Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club
Championship
Round 7 : Silverstone 18th October 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
The season finale of the Lackford Engineering
Austin Healey Club Championship was at Silverstone, late in the season
and replacing the cancelled Donington round in May. Sixteen cars
entered for this AMOC organised meeting, with the overall championship
decided, the interest centred on class battles, and a thirty minute race
would settle all.
Champion elect, Dave Smithies was absent
here, as was reigning champion Paul Campfield, but we had son Marc, Hugo
Holland-Bosworth, Eric Woolley, Peter Grant, Robert Rawe and Tom Walker
in 3000’s with Mike Thorne and Mark Pangborn in 100M’s. The Sprite
classes had Drew Cameron and Pat Harris in their class E mounts. Neil
Cameron, Stephen Fry, Xavier Sanz de Acedo and Ian Permain in class D
and class C stalwarts Mark Lister and Brian Bedford. Surprisingly, John
Harris was not here and would give his chance of class victory up to Ian
Permain.
Practice went without major drama for
most with Campfield finishing on pole from Holland-Bosworth who was a
bit ‘miffed’ at having a cracked windscreen due to errant gravel during
his pursuit. Woolley was a steady third before the first Sprite, that
of Cameron D who split the big cars leaving Grant and Rawe in fifth and
sixth. Sanz de Acedo was a splendid seventh from Thorne, Cameron N,
also showing well, then Harris, Walker, Pangborn, Permain Lister,
Bedford and Fry completing the field.
It
was a bitterly cold wind that cut across the Northampton circuit as we
waited for the start of our race and as the lights flashed green it was
the blue car of Holland-Bosworth that got the jump. Campfield slotted
into second and Woolley third. Cameron D. was there at the start but
the bigger cars got the power down by the first corner, Campfield would
run wide at Becketts on that opening lap but rejoined and was back up to
second, taking Woolley as they swept through Bridge.
Holland-Bosworth had a good lead on that
first lap with Campfield using all of the track, kerb, grass, and gravel
on the inside of Bridge to catch up. Following cars found the gravel
deposit a little tricky but Woolley led the rest in the order of Cameron
D., Rawe, Grant, Thorne and Harris side by side, Sanz de Acedo, Walker,
Cameron N., Bedford, Pangborn, Lister, Permain and Fry.
Campfield was pulling no punches in his
efforts to get ahead of H-B, trying one side or the other to get past
and into the Brooklands/Luffield complex he drew alongside only for his
tyre to come into contact with H-B’s hub spinner which sliced through it
like a Roman chariot sword! Out on the spot and into the pits to retire
and signalling the possible end of young Campfield’s spirited Healey
campaigns.
Meanwhile H-B continued unabated and
would go on to finish the race almost 45 seconds ahead with the fastest
lap to boot, an indication of how fast his pace was.
Woolley was ensconced in a lo nely
second place, initially challenged by Cameron D whose Sprite seemed to
be understeering a little too much to keep pace with the 3000, he did
fend off Grant who has improved immensely this season after his
disastrous first year, his car performing like it should now.
Down the field Thorne and Rawe had a
tremendous tussle all race with first one and then the other coming
through ahead. The fight went to the flag and after 30 minutes it was
Thorne who finished ahead. Pat Harris was a lonely seventh after
initially fighting with this duo but having a minor loss of traction mid
race, he came back at the end though.
There were a couple of good battles with
Cameron N and Sanz de Acedo fighting for most of the race with Walker
keeping a watching brief. Pangborn was another lonely player but
Bedford, Lister and Permain had quite a tussle for much of the race
until Permain dropped back. Bedford did enough to stay ahead of Lister
who must take heart in the fact that he was back on terms with his
nemesis and his finish here secured the class title. Bedford’s luck
this season has failed him a lot and today was no exception with a half
shaft, complete with wheel, deciding to part company with the diff. and
extending his rear track by a metre!! It happened on the last lap and so
he was fortunate to keep his place ahead of Lister.
Apart from Campfield we had only lost one
other runner, that being Fry who succumbed to engine trouble 24 minutes
into the race, another guy whose luck is limited.
Overall it had been a steady race, a
couple of good battles keeping interest and another long race with very
few casualties, something that was a concern
when the longer race format was mooted.
