The Snetterton Classic................

[Slowcoach]

Well finally , after two months in the workshop since the Car and Engine agreed to become one I am due to collect the finished article tomorrow night . Hopefully entry accepted by the skin of my teeth , and barring any more minor disasters I should be there on Sunday , who knows I might even make it to general testing on Saturday - God knows I'll need it - having never actually sat in the car !! So who else is gonna be there ? Anyone ....?

[Peter Mallett]

Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

What is it you're driving again???

[Slowcoach]

Excellent ! I'll come and introduce myself - u have a Capri don't you ? I'll check back on the other thread....I will be in a white Rover with 'Unipart' emblazoned all over it (fingers crossed!) , must remeber to put my cross on the back! (In the Thunder race)

[Peter Mallett]

You will no doubt find me in the "Hostility" bus.

[yelwoci]

I'll be there!
Whether what I do can be described as racing I'm not sure, but I will be driving the RX7!


IanC
RX7 #51

[Slowcoach]

Haha , well I'm sure I'll be in that category not you ! I'm no. 80 , but now we've found that something else is missing so I am waiting on a part arriving from a Mr. D.Tweeks tomorrow morning so we can get it fired up and run-in in time ... me and my big mouth !

[Peter Mallett]

Originally posted by Slowcoach
but now we've found that something else is missing so I am waiting on a part arriving from a Mr. D.Tweeks tomorrow morning so we can get it fired up and run-in in time ...

Not an engine is it?

[Slowcoach]

Lucky I still have a sense of humour .... somewhere.....
Its been a pain in the **** right from the start - a word of advice , never buy a car without an engine! - Unless , of course , u can put it in and do all that mechanical stuff yourself, have the patience of a saint , a very fat wallet , nothing else in the world to do and absolutely no deadlines !!! (none of which I had much of - and even less so now ) Next time I will buy one all running and ready to go ...... if there is a next time.......I should have just stuck with my trusty little Lotus Sunbeam until it wore out.

[Peter Mallett]

Yeah, but once you've got it going those thoughts will just be a fading memory.

BTW.

Originally posted by Slowcoach

a very fat wallet

I was a lot slimmer then but in my debut Metro race at Brands Hatch that nice Brian Jones chap introduced me as "and on the third row, we have Peter Wallet in his first race ............. "

[Sparky]

Yes, but he didn't know your middle names were 'the walking' !

[Peter Mallett]

You've been talking to Boxbridge again, haven't you?

[Slowcoach]

Like I said , "me and my big gob!!" leaking heads after the first workshop run and a Mechanic who has got tomorrow off means that I will not be at Snetterton on Sunday . I give up . Perhaps I should buy a bicycle .
Good luck you guys - drive safely ! Maybe I'll be at Oulton Park , if not this year , perhaps next......
I'm going to the pub now and I'm not coming out until Monday.

[yelwoci]

I find it a constant source of amaizement that we wouldn't accept this with the local garage and our roadcars, but we casually accept it up the rectum with the racecars.

Slowcoach: have you considered how this must have been your fault somehow!

:-)
IanC

[Slowcoach]

Well you right about where we get it with our racecars , but I am well and truly over a barrel on this one , the guy who built the engine is an aquaintance of a friend who did me a 'favour' sourcing and building the engine on the quiet , I took a chance - cash and no tears . If I shout at him , he will just say b****x and put the phone down - too far to go and knee-cap - while I'm polite he'll be helpful and has been 'advising' the guy putting it in . Who whilst I know I'm paying him has really been trying hard to get it all sorted despite numerous niggly little problems .
You are very right it is undoubtably my own fault, I am too trusting , too headstrong and should be able to put the bloody thing in myself !!!!
Now that pint is calling me .......

[Peter Mallett]

Sadly, I've been there, seen it, done it, bought the tee shirt and then got the S"£*s to prove it!

I once had some friends preparing my race car. They were paid by my sponsor. I remember coming back to the car after they'd tken it through scrutineering and convinced the scrute that the reason for the brake pedal going to the floor was due to the car standing for two weeks. However, they didn't tell me. I went out to practice (it was Pembrey) and braked at the hairpin and ................ nothing. I drove all of practice pumping the brakes and using the nearside front tyre for slowing down.

