(see the Sponsors link for Grantura Engingineering for the  Readman Racing details)

Rockingham August 2011 and Oulton Park October 2011

Rockingham Rounds 7 and 8 August 20th.

There aren’t too many circuits in the UK that polarize opinion quite as much as Rockingham. Set in the outskirts of Corby, a town that is still suffering the effects of the closure of what was probably the reason it exists, the steel industry, the circuit commands a huge plot of land that is approached down a long straight road with a view as you drive down that is dominated by the huge grandstands.

Purpose built for a Days of Thunder NASCAR based series the banked oval is probably the fastest in top speed terms in the UK, an Indy car reputably topping 235 mph. The grandstands were built to seat huge numbers of spectators and in the early days the draw of something new meant they were filled but it wasn’t long before the novelty wore off and the UK motorsport fans returned to what we know best, circuits with wiggly bits or as they are technically known corners. The four potential configurations now feature the use of the infield circuit and this is where the majority of the action is now.

For the Dunlop TVR European Challenge, the last three years has seen us use the International circuit which is a combination of the infield and the short main grandstand section of the banked oval.  We had originally planned for a two day meeting, but the economic situation has affected a lot of race series and the entrant numbers are simply not there so the BRSCC amended the timetable to give us one very busy Saturday.

On arriving mid afternoon on Friday, I was immediately reminded of the reason for the mixed appeal of the circuit. If your race series is fortunate enough to be given pit garage allocation, the inner paddock it is quite nice but the shorter straw gets the outer paddock and this is definitely not a place for the wig wearer. Windy doesn’t begin to describe it.

With a few of the guys already on circuit testing, we set about the construction of the TVRCC supported hospitality centre making sure the 40 litre water containers were in place and that the full size ratchet straps secured the gazebo’s to the hired van.

Now normally my perspective of a circuit is limited to the bit between the noisy side of the spectator fence and the Armco barriers and tyre walls either as a media pass holding photographer or more recently as one of the orange army of track marshals, but for once I can contribute from a drivers perspective, having driven a V8 Touring Car around the infield circuit what appears to be a very simple is in fact quite complex. As they are fond of saying on Top Gear ‘How hard can it be?’ Well very is the short answer, I now have a new respect for the guys, hauling a 400 bhp 5.7ltr monster Chevrolet Lumina CSV (left hand drive!) through the bends was full of surprises, most of them good. The speed at which a car on slick tyres turns in and brakes is impressive but I was also taken aback on how hard it is to consistently get the right line into and out of a corner and the importance of hitting the braking point with accuracy. This was with limited number of cars on track and although I was in the company of Ferrari and Lamborghini supercars, the race pedigree of the touring car meant that none of them were able to overtake, making the task a whole lot easier than doing it in proper race conditions.

This brings me back to the love hate relationship, most drivers love the circuit for the challenge and the for the DTEC the added tweak factor of the proximity and magnetic draw of the concrete wall of a banked section but hate the very basic set up in the outer paddock and the poor spectator facilities. From the main Grandstand you can see the whole circuit but it is quite anesthetised from the noise and sense of speed that some where like Brands Hatch or Cadwell Park offer and for the photographer it is barren and windy and quite uninspiring. But that said it is better than working for a living so I shouldn’t complain. 

Normally I would start the race report proper with the results and mishaps from qualifying but those nice folk from Norfolk, the father and son combination of Kev and Alex Gore deserve a mention for damaging the car before getting to the circuit this time and they had us all in stitches with the repairs to the GRP on the front end of the Tasmin with the car buried nose first into the hospitality area for the light as the work continued way past midnight. Also worthy of mention is the fact that Dave Stewart and his fiancée came down as spectators and support and they fell victim to the alcohol fuelled late night discussions that brought on an impromptu but well staged lack of comprehension from the Dulford’s boys to Dave’s very north east England accent. Just how many times can someone from the West Country get away with saying ‘No I’m not getting it’ to even the most simple thing Dave said was a surprise to me and a testimony to his patience and personality. I don’t suppose I helped either by suggesting that they must be from Poland. That’s the thing about TVR racing, the banter and camaraderie somehow made up for the fact the wind was trying to move the van all night long.

The qualifying session saw a continuation of technical problems for Ivor Watson and Leigh Jones and shortened sessions for newcomer John Seery and veteran nice guy turbo Tim Broughton; although when I spoke to him in the paddock he suggested that caravanning might be an option for next season as this one has been full of minor technical irritations.

For #77 Perry Waddams in the class A AJP V8 Tuscan though, the smile couldn’t be wider, in his first season of racing on a circuit that takes balls to do quick he scored his first pole position. The smile started to narrow a bit once the implications of that first corner rush on cold tyres started to sink in but he deserved pole with a lap of 1:28:70 0.385 seconds ahead of #89 Andy Race in the Class B RV8 Tuscan. Row 2 had two AJP V8s with #3 Hugh Marshall piping #21 Martin Crass by just 0.445 secs. Row 3 placed #4 Jason Clegg in the S3Erbera alongside the #23 Tuscan of Jamie Golby (both cars run AJP v8). Row 4 Had #27 the speed six powered T350R of Cliff Jobson ahead of Darren Smith #58 in another class B RV8 Tuscan. He had left his AJP Tuscan at home for this one. Two Tuscans how many can a man drive at once! Turbo Tim Broughton #33 in the Turbo Cosworth Tasmin headed row 5 ahead of the AJP Tuscan of #42 John Seery. Dan Birch put the RV8 Griffith 500 #66 in front of Dave Chant in the #1 V6 Tasmin on row 6 and row 7 had #44 Gary Lancashire’s AJP Tuscan in front of the V6 Tasmin of #11 Ivor Watson. Row 8 had two Tasmins with the RV8 class B #40 of Leigh Jones ahead of the V6 #26 of Alex Gore. Row 9 had Wayne Godwin in the #19 Tasmin V6.

Race 1

The Days of Thunder series may be long gone but the Thunderous roar of a TVR 16 car pack going along that banked oval into the first corner is something to behold. Hang on a minute, 16 cars, there’s one missing surely! Yep you’re right but don’t call me Shirley! Dan Birch encountered a fuse problem on the green flag lap and he started from the pit lane after a hasty fix. The battle royal up front saw Andy have a terrible start and fall back to sixth and Perry held the car, his nerve and the pack into the first corner and beyond into lap 2 but the experienced Martin Crass had already put some moves on Hugh and Jamie and was biting at his heels. Turbo Tim dropped out on lap 2 and the race stabilised into a front tow tussle between Hugh and Martin. Back in the middle a good race unfolded between Andy and Darren until lap 9 when the steam ejecting V8 decided enough was enough. From my viewpoint it had decided that 3 laps before but that Darren in one determined Northerner. We had also lost cars 44 and 40. Leigh succumbed to more Gremlins on lap 6 and Gary pulled into the pit lane with inner ear infection induced car sickness. I wouldn’t want to throw up into a closed face crash helmet whilst kissing the wall in an immaculate 400bhp Tuscan either so I for one don’t blame him. We also lost Cliff on the penultimate lap but he would be back out for race two. The race at the front settled by lap 5 and Hugh led Martin home with a 1.6 second margin.

Overall

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Martin Crass 
3rd  Jamie Golby
4th   Andy Race

Class A

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Martin Crass
3rd  Jamie Golby

Fastest Lap: Hugh Marshall on lap 7 with a time of 1:28.386 and an average speed of 79.01 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Dan Birch
3rd  Cliff Jobson

Fastest Lap: Andy Race on lap 7 in a time of 1:29.645 and an average speed of 77.90 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Ivor Watson
3rd  Alex Gore

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 5 in a time of 1:39.830 and an average speed of 69.95 mph.

Race 2

With a one day meeting it all gets pretty hectic and it wasn’t long before we were heading back out onto track for race 2. The short gap meant that it would be a case of alas Smith and Jones as there would be insufficient time for Darren and Leigh to repair the cars. The grid would also be missing Gary Lancashire who had decided not to tempt fate with that ear infection.

