MGCC HRDC Snetterton - 1/2 October 2011

[Paulaweybridge]

That's right. My 1990 Rover Metro GTI 16v spi only has the red seatbelts carried over from the 1989/90 MG Metro....

Originally Posted by midgetman

PS the Rover 100 was never an MG! Even less than the A Series Metro!

[John Turner]

I haven't forgotten this. Already selected pics for next race; just struggling to find the time at mo.!

[zefarelly]

Those of you that can afford to retire seem to be busier than those of us that can't. hmmmmm . . . . still looking forward to the reports though

[terence]

Sometimes wish I was back at work,could have a rest then!

[John Turner]

Starters - 27
Classified - 22
Duration - 30 mins

John Andon led from the start in his Triumph TR4 (1) whilst his usual sparring partner, Pete Foster, also TR4 (77) mounted, had to overcome the fast starting WSM Sprite (7) of Brian Arculus. Andon opened up a gap but once Foster had found his way passed Arculus, the gap soon narrowed and there ensued the usual battle between these two which has attended these races this year. The dice sadly ended when Andon retired after 17 laps and Foster went on to win by 43 seconds from David Thompson in the best of the TVRs (151 - Grantura MkIII) with the WSM Sprite (27) of Mark Steward taking the last podium position, fending off the MGB (32) of David Alston in the process. Arculus had also retired, after 12 laps.

1 - Arculus and Foster
2 - Steward and Peter Carrington (15 - TVR Grantura 1800S - 11th)
3 - Tim Patchett (25 - MGB - 6th) was just beaten by Graham Bates (63) by less than 3 tenths in their race long duel.
4 - 52 is Helen Elstrop's Triumph Spitfire - 15th
5 - 64 is Colin Elsrop's Grantura MkIII - 9th
6 - Johnathan Abecassis in his Austin Healey 100/4 (70 - 19th)

More pics of this race to follow

[John Turner]

1 - Steve Naish (37 - MGB - 20th)
2 - Nick Wilkins (36 - MGA - 14th)
3 - Peter Carrington again
4 - Graham Coles (44 - MGA Coupe - 16th)
5 - Steven Bolderson (54 - MGB - 17th)
6 - Tristan Bradfield (34 - Sunbeam Alpine Le Mans - 18th)

[John Turner]

1 - Andon and Foster
2 - Dominic Spicer (153 - TR4 - 7th) and John Pearson(51- MGB - 8th)
3 - John Hatton (81 - MGB - 10th)
4 - David Rusell-Wilkes loses it into Murray's in his MGB (78 - 21st)
5 - David Thompson
6 - David Alston

[John Turner]

Starters - 27
Classified - 27
Duration - 20 minutes

Sponsored by Motoring Classics, this is an odd mix of cars really, matching the well supported cluster of D type replicas with a range of more typical sports cars, but it seems to work and provide some good racing. Simon Garrad blitzed his D replica (86), which sounded 'proper', into the lead but once Russell McCarthy got his late Dad's MGB GTV8 (2) up to 2nd, Garrard's lead came under threat and although they swapped places a couple of times, McCarthy went on win by 9.7 secs with another D type replica (95) of John Wilkes, 3rd, a further 27 secs back.

1) Garrad and Tony Lees (87 - Morgan Plus 8 - 4th)
2) 'Our' Tim Falce (61 - D Rep - 10th), Ian Prior (39 - MGB - 15th), Max Cawthorn (83 - MGA - 26th - Spin?) and Colin Jones (36 - MGA Twin Cam -14th)
3) Peter Barnard (26 - Elva Courier - 16th)
4) Russell McCarthy
5) Joe Parrington (28 - MGB GTV8 - 17th)
6) Neil Fowler (60 - MGC - 22nd)

[John Turner]

1) Roger Connel, in a car I'm particularly fond of, as he has raced it for years, his TVR Griffith. I think that he started from the pit lane long after everyone else was well into their first lap and he only finished 25th, whereas his lap times indicated that a position in the top half of the field was entirely likely had he started on the grid.
2) Kevin Swann (23 - MGB - 19th)
3) The leaders!
4) Colin Jones, Max Cawthorn and Peter Barnard, again!
5) Roger Whiteside (81 - Morgan +8 - 8th) and Simon Cripps (66 - MGB GT V8 - 9th)
6) John Wilkes

[John Turner]

Starters - 24
Classified - 17
Duration - 20 mins

Sponsored by Drayton Manor Park, these cars appear to provide plenty of fun racing (see pics!) although attrition seemed a little high. Neal Gardiner (88) took the early lead, hard pressed by James Dunkley (69) but once into his stride Andrew Ashton (97) soon caught them and took the lead. Although Dunkley fought back, he was unable to gain the lead and was just beaten by Ashton by 0.3 secs with Gardiner just 2 seconds further adrift.

