MGCC HRDC Snetterton - 1/2 October 2011 - Page 2

GORDON STREETER · 1 Oct 2011, 17:46 (Ref:2963619)

I have just noticed that Joe has put his "Tina" on the front row for the race.
That "rest" it had in my workshop obviously paid off

**John Turner** · 2 Oct 2011, 08:06 (Ref:2964229)

Yep, great effort by Joe and he gave an excellent account of himself in the race, too, until he had to pit for reasons he will no doubt disclose to us, returning to the race to finish about 8th, I think, when a podium was very much on the cards. Very enjoyable day with some excellent grids, although it ran on a tad longer than expected. Decided not to go back today; couldn't justify the cost really but am disappointed that I'll miss the Grand Touring Greats race.

zefarelly · 2 Oct 2011, 13:25 (Ref:2964318)

I think I've set a world record . . . . sun burn in Norfolk, in October

race report coming soon . . . . just unloading everything.

zefarelly · 2 Oct 2011, 14:38 (Ref:2964337)

Right . . . . journey up was crap, as are all journeys is England. Arrive late in the dark on Friday night to an already busy paddock, unloaded Sat am, al scrutineered and out to practice . . . . don't like stupid hairpins for no reason, and outbraked myself virtually every thime in practice, once I got it right, it can be taken in 2nd, just . . . but its close, there was oil down here and there and I never felt I got one really good lap. the times took ages to come out, and I had no idea what to expect, I don't think the actual times where great, but I was gobsmacked to be on the front row.

no dramas, cars was great, usual checks anda splash of petrol.

I got a clean start and was away with Ian in the Warwick, clearly its much quicker in a straight line and I was all over it in the bendy bits . . . . early doors, bide my time and we'll see how tyres last . . . . . 5 laps in I locked up avoiding him into the hairpin, bogged it down then got outdragged by the 2 jags on the back straight. from there on I was having to brake early for loads of things and using first for the hairpin, nearly rear ended the jag a few times, got past one finally when he did similar then went after the Scragg MK2 . . . . I was watching and learning, both the revised circuit for myself as well as looking for weak points in the jags armour, it was likely as not going to have to be a mistake or round the outside at Coram to get the inside for the chicane . . . . all that while the Warwick was creeping away bit by bit . . . about 20 minutes in a funny buzzing noise and the water gauge stopped working so I dived into the pits for a look, I can't afford to ignore these things. The fan on the alternator (homologated thanks for asking) had broken in half and flipped the fan belt inside out, but it was still there, I tried to turn it but bo luck so I went back out ( wire torn off water gauge sender) and figured the belt would go and the alternator light would tell me . . . . . no idea where I was, race was gone effectively but I wanted to finish. the belt snapped through Coram on the last lap and I limped home, still got 3rd in class, fastest lap and 7th overall. anther close but no cigar.

A brilliant and jam packed prize giving and BBQ followed and loads of great people there too. thanks for a fantastic weekend everyone. All in all it was a brilliant event, the HRDC have hit the nail clean through the wood with all their series, their attitude and approach is bang on, for a damned good price too. for the first time in 5 years or more I can't wait for next season. I'll be press ganging Anglias and Cortina GT's to come and play, and hopefully others will bring some 1L minis etc to make an even better spectacle.

off down the beach now . . .well it is October

I have in car video ( not brilliant, but will try and get it posted somewhere soon)

zefarelly · 2 Oct 2011, 17:19 (Ref:2964392)

Sorry Sue, appalling grammar and spelling . . . . you try writing with a 6 year old nagging in your ear! here's a few snaps . . . HRDC cup cake, at the BBQ, Arthur approved. Micky Boltons fantastic trophies, and the bit of alternator that spoilt my race, if not the day.

LAK · 3 Oct 2011, 11:41 (Ref:2964873)

A mixed bag for us - a fantastic weekend but a non-finish in the Aurelia.

Stunning weather and of course fantastic as always to race with Julius and our fellow competitors. Practice went well although I could have sworn that we were supposed to be on the 300 so seeing cones where I didn't expect them was a surprise! The Aurelia detests the 2nd gear corners (tracks should ban them) but other than a slightly slipping clutch the Aurelia was wonderful. Jason qualified us 19th out of 35 and 2nd in class.

