JULY 2017
The
ACORN
THE MAGAZINE OF THE SEVENOAKS & DISTRICT MOTOR CLUB
Sevenoaks and District Motor Club Ltd PRESIDENT: John Symes VICE PRESIDENTs: Vic EIford, Grahame White
ACORN MAGAZINE JuLY 2017 The Editor, Committee and Club do not necessarily agree with items and opinions expressed within ACORN magazine
OFFICERS and COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN, Chris Judge, 66, Olivers Mill, New Ash Green, Kent DA3 8RF, 01474 873628 07765 663258,
[email protected] SECRETARY & MEMBERSHIP SEC: Andy Elcomb, The Cottage, Deans Hill, Bredgar, Sittingbourne, Kent ME9 8BB (Home) 01622 884856, (Mob) 07710 426801
[email protected] TREASURER: Clive Cooke, 1 Willow Bank, Robertsbridge, East Sussex TN32 5NH (Home) 01580 880568
[email protected] ACORN EDITOR.: Chin, 36, Churchside, Vigo, Kent, DA13 0SJ (Home) 01732 823132, (Work) 07889 668470
[email protected] COMPETITION SEC, Ian Crocker, (Home) 01892 546006
[email protected] SPEED LEAGUE TBA TROPHY RECORDS KEEPER Joy Waiton,
[email protected] RALLY SECRETARY: Iain Gibson, 8 Knights Croft, New Ash Green, Kent DA3 8HT (Home) 01474 873573,
[email protected] CHIEF MARSHAL: Glyn Williams, 6 Corporation Cottages, High Street, Aylesford, Kent, ME20 7DA 07989 896851
[email protected] SOCIAL SECRETARY: Russell Giddings, 45 Castle Drive, Kemsing, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 6RW (Home) 01959 524837
[email protected] PRESS & PR: TBA CPO: Dawn Travers, 91 Carlton Road, Redhill, Surrey, RH1 2DE (Home) 01737 210377
[email protected] WEBMASTER: Nigel Mead, 3 Heather Bank, Paddock Wood, Kent TN12 6BW (Home) 01892 832420
[email protected]
Website - www.sevenoaksmotorclub.com @SevenoaksMC
www.facebook.com/sevenoaksmc
Editorial No Editorial this month—just a letter from Karen Webber regarding Crystal Palace As I’m sure you are aware the planning and preparation for Crystal Palace Is now well under way, As we get ever closer to the event we are looking for volunteers to help with some important jobs. I have taken the opportunity to list these below if anyone is available and would be happy to take on any of these tasks please can you contact either myself, Andy Kilby or Chin . Trailer park Coordinator – Someone to keep some sort of order within the parking area when cars and trailers arrive so that we have easy access to unload and then at the end of the event to re load cars. Transport of Driver Kit – We need a couple of people who are early birds and would be happy to help take competitors kits from the trailer park to the paddock Equipment Distribution – If you’re not driving and would be happy to assist the distribution of equipment during the event and collect at the end of each day Sat 26th Aug We will also need all hands on deck - To help with the track set , Moving tyres , Hay bales, Putting out Arrows and signs, if you are free we would love to see you there . Then on the day we are looking for help with the Club stand even if you can give an hour to man the stand that would help - Please contact ???? if this is something you could do Lastly we still have entries for both days so if you have not put in your entry yet please do so as soon as possible. Karen Webber - Event Secretary & Coordinator
The 2017 MSA Blue Book is viewable on line: https://www.msauk.org/assets/bluebook2017completevlow-res.pdf
Chairman’s Chat I think we will start this month’s chat with talking about safety. It would appear every time we turn the TV on there is another terrorist attack or total disaster being transmitted for all to see. In motorsport, we are all taught to be particularly observant with our own safety when competing, with numerous safety standards already in place. I don’t know about you, but I am amazed at some of the things I see on the TV when it comes to emergency procedures etc and sometimes the lack of immediate response from the people in charge. When we run our own events, we must have various emergency procedures in place to comply with our MSA permits we have been issued with. For instance, Graham Pryme and myself like to have fire extinguishers at each of the six tests we lay out for our evening autotests. We have been criticised in the past for being ‘over the top’ in this area, but I tend to always have the thought of ‘what happens if’ theory. True, the fact remains that there have been very few fires (or any) during autotests, but our summer ones are attracting huge entries which can run on very hot sunny evenings. There is nothing to stop fresh cut grass getting trapped under a wheel or undertray and then the hot exhaust igniting it. Might sound over the top, but it has actually happened. The grass did not ignite, just smoked, but this was enough to send the alarm bells off. I am very surprised therefore to see that the recent Kensington tower block didn’t even have a sprinkler system etc. You may also have seen South East speed event competitor Chris Farr being a planning spokesman on Good Morning Britain? Anyway, we all need to be reminded about event safety either as drivers or marshals. If there is something you are concerned about, then mention it accordingly. Talking of our events, we appear to be attracting good entries for Sevenoaks events. Our evening autotests are full and our recent Jim Bate Trial had 25 entries. The average entry for the rest of the country for trials is 20, so we are doing rather well. Crystal Palace entries are still coming in, although a little down on last year, but our co-promoted sprint at Lydden on 15th July already has 88 entries at the time of writing this piece. It would appear local events are popular, as various other sprints have suffered with insufficient numbers. I have always been very keen to reward either the organizers and or drivers at our events. This was highlighted at our recent AGM. I find it strange when the various regulations state things like 3 rd in class award subject to 10 in class etc. Those days are long gone. You need to reward drivers with proper awards against realistic class numbers for today’s market place. Our events get good support, so this cannot be a coincidence. I was told in Wales that our Basil Elkington awards were the best this year of all the
MSA British Championship Trial rounds. ‘what a fantastic club you are’ was the statement. Long may this continue. Other clubs should really look at this aspect when doing their event budgets, rather than leaving awards to the last minute and in some cases doing nothing at all. In Wales, (when I did the double header trials weekend) the chap that actually won the event outright, was simply given a bottle of pop and no award. That would never happen at one of our events. Moving on, although we appear to be rushing through the club year, we still have two evening autotests to run plus the all-day final on 24th September. On 15th July, we have the co-promoted Lydden Hill Sprint which is followed by Crystal Palace. Most things are already in place, but again we will need a lot of help from all club members to ensure its success. Karen Webber is our main contact and she is to be congratulated at keeping the timing plan in place. Moving onto September, we (again) appear to have a busy time with the Brands Hatch Autosolo’s, Goodwood co-pro sprint with Tunbridge Wells and as mentioned, our last autotest. Plenty to keep you all amused then! A busy club therefore needs people to run them or be involved in the running and planning of events.. Our recent AGM sadly did not produce a vast list of members who were prepared to help, but I believe we are actually one of the better clubs for support. Most other clubs are saying the same thing with one South East club saying that if the five key organisers stood down the club would actually fold. Please bear these sentiments in hand as we at Sevenoaks like to make each event a fun day out! If you are an MSA competition licence holder you will have seen the June edition of MSA News. (Actually entitled Extra). In this issue, which can be read on-line, there is a feature on our club, which you may like to read. There is also the announcement that David Richards has been appointed the next MSA Chairman and takes over from Alan Gow in January next year. Talking of appointments, we can also announce that David Balderson has been appointed Deputy Chairman of our club. I am not sure if his wife Christine knows this yet, as we did try and apply drink and bribes for him before he knew anything about it. David as you know is a much respected and liked member of our team and has been instrumental in many achievements for the club. Well, I think that’s enough of my ramblings for this month, so just a reminder to put the August Crystal Palace dates in your diaries as we will need lots of pre and post event help. If we all do a little, we can continue to achieve a lot. See you at one of our next events. Best wishes Chris Judge Chairman.