The longer races have proved to be generally successful this year, with
some races having race long battles to keep us entertained. Dave
Smithies has taken the overall championship, Mark Pangborn takes Class
A, Mark Lister takes Class C, Ian Permain did enough today to take Class
D and Pat Harris wins Class E.
Another season ends with just the annual
‘bun fight’ awards evening to come, finishing the year in style. I look
forward to being there next year and hope these reports have kept you
entertained this season.
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club
Championship
Round 6 : Oulton Park 3rd October 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
With
the summer at an abrupt end it was an Autumnal day which greeted the
participants for the Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club
Championship at Oulton Park for the annual meeting organised by AMOC.
There was an impressive entry of 23 cars although circumstances would
reduce this by the time of the race.
First to not show was Robin Lackford, the
series sponsor, who had problems with his car after a recent Spa event.
Harvey Woods had shown up for pre race testing on Friday with his new
100M, only to have the misfortune to stuff it rather badly. Finally
David Grace failed to make it.
Still, 20 on the list would be good.
Those here were the 3000’s of Dave Smithies, Marc Campfield, Eric
Woolley, Robert Rawe, Tom Walker, Peter Grant and Mark Potter. 100M’s
were in the hands of Mike Thorne and Mark Pangborn and the plethora of
Sprites included Class sponsor John Harris, Neil Cameron, Dave Jenkins,
Ian Permain, Stephen Fry, Xavier Sanz de Acedo, Pat Harris, Drew
Cameron, Mark Lister, Jim Prior and Brian Bedford.
Qualifying was delayed by a rather
expensive oil trail left on the circuit by one of the Ferrari Classic
competitors and when the cars did take to the circuit conditions were a
little tricky.
On the first lap Campfield slid out of
Knickerbrook and could be heard trying to find a gear, it transpired he
had lost third, and with lots of little bits of metal flying around
inside his gearbox he called it a day and went home. He had managed to
qualify fourth though. Worse was to befall poor Permain who didn’t even
complete
a lap, coming to rest at Knickerbrook, also with gearbox problems. Two
down already.
Meanwhile Smithies appeared fast, with
Woolley also in the groove, his car sounding superb on full chat up Clay
Hill, extra performance allegedly down to a new distributor. Cameron in
his still largely unsorted class E Sprite also looked quick. Further
back Lister seemed to be back on form, happy to be ahead of his
adversary Bedford. Fry was pleased to have seen the chequered flag at
the end of the session but poor Jenkins was again victim of mechanical
maladies. Suspected head gasket failure which turned out to be the
dreaded ‘A’ series Achilles heal….. burnt block between cylinders 2 and
3.
Another out, and it wasn’t even mid
morning yet! Prior was in though, he hadn’t made the session, but would
start at the back.
The grid then was Smithies, a second and
half ahead of Cameron D., and two seconds ahead of Woolley. With
Campfield out, Rawe was next from Harris P., Grant going well, Harris
J., Thorne, Sanz de Acedo, Lister, Pangborn, Potter, Bedford, Fry,
Cameron N. and Walker. With Jenkins and Permain also out. Prior would
complete the field. 17 left.
So, the usual fettling and hanging around
until our race and just before the start guess what?.. yes! It rained!
It wouldn’t be Oulton if it didn’t rain!
The cars came out for two installation
laps because of the wet track, it had stopped raining but the track was
slippery.
When the lights went green it was Cameron
D. in his Sprite who got the drop on the others and Woolley too got
ahead of Smithies. By Shell hairpin Woolley had the lead from Smithies
with Cameron D in third. But at the second chicane Cameron D. was
caught out by the surface and spun to the tail of the field. He would
fight back up to seventh at the end though.
Thorne made the best advantage of this,
coming through from row 5 to slot into fourth place. Woolley was
flying in the lead with Smithies strong in second. Then came Thorne,
Rawe, Grant, Potter, Pangborn, Harris J, Harris P, Sanz de Acedo,
Cameron, Lister, Bedford, Walker, Cameron N., Fry, Prior.
Next lap and this time Smithies got
caught out on the tricky surface spinning into the barrier at Old Hall.
Nothing serious though and with a dented rear wing he rejoined in
eleventh place. The interest for the rest of the race would be how far
would he climb back. Well, quite a way actually, he was 6th
by lap five, 4th two laps later and with a move on Thorne on
lap 12 up to second place. He would have to go some though to catch
Woolley and with the two of them trading fastest laps and the leader
over half a minute up the road it was an improbable task.
