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Goodwood Favourites – Formula One

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Today’s post features a few of my favourite Formula One ’74 to present day cars that appeared at Goodwood last week.

McLaren M23, Fittipaldi, Goodwood Festival of Speed

First up Emerson Fittipaldi gives GALPOT a wave coming back down the hill in his 1974 McLaren M23 chassis #5.

Maki Cosworth F101A, Goodwood Festival of Speed

After Honda’s disappearance from the Formula One grid at the end of the 1968 season there was no Japanese presence in Formula One until the 1976 Japanese Grand Prix. However this was not for the want of trying, Kenji Mimura founded the Maki Team in 1974 and their futuristic F101, which bore a passing resemblance to the experimental 1972 Ferrari 312 Snowplough attempted to unsuccessfully to qualify for the 1974 British and German Grand Prix. After Howden Ganley broke his legs at the Nurburgring the team retired to Japan to rework their ideas for 1975.

LEC CRP1, Wright, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Mike Pilbeam’s portfolio of attractive Formula One cars includes the LEC CRP1 seen above which was driven by David Purley in 1977 to a season high 13th place in Belgium shortly before surviving a 178 g deceleration from 108 mph to 0 in 25 inches / 66 cm against the sleepers during practice for the 1977 British GP. This particular car driven by Gary Wright had not been seen in action for 35 years.

Toleman Hart TG184, Davidson, Goodwood Festival of Speed

There were numerous vehicles which Ayrton Senna had driven present at Goodwood, and the Toleman TG184 above driven by Alistair Davidson may be one of them, an acquaintance who has spent twelve months researching the TG184 chassis tells me each of the five TG184’s has a slightly different rivet pattern where the roll bar connects to the top of the monocoque and is currently looking for body off photo’s of the TG184’s to confirm which car is which.

Jordan Ford 191, Sirgue, Goodwood Festival of Speed

In 1991 Eddie Jordan graduated to Formula One with one of the most attractive Formula One cars ever seen, designed by Gary Anderson, a fist full of Pepsico dollars, works supplied Ford Cosworth engines and Andrea de Cesaris as his lead driver. The team finished a highly creditable 5th in the constructors championship and Andrea 9th in the drivers championship. The team will also be remembered for introducing Micheal Schumacher to the top table of the sport in Belgium. Owner Didier Sirgue is seen at the wheel above.

Williams Mercedes FW36, Goodwood Festival Of Speed

Finally with Mercedes Benz motors and Martini money the Williams team is back on the ascendent this year with Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas at the wheel. The FW36 above unfortunately had to remain silent to avoid contravening the no testing agreement currently in operation amongst Formula One teams.

Thanks for joining me on this “Goodwood Favourites” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be celebrating the 120 Anniversary of Motorsport participation with Mercedes Benz at Goodwood. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Rubery Owens Last Stand – BRM P201/01-R

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After a dismal 1973 season in which BRM did not even mange to clock up a non championship victory the team lost their primary sponsor, Philip Morris, to McLaren.

However Louis Stanley who managed the team for longtime BRM backers Rubery Owen managed to put a deal together for Frenchman Jean Pierre Beltoise, Henri Pescarolo and Francois Migault to drive for BRM in 1974 with backing from the French oil company Motul.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

The Motul deal was interesting because all three drivers were also members of Matra’s dominant sports car team which won at Le Mans and the 1974 World Sports Car Championship who were sponsored by rival company Shell.

Not only that but in agreeing to finance three drivers at BRM Motul reneged on a deal that was to have brought Ron Dennis and Niel Trundle into Formula One as team owners of Rondel Racing. The Rondel car was sold on to become first the Token and later the Safir while Dennis and Trundle eventually teamed up to take over McLaren in 1981.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Plans for the 1974 BRM challenger were started in 1974 when Bourne resident Mike Pilbeam was entrusted with the design of the new car which shows a combination of influences including the triangulated cross section of the monocoque as first seen in Gordon Murray’s 1973 Brabham BT42, side radiators and all round inboard brakes as first seen on the 1970 Lotus 72 and an airbox that might not have looked out of place on the 1973 Championship winning Tyrrell 006.

