HSCC Cadwell Park, 22nd April.

[Gary Critcher]

I had a great time! First time at this circuit (sorry, lads, but I'll be back!).
Anyone else go? John, sorry I missed you again!!

[John Turner]

Superb meeting, Gary, and I actually managed to meet a few 10-Tenthers (and non registered viewers!) that I had not caught up with before. Altogether a great meeting, and it seems from the level of entries and the quality of the racing at both Donington, and now Cadwell, we have a great HSCC season ahead of us.

I'll be posting my usual pictorial review in due course, but since I was at Snet. the day before, I'll be starting that first!

[paddy]

My first time as well and won't be the last. Fantastic.

[Gary Critcher]

Paddy, where you racing?

[Teddington Ted]

It does look as though we are in for a good year. I can't help thinking that the fine weather has helped the general mood. I for one really enjoyed Cadwell (the first time in five visits that I can say that). It is a great circuit - my brain ached by the end of my race because I had to concentrate so much on every corner !

[Alan Morgan]

I was there as well, organising the first ever Historic FF2000 Association race, and attempting to have my first drive in a single seater for 28 years - here's my tale of woe (all captured by Gary Critcher on video, unfortunately...)

Friday
Engine runs for the first time in 4 years in the car I was loaned.

Saturday testing
Fail noise test
Water hose blows off
First session - Ignition timing slipped, 4 laps
Second session - miss a gear, flywheel bolts shear, clutch explodes, 2 laps

Sunday
Qual - Water pump pulley falls off, ignition timing slips again, cambelt jumps a tooth, rotor arm breaks - 1 timed lap
Race - After all the problems, I was delighted to finish, and even more delighted that and I wasn't quite last or the slowest.

On the plus side, we had a very enjoyable barbecue for the Historic FF2000 drivers on Saturday evening, and my good mate (and co-organiser) Iain Rowley won what sounds like a cracking race.

It was great to be back at Cadwell...

[morninggents]

Does anybody know what's happened to the MST PDF Booklet for this meeting?
I've e-mailed MST but no response. Usually they are excellent at posting the results.

[John Turner]

Scrutineering appeared not to take place actually in the bay. Lack of light?:-


Known as the flying Carrots, the Terrier Mk4 of Derek Walker and Alexis HF1 of Duncan Rabagliati, seen here in blue overalls, and whom I had the good fortune finally to meet .......


....... and the young lady, whom I did not, sitting in Matthew Watts all conquering Brabham BT29:-


Pete Morton is about to reverse his Lightning FJ to line up with the others prior to qualifying:-

[zefarelly]

Originally Posted by morninggents

Does anybody know what's happened to the MST PDF Booklet for this meeting?
I've e-mailed MST but no response. Usually they are excellent at posting the results.

maybe they where experimenting again like they did at Castle Combe

[John Turner]

One of two Cooper Bristols which were entered, this one driven by Peter Plaskitt, had problems during qualifying and failed to take the grid:-


A quad of Imps. Simon Benoy's (87), Steve Platts Chamois version (94), Mike Hanna's (1), and hidden from view, that of Adrian Oliver (89):-


It's 10.30 am and here is proof that a man can multitask. Frank Lyons works on the Merlyn Mk11A, coke in one hand, torque wrench in the other:-


Neil Wood's Anglia queues up for a burger with no thought for its waistline or weight penalty:-

[paddy]

I wasn't racing, just watching.

[John Turner]

17 years separates Stephen Futters lovely Lotus 20 from Alan Ormandy's Reynard SF78. However, I suspect that double that period separates the two camper vans to the left!:-


First time out with the HSCC, the FF2000 line up for scrutineering:-


As you know, I sometimes attempt to go 'arty'. Mini branches out! Roger Godfrey's Cooper S:-


The FF2000s await their turn for qualifying:-

[Alan Morgan]

Can I use the FF2000 pictures on the Historic FF2000 website, John (with an appropriate acknowledgement, of course)? We all had a great weekend at our first ever event, but there isn't much to show for it yet.

Paddock/assembly area shots are so much more interesting than simple "Here's me at Copse" stuff.

Cadwell Virgins! - Get there as soon as you can - it might not be there forever!

[Alan Raine]

Originally Posted by John Turner

17 years separates Stephen Futters lovely Lotus 20 from Alan Ormandy's Reynard SF78. However, I suspect that double that period separates the two camper vans to the left!:-

Nice to see the Reynard presented in Rick Gornes livery. (Gorne, I believe, later became Reynards Sales Manager) The only thing missing is the Airbox that the car always seemed to run at the time.

[John Turner]

Originally Posted by Alan Morgan

Can I use the FF2000 pictures on the Historic FF2000 website, John (with an appropriate acknowledgement, of course)?

Yes, of course, Alan.

I'll start on the races later, but I'm also 'doing' the Snet event, and am out for a few hours, so progress will be slow!

[Gary Critcher]

If you'd like to check at youtube, here http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=Nike155 I have already put up a few short videos from Cadwell, I'll be adding some during the week.

[John Turner]

Good one, Gary.

Finally to Race 1. Sadly, neither of the Milano GTs turned up - Mike Eagles had failed to take the grid at Donington, and Justin Murphy suffered worryingly low oil pressure towards the end of the race there, so I'm guessing that they are both still in the process of resolving problems. Coupled with other absentees, the grid was down to 17 starters but contained the usual great variety. All four of the pics here are taken in, or at the approach to, Hall bends.