All this excitement had got Thorne into a
splendid second place and Grant had got past Rawe to hold a strong
third. These two had great drives although each would drop a place with
Smithies’ progress. Rawe held a lonely fifth ahead of Pangborn for the
entire race.
Further back a great fight was forming
with Bedford and Sanz de Acedo, the latter slowly hauling in Bedford to
take ninth place at the end.
Another battle between Harris P, Walker,
Cameron N, Lister, and Harris J. kept us entertained. Harris J. would
make a move on Cameron N on the penultimate lap entering Lodge, he slid
wide to let Cameron back but would try again with success on the final
lap, he was pleased with that.
As the clock approached forty minutes
Woolley was streets ahead to take the flag first, Smithies posted
fastest lap on the last lap of the race and took second. Next was
Thorne from Grant, Rawe and Pangborn completing the top six. Cameron D.
had got back to seventh with his fastest lap also on the
penultimate lap, the track quite dry at the end. Potter, Sanz de Acedo,
Bedford, Harris P., Walker, Lister, Harris J, Cameron N and Prior
completed
the distance. Unfortunately we lost Fry who was the only retirement
around lap 3. The elements and circumstances had contrived to try to
spoil this race with non starters and rain but with the fight back of
Smithies and Cameron D and the battles with the Sprites they had given
it interest.
The Northern centre once again provided a
splendid and very welcome barbeque on this cold day and thanks go to
them all. The final round for the Championship is at Silverstone at the
end of October. See you there.
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club
Championship
Round 5 : Brands Hatch 23 August 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
So…
once the dust had settled, the cars all washed and polished and the
fettling complete, the
second race, Round 5 of the Lackford Engineering Championship, was all
ready to go. Would the faster Sprites take the honours this time or
would the Big Healeys again rule the day, and would the racing be as
fraught as the first race..??
During the gap between races, Paul
Campfield had found the cause of a misfire and Brian Bedford had changed
his drive shaft, lunch was taken, a Grand Prix watched, arguments
settled and with the beautiful late summer weather still here a general
air of calmness descended on the Paddock .. for a while.
The grid for the second race had been
decided on second best practice times from the morning and so we had
Grace on pole, then Campfield snr, Lackford, who was going very well
around here, Campfield jnr. Schildt A, Smithies, Harris P, Rawles,
Grant, Harris J., Jones, Potter, Permain, Pangborn, Bedford, Lister,
Walker, Schildt K, Prior and Jenkins.
With the warm up lap completed and a
twenty minute race ahead the lights signalled the start and the front of
the grid leapt forward. Into Druids Grace led, with Campfield jnr
taking second.
Campfield snr. Lackford, Schildt A and Smithies making up the top six.
Harris P. and Rawles were side by side, Harris J, Grant, Potter, Jones,
Bedford making some places, Pangborn, Permain, Walker, Lister, Schildt
K, Prior and Jenkins made up the rest of the order.
Halfway around that first lap Campfield
got ahead of Grace, Schildt A. made it to third with Lackford pushing on
just behind, the rest of the pack all jostling for position. Rawles and
Harris P were still side by side and would battle all race with one or
the other ahead. Harris P would finally take the flag, one hundredth of
a second in front of Bill.
Jones and Potter were also in battle
which would last until lap eight when Jones retired, but not before they
spent several laps in formation with Grant, these three providing great
entertainment for the first third of the race. Other close combatants
during the race were Walker and Bedford once again, the honours this
time falling to Walker.
By lap 2 Schildt had made it to second,
Smithies out braked Lackford into Druids for fourth. This move would go
all the way round to Graham Hill bend at the bottom of the hill, with
Campfield snr. trying to follow Smithies through. There was contact
between Campfield and Lackford which damaged Lackford's suspension
eventually forcing him to retire on lap 7. Campfield snr lost the
place gained when he missed a gear at Druids next lap, a spin at Graham
Hill put him further back to eventually finish fifth.
Up front as the race progressed Campfield
jnr was starting to get lurid allowing his lead to be reduced, a huge
slide gave Schildt the lead and with another at Druids he let Smithies
through who had by now got ahead of Grace.