Our Website Update Hopefully you will have noticed over the past five years the SDMC website has improved as we have moved to a content management system which allows easier updating of the site content and multiple users to get involved with editing their own areas of speciality. As the Webmaster it is my duty to ensure this important communication tool is regularly updated with relevant information regarding the workings of the club and in particular details of upcoming events and results from past events. There are also facilities to re-new your club membership and submit an entry for selected events using on line entry forms to save printing forms, filling in and posting to the respective Entries Secretary. We have also now set up a page for Power Points where you can register points for events you have marshalled at for redeeming later against the cost of a SDMC event you wish to enter. Results updates for key championships rounds such as the Speed League and summer Autotest Series are added soon after each round and again you can register for the Speed League using an online form as an alternative to Royal Mail. Any major communications are now flagged up in a big yellow box on the front page with links to the relevant page to enable important information to be accessed directly. Very shortly we will be updating the look and feel of the site to make it easier to access from mobile devices without having to keep scrolling around on a smaller screen. There are also some technical enhancements as a result of this which will improve the way the menus are structured to allow quicker and easier access to various parts of the site. I welcome your feedback, comments and ideas on the website so please feel free to contact me via the Contacts page. Nigel Mead It’s not always about going fast Shelly and I both have a love for Hot rods I’m not talking oval short circuit I’m taking American custom cars, in fact we met through a fellow Hot rodder that we both knew. When we are not sprinting or attending a Sevenoaks event we like nothing more than going to a custom car show to look at the amazing creations people build to their own special requirements in those wonderful places known as the great British shed in fact some of you may remember My Ford 100E Prefect stuffed full of Mustang running gear built in my shed. For a number of years now every time we go to one of these shows Shelly has been drawn to 40’s and 50’s American Pick up Trucks “Oh! can we have one of these” would be all I would hear, she also seemed to be drawn to the rusty patina’d look. So eventually I said, “tell me exactly what make and Model you like and if I like it as well then maybe (emphasis on the word maybe) we could get one”.
Goodwood Revival 2016. While walking around the area known as “Over the Road”, Shelly see’s a trade stall with three Trucks on it “ I like that one, thats the Make and Model I want” Damn, I like it too, so we find the owner and start to talk to him about his Truck. Ask someone about their classic car and I guarantee they will be more than happy to tell you all about it, well turns out Shelly has chosen a 1961 Ford F100 which in the world of pick ups is as rare as rocking horse s.....t made only for 3 years and was a complete commercial failure due to its unibody construction, (the cab and bed are made in one piece) load it with your half ton of goodies and either the doors to the cab wouldn’t open or they would fly open when you drove off, 70,000 were made which in pick up truck numbers is next to nothing so chances of us finding one is pretty slim ( looks like I won’t have to buy a truck) Fast forward a month and I get a text from a mate who is at a car show and he is looking at a ‘for sale’ board with half a dozen trucks on it and would you believe it one of them is a rusty 1961 F100 located in Essex. This doesn’t really leave me any room for manoeuvre so off we go to Essex not even that far into the county just the over side of the tunnel. When we get there the truck is unbelievable, yes the Paint has come off in places and it is covered in surface rust, but there is no rot anywhere the chassis is perfect. It’s still got all of its’s original running gear, it is just untouched as it left the factory, the bed in the back is unmarked not a dent in the floor or the wheel tubs its as if its never done a days work in its life. The deal was done and we are now the proud owners of Moss (yes it has a name) its called Moss because there was moss growing out of the bonnet (sorry Hood). We are the first UK owners so when buying an imported vehicle there are a couple of things you need. The log book from the country you are importing from in the states this is called the Title and Americans often refer to this a Clear Title meaning there is no debt against the vehicle, very important as this means you can prove the manufactured date so can get an age related plate if you can’t prove the age when you get an MOT your 1961 truck would need to comply to 2017 regs a complete nightmare. Next and also mega important is the NOVA certificate this states that all taxes and duties that are relevant on your car have been paid at the docks when the car landed if you don’t have this the you could get handed a very heavy tax bill. Once home you can prepare for MOT as its 1961 there isn’t much to worry about pre 1960 you don’t even need one. I went through the Truck and found a few
things such as wipers not working, well it don’t rain much in the California desert and had to add a windscreen washer kit (the only thing that is a compulsory fit on any car whether it had them or not). You insure the car on the Chassis number and you are allowed to drive to the MOT without any number plates I left the California Black plates on as they looked rather cool and in their own rights make the truck a bit special Once you have an MOT You the fill out a V5/55 and send that along with your title doc, NOVA reference number Proof of ID, insurance cover note with the chassis number on the cover note a cheque for £55 to the DVLA, Photocopy everything, and with a bit of luck in less than 2 weeks you will get your British registration number. As I i said at the beginning its not always about going fast which is just as well really as the first time both of us drove Moss it scared the hell out us.
