Steel Horse Rally

1980

All the logos that appeared on the Steel Horse badges and stickers since its first edition in 1968 were designed by Jean Blanckaert himself.

His talents though were not limited to organising one of the most famous annual Belgian rally gatherings of the era. His skills also encompassed a true artistic gift for design as evidenced by his drawings for the 1980 and '81 Steel Horse rally stickers.

Unfortunately, as far as the 1980 meeting is concerned, I only have one photo in my archives to share with you. The picture shows a rallyist inspecting, with obviously great interest, the engine of a beautiful Norton Commando complete with an electric starter.

The registration plate of this machine indicates that its French owner apparently came from the department of Nievre, in central France.

To bring the curtain down once and for all on the stage of the Steel Horse rally, I will end with a final tribute to the late Jean Blanckaert by sharing with you two more of his artistic creations: his drawings of the stickers from the 1983 and '85 meetings.

- Jean-Francois Helias