With the grid adjusted to the finishing positions of race 1 the 14 cars lined up to do it all again at 5.00. Hugh took the pole advantage and held it for a while from Martin Crass who briefly dropped behind Jamie Golby to take the position back on lap 3. Andy dropped back a couple of places from 4th on the grid at the start and found himself tucked behind the S3erbera of Jason Clegg and Perry took full advantage and moved into fourth, Andy was back into fifth at the start of lap 3 and this then became the race within the race. The series had a reputation in the early days as being a crash fest but all the cars now are supported by personal money so there it a lot more respect between the drivers, Andy and Perry are good friends off the track and this showed through in the really close but fair battle between the two of them for the whole race, yes there was some minor car kissing going on and yes the fronts and backs of both cars needed attention afterwards but this was the result of great close racing rather than deliberate punt and run tactics. Dan began to find his feet in the immaculate Griffith 500. Unfortunately a change in personal circumstances has meant that this would be Dan’s only races in the car and that it would be up for sale, at the price Dan mentioned to me, someone is sure to get a real bargain. Keeping it pristine was therefore a consideration but it was good to see him move through to a solid position and to take a deserved second in the first race. New cars always need development so it was no surprise to see him finish behind Cliff and Tim. Young Alex also moved up a notch and managed a second podium of the weekend after Ivor managed to bin it all by himself on lap 5, fortunately with no serious damage to car or driver. Both Tim and Cliff overcome the Gremlins to finish this time and we hope that Turbo Tim has abandoned all thoughts of caravanning now.

Martin put a move on Hugh on lap 5 and maintained the lead all the way to the end and despite the valiant efforts of Hugh to get past; he had to settle for 2nd and fastest lap. The points share between them definitely adding to the interest for the final rounds at Oulton Park

Results Race 2

Overall

1st  Martin Crass
2nd  Hugh Marshall
3rd  Jamie Golby
4th   Andy Race

Class A

1st  Martin Crass
2nd  Hugh Marshall
3rd  Jamie Golby

Fastest Lap: Hugh Marshall on lap 14 with a time of 1:28.546 and an average speed of 78.85 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Cliff Jobson
3rd  Tim Broughton

Fastest Lap: Andy Race on lap 14 in a time of 1:30.500 and an average speed of 77.17 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Alex Gore
3rd  Wayne Godwin

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 5 in a time of 1:40.989 and an average speed of 69.15.

 
Oulton Park Rounds 9 and 10 October 15th.

As the Dunlop TVR Challenge returned once again to its regular end of season venue Oulton Park, there was still an awful lot to play for. True the individual class champions were decided during rounds 7 and 8 at Rockingham in August, with Hugh Marshall taking the class A champion slot over series returnee Martin Crass and the strong challenge of Jamie Golby. In class B, Andy Race in the RV8 Tuscan held off the advances of Keith Vaughan Williams in another RV8 Tuscan and the T350R of Cliff Jobson. In class C 2010 overall Champion Dave Chant used guile and consistency to once again prevail. Sadly for Dave he would be unlikely to score back to back overall Championships as a lack of entries in class C meant that although he had an 8 from 8 win ratio some of those only scored half points so he needed some pretty bad luck to befall Hugh, Andy and Martin as the drivers need to finish both races as there are no points for a DNF. Mathematically he could still do it but it has to be said it didn’t look likely.

However the fight for the overall championship couldn’t have been closer, it is awarded to the driver with the most overall points scored in their respective class and this made the finale a fascinating finish. Just 4 points separated Hugh Marshall on 165 from Andy Race on 161. With 21 points for a win in each class and each round there were two sets of 42 on offer and second place gets 19 points and there is the added factor of a bonus point for fastest lap in each race. Remember then, they could both score a maximum of 22 in each race as it is awarded per class not on finishing positions. Andy had the better win ratio but lost a number of fastest lap bonus points to Keith and also had a bad day at Snetterton. Keith wasn’t there to cause more upset as he retired from active racing (for the moment) after Donington, but Martin Crass was and he could and had given Hugh a very close tussle throughout the season.

Add into the mix some non points scoring invitation cars, we had two GT class Sagaris entered by Tim Hood and Fred Tonge. A bright Yellow Porsche driven by Brett Winstanley, a name familiar to us from his brothers exploits in TVRs in the GT Cup and the series in 2009. We also had the return of 2009 Champion Tim Davis out for the first time in the red Tuscan RV8 previously owned by former Happy Endings Motorsport teammate Keith Vaughan Williams. Also worth watching for was Perry Waddams, probably this years most improved driver, he had a pole position to his name now and would be there at the front and is very competitive. We had the return also of 2008 champion Dean Cook having recently acquired the Class A Tuscan from Jamie Golby. We also have local legend Darren Smith out again this time in the more familiar Purple AJP Tuscan.

For me personally, although we had a gap during September with no races, a trip to the Goodwood Revival for three days and a further 6 days away at Spa (another article to follow on that) meant that the time past very quickly. The freak weather early in the month allowed me to sleep in reasonable comfort in the back of the van while in Belgium but I wasn’t about to risk it for the middle of Cheshire in the middle of October. So an early start on Friday got the long drive north done and dusted and we all met up in the early evening to set things up for the following morning and the frantic day that would follow. A good meal in excellent company followed by a warm comfortable hotel bed made for a very welcome change and a good night’s sleep saw me back on circuit at about 7.30am to complete the set up and start to think about where to go to catch the qualifying session.

George Carter had already called the mobile to tell me he had electrical issues with the Land Rover and would be delayed maybe past the first session so it was an easy choice to repeat last years stop off and I headed for the iconic shot as the cars came through Lodge Corner in the early morning sunshine.

During the session we lost Alex Gore to over exuberance at the Britten’s chicane when he attacked it too hard and put the Tasmin into a spin and the resulting side and front collision with the tyre wall. Alex was out of the car quickly and was OK but the car would be unfixable and we would be one down for the first race. The comments of like father like son were pretty predictable when we were back in the paddock but that said everyone tried to help get the car back out.

Young Brett Winstanley was straight on the pace in the 958 Porsche seemingly oblivious to the damp and greasy early morning circuit.

Dave Stewart also managed a spin in the Griffith #93 but fortunately the damage was superficial. Andy Race also had his session shortened with a lost belt that although not terminal would be a bad portent for things to come and would have the team rushing around for replacement parts. He had a decent qualifying time but getting to the start of race one was in the balance.

With the invitational cars deciding to start from the back of the grid we had Martin Crass on pole and alongside him Darren Smith, Hugh Marshall headed row 2 with Perry Waddams for company. Row 4 had Dean one place ahead of Andy Race. Deano was complaining about a lack of power from the cold engine. Row 5 paired up Tim Davis with Cliff Jobson following the latter’s two spins. Row 6 had an empty slot for the Tim Hood Car so john Seery had it all to himself. Row 7 put the very different Tasmins of Tim Broughton and Dave Chant together and row 8 placed Ivor Watson alongside Gary Lancashire. Row 9 saw Richard Hewitt slightly ahead of Leigh Jones and Dave Stewart on row 10. Despite a slightly delayed start my heart dropped to see the absence of Andy Race on the grid, the parts were being fitted as the cars took the green flag lap and although he would start he was 4 laps down when he did. Another casualty was the Black Sagaris #10. Driven by a guest driver Paul Smith for race 1, he lit up the tyres on the exit from pits on the green flag lap and spun it collecting the tyre wall with the back end. The damage wasn’t too serious but we wouldn’t see the car again during the day.

From the start Darren got the jump on Martin Crass into Old Hall for the first time and kept it for the next 7 laps, Fred Tonge and Brett started to eat their way through the pack. Most of the guys were holding to pretty much their grid positions for most of the race, Leigh Jones completed some independent ballet moves at Britten’s chicane in a repeat of Alex Gore qualifying shunt but he and the car escaped pretty much unscathed. Dave Stewart pulled out with a shot differential and would take no further part. The action was split into the battle up front with the lead exchanged a few times between Martin and Darren and the battle for 6th position as Perry presented a large car to Deano, managing to block him fairly but effectively.

