HSCC Autosport 3 Hours - Snetterton

[Andrew Kitson]

Pictures from Sunday HSCC:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...3&l=5cef2e415c

[terence]

Good to see you Andrew,hope you managed to keep dry yesterday afternoon?
For those of us who dont do FB,is there somewhere else to view your photo's?
Also great to have finally met Mr Morning gents,nice talking to you Peter,hope your man was happy with his three lap's.

[Andrew Kitson]

You do not need to be on Facebook to see them Terry. Just click on the link. If by chance you get a box popping up saying 'Log in' whilst viewing them, just click 'cancel' or 'ignore' or whatever it is to get rid of it. Yes stayed fairly dry..but pretty cold out there in the sticks with the strong breeze! Good to see you too and nice to see the Greenway family out in force to present Norman's trophy to Benn Simms.

[terence]

I'll have a look then Andrew,thanks.

[Burfs]

Originally Posted by one-two

What a great weekend's racing. Only concern is the number of races that were safety car'd or red flagged. I have a feeling it might have been most? Unfamilarity with the new infield section and difficult conditions partly to blame, but perhaps circuit could work out a quicker way to retrieve or move cars from that section - not criticising anyone, but seemed to be a bit more awkward than it ought. Interested in what others thought. Best, Robert

Hi all, I was one of the unfortunates to have to be picked up (literally!) by the snatch-truck. The HRS race on Saturday was safety-car'd for what seemed an age , however the problem was that the original tow-truck sent to get me at the Agostini hairpin was not going to work as I had a sheared half-shaft leaving left rear wheel hanging off! A few moments later the hoist arrived and then it took a while to work out how best to lift my Lenham.
Apologies for the delay however I gather the last two laps were very exciting!

[John Turner]

Well, presumably Andy was under cover if he stayed dry because the day steadily deteriorated and rain was constant from about 3.00 ish -I got very wet, but having been going to these events for 45 years tend to carry various changes of suitable clothing in the car! It was a big contrast to Day 1. Loads of races during the day, and I guess I would be questioning the use of the long Snet 300 circuit for 15 minute sprint races; you get no more than 6 to 8 laps, and if interrupted by red flag/SC period, then you won't get much racing at all. However, it had to be tried but suggest a review of the Day 2 format for the future maybe. Some excellent racing nevertheless.

Good to meet up with more 10-Tenth friends but sorry that I had only the briefest of chats with Iain R, and didn't manage to speak to Colin McKay, Benn Simms and Robert Barrie amongst others; good to make some new acquaintances though, and was finally able to accept that cup of coffee from Dik Dixon that was first offered about 2 years ago!

I will post pics up on this meet, and for the main event will endeavour to put up at least one pic of each entry. Not sure I'll be able to manage the marathon efforts of the last couple of years but will have a go.

[terence]

I have to say that Red Rocket performed brilliantly over the w/end,how often can you get your car snatched and delivered into your garage? Thats what happened with the Green MGB,now that is service for you!

[John Turner]

A few P & P pics to kick off:-

[John Turner]

Starters - 14
Classified -12
Duration - 40 minutes

Supported by Moss Europe Limited, this would have been a disappointing entry number for a sprint race, let alone 40 minutes but there was some good racing at the front and a very welcome addition to the grid was the De Tomaso Mangusta (15) of Mike Eagles. It qualified 6th and finished 9th. That it finished at all was a bit of a miracle because apart from having the bonnet flapping about for some of the race, to say it was a handful in corners would be an understatement. Robert Barrie's race lasted one lap in the Lotus 7. Paul Toombs had had a handy 1.5 second advantage in qualifying in his Elan (46) over Peter Thomas's Marcos 1800GT (65) but that gap was not so pronounced during the race, as Thomas kept the Elan well in sight until Paul made a mistake in the Esses (I think) and the Marcos took the lead. I seem to recall that this situation was maintained during the pit stops and the subsequent safety car period whilst the Ian Burford Lenham Le Mans Coupe was recovered from the exit of Agostini. However, Paul was able to retake the lead going into Agostini (see pic below) and although Thomas stayed well in contention, the Elan took the chequered flag by just 0.110 secs. Curiously it's best time was 1.6 seconds quicker than the Marcos, so it does seem that there was performance in hand. Larry Kennedy's Lotus Elan S4 was 3rd.

[one-two]

A tiny bit of carburettor linkage broke on the 7. Annoying. I doubt if I could have kept up with the pace set by Paul and Peter anyway - Paul is really on it this year. Best, Robert

[morninggents]

Originally Posted by terence bower

Good to see you Andrew,hope you managed to keep dry yesterday afternoon?
For those of us who dont do FB,is there somewhere else to view your photo's?
Also great to have finally met Mr Morning gents,nice talking to you Peter,hope your man was happy with his three lap's.