1) Lap 1 and Gardiner leads Dunkley
2) Not a good pic really but had to show it as Iain Patterson (12 - 11th) appears to be laughing his head off, on the outside of Derek Facer (26 - 8th). Oliver Hood (30) was 12th
3) The eventual winner
4) Patterson is still clearly enjoying himself, a lap or two later, but this time on the inside whilst Facer checks where the happy Patterson actually is.
5) Dick Trevett (96) was to pull off later, one of 7 non finishers
6) Tom Sanderson (19 - 5th)

[zefarelly]

A few of those Metro's looked past their scrap by date, it certainly took a while to sweep up all the bits before they let us out!

[John Turner]

Starters - 17
Classified - 14
Duration - 30 mins

Great fun this one, although perhaps a bit light on entries which is why, no doubt, we saw the Warwick 350GT (24) - period correct but hardly a Gp2 touring car, on the grid. Lovely to see this rare car out, anyway, and now having a more suitable rear axle ratio than it's last visit to Snetterton, it was on pole. In fact, with 'our' Zef, one Joe Allenby-Browne alongside in his delightfully liveried Mk1 Cortina GT (71), I claim this to be an all 10-Tenths front row since although the driver, Ian Conway, is not, as far as I know, a member, the Warwick certainly is with it's co-owner, Celia Stevens. Anyway, Conway converted pole into the lead on the first lap, albeit very heavily pressed by Joe (see his account at Post 29), with squabbling Mk2 Jaguars giving chase at the end of the first lap. Conway held the lead for most of the race but once Chris Scragg had got into his stride and extricated his Jaguar (47) from the pusuing pack, he gradually homed in on the Warwick and finally took the lead about 3 laps from the end, winning by 1.6 seconds, these two half a minute ahead of Richard Butterfield's Jaguar Mk2 (10). Loads of pics for this one, the last race of the day, and my last of the meeting, since I did not return the following day:-

1) Conway and Allenby-Byrne - first lap
2) Tony Hall (49 - Vauxhall VX 4/90 - 14th)
3) William Lynch spins his Volvo P544 out of the race
4) Keith Kenward (27 - Jaguar S-type - 12th), Tony Murray (7 - Alfa 2600 Sprint - 8th)and Ding Boston (96 - Alfa Guilietta Sprint GT - 10th)
5) Butterfield and Scragg
6) Shaun Rainford failed to finish in his MG1100

[Peter Mallett]

There may be more than one Ian Conway but one of them is a poster on 10s. http://tentenths.com/forum/member.php?u=32238

[John Turner]

Peter, could well be him; I've met Ian several times but couldn't remember whether he was a Tenther. Maybe he, or Celia, will comment/confirm!

Anyway, more pics:-

1) Richard Frankel (12 - Alfa Guilia Ti - 6th)
2) Peter Burton (69 - Jaguar Mk2 - 4th) and Alister Dyson (55 - Cortina GT Mk1 - 5th)
3) Michael Peet (60 - Sunbeam Rapier - 13th)
4) Chris Scragg, the winner!
5) Boston and Murray again in their battling Alfas
6) Chris Scragg under pressure from Joe, before the latter headed for the pits

[John Turner]

Final lot of pics:-

1) Stewart Imber (3 - Mercedes 300SE - 11th)
2) Dyson, his Cortina GT cocking, rather unusually, a rear wheel!
3) McDonald lapping, Scragg gaining, heading into the sunset
4) Great midfield battle, whilst in the background is Joe heading back into the race to finish 7th, and what I think is the Nigel Webb Jaguar Mk2 which only managed 2 laps
5) McDonald again again!
6) Bruce Chapman (19 - MG Magnette - 9th) - really struggling to find a decent pic of that car

[Malcolm Smith]

John, a fabulous selection of cars, thanks for posting so many great photos.
I can't wait to see them in action at next year's 360 .

[zefarelly]

Great stuff John, well worth the wait

not sure what springs Alistair has on his Cortina, but that doesn't look quite right to me!

[simon drabble]

JT normal high standard. Really like everything I am reading and seeing on Julius' new series. The Jaguar should be ready for next season to join in the fun.

[John Turner]

Thanks for kind comments, chaps!