Hugh had his sensible head on and with Andy not making the grid, he did what he had to do and kept it on the black bit to finish in a controlled overall 5th.

Results Race 1

With a number of invitation cars the overall finishing positions do not reflect the points table:

Overall

1st  Darren Smith
2nd  Martin Crass
3rd  Brett Winstanley
4th  Fred Tonge

Class A

1st  Darren Smith
2nd  Martin Crass
3rd  Hugh Marshall

Fastest Lap: Darren Smith on lap 8 with a time of 1:49.127 and an average speed of 88.80 mph

Class B

1st  Tim Davis
2nd  Cliff Jobson
3rd  Tim Broughton

Fastest Lap: Tim Davis on lap 8 in a time of 1:53.388 and an average speed of 85.50 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Ivor Watson

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 3 in a time of 2:03.870 and an average speed of 78.23 mph.

Andy’s title bid had stalled, a drop in oil pressure caused him to pull out of race one and  he recorded a DNF but it might not have stopped there but, sadly the root cause was the oil pump and a discussion between Andy and his mechanic Big Colin decided that it was unsafe and potentially very expensive to risk it in race 2 and he sportingly was the first to congratulate Hugh, race one then had effectively decided the overall championship a mechanical failure robbing us of a glorious finish but we had a worthy and well deserved Champion in Hugh Marshall.

Race 2

With the grid mixed up for race 2 Perry made an excellent start and was tucked in behind Martin Crass until the fast charging Sagaris now piloted by Darren Dowling came through hotly followed by the Porsche 958. Martin held the Sagaris off for three or four laps and the Porsche for the whole race until Martin disappeared on lap 10, fuel problems causing his demise. This left the front of the championship field to Darren Smith and he took full benefit. Hugh started in a fairly controlled manner and one could be forgiven for thinking that with the championship sorted he would be Captain sensible but even mature race drivers cant resist a challenge and he soon found himself in a proper race with Perry Waddams, this continued to the final lap where they were side by side going into Lodge corner for the last time, there was no contact between them but a wheel on the grass had Hugh backwards into the barrier for significant shunt.

Results Race 2

With a number of invitation cars the overall finishing positions do not reflect the points table:

Overall

1st  Darren Dowling
2nd  Brett Winstanley
3rd  Darren Smith
4th  Perry Waddams

Class A

1st  Darren Smith
2nd  Perry Waddams
3rd  Dean Cook

Fastest Lap: Martin Crass on lap 8 with a time of 1:48.672 and an average speed of 89.17 mph

Class B

1st  Tim Davis
2nd  Cliff Jobson
3rd  Tim Broughton

Fastest Lap: Tim Davis on lap 3 in a time of 1:51.947 and an average speed of 86.56 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Ivor Watson

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 5 in a time of 2:03.435 and an average speed of 78.51 mph.

Well that’s it for another season, Championship decided and post season party fully enjoyed. The tales from that could fill another three pages but I am sworn to secrecy, ‘what goes on on tour, stays on tour’ as they say.

To finish we need to say a few thanks to the sometimes unseen people behind the scenes, John Reid of Readman Racing owner of the series who keeps it all going, Geoff and Linda for all the work on the presentations, driver motivation, ticket negotiations and paddock organisation and of course the magnificent the end of season party. Thanks also to Iain and Charlie for all of their efforts in and around the paddock, guys you made a huge difference this year, the boys from clickmotorsport.com for following the series through long lenses and to wish George continued progress on his road back to full health, the circuit owners, the BRSCC and the marshals as without them we wouldn’t be able to race and lastly all the drivers that I haven’t singled out for attention during these articles and importantly the mechanics, team and family members that follow the circus around all season and never get the glory of a mention in a race programme let alone a magazine article. You are all what makes the Championship so special. See you next year!

Donington Park 15th July

Every cloud has a Silver Lining!

If you had said that to anyone connected to the series at the end of June you would have been thought to have been partaking of illegal substance use or at least were living a in a cloud silver or otherwise. The reason; we had all been looking forward to Donington, this was the venue of the first Tuscan Race back in 1989, we were due to race there in 2009 and the closure of the circuit has robbed the series of a romantic 20 year anniversary, it being on the schedule for this year was probably the jewel in the calendar but dismay had started to spread when the circuit leaked information to the motorsport press that it was going to have to cancel a number of the events set for the year. Whatever the real reason, and there are still a number of alternative views on the why, one thing was for sure, by the end June I had to circulate information that our race meeting on the 23rd July was one of those that had been canned.

There followed a combination of anger, most of it misdirected, doom and gloom and loads of conspiracy theories. Some went into panic and all sorts of desperate solutions were put forward but behind the scenes the series owner John Reid of Grantura Engineering and Readman Racing was using all of his vast past experience and healthy network of contacts to sort out an alternative to ensure we had the promised 10 races this season.

With the help of the BRSCC, John pulled off a masterstroke, albeit with a hectic one day meeting on a Friday and slightly shortened qualifying session and first race we were going to get to Donington after all, but that silver lining was we were on the bill with the FIA World Touring Cars.

It wasn’t without other downsides though, the gigantic paddock setups involved in the WTCC and the normal supporting series such as the Masserati Trofeo naturally pushed us out into a less favourable paddock location and the need to get everyone informed and schedules rearranged to move to a Friday. The original plans for the TVRCC to subsidise tickets for members was substituted for free spectator access and we communicated the changes in the best way we could but to say information was at a premium would be an understatement. We had a timetable but most of us were working on the principle of an ‘it will be alright on the night’ optimism when the DTEC circus rolled up on Thursday afternoon to take our place with the big boys. The truth is we (well mostly Geoff Parkinson) were still negotiating with BARC mid Thursday afternoon and our paddock location had been agreed with the compromise of uneven ground but secure over the alternative of nice flat tarmac and outside of the main area and the remit of the security controls.

Like most I had to rearrange my business diary and me and the hired transit worked its way over from the Black Country to arrive at around six o’clock. In the best traditions of TVR there were a few grumbles going when I arrived but a few more experienced heads just pointed the grumblers in the direction of the Maserati setup. The set up was awesome, they have a marquee big enough to take thirty cars and it had a separate in and out lane to provide their own pit garage area. Add that to a hospitality area that covered at least six hundred square metres and you can see why the drivers pay 150,000 Euros each and still don’t get to own the car. Once a few facts of life were spelt out we did what we do best, all mucked in together to get everyone ready for the early start on Friday with arrivals each hour this kept us busy until the early hours of the morning.

Each of the races has an individual sponsor and for Donington they were the former team members Dave Stewart and Peter Hunter. Peter intended to race this year with the ex Mickey Holden Tasmin but a number of issues have got in the way and progress has been slow and we probably won’t see him race this season. Dave is racing the gorgeous Griffith No 93 and race 1 would be the Tom Stewart memorial race and Dave had some stickers specially commissioned, I managed to secure one and it will long be part of my collection.

In the racing world at club level we are like most other walks of life and times are hard and this is being shown by dropping grid numbers and race series folding, the cheaper series seem to be healthy and if you want to run in the Mazda MX5 series the competition will be very healthy but the racing is rough and it is a good job that the cars are cheap and easy to repair. The story is very sombre for lots of classics and higher value saloon racing but the DTEC series however is bucking the trend, yes we had six cars out as either invitational or non scoring but seventeen others makes for a very good turnout and twenty three cars shows a great deal of respect for the Tom Stewart memorial and the esteem he was held in.

With twenty three cars of hugely varying pace out in a scramble of a qualifying session lasting just fifteen minutes getting a good clear lap wasn’t going to be easy and it was good to see them all back unscathed. Graham Walden was nursing a new engine and had arrived with the car unfinished and help from Nick Fisher and Leigh Jones got the car on some shock absorbers and through the scrutineering in time for qualifying.  The invitational cars made the most of it with the experienced Britcar GT Sagaris of Tim Hood and Fred Tonge taking the provisional pole and position two slots ahead of the Michael Saunders GT Cup Cerbera and the Dutch Supercar Sagaris of Andy Holden just edging Danny Winstanley and the Speed 6 powered GT cup Sagaris into 5th place.

