Always open to ticking another motorsport venue off the list the opportunity came up to make a maiden visit to Prescott Hill Climb in Gloucestershire for day 1 of the Prescott Historique meeting.
Thick grey clouds and occasional drizzle made photography challenging but there were some beautifully turned out cars on display from, amongst others, the Paul Matty Lotus Championship, the Healeysport Speed Championship, TR and Clubmans (60th anniversary) registers and the 500 Owners Association.
Slippery conditions following heavy overnight rain made the morning practice runs tricky but some pretty impressive times were achieved as the action turned competitive. Indeed fastest time on the day belonged to David Hampton aboard his Lotus 69 with a 44.55 closely followed by George Brown’s Mallock MK17, registering a 44.90.
Other notable times came from the Lotus Elan S3 of Iain Stallard (47.30), Mark Linforth’s Ford Escort Mk1 (49.71) and the Austin Mini of Matt Clarke (50.67); the latter incredible to watch as the extremely well driven machine appeared to be either sideways or on three wheels for most of the run!
Demo runs from a Pontiac NASCAR and McLaren M10B formula 5000 machine (I’m not sure my ears have fully recovered from the burnouts yet) in addition to competitive runs from Derek Drinkwater’s Cadillac ‘Le Monstre’ recreation and Mark Davies’ Chaparral 1 made for an enjoyable day but perhaps the major highlight was the appearance of the Lancaster Bomber, the crowd reaction to the three incredibly low passes of Prescott Hill Climb said it all!
Oliver Davies, with Jack Bowen alongside on this occasion, drew upon his vast knowledge of Weston Park to record an incredible 10th AGBO stages rally victory aboard his formidable Ford Escort MK2.
Weston Park was looking particularly stunning in the early spring sunshine as the Staffordshire parkland estate welcomed rally folk for the 29th annual running of the Land & Estate Maintenance AGBO Stages rally. Once again organised by the West Midlands based Owen Motoring Club, the 2025 running of the AGBO stages rally would feature ten stages covering almost 30 miles and had attracted many a previous winner, with Davies, Lee Edwards, Gary Thomas and Andy Corner accounting for 50% of the roll of honour!
Last year’s victors Lee Edwards and Ben Crump would head the entry list in the fabulous Jaguar engined Escort G3 but could not match the pace of Davies and Bowen on the day, with the pairing finding themselves 11 seconds adrift in second after the first 3 stages. The dry conditions on both the asphalt roads and adjoining grassland was perhaps playing into the hands of Davies, whose smooth driving style may not have seemed quickest to the naked eye but proved very effective on the time sheets!
Indeed, try as Edwards might, he and Crump just could not get any more out of the fantastic sounding Escort and despite 4 stage victories out of the remaining 7 stages, and never outside the top 2 stage times, would end the day 14 seconds in arrears.
This had been some drive by Davies and Bowen who must have surprised more than a few with their rapid early morning pace before settling into a strong rhythm and defeating many people’s favourites for the event victory by a fair margin. Surely Davies must now qualify for some sort of commemorative feature within the estate after recording a 10th victory at Weston Park, which accounts for more than one third of the event history!
Whilst not quite able to match the pace of the front two crews Dai Dot Davies made a welcome return to the hot seat of the family Darrian GTR and with Steve Pugh alongside put in a strong drive to keep previous double winner Gary Thomas (co-driven by Christopher Walton) at arms length throughout and claim a well deserved final step of the podium.
Personally I believe the organisers have the event regulations perfected by allowing all wheel drive machinery to complete as long as they run a H pattern gearbox and best of the four wheel drive machinery on the day would prove to be Wayne Larbalestier and Matt Endean aboard their Mitsubishi Evo 3. Consistently setting times well within the top ten, an entertaining drive would see the Japanese machine end the day 6th overall and topping class E.
Perhaps the closest tussle on the day was found in Class C however where the top 3 would end the event separated by just 6 seconds and fill positions 8,9 and 10 overall. Dave Hopwood and Sam Kelter (Ford Escort MK2) enjoyed a flying start to the event setting 5th and 8th fastest times on stages 1 and 2 but then struggled in stages 4 and 5 to find themselves tied on times with the similar machine of Joshua Moss and Phil Tucker at the half way point.
This appeared to be all the motivation Moss and Tucker required as 3 more top 10 stage times would see them sitting on a relatively comfortable 6 second cushion with just the final two stages remaining. Which in the end proved vital as Hopwood and Kelter would end the day just as they started by taking 5 back over the final loop to miss out on class victory by 1 solitary second!
Late entrants Mike Simpson and Sam Weller were there or thereabouts throughout and ready to pounce if the fight ahead became too fraught. As it was they couldn’t quite get close enough to the leading 2 class C runners and would bring their MK2 Escort home third in class and 10th overall.