Shelly drove it for about 5 miles and just pulled over and said I cant drive this, I put on a brave face but also knew that it was nearly impossible to drive I knew it was old with technology from the 40’s but couldn’t accept it would be this bad, so spent the next couple weeks trying to find out why it was like it was or was it a case of this is how they are. Eventually I found out what the problem was the the Drag link steering arm had been bent when it was tied down on the boat trip over to the UK causing the tracking to be about ¾ inch towing out. I straightened the drag link re tracked the steering and transformed it, sure its still not fast, 60mph and really thats about it but boy is it cool and everybody wants to talk to you and touch the truck See ya at Hot Rod show
Jason and Shelly ( with Moss)
Social Spiel - What is coming up…… 21-06-17 Noggin & Natter – at the Bell Kemsing 8pm A return to an old format of having a social evening purely to be social; we had around 15 members which is quite reasonable for a “school night” and it was the hottest June day since 1976, so unsurprisingly we were all outside. Being such a warm day I’d accidentally gone straight to the Bell from work to meet a friend for a beer and before I knew it a Daimler Dart pulled up, so the SDMC social night had already begun! Being so hot I had a new found taste for lager, so I was first there & last to go. The things I do for this club ’ay! 01-07-17 – Summer Stroll. CANCELLED for a number of reasons, primarily because the Chequers at Heverham has close again, as the tenants couldn’t make it viable, but also there has not been much interest shown; perhaps it’s a result of a busy weekend of motorsports. 19-07-17 Autotsolo Special – at the Bell Kemsing 8pm An opportunity to find out more about Autosolo events and potentially enter for the events SDMC are running on 3rd September, 17th September & 25th November. Come along to work out which class you should be in? Which tyres you are allowed to run? What tyres you should run on from the choices? Or simply to find out what an Autosolo is? What does it cost? What do I need to be able to do them? 05-08-17 Summer Barbecue – at the Bell Kemsing, from 1pm The 5th Annual Barbeque with food starting at 3pm. Adults £7.50, children free. We will again be putting on a few games of “Bat & Trap” -a traditional Kentish pub garden game that can be played by anyone aged eight to eighty! It’s not obligatory to join in, but you probably should. Hope to see you there. 16-08-17 Noggin & Natter – at the Bell Kemsing 8pm Although I do have a provisional booking for a current BTCC driver to come and talk to us about what it’s really like being a racing driver in the 21 st Century & the trials & trubulations of getting to where he has, so far. I had him provisional booked once before, but he got offered a drive at Spa at 6 weeks’ notice. So fingers crossed we can get him to come out this time around. Russell
New Ash Green Village Day
Saturday 1st July
‘Club Stand’ To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of New Ash Green Village, there will be a combined Village Day Fete, Classic Car Show and Fairground on Saturday 1st July. This is a big event and Sevenoaks & District Motor Club are having a club stand featuring members’ cars. If you would like to display your car, please contact Chris Judge asap, or if you like to eat cake and just have some fun, simply turn up and say hello! The event starts at 12.30pm until 5.00pm with many attractions. Last year the club gained new members, so why not come along and support your club. Everyone is welcome.
TRK Report All Sevenoaks events have been updated – All Rose and Crown points are up to date If you are expecting to see yourself listed in the Rose and Crown tables or those trophies produced from them and you are not there, it could be because you did not enter as a Sevenoaks member and I have not identified you as being one If in doubt please contact me –
[email protected]
If you are expecting to see yourself listed for other trophies and you are not, this is because you have not informed me that you have competed in events organised by other clubs and sent me the results accordingly
I will accept results for the first 6 months of the year up to the 15th of July, after which time all results must be received within 21 days of the event to qualify Any queries or to send me results –
[email protected]
TABLES FOLLOW FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL PAGES
PLEASE BE AWARE From now on, in order to score points in any of our championships you must send your results to our TRK, Joy Waiton.
[email protected] Her task is sufficiently challenging without having to hunt for results. It’s a pretty logical process—if she doesn’t get the results, you don’t get the points, and who’s the loser then?
ROSE & CROWN TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS Elcomb, Andy 380
Hebden, Paul
60
Mead, Nigel
58
Mead, Rosemary
58
Waiton, Joy
250
Newman, Nigel
53
Penfold, Chris
196
Aitken, Bruce
50
Hunnisett, Derek
173
Le Men, John
50
Peters, Alex
152
Andrews, Jason
50
Sales, Paul
144
Lower, Barney
47
Smith, Chris
142
Wickes, Paul
45
Laing, Andy
140
Charnley, Kim