While in no obvious way original the striking P201 did differ from all of those that influenced it’s design in one important aspect namely in the engine bay where a revamped BRM V12 with new narrow angle 48 valve heads was to be found said to capable of 460hp at 11,000rpm in place of the Cosworth DFV which powered the rest of the field apart from Ferrari.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Jean Pierre Beltoise was the first to be allowed to dump his aging P160 to give the P201 it’s debut in the 1974 South African Grand Prix where he qualified a respectable 11th and lasted the distance in a race noted for a high rate of attrition to finish a credible 2nd 33 seconds down on Carlos Reutemann who won the first race of his career aboard the Brabham BT44.

BRM went on to score just two more points in it’s long and turbulent history at the Belgian Grand Prix where Beltoise came home 5th. The rest of the year was a disaster for BRM with Pescarolo scoring a best tenth place finish at the German Grand Prix in his 201 which did not appear until Swedish Grand Prix.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Francois Migault only had two starts in the P201 in Holland and Italy retiring from both races. The Italian Grand Prix the only one in which 3 P201’s started marked a particularly low point for the team as all three cars were out by the end of the fourth lap.

The Italian Grand Prix marked the last appearance for both Henri Pescarolo and Francois Migault for BRM at the season ending Canadian and US Grand Prix they were replaced by Chris Amon who’s own 1974 programme had come to a halt with a failure to qualify in Italy.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

The Canadian Grand Prix neither car covered sufficient distance to be classified with Amon starting from the back of the grid lasting ten laps longer the Beltoise who started 17th and retired on lap 60.

At the US Grand Prix Beltoise disgraced himself in qualifying by trying to go to quickly too soon damaging his car and injuring himself on what proved to be his final run in a World Championship Grand Prix while Chris qualified 12th and finished 9th two laps down on Carlos Reutemann’s winning Brabham BT44.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

At the end of 1974 Rubery Owen pulled the plug on BRM, after initial BRM backer Alfred Owen had died earlier in the year. This should have meant the end of BRM but some how Louis Stanley managed to save the team going into the 1975 season.

Mike Wilds with an independent backer sponsoring him got the single Stanely BRM entry for the two early season South American races but retired his P201 from both.

1974 European Formula 5000 champion Bob Evans was then given the drive achieving a best 6th place finish in the non Championship Race of Champions before the Stanley BRM’s 1975 season fizzled out prematurely at the Italian Grand Prix.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Not knowing how to disappear gracefully the Stanely BRM P201 appeared at the 1976 Brazilian Grand Prix with 1973 European Formula 5000 champion Ian Ashley at the wheel after qualifying 21st Ashley retired with oil pump failure after 2 laps. Allegedly this entry was made simply to continue BRM’s record of entry each year since 1950.

For 1977 the Stanely BRM fiasco continued with a new model the P207 which was packed into a crate to big to be air freighted to the Argentinian Grand Prix, after retiring from the Brazilian Grand Prix in the new P207 Larry Perkins was given a run a P201 for the 1977 South African Grand Prix qualifying 22nd Larry brought the P201 in 15th on what would be the models final World Championship Grand Prix appearance.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Stanley BRM soldiered on for the remainder for the remainder of the season until disappearing for good from the World Championship circuit at the Italian Grand Prix.

Most of Stanley BRM were acquired by cereal millionaire John Jordan in 1978, and a new car the Jordan BRM P230 was built for British Championship events with the P207 also appearing in the same series.

BRM P201, BRM Day, Bourne

Today’s featured car BRM P201/1 seen at BRM Day in Bourne a couple of years ago is owned by Bruce McCaw, the driver was listed as TBA and his identity has yet to be established though we can say it is definitely not Bruce.

Thanks for joining me on this “Rubery Owens Last Stand” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at another Maserati 250F. Don’t forget to come back now !

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5th Tony Marsh Memorial Weekend – Gurston Down

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On Sunday I made the first of what I hope will be many visits to Gurston Down for the 5th Tony Marsh Memorial Weekend hillclimb. Gurston Down just west of Salisbury is set on a working farm and was devised by six time British Hillclimb champion Tony Marsh in 1965.

Gurston Down, Wiltshire

The course is just over a half a mile long and rises a total 140 feet, it is also the only Hillclimb in the UK that starts on a downward slope. As I found out on Sunday the facilities and viewing areas are excellent and it is no surprise to hear that Gurston Down has won the Norrie Galbraith Memorial Trophy for best organised British Hillclimb Championship event a record eight times.