Now these are GT spec cars and were always expected to be more powerful than a standard Challenge Tuscan but they are not built for standing starts and have started from the pit lane whenever they have made guest appearances before but so the FIA and BARC representatives got together with Geoff to sort out a the same arrangement and the cars were lined up in qualifying order in the pit lane. This gave a modified grid with Hugh Marshall in his Tuscan AJP V8 on pole and alongside him running in invitational we had Doug Elwood in the Marcos. Row two had the class B Tuscan RV8 of Andy Race mixing it up with the class A boys with Perry Waddams in the ex Dean Cook Tuscan AJP V8 in position four.

Row three had Darren Smith in his Tuscan AJP V8 with Keith Vaughan Williams alongside him in another class B Tuscan RV8. Row four had Jamie Golby lining his Tuscan AJP V8 up with Jason Clegg in the ever improving S3Erbera AJP V8. Row five had Graham Walden running as a non point’s scorer in the remaining Tuscan RV8 with Martin Crass for company in the Tuscan AJP V8.

Row six had Dave Stewart in the class B Griffith RV8 ahead of Dean Cook in a hire drive of Perry’s Tuscan LS3. Row Seven had the first of the Tasmin Class C cars with Dave Chant alongside the newly yellow painted class B Griffith of Richard Hewitt out with us for the first time this season. Row eight had the Tasmin of Ivor Watson alongside the Class A Tuscan of Gary Lancashire. Row nine had Billy Thompson also out for the first time this year in the class C Tasmin with Wayne Godwin for company in his ex Stewart/Hunter Tasmin.

One guy not racing was Leigh Jones after the Chassis snap at Brands there was still work to do on the car but I wasn’t going to miss the chance of getting a drivers viewpoint of the races albeit from the pit wall and from here I will let Leigh take up the narrative.

Although the GT cars had started in line from the pit lane by lap two they had started to make their way to the front, Martin Crass had also made a charge though the field making up for his poor qualifying position. Andy Race had a good start but had a spin at the Melbourne hairpin due to a tap from Darren Smith so this put him down the grid, this left just Hugh and Perry at the front, by lap four Tim was now in the lead with the other GT cars not far behind, its quite a impressive seeing the GT cars go though the pack. At this point it’s just Hugh, Perry and Martin in the mix at the front in their Class A Tuscans.

Richard Hewitt in the Griffith seemed to have some extra pace from last season and was keeping on the tail of Dave Chant. By lap five through some determined driving Andy had caught back up the class B battle of Keith Vaughan Williams, Graham Walden and Dave Stewart and by lap six the top three became an all GT battle of Tim Hood, Michael Saunders, and young Danny Winstanley. Keith Vaughan Williams was coming under a lot of pressure and a minor spin allowed Graham Walden to get passed, this opened the door for Andy Race who also managed to get passed, so pushed Keith down to third in class. On lap seven there was a change of lead with Michael Saunders taking the front from Tim Hood, with Danny Winstanley still in third. In the Class A battle we had Hugh Marshall still leading from Martin Crass who had now moved up to second in Class A, Michael Saunders held the #1 position till the end with Tim Hood slowing slightly but still keeping second with Danny Winstanley just behind, Martin Crass managed to get passed Hugh Marshall on the last lap to take the Class A win, with Perry Waddams in third in class A. Graham Walden finished ahead of him but Andy Race took the Class B win Keith Vaughan Williams in second.

There were a few casualties, Jamie Golby’s car failed to start the race due to a faulty fuel pump, Dean Cook pulled off on lap six with oil warning lights and Perry took the flag spectacularly with steam exploding from the front of the car as a hose let go on the line. Sadly though, both the cars would be out of action for race two as the head gasket had also failed. Andy Holden had pulled out with a broken ball joint having completed seven laps, the car was fixed so he would be back out in race two but due to lack to a support crew it taken his toll on Andy and left him feeling quite exhausted. Michael Saunders would not be starting race two as he had a suspect wheel bearing, plus he was racing in the GT Cup at Brands Hatch the next day, so wanted to get the car ready for that as he had sponsors commitments to fulfill. Jamie would be out for race two as a fuel pump was donated by Gary Lancashire and James knight and I got it fitted in time.

Results Race 1

With a number of invitation cars the finishing positions do not reflect the points table:

Overall

1st  Mike Saunders
2nd  Tim Hood
3rd  Danny Winstanley
4th  Martin Crass

Class A

1st  Martin Crass
2nd  Hugh Marshall
3rd  Perry Waddams

Fastest Lap: Martin Crass on lap 5 with a time of 1:41.58 and an average speed of 88.20 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Keith Vaughan Williams
3rd  Dave Stewart

Fastest Lap: Keith Vaughan Williams on lap 9 in a time of 1:44.69 and an average speed of 85.52 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Ivor Watson
3rd  Billy Thompson

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 5 in a time of 1:55.66 and an average speed of 77.41.
The result of race re configured the grid for race 2, but was the same format with the GT cars starting from the pit lane. With Martin Crass and Hugh Marshall on the front row, Doug Elwood alongside and empty space that should have been occupied by the vastly improving Perry Waddams, Darren Smith was on the third row but now had Graham Walden for company and Andy Race was two rows back from his race one starting position with Keith Vaughan Williams alongside him. As the lights changed for our usual 20 minutes you could almost taste the tension.
Andy Race made a great start and got passed Graham Walden and Darren Smith, and was keeping up with the class A guys, but Darren Smith took the place back on the following lap, with Keith Vaughan Williams also getting passed Graham Walden, Martin Crass was making the most of his pole position with Hugh Marshall close behind, by lap four though the GT guys were now at the front on the pack, with the number 12 car now being driven by Darren Dowling with Danny Winstanley and Andy Holden not far behind, Tim Hood was not so lucky with bodywork problems he had to retire on lap 2, Jamie Golby also made good progress though the pack, a situation forced on him due to starting at the rear due to the DNS for Race 1, on lap five we saw Graham Walden in the pits with a problem, in the end it was a noise that sounded expensive a Graham thought better about taking a risk.

Richard Hewitt was having a good race until a big spin and de-tour across the infield down Craner Curves on lap seven and the race seemed to settle into its separate class groups all having a good battle, Keith was pushing very hard and had a moment on lap eleven but caught it before it got out of hand, only to have a second attempt on lap thirteen but this time it inevitably ended in a spin allowing Dave Stewart to pass him a take second place in class.

Results Race 2

With a number of invitation cars the finishing positions do not reflect the points table:

Overall

1st  Darren Dowling
2nd  Danny Winstanley
3rd  Andy Holden
4th  Martin Crass

Fastest overall lap for both races was Darren Dowling 1:36.05 with an average speed of 93.22

Class A

1st  Martin Crass
2nd  Hugh Marshall
3rd  Darren Smith

Fastest Lap: Martin Crass on lap 11 with a time of 1:40.34 and an average speed of 89.24 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Dave Stewart
3rd  Keith Vaughan Williams

Fastest Lap: Keith Vaughan Williams on lap 10 in a time of 1:43.23 and an average speed of 86.74 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Ivor Watson
3rd  Billy Thompson

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 4 in a time of 1:55.15 and an average speed of 77.76.

Mal Gwynne with race narrative by Leigh Jones

Brands Hatch 11th and 12th June 2011.

You wait all winter for a TVR Challenge race and then two come along within two weeks of each other. With rounds one and two at Snetterton completed during the late May Bank holiday there was little time to prepare before the show moved to the historic Brands Hatch circuit in Kent.

Snetterton had been hard on the gearboxes and with such a sort gap it was likely that a few drivers would have been missing, in fact the commitment to the series is such that pretty much all those out in rounds 1 and 2 were ready. We knew that Dave Stewart and the glorious red Griffith were never intending to make the long trip down and Turbo Tim had other commitments that prevented him racing. With budgets tight as well as time, a repair to the Blue Tuscan of Kevan Gore was also most unlikely but we did have the pleasure of his company as racer became proud and supportive Dad to son Alex in only his second race after a late and tentative first outing at the end of last season. The Gore Tasmin had been ‘Tangoed’ over the winter and was now in a slightly more conspicuous Orange from the ‘You aint seen me right!’ Black livery of 2010.