45
Wilkinson, Adrian
120
Kirby, Brian
45
Carfrae, Liam
110
Brooks-Johnson, Remy
45
Scott, Alan
107
Cogswell, Michael
40
Balderson, David
105
Burton, Russell
40
Waller, Andrew
100
Lower, Kevin
40
Gibson, Iain
100
Clayden, Darren
40
Betts, Alan
100
Laing, Austen
40
Walkling, Jolyon
100
Jerrett, Lee
39
Bryant, Jeff
100
McCormack, Barry
38
Rayner, Dave
100
Judge, David
38
Judge, Chris
98
Ablitt, Kevin
35
Sharpe, Robert
90
Carfrae, John
34
Cooke, Clive
84
Tyre, Darren
33
Penfold, Chloe
80
Cogswell, Steven
33
Woods, Robert
80
Smith, Tyler
30
Knapp, David
75
Hunnisett, Jamie
30
McCormack, Andrew
73
Ernstzen, Sterling
30
Sharpe, Brian
70
Knight, Emily
30
Sales, Nathan
69
Steadman, Alan
30
Hunnisett, Sam
66
Sweeney, Jane
28
Athow, Dick
61
Smith, Callum
25
Cogswell, Daniel
60
McCartney, Ross
23
Smith, Jamie
20
Wilkinson, Adrian
4
Calder, John
20
Snow, Adam
4
Stonach, William
20
Loftus, Tim
4
Clayden, Julie
20
Sweeney, Jane
3
Coppock, Daniel
20
Kirby, Brian
3
McCormack, Annalie
20
Knight, Yvette
3
Williams, Sam
18
Wilks, Peter
3
Gibbard, Sue
15
Rawlins, John
3
Newman, Robert
13
Pattinson, Steve
3
Smith, James
12
Cooke, Clive
3
Chinnery, "Chin"
10
Ernstzen, Sterling
3
Knight, Callum
10
Stradling, Ron
3
Child, Graham
10
Cooke, Judy
3
Istead, John
10
Williams, Sam
2
Phillips, Ian
10
Wickes, Richard
2
Groves, Chris
10
Giddings, Russell
2
Wickes, Paul
2
Gibson, Andy
2
Kilby, Martine
2
Kilby, Andy
2
Symes, John
2
Gibson, Iain
2
Bradfield, Heidi
2
Betts, Alan
1
Knight, Malcolm
1
Brooks-Johnson, Neil
1
Walkling, Jolyon
1 1
1
CHALKY WHITE TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS Judge, Chris
8
Balderson, Christine
7
Shipway, Colin
7
Scudder, Chris
7
Chinnery, "Chin"
7
Williams, Glyn
6
Jerrett, Lee
5
Clayden, Julie
5
Mead, Nigel
5
Pryme, Graham
5
Crocker, Ian Brooks-Johnson, Remy
Laing, Andy
5
Clayden, Darren
Balderson, David
5
Mead, Rosemary
4
1
Chinnery, "Chin"
6
Jerrett, Lee
6
POINTS
Cooke, Clive
6
Balderson, Christine
7
Kirby, Brian
6
Clayden, Julie
5
Mead, Nigel
6
Mead, Rosemary
4
Peters, Alex
5
Cooke, Judy
3
Penfold, Chris
5
Knight, Yvette
3
Mead, Rosemary
5
Sweeney, Jane
3
Ernstzen, Sterling
5
Bradfield, Heidi
2
Williams, Glyn
5
Sales, Paul
5
Scott, Alan
5
Scudder, Chris
5
Shipway, Colin
5
Balderson, Christine
5
Gibson, Iain
4
Pryme, Graham
4
Judge, David
4
Hunnisett, Derek
4
Newman, Nigel
4
Smith, Chris
4
Sweeney, Jane
4
Clayden, Darren
3
MARVIC TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER
BOADECIA BOWL AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS Waiton, Joy
250
Penfold, Chloe
80
Mead, Rosemary
58
Charnley, Kim
45
Knight, Emily
30
Sweeney, Jane
28
McCormack, Annalie
20
Clayden, Julie
20
Gibbard, Sue
15
DES QUINN BOWL AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER
Knight, Emily
3
POINTS
Charnley, Kim
3
Elcomb, Andy
9
Knight, Yvette
3
Judge, Chris
9
Carfrae, Liam
3
Waiton, Joy
9
Carfrae, John
3
Balderson, David
8
Loftus, Tim
3
Wilkinson, Adrian
8
Brooks-Johnson, Remy
3
Laing, Andy
7
Betts, Alan
3
Clayden, Julie
7
Hebden, Paul
3
Sales, Nathan
3
Rayner, Dave
2
Snow, Adam
3
Gibson, Andy
2
Walkling, Jolyon
3
McCormack, Andrew
2
Sharpe, Robert
3
Brooks-Johnson, Neil
1
Sharpe, Brian
3
Child, Graham
1
Williams, Sam
3
Cogswell, Daniel
1
Penfold, Chloe
3
Athow, Dick
1
Bryant, Jeff
2
Stonach, William
1
Stradling, Ron
2
Wickes, Richard
1
Cooke, Judy
2
Smith, James
1
Symes, John
2
McCormack, Barry
1
Pattinson, Steve
2
Lower, Kevin
1
Smith, Tyler
2
Lower, Barney
1
Tyre, Darren
2
Phillips, Ian
1
Aitken, Bruce
2
Ablitt, Kevin
1
Waller, Andrew
2
Knight, Malcolm
1
Giddings, Russell
2
Knight, Callum
1
Calder, John
2
Kilby, Martine
1
Burton, Russell
2
Gibbard, Sue
1
Smith, Callum
2
Istead, John
1
Wickes, Paul
2
Cogswell, Michael
1
Hunnisett, Sam
2
Groves, Chris
1
Bradfield, Heidi
2
Newman, Robert
1
Andrews, Jason
2
Smith, Jamie
1
Le Men, John
2
Laing, Austen
1
Woods, Robert
2
Crocker, Ian
1
McCartney, Ross
2
Coppock, Daniel
1
Wilks, Peter
2
Steadman, Alan
1
Hunnisett, Jamie
2
Cogswell, Steven
1
Rawlins, John
2
Kilby, Andy
1
McCormack, Annalie
2
Knapp, David
2
SDMC - 2017 TROG MEMBER Chris Judge Chris Scudder Julie Clayden Chin Graham Pryme Tim Loftus David Balderson Paul Wickes Glyn Williams Colin Shipway Nigel Mead Christine Balderson Ian Crockerr Pete Wilks Steve Pattinson Rosemary Mead yvette Knight Iain Gibson
TOTAL 520 510 510 370 340 300 270 240 200 150 150 130 100 100 100 100 100 60
JIM BATE TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS Elcomb, Andy Waiton, Joy Balderson, David Gibson, Iain Judge, Chris Cooke, Clive Hebden, Paul Mead, Nigel Chinnery, "Chin"
380 250 105 100 98 84 60 58 10
TYRRELL FLEMING SPEED TROPHY AT 06.05.2017 MEMBER POINTS Wiltshire, Jeff
300
Knapp, David
171
Walkling, Jolyon
132
Hunt, William
100
Jackson, Craig
100
Gibson, Bob
100
Rayner, Dave
100
Stringer, Stephen
88
Berrisford, Helen
82
Clayden, Darren
75
Gomis, Tony
75
Alecock, Stephen
67
Balderson, David
50
Patten, Nigel
50
Kirby, Brian
48
Andrews, Jason
33
Giles, John
29
Clayden, Julie
25
Martorana, Adriano
20
Watson, Terence
12
Giles, Anne
10
POINTS MAKE PRIZES Don’t forget to keep Joy posted with your results as soon as you get them. And your committee aware of any noteworthy incidents, successes, failures, Etc.