The order then, Schildt, Smithies,
Campfield jnr and Grace, all within a second apart. Another huge
Campfield slide saw Grace get ahead to take third. Smithies was
starting to go for it, but when pushing for the lead had a spin at
Paddock , Grace was suddenly second.
With just a few laps to go Grace was
pushing and caught right up with Schildt. On the last lap, backmarkers
came into play at the last corner, they went either side of them to
flash over the line as one. Schildt just getting the call by .065 of a
second, the closest finish ever and history being made as he is the
first foreign driver to win an Austin Healey Club Championship race.
Smithies came back to third with
Campfield jnr fourth ahead of his dad. Harris P was next from Rawles,
Grant and Potter. Harris J won his class ahead of Permain. Then
Pangborn, Walker, Bedford, Lister, Schildt K., Prior and Jenkins were
the rest of the order.
This had been another exciting race with
the battle at the front spectacular if a little worrying at times. The
commentator remarking that it was like Formula Ford with bodywork! and
we all know what those races can be like!
After the race and during the prize
giving, young Jack Rawles, whose birthday it was, was presented with a
cake and with everyone singing ‘Happy Birthday to you’ it must be a
moment he will remember. In fact, the whole day will be remembered for
a variety of reasons, not least the spectacular track action, the win by
Schildt who has been with us since the Gott race at Silverstone, and the
closest recorded finish to a Healey race ever. We will be back at
Oulton at the beginning of October. See you all then.
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club
Championship
Round 4 : Brands Hatch 23 August 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
After
a fairly lengthy break the ‘circus’ returned to do battle in the
Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club Championship,
the venue, Brands Hatch, the scene of many tight races over the years
and with two rounds scheduled it was to be a busy day for everyone.
We had 11 big Healeys in the hands of
David Grace, Dave Smithies, Marc Campfield, Bill Rawles, Tom Walker and
Mark Pangborn’s 100 all in Championship contention with support from
Mark Potter, Peter Grant, Tom Jones and Swedes Kage and Anders Shildt,
who had returned for this weekend, all in the invitation class.
The Sprites had Paul Campfield, Pat
Harris, Robin Lackford, returnees John Harris and Dave Jenkins, Ian
Permain, Mark Lister, Brian Bedford and Jim Prior, twenty cars in all, a
good field on this popular circuit.
Practice got underway and the fastest
times would decide the grid for the first race with the second fastest
times resolving the other
start order. Straight away Grace looked smooth and fast, likewise
Campfield snr. but it was Lackford who impressed by staying with him for
several laps!, Campfield jnr was circulating behind Smithies and Shildt
was in amongst traffic not getting a decent time until the very last
lap!
The outcome was Grace, Campfield snr.,
Schildt A, Lackford, Campfield jnr., Smithies in the first six and all
just about a second apart. Then came Harris P. and Rawles, Harris J,
Grant going strongly, Jones, Potter, Permain, Pangborn, Bedford, Lister,
Walker, Schildt K, Prior, and Jenkins.
It
was a really hot day, the best of the summer and maybe that had some
bearing on the first race. Some said there was oil down, but nobody
claimed to have lost any, whatever, the race resembled a scene from
‘Whacky Races’ as spirited driving tactics and trips into various gravel
traps seemed to be the order of the day.
At the start Both Campfield snr and
Shildt A. got ‘bogged down’ allowing Smithies and Campfield jnr. to fly
into the lead, Campfield just edging it by Paddock. Into Druids a bit
of a sort out saw Grace lose out and by the time they reached Clearways
Campfield held the lead with Smithies in second, Schildt A up to third,
Harris P
a strong fourth, then Grace,
Campfield snr, Rawles, Lackford, Jones,
Grant, Harris J, Potter, Permain, Pangborn, Bedford, Lister, Walker,
Shildt K, Prior and Jenkins as they all battled for position.
Slowly Smithies and co started to haul in
Campfield whose sideways style seemed to be slowing him. Pat Harris
lost out to both Campfield and Lackford on that next lap and a charging
Rawles would steal another place before the end, but he still finished a
strong seventh. Lackford was pushing like crazy and a race long fight,
and a near touch with Campfield snr, plus keeping it on the track,
would see him in second and head off Campfield snr and Schildt A. at the
flag, just losing out on the line to a recovering Grace at the end to
take third.