Elsewhere class victories would go the way of yet another previous winning crew in the form of Andy Corner and Ade Camp, this time competing in the Ford Fiesta R200. It feels rather odd seeing them in something other than a Peugeot 205 but the pairing recorded an impressive 3 top ten stage times on their way to Class B victory and 12th overall.
And last but not least Tom Bishop and Tom Aleksandrowicz would claim Class A victory aboard their Vauxhall Nova after a strong drive would see them finish the day in 20th position overall.
There can’t be many better locations for a single venue rally especially when the sun is out. And with the glorious sound of competition engines bouncing off the parkland landscape it proved a great days entertainment for the very reasonable sum of just £9! Next up for me is the Alan Healy Memorial Rally at Cadwell on the 6th April for the latest instalment of the Circuit Rally Championship.
Ford Escort crew Dan Mennell and John H Roberts continued their strong run of form in the Forests of North Yorkshire, making up for last stage disappointment on the recent Trackrod to claim a commanding Historic Category victory on the 2024 Malton Forest Rally.
The Malton Motor Club organised Malton Forest Rally has often attracted a strong and varied entry but none more so than the 2024 event. Indeed this year’s rally featured a historic entry that many a national championship would have been proud of, with not only an abundance of top Yorkshire based crews on the start list but also featuring the likes of BHRC front runners Ben Friend and Adrian Hetherington.
It would be a Yorkshireman at the head of the field early on however in the form of Dan Mennell. Malton local Mennell had already upped his game in 2024, showing glimpses of potential with a fastest stage time on the Riponian early in the year, but with the addition of experienced Welsh co-driver John H Roberts seems to have found another gear. And, seemingly motivated by the last stage disappointment on the recent Trackrod rally, the Ford Escort pilot leapt into 2 second lead after stage 1, an 8 mile blast through Langdale.
A five mile stage in Gale Rigg would follow before another 8 miler in Cropton closed out the morning loop of stages. And it was the latter stage where Mennell and Roberts would stamp their authority on the event, setting a time 5 seconds quicker than anyone else but more importantly 16 and 19 seconds quicker than Friend and Matthew Robinson respectively to hold a commanding 23 second historic category lead at the mid point service.
The battle behind however was far less clearcut with positions second to fifth covered by a mere 3 seconds! Sitting 5th at service, Ben Friend had shown his pace in the Yorkshire forests already this year having claimed victory on the recent Trackrod and appeared to have re-found this form on stage 4 as the Allglass Anglia Ford Escort man, with Osian Owen alongside on this occasion, recorded fastest time in Landgale 2 to climb three places up the leaderboard to second.
Matthew Robinson and Hannah Davison (Ford Escort) had struggled through the morning also and, whilst not able to match the pace of Friend in Langdale, had however moved up to third and sat just 2 seconds behind the Suffolk man as they headed into the Cropton finale. Could Friend come out on the right side of another last stage Yorkshire forest decider? Unfortunately for Friend and Owen the answer on this occasion was no as Robinson used all of his local knowledge to set a ridiculously quick time in Cropton 2 to take the runners up spot in style.
There would be no catching Mennell and Roberts however. With the damage being done on the first run through Cropton the Anglo Welsh duo were able to take a slightly more relaxed approach to the afternoon loop. It’s all relative though as Mennell and Roberts were still the quickest historic crew over stages 4, 5 and 6 to claim a an excellent 26 second breakthrough victory.
Northern Irish pairing Adrian Hetherington and Ronan O’Neill (Ford Escort) made a welcome return to the Yorkshire forests for the Malton Forest rally but any thoughts of a top finish were ended by a mechanical issue during the morning loop. Meanwhile after a strong morning run which saw them lying third at service, Paul Thompson and Josh Davison would disappointingly end the day in the Gale Rigg undergrowth after a large off following a compression. This instead left the way clear for the evergreen Steve Bannister, with Callum Atkinson alongside, and Jack Mathewson, co driven by Chris Williams, to complete a Ford Escort MK2 lock out of the historic category top 5.
Further back, Stuart and Linda Cariss would claim class H1 victory for the smaller engined machines after ending the day a very commendable 20th in the historic category. In fact some 28 historic crews would make it to the finish at Adderstone Field which must be some kind of record for a Northern Historic Rally Championship event?
There were no surprises at the head of the overall field as the ultra rapid Elliot Payne would claim victory for the 3rd successive year aboard his Ford Fiesta Rally2, this time with Patrick Walsh alongside. Kyle White and Anthony Nestor would however put in a strong showing to claim second in their Hyundai i20 just 29 seconds in arrears.
Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Max Crowther and Phil Bramma (Class 1) with 58th position overall in their MG3, Scott Renshaw and Terry Wilson (Class 2) with 36th aboard their Fiesta R2, Gary Beckwith and Kirsty Angell (Class 3) with 40th in their Ford Escort MK2 and Nigel Cay and Fred Roberts (Class 4) with an excellent 19th overall aboard their 3 litre Vauxhall Chevette.