TYRRELL FLEMING NON-SPEED TROPHY AT 30.04.2017
1200 TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS
MEMBER Pelling, Richard "Archie" Waiton, Joy Elcomb, Andy Mead, Nigel Mead, Rosemary Loftus, Tim Wickes, Paul Miles, Chris Miles, Jon Newman, Nigel Newman, Robert Ablitt, Kevin Cooke, Clive Chinnery, "Chin" Kilby, Andy Williams, Glyn Child, Graham Istead, John Ernstzen, Sterling Balderson, Christine Balderson, David Phillips, Ian Athow, Dick
Penfold, Chris
96
Sharpe, Robert
90
Penfold, Chloe
80
Athow, Dick
61
Balderson, David
55
Hunnisett, Derek
53
Hunnisett, Sam
52
Lower, Barney
47
Wickes, Paul
45
Lower, Kevin
40
Newman, Nigel
40
Jerrett, Lee
39
Knight, Emily
30
Sweeney, Jane
28
Mead, Nigel
23
Mead, Rosemary
23
Hunnisett, Jamie
20
Stonach, William
20
Calder, John
20
Judge, David
13
Knight, Callum
10
POINTS 389 143 143 128 128 68 68 67 67 50 50 48 48 34 34 30 28 28 22 17 17 12 10
MX5 TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS
Peters, Alex
24
Lower, Barney
24
Elcomb, Andy
380
Smith, Jamie
24
Waiton, Joy
250
Coppock, Daniel
24
Peters, Alex
152
Wickes, Paul
24
McCormack, Andrew
73
Cooke, Clive
21
Hebden, Paul
60
Balderson, David
21
Kirby, Brian
45
Aitken, Bruce
21
Charnley, Kim
45
Knight, Emily
21
Clayden, Darren
40
Lower, Kevin
21
Burton, Russell
40
McCormack, Barry
21
McCormack, Barry
38
Hebden, Paul
18
Groves, Chris
18
Ernstzen, Sterling
30
Ernstzen, Sterling
18
McCartney, Ross
23
Cogswell, Steven
18
Clayden, Julie
20
McCartney, Ross
15
McCormack, Annalie
20
Judge, David
15
Gibbard, Sue
15
Groves, Chris
10
Newman, Nigel Stonach, William
12 12
Phillips, Ian
10
UNIROYAL/STEEL CLAW TROPHY AT 30.04.17 MEMBER POINTS Hunnisett, Derek 60 Elcomb, Andy
54
Charnley, Kim
48
McCormack, Andrew
45
Waiton, Joy
36
Wilkinson, Adrian
30
Laing, Andy
30
Cogswell, Daniel
30
Scott, Alan
27
Cogswell, Michael Judge, Chris
27 24
MG TROPHY AT 15.06.2017 MEMBER POINTS Cooke, Clive
84
Balderson, David
50
Ablitt, Kevin
35
Williams, Sam
18
SDMC - 2017 TROG MEMBER Chris Judge Chris Scudder Julie Clayden Chin Graham Pryme Tim Loftus David Balderson Paul Wickes Glyn Williams Colin Shipway Nigel Mead Christine Balderson Ian Crockerr Pete Wilks Steve Pattinson Rosemary Mead yvette Knight Iain Gibson
TOTAL 520 510 510 370 340 300 270 240 200 150 150 130 100 100 100 100 100 60
BASIL TYE TROPHY AT MEMBER
POINTS
Elcomb, Andy
19
Waiton, Joy
19
Kirby, Brian
12
Knapp, David
12
Balderson, David
11
Mead, Rosemary
10
Ernstzen, Sterling
10
Mead, Nigel
10
Wiltshire, Jeff
9
Walkling, Jolyon
9
Cooke, Clive
8
Wickes, Paul
8
Newman, Nigel
8
Pelling, Richard "Archie"
8
Bryant, Jim
6
Loftus, Tim
6
Rayner, Dave
6
Berrisford, Helen
6
Newman, Robert
6
Clayden, Julie
6
Istead, John
6
Clayden, Darren
6
Ablitt, Kevin
6
Child, Graham
6
Judge, David
6
Alecock, Stephen
6
Andrews, Jason
6
Wilkinson, Adrian
5
Peters, Alex
5
Hunnisett, Derek
4
McCormack, Andrew
4
Williams, Glyn
4
Chinnery, "Chin"
4
Charnley, Kim
4
Phillips, Ian
4
Scott, Alan
4
Athow, Dick
4
Bryant, Jeff
3
Giles, John
3
Aitken, Bruce
3
Betts, Alan
3
Gibson, Bob
3
Gibson, Iain
3
Giles, Anne
3
Burton, Russell
3
Watson, Terence
3
Waller, Andrew
3
Hunt, William
3
McCormack, Barry
2
Jackson, Craig
3
Balderson, Christine
2
Judge, Chris
3
Smith, Jamie
2
Woods, Robert
3
McCartney, Ross
2
Stringer, Stephen
3
Kilby, Andy
2
Le Men, John
3
Lower, Barney
2
Martorana, Adriano
3
Cogswell, Daniel
2
Patten, Nigel
3
Cogswell, Michael
2
Laing, Andy
3
Cogswell, Steven
2
Gomis, Tony
3
Knight, Emily
2
Stonach, William
2
Coppock, Daniel
2
Miles, Chris
2
Hebden, Paul
2
Miles, Jon
2
Groves, Chris
2
Lower, Kevin
2
Random Thoughts 1
A visit to the recent Brands Hatch Historic race meeting proved to be interesting. The purpose was simply to wander round, see a few people, casually look at a few historic cars, etc., all part of my involvement in the historic motorsport scene. We also spent a fair bit of time watching circuit activity and had to reflect on how circuit racing has changed. The timetable was pretty typical of a high proportion of race meetings in that race length is no longer governed by number of laps but by time and races are generally longer with a good few two driver races. Gone are the days when I was running race meetings on the Indy circuit, where we typically had nine 10 lap races and perhaps one 15 or 20 lap feature race all practice and racing in one day. For the GP circuit it was likely to be seven 7 or 8 lap races and a feature race of perhaps 12 laps. Well known motor racing commentator Brian Jones once remarked that the two most exciting parts of any race were the start and the finish which led to the suggestion we should be running lots of one lap races! There were some very nice cars at this meeting but running on the GP Circuit there was little in the way of visible racing. No doubt enjoyable and entertaining for those participating but for spectators, despite the excellent commentary there was little entertainment. The sole exception was last race of the day, the Formula Ford 1600 race. The leader got 100m clear but a good scrap raged for 2 nd and 3rd, 6th and 7th were swopping places, a bit of a scrap going on around 10th - 14th. Not as fast as some of the other races but there was a reasonable amount of overtaking and overtaking efforts and that is what makes racing entertaining.
John Symes
Competition Talk By the time you read this the nights will be drawing in and we will have passed the mid-point of the year. We still have plenty of events in our own calendar and we have been invited to the following events:
Event
Type
Club
Date
Website
Goodwood Sprint Sprint
BHMC
Aug 5th
www.brightonandhovemoto rclub.co.uk
Brighton Speed Trials
Sprint
BHMC
Sep 2nd
www.brightonandhovemoto rclub.co.uk
Pistons & Props
Classic Tour
Newbury Dolphin MC
Sep 24th
http:// dolphinclassictour.co.uk
In future I shall publicise any invites on the SDMC Facebook page so follow that if you don't already.