When I mentioned it to the team they had a really good laugh. They never came with me again. However it cost me two front tyres (practice and race) and I finished third.

Nowadays, I keep these things on a professional basis. It's better for everyone.

[SNH]

I had problems with a misfire, it's fixed now, but took about 1.5 seasons

[Maisie]

SNH, what do you race? Correct me if I'm horribly wide of the mark, but I gather you race in the BARC or CSCC series with Peter, but if you let me know which car you're in, I'll know who to cheer for

[SNH]

I'm not racing at the moment, working away, lack of cash, etc. There's some photos of the car on http://www.1156motorsport.com
PM's car is like a negative of mine, red/yellow, mine's yellow/red. I've raced in the CSCC for about 10 years, a Triumph 2000 Mk1, a Capri Mk1 & a Capri Mk 3. I raced the Capri Mk1 in Scottish road Saloons for one year against Sierra Cossies & BMW M3's!

[Sparky]

Truly sorry to hear of your mechanical woes, Mr Slowcoach.

Rover heads aren't renowned for leaking normally are they? I've never had problems using the steel gaskets on aluminium heads. Is it possible Mr 'friend of a friend' has made an error? Is it definately the heads? Could it be those coolant pipes that run under the inlet? (Not being a smartarse, just trying to help ) Are you supposed to use fresh stretch bolts? Can't remember...

Either way, it'll be a shame to not be there Sunday. Perhaps next time.

(I have replied to your email, BTW!)

[Slowcoach]

Well I really don't know what to think , thanks for the advice ! (perhaps I should have mentioned it is actually a TVR Tuscan engine - they are , I'm told traditionally rather fragile and also run extremely hot) I was told that this builder guy was the mutts nuts having formally run a Tuscan raceteam , so we'll see , many fingers and toes are currently crossed ! Hopefully it will all settle down , I don't think I can wait much longer - the original plan , conservatively , was to be ready for Mallory and that was in May !!!!! Maybe I will go karting with my friend tomorrow to keep the road rage at bay . Are the pubs open yet, sigh.......its all too much.:confused:

[Tony Harman]

Bad luck on not getting to Snetterton Slowcoach, it's a good circuit to bed in a new car. Will you make Pembrey then ?
We all seem to fall in to the trap of relying on other people to meet our deadlines, I've been racing for a few years and still do it. Missed my first meeting of the season this year despite working right through the night, it's very difficult to rely on friends and friends of friends. The only ones I now rely on now are me and "she who lets me race".
Peter's quite right - sometimes it's best to do pay up front for a proffesional job, might cost a little more but a lot less heartache.
How did you get on at Snett Peter & Ian? We finally got back out in the Classic FF, - first meeting since Cadwell. I was going to come over and say hello but I lost front brakes at the beginning of practise and spent all day fixing them for the race, they were great on the warm up lap then lost them again going into Riches on the first lap - ooh that was a little entertaining, interesting way to get a car to turn in - just having rear brakes....

[yelwoci]

Tony,
I finished without any spins or excursions the whole day, which is incredible for me.
I almost had a very big moment through Coram but remembered to keep the foor in and survived.
I had a misfire problem all day. In the race I had lost 1000rpm off max rpm, so was off max power and the rotary didn't spin up well.
Had some fun with an SD1, as the other RX7 was 20 sec ahead.

Finished 6th overall with a sick car. Race times were slower than practice, though I feel I was taking better lines. 0.5 sec slower than last year!

IanC

[Slowcoach]

Hmmm,it's all very frustrating!
I doubt that I will go to Pembrey TH - It's such a long way and looking at the schedule I'd have to set out Friday then practice Saturday and race Sunday - in my current circumstances I cannot justify the whole w/e (2 nights)away-that would be stretching hid's tolerance beyond the limit . What I might do is go to Croft-I know its about the same distance but I can go for a track day Friday & stay with a cousin nearby , race Saturday and be home in time for tea! (There's an AMOC sportscars v saloons <pre1980>race.)
I should be back in one piece in about a week or so and I'm booked in for a track day (RSOC) at Goodwood on the 12th to run-in the motor so I guess I wont see anyone until Thruxton.
Well done Yelwoci!