A manic start for Jason and taking to the grass to avoid an errant Jaguar left him behind a couple of cars he'd out qualified but he enjoyed being in the thick of it. The Aurelia always looks sublime coming around Coram and through the last corner (2nd gear or not) and as for the noise up the straight - pure heaven! After 15 mins or so Jason managed to avoid and get past a couple of cars battling ahead of him and well that was the last I saw of him...

A wheel had decided to become a split rim and unceromoniously deposited Jason near the cabbages! Jason said it was undramatic with the worse bit seeing them hoist the Aurelia on the recovery truck by its roof - if he'd known they were going to do that he'd have run back to the truck to get a spare wheel. Anyway, thankfully no damage to the car and the a spare on, the Aurelia was back to fine fettle.

The race was fabulous to watch and congratulations to Vic and Charles in the Rover for getting a 3rd in class and also Nicola with a second in the Minor in what is the Abarth's class.

Our next bit of excitement (well my only real bit after the disappointment of the dreaded second driver curse) was watching Joe take off from second on the grid and harry pole man Ian in the Warwick for 15+ minutes in the pre-63 TC race. It was heart breaking to see him dive in the pits but we roared our support as he came back out and got a brilliant 8th overall. Awesome driving Joe!

Julius' przie giving was very special yet again - joyous but also a bit sad as it was our last race of the season. With a fab BBQ with bubbly, cupcakes and good company we couldn't think of a better way to end it.

Thanks to Julius and the HRDC team, the MGCC, officials and marshals for a wonderful season of racing. It was really good to catch up with John T and Terry B on the day along with numerous racing chums. Congraultations to Brian A who I see got a pole to flag victory on Sunday - sorry we couldn't stay and watch you.

Jason and I are already plotting next season....

simon drabble · 3 Oct 2011, 12:43 (Ref:2964906)

Quote:

Originally Posted by LAK

Jason and I are already plotting next season....

as indeed are others!!!!

Brian A · 3 Oct 2011, 16:07 (Ref:2965019)

What a lovely way to spend a sun filled weekend in October

Well I had a thorougly enjoyable weekend. Didn't fall into the same traffic problems that Joe did as I gave up on travelling to Snett on Friday afternoon some time ago and now do the early morning start on Saturday. Leaving a very dark West Sussex at 4.45 am gives the added pleasure of a free Dartford Crossing before 6.00 am. It's only £1.50 but a minor triumph..

Got to the circuit at 7.20 before the main rush to get in and found a cosy spot with the Equipe GTS guys as I anticipated that the HRDC section would be pretty crowded. Unloaded the WSM, waited ages for scrutineering and had no time for breakfast before qualifying. Clearly saving the extra ballast of bacon and eggs worked wonders as I qualified in 4th place in a 28 car grid. It was clear that many people were struggling with the 200 circuit, the hairpin is so different from the 300 circuit that I did earlier in the season and the left hander is a real challenge.

A bombshell was dropped on us at lunchtime when it was announced that Christophe is in the process of selling the Equipe GTS brand as he was not prepared to carry on for 2012. Most drivers were feeling let down by this, but there is fresh light at the end of the tunnel. But back to the racing...

Watched the first part of the HRDC Touring Cars before heading off to get ready for the first Equipe GTS race. Had a blinding start from the second row and followed pole sitter, John Andon into the first few corners until the power of Pete Foster's TR4 overcame the poor little Wussum. Was doing quite well in 3rd place and could watch the fun and games of the 2 TVR Granturas of Dave Thompson and Colin Elstrop in my rear view mirror arguing about which one was going to challenge me for the place. A developing misfire let them both through followed by a couple of the MGBs so it was time to pit and as there was nothing obvious - to retire. The points gap had closed up to 8 thou, but more importantly the rotor arm was looking particularly second hand so it was binned and replaced with a lovely NOS Lucas item, courtesy of MGA racer Graham Coles who was parked up next to us in the paddock.

One of the best parts of the weekend was that I've found a great B&B, something that has always been a problem in the past at Snetterton. The evening meal was excellent, as was the breakfast which they happily served at 7.00 on the Sunday morning. We missed out on Julius' BBQ as we'd arranged to have dinner with some old friends on Saturday night.

Back at the circuit for qualifying for the HRDC GT Race, things were going great until Shaun Rainford deposited the contents of his oil cooler on the entry to the bomh hole, through the apex and the exit. It did show everybody the right line that needs to be taken

He did make a point of apologising to all the drivers, one of the hoses had blown off.

