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Sprint and Hill Climb Challenge |
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Race Reports: HealeySport Sprint and Hill Climb Challenge 2010 - Sponsored by Denis Welch Motorsport and The Frogeye Spares Company
Round 7 - Harewood - 8 August 2010
(words by LC Branch & pics by Jackie Baker) With sixteen runners and riders plus two guest drivers in our class we had a great line up of eight Sprites and ten Big Healeys. In addition to the newbie's to Harewood which included Colin Gale, Lindsay Summers, Mike Cockayne and Simon Leeming; Jim Bayliss and Adie Ball were both out in Jim's 3000. Now Jim told us he had not been out with the Healey gang for over three years - seemed longer - and assured us he had only brushed the dust off his 3000, had Welch Snr cast an eye over the car and had a quick practice session at Silverstone so he was not too ring rusty. Well, read on to find out how they did. Practice got underway on time and the Healey class was the first up the hill. As it's always a busy time between sign-on and first practice, there was no time to fit the in-car camera to Richard Mason's car before the first run. Great shame as we would have caught on camera Richard doing a full 360 over the finish line. Not to be out done in the spinning stakes, Tom Walker added to the list with a 720 on the entry to the last bend, the tale end of which was caught by our photographer (see picture right). Talk in the
paddock after the first run usually centred on who's turn it was to buy the
bacon sandwiches. Not this time, as most seemed to be talking on the
unlikely subject of 'diffs'. It seems that in the past it was only the
Sprite boys who played around with different diff combinations, largely to
avoid using first gear at any particularly
So after a quick lunch break the hill climbing got underway in earnest. In the Sprite class, with the absence of the dynamic duo driving the infamous Yellow Frogeye, Murray Wakeham (pictured left climbing the hill) was leading the way with an opening shot of 69.20, closely followed by a resurgent Rafe Haywood who knocked in a 69.90. Paul Baker was languishing in third place with a 70.96, mumbling about some problem to do with his gearbox. Fourth was Colin Gale who posted a very respectable 71.83 in his pea-green Fridget, given it was his first time at Harewood. Fifth was John Tewson with a 72.97 - a very good time for his one litre Frog. Clare Tewson was in sixth place in a time of 77.18 and holding off a challenge from Richard Pugh in his one litre Sebring with a time of 78.69 and Simon Leeming in his 1098 Sprite with an 84.74. In the Big Healey class, on the first timed run, Tom Walker got very close to his hill record of 68.13 with a very quick 68.38. Richard Mason was in second place with a 70.25 which this time was caught on the in-car video camera. Click here to see Richard climb Harewood in his 3000. See if you can spot at which bend tyre smoke enters the car and how quickly he gets the car in first gear at Orchard - impressive stuff!! In third place was Pat Cooper with a 70.64. Fourth was new boy Mike Cockayne with a very creditable 73.17. Fifth, sixth and seventh was a close affair, with Andrew Taylor in his 100M in a time of 73.65 holding off Huw Edwards who was right behind him in a time of 73.85, who had a charging Richard Summers on his tale with a 74.21. New girl, Lindsay Summers, was getting the hang of the hill in her 100M and recorded a time of 82.47. Now our two
guest drivers, Jim and Adie were showing that not only had they not
forgotten how to drive quickly but also the work done at the Welch emporium
had given the old girl a new lease of life. Although Jim was going
first and acting as 'tyre warmer' for Adie, it was Jim who was knocking On the to second and final run (only the first two runs count for the championship) in the Sprite class and Murray Wakeham took first place with a much quicker 68.82. Rafe Haywood held second spot with a 69.75 from Paul Baker who still had gear selection problems so could also only marginally improve on his first run with a 70.62 to take third. Colin Gale, John Tewson, Clare Tewson and Richard Pugh held on to fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh places respectively as they could not improve on their first run times. The final place being taken by an ever improving Simon Leeming with an 84.44. In the Big Healey class, Tom Walker put in an even quicker time of 68.22 which was just 0.09secs off his previous record to take the class win. Richard Mason (pictured right cocking a front wheel at Farmhouse bend) could not improve on his first run time but held on the second slot as Pat Cooper also had a slower run due to gear selection problems (must be catching!!). However, Mike Cockayne took over half a second off his previous best to record a 72.65 and hold fourth place. Andrew Taylor recorded exactly the same time (73.65) on his second run as his first, which he thought must be a mistake with the timing gear but was confirmed as ok by the officials. As Huw Edwards went faster with a 73.50 he took fifth place from Andrew who finished sixth. Richard Summers went slower and came in complaining of, yes you've guessed it - gear selection problems (note to broker - buy Hardy Engineering shares!!). Lindsay Summers clearly knows how to drive her car properly and knocked over half a second off her previous best to finish with an 81.78. Our two guest drivers also reduced their times to 69.92 and 70.21for Jim and Adie respectively. If they had both been in the championship they would have ended up in second and third place respectively - not bad eh!! Hope you two come out to play as often as family and other commitments allow in the future. As this was a scratch event, the top three in each class were: Sprites:
1st Murray Wakeham, 2nd Rafe Haywood and 3rd Paul Baker Big Healeys: 1st Tom Walker, 2nd Richard Mason and 3rd Pat Cooper. A great day's racing was had in perfect hill climbing conditions i.e. dry, sunny and not too hot. Fantastic. Next event is the Wiscombe/Gurston Down weekend on 11th & 12th September where both events will be run on the basis of target times. Picture Competition No 3 So after much demand you have another opportunity to guess who is wearing the socks pictured right. Has this driver given us a clue this time with socks that match the colour of his car? Answers on a postcard. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys Want to get involved in Sprinting and Hill Climbing? If you are interested and want to find out more, click on the link to check out the 'Beginners Guide to Sprinting and Hill Climbing' or email Allan Cameron on allanclancam@hotmail.com Don't forget, If you own a Healey, like what you see on these web pages and would like to find out more about this sport, email Allan Cameron on the contact details shown at the bottom of the page or come along to the next event and have a chat with any of the drivers. New drivers are always welcome.