Grace had taken Schildt temporarily into
Paddock, but Schildt was soon back, until a spin and then a trip into
the gravel would see him drop to fourth, oil, tyres, whatever! Grace too
would slide wide at Druids to go seventh and so would begin another
fight back to that second place.
Smithies was driving well although a near
miss when disputing the lead into Paddock would see him on the limit and
two wheels in the gravel and also a tad angry with young jnr. He went
through to take the lead eventually though when Campfield jnr got ever
more leery and took to the gravel a couple of times at Paddock and
Cascades before finally ending up beached at Paddock with a lap to go!
Meanwhile further back, Harris J was
fighting with the cars of Potter, Jones and Grant, Grant ending up ahead
of these in tenth place and Bedford and Walker were once again fighting
for position until the unfortunate Bedford had a drive shaft break.
Finally the flag came out after 20
minutes to end what had been an ‘entertaining’ race, almost all the
leaders had been in the gravel, Smithies and Lackford the exception.
Clearways looked like a speedway track! It was by 100th
second that Grace took 2nd on the line. Schildt recovered to
fourth with Campfield snr., on three cylinders at the end, coming
fifth. Another smooth driver was Rawles in sixth from Harris P. Grant
had a strong result ahead of Jones, Potter, Permain, Pangborn, Walker,
Lister and Harris J. Schildt K, Prior and Jenkins completed the order
with only two cars out and only one with a mechanical problem.
On to Round 5 which would be several
hours later. We had plenty of time to repair, fettle, clean and remove
gravel.
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Round 3 : Snetterton 18th July 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster.
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
Only
a week after the Silverstone epic the domestic series was underway again
for the Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club Championship. Round 3
was to be at Snetterton. A strong entry of twenty four cars, which
included the Swedish contingent who had stayed over from the previous
week, offered promise for an exciting race particularly in the bigger
classes.
Anders Schildt, who had so nearly won the
John Gott trophy, had his 3000 entered together with Anders Lotsengard
in Syd Segal’s old car. The other 3000’s included Campfield jnr, Rawe,
Woolley, Henderson, Walker, Smithies, Potter and Holland-Bosworth. The
100M’s of Pangborn and Swede Nils-Frederik Nybleus completed the big car
line up. The Sprites included yet another Campfield jnr jnr. Adrian in
his dads blue example. Lackford, Harris, Richards, Sanz de Acedo,
Bedford, Lister, Prior, Permain, Cameron N’s Arkley, Woods’ Ashley and
the long awaited Drew Cameron Class E car completed the entry.
Qualifying had gone pretty
well
for most with the Schildt car confounding everyone by being two seconds
quicker than the rest. Campfield jnr was next but after an MSA decision
later in the day would be excluded from the meeting. Smithies was third
quickest from H-B, Woolley and Campfield jnr jnr who promptly destroyed
his differential after five laps. Rawe was next and then Potter,
Cameron D, and Henderson all within a whisker of each other with de
Acedo, a flying Bedford, Lackford, Pangborn and Harris again, within a
second apart. Lister, Woods, Lotsengard, Cameron N, Prior, Richards,
Walker, Nyblaes and Permain with only four laps completed the field.
Permain would not make the start.
Not a lot of time before ‘our’ race but
23 cars made the start. The talk during the interval had been how far
ahead would the Swedish car be by the end of the race, and when the
lights went green it was indeed Schildt who shot into the lead but
having another of his demon starts was H-B, who shot into second by the
first turn.
Into the chicane first time around came
Schildt with H-B really pushing, these two several car lengths ahead of
Smithies. Campfield jnr jnr in the Sprite came through but would retire
immediately with that recurring transmission problem. Cameron D was
next in his new mount and he would go well before retiring on lap five
with er! transmission failure!!!, he secured class fastest lap first
though. Lackford next, with hippy Potter well up, likewise Rawe, then
Harris, Woolley, Henderson, Lotsengard, Sanz de Acedo, Bedford,
Pangborn, Woods, Lister, Prior, Walker, Cameron N, Nyblaes, Richards.
By lap two the two leaders had pulled
further ahead, with Smithies keeping a watching brief, Lackford was
ahead of Cameron. Harris
had split Rawe and Potter. Woolley was with Harris and on a charge.