It wasn't Andy Shepherd's day really. He placed the Lotus S7 on pole but made a poor start, whilst fellow front row man David Randall scampered away. Shepherd was left to fight a race long duel with the Elan of Paul Toombs which he ultimately lost:-


Meanwhile Randall drove away to win by 13.5 seconds. Here :-


If memory serves me correctly, Colin Sharp's last race at Cadwell ended in the wall on the exit to Barn, badly damaging his TR4A, so it was good to see him out again. He finished 9th. Spot what's missing?:-


Dick Coffey finished 6th in his Turner Mk1 and Matthew Newman, 7th, in his Alfa GTV, but appearances can be deceptive. Coffey finished 39 seconds ahead with a best lap fully 6 seconds faster than that of the Alfa:-

[Gary Critcher]

there's no windscreen on the TR4??

[John Turner]

Yep, even the Ginetta and Turner have aero screens!

[John Turner]

Another fine grid of the very well established Historic Formula Ford cars. Nelson Rowe put his Crossle 20F on pole by half a second from Neil Fowler in his Lola T200, and I had visions of a repeat of Donington when Rowe sailed off into the lead whilst Fowler became involved in a 3 way tussle for 2nd with Nigel Bancroft and Westie Mitchell. However, I should have looked more closely at the qualifying times, because Fowler himself was 2.2 seconds ahead of 3rd place qualifier, David Wild and 2.8 seconds ahead of Bancroft with Mitchell further back still.

Fowler was in no mood to get left this time, and although Rowe briefly converted his pole into a lead, Fowler soon took it from him. There then followed an absolutely monumental dice for the lead, and indeed one of the finest single seater dices I've seen in over 40 years of spectating. This was committed racing of the clean and close variety, neither driver was error free, running wide and getting sideways on occasions, but they were lapping on the edge at around qualifying pace. Watching the pace of both coming into Hall Bends, with Fowler sideways at one point, was worth the entry fee alone. Although the lead changed hands several times, it would be fair to say that Fowler led most of the time and usually across the line. Rowe managed to grab the lead on Lap 10 and hold it across the line to start lap 11, but further back an incident brought out the red flag, and results were declared based on the positions at the end of lap 9. Rowe may have felt slightly aggrieved but he shouldn't since this is not a race that will be remembered so much for who won but the superb display of racing that he and Fowler had put on. They are an absolute credit to the historic racing movement and Historic Formula Ford in particular:-


There were other fine dices going on down the field, and at the other end of the field, Roy Siergiejew brough his Merlyn Mk17 home 24th:-


Michael Wales finished 22nd in his Merlyn Mk20


Here is young Michael Lyons in another Merlyin, a Mk11A. He qualified a fine 5th, and lost just one place to the experienced Westie Mitchell who then had a good duel with Nigel Bancroft and took 4th, beating Bancroft by just 3 tenths. In the meantime 6 seconds ahead of them David Wild in his Lola T200finished a rather lonely 3rd. Meanwhile, Lyons finished 6th at the front of a closely fought 5 car battle which included John Sykes (7th - Merlyn Mk11A), James Murray (8th - in his rarely seen Palliser WDF3), Chris Sharples (9th - Palliser WDF1) and Dave Lowe (10th - Lotus 69). It was an accident involving Lowe (who was shaken but not stirred) that brought out the red flag, so I suppose I ought to be asking Johngee the question!

[John Turner]

Not quite such a good field for the Guards Trophy which clearly needs time to develop. A good mix of cars nonetheless. Whilst Michael Schryver's Chevron B6 wasn't present, his place at the front was this time taken by the yellow JCB liveried B8 of Andy Newall who duly put the car on pole. He led from start to finish and is seen here leaving Hall Bends to enter the Hairpin:-


Martin Stretton created a bit of an identity crisis with our commentators, particularly Marcus Pye, when he appeared on the grid not wearing his well known helmet but one that looked like that of Mark Clubb, the entrant of the pretty Elva 7S. Marcus soon decided that he should go by the press-on style of driving rather than the helmet, and Stretton took the Elva to a comfortable second place. In fact, having seen Newall drive away at the start, Stretton for a while stabilised the gap and briefly looked as though he might close it. However, Newall pressed on and Stretton's times dropped off a little (braking problems?) and the gap was over 21 seconds at the end. Here he is seen, at the beginning of the race heading off the Mountain towards Hall Bends with Jim Chapman's Ginetta in close attendance and Philip Nelson's Marcos 1800GT:-


Stuart Tizzard blamed himself rather than his Lenham for what was for him a lowly (7th) grid position and proved his point by lapping 4 seconds faster in the race and finishing 4th right on the tail of Jim Chapman's Ginetta G16. Here he is with Charles Allison's Marcos 1800GT and Michael Hibberd in the background:-


After the quicker of the sportscars had sorted themselves and re-established themselves in front of the fast starting Nelson, Allison, by dint of some hard driving brought himself onto the tail of Nelson and they diced together like this for several laps before the fall of the flag and finished in this order, 5th and 6th:-

[Finn]

thanks for reviewing the event and posting the pictures John, I couldn't make it,

[zefarelly]

I've only done Cadwell once, and it was brilliant . . .hopefully we'll go back again soon

[John Turner]

I'm afraid that I am having real problems uploading pictures to Imageshack this evening so this is it for the moment.

I don't know whether I am having a prolonged senior moment (James Murray has already suggested that I am suffering from the onset of old age!) but I'm embarrassed to say that I can't really remember much about this race at all. I do note that I took more pictures than usual of these lovely cars so maybe I was concentrating too much on them. If anyone can add some detail, please feel free. In the meantime, I can tell you that this was an excellent sized grid, and that poleman Andrew Hibberd won it from Christopher Drake. Here Hibberd rushes his Lotus 22 through the trees to Hall Bends. More pictures form this race tomorrow:-

[johnh875]

Great photos and comments as always John