Mortimer, Porsche 911, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

After a cup of tea and obligatory bacon and egg roll in the excellent restaurant on arrival I made my way up to the Ashes Bend towards the top of the hill during the opening practice runs arriving in time to observe the second practice runs. Above Bob Mortimer lifts an inside front wheel in his Porsche 911 at the apex of Ashes.

Gates, Force LM, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

On his second practice run Johnathon Gates was forced into a bit of lawn mowing at Ashes bend as the back of his car stepped out unexpectedly under braking. No damage was done and he ended the day with 8th fastest time.

Rudge, Westfield SEi, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Mike Rudge is seen correcting oversteer / push coming out of Ashes in his Westfield SEi, he easily won his class by seven seconds more surprisingly to me he finished with 9th fastest time of the day beating a number of single seat open wheel cars in the process.

Stapely-Bealing, Formula 1300, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

During her second practice run Hannah Stapely-Bealing came by showing signs of contact with the Wiltshire scenery however the car was repaired and put in two timed runs, however the motor of her Formula 1300 Clubmans car was no longer running cleanly and she was around a second off her first practice run.

Bloody Mary, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

National Motor Museum Beaulieu kindly sent along former Autosport Technical Editor John Bolsters “Bloody Mary” Special for a welcome demonstration. The special started as a project for two teenagers to scare the cow’s in a nearby field and became a successful if by all accounts rather terrifying Brough Superior powered hill climb winner.

Penfound, Lester MG, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

I was introduced to another new, to me, manufacturer at Gurston namely Lester who built MG powered cars in the 1950’s. Stewart Penfound navigates the steep and tight Karousel in his example above.

Pamplin, MG XPAG Special, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Another interesting MG was Chris Pamplin’s MG XPAG Special as listed in the programme and 1935 MG Magnette according to the registration plate.

Spicer, Ferrari 328 GTB, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Standing out from an otherwise mostly red crowd of Ferrari’s was Mike Spicers Modena Yellow 328 GTB seen approaching Deer Leap which recorded 2nd fastest Ferrari time of the day.

Fanner, Subaru Impreza, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Lewis Fanner will have given his wife with whom he shares their Subaru Impreza a scare as he spun the car going into Karousel. Fortunately he did not hit anything and returned to the paddock for his one remaining run.

Hadfield, Lotus 22, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Simon Hadfield and Geoff Hunt shared this Lotus 22, originally designed for Formula Junior competition, and finished the faster of the two albiet second in class to the more modern Ensign LNF3 driven by Fyrth Crosse.

Beale, Ginetta G33, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Over the past couple of months the lines of Graham Beales class winning Ginetta G33 have really grown on me, apparently the idea for the Rover V8 powered car was conceived on a table cloth in a pizzeria by Mark Warklett and Noel Palmer.

Street, Ford Escort XR31, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Darren Street was another who found the entry to Karousel a bit tricky in his Ford Escort XR3i, here he is seen on his way to an appointment with the hay bales. Fortunately he suffered no injuries and he eventually drove to the top of the hill under his own steam.

Lewis, St Bruno Roughcutter, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Like the Bloody Mary Special Adrian Lewis’s St Bruno Roughcutter Clubman’s car has an Autosport connection it being the creation of Barry Foley, best known as Autosports ‘Catchpole’ cartoonist. Barry built the car in the early 1970’s crediting help from a variety of sources including design input from Maurice Phillipe himself a part time Clubmans racer when not busy designing Formula One cars.

Dent, Hornet F3, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

On both of his timed runs Alistair Dent lost time when his tail got onto the grass on the exit of Karousel, which had the benefit of at least entertaining those of us watching, above Alistair is seen on his first run in the Hornet JAP powered 500 F3 car.

Chard, Mazda MX5, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

By for the most serious incident of the day was when Karl Chard left the road at Karousel and ended up going straight into the hay bales. Fortunately again Karl was unhurt which is more than can be said for the Mazda MX 5 which he shares with his brother Ian. At least all the wheels were still attached.

Flagg, Subaru Impreza STi, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

David Flagg lost 3/10ths of a second on his second timed run this display of wheel spin from his Subaru on the run to Deer Leap probably did not help his cause.