This had been another great days rallying in the Yorkshire forests and whets the appetite nicely for the British Historic Rally Championship deciding Anglo Caledonian rally in just over 2 weeks time. Dan Mennell is not showing on the entry list as we speak but on this evidence, should an entry materialise, could be a real dark horse for the win.
Mark Kelly and Will Atkins held off a late fightback from the Hyundai I20 R5 of James Williams and Ross Whittock to claim 2024 East Riding Stages rally victory aboard their Skoda Fabia R5.
Now in it’s third year, The East Riding Stages rally has obviously continued to capture the imagination of competitors having attracted a whopping 133 car entry, this despite not featuring in any of the major championships! In fact the top of the entry list was flooded with R5 / Rally 2 machinery as many leading crews elected to use the event as a shakedown for their 2024 plans with 10 challenging stages, mainly to the East of Beverley, totaling almost 55 miles the order of the day.
Having no fewer than 7 overall rally victories to his name in 2023 (according to ewrc), Mark Kelly would have started as one of the pre event favourites and the Garstang Motor Club man wasted no time living up to this hype as he and co-driver Will Atkins set fastest time on all 3 opening tests. And, despite seeing their lead marginally pegged back in stage 4, would hold a 6 second lead by the time the crews reached the mid event service.
The top 5 crews were however all still in contention with the Hyundai of James Williams, Ford of Callum Black, Citroen of James Ford and VW of Kevin Davies all within 15 seconds of the lead. Thus leaving everything to play for over the afternoon loop, which consisted of a second run over the morning’s 4 stages but preceded by two short blasts through the Westwood spectator stage.
New for 2024, the Westwood stage was an attempt to bring the competitive element of the event closer to Beverley town centre but I am guessing no-one would have expected it to be so pivotal to the event outcome! Ridiculously however early leaders Kelly and Atkins managed to traverse the 2 runs of the 1.63 mile stage 6.2 seconds quicker than anyone else, more the doubling their lead to 12.6 seconds in the process.
And that time gain did indeed prove vital as 2nd placed crew James Williams and Ross Whittock lit up the timing sheets over the final four stages of the day to close the gap to 5 seconds by the time the cars arrived back in Beverley! A story of what might have been for the Hyundai crew, but another win for Mark Kelly who continued his strong recent form.
2023 Protyre Asphalt Rally Champions, Callum Black and Jack Morton were another crew to lose ground on the two short spectator stages but dug in over the afternoon loop to claim a hard fought third, whilst Kevin and Owain Davies finished fourth in their VW Polo and Neil Roskell and Dai Roberts rounded out the top 5 (Ford Fiesta).
Historic events is where I am mostly found and therefore it was extra pleasing to see two wheel drive honours go the way of Gareth James and Steffan Evans aboard their Historic specification MK2 Escort. A sublime drive by the Welsh duo saw them end the day in 14th overall, not only finishing ahead of more powerful and more recent 2 wheel drive machinery but also many a R5 / Rally 2 machine.
MK2 Escorts would in fact complete the historic podium with Martin Rossiter and Dan Petrie ending the day 20th and Phil Rogers and Jordan Jones ten places further back, both improving on their start positions by a massive 58 and 47 places respectively!!
Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Gordon Montana Morrison / Ian Parker with 15th overall in their Ford Escort (Class D), Jake Briggs / Harry Walshaw in another of the Blue Oval favourites with 17th (Class C), Ben and Andrew Wilkinson in their Peugeot 106 Maxi with 32nd overall (Class B) and Mark and Andrew Constantine (Class A) with 36th in their Vauxhall Corsa.
All in, it had been a brilliant day in the stunning East Riding countryside. Having never been to this area of the country before there is now a good chance I’ll be back to the area with the family, if not for future East Riding Stages; a tick in the box for bringing tourism to Beverley then!
Closed road rallying is pretty special and whilst we seem to be losing usable forests annually it is great to see a few of these events now popping up. Ease of access on this event and fabulous late winter weather definitely aided the spectacle and watching the top drivers take the Eastfield Farm ‘crest’ on the rev limiter in top was something to behold, definitely whetting the appetite for more in 2024. Fingers crossed for the South Yorkshire Stages!
Managing to stay out of trouble as others faltered, Martin McCormack and Barney Mitchell perfectly circumnavigated the longest, toughest, most grueling Roger Albert Clark Rally to date to claim victory by more than 5 minutes; a record equalling fourth title for the rapid Irish driver.
Two years in the making, the 2023 running of the Roger Albert Clark Rally promised to be the best yet with a route covering 5 days, 3 countries and over 350 miles! Not only this but an incredible entry of over 150 crews had been attracted which included the likes of Oliver Solberg, Kris Meeke, Chris Ingram and Osian Pryce in addition to the usual front running historic competitors, thus making the event one of the most eagerly anticipated in many a year!