Nice to meet you too Terry. My stepson Nick (Eveningladies) had to do the laps in the lunchbreak behind the safety car as the Cortina was qualified in the practice session by the other driver, Craig Dolby. Craig won his race in drizzle conditions which meant that Nick could have started the second race from pole but he elected to start from the back as it was raining heavily for the second historic saloon race and he didn't enjoy it one bit and had three or four 'grassy' excursions but still managed to finish.

Despite the weather a great day and a credit to the HSCC.

[John Turner]

Thanks, Robert, I did wonder! Shame though, and very frustrating, I should imagine!

[John Turner]

Starters - 20
Classified - 16
Duration - 20 minutes.

Julian Barter qualified his TVR 3000M (9) 2.5 seconds clear of next man, Ian Jacobs in the big Mercedes 450SL but in any event Jacobs dropped it very early on on lap 1 - great shame, as it is an impressive looking and sounding beast! - so Julian more or less controlled the race with his Dad, Charles, keeping a respectful distance behind in the Datsun 240Z (24). Barter senior was having to watch his mirrors though as Paul Anderson's Porsche 928 (64) was not that far behind, finishing 3rd, 2.4 seconds behind the Datsun, with Adam Bagnall's E-Type (2) 4th:-

[John Turner]

Starters - 21
Classified - 13
Duration - 20 minutes

A high attrition rate, but I love the sounds and smells that emanate from these cars, and the fact that you can see their pilots working away at the wheel. Nigel Ashman was in a class of his own and he took the win by 17.33 seconds in his Cooper Mk9 (1). Richard Ellingworth was 2nd in his Keift Parker (12) and David Lecoq 3rd in the Petty F3 (29). I never cease to be amazed at the cars that appear in these races, one-offs and all sorts which I've never heard of before; the last pic shows Darrell Woods in his Staride Mk3 (6):-

[simon drabble]

As ever superb commentary John, and totally agree about the 500's - would love to see more of them at HSCC meetings.
Looking at the result sheets I was amazed how quick the Merc 450 was - I thought it would be too heavy. I was on the pit wall when the De Tomaso went past and its rear bonnet popped up - I can only think that any handling issues would have been magnified by it!!!
Sorryto hear about the Lenham - such a pretty car. It looks like the same place on the track that the green MGB lost its drive shaft in our race.
Whilst on the subject of safety cars and marshalling I must congratulate the whole safety team in the 3 Hour - the marshalls where excellant and safety car driven at a decent pace which the whole field was able to keep to - if you look on the lap times they only dipped to 3.20 area under the SC.
As for the 300 track - I am a fan!!

[John Turner]

Starters - 18
Classified - 16
Duration - 20 minutes.

Simon, the Merc has been going quicker, but it fared no better this second time around. Jacobs made a stonking start from the back, got to about 6th in the space of about a quarter of a lap and then apparently threw it off in a repeat of his earlier 'off'. Scratch one Merc. Julian Barter won this one by 7 seconds but this time it was Paul Anderson in the Porsche 928 who gave chase, finding about 1.5 sec over his best lap in the earlier race and easily pulling away from Charles Barter who finished a distant 3rd 14 seconds behind the Porsche. Bagnall was again 4th in the E-type. The 928 sounded superb and it would have been an aural delight to have heard the Jacobs 450SL bellowing up the Senna Straight alongside it!:-

[simon drabble]

it seems that the 70's Roadsports attracts engineering challenges like the 928, Stag and the Merc. They all seem to get there eventually and make quick cars (the 928 being a good example, several years down the line its now very quick and seemingly reliable). Is Bruce Stapleton not out anymore in his Morgan?

[Colin McKay]

Pleased with my 13th in qualifying given the strength of the grid, and found the 300 a delight first time out with the 1st lap the fastest, but my Snet jinx came back to haunt me later in the day.....

The rain started spitting as we came in from practice and a phone call from my remote forecaster suggested it would start proper at about 1 o'clock and get worse as the afternoon wore on. This was not all bad news as it meant I could at last try out the wet tyres I bought a year ago & experiment with the set up, so we changed everything over. By 2pm in the assembly area it was still barely damp so I dropped the pressures. A good start got me coming past the car in front at a considerable speed differential when he moved over towards the pitwall. It was so close I had to assume he hadn't seen me and had to brake hard losing several places, v lucky not to touch, so my usual tactic of gaining places at the start and giving them all away in the race didn't apply. After the usual scramble round turn 1 it became a pretty lonely race, and when the rain started in earnest it was red flagged after fluid was dropped at Bomb Hole on lap 4.

Race 2 and by now we had proper rain, so I was looking forward to seeing how the changes we'd made to the car worked or otherwise. Probably because of the rain I jumped straight in the car, drove down to the assembly area and sat there without the usual attempt at looking relaxed by nonchalantly leaning on the bonnet. I believe all the top drivers stick to a very specific routine on race day, bad luck to change it and all that, and I can confirm that there is sound thinking behind this - on the warm up lap my bonnet blew off because I hadn't checked the pins. So that was that - my thanks to the marshals on post 5 for checking if I would be allowed out without it, in hindsight I shouldn't have stopped and just risked a black flag. Ho hum.