Hollier, Pilbeam MP62, Gurston Down, Wiltshire

Edward Hollier set best time of the day (BTD) running the course in 29.19 seconds in his Pilbeam MP62, both of his runs were quicker than the next fastest competitor Peter Smith who was driving a Force in the same class as Edward. Coincidentally Ed won last time that I saw him running at Wiscombe Park last month.

Another great day out at yet another great venue, if you have never been I doubt you will be disappointed.

Thanks for joining me on this “5th Tony Marsh Memorial Weekend” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

PS Shameless plug my British Grand Preview can be found at Motorsports Unplugged on this link.

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WMC Championship Hillclimb – Wiscombe Park

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Shortly after dawn on Saturday morning I found myself cruising across the Somerset levels headed for Wiscombe Park in deepest Devon where the Woolbridge Motor Club was running a fully subscribed hillclimb where I found myself being assigned to the Esses 2 marshals post with two seasoned marshals from Melksham.

Wiscombe Park

The 1000 yard course at Wiscombe Park was first used in 1958 and the course record is currently held by Aylesbury’s Trevor Willis who recorded a time of 33.92 seconds in his OMS 25 Powertech in July last year.

Howells, Hillman Super Imp, WMC. Wiscombe Park

The marshals post Esses 2 is situated on the outside of a sweeping corner and afforded a great view of the action as cars clipped a huge tree at the apex of the corner. All of today’s photo’s were taken as the vehicles returned from the top of the hill to the paddock. Jenny Howells shared this 1968 Hillman Super Imp with her husband Alex.

Hodson, Smart Roadster, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Running in the same Road going cars up to 1400 cc class and a little faster was Peter Hodson in his Smart Roadster Turbo.

Wright, Audi A3 1.8T quattro, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Fastest in the over 1800 cc Road going class was the Audi A3 Turbo quattro of Anthony Wright who made a fastest run of 45.15 seconds around half a second faster than his nearest challenger.

Coote, Ginetta G4, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Last time I saw Roger Coote’s Ginetta G4 in action was at the Great Western Sprint when it was freezing, what a difference a couple of weeks makes. On this occasion Roger finished third in the Specialist Production B2 class.

Conibear, Lotus 23B, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Cliff Conibear proved to be a model of consistency recording identical times of 45.96 seconds on both of his runs in his Lotus 23B, good enough for 5th in the Road going B3 class.

Hunt, BMW 2002 Touring, WMC. Wiscombe Park

James Hunt’s BMW 2002 Touring shows signs of savaging the tree on the entry to The Gate on his second practice run, he made amends by finishing both of his timed runs recording fourth fastest time in the modified production C3 class.

Biggs, Kayne Special III, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Another car that seems pop up frequently in my travels is John Biggs Kayne Special III which looked far happier at Wiscombe Park than it did at the Great Western Sprint when I saw it last. John who finished 3rd in the Sports Libre D2 class tells me he has tested the Rover V8 powered Kayne Special III at over 140 mph and looks forward to giving it a run in a race at Silverstone in the near future.

Fraser, Metro 6R4 DAM 4100, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Competing in the same class as the Kayne Special as the Kayne Special were Andy Fraser and Tim Painter who shared this MG Metro 6R4 DAM 4100 which features a space frame chassis built by Dave Appleby Motorsport, the running gear from the steel shelled MG Metro 6R4 and a post 1995 Rover Metro style body. Andy seen at the wheel here proved faster than Tim and won the D2 class.

Moore, Ford Cortina GT, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Craig Moore is on a mission to threepeat his Bridge Tyres & Wheels Wiscombe Park Hill Climb Championship wins in 2011 and 2012 with his 4 door Ford Cortina 1600 GT, being the first person to win back to back championships he is now looking to become the first man to win three championships in a row, he started his campaign with a second in the Rally Cars class D4 on Saturday.

Wadsworth, Lancia 037 Stradale, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Like the MG Metro 6R4 the Lancia 037 Stradale was built for Group B rallying it would appear the Robert Wadsworth example is one of the 200 037 road cars built to meet the mandatory homologation requirements. Robert finished third in the Rally Car D4 class.