With such a grueling schedule the event was always likely to be one of attrition and Meeke, Ingram and 2023 BHRC champion Roger Chillman were all official retirements before the end of the Welsh leg! This left Solberg and Pryce to battle it out for top spot as the event moved into South West Scotland on day 3 with the former starting to pull away as he became more familiar with his father’s MK2 Escort.
Pryce had however been managing an oil leak and his victory challenge would unfortunately come to a premature end in Glen Gap as the RallyXtreme MK2 Escort eventually utilised all available lubricant after visibly smoking through most of the morning. A very disappointing end for the 2022 British Rally Champion after such a promising run over the first 2 days.
Solberg meanwhile seemed to go from strength to strength and had built a lead of over 4 minutes by the end of day 3, growing to over 5 and a half minutes by the start of Stage 28 (Harwood 2, the final stage of day 4). But then disaster struck for he and Elliot Edmondson as the Viking Motorsport machine suffered a drive shaft failure putting them out of the rally. And whilst the team had them back in the event under Super Rally rules for day 5, the amount of time required to be made up ultimately saw them end up in a Shepherdshield ditch as they went all in for victory.
Having 3 pervious RAC victories to his name Martin McCormack knows exactly what it takes to end the event on the top step. He and co-driver Barney Mitchell had sat 3rd at the end of day 1 and 2 and had wisely decided on a more cautious approach after a few near misses early on and then an oil issue of their own on day 3. And it turned out that this was exactly the right strategy as the Irish duo maintained a 5 minute margin over the final day to claim a brilliant victory whilst still managing to put on a show with their infamous flamboyant style!.
Like McCormack, Cathan McCourt and Liam Moynihan had also opted for a safety first approach and were rewarded with an excellent 2nd overall for their efforts, a quite unbelievable result given their lack of mileage on UK soil. In fact McCourt had started the final 39 mile Kielder test in 3rd, 30 seconds behind the crowd pleasing Stratos of Perez, but with the intention of having a real go on the monster finale. And the charge certainly paid off as Perez was unfortunately forced into retirement with the Lancia’s engine succumbing to the heat of the battle.
Whilst McCourt set a quick time on “The Big One” no one was able to get anywhere near the time of Jason Pritchard however as the Welshman set fastest time by a monumental 51 seconds, topping off an incredible final day charge for he and Phil Clarke which saw the experienced duo climb into the podium positions. Pre rally the triple British Historic Champions would have been amongst the favourites for victory but after a trying event saw them visit a couple of ditches, suffer multiple punctures and encounter a fuel pressure issue they will have been delighted with 3rd!
The 39 mile final test was always designed to be a sting in the tail and it proved just that for the unfortunate Seb Perez and Gary McElhinney. But their incredible run will be THE lasting memory for many followers of event having peddled the Stratos with such style across some of the UK’s finest stages. We can only hope they come back for more in 2 years time!
Further back Mike Stuart and Sinclair Young put in a fabulous performance to claim category 2 honours with an excellent 5th overall in their MK1 Escort. The Scottish pairing managed to find the perfect pace throughout the event, benefitting from the issues of others along the way to move from 13th at the end of day 3 to 9th by the end of day 4 and then gain another 4 spots over the final day in Kielder.
Northern Irish pairing, Robert Woodside and Dean Beckett aboard their Tuthill prepared Porsche 911, had been leading the category at the end of day 1 but were not able to match the pace of Stuart as the event progressed. However 10th overall, first none Ford and first in class C4 represented an excellent result after 5 long days. Meanwhile just one place further back after a consistent run were Class C3 winners Ben and Steven Smith aboard their RS2000, the first none BD powered Ford home.
It’s always great to see the Category 1 machines on display and victory looked to be going the way of Martin Linden and Rickard Forsell in the Volvo PV 544 only for the Swedes to be forced to Super Rally part way through day 4. This left the way clear for Pete Stimson and Mark Butler to take a well earned victory aboard their Ford Anglia with 81st overall.
Elsewhere Mark and Andrew Constantine would claim category 4A honours in their recently built Nova SR and Aaron McClure would take Category 4B just one place further back in 55th position overall. Meanwhile Neil Weaver put in one of the star performances of the event as he and Jack Morton took the S1600 Vauxhall Corsa to Open Rally victory with 6th position overall, in the process recording a remarkable category victory margin of over 23 minutes!
This had been some event to follow and whilst I had only elected to take in the middle 3 days still managed to clock up a whopping 874 miles! Even the weather behaved itself this time with the trip into new territory (for me) in South West Scotland a personal highlight. Rallying has traditionally been all about endurance and this 350 mile event required it in abundance. So much so that just 4 of the top 20 seeds made it to the finish without Super Rally! If only a more traditional way of navigating the event between Wales and Carlisle could be found; stately home stages and a route through North Yorkshire or Cumbria seemingly the obvious answer but probably out of the question …
But that’s just nitpicking, what an event, bring on 2025!
BTCC front-runner Josh Cook played a starring role in the Classic Sports Car Club’s Donington Park GP meeting as he and Mike Gardiner claimed a dominant Mintex Classic K victory in very trying conditions.