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by simon drabble

Whilst on the subject of safety cars and marshalling I must congratulate the whole safety team in the 3 Hour - the marshalls where excellant and safety car driven at a decent pace which the whole field was able to keep to - if you look on the lap times they only dipped to 3.20 area under the SC.
As for the 300 track - I am a fan!!

My apologies for not also adding thanks and 'well done' to all the HSCC, marshals and rescue teams for their efforts when posting yesterday. The atmosphere at this meeting is great and Snetterton as a venue gets better and better.

Glad you like the 300 Simon, it was interesting for me as previous races on it were either with Escort on slicks or 924 with sticky Toyos. Suffice to say that Suzanne's B and me were not 'at one' for a few laps as found myself approaching corners way too fast for the Dunlop grip available! A few hairy moments but soon found Palmer and Hamilton in particular great fun. On both could hang the inside front wheel over kerb and then let car drift across... (holding breath ) Now have Murrays just about sussed Oggies is probably the most awkward corner, especially when it falls between two gears.

On Sunday tried out the 2nd spectator bank which is now open. More great viewing- Coram, Murrays, all infield and main straight. You only really lose sight when cars go under bridge to esses or are behind pits, but as discovered, when windy and raining it's not quite so pleasant.

Sorry to hear about your bonnet Colin- did it do much damage? Oh, and great pics John. Keep 'em coming!

[John Turner]

Starters - 25
Classified - 18

Entry was down on previous years, mainly because of the reduced number of GT cars entered although there were one or two notable sports racers absent as well. However, the quality was there. Having identified 3 B8s and the Crossle 9S as the main protaganists earlier on in this thread, I was surprised to see that they had all been pipped to pole, and by no less than 1.8 seconds, by the Brian Casey/Greg Caton Lenham P59 Spyder (41), Caton doing the time. Visions of Caton scampering off initially into the distant appeared to be realised when he came by with a substantial lead at the end of the first lap (see pic 5 below). However, over the long haul it was the second all B8 row of Nick Fleming/Luke Stevens (42) and Ed Lovett/Simon Hadfield (38) who were to provide the fireworks at the front (pic 2). Pic 1 is of the field forming up behind the pace car; pic 3 is of the field gathering itself for the rolling start; pic 4 is of the MGB (74) of Nick Smith/Tom Field/Tommy Field emerging from the pitlane having dived into the pits at the end of the formation lap (anyone know why?) and Pic 6 of the Suzanne Sears/James Paterson/Mike Bell MGB (95) completing their first flying lap:-

[terence]

We did try to keep everyone happy Simon,even slowed to 20mph along Bentley in an attempt to 'bunch em up'.

[105 Mad]

Shame about that Colin, I wondered what happened when I saw you parked up on warm up lap.

With regards to the first race, is it just me or whenever we have a problem with oil on the track it seems to involve an Imp? Actually I may have to re-think that last comment because Liza did the same at Silverstone in her Anglia.

OK so, is it just me or whenever we have a problem with oil on the track it seems to involve an Imp or Anglia?

My second race was marginally better than the first, it's amazing what a leveller heavy rain is. I had a good dice with Louis in his Mustang for 2 or 3 laps (you don't hear that very often coming from an App K Alfa) but then he seemed to disapper. Managed to do the slowest over take in history when I went up the inside of Jim Clark at Oggies, he was doing about 10mph I was doing about 11mph both of us trying to find some grip.

Richard Dutton tried a very brave overtake on me by out-braking me on the turn into Brundle, he spun in the middle of the left-right leaving me to launch my self over the raised concrete on the inside of the right hander. Something on the front hit that concrete very hard, I was just glad it wasn't the sump, very vulnerable & very expensive on an Alfa.

Should have had second in class but Richard Dutton caught me up again & pipped me to the post.

Anyway beat Jim Clark in his Lotus Cortina for the 3rd time & there's not many people who can say that .

[105 Mad]

Forgot to say, does anyone have any photos of the 2nd Touring Cars race in the rain, plenty of action mostly sideways?!!!

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by John Turner

pic 4 is of the MGB (74) of Nick Smith/Tom Field/Tommy Field emerging from the pitlane having dived into the pits at the end of the formation lap (anyone know why?)

John, that is the car that had engine change after practice, so maybe something to do with that. We did joke at time about it requiring head pulling down, tappets reset plus new oil & filter after first 30 minutes.......

[Robyn Slater]

Originally Posted by 105 Mad

With regards to the first race, is it just me or whenever we have a problem with oil on the track it seems to involve an Imp? Actually I may have to re-think that last comment because Liza did the same at Silverstone in her Anglia.

OK so, is it just me or whenever we have a problem with oil on the track it seems to involve an Imp or Anglia?

.

Just to set the record straight,you were right with the first sentence.

But, Liza actually dropped neat glycol?? form her anglia at silverstone when a core plug popped.