The entry sheets also identified two new entrants to the series. Martin Crass and John Seery. Sadly John had an altercation with a crash barrier in testing so was a late withdrawal as the car couldn’t be repaired in time. Martin was there though and although coming back after a long lay off he was no stranger to the series having competed in the Glory Days.

The other good news was that we had pit garage allocation for the weekend, now most wouldn’t appreciate the importance of this but when a wet weekend is anticipated as was the forecast, the prospect of working on cars under wind ravaged gazebos is not nice and then having to pack the things away while they are wet is even worse. As with all things TVR though, it wasn’t all straightforward. We had nine garages and 12 cars and also needed to find space for the hospitality area. So an early arrival on circuit Friday afternoon saw me patrolling the pits sizing up space and in the best traditions of Baldric coming up with a ‘Plan so Cunning’ that we could all fit in. The hospitality area would be set up in Garage three and there was sufficient space in each pair of garages to take three cars so problem solved ‘Simples’.

Friday is generally a test day at Brands and this was no exception but the late 18.40 finish meant that there were a few crews almost clawing the ground to get in. Charlie Francis and Iain Jones of Intracar had made the long trip down and across country to support again but their priority would be setting up their accommodation for the weekend as would Archbishop Chant and the whole family who had taken 8.5 hours to get down from Glossop.

So it was a huge thanks to TVR gent and 2009 Champ Tim Davis and local RO Nick Smith for helping set things up. Joining up with Keith Vaughan Williams they even had the good grace to take yours truly out for a curry and a blast in Nick’s superbly looked after Griffith. Anyone who has spent an evening with these guys ends up with jaw ache from laughing so much and Nick even went out of his way to take me back to the circuit.

Qualifying

The downside of a good curry night and the ubiquitous beers that are needed to cool it down is a foggy head in the morning and through slightly bleary eyes I got the urn on for a brew just as life was beginning to emerge around the pit garages. Now at this point I will let you in on a master plan, the light at Brands is such that there are limited places to take pictures from early in the morning and one of these is Druids. George Carter must have thought it was his birthday when I offered it to him first thing, the plan was that my generosity would be rewarded with the classic pack shot on the Sunday as the cars come up to the bridge, but more of the plan later. I wandered over to the outside of Clark Curve to catch the cars as they got ‘light’ over the humps at Clearways.

With the exception of Perry Waddams having a bit of an unassisted moment at Clearways they all behaved themselves and the grid positions settled and were very different from Snetterton. On pole we had veteran of 108 Tuscan Challenge qualifying sessions Hugh Marshall with an impressive 51.9 and alongside him on the front row separated by just 0.193 was the RV8 Tuscan of Andy Race. To give you some sort of perspective on these times, Time Attack cars with 4 wheel drive, more aero than a DTM car and 700 + bhp on a warm dry track manage around 52 seconds.

The second row had Perry Waddams in an impressive third out this time in Dean Cook’s old car instead of the LS powered red one and alongside him was local man Keith Vaughan Williams; just 0.614 seconds separated the top four.

On row three we had Jason Clegg in the S3Erbera with Cliff Jobson and the speed 6 T350R alongside him. On row 4 we had two class A cars with Jamie Golby just ahead of Darren Smith. In a world of race driver excuses it is refreshing to get the truth, Jamie just can’t seem to get his head around Brands Hatch, with such a short circuit one corner can make a huge difference and if that corner is Paddock Hill a huge amount of time can be lost. For Darren it was a case of just being far too far South, first time out on the Brands Hatch Indy with 450 bhp under the right foot is a fast learning curve. There were just 1.8 seconds covering the top eight cars.

On row 5 we had series newcomer Martin Crass in a class A Tuscan just alongside the Class Tasmin of 2010 Champion Dave Chant. Now to say Martin is a newcomer is not completely true, he has form as they say. He raced in the Challenge series from 1989 to 2003 and his profile reads very impressively. First time out in this car though and set up issues meant that mechanic Matt Smith would be in for a busy lead up to the race.

Row 6 had Leigh Jones ahead of rookie Alex Gore. Leigh was trying to get over to his mechanic brother that the car just seemed all wrong and Alex was just trying to stay out of every ones way this being only his second race meeting.

Race 1

Now I could be accused of over sharing here but with the race due to start at 2:15 I was beginning to contemplate where I would go to get shots of the first race, the toilet was not originally high on my list for good angles and light but it soon became my priority. What at first seemed to be the ‘normal’ post curry gripes became the Winter Vomiting bug and the toilet was set to become my home. I did manage to get one of the cameras out of the van and positioned myself strategically by the ambulance gate with a reasonable view of the track and more importantly within running distance of the loo.

A terrible start for Hugh Marshall allowed three cars through and the assembled pack headed to druids led by Andy Race, with Perry Waddams hot on his rear end, the big gains were made by Jamie Golby making up five places to grab second ahead of Perry Waddams by the end of lap one. Now Andy has a theory that the lower powered class B cars don’t have such a great disadvantage over the class A cars on such a short track and this may be true but the mutterings of a very fired up Hugh Marshall must have been audible over the top of the thundering AJP V8 as he put on a charge through and had taken third away from Perry Waddams by the end of lap 4.

Behind them there was a good tussle for sixth place between Darren Smith and Cliff Jobson with a bit more track familiarity Cliff held off the Class A car until lap 4 but there was another man on the move, Martin Crass was beginning to get the feelings back from the old days and had moved up to eighth place ahead of Jason Clegg. Behind them Dave Chant continued his game plan to keep ahead of the class C cars and not get tangled up with the front runners. Alex Gore continued to find his feet in only his second race and Leigh Jones was struggling with his class B Tasmin that just didn’t want to play ball.

By the end of lap 6 Hugh had moved up to third and the gap to Andy was down to less than a second by the end of lap 7. It was obviously not going to be if Hugh caught him but when and then if Hugh could get past. He did both by the end of lap nine and Perry and Jamie continued to swap places behind them. By the end of lap 10 Martin Crass had moved ahead of Cliff in the T350R the extra grunt of the V8 besting the sweet noise of the straight six. By lap 12 local driver Keith Vaughan Williams had caught and passed Jamie Golby so maybe Andy’s theory was true but maybe it was that Jamie just can’t seem to feel at home at Brands Hatch and was loosing valuable time each lap into Paddock. Martin Crass moved ahead of Darren Smith on lap 14 and the race settled a bit for 5 or so laps. We lost Leigh Jones on lap 18 to mechanical issues. Perhaps sensing the chequered flag Cliff Jobson moved ahead of Darren to take 7th on lap 20 and Keith moved ahead of Perry on lap 21.

Back on lap 12 the gap between Hugh in first back to Andy was 4.1 seconds by lap 20 that gap was just 0.7 seconds and four seconds covered the front four cars.
Results Race 1

Overall

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Andy Race
3rd  Keith Vaughan Williams
4th  Perry Waddams

Class A

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Perry Waddams
3rd  Jamie Golby
4th Martin Crass

Fastest Lap: Hugh Marshall on lap 8 with a time of 51.94 and an average speed of 83.71 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Keith Vaughan Williams
3rd  Cliff Jobson

Fastest Lap: Keith Vaughan Williams on lap 15 in a time of 52.04 and an average speed of 83.55 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Alex Gore

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 15 in a time of 56.56 and an average speed of 76.89.

A post race barbecue had been organised and I am told everyone had a great time, the only damper being a Jobsworth who tried to stop proceedings despite the fact we had permission from the circuit management. He was informed of the facts in no uncertain terms by Mr P who not only shares an outward look of a Bulldog but also has the same resolute approach and needless to say the party continued. I spent the evening between the van and the toilet and didn’t participate at all, my misery continued throughout the night and into the next morning. This is where the cunning plan went to pieces, by the time came for race two on Sunday morning, I couldn’t even pick one of my cameras up let alone attempt the long walk to Druids to try get some shots, so I left it to George to venture out into the drizzle and I settled for a vantage point where I could see the race and still have a loo in sight.