Ian Crocker Random Thoughts 2 The lighting technology in current production cars is ever moving on with currently LED technology getting more and more common. The aftermarket arena is also getting into LED technology for the attraction is clear, good lighting levels and much reduced power consumption. Such is particularly attractive to the owners of classic cars where standard lights are poor and power availability marginal. There are exceptions for older cars but be aware that there are plenty of LED auxiliary lights and replacement “bulbs” that are not “E marked”. Unless the vehicle is exempted by age such non E marked equipment does not comply with the requirements of the Road Traffic Act. So who are these two likely lads then? John Symes
June Evening Autotest This has to be the most flustered arrival at an autotest I have ever made. I had just finished a stressful (but successful) presentation to the Managing Director of Ford UK. There were then two serious accidents on the M25 meaning that traffic was extremely slow. Added to this was the pressure that I had to produce a video that evening for the Netflix TV channel to introduce myself to the "Race the grid" show's producers - I had been invited to enter their racing driver competition in Dubai due to the fame of my Mustang. Next, Paul Hebden had been kindly working on a series of repairs and upgrades on my MX5 but had also been delayed by the M25 traffic and so I had no car. Finally at the previous event I had actually won my class for the first time ever, but a typing error in the results had cruelly denied me this honour, so I was determined to win tonight! I found Kim Charnley in her MX5, who kindly offered to let me compete in her car. I only moved about 10 feet in the queue and got to the start line just as Paul arrived with my car so I switched over. The first rounds went quite well, I was picking up good times with the marshals offering me advice on how I was doing against my main rival, the great Andy Elcomb! I caught up with Andy at the start of test one and he was very magnanimous, acknowledging my "class win" performance at the previous event. I felt this was very kind of Andy, as it gave me a great confidence boost knowing that I had the capability to get a class win at an SDMC auto test, despite the fierce competition in the sports car class. (Although I have to acknowledge the absence of the Lowers and Alan Steadman did make it easier…). There was a sting in the tale to this, as I was talking to Andy when I left the start line and not concentrating, I hit a cone picking up a penalty that would ultimately cost me a class win on this event! Aaargh! In the end, Andy had troubles with two spins on test 5 (reversing test), so I finished second again behind the great Paul Hebden. Paul said afterwards "I was watching you, trying to work out how to make up time, but some of your moves were absolutely perfectly executed - I couldn’t compete with that!" I take that as a great compliment from the rallycross expert, I will just have to try harder and beat him next time! Paul and Kim did a great job videoing me, including a crazy run at test 6 in the Mustang, which ended with the inevitable spin! I also did my inevitable leap in the air for the cameras whilst John Symes presented me with my trophy. If any SDMC members haven't yet tried auto tests they really should - you can use your daily driver vehicle (we have seen some odd things turn up on the course over the years including a council van with a flashing light!). The courses are the best of any club with great designs where you can concentrate on car control and not have to solve puzzles about where to go next (as some other clubs do, although I know some people prefer that type
of thing). You also don’t need great talent to have a load of fun! Thanks to all of the organisers and marshals at SDMC who make it happen. Roll on the next auto test and hopefully my first officially recognised class win.
Alex NAME Brian Sharpe Emma Olsen Richard Olsen Chris Penfold Jason Price John Carfrae Lian Carfrae Nigel Newman Christopher Newton Clive Cook Jim Puller John Calder Millie Grove Paul Sales Sam Williams Toby Groves Alan Scott Alex Peters Andrew McCormack Darren Tyre Kim Charnley Paul Hebden Adrian Wilkinson Cameron Covey Lloyd Covey Callum Knight Chloe Penfold Emily Knight Nathan Sales Remy Brooks-Johnson David Balderson Jamie Smith Robert Sharpe
CAR Micra Saxo Saxo Nova Peug 106 Polo Polo Nova BMW 318 MG ZR Almera Nissan Sunny Clio Clio MG ZR Clio Mazda RX8 MX5 MX5 MR2 MX5 MX5 Caterham 7 Street KA Ford Street Car C1 Nova Micra Clio Mini C1 BMW Z3 Micra
Club SDMC MMKMC MMKMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC SDMC MMKMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC MMKMC MMKMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC SDMC
TOTAL C Pos O Pos 158.64 1 2 169.09 3 11 161.43 2 3 164.02 2 5 173.67 4 15 167.12 3 9 161.82 1 4 181.69 5 21 157.85 1 1 180.32 7 20 178.59 5 18 178.80 6 19 176.55 4 16 172.12 3 14 165.73 2 7 183.88 8 23 193.76 5 25 167.64 1 10 195.74 6 26 182.56 3 22 193.61 4 24 169.41 2 12 215.42 3 29 164.28 1 6 167.00 2 8 417.27 5 33 215.88 3 30 226.20 4 31 200.22 2 28 176.92 1 17 350.39 3 32 198.89 2 27 170.87 1 13
Award 1st BestLady 2nd
1st FTD
3rd 2nd 1st
1st 3rd 2nd 1st
Best Girl
Best Boy
1st
26th May – 29th May - Association of Land Rover Clubs – National Rally 2017 – Stainby. Although I’ve been busy as Social Secretary for SDMC I’ve not been very active on the motorsport front with the club the past few years, part of this has been the MSA’s evolution of the sprinting regulations, but also I’ve been distracted by Motorbikes & LandRovers the past couple of years. Fellow SDMC member Josh Davies introduced me to LandRover based Motorsports the tail end of 2015. His family on both sides have always been heavily involved in ALRC events for decades, a large portion of whom are based in the around Milton Keynes so we ended up joining Chiltern Vale LandRover Club. There are three main disciplines of LandRover trials, which broadly speaking are: Tyro- can be done by 13 year old with supervision & done in any LandRover, very open courses, can be done in a shiny brand new RangeRover as it is almost impossible to do any damage. RTV (Road Taxed Vehicle)- must hold a driving licence, need to have towing points in case extraction from sections, really needs to be a short wheel base proper LandRover (80’ / 88’ / 90’ / Defender) as sections are set out to be tight between gates & other fixed course obstacles. Must retain the original silhouette. These should be non-damaging if you get it right, but plenty of trees/ rocks to rub bodywork on. CCV (Cross Country Vehicles) – Must hold a road licence, almost exclusively for trailered vehicles running serious tyres, no lights, no glass & full Rollover protection. They do sometimes fall over, but that’s not the norm, quite extreme trials, compared to the stuff SDMC run for production cars. But the speeds are still relatively sensible, so no