A battle would form between Sanz de
Acedo, Bedford, Henderson and Lotsengard before Bedford retired with
terminal gearbox failure, Walker took up the challenge though and these
four would finish under a second apart. During the race, oil would go
down which caused first Rawe then Potter to spin at the chicane, leaving
Harris to finish fifth unchallenged.
Schildt was having gearbox problems and
finally H-B was through into the lead, only to dive into the pits almost
immediately. It turned out his screen was covered in oil from following
Schildt who was spewing gear oil. That was where the oil was coming
from! Schildt would eventually retire with a seized gearbox.
This would promote the wily Smithies into
the lead. Lackford was up to third with Woolley eventually climbing up
to second. H-B would fly back into the fray to work his way back up to
fourth at the end.
We lost Prior and Richards by mid
distance but the midfield battle was in full swing, also Lotsengard and
Pangborn and Woods and Lister were having fun. With just six laps left
Cameron N’s reliability left him when a head gasket blew on the Arkley.
Smithies went serenely on to finish over
a minute ahead of Woolley when the flag came out at the end of 40
minutes. Lackford was third from a recovering H-B and Harris. Potter
finished just ahead of Rawe. Then Henderson won the fight from Sanz de
Acedo who pulled a long gap to Walker and Lotsengard at the end.
Pangborn, the fighting Woods and Lister with Nyblaes completed the
order.
After the race we had a splendid buffet
lunch provided by the Eastern centre and thanks go to ‘Head Chef’ Lin,
‘Pastry Chef’ Sheila and ‘flap jack queen’ Angie for their efforts.
Special guest Jack Sears had once again
kindly come along to present the prizes. He was quite taken by Healey
racing after Silverstone! And after all the festivities were over we
dispersed to meet again at the end of August for a ‘double header’ at
Brands (22/23 August).
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Round 2 : Cadwell Park 31st May 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster.
email :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
With the meeting at
Donington having been cancelled there had been a gap until round 2
of the Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Championship which was at the
lovely Cadwell Park circuit in Lincolnshire.
Beautiful weather, 18 cars entered and a circuit which offers both high
speed and slow twisty sections promised that a good race was on the
cards.
The
usual combatants were on hand, both Campfields, Smithies with his new
mount getting sorted, Grace and Clarkson with their ‘big uns’. Bill
Rawles was making an appearance, Walker was back out and Pangborn
completed the ‘Big’ car line up. As well as Campfield snr the Sprites
had series sponsor Lackford, Harris P and Harris J (mended after
Mallory), Permain, Bedford, Lister, Cameron N., Richards, Prior and Fry.
Qualifying went O.K. for most although Harris J was caught on cold tyres
in the first corner having a quick 360 rotation without harm. Campfield
jnr was as spectacular as ever, looking quick, but it was the smooth
Smithies who was quicker. Jnr quite concerned afterwards at the pace of
his opponent. Fry had the misfortune to slide into Walker in the slow
hairpin, damaging his car considerably and needing a lot of tape for the
race. Campfield snr was third from a rapid Rawles, then Grace,
Lackford, Harris P., Clarkson, Permain, Harris J., Pangborn, Bedford,
Walker, Lister, Cameron, Richards, Prior and Fry were the order.
Campfield
snr. had a worrying time when he started his car in the Paddock prior to
qualifying as it burst into flames, an electrical short circuit being
the cause. He had a rush to make qualifying.
Then
after the track action came the problems…Harris J was first, no
compression pointed to a head gasket failure which turned out to be much
worse. The dreaded burnt block between 2 and 3 cylinders ended his
day. Bedford had a fuel tank breather problem which he sorted by
rerouting the breather pipe. Harris P. had his starter motor off, and
Rawles was searching in his distributor for the cause of a misfire.
Finally, Lister was feeling decidedly unwell and doubtful to make the
start, he was also left wondering where 5 seconds a lap both here and at
Mallory have gone in the close season. His new engine should be
quicker, so maybe it’s his tyres he thought.
Meanwhile, come 14.30 everyone except poor Harris J. was ready to go.
A forty minute race this time which meant something like 20 plus laps in
prospect as the cars made their way to the grid.