Race 2

The finishing positions from Saturday’s race determined the grid for race two, so we had Hugh on pole and alongside him the Class B Tuscan of Andy Race. Row two had Keith alongside Perry and on row three Jamie lined up alongside Martin Crass. Row four saw Cliff paired with Darren and row five had Jason Clegg with Class C leader Dave Chant. Alex claimed the next position with the DNF forcing Leigh Jones to the back of the field.

Again the start saw Hugh bog down and Andy move into the lead hotly pursued through Paddock Hill Bend by Keith Vaughan Williams with Perry and Jamie tight to their tails for company. Jamie just edged into third place at Druids and Keith overdid the power on the exit on the greasy track and spun off on the inside to drop back into a firm last place. Into Paddock Hill for the second time and Andy, Perry and Jamie were all tight together but Hugh made a move on the outside of the bend to take third place away from Jamie, and further back Darren had gained three places and was leading Martin by a half car length into Graham Hill bend. Hugh continued his pressure on Jamie and again took him on the outside at Paddock Hill in a repeat of race one. This put Jamie into the sights of Darren and Martin down the pit straight were they ran three abreast until it came to the entry to Paddock Hill when it is a case of who is braver and later on the brakes, this time it was Martin that emerged at the bottom of Paddock Hill ahead. While the fight for 4th 5th and 6th raged on Andy was building a bit of a gap on Perry and Hugh while further back Keith was driving with all his heart and had forced his way from the back of the field through to 7th place. Jason Clegg and Cliff Jobson didn’t like to be left out and Cliff used the superior grip of the T350R to make a clean but close move into 8th place at Graham Hill Bend.

At Druids for the 8th time Perry was defending hard against Hugh and took to the inside of the bend, four wheels on wet grass gains speed in the wrong direction and he stalled the engine, took two attempts to restart it and lost 2nd to Hugh and 3rd to Martin while he sorted himself out.

Now clear of Perry, Hugh set aim for Andy and over the next three laps ate away at the gap until he could use the superior power of the AJP V8 over the Rover V8 to pull past him on the Brabham Straight. Keith continued his charge and by lap twelve had fought his way to 5th place. Jamie was obviously struggling for grip and he slowly slipped back into the pack. At the rear of the field Dave Chant was doing exactly what he needed to do, keep it on the black bit and not try to race cars in higher classes and young Alex was beginning to find his way and was becoming more and more familiar with the car and was getting quicker lap by lap. For Leigh Jones though the car was suffering more and more vibration and became nearly un-driveable and he pulled in on lap 15 to not rejoin. Post race investigation showed a snapped chassis member – no wonder it was a bit of a struggle keeping it in a straight line!

Once ahead of Andy, Hugh led the race imperiously from the front with the chasing pack remaining mostly in order. Cliff was then the man on a mission, either he had more commitment or more grip but by lap 19 he was up to an impressive 6th and a great dice for the final 4 laps where he and Keith traded a bit of paint and position a number of times with Keith eventually heading him out into 6th on the line. A trip to the grass on the Cooper Straight as he entered Surtees saw Jamie into a full spin to drop back a further two spots for a race result he would sooner like to forget.

Not to be outdone Dave Chant decided for some indefinable reason that it might be fun to cross the finishing line backwards but changed his mind at the pit entrance and rejoined facing the right way to take the flag.

You know that the racing is good when you have spent all night in the toilet, feel like rubbish and look like a warmed corpse and you still cheer and applaud as the cars cross the line. Donington in a month or so and I can’t wait!
Results Race 2

Overall

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Andy Race
3rd  Martin Crass
4th  Perry Waddams

Class A

1st  Hugh Marshall
2nd  Martin Crass
3rd  Perry Waddams
4th Darren Smith

Fastest Lap: Martin Crass on lap 19 with a time of 53.14 and an average speed of 81.40 mph

Class B

1st  Andy Race
2nd  Keith Vaughan Williams
3rd  Cliff Jobson

Fastest Lap: Cliff Jobson on lap 6 in a time of 53.63 and an average speed of 81.07 mph

Class C

1st  Dave Chant
2nd  Alex Gore

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 15 in a time of 58.50 and an average speed of 74.33.

Snetterton May 29th And 30th 2011.

After a long winter lay off the Dunlop TVR European Challenge returned for 2011 at what turned out to be a mostly sunny Snetterton.

After months of preparation for the drivers and teams the opening rounds could not come soon enough. Over the winter work behind the scenes has seen the DTEC and the TVRCC working extremely well together and very hard to increase the profile of the series. This website was the first sign of a new look series and this was closely followed with a deal with all of the race circuits the challenge will visit this year to provide discounted tickets to TVRCC members. This was further subsidised by the club. For Snetterton this discount totalled over 50% on the advance ticket price from MotorsportVision and significantly more on a gate ticket price.

Cheap entry is not the only attraction though, a new hospitality facility has been brought together to provide a comfortable central meeting area for car club members, drivers and team members and sponsors. The hospitality extends to free refreshments and dedicated parking for members.

It wasn’t all plain sailing though, a race meeting on a Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday had a distinct disadvantage of us all arriving on the Saturday evening to set up while there were Aston Martins all over the place from the AMOC meeting.

It was a logistical nightmare, the final instruction stated that we would have split areas allocated in the paddock and we wouldn’t be given access to the circuit until 21:15.

Now my forum name is Grumps and that isn’t without reason so a few calls to ‘negotiate’ later I had managed to move our entry to 18:00 but couldn’t get any movement on the split allocation. Now Aston Martins may move very quickly but I can assure you that the crews that set up and take down the huge hospitality units that surround the AMOC series may work very hard but quick they aren’t.

This resulted in a half set up hospitality area and a hastily set up bed in the back of my hired Transit Van. Now a word of warning to those that may wish to consider Britain’s favourite van as a cheap equivalent to a mobile home. Firstly an area that appears to be flat probably isn’t and that had your bald stubby reporter sliding out of bed. Secondly, ensure that your airbed will remain pumped up for the duration of the night, mine didn’t but at least when my backside was on the floor of the van I stopped sliding.

Sunday morning broke with a combination of cloud and sunny spells and the usual Snetterton wind. We completed the assembly of the hospitality area and I was just in time to follow the cars through noise testing and down to the assembly area ready for the qualifying session.

Both Hugh Marshall and Jamie Golby were clearly very quick and with Jamie into his second season the gap finished with Hugh on pole and Jamie on the front row with him with just over a second separating them. Neil Sampson in the LS3 powered Tuscan was also on the pace but was a further second and bit behind Jamie. Andy Race in the class B RV8 powered Tuscan was very impressive, with a second row finish and qualified in fourth. The tussle between local man Kevan Gore and last years Championship runner up Keith Vaughan Williams looked set to continue as they shared row three, Keith edging Kevin by 0.05 of a second.

Row four had Turbo Tim Broughton slightly ahead of a very welcome Darren Smith who is promising to run all season with us where in the past he has always been a bit of an Oulton Park specialist.

Row five was shared by Dave Stewart running in what will always be known as his late father Tom’s Griffith and newcomer Jason Clegg. Dave was out under the watchful and clearly nervous eye of his fiancée. A sensible drive saw him ninth on the grid and back in one piece. Jason is building a speed 6 based Tuscan but doesn’t expect it to be finished for a while so in the meantime he has relieved 2009 champion Tim Davis of the unique S3Erbera. Both drivers were impressive in what would be their first exploratory sessions in their cars.

Perry Waddams found himself on row six following problems with the LS powered Tuscan and a lack of power that would affect him all weekend. You don’t become champion without a wise head and this is where Dave Chant comes into his own. With only Ivor Watson to compete with in class C being on row six alongside Perry suited him just fine.

Row seven was shared by Gary Lancashire in the superbly presented white and purple Tuscan and Leigh Jones in the RV8 Tasmin. Leigh was obviously very cautious under braking and was still bedding in a new set up.