helmets required! There is also a timed discipline; Comp Safari, which looks to be stage rallying on mud & Grass! Looks like a lot of fun & a lot cheaper than stage rallying too, on entries & build costs. CVLRC run an RTV most months of the year and as Josh’s passenger seat was empty in his Defender, I soon took on the role of navigator, which is quite different to being a “bouncer” in a PCT. It’s not rallying, however there are plenty of instances to get lost or even mess up a line and run out of turning circle to get to a gate, so that second brain to assist the driver is quite useful…..so I tell myself! The average entries for a CVLRC RTV are typically 15 and it’s not always the same people, but there are some usual suspects. Another SDMC member Tommy Mannion had been along to a couple of events & earlier this year got himself a 1987 90’ and has been out doing as many events as he can since. The National Rally is the annual “Blue Riband” event in the ALRC world, which is always held the late May Bank Holliday. I was sold on the idea as soon as I hear there was a beer tent! We set off on the Friday to Stainby in Lincolnshire, with my Discovery 3 packed full of equipment to make the 4 days on site as civilised as they can be in a tent. Travelling in convoy at a
very sensible 60 MHP on the M11, I somehow convinced myself that I should enter the Tyro event on the Saturday in my Discovery 3! I figured it’s what it’s designed for & I’ve had 2 previous attempts at a Tyro in Josh’s Defender and enjoyed them and didn’t worry about possibly damaging the vehicle. On arrival I successfully signed on and on the strength of my decision Tommy decided to enter the tyro too. The queue for scrutineering was an interesting mix of vehicles as the CCV was also on Saturday there were guys sat in their CCV motors in the queue looking a bit hot & bothered, I almost felt guilty about supping a cold Guinness sat in a serene climate controlled 18°C. Tommy & I went through scrutineering no worries, so it was on for Saturday! Saturday - Tyro All the competitors gather at a holding area before drivers briefing at 9:45 and at 10:00 we are lead out to our first section. The entry was a total of 15, with a mix of vehicles & drivers ranging from children in dad’s Comp Safari prepared vehicle; to a chap I’d have said in his late 70’s in a 2017 Discovery Sport. I was surprised with how capable the Disco3 was on road tyres running in Low-Range (none of the Dynamic modes were on) and with the help of Josh navigating we cleared the first two sections. Section 3 –There was a fairly tight gate I had to go through at an angle to offer the chance to turn for the following gate, although I was receiving instruction from my navigator I didn’t heed that advice & we brushed the 5 gate. The next three sections were clear and I felt I was starting to better understand how to get the best out of the Disco. On section 7 there was a set of ruts that you had to drive into to make the 6 gate, but then I failed to get out of the ruts so never made the 5 gate, 10 points on the board now! Section 8 was clear, section 9 had a very difficult last gate that couldn’t be driven through, it was only possible to put a hub through and I didn’t quite get in. Final section was another clear. So 11 scored all day, I had been talking to Tommy Mannion throughout the day and he’d scored just 2, although he was in the Short Wheel base class so we weren’t in direct competition. So after a great event I’d enjoyed my day of driving and found out what could be done with regard to driving precisely off road through gates in 2.7 tonnes of motor. We adjourned to the beer tent, as that is also where the notice board was so we could see how we scored compared to everyone else. After the results were pinned we meandered over for a look. Tommy had finished first in class (SWB licenced) and to my
astonishment I’d finished first in class too (LWB licenced) .To be fair all the unlicensed drivers (juniors) all drove very well, one had gone clear all day!!! We headed off to scrutineering for the RTV which only opens on Saturday, both Tommy & Josh’s respective vehicles passed. As ever Josh got asked if he’s done many RTVs before!?!?!? as he’s vehicle is so clean & tidy people aren’t expecting it to be entered into an RTV (there had been quite a bit of touching up & polishing the week before) most RTV vehicles have a cage by choice or have a few creases & bumps from competition. Back to camp for a quick BBQ before prize giving for the day’s events at the beer tent at 8pm. Both myself & Tommy collected Silverware as did another club member, then they announced on the tannoy that Tommy had won a perpetual award too the LAND-RANGER SERVICES CUP - Presented to the licensed driver in the Tyro Trial with the lowest total score. So a big shiny silver award Tommy gets to keep for a year. We celebrated in the beer tent for a while, but the big event was the RTV on Sunday, so josh & Tommy got off to bed at a sensible hour, as I only had navigational duties I stayed in the beer tent for a lock in & went to bed at un-known o’clock. Sunday - RTV I rose bright & early as the sun was warming my tent and I immediately set off in search of a coffee and a bacon roll, which fortunately I found. We headed over to the line-up for the RTV, but as there were 69 entries being run in 6 groups staggered across 12 sections there was a lot of motorsport to get through. So it was a 7:45 drivers briefing & head off to sections at 8:00. At our request Josh & I had been put in the same group as Tommy. As each vehicle runs each course just once there can be advantages & disadvantages to running early or late in your group, so after each section a vehicle is dropped from the front, to the back of the order. Often the first vehicle on a section makes the mistake that the other competitors see & learn from it. We are running first on the first section our group is to take onsection3, no pressure! As normal we walk the course together looking at possible obstacle to avoid or incorporate as well as talking about line and possibly which gear we want if we have a climb to tackle. Josh drove well & as it sometimes the case I didn’t have much to say as it was fairly self-explanatory, we finished with the front axle through the one gate! Clear on the first section. We drop to the back of the running order now, section 4: had a very tight turn at the bottom of a hill and most people were scoring 4’s & 5s, we scored a 4. Section 5: had a very difficult “hub through” finish and we didn’t get far enough into the gate to get a hub through. Section 6 was quite wet and our running position wasn’t to our advantage as more & more wet was being dragged around the course. We knew that at the top of a short hill we would need to take an immediate turn, by when driving it as we’d crested the top of the hill with all 4 wheels spinning there wasn’t enough time to get on enough lock, so we scored a 3. Now on 8 points in total after 4 sections, not looking great.