Just time for a drink before heading out for the second Equipe GTS race at 10.00, Pat came along to tell me I'd qualified the Elite on pole. So with new enthusiasm, into the WSM to start from 23rd on the grid owing to the non finish on Saturday. The misfire was cured, the car went like a dream and I won my class and finished 4th overall. I even managed to beat my pole position time in the Elite by three thousenths of a second - not bad for a little Midget although the Lotus was on a 3 year old set of tyres (note the excuses).

Come the HRDC race, had a good start until the 3rd lap (I think) when I totally overcooked the hairpin letting Rae Davis through in the MiniJem, and then running side by side down the Bentley straight with Shaun Rainford almost dropping to third. Sensible driving meant no dramas into the Esses - thanks Shaun. Got my head back into gear and set about whittling Rae's lead down, getting back into the lead by about half way. Managed to pull out a buffer and finished 8 seconds ahead at the end.

So a very good couple of races for my last meeting of the season. After 2 hours of track time, I still don't think I got the hairpin right, but with fresh tyres on the Elite and some proper brakes on the WSM, it can only get better - roll on 2012.

AGD A105/6 · 3 Oct 2011, 16:34 (Ref:2965032)

Great result for us after a trying day, starting with one hour to get through scrutineering (what was going on there?) by which time we were on 3rd call for the assembly area. First time at Snetterton for several years for me, the new Montreal hairpin is not much fun in the A105, and the Coram-Murrays section is heart in mouth every time, even when I did keep it on the black stuff. The car itself had been tweaked since Croft but no chance to test so it was all a bit of a step in the dark. Roberto’s time put us 18th on the grid, alongside Tom Harris’ Mk7. I struggled to get to grips with car and circuit, my time would have put us 24th.

We followed our usual race strategy of me cocking up the start and Roberto doing a longer, later stint to pick up the pieces. Got a reasonable start off the line but Tom’s extra power soon told and he forged up the middle, fairly adjacent. It was like being overtaken by Ben Nevis. I was happy to be on the outside though as there was bound to be some excitement at Riches, and sure enough, clouds of dust, cars all over the place, bits of flying metal, but everyone seemed to get through OK. I expected a few cars to get past early on, which they duly did, although I thought 3 at once into Montreal on lap 2 was rubbing my nose in it a bit!

I started to get the hang of the car and managed to recover a couple of places but it was all very close, as the in-car demonstrates:
Front cam:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_glnAIqMAk8
Rear cam:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIw5J_ILpVI

Closing on the beige Mk7 around lap 7 I got way over-ambitious, screwed up the Murrays entry completely and had to take to the grass to avoid clouting him. Fortunately no impact and Jason, closely following, took smart avoiding action. Everyone then shot past me again, and this, and shortly afterwards the sight of Jason bouncing across the Riches outfield in close formation with a wheel, caused a slight loss of focus, but pressed on until the pitlane opened.

Roberto then reeled off some great laps, 2 seconds quicker than qualifying, and elevated us from about 20th at handover to a final 11th, 4th in class, despite the brakes giving up about 4 laps from the end.

Good to see Joe harrying the Jags and the Warwick in the TC63, sorry to hear the battle ended early, but a great start to the new series, should be another full grid next year!

Splendid finish to a great season, thanks again to Julius and all for laying on such a splendid show – the friendly atmosphere of the HRDC paddock area is always a real highlight - and special thanks to the orange army spending all day in the baking heat, fighting off swarms of insects.

Can’t wait for next year!

Andrew Kitson · 3 Oct 2011, 16:48 (Ref:2965045)

I only popped in for the Saturday afternoon action...some photos on facebook. Anyone can view, no password required:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...632cea3&type=1

zefarelly · 3 Oct 2011, 18:00 (Ref:2965090)

great reports

uploading the whole race now from my car, very slowly, its quite a large file! its not very good sound, or particularly exciting from a photography point of view, first time camera user alert! but for those of you in a boring office, it might just keep a coma at bay

link to follow

zefarelly · 4 Oct 2011, 07:42 (Ref:2965347)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YU5Q--1tk0

5 hours to upload . . . Ladies and Gentlemen . . . I give you . . . . quite a plain but clean dashboard, with a whining gearbox/diff, a bit of sunset, and a few other cars wiggling their buts, it was pretty intense from where I was sitting, although it looks like a ditched edition of crossroads on film (I'll get Gordon in next season)

**John Turner** · 4 Oct 2011, 08:41 (Ref:2965375)

Great reports from Joe, Louise, Brian and Andrew. Makes these threads so much more meaningful when we get these sorts of accounts. I'll do my usual pictorial review for Saturday's races but it won't be in a rush! In the meantime a few pit and paddock shots.