Returning T350R driver Cliff Jobson was experiencing power issues of his own with the speed six engine in the T350 and managed only seven laps. Even less fortunate was Ivor Watson who pulled over with a snapped throttle cable after only three laps and these two shared the back row.

The 200 circuit at Snetterton has had a bit of a makeover during the winter and the complex now has three layouts. A new infield circuit has been added that is around a mile long and when used as a standalone it is called the 100. This was in use this weekend for a Sprint meeting and these guys were the cause of the paddock space issues. When the 100 circuit is added to the 200 circuit the new 3 mile layout gets called, unsurprisingly the 300 and is now an FIA approved layout.

The addition has brought about some changes to the old circuit, the second corner, originally called Sear has been remodelled into a hairpin that joins the 100 circuit, the configuration for this weekend retained an element of the new Montreal corner and has reduced it down to a 2nd gear turn from the original 4th  or 5th gear.

Coram has retained its name but what used to be a flat out 4th gear corner into a chicane has been tightened considerably and the drivers are now struggling to find the braking point and the line into this tricky corner and the transition into what was called Russell and has been renamed Murrays.

With a few hours between the qualifying session and race one it was a chance for some of us to eat and others to work on the cars. For Cliff it meant a tour of the car park for a Tuscan road car to borrow some parts to fix the coil pack and HT lead problems. In true TVR spirit a bottle of wine was offered as a reward and a donor did come forward but Jules and the team took one look at the pristine car, decided it would be sacrilege and declined the offer. This meant Cliff would miss race one.

Now I don’t know the truth about double tasking and men but I have to admit it is very hard to keep track of the changes in a race and take pictures, especially when my co-snapper George had a family commitment for the Sunday so I needed some help. One of the volunteers for this year is Charlie Francis and I know she hadn’t figured race reporting to be one of the tasks she had expected to be asked to do but her racing experience was invaluable and I will let her take up the story from her vantage point on the pit wall.

Race One

A good start for Hugh Marshall from pole turned into a two second lead over Jamie Golby by the end of the first lap. Local driver Kevan Gore had an outstanding first lap moving from sixth to third whilst Andy Race held station in fourth. Neil Sampson was the main loser dropping from third to eighth. Keith Vaughan Williams dropped two places to seventh promoting Tim Broughton and Darren Smith to fifth and sixth respectively with the pair less then 0.3 seconds apart as they crossed the line at the start of lap 2.  Unfortunately Tim retired and new Tasmin racer Ivor Williams pitted with an oil leak but quickly rejoined the pack by the end of the lap. Andy Race found a way past Kevan to third on lap 3 only to drop back to fifth on lap 4 with gearbox troubles to eventually finish sixth.  A final lap spectacular spin for Keith Vaughan Williams saw him drop back behind Andy Race and Jason Clegg.

By lap six the two leaders had pulled out a 15 second lead on Kevan and lapped Leigh Jones in his RV8 Tasmin with Neil Sampson pulling into the pits to retire on the same lap.  Kevan and Darren started lap 8 side by side down the straight with Kevan keeping in front into Riches. Jamie and Hugh swapped places on lap 9, Hugh losing six seconds over the lap due to gearbox problems leaving him with only two gears. Hugh retook the lead going into Riches on lap 11 and lap 13 saw the pair again side by side down the start/finish straight this time Jamie came out in front. He held on despite Hugh setting the fastest lap of the race on lap 15 to take the first win of 2011.  A quote from Kevan Gore on his battle with Darren: ‘That was a proper defensive race. I haven’t defended like that for a long time.’

Now I can manage post race interviews and a chat or two added some explanation to the narrative. Keith Vaughan Williams realised that Andy had issues with the car but was difficult to pass, so realising that Jason behind is running in class A, he took a calculated risk into the last corner. The line between out braking yourself and your opponent is very fine and Keith was just the wrong side of the line and ran wide, he nearly caught it but one wheel in the dust that serves for grass caused a full on spin.

Tim Broughton pulled over before completing two laps with electrical issues and for others it was a tale of woe or two about gearboxes. Andy Race finished without 5th, Hugh was down to two and they both used all of their experience to drive round the problems.

Listening in to the drivers conversation post race they were like excited boys, comparing corners and recalling in-race battles but such is the spirit of the series the animated chat was never derogatory nor did it include any accusation.

Results Race 1

Class A

1st Jamie Golby
2nd Hugh Marshall
3rd Darren Smith

Overall places one to four covered by class A cars with Kevan Gore in 4th.

Fastest Lap: Hugh Marshall on the last lap with a time of 1:18.855 and an average speed of 90.58 mph

Class B

1st Andy Race
2nd Keith Vaughan Williams
3rd Dave Stewart

Fastest Lap: Andy Race on lap 14 in a time of 1:23.500 and an average speed of 85.55 mph

Class C

1st Dave Chant

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 11 in a time of 1:31.603 and an average speed of 76.35.

For the mechanics it wasn’t going to be a relaxing afternoon but by around 7.00 most were satisfied that the earlier problems were sorted and the evening chill out could begin. For me it was a case of grabbing a well earned Guinness (other beers are available) and wander down to chez Race where a takeaway of Attleborough’s finest (sic) Pizza and Kebab’s had been ordered and of course a beer or two.

Early Monday morning with a slightly fuzzy head, I was putting out the TVR parking signs and erecting a flag claiming the VIP area to be ours. The dawn for others saw Cliff now looking forward to a race as Matt Smith had done a late run to Sebring and back to bring parts for the ailing T350R and Ivor believed that they had cured the oil leak from the day before.  Tim’s problems were easily diagnosed and easily fixed with a loose connection tightened but the sad news was that Neil Sampson’s LS powered Tuscan was on the trailer ready for the trip home with yet another clutch failure.

Race 2

Again I will let Charlie take up the pit wall narrative.

Sunday’s race finishing positions determined the grid for race 2. Hugh and Andy both replaced their gearboxes over night and Cliff Jobson and his T350 started from the back of the grid after curing the electrical gremlins that made him miss Race 1.

A clean start saw all the pack safely into the first corner with Jamie Golby keeping Hugh behind off the line. By the end of the lap 2 Jamie led Hugh by half a second with a gap to Darren Smith, then Kevan Gore and Jason Clegg battling it out for fourth and fifth. Eight seconds further back a good battle was shaping up for sixth place between Tim Broughton, Dave Stewart and Perry Waddams with Perry just nosing ahead of Dave’s Griffith along the start finish straight. Andy Race slipped down the order to 12th with gearbox / clutch problems and Keith Vaughan Williams also had a poor lap dropping to 10th due to a spin at Riches.

Hugh made it passed Jamie on lap 3 and posted the fastest lap on lap 4. Kevan and Jason were evenly matched and went into the first corner side by side and were gaining on Darren Smith in third over the next few laps until they started lapping the back markers on lap 9 when Jason started slipping back before retiring on lap 10 with gearbox problems. Keith Vaughan Williams had been battling back up through the field and Jason’s retirement promoted him to fifth. Cliff had also been working his way up and was sixth.

Kevan swapped places with Darren on lap 11 only to swap back again on lap 12 before Kevan braked hard into Brundle, felt the rear end go light and ended in the wall. Whilst he climbed from the car the race was red flagged due to the dangerous position of the car. Hugh Marshall was the winner from Jamie Golby second, Darren Smith third. Kevan’s retirement promoted Keith to fourth and Cliff Jobson to an excellent fifth from a last row start. There were two great quotes from the post race. Hugh described his one pole, two fastest laps, a second and a win as a ‘good weekend’ and Darren ‘I saw Kev’s doors in my mirrors and realised something had gone wrong!’ Masters of understatement or what?

The post race interviews yielded a bit more information from the driver’s perspective. Darren span and continued at the Montreal hairpin early on, Leigh Jones had continuing brake issues the tussle between Andy and Keith in class B continued until Andy dropped back through the field with the car stuck in 4th gear. With two 2nd gear corners to contend with progress was always going to be inhibited. Ivor Watson dropped out with a disconnected breather hose and loads of oil to clear up and there was a continuation of the power problems for Perry Waddams.