At the
start though drama!, the front row of Campfield jnr and Smithies
faltered, Campo snr almost took the lead but Smithies got it together in
time around Charlies and onto the fast straight. Meanwhile, Campfield
jnr made no further progress with a failed gearbox and the unfortunate
Harris P. was immediately given a 10 second penalty for starting out of
position. As they came into the wooded section for the first time
Smithies held the lead with Campfield snr right behind him. Rawles was
a splendid third with Lackford right on his tail. Then came
Grace, a bit of a gap to Clarkson and Harris P., another to start well.
Permain all alone, Pangborn, Walker, Bedford, Cameron, Lister, Richards
Fry and Prior completed the order.
Smithies would hold off Campfield for many laps, the blue Sprite
crawling all over the rear of the 3000. The big car was getting late on
the brakes as the race progressed, eventually he came up to lap Bedford,
Smithies may have been unsighted or distracted, anyway, the result was a
major lock up and slide towards the little Sprite. Bedford moved over
but the gap was there on the inside and Campfield wasted no time in
nipping into the lead.
Grace
was getting on with it and was clear of both Rawles and Lackford after a
couple of laps. He held third for a while and then due to a confusing
black flag from race control pulled in to check out the problem. Being
told it wasn’t for him he sped back into the fray, a long way back but
spirited driving had him back in third at the end, it might have been
higher though! This black flag incident confused many people as I
learnt in the Paddock later, several drivers not reading the number well
and thinking it concerned them. It was in fact for Fry whose damaged
wing was flapping in the breeze. He stopped but not before having a
good fight with Richards et al!
Lackford got ahead of Rawles and he held third spot for a while until an
electrical gremlin once again robbed him of a strong finish.
For a
long time Walker, Bedford and Cameron ran in formation, eventually
Cameron got ahead of Bedford before clearing Walker to finish in a
credible seventh place. Bedford meanwhile,
produced the drama of the day as around half distance his car came
around with flames licking underneath it. He managed to get to the pits
before a major conflagration and the flames were swiftly dealt with, the
car only mildly damaged from the outside, although under the bonnet was
a mess.
Lister
had gamely carried on for a few laps but his queasiness got the better
of him and he pulled up. Pangborn got the hairpin wrong and tried to
take out ‘yours truly’ but I was too fleet of foot for that.
After
forty minutes the flag came out with Campfield over eleven seconds ahead
of a steady Smithies. Grace had come back to a strong third and Rawles
was fourth. Clarkson was next and then Harris, who despite his penalty
still finished sixth. Cameron was next, Walker with another steady
drive, autocrossing Pangborn, and then Richards. Permain had a problem
and Prior had spun harmlessly into the barrier by half distance. This
long race proved a success, it had its moments but generally it met with
the approval of all. We next meet at Snetterton in July, with the ‘Big’
cars at Silverstone first, watch this space!
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Round 1 : Mallory Park 19th April 2009
Words and Pictures by : Phil (Scoop) Broster.
‘e’ mail :
phil_scoop@hotmail.co.uk
A new season
and a new era for Austin Healey racing was heralded at Mallory Park with
the
first round of a seven race championship, changed from the previous nine
race format, but with much longer races promised. The series has a new
main line sponsor in the form of Lackford Engineering and with several
new faces this first race attracted twenty three entries.
A lot of work had been carried out in the close season by competition
secretary Joe Cox to negotiate what is a new venture for club racing in
the UK with a move from the ten lapper or fifteen minute races that have
been the norm for decades and that effort deserves success.
Twenty three entries turned up for the first race, a promising start,
and as well as the regular combatants we welcomed Jeremy Welch (3000)
and Ian Permain (Sprite) after a couple of seasons absence. From the
Healey Hill climbing community we have on board Tom Walker (3000) and
another Cameron, this time elder son Neil, in his lovely little Arkley
‘noddy car’ Sprite. Richard Knight was here in the beautiful 100S
campaigned for so long by the late Peter Korner.
Most peoples mounts were as last year, some probably not touched since
then!! But a notable exception was Dave Smithies who has built up a car
started by John Chatham many years ago but never completed, finished in
BRG as a tribute to DD300. Dave’s drive train from his previous chariot
has been fitted but it hadn’t turned a wheel before this weekend.