Hick, SEAT Altera, Freetrack TDI 4WD, WMC, Wiscombe Park

Gordon Hicks #19 was listed as a Megapin HC3 open wheeler but a check of the licence plate reveals that he was actually driving a SEAT Altera Freetrack TDI 4WD in the Road Going A3 class in which he finished with the ninth fastest time.

Broome, Cooper T65, WMC. Wiscombe Park

The Cooper T65 was designed to compete in the 1963 Formula Junior series against the Lotus 27. Reg Broome drove his car running with a 1598 cc / 96.7 cui motor recorded 7th fastest time in the E2 Racing cars class.

Crosse, Ensign LNF3, WMC. Wiscombe Park

Running a similar motor to the Coopper T65 Bristol’s Fyrth Crosse drove his early 1970’s Ensign LNF3 Formula 3 car to a fifth fastest time in the E2 class.

Steele, Martlet AS1, WMC, Wiscombe Park

Maidenhead’s Adam Steele had a mishap at the entry to The Gate on his first timed run, despite spinning he avoided hitting anything and on his second timed run he recorded second fastest time of the day overall with his 1 litre / 61 cui Martlet AS1 running in the E1 racing car class.

Hollier, Pilbeam MP62, WMC, Wiscombe Park

Fastest time of the day was 36.57 seconds recorded by Ed Hollier driving his Pilbeam MP62 in the E2 class.

After a fantastic days action it was time to drive home and prepare for a spot of competition myself the following day, full report next Wednesday.

Thanks for joining me on this “WMC Championship Hillclimb” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Sunday Morning Lotus Hunting – Prescott

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Apologies to readers of the regular Tuesday MG blogs which will return next week. On Sunday I attended the Speed Hill Climb at Prescott in search of a couple of Lotus models for Saturdays Lotus blogs.

GSM Delta Ford, Prescott

On arrival in the paddock I found much more than I bargained for, this GSM Delta Ford will feature in a forthcoming blog thanks to the owner Clive Scott who told me all about the car and his families involvement with it’s manufacture. Clive finished the day forth in a class of 15.

Ginetta G12 Zetec, Prescott

For a moment I thought this Ginetta G12 might be yet another car once owned by David Render, but Nick Stephens told me that this was not the case with his Ford Zetec powered example.

Maguire Mini Cooper S, Prescott

Derek Kessell has owned this Maguire Mini Cooper S for 24 years, it has never been raced and only ever used on hillclimbs. It was originally built with a Mini Clubman estate / station wagon body.

Force Empire DS600 Suzuki, Prescott

The tyres on Bill Chaplin’s Force Empire DS600 Suzuki show how tricky the conditions at Prescott were on Sunday Morning, full wets on the front and intermediates on the back, notice also a wild array of tweaked aerodynamic appendages that would not look out of place on a Formula One Car which helped Bill claim third fastest time in a class of 12.

OMS Hornet Suzuki, Prescott

Tina Hawkes driving her OMS Hornet Suzuki turned around her third fastest timed run in the lottery morning conditions, seen here, to a fastest time in class in the dry afternoon run.

Kayne Special III, Prescott

Last week I received an e-mail from John Biggs owner of the Kayne Special III, above, asking if I could put him in touch with Colin Cooper who built the car. When I met John on Sunday he told me that Colin had come to visit Prescott on Saturday and that they had a long chat about the car.

Pardon Hill House, Prescott

I know this is not a property blog, BUT, Pardon Hill House just has to be one of the most desirable properties on the planet for any motorsport enthusiast. You can see the Prescott Hill Climb course right in front of you from the benches right outside the back gate. Here’s hoping my lottery numbers come up before it is too late !

Chevron B47, Prescott

In the wake of the successful Lotus 79 in 1978 almost all open wheel cars the following season were built to take advantage of ground effects with varying degrees of success. Future Ferrari and Mclaren F1 driver Stephan Johansson was one of several drivers who started the 1979 with a Chevron B47, quite possibly the one in the photo above, but switched before long to the more successful March chassis on his way to claiming 4th spot in the 1979 British Formula 3 championship. Chris Bentley Jones who drove the car on Sunday claimed third fastest time in class.

Pilbeam MP97 Judd, Prescott

Sandra Tomlin, above, managed to avoid the wooden spoon in class and pip her son Oliver with whom she shares the wheel of the Pilbeam MP97 Judd.