Having been in two minds whether to make the short trip to Donington, with torrential rain forecast for the majority of the day, it was refreshing to find that the weather had little impact on proceedings. In fact just a couple of laps under safety car conditions at the start of each qualifying session was all that was required, a reminder of what is possible when driving to the conditions (something that elite level motorsport seems to have ruled out these days)!
With the rain continuing to teem down at the Leicestershire circuit the Mintex Classic K field of more than 30 cars miraculously navigated the infamous Craner Curves with little incident and somewhat surprisingly it was an E-type in the hands of Steven Osborne that lead the early stages, proof if ever it were needed that the recent re-surfacing has far improved the grip levels. That was until an off at Coppice saw the Jaguar man beached in the gravel, losing a couple of laps whilst recovered and any chance of victory in the process.
Following the closing of the pit window, which coincided with a Safety car for Martin Richardson’s marooned MG B at Schwantz, Mark Russell (E-Type Jaguar) found himself with a slender lead over the now Josh Cook piloted Ford Lotus Cortina as the track returned to green. Cook however was in a class of his own in the tricky conditions, soon passing Russell and going on to claim a commanding near 30 second victory for he and Mike Gardiner; with Cook’s fastest lap more than 2 seconds quicker than anyone else! Meanwhile Peter Smith and Mike Simpson would round out the podium positions with an excellent third in their Lotus Cortina.
The Swinging 60s races usually provide high levels of entertainment and the Donington GP meeting would not disappoint either. In the Group 2 race for larger engined machines, Jon Wolfe put in what appeared to be a relatively controlled drive to victory aboard his TVR Tuscan however the post race interview revealed an altercation with the Mcleans tyre wall, thus making the 12 second win all the more remarkable! Meanwhile Stephen Pickering (Sunbeam Tiger) set the fastest lap of the race (almost 2 seconds quicker than anyone else) on his way to 3rd despite a 20 second success penalty but was not quite able to catch Dean Halsey’s Datsun 240z who found himself on the second step of the podium.
Some 41 cars lined up for the Swinging 60s Group 1 race in what had become almost dry conditions for the final scheduled event of the day. And perhaps the best was saved until last as a fantastic battle took place for the entire 40 minute duration of the race between the Chris Watkinson piloted Austin Mini and Mini Marcos of Sam Polley. The bright orange Mini of Watkinson lead the early stages from pole but Polley seemed to have the better overall pace and was able to snatch the lead before the mid race pitstops. The Marcos bodied machine however emerged from the pits with a sizeable gap to make up and despite catching over the closing laps Polley was not able to get past, with Watkinson’s rapid pitstop ultimately landing him the victory!
Elsewhere Tony and Aston Blake claimed a double victory in their TVR Tuscan Challenge car, just getting the better of close rival Alex Taylor on both occasions. Both in Tuscan’s for the Modern Classics race, there was little to choose between the machines over the opening stint, however Taylor was slowed and ultimately forced into retirement following a collision with a back-marker at Coppice. This left Tom Barley (BMW 328i E36) to claim second, despite a 30 second penalty for missing the pit window, and Aidan Farrell / David Whelan to take third aboard their Porsche 911.
In the Future Classics event, Alex Taylor, this time aboard the familiar Mazda RX-7, put in a stellar drive to make up a huge chunk of his success related pitstop penalty during the second half of the race to take second, just ten seconds in arrears of the Blake’s Tuscan at the flag. Meanwhile Matthew and Martyn Ellis claimed third aboard their Talbot Sunbeam Lotus.
And finally, on this occasion the Co-ordSport Tin Tops were interlopers on the historic/classic side of the CSCC schedule and Danny Cassar remarkably (somewhat aided by a safety car and a clutch issue for Adam Brown) made up the entire of his 90 second success penalty to claim victory aboard the Honda Integra Type R!
Thankfully I didn’t let the weather put me off as a great days racing was witnessed and, fortunately, being once gifted the Canon ERC-E5 raincover (despite being mega expensive is far superior to the cheaper alternatives) was able to shoot throughout the monsoon conditions and gain some different photos from the less often used Grand Prix loop!
Huw James and Ian Jones proved to be the class of the field, braving the slippery morning conditions before storming to a second AGBO Stages victory in as many years aboard their Ford Escort MK2.
After heavy snow in the run up to the event, thankfully the Owen Motoring Club organised AGBO Stages was given the green light, paving the way for me to witness rallying at Weston Park for the first time in well over 30 years (not that I have any recollection of my last visit)! The AGBO Stages for one reason or another is an event I have never managed to make previously but with another impressive entry list compiled for 10 short stages within the confines of the Staffordshire parkland estate I was determined not to miss out in 2023.
