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
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.
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
in the faster times of 70.89 to Adie's 71.78.
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,
Weather overcast but warm, went to racing circuit, lots of old cars, Austin
Healeys, Lotus, etc. Competition interesting, both of us won our
class. Had a lovely day. WISH U WERE HERE?
From " Huw
and Colin "
Huw Edwards had problems at Aintree and a non appearance at Loton, but with
some new shockers and track rod ends fitted he was now " back on track ".
Practice started; first up in the Big Healey class was Huw in his beautiful
blue and white 3000 who recorded a time of 101.48 seconds, while watching
the temperature gauge rising,
as his fan belt had come adrift. Meanwhile Colin Gale in the Sprite class
had a good run, 96. 00 dead, in the bright green Spridget, aiming to better
his previous best time.
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!!).
On the first of the actual timed runs Huw did a tidy run and recorded a time
of 99.30sec but Colin had a recurrence of his problems at Loton with a
slight mis-fire along the straight on the first lap but then fortunately it
cleared giving a slightly slower time of 96.45.
Another competitor had taken out the timing cables which delayed the
proceedings for a while until TSL had fixed it. Time for a Red Bull,
but whilst chatting in the paddock the Scrutineers descended on "Kermit the
Sprite" (pictured right) as it had been reported by a marshal for giving off
a trail of fluid. Everything was checked and all was OK, no oil,
water, petrol - nothing. ("its not easy being green").
On to the second timed run and the wind was increasing (the weather that is
not from Huw's bean consumption). Taking a better line, Huw
finished in a very respectable 96.94 secs achieving a new personal best by
just over a second. Colin was still a bit scrappy around the Control
Tower corners but still managed a best time of 94.30 secs (not bad for
a 1330 cc)
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.
We were both quite sure it was a ploy to send us into depths of deepest,
darkest WALES on our own so we could both win 1st place for a change, to
lift our spirits and improve our portfolio of glassware!
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
Andrew
Taylor.
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.