We then had a good run and went clear on the following 3 sections, maybe we can challenge for a top ten position! Section 10 - seemed fairly innocuous, which is always a bit of a worry. We saw Tommy run & he ran out of turning circle & ended up hitting the 8 gate, so scored 9, we were sure we wouldn’t make the same mistake…..we did, although we managed to get a hub through the gate to score 8, which doubled our score to 16! Josh was frustrated with being on 16 after 8 sections & we started having a de-brief about how & why, we agreed that although difflock was useful for keeping all 4 wheels driving, when taking a slow turn on full lock it probably pushes the front a bit & widens the turning circle. Section 11 – very tight! We were getting towards the front of the running order & the first vehicle scored 6, it wasn’t possible to see much of the course without being out on it, so I had to watch & learn whilst Josh got the vehicle to the start gate. I had to describe what line to drive as we got to it, we’d already agreed to come out of diff-lock at the tightest part to see if it would help us make the turn, but as we approached it looked super tight, so I suggested using a damp patch to maybe use the handbrake to tighten the turn. We went for it & it worked! We then got back into difflock & got through the rest of the section up a blind crest through the 2 gate & quickly onto full lock my way for a hub-through the 1 gate & I’ve got to call the stop as the whole thing is blind from the driver seat, clear! I now had a new job, I’d take us in & out of difflock at Josh’s request - Section 12 clear, section 1 clear & section 2 clear too but all were hard earned, this was no Tyro! So 16 points, where would it leave us in the standings? We’d beaten a pair of very accomplished clubmates who had finished on 20 & 18 respectively so maybe we could achieve our goal of a top 10 finish! Again we had to wait in the beer tent for the results to be published, terrible hardship. It didn’t take the organisers too long to get the final results out. A score of 16 points meant we were 14th overall and 5th in standard diesel class. To give some context, first place in standard diesel was on 11 points, only 3 vehicles scored in single figures. Tommy finished on 34 points, which is a solid result as it’s his sixth RTV ever and that’s still in the top half. There is no award for 5th in Standard diesel class, even though there are dozens of
entries in it, but nevertheless we went to prize giving. To his surprise Josh did have some silverware to collect, the LINCOLNSHIRE LRC RTV TEAM TROPHY - Presented to the highest placed nominated team of three in the National RTV – lowest combined total score of team regardless of class. It transpired later that evening that CVLRC committee had made a secret “team entry” with Josh as one of the three and told nobody about it as it would only add pressure to the competitors. It was a total surprise for Josh to win an award, so we had all won awards from the weekend’s motorsport & not because of an “everyone gets a pot” attitude. Monday we watched the Comp Safari event which seemed crazy; airborne LandRovers, lots of blown diffs & tyres off rims, but damage didn’t seem to slow people down that much! There was some serious machinery running at the pointy end but it’s all got to be a LandRover chassis & LandRover derived engine, but lots of rumbling V8’s & mung travel shocks. A great event & nice to spend the entire weekend on site & off grid and it didn’t rain very much either. I’m already looking forward to 2018 and hopefully we can get a top ten finish, assuming I haven’t bought my own vehicle to RTV by then!
Russell Giddings
JIM BATE TRIAL – JUNE 10 Having not done a trial with front wheel drive for something like 20 years, this sounded as if it might be fun – and it was. Half way to Otham, where the trials are normally held, I remembered this one was at Chapman’s Hill in Meopham so quick change of direction and finally arrived in good time. Signing-on and scrutineering completed we had a look at the hills that Chris Scudder had set out for us, and very interesting they proved to be. Winding up through the woods and longer than usual they looked very promising in terms of entertainment, and challenge. The only disadvantage was that because of their nature they needed two marshals on each as the visibility beginning to end was difficult and unfortunately there were only enough to ‘man’ three hills at any one time. Ready for the off, we lowered the tyres to the mandatory minimum of 16PSI, and with the horrible
modern 12 wide (?) wheels with rubber bands where there used to be tyres, it made naff all difference as the sidewalls are just not flexible enough – oh well ! We then discovered that the ZR is just a little bit bigger than most of the others in the class and therefore less easy to feed through tight turns – or is that the driver making excuses? It did mean I could have a go at the FWD tactic of spinning the wheels to make the car turn more tightly, and to an extent it worked OK but obviously needs practice. Still not convinced it’s strictly legal MSAwise as it seems to me the vehicle has ‘ceased forward motion’ ie. it’s going sideways and has therefore failed in it’s attempt to climb non-stop. Something for the bar room lawyers to get their teeth into methinks ? Whatever, we managed to get some zero scores which was very satisfying and found ourselves 6th in a class of 8, 3 of whom are ASEMC championship guys, and boy does it show! There were some interesting vehicles competing, including an Austin 7 Special and a genuine Ford engined pre-Cannon trials car, but it would appear that the car to have is something like a Ka, Micra or Corsa, size and performance appearing to be about right in all three cases. Of course it helps if the driver knows what he’s doing !! Anyway thanks to the organisers and marshals for a fun Sunday and some food for thought for the next one! Clive Cooke - MGZR. PLEASE BE AWARE From now on, in order to score points in any of our championships you must send your results to our TRK, Joy Waiton.
[email protected] Her task is sufficiently challenging without having to hunt for results. It’s a pretty logical process—if she doesn’t get the results, you don’t get the points, and who’s the loser then?
Sherbourne Castle Classic and Supercar Show 2016 The Classic, and Supercar Show at Sherborne Castle Dorset in July 2016 had a strong rally car display, as it has had over the last few years. Brian Culcheth works British Leyland driver of the Seventies was there, with a very good replica of his second place 1970 World Cup Rally Triumph 2.5 PI Mk II see below left. Below right is a very rare Safari Rally spec Stratos. (All photos copyright Chris Dennis)
A genuine works alloy bodied Triumph TR4 3VC was also on display. It was driven by John Sprinzel in 1962, and Club Vice President Vic Elford in 1963 as a works car. Andy Elcomb contacted Vic last year for me, to see if we could get him over for the show, to reunite him with 3VC. The oganisers tried to get some sponsorship to pay for Vic’s airfair, from the motoring press, but with no success. Motorsport were keen to do an interview with him, but did not want to pay the airfair. Vic did tell us how special 3VC is to him. In 1962 Vic had won back to back British rallies in a DKW (that was on loan from the factory). On one of them, he had overtaken at great speed on a forest stage, a works Triumph driven by John Sprinzel, and Graham Robson. Graham was the Triumph team manager and promptly gave Vic a contract for 1963. He drove a works Triumph Vitesse on Monte Carlo, before getting to grips with the TR4. Although down on power compared to the Big Healeys, Vic was able to match times with them occasionally, on both the Tulip, and especially the Coupe des Alpes where special stages not only went up, but down as well. He finished third on the Tulip, but went off the road in the Alpine. The 1963 Tulip in the TR4 3VC was memorable for another reason for Vic. It was his first rally with new co-driver David Stone, and the start of a great, and long lasting partnership.
Vic told us 3VC has always been one of his favorite cars of all time: his first real fast car, his first real works car, the first car painted in what was already his favorite colour. Vic has a really interesting website, you might like to visit www.vicelford.com Two photos below of the ex works TR4 3VC at Sherborne Castle.
The 2017 Great Classic, and Supercar Show at Sherborne Castle is over 2 days this year on July 15th/16th. They have just announced Mercedes is to be the featured marque this year. Brian Culcheth has now been made a patron of the show, so expect more rally cars this year. Keep up to date on the show’s website www.classicsatthecastle.co.uk
Chris Dennis
OFFICIATING AT MOTORSPORT EVENTS IS REALLY HARD WORK