Dave Stewart kept ‘our lass’ happy with a controlled drive and finished with both him and the car unscathed. Jason was making good progress and was getting quicker by the lap until gearbox issues forced his retirement on lap 9.

Results Race 2

Class A

1st Hugh Marshall
2nd Jamie Golby
3rd Darren Smith

Fastest Lap: Hugh Marshall on lap 4 with a time of 1:20.892 and an average speed of 88.30 mph

Class B

1st Keith Vaughan Williams
2nd Cliff Jobson
3rd Dave Stewart

Fastest Lap: Cliff Jobson on lap 9 in a time of 1:23.478 and an average speed of 85.57 mph

Class C

1st Dave Chant

Fastest Lap: Dave Chant on lap 1 in a time of 1:31.520 and an average speed of 76.13.

With less than two weeks to repair and prepare before rounds 3 and 4 at Brands Hatch the guys will have to work hard to be ready for another weekend. By the time this is printed Brands will have come and gone and the results known via our website but we will be looking forward to Saturday 23rd July were the DTEC series visits Donington. Look out for discounted ticket offers on the forums but be quick, this is already looking to be a popular event.

I would like to finish with a huge thank you to the TVRCC and all the other sponsors and all those involved in the paddock for their support and hard work.

A few people have contacted me asking why on earth I had quit the season midway, sitting third in the table and still in with a good shout at the championship title too!
 
Firstly I have to say that it was a very difficult decision and those close to me know I’d been agonising earlier in the season (pre-Brands Hatch) as to whether or not I should continue racing. 
 
I’d probably had my best racing ever this season, I’d really taken the Tuscan by the scruff of the neck having spent time and money getting the car spot on, nicely set up and it certainly suited me; a big thanks go to Dan Taylor at TaylorTVR for that.  Dan knows the Challenge cars well having worked for several teams in the championship’s halcyon days in the 90’s.
 
Close racing with Andy Race in his Class B Tuscan at both Snetterton & Donington and with Cliff Jobson and the T350R at Brands, as well as some of the Class A cars (Perry Wadhams & Darren Smith particularly) was something I really enjoyed and the adrenaline was certainly pumping, especially at Brands Hatch on both days there.  Saturday was memorable as I was only a tenth of the fastest lap of leader Hugh Marshall’s Class A Tuscan; on my home track too which gave the local support something to cheer about!
 
So why give it at all up? In short – money!  Running a competitive Challenge car without any sponsorship and most importantly keeping it reliable and properly shod is not cheap!  I’d skimped on rubber the previous season and the loss of grip and the deterioration in handling  was very noticeable, especially at Oulton in the last races of the season where all I had to do was finish Race 1 to secure the Class championship and the tyres gave me a couple of moments I didn’t want to repeat!  I was into 5 figure costs racing and improving the car each year and the continuing renovation of our house, something had to give.  Before anyone jumps to conclusions, my partner Tracey has always been very supportive of me racing.  She came to most meets, was a willing helper and known to many in the paddock. However, it just got to the stage where the cost of tearing down walls and fitting numerous RSJs was eating into any spare cash I had.  Tracey had also introduced me to sailing and as anyone who’s got bitten by that bug will know it’s likened to standing in the shower flushing £50 notes down the drain!  I couldn’t do it all and made the tough decision to sell the race car. 
 
The stark realisation hit me that if I binned the car myself or was punted off in a racing incident, then all the  money I’d invested in the car would be literally written off and that was something I just couldn’t afford given everything else that was going on so I had to call a halt. Race insurance wasn’t an option either, as around £500 a meeting in premiums was more than I could bear. 
 
Race Tuscans do not tend to sell quickly, there are cars still on the market that have been there for certainly a couple of years.  However I was lucky that my Happy Endings teammate; Tim Davis was itching to get back into racing having pulled out himself at the end of last year.  He’d had a mare of a season in the hybrid S3erbera which was plagued with reliability issues until they were finally sorted for Oulton.  He’d then sold the car on to Jason at Str8six who was also itching to get out on track whilst his own road Tuscan race conversion was in build.  Tim had done a deal which saw him towing an immaculate black Griffith 500 road car away from Jason’s workshops.  A year later I’ve done a similar deal with Tim who now has the Tuscan Challenge car and I’m driving that immaculate black Griffith but on the road and with a healthier wallet!
 
Will I race again? Almost certainly.  I do intend to try and get out next season, and perhaps will buy a drive or two and hopefully at Brands Hatch!

I thought Oulton would be a fire cracker and it didn’t disapoint. From the front to the back of the grid there was really exciting and close racing. Having an early start meant having a damp track early on in the morning but it was clear that the sun was out to play. With a grid of 20 cars and a drying track the action began with Qually at 9am. Qualification After a late in the day pow wow the Dulford Auto/Furious TVR Momentum race team decided to not put on new slicks as intended and instead we opted for the race rubber we used in Spa last time out. Mainly it was felt that I would get the car working better in the colder temperatures of an early morning session,with the used rubber I knew was in really good condition. I was aware that last year an early start meant the grip would be harder to find so the first 4 or 5 laps were spent steadily getting quicker and quicker and as it turned out the grip levels for me were really good. The car was moving around going through Druids but all in all I was able to push on harder and on lap 8 of my nine I recorded a time of 1:55.532 and good for 6th fastest on row 3 with an average lap speed of 83.88 mph. Race One: As the lights went out I had a really good start,a little to good as I had jump started. Those few seconds when you re dip the clutch to try to stop rolling tell you, you are to early and that puts you on the back foot mentally not just the car. We were adjudged to have gained a place unfairly at the first corner but as we got going into the first lap I lost the place,it was decided that the minimum 10 second penalty would be to harsh and I was told by the clerk of the course to pay more attention to the lights in race two. The leading cars were very quick out of the blocks and I was under a lot of pressure from car 20 behind me that lasted the whole race. I was quick in some parts of the lap with car 20 quicker in other parts and I had a hectic race long battle with Dean Cook in his new car. Some parts of the lap I was several car lengths in front in others Dean was on my bumper trying to force a mistake. I held the racing line most of the laps but was having to be defensive into a couple of corners,oulton park is not a particularly wide circuit so it is quite difficult to find a way round a car that is well positioned into the entry and exit out of corners. I crossed the line taking the chequered flag in 6th on track ,fourth in class “A”. A good result with a fastest lap of 1:52.014 and average speed up to 84.97 mph. Race Two: I was on the second row of the grid on the out side,as the lights went out this time I had a strong start and I was paying attention to the lights,it wouldn’t do to jump start twice in a row which would have been robustly punished. As the pack turned into turn one I was bumped hard by a fast starting car 22 from behind suffering some body damage but exited in third place. The first two cars were hooked up from the off and there was no way I could stay on there pace. A few laps later Dean Cook got by into lodge up the inside under a late and heavy braking move. The pace up front was very quick and I had the attentions of Hui Marshall in car 3 all race long again. We slowly reeled in the lead car running 2nd and third. Two laps to go Hui and I were side by side cresting into cascades on the limit, this was door mirror to door mirror racing. I braked a few seconds later than him and came out of turn 2, three car lengths infront. I held this gap until the last corner on the last lap when I saw Hui move again and was up along side me on the outside going into the braking zone. I braked at the same time as Hui but as I had the inside and racing line into the apex it was not going to be possible for hui to stay along side as he would have run out of track and onto the grass. At the speed you enter Lodge this would be a no no, as he dropped back to have a run to the line he spun out. It is as I say a fast corner,I am glad to say he is ok, if a little shaken and a reminder to me that “ Motor Racing Can Be Dangerous”. I crossed the line in second place in class “A” with my lap time down to 1:50.145 an excellent way to end the season. I must pass on my thanks to the Dulford Automotive team who have taken care of me and my cars all season long doing a first class job. Special thank you’s to Mike my lead mechanic and I look forward to racing with you next year.

Perrys Team Hard at work

The second race would produce some real drama with fights for position all the way through the pack.

With the title already in the bag Hugh was pushing hard, too hard and on the last lap managed to find the barrier, and a dnf.

The final result was Hugh Marshall 2011 TVR champion