**John Turner** · 4 Oct 2011, 09:09 (Ref:2965398)

A few more:-

simon drabble · 4 Oct 2011, 09:15 (Ref:2965400)

John what was the story behind the 4 exhaust pipes? I really think Julius' series captures the current mood.. stripped back endurance and the pre 63 saloon grid looks the recipe for a very good series - well done Joe, good couple of weeks ofr you!!!

Brian A · 4 Oct 2011, 09:54 (Ref:2965424)

Quote:

Originally Posted by simon drabble

.....what was the story behind the 4 exhaust pipes? ...

These belong to the Warwick GT350 being raced by Ian McDonald. Previously known as the Peerless until they went bust. Originally TR3 engined, this has the 3.5 litreV8 of Buick origin (I believe) .

I've raced against this beastie when I had my TR3 - it really shifts down the straights but seems a real handful to get round the corners.

I think it also struggled to satisfy the noise police - hence the 4 large silencers, the 2 inner ones can be seen, the outer ones are further forward with longer tailpipes.

Anorak going back in the wardrobe

**John Turner** · 4 Oct 2011, 10:04 (Ref:2965430)

I think I may have shown the 4 pipes before. It's the Warwick GT350 of Ian McDonald and Celia Stevens (a 10-Tenther) which is a bit of a favourite of mine. Not sure what it was doing in the Pre 63 FIA Group 2 Touring car race though. Maybe Julius just likes it, which is fair enough; not sure whether he expected Ian to put it on pole though!

Ooops, Brian beat me to it!

zefarelly · 4 Oct 2011, 10:05 (Ref:2965431)

looks like mines on its last legs as well . . .gone from 90 to 105db in the last year or so.

Thanks Simon, its been a rollercoaster! going to try and crack into the TT over winter, and a few Crustina improvements . . .hopefully you'll get your MK2 done?

Kelvin · 6 Oct 2011, 10:33 (Ref:2966575)

From the stats, it looks like many of you have viewed the photos on the HRDC website already, and there are a few more to follow (for example) the trophy presentation snapshots.

Kelvin.

zefarelly · 6 Oct 2011, 11:04 (Ref:2966585)

ah yes SHIRT!

Kelvin · 6 Oct 2011, 12:57 (Ref:2966633)

( I just looked at the photo)

The shirt is mightier than the trophy...

**John Turner** · 6 Oct 2011, 15:20 (Ref:2966686)

Starters - 33
Classified - 27
Duration - 30 mins

For those expecting pics of prewar 3 wheelers, from the title, you'll be disappointed. I'm afraid I find it very difficult to identify old Morgans from new, and the programme doesn't give the year of manufacture of the entrants, although the engine sizes are a clue! Anyway, some old, some new and a good sized grid. Keith Ahlers was on pole with his Plus 8 but stalled as the lights went out and was very lucky not to get shunted (see pic 1); It could have all become very messy but fortunately didn't, so well done to those guys that stopped in time and to the others for getting around him without hitting each other! Keith's absence from the restart allowed Russell Paterson (72 - Plus 8) to disappear down the road to win by 49 seconds. 2nd was Ray Higgs in another Plus 8 with Class B winner, Tony Lees, also Plus 8 (87) mounted 3rd. A few pics:-

**Peter Mallett** · 6 Oct 2011, 15:35 (Ref:2966691)

Good to see a 1960's plus four (assume Triumph powered) No 23 in the mix.

**John Turner** · 6 Oct 2011, 15:42 (Ref:2966696)

Ian Summers 'Black Sheep' - it's had a V8 dropped in it!

simon drabble · 6 Oct 2011, 15:42 (Ref:2966697)

Morgan's are a real marmite car and I get teh impression that I am in the minority as I like them and think the front running modsport cars look a lot of fun

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