Having been victorious in 2022, Huw James and Ian Jones would lead the cars away in their Ford Escort MK2 and despite a cautious start were well into their stride by stage 3 to climb to the top of the time sheets. In fact as the stages became drier on what were relatively pleasant early March conditions the pairing really began to stretch their legs and almost cruise to a 23 second victory; an excellent drive, and quite a margin given the total time on the clock was just over 23 minutes!
Behind, having initially lead the event, Oliver Davies and Jack Bowen’s attention quickly turned to their mirrors with a fast charging Lee Edwards, in his recently re-built Ford Escort G3, in hot pursuit. Sitting 8 seconds in arrears after stage 5, the Oswestry man, with Mike Roberts alongside, stormed through the next 3 to trail Davies and Bowen by just 1 second with 1 stage remaining. And with momentum on their side there was no stopping the V6 Jaguar engined Ford crew (what an exhaust note by the way!) as they went on to claim the runner up spot by a mere second!
Class C for 2 litre 2WD drive machinery turned out to be another closely fought affair. And whilst the rapid Peugeot 205 of duo of Andy Corner and Ade Campo were quick out of the blocks (and would top the class times sheets for much of the day), it was the Darrian T90 crew of Dai Dot Davies and Gerwyn James who would come out on top of a final stage shootout to claim class victory with 8th position overall; in turn making it a special day for Tregaron Motor Club following Huw James’ overall success!
Elsewhere, Tom Bishop and Isobel Mansell, aboard their Vauxhall Nova, put in the giant killing performance of the day to claim class A honours with a fantastic 18th position overall, whilst Citroen C2 pilot Marcus Ridley (co-driven by Antony Knight) was first home in Class B with a very impressive 26th position. The 2023 edition of the AGBO stages was also the first time “H Pattern” 4WD machinery were able to compete and the stunning Mitsubishi Evo 3 of Wayne Larbalestier and Matt Endean would go on to claim class E honours with 12th overall.
All in this had been a fabulous days entertainment for just £8 each and having taken so long to finally attend the event I can categorically state that it will not be my last!
After the lows of 2020, 2021 promised a return to some sort of normality in the world of Motorsport, however the elongated 3rd (I think) lockdown postponed any form of none signed-on attendance until late May!
Desperate to return to the circuits after 7 months of crowd-less sport viewing on the box an enormous entry list for the Classic Sports Car Club’s May bank holiday meeting at Donington was just the tonic I had been looking for. The 39 car Classic K race was a personal highlight which saw experienced historic racer Jamie Boot expertly guide his TVR Griffith to victory, however the moderate crowd were also treated to a trio of highly entertaining combined sprints for the Racing Special Saloons / Modsports and Bernie’s Sports Racing / V8 machines which contained everything from the whacky to the sublime!
So good in fact was my first taste of Classic Sports Car club action that a couple of weeks later I would find myself Cadwell bound for a second dose. Unfortunately the grids were not quite so packed but this was more than made up for by perfect early Summer weather. This time it was the Group 1 Swinging Sixties machines that stole the show with Ian Staines, aboard his MG Midget, managing to get the better of pole sitting Turner MK1 pilot Tim Cairns to claim an excellent victory at the undulating Lincolnshire track.
Late June saw a return to Donington for an excellent line up of Historic Sports Car Club grids with the added bonus of a 1 hour race for the GT & Sports Car Cup! Despite a dull day weatherwise the on track action was as good as it gets with Michael Lyons lighting up the time sheets in the Aurora Trophy races aboard his F5000 Lola T400, Dean Forward delighting onlookers aboard his enormous Can-AM McLaren M8F to take a double Thundersports victory and Andrew’s Haddon & Wolfe claiming an excellent GT & Sports Cars Car Cup victory in their Lotus Elan.
After an excellent championship in 2020, a third trip to Donington, this time on the Grand Prix circuit, was lined up in July for the 2 hour British GT race. The series as a spectacle suffered in 2021 however with the removal of GT3 Silver Silver combinations which, combined with somewhat questionable driving standards and poor quality support races, lead to this being the only Modern event attended during the year!
Refreshingly it was back to old stuff in August with the Classic Sports Car Club’s Snetterton Sizzler meeting and the HSCC’s Oulton Park Gold Cup. The Gold Cup meeting was back to it’s very best with Historic F2 machinery making a welcome return (something good to come out of the pandemic!) and it was Matthew Watts aboard his March 782 who claimed the prestigious trophy following an attritional second encounter of the weekend! We were also treated to a pair of Historic Touring Car / Dunlop Saloon Car Cup races which are always worth a watch around the fabulous Cheshire circuit, and best of all the paddocks were finally open to the general public!!
Two trips to Mallory filled the first half of autumn’s action where a torrential morning downpour threatened to de-rail the Historic Sports Car Club meet. Glorious afternoon sunshine and excellent efficiency ensured this only lead to delays and not cancellations however with Ben Simm’s charge through the field (only to be denied victory by Murray Shepherd’s excellent defensive display) in the Formula Ford 2000 race being the pick of the action.
