Klaffenböck – ‘Sterben tun die Anderen’: Book presentation in Oschersleben

Klaus Klaffenböck was a remarkable figure on the Austrian motorsport scene. His rise to the top of the Sidecar World Championship was characterised by his willingness to take risks and his unconditional determination to win. Together with the intrepid Christian Parzer, he realised a boyhood dream. In the end, in 2001, they defied all the naysayers and claimed the World Championship title.

As if that weren’t enough, Klaffi raised the bar even higher. He wanted to show the British riders at the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy that even a rider from the Alpine republic was fast enough to leave them in his wake. The adventure proved far more difficult than he had originally anticipated, but the Upper Austrian showed the determination to see it through. In 2010, the moment finally arrived. The TT organisers had to dig deep into their archives to find the Austrian national anthem. After three TT victories, he brought his racing career to a close.

For more than a year, Klaus Klaffenböck reflected on his extraordinary career as a sidecar rider and team manager in the World Superbike Championship, and put his memories down on paper. As a professional, he naturally knew that he would have to find someone to turn it into a book that would capture the interest of motorsport fans. He found just the person, and the result is a work penned by the ‘master wordsmith’ Kurt Molzer, which sounds promising even from its title alone: ‘Sterben tun die Anderen’ (Others Are the Ones Who Die).

To mark the Sidecar Festival in Oschersleben (2 to 4 October), Klaffenböck and Molzer made a point of travelling from Austria to present readings from the book to an audience for the first time. Anyone wishing to experience this unmissable spectacle live should make the journey and be there on Saturday, 3 October at 6.30 pm. Afterwards, both authors will be on hand for a chat, and anyone who wishes can purchase the book and have it signed by them with a lovely dedication straight away.