on British public highways during the latter part of the 19th century. The first three, the Lo ...

. He took 6 hours 8 minutes 15 seconds to complete the in a Panhard & Levassor 8 hp, Phaeton 4 seater.TeamDan Early results database – 1896
/ref> The car was subsequently sold to

Charles Rolls Charles Stewart Rolls (27 August 1877 – 12 July 1910) was a British motoring and aviation pioneer. With Henry Royce, he co-founded the Rolls-Royce Limited, Rolls-Royce car manufacturing firm. He was the first Briton to be killed in an aeron ...

for £1,200. In July 1897 Mayade drove a Panhard in the Paris-Dieppe race which was won by the

Marquis A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wido ...

Jules-Albert de Dion Marquis Jules Félix Philippe Albert de Dion de Wandonne (; 9 March 185619 August 1946) was a French pioneer of the automobile industry. He invented a steam-powered car and used it to win the world's first auto race, but his vehicle was ...

in a de Dion 20 hp steamer.

Death

Mayade died in 1898 in Chevanceaux,

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Chérente-Marine''; ) is a Departments of France, department in the French Regions of France, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, on the country's west coast. Named after the river Charente (river), Charen ...

, after a traffic accident with a runaway horse and cart that caused him to be thrown from his car and crushed.La France Automobile du 1° octobre 1898, page 336 – Obituary notes (pointer – Illustrations in Le Monde on 6–7 January 1991)
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References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayade, Emile 1853 births 1898 deaths Sportspeople from Clermont-Ferrand French racing drivers Grand Prix drivers Road incident deaths in France Sportspeople from Puy-de-Dôme