The excellent Classic Touring Car Racing Club would visit the same Leicestershire circuit in Mid October featuring a mouth-watering collection of machinery that included everything from the iconic 60’s Mini to the monster Aussie V8 Ford Falcon. Nothing quite beats a good old David vs Goliath pre-66 touring car race however and the two races on the day provided everything you come to expect from this era of racing; Alan Greenhalgh taking victory in the second race aboard his Ford Falcon after losing out to the much smaller engined Anglia of Robyn Slater (in part due to an off) in a damp race 1, brilliant racing!
Although far from a fan of Silverstone (not the circuit, more the unfriendly Security and archaic ticketing system) I could not fail to be drawn to the new standalone Motor Racing Legends meeting at the end of October. The 1 hour Historic Touring Car Challenge brought back many a childhood memory as Paul Mensley (RS500) managed to fend off not 1 but 3 temperamental Skylines to take victory whilst the excellent 43 car, 3 hour Pall Mall cup race met all expectations as the fabulous James Cottingham / Max Girardo piloted Lister Jaguar Costin managed to hold off a plethora of Shelby Cobra’s to take an unlikely victory. Maybe the unwelcoming nature of the circuit is a thing of the past as this had been a highlight of the season, partially aided by full access to the ‘Wing’ with less than a couple of hundred people in attendance!
And finally, after a pandemic induced year and 9 month period away from rallying, I eventually managed to see a live stage or 2 on the end of season Roger Albert Clark Rally. In an event unfortunately impacted by the devastating storm Arwen (Scotland’s stages completely cancelled), Ryan Champion and Craig Thorley remarkably managed to break the Blue Oval strangle hold on the event by claiming victory in their immaculate Porsche 911. Whilst disappointing not to be able to make the bi-annual trip into the Southern Scotland forests it was great to see action on the stages again.
All in it was year to remember and we can only hope that 2022 brings with it more freedom, definitely more rallying and a return to somewhere near the motorsport life we were all accustom to pre March 2020!
Thruxton or Cadwell, Cadwell or Thruxton was the debate; an argument which Cadwell ultimately won due to MSV’s far superior ticketing system, a shorter commute and opportunity to see the highly entertaining Classic Sports Car Club crowd at one of the UK’s finest circuits.
With immediate family dropped off en route, and fortunately arriving at the scene of a lorry’s argument with an A46 roundabout before the queues developed, I was pleasantly surprised to park up at Charlies with still 15 minutes remaining of the day’s first qualifying session. Better still the early June heat-wave appeared to be continuing and I, on being instantly reminded of the exceptional spectator viewing on offer, had a feeling we were in for a good day.
Whilst some of the grids fell far short of the numbers witnessed at Donington some 2 weeks earlier the racing did not suffer. In fact some of the closest racing of the day took place in the 6 car Special Saloons and Modsports race where a slow starting Ian Everett (in Tim Cairn’s Midget) eventually found a way passed Neil Duke’s Anglia and the 2.6 litre MK2 Escort of Martin Reynolds to take the race 1 victory. Despite a close encounter with Duke at the Mountain section in the early stages, the MG Hexagon pilot was able to stretch his lead to over 3 seconds by the time the chequered flag was waved following a remarkable pass for the lead around the outside at Mansfield!
Two races for the AR Motorsport Morgan Challenge were a welcome addition to the timetable and whilst both races saw runaway victors; Oliver Pratt claiming a 47 second race 1 victory and Roger Whiteside finishing 17 seconds ahead of his nearest rival in race 2, the battles behind were far less clear cut. Class 4 was the highlight with Steve Lockett (5th overall in both races) eventually claiming a double class victory with Simon Sherry and Tom Richards finishing a close second in each of the respective races.
Morgan Challenge race 1 victor Pratt was also due to start the Future Classics race from pole. However a fluid leak after the formation lap lead to the 4.6 litre Morgan being wheeled away from the grid. This ultimately left the way clear for an intriguing battle for victory between Sam Smith’s MX-5 and Martyn & Matthew Ellis’ Sunbeam Lotus. Whilst Martyn Ellis lead the early stages, a 30 second pitstop penalty for winning the previous round entered ensured Matthew Ellis would return to the track behind the pink MX-5 of Smith. Fastest lap after fastest lap ensued and remarkably the Sunbeam pilot appeared to have snatched victory in the closing stages, only to be landed with a 30 second post race penalty for a 0.9 second too short pit stop!
The Swinging Sixties Group 1 race (for smaller engine capacity cars) was perhaps the highlight of the day where Ian Staines worked his way to the front of the impressive 27 car field by the end of lap 1. And despite never relinquishing the top position, the MG Midget pilot was under pressure throughout the opening half of the race with Chris Watkinson’s Austin Mini and Tim Cairn’s pole sitting Turner in hot pursuit. The Mini challenge would sadly fade with troubles at the pitstop leaving Cairn’s to provide the main opposition. But whilst the Turner pilot seemed to be right up there on ultimate pace, the Midget seemed more at ease in the traffic, leaving Staines to claim a well deserved 9 second victory.