Round 6 - Llandow - 17 July 2010 (words & pics by Colin Gale) POSTCARD from LLANDOW To.....Austin
Healey Sprinters, From " Huw
and Colin " After a"
Welsh breakfast " while the big Healey cooled down, Huw (yes, he's the one
pictured left in the boot of his 3000!) then set about the fan belt during
the 2nd practice, which had just come loose and had not broken. With
the fan belt sorted, car re-fuelled and Huw "full of beans", he was raring
to go. In the meantime, Colin blasted round the track in a pb busting
time of 94.91sec (must have been the extra bacon!!). So after a
short coffee break we were offered a third run at around 4pm. We were
both up for the challenge with the chance to get in some extra practice and
recorded 98.24 sec- 93.60 sec respectively. Well, we've had the practice, got the tee-shirt (and overalls), won the trophies we're ready for the challenge next year! So, bring it on boys and girls! From Huw and Colin (aka the Dynamic Duo!!) To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys Goodwood "the record breaking Cameron's - or not" - 17 July 2010 (words by LC Branch - pics by Matthew Cripps) Well this was a situation that we all wanted to avoid, namely, to split the Healey drivers between two venues on the same day. If you remember at the drivers meeting last year, the Aston Martin Owners Club (AMOC) were not in a position to say if they were going to be running a sprint as they usually do at Goodwood, so we agreed to go for the sprint at Llandow instead. Once we had published our championship, AMOC announced they were running the event which has always been popular with a good chunk of the drivers. So, that's why 7drivers went to Goodwood and 2 to Llandow (as you may have read their report above). The Goodwood trip being a non-championship round and being done just for the fun of tackling this superb old course. After last year's washout, Saturday was a lovely dry and sunny day, perfect weather to do battle with the fast sweeping bends of Goodwood. After scrutineering, the next challenge is the Goodwood noise test which must rate as the stiffest of all the events we do. Anyway, all cars made it past, even Peter Walton's who was a tad surprised the get a 104db rating with a brand spanking new exhaust only fitted the day before!! Next up was the convoy which was actually run at a reasonably quick pace for once and not the usual crawl in second gear. On to the practice run and with no mishaps all drivers managed to get round with minimal problems. So once practice was out of the way the first timed run was started before lunch and in the big Healey class Allan Cameron was showing the others the way round with a fantastic 109.99 which if this was a championship round would be a new Healey 100 record as he clipped over six seconds off his previous record. If you want to see the in-car video of his run click here. Pete Walton was next quickest with a 111.73, followed by Simon Price in 116.64, then Nick John in 119.86 and finally Lyn Wheadon in 133.13. In the Sprite class, Neil Cameron was showing his intent with a very quick 108.98 with Paul Baker not far behind in a 110.73. Simon Price had a puncture (pictured left) and was about to put on his spare when the assembled drivers as one said "you cannot put on one 'snow' tyre with 3 Avon's". Fortunately, Nick John had a brand new Avon which he somewhat reluctantly donated to the cause - probably thinking that a few runs around Goodwood on the left rear of Simon's car and it would be trashed. But no, Simon did his best and it was just nicely scrubbed in! Lunch was had in the Aero Club and we were joined by Simon's wife Lorraine and son George who had recently arrived in Mrs P's new frogeye sprite - we'll soon have her out hill climbing in that!! After lunch a further timed run was had where most either shaved off a whisker or added a sec or two. However, it was clear that Neil Cameron had been learning fast whilst away with the circuit racers because on his second run he knocked nearly two secs off his time to record a 106.56, but on out third and final run he banged in a scintillating lap in 105.16 which would have beaten Aidie Ball's 2005 record of 105.71. Superb!! So with glassware collected the assembled (see the all pictured right - and no that's not Biggles it's Lyn Wheadon) went home after an excellent day at Goodwood. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys
Round 5 - Loton Park - 11 July 2010 (words by LC Branch - pics by Jackie Baker) Most of team Healey arrived on the Saturday evening for what is quickly becoming a tradition i.e. a Summers organised BBQ in the paddock with food and beverages from a variety of sources, only briefly interrupted by a passing downpour. The next day the sun came out and stayed out for a beautiful day's hill climbing in this picturesque part of Shropshire. Eight big Healeys and six Sprites arrived just two short of the number expected. Huw Edwards apparently had a seized kingpin and Clare Tewson had back, bite and sting problems to deal with - hope they both get better soon! Three drivers were new to the track namely, Colin Gale, Claire Giles and I think Trish C-P (pictured right) Before practice got underway, Colin Gale's body repair experience was required (I thought he was a sparks!!) to bend back into shape the bonnet from a certain red 100/6 belonging to a well known inhabitant of Stoke Bruerne. Allegedly the said gent ran over his