Qualifying took place with
little
drama and it was Campfield jnr. in the 3000 who took pole from ‘Dad’ in
the Championship winning Sprite, who unfortunately would not make the
race due to a defunct clutch which left him stranded on the circuit
after five laps in practice.
An unfortunate incident saw Jenkins in the barriers during practice
having had a ‘coming together’ with Clarkson on the exit to the fast
Gerrards bend.
So, twenty one starters took to the grid for this half hour thrash and
as the lights turned green it was H-B with another ‘rocket launch’ who
took to the front with Campfield trying hard to get back around the
outside of Gerrards, into the hairpin. H-B defended the inside and held
the lead onto the front straight. Grace was a strong third then
Clarkson, Welch, Harris P., Lackford, Thorne, Smithies diving inside
Rawe, Woolley, Woods, Bedford, Permain, Harris J., Knight, Pangborn,
Walker, Cameron, Lister, Richards completed the order with everyone
safely through on that first lap.
Second lap, Campfield took the lead at the hairpin but H-B was back in
front on the third. Smithies car was sounding sick, but still making
ground on Thorne. He would climb as high as seventh before loosing a
fan belt, he stopped to replace it but was out officially by lap 18
although he did reappear to try and clear his misfire problem towards
the end of the race. Meanwhile, Lackford got ahead of Harris P and Rawe
was holding off Woolley.
There was a great Sprite fight forming with Bedford, Harris J and
Permain which would last until lap 27 when Permain would pull off with a
misfire shortly followed by Harris with no drive.
Another fight to last nearly all race was with Rawe and Woolley.
Woolley got ahead for a couple of laps but after getting back ahead
after a titanic battle Rawe suffered chronic ‘brain fade’ into Gerrards
on lap 30. He headed straight for Hinckley only stopping when he hit
the Armco at an alarming rate. He was unhurt although the same couldn’t
be said for his car. Robert said later he was so thrilled at getting
back in front he forgot everything else!
Meanwhile up front H-B hung on for a couple more laps before Campfield
got through in the fast Esses, from there H-B fell into the clutches of
Grace who was sliding his car in a strong third place closely followed
by Clarkson.
Walker and Cameron enjoyed their first race in close company for a while
until Cameron succumbed to a head gasket failure on lap eleven. Walker
would make it to the finish fighting with the Sprites and Pangborn’s
100M. We lost an unhappy Woods about now too. Lackford and Harris P.
in their Sprites pushed each other hard all race, finishing in the top
six, likewise Thorne and Knight in the 100’s had a race long battle.
Grace was really turning it on now and pulled up to H-B in the fast
Gerrards, slingshotting down the back strait to take second place with
about five laps to go, and then almost immediately, pulled off with a
bad vibration. A sad end to a good drive. The vibration turned out to
be no tread left on a tyre!!
With
Grace gone Clarkson moved up on to H-B and for the last few laps they
fought hard for second place, finishing inches apart at the end.
With all these fights keeping us entertained, this longer race format
was proving a winner and although we lost a few runners the racing had
been close and constant throughout the field. Just on thirty minutes
Campfield took the flag with H-B and Clarkson just down the road. Welch
was a lonely fourth, Lackford and Harris P. next, then Woolley all
alone, Thorne and Knight again close, going into Devils Elbow alongside
each other, Thorne claiming the place. Bedford, Walker and Pangborn
with Richards and Lister completed the order. Lister was far from happy
with a misfire and a generally non-performing engine.
All that was left was the presentation of prizes and the generous
donation of race entry fee returned to Tom Walker by Jeremy Welch.
We next go to Cadwell, another circuit that should see close competition
between the Sprites and the ‘big uns’.
To see the full results and points scored
during the season, click
here or click
on the 'Results' tab in the grid at the top of the page. To see all the
pictures from the events, click
here or click on the
Gallery tab above.
Starting out in
Motorsport
For any
driver new to motorsport who is considering circuit racing with their
Austin Healey, there is now a simple guide available from the BARC
website called "Starting out
in Motorsport". Click
here to access this guide. As you will see, it aims to provide
the basic information needed to get you underway. In addition to
reading this, you should also get in contact with Joe Cox on
joe.cox2@btinternet.com
to understand the requirements of our particular championship.
Good luck and look forward to seeing you out on the track.
Lackford Engineering Austin Healey Club Championship
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