The more powerful Swinging Sixties machines would form the Group 2 grid, and having cemented pole by over 1 second, Jamie Keevil in his Lotus Elan would take an early lead. Any thoughts of a stroll to victory however were quickly dispelled as the Lotus 7 of John and Tom Muirhead was able to keep the Elan in sight. But despite setting fastest lap of the race, the Lotus 7 duo were not able to mount a serious challenge for victory and ultimately ended the event 9 seconds in arrears. Following the pitstops, Jonathan Crayston and David McDonald would find themselves locked in a battle for the final podium position and it would be the TR6 of McDonald that would come out on top following a late overtake, thus ending a Lotus class lockout of the podium positions.
And last but least (not in race order), disappointingly just 9 cars took the start of the Mintex Classic K race which even around the relatively short Cadwell park left plenty of quiet gaps. That aside the racing remained enjoyable with little to choose between the top 3 runners, Jon Wolfe’s Elan, the David Beresford / David Morrison MG B and the TR4 of Neil Howe. Pole sitter Wolfe just had the edge throughout though with his Elan taking the flag 6 seconds clear of Morrison’s MG. The battle of the race was for 4th spot however, where for lap after lap Nick Jesty, in his 1293 Mini, tried his absolute best to find a way passed Steve Chapman’s TR4. After the pitstops it looked like the Austin pilot had finally cracked it only for the more powerful Triumph to find a way back through. Fabulous racing.
And in what seemed like the blink of an eye, the final Morgan had re-entered the paddock and the day was sadly over, 9 hours at the circuit gone in an instant! Whilst it would have been nice to see slightly fuller grids you couldn’t grumble with the quality of entry, which combined with the fabulous weather, the picturesque undulating nature of the circuit and the event running like clockwork (not a single safety car period) pleased the inner photographer (and Motorsport fan) in me! I won’t leave it as long to visit Cadwell again and next time hopefully the great unwashed will be allowed to traipse around the Paddock.
The 2019 Cambrian Rally would combine the opening rounds of both the BTRDA and British Rally championships with runners in the latter National A event intriguingly set to complete an additional 3 stages in the dark.
A healthy contingent of latest spec R5 machinery at the sharp end of the entry list had added additional excitement to the North Wales based event, which included 2 M-Sport entered Fiesta’s for FIA Priority 2 seeded Chilean brothers Pedro and Alberto Heller.
It was another M-Sport Fiesta in the hands of 2018 BTRDA and BRC champion Matt Edwards that again proved to be the class of the field however. In a field stacked with quality, David Bogie and Tom Cave, would prove his closest challengers but whilst both claimed stage wins neither could match Edward’s consistency, with the Swift backed Ford man (co-driven by Patrick Walsh) going on to claim victory by 26.5 seconds. Edwards’s later describing success on his home turf as a dream come.
Cave’s challenge would infact come to an unfortunate late end; despite completing the full stage mileage, the unlikely misfortune of suffering 3 punctures over the final loop of stages left the Welshman unable to attempt the final road section, allowng Bogie to claim the runner up position in his Fabia, and the similar machine of Northern Irishman Martin McCormack to round out the podium positions.
Behind, Peugeot 208 crew, James Wilson & Arthur Kierans claimed a hotly contested BRC Junior category victory which saw the top five runners separated by just 30 seconds! Gaining the lead in stage 5, Wilson and Kierans managed to hold off a fast recovering Will Creighton (puncture delayed) over the final few stages to take class honours by less than 2 seconds!
In the National B event meanwhile, Euan Thorburn made a winning return to action in his WRC Focus. Benefiting from a healthy lead developed over the morning loop, he and co-driver Paul Beaton had just enough in hand to nurse their misfiring Ford to Goldstar glory, with the Fiesta WRC of Charlie Payne and Carl Williamson a close second.
Perhaps benefiting from a return to running first on the road, it was runners from the 1400 and historic classes that would fill the Silver Star podium positions. 2018 Champion, George Lepley switched to RWD machinery for the Cambrian and, co-driven by Arwel Jenkins, duly shone in Barry Jordan’s historic spec 8v Avenger, ending the day in a phenomenal 13th position overall and in turn claiming historic honours by over 40 seconds from the BDG powered Escort of Hugh Hunter!
2018 class winners Chris Powell and Jim Lewis, again topped the 1400 time sheets; the Sunbeam crew catching and passing 2019 Champion Dave Brick over the damp afternoon stages to claim a hard fought 2nd overall in the Silver Star category. With the final step of the 2WD podium just reward for a strong drive by Brick.
Elsewhere, Lancer Evo 9 crew, Pat Naylor and Ian Lawrence, were first home in the showroom category with 4th overall whilst Ian Bainbridge and Daniel May claimed B13 victory with an excellent 5th in their very nicely turned out Subaru Impreza.
Paul Commons Motorsport 