own bonnet which he had placed in front of his own car! No harm done, except the bonnet has a few extra curves. Practice was largely uneventful with everyone trying to get to grips with this challenging hill climb. Colin Gale was struggling with a mis-fire but more of that later. On to the timed runs and in the Sprite class, Colin Gale was first up in his recalcitrant Sprite with a 72.78, followed by Richard Pugh in his 998 Sebring in 77.51. Next up was Murray Wakeham who had shown good pace in practice but come the timed runs over cooked it into Hall the first left hand bend where he went off at some speed and punted the tyre wall backwards a few feet. The red flags went out and rescue vehicles called to the scene. The drivers back on the start line were a bit concerned but luck was on Murray's side as he drove his Sprite back down the hill to find that he was fine and the only damage done was a split front end. Very lucky indeed. Next Sprite up was John Tewson, also in a 998 powered car as he managed a very quick 71.43. Paul Baker was next in his Sebring GT bodied Sprite with a 65.10 a pb for him (click here to see in-car video - and yes, he has now fixed the rattling exhaust!), who was followed very closely by Rafe Haywood in 65.15 (pictured left). So Rafe was lying in second place just 5 hundredths behind Paul Baker with John Tewson in third. In the Big Healey class, Trish C-P was improving all the time in her very smart, rally spec'd 3000 with a 77.75. Next was Claire Giles in her road going 3000 in an 81.44, followed by Richard Summers in his 100M in a not so quick time for him of (he was quicker in practice) 70.70. Mike Cockayne was next in the ex-Frank Forbes rally spec 3000 - Mike knows the hill well but not in this car, however, he showed he can hustle the big car up the hill in a very quick time of 66.01. Pat Cooper was next in his 3000 in a slower time of 66.54. Tom Walker (pictured below right) took over two seconds off his best practice time to post a new hill record in the 3000 class with a stunning 62.37. Richard Mason was struggling to get near his previous best times with a 65.44. Lastly, Lindsay Summers (aka Mrs S, the cars owner, wife of Richard, the lady in green/white etc etc) was duel driving her 100M and getting faster all the time, logged a time of 77.04. So the top three going into the last run was Tom Walker, followed by Richard Mason and Mike Cockayne. So in the break between the runs, three things happened that changed the course of the afternoon. As you know, during the day Colin Gale had a mis-fire and had changed every electrical object on the car but still could not find the fault, but fortune was on his side when one of the drivers remembered that Aldon Ignitors can suffer from earth problems, so a quick wipe with a clean cloth and the mis-fire was gone - fantastic. Murray Wakeham and his car were given the all clear to drive on the last run by the Clerk of the Course and lastly a conversation was overheard between Pat Cooper and our club photographer which went something like this "what's up Pat" ..... "my times are *%/$* terrible" .... "well it looks to me like you're not going round the bends fast enough" ... "you could be right" he said with a knowing wink and a tap of the nose!! Enough of that, now on to the last runs. In the Sprite class, Colin Gale was first up in a sweet sounding Sprite and he took over 4 secs off his previous best to log a very good time for a newcomer to Loton of 68.56. Richard Pugh knocked another half sec off to record a 76.93. Murray Wakeham knew he had to go fast but as he had not registered a time yet had to stay on the track. He posted a 65.09. Next up John Tewson, who put in his best time yet of 70.60 (what would he do with a 1380 engine??). Paul Baker knew he had to pull out all the stops to defend his lead but overdid it on the exit of Hall bend and had to put two wheels on the grass - so only managed a slower time of 65.13. Last up was Rafe Haywood who blasted up the course in a superb 64.28 to take the class win, with Murray in 2nd place with his last run time of 65.09 and Paul Baker in third one one hundredth behind with 65.10 - close or what! So on to the big Healey class, Trish C-P knocked over 2 secs off to get a 75.20, Claire Giles did the same to log a 79.58, so did Richard Summers to get close to the 100 record with a 68.74. Mike Cockayne could not beat his first run time but Pat Cooper had certainly taken our photographer's advice and knocked over 2 secs off his previous best to register a very quick 64.28 (although there was nearly an official dispute as some drivers felt he was getting some additional down-force from the revised bonnet shape!!). Tom Walker went a tad slower than his first run time with a 62.51. Richard Mason put in his fastest time of the day with a 65.22, as did Lindsay Summers with her fastest time of 75.91. So the top three were Tom Walker, Pat Cooper and Richard Mason. A great day was had at a tremendous course, with fine and close competition, super weather and a well run event. Also, celebrations went on into the evening as Summers junior had taken FTD with a 50.24 in his jet powered roller skate otherwise known as an OMS - well done Alex. Seen in the picture on the left is Colin Gale receiving the prizes for next week's event at Llandow!! How can this be I hear you say? Well, Colin and Huw Edwards are the only two Healey cars entered for Llandow on 17th July, one in the Sprite Class and the other in the Big Healey Class and as this is a trophy event with prizes for the top two cars in each class - so now you see - unless of course you get yourself a late entry and try and win one of these very fine cut glass trophies!! To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys
Round 4 - Aintree - 'Swifts, Wings and Bechers Brook' 26 June 2010 (words by EL Stiff - pics by John Tewson) A select band of sprinters enjoyed what must be one of the best organised events of the year in sizzling weather on Saturday 26 June on part of the 1940’s Grand Prix circuit at Aintree. With lots of room for camper vans, trailers and cars in the paddock, all but one of the Healey team arrived early for a BBQ on Friday night. Saturday was a cracking day, Liverpool Motor Club certainly know how to give value for money on this circuit. With an entry list of over 130 we expected to be in for a long day and were not really sure the Clerk of the Course had all his marbles at the drivers briefing when he announced two practice runs followed by four competition runs and an expected fifth run! We were also warned about Bechers Brook, the sticky fingered habits of a few locals and of all things Swifts: A re-run would be given to those with unbelievably fast times as Swifts hunting for flying insects low over the ground would probably have broken the timing beam at the finish. This fantastic track only has three corners, but don’t let that put you off, this is a circuit where drivers can test their cars and themselves to the limit. As Tom Walker found out when he ‘flew’ over Bechers Brook on his first practice, on his way to recording 120 mph over the finish line. Unfortunately, the famous jump on the single horse power event that runs around the outside of our racing circuit could not be seen, as some of the local wildlife had recently burnt it down, but the brook that gives the jump its name was easily recognised. It runs under the tarmac which had sunk slightly, giving a dip, that when the big racing Healey went over at speed gave the feeling of jumping it. This fast circuit allowed the Healey 100 of Lindsay and Richard Summers to reach the speed of its name for probably the first time ever, crossing the finish line at 100 mph on a number of runs. The 998 cc Sprite of John Tewson was suited to this track, due to being built for racing at Spa, and reached its terminal speed with a diff. more suited to hill climbing at 92 mph. We all thought we were going quickly until a bright orange single seater broke the course record with a finishing speed of 176 mph! As the drivers were relaxing in the sun after their first competitive run, the Healey camp was approached by a couple of girls bearing gifts and telling of untold special effects of their magic brew - even though they had been told by one event official it should not be used by drivers! So most of the drivers, happy to try anything to speed them up, downed a free can of Red Bull - it gives you wings you know. We seriously considered giving a can to Kermit (pictured left), Colin Gale’s car, as it had not been right all day - despite new plugs after first practice, a new coil after second practice and tightening the throttle cable after the third run. The Red Bull worked, we did have wings, the times continued to fall run after run as the drugs kicked in, the drivers got used to the circuit and the temperatures rose - even Lindsay’s hangover was cured! There was little need for wheel spinning and tyre warming today. We were told afterwards that the track temperature had been recorded as reaching 52.4 degrees C. The silverware went to Tom Walker with a time of 52.49 (on his third run), Richard Summers was second with a 59.12 and on a final last run Huw Edwards (60.94) floored the pedal on the bumpy railway straight to take third and edge out Tewson (61.30). As the HealeySport Championship results and records are based on the first two timed runs at any event, Tom Walker broke the existing course record for the Big Healey class with a 52.68 and Richard Summers set a new record for the Healey 100 at 60.35. The total number of starts were over 750, and we were all packed up and ready to go home at 3.45pm. This was a really enjoyable well run event that those in the know will do again. Picture Competition No. 2 - OK, we only got one response from the last competition with the suggestion the driver was Mr Blobby!! So lets see if you can get this one. So who would want to wear a pair of socks such as these? Does the colour of the car give a clue - white big Healey with green side panel - could take part in the circuit race series perhaps!! Answers on a postcard. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys
HealeySport at Silverstone - MG Live 6th June 2010 for the Luffield Sprint (Words by LC Branch and pics by Vicki Walton) Annually, the MG Car Club take over the entire Silverstone circuit for three days in June for one of their big events of the year called 'MG Live'. This year, amongst their list of activities was the inclusion of a sprint event on the new Stowe circuit which sits within the full grand prix circuit at the Stowe end of the track. Not only was the track new but also there is a brand new pit lane, garages, paddock, control tower/viewing area and hospitality/eating area. The event was being run by the North West centre of the MG Car Club and it had attracted 84 entries of which 17 came from the Healey Club. In the Sprite class were messrs Haywood, Wakeham (or 'Wakenham' as per the brochure!), Baker, Davis (another Top Garage - top gun), Ingall & Matthews co-driving the Sebring, Tewson J/Tewson C co-driving the Frogeye and Pugh. In the Big Healey class there were messrs John, Edwards, Price, Walton (pictured right), Taylor, Mason, Cockayne and Cooper. All keen to try out the new track and facilities. Many of the drivers had brought their cars the day before and so had signed-on and gone through scrutineering on the Saturday evening with just a few to be done on the Sunday morning. After a drivers briefing, all 84 cars were lined up in the pit lane in number order (see picture below) so that they could take their turn to go to the start for their timed runs. If cars needed to be refuelled then they could exit through the garage complex then rejoin the queue further up the pit lane. This process is quite different to that used at all other venues but seemed to work well. The one downside being that the usual socialising in the paddock was dispensed with. The weather forecast had been quite dire for the day with promises of heavy downpours throughout the day. Fortunately these did not materialise until 5pm when most were leaving the circuit when the heavens opened. Practice started at 09.00 and the drivers took the opportunity to work out their racing lines etc on this new track, which comprised one and three quarter laps of this 1.8 mile circuit. At 11.00, for half an hour, racing stopped on the sprint course so that the local church service would not be interrupted by the noise of our 105db engines. No problem with that, but why then were 110db race cars still pounding around the main GP circuit which must be closer to whichever church was being considered?? Practice took a couple of hours to complete but that was mainly due to the fact that the race organisers were new to the course and they were learning how many cars they could get on the track, safely, at any one time. As the day went on, the time taken to get the whole grid around the track speeded up considerably. So with an uneventful practice out of the way, the first timed run started in earnest. The Sprite class was first up and Paul Baker posted the quickest time with a 123.14. Next up was Murray Wakeham with a 125.30 but he came into the pits with a very sick sounding engine - which looked to be a bent or damaged valve - so no further part could be played by Murray. Nigel Davis was in third place with a 126.31. Fourth was Rafe Haywood with a 126.41. Eamonn Matthews took fifth with a 131.43, followed by co-driver Martin Ingall in 134.44. John Tewson was seventh with a 136.65 with wife Clare eighth with a 138.18 and ninth was Richard Pugh in 143.55. In the Big Healey class, Mike Cockayne took the top slot with a 123.75. Pat Cooper was second with a 124.52. Richard Mason third with a 125 dead. Peter Walton steered his "nearly" standard 3000 to fourth place with a 131.05, ahead of the triple Webered cars of Simon Price (131.47) and Huw Edwards (133.50) with Nick John in eighth with a 134.89. Andrew Taylor's 100M ground to an abrupt halt with a broken accelerator cable. After the first timed run, more cones were added to the chicane on the back straight to slow entry speed into the chicane. On the second timed runs most Sprite drivers went a little faster, including Rafe Haywood who put in a 125.24 to leap from fourth to second place pushing Murray and Nigel down a place. In the Big Healey class, Pat Cooper was getting to grips with this new track and posted a quick 123.01 run to take first away from Mike Cockayne who went slower but retained 2nd spot. Richard Mason stayed in third with Peter Walton in fourth and Andrew Taylor slotted into fifth with a 132.10 (pictured above - his first run). While Simon Price, Huw Edwards and Nick John retained their sixth, seventh and eighth places respectively. Onto the last run and in the Sprite class most of the drivers again improved by a small margin but again retained their second round positions. In the Big Healey class, the only person to radically improve was Andrew Taylor who posted a 130.60 to move up to fourth and move Peter Walton down to fifth. So the final positions were: Sprite class: 1st Paul Baker, 2nd Rafe Haywood, 3rd Murray Wakeham, 4th Nigel Davis, 5th Eamonn Matthews, 6th Martin Ingall, 7th John Tewson, 8th Clare Tewson and 9th Richard Pugh. Big Healey class: 1st Pat Cooper (pictured left), 2nd Mike Cockayne, 3rd Richard Mason, 4th Andrew Taylor, 5th Peter Walton, 6th Simon Price, 7th Huw Edwards and 8th Nick John. As this was not a championship round, no points will be awarded, but everyone had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed this new circuit and the way the MG Car Club (North West Centre) ran the event. All were agreed, that if we get invited back, we should seriously consider this event as a round in the championship. Many thanks also go to Vicki Walton for taking some superb pics of the drivers/cars for the website. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys
HealeySport Sprint and Hill Climb Challenge 2010 - Sponsored by Denis Welch Motorsport and The Frogeye Spares Company Round 3 - Prescott - 29 May 2010 (words by LC Branch - pics by Jackie Baker and John Tewson) The 'La Vie en Bleu' event at Prescott always draws the biggest collection of Healey drivers of the year and 2010 was no exception. Twenty six Healeys (12 Sprites and 14 Big un's) eventually made the start with a couple of cars having to pull out, Lyn Wheadon's due to technical problems and Neil Cameron's due to an overwhelming desire to see Swindon make the premiership via the playoff's - unfortunately both were disappointed. There were four new boys to this event; our two Norfolk drivers - Simon Leeming in his immaculate Mk2 Sprite from Norwich and Tim Cooke in his 100/6 from Diss, plus Joe Mackrell in his 3000 Mk2A from Wantage and lastly our not-so-new-boy Mike Cockayne in his 3000 MK2 from Bromyard. Yet again the weather was not on our side. I don't know what its like where you live, but our part of this brown and pleasant land is resembling a dust bowl as we've had so little rain over the past two months. However, the merest sight of my sprite being put on its trailer for an event and the heavens open - what gives!! So on the stroke of 09.00 practice got underway with the inevitable steady and persistent rain. For most, and with so much water on the track, the challenge was how to get away from the start line, how to stop at Ettores, how to get the power back on again at Pardon without sliding into the tyre wall, how to avoid clattering into the Armco's at the Esses, and lastly, how to get round semi-circle without falling down the bank - apart from that the rest was easy. Given these problems, practice was largely uneventful as most were taking it easy and hoping the weather would improve for the afternoon session. When the morning practice session ended at 12.30 the sun came out and the track started to dry. Fantastic, just what the doctor ordered. However, by 2pm when the timed runs were due to start the 'Wing Walkers' appeared (pictured above) and everything stopped whilst they did their aerial acrobatics. Then the Bugatti Veyrons went up the hill and eventually the timed runs started. After a delay for an accident, the rain started again quite heavily and to make matters even worse, a Lotus single seater deposited its sump all the way up the hill. The Clerk of the Course called all of the drivers to a special meeting to warn them that as it was wet they could not put down cement dust on the oil - so be extra careful as the oil was all over the racing line!! So eventually at 4.15 the Healey class started its first timed run of the afternoon. In the Sprite class, hill champion Stuart Bullas popped in a 61.99 to lead (nearly 12 seconds slower than his record) with Murray Wakeham in second with a 63.07 and Robin Johnson in third with a 63.48. In the Big Healey class, Tom Walker was leading the way with a spirited 59.04, with Richard Mason in second a tad behind with a 59.67 and third was Richard Summers in wife Lindsay's 100M in an excellent 62.42 - proving that a well sorted Healey 100 can match a 3000 in the rain. With all to play for and the conditions not getting any worse, the last timed run got underway. In the Sprite class, Robin Johnson took the top slot with a 59.45, pipping co-driver Stuart Bullas into second place with a 59.86, with the very green frogeye of Colin Gale taking third place on scratch with a 61.01. It was clear that the extra weight of the 100's and 3000's (especially with some of their drivers!!) was giving them a distinct advantage over the Sprites in the rain. However, it was left to the last three cars in the big Healey class to take the scratch honours. First back was Richard Mason in a very quick (given the conditions) 58 seconds dead. Right behind Richard was Pat Cooper who banged in an even quicker 57.71. But Tom Walker was last up and he trounced the lot with a stunning 55.52. So the scratch 1-2-3 was Tom first, Pat second with Richard third. But this is a 'Target Time' event being operated under the new rules agreed at the last drivers meeting, where all drivers who have been to Prescott before to a HealeySport Challenge event have their previous best time as their 'Target Time' to beat. Newcomers are given an estimated time based on their practice times. So taking into account the Target Times the top six in each class were: Sprite class: 1st Richard Pugh (pictured on the start line above), 2nd John Tewson, 3rd Judy Green, 4th Rafe Haywood 5th Clare Tewson & 6th Simon Leeming. Big Healey
class: 1st Trish C-P (pictured right - yes, she's one of the
little people!!), 2nd Lindsay Summers, 3rd Richard Summers, 4th Mike
Cockayne, 5th Simon Price & 6th
So with the event over the birthday celebrations started with cake and champagne supplied by Trish, but word has it that a certain Irish gent was keeping quiet about his own birthday the following day!! Picture Competition - Who would dare to wear a pair of socks such as these? Does the colour of the car give a clue - white big Healey - Joe Mackrell perhaps!! Answers on a postcard. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys
Round 2 - MIRA - 8 May 2010 (words by LC Branch - no pics as not allowed at MIRA) After a superb day at Gurston with sunshine and warm weather, our second round at MIRA was big disappointment. The weather started cold, wet and windy and remained that way all day. There were seven Sprites and ten big Healeys although Huw Edwards 3000 was missing for the second event on the trot - more engine problems? As usual at MIRA no cameras were allowed, so obviously no pictures are available for this report. After a very delayed start to the event and a slow convoy run to help remind the drivers which way the track goes, where to brake/turn-in etc., practice got underway. In the dry, MIRA is a fast, sweeping sprint course with high levels of grip. In the rain, its a very different track as the levels of grip diminish fast this resulted in numerous spins and 'offs' in practice. It was clear very soon that those with circuit race experience or with near standard road cars were going to fare better in these conditions and those with highly modified or particularly light cars were going to struggle with grip. So on to the actual timed runs. In the Sprite class, Neil Cameron led the class with a very quick (for the conditions) 64.65, which was still some six and a half seconds slower than his course record. Paul Baker was second with a 69.48. Third fastest was Allan Cameron in the Speedwell Sprite with a 70.29 (although he is not included in the championship results). Fourth was John Tewson in the 998 Frogeye with a very creditable 71.90. Fifth was Murray Wakeham with a 72.98 (but he had spun and made heavy frontal contact with a cone - more of that later). Sixth was Martin Ingall in his Sebring Sprite with a 75.51 and finally Clare Tewson had decided to pull out of the event after practice due to feeling unwell. In the Big Healey class, Richard Summers was going well but the time keepers were having problems and his first run time of 3.49 secs would clearly put him in the record books if believed!! However, Tom Walker was having his first outing with the hill climbers since circuit racing last year and posted a quick 66.68 to lead the class. Simon Price was second with an excellent 69.75. Third was Nick John showing all his Goodwood experience with an equally good 70.34. Fourth was Richard Mason who was struggling to keep his car on the track with a 71.72. Next up was Pete Walton with a 74.28, who was closely followed by new boy Tim Cooke with a 74.70 and Trish C-P with a 78.58. In lowly eighth spot was Pat Cooper who although he had ditched the Kumho's in favour of the Avon's found he had very little tread on the fronts and so was struggling for any form of grip. Lindsay Summers was finding her first visit to MIRA rather a challenge as the track was not clearly marked in some areas whilst also contending with horizontal rain in an open Healey 100M - not very pleasant. So it was on to the last run and the rain was getting heavier with standing water on the track. The previous TVR class had numerous drivers going off so delaying the start of the Healey classes. This clearly had a negative effect on the drivers in the Sprite Class, John Tewson was first up and he span off coming into the control tower complex. Next was Paul Baker who span off on the final bend. Neil Cameron ran out of fuel within sight of the start line. Allan Cameron span in the complex. Murray Wakeham's Sprite sprung a major leak from the radiator and so did not complete the lap - as a result of hitting a cone earlier. At last, some sanity prevailed when Martin Ingall steered his Sebring Sprite serenely around the course without breaking down or spinning off and also improved on his first run time with a respectable time of 71.80. So the first round positions remained, except that Martin Ingall jumped to third spot moving the rest all down one. The Big Healey drivers must have wondered what the hell was going on with the Sprite class with only one out of seven recording a time. First up was experienced driver Richard Summers in his wife's 100M who at last recorded a time (not his fault) and a really good one at that - 68.62secs. Tom Walker was next and he improved on his first round time with a very fast 66.31. Pete Walton pulled out all the stops and banged in a 69.93, some 4 secs faster than his first run. Tim Cooke shaved over a second off his first run to get a 73.50. Pat Cooper took over 5 secs off his first run to record a 75.70 but still left him languishing at the tale end of the class. Nick John improved on his previous best to get under the 70 sec mark with an excellent 69.38. Richard Mason's woes continued as he went slower than his first run with a 72.57. Trish C-P knocked a further second and a half off to record a 77.16. Given the delays and the weather, Lindsay Summers decided to call it a day and scratched her last run. So last out on the track was Simon Price who was not seen much last year but clearly the fighting spirit was back as he clocked a fantastic 68.53 to retain second place and hold Richard Summers in third. Well what a day. This event will be remembered but probably for all the wrong reasons, but as in Formula One, the weather can make a mockery of the form book and in this case prove that a well sorted road car can show a clean set of tyres to a highly modified one with some quick but sensible driving. Next event is at Prescott on 29th May where 28 Healeys will do battle. Come along and support the drivers if you can. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys Want to get involved in Sprinting and Hill Climbing? If you are interested and want to find out more, click on the link to check out the 'New Beginners Guide to Sprinting and Hill Climbing' or email Allan Cameron on allanclancam@hotmail.com Don't forget, If you own a Healey, like what you see on these web pages and would like to find out more about this sport, email Allan Cameron on the contact details shown at the bottom of the page or come along to the next event and have a chat with any of the drivers. New drivers are always welcome. Round 1 - Gurston Down - 18 April 2010 (words by LC Branch - pics by Jackie Baker) Sorry for this, but a short report due to charity auctions etc... For the season's opener the Healey speedsters were out in force. In fact, four drivers could not take part due to our classes being over-subscribed. So Messrs Walker, Tewson x 2 and John had to miss out on what was probably the best weather we have ever had at Gurston in April. In total there were seven Sprites, including one new driver - Simon Leeming from Norwich in his 'g-leeming' 1098 Sprite and nine Big Healeys, including evolution 5 of the Mason rocket ship. Unfortunately Huw Edwards 3000 was suffering with terminal loss of oil pressure so did not venture out of west Wales and Claire Giles was also unable to attend. Practice was the usual mix of learning the course, remembering how to get round the tricky middle section as quick as possible and sorting out problems on the cars as its the first event of the season. In the Sprite Class, the form book seemed to be dictating the times as Robin Johnson was quickest followed by Stuart Bullas with local expert Murray Wakeham in third place. In the Big Healey Class, Pat Cooper was showing a clean pair of wheels to Richard Mason with Andrew Taylor in 3rd. So after lunch the event got underway proper and the times began to tumble as the sun warmed the track. In the Sprite class, Stuart Bullas was leading after the first run having switched places with team mate Robin Johnson, with Murray Wakeham in third by 5 100ths of a second. Fourth was Rafe Haywood, fifth a lack lustre Paul Baker with Colin Gale in sixth and Simon Leeming in seventh nursing a brand new and not run in engine. So on to the second run and Murray Wakeham (pictured below) pulled out all the stops and used his local knowledge to full effect by posting a 38.35, only a fraction off the hill record. Stuart Bullas showed his consistency by posting a 38.44 which was the same time as his first run to take second. Robin Johnson went slower than his first run so held third with a 38.60. Rafe Haywood held fourth with a 40.91. Paul Baker improved a fraction to post a 41.57. Colin Gale came sixth with a 42.52 and Simon Leeming steadily improved to finish with a 52.40. After the first run for the Big Healey Class, Pat Cooper was still leading the field albeit with a slower than practice time of 40.32. Richard Mason (pictured above) was steadily improving with a 40.46 to keep second from Andrew Taylor in third who was holding off a fast improving Mike Cockayne who was getting to grips with the extra power in his new to him 3000. Ed Giles was just ahead of Richard Summers and Pete Walton with a very close battle taking place between Lindsay Summers and Trish C-P. So after the last run of the day for the Big Healey Class, Richard Mason pinched first place from Pat Cooper with a 39.70 as Pat had not improved on his first run time. Andrew Taylor was comfortably in third with an improved 41.52 which was just a whisker off the hill record for a Healey 100. Mike Cockayne did not improve on his first run of 43.15 and was lucky not to get caught by Ed Giles (43.43). Ed in turn held off a late charge from Pete Walton (44.22), who had taken sixth place from Richard Summers who had improved by only 100th of a sec with a 44.37. The racing could not have been closer for the last two places between Lindsay Summers in her 100M and Trish C-P in her 3000. In the end, Lindsay took the honours and eighth place with a 48.66 and Trish ninth with a 48.87. So a great start to the 2010 season. Well for most anyway!! One driver found out the hard way that if you arrive at a venue and realise you don't have your MSA licence with you, it will cost you £55 when you sign on even if you later find said licence you will not get your £55 back unless you find it by 11.00 !! And to finish off an excellent day, cake and bubbly were supplied by Richard and Lindsay Summers to help the assembled celebrate Richard's 50th birthday. To see the full results from this event and from all events in 2010 (results and points awarded) click here. To see the pictures and video footage from this and all previous events click here. Record times - click here to check out the Hill and Sprint records for all the recent venues for the Sprites and Big Healeys Want to get involved in Sprinting and Hill Climbing? If you are interested and want to find out more, click on the link to check out the 'New Beginners Guide to Sprinting and Hill Climbing' or email Allan Cameron on allanclancam@hotmail.com Don't forget, If you own a Healey, like what you see on these web pages and would like to find out more about this sport, email Allan Cameron on the contact details shown at the bottom of the page or come along to the next event and have a chat with any of the drivers. New drivers are always welcome.
|
tight
corners given the Sprite box (like the Big Healey) doesn't have synchro on
first gear. This time round the Big Healey boys and girls had got in
on the act, with talk of 4.8's and 5.1's ratios being used. So if you
find a bemused Austin Gypsy owner wondering where one of his diffs have gone
(apparently they have two), I suggest you point him in the direction of
either Bromyard, Bristol or Stoke Bruerne.
in the faster times of 70.89 to Adie's 71.78.
Andrew
Taylor.