Lotus 51A Ford, Prescott

I received a tip off last week that a couple of Lotus 51’s would be at Prescott like the won driven by Briony Serrell above, Brioney finished with 5th best time in a class of 13.

Lotus 51A, Prescott

Martin Tippet’s Lotus 51 was suffering from electrical issues and he could only manage 8th best time in class.

Lotus 61 Ford, Prescott

My thanks to Les Buck who is seen driving his Lotus 61 above, finished forth in class, for tipping me off last week at Brooklands that this event was taking place.

OMS CF06 Powertec SBD, Prescott

The two rounds of the Midland Hillclimb Championship main event were convincingly dominated by championship leader Trevor Wills driving the #3 OMS CFO6 Powertec SBD seen above.

Jaguar XK140, Prescott

Finally just as I was leaving a couple of dozen Jaguar XK’s appeared, including this 1956 XK 140, fitted with easy to clean steel wheels, which reminded me that GALPOT regular Geoffrey Horton would soon be getting up to compete in a Concours event in California with his own example of the model.

Further information on the timing results for this event can be found on Roger Warren’s excellent Resultsman website.

Thanks for joining me on this “Sunday Morning Lotus Hunting” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at an extraordinary FIAT 600. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Wessex Sprint – Castle Combe

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This week I will be catching up with a couple of days activity at Castle Combe, a morning at Mallory Park and a visit to the Bugatti Trust at Prescott.

A couple of weeks ago I took some advice from our Prime Minister, David Cameron, and had great fun doing my bit for the motor racing community by marshaling at the Wessex Sprint, organised by the Bristol Pegasus Motor Club, of which I am a new member and the MG Car Club (SW).

A sprint is an event in which competitors race against the clock on this occasion around a single lap of the Castle Combe Circuit. Here are a few snaps taken during the lunch break and suspension of the competition.

MG J2, Castle Combe

Jeremy Hawk told me his MG J2 above has been in his family since 1953 when it was acquired for the princely sum of £85 some years later it made STD at a sprint at Castle Combe just like it did last week.

Peugeot 309 GTi,

This #73 Peugeot 309 GTi was shared by Tom Siebert and Henry Siebert Saunders was completely stripped out and running with plastic side window’s to reduce weight.

Audi Quattro

Car of the day IMHO, if only because of the sound of it’s 5 cylinder turbocharged motor, was the #75 Audi Quattro shared by Tim Clark and Andy Tanner, wondering if anyone knows if this a genuine works car ? It certainly looked and sounded the part. Andy just beat Tim to win the Modified Limited Production Class.

MGB Kayne Special, Castle Combe

The Rover V8 powered MGB Kayne Special shared by John and Jonathan Biggs ran in the Sports Libre Class.

Terrapin Kawasaki, Castle Combe

Tim Moreton and Dean Robertson shared the ‘Dick’ Terrapin a Kawasaki powered vehicle with a Wharholian paint job.

Royale Vauxhall RP 30

I do not remember the last time I saw a Royale RP 30 in action, but the first time was around 31 short years ago ! This example driven by Bob and Anne Adams is powered by a Vauxhall 16v motor in place of the Ford Pinto with which it was originally supplied to race in Formula Ford 2000 events. Bob took the Racing Cars over 1600 cc class honours.

Pilbeam Vauxhall MP62

Proudly displaying it’s V8 kills from a couple of years ago was the similarly Vauxhall, 4 cylinder, powered but methanol fuelled Pilbeam MP62 chassis #14, built in the late 1980’s, of Kevin Lealan who won the Fastest Time of the Day award.

Start line marshalls

Running cars one at a time in batches of four meant my fellow start line marshals and I only got a break from the action for lunch, very nice sweet and sour chicken with rice & chips, then again later when the weather turned sunny, the sunlight interfered with the timing beam until the beam receiver was fitted with a shroud and on a couple of occasions when the Castle Combe farmer wanted to cross the track in order to bring in his hay bales.

I would recommend volunteering to be marshal to anyone who is interested in getting involved in motor sport, you will probably have a fun day and get to make a few good friends in the local motor sport community.

Thanks for joining me on this Wessex Sprint edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me again tomorrow for a look at this weekends racing at Castle Combe. Don’t forget to come back now !

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