the acorn · ford mc’s car-breaking preston rally. kevin and his driver came a very impressive...
TRANSCRIPT
The Sevenoaks & District Motor Club
The AcornJanuary 2008
Congratulations to the 7Oaks Speed LeagueChampion and runners-up for 2007
Champion - Andy Webber
Runner- up -John Start
3rd Place-Jim Giddings
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Sevenoaks and District Motor Club Ltd. PRESIDENT: J Symes VICE PRESIDENT: V EIford
ACORN MAGAZINE January 2008
The Editor, Committee and Club do not necessarily agree with items and opinions expressed within ACORN magazine
OFFICERS and COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN, Chin, TROPHY RECORDS [email protected] KEEPER: VICE CHAIR; Dawn Travers, ACORN EDITOR, [email protected] CHILD PROTECTION OFFICER: SECRETARY, Rosemary Mead, [email protected] MEMBERSHIP SEC: Andy Elcomb, [email protected] TREASURER: Clive Cooke, [email protected] COMPETITION SEC. Ian Crocker, WEBMASTER: [email protected] SPEED LEAGUE David Balderson, CHAMP CO-ORD: [email protected] RALLY SECRETARY: Iain Gibson, CHIEF MARSHAL: Philip Fawcett, [email protected] SOCIAL SECRETARY: Daniel Whittington, [email protected] PRESS & PR: Suze Bisping, [email protected] PRESS & PR: Steve Thompson, [email protected] WITHOUT PORTFOLIO: Chris Scudder, [email protected] WEB ACORN: Ralph Travers, [email protected]
Website - www.sevenoaksmotorclub.com
PLEASE NOTE: COPY DATE FOR FEBRUARY ACORN WILL BE 20TH JANUARY
You can e-mail copy to [email protected] I will also accept copy on disc or CD-Rom; on paper (typed or handwritten) or by ‘phone for juicy gossip.
Wednesday 16th January 2008 Quiz Night start 8.30pm prompt in The Buttery, The Bull, Wrotham
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Deadline for copy for the February 2008 Acorn is
20th January 2007. If you have something for an edition of Acorn please stick to the deadline dates, espe-
cially if it is for the calendar or has a “shelf life”, as I cannot
guarantee inclusion if the copy arrives after this date.
Thanks for your co-operation.
Editorial Ramblings
H appy 2008 everyone. Hope you all had a good festive season and have all been able to spend some quality time in preparation for the start of
the Speed season. You’ll find the 2008 Speed League regs printed in this issue along with a loose registration form to fill in and return. Karen Webber has been working hard to secure events for another interesting and varied season for you speed people. Please make both Karen’s and David Balderson’s hard work worthwhile by getting your forms in early.
Once again there will be a t-shirt for competitors who register early and don’t forget to get your mar-shalling points registered too. You have an early op-portunity to get that over and done with before the season starts by offering your assistance on our 12 car in February. See Philip Fawcett’s Musings for more details.
Monthly Mug—December After a brief discussion at the January committee
meeting , the December mug is to be awarded to Kevin Ablitt for his courageous co-driving on Chelms-ford MC’s car-breaking Preston Rally. Kevin and his driver came a very impressive 13th overall on what I believe was his first attempt and more importantly the car survived! Well done!
However an honourable mention for the monthly mug honours must also go to Andy Elcomb and Daren Hall who won the December Scatter organised by Ian Crocker. But then we wouldn’t expect anything less of these two!
New Members As the renewals start to roll into Andy Elcomb at
Membership Secretary HQ, we have already got a new member to join in the fun at the start of the 2008 season. A warm welcome to Darren Clayden from Kent and we hope to see you out on the autotests, sprints and hillclimbs this year.
That’s it for now. Hope to see lots of you at the Awards Dinner on February 2nd.
Dawn Travers
Sevenoaks and District MC presents its
2007 Annual Awards Dinner on
Saturday 2nd February 2008 at the Hadlow Manor Hotel,
Hadlow, Kent.
Tickets available priced £25.00 per head from Viv Elcomb.
Please see pages 15 & 16 of this issue for ticket request form and menu
choices form. Alternatively you can download these from the website.
Summer Autotest Series Awards to presented on the night.
CCC
A new year already, my, how time flies! But that’s a lot better than having time drag by with little to fill it. So, if you have that problem, re-
member that your club could always do with some help, either at events or with the general running of the club, we’ve never turned anyone down.
I guess that most of you out there are, however, busy preparing for the coming season – and if not, why not! This could be the annual whinge about preparation but most of you have heard it all before, the only thing I will say is – if it breaks, or isn’t ready then it’s your fault!
I look forward to seeing most of you at the Annual Awards Dinner at the beginning of February – if you haven’t booked your tickets then hurry up. I shall be doing a lot of polishing between now and then so come along and enjoy a good night out with your club-mates, and admire the silverware that you could (or have) won.
It’s time to say a big thank you to Andy Elcomb for all he has put into our club over the past £$& years in various roles, most recently as Club Secretary and Vice Chairman. Andy has put an awful (He wasn’t that bad!! >>The Ed) amount of work in on your com-mittee and at all types of events and, although he will not be wholly unemployed by us, he is taking a bit of a break from committee – thanks Andy!
In his place I welcome Rosemary Mead with help from Nigel to fill the Secretarial role; they’ve attended the last committee meeting and weren’t put off so here’s to the future. Dawn Travers will take over as Vice Chairman should I ever go on holiday or off sick (more likely!). While we’re on committee matters I’d like to let you all know that Karen Webber is recover-ing well from her recent operation and the continuing treatment is not hitting her too hard so far – what a fighter. Keep it up Karen there’s a lot ahead of you.
Well, that’s it from me this month see you out in the lanes this time of year.
Chin
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COMPETITION CALENDAR 2008 FORTHCOMING EVENTS
DATE EVENT ORGANISING CLUB / Contact LOCATION Status Champ Round
11th January 12 Car Rally Croydon DMC( Weald MC): Peter Turner 01883 623465 Mobile: 07778 857160 or Email: [email protected]
Starts at Westerham Garage and
finishes at the Crown, Knockholt
CS
16th January Social 7Oaks&DMC Social Night: Quiz Night 8.30pm prompt start The Buttery at The Bull Wrotham
The Buttery at The Bull, Wrotham Social
17th January Scatter Rally Weald MC (Maidstone & MKCC): Tom Solomon 07836 636622 [email protected] or Tom Thompson/Dennis Usmar 01795 477755 – maps 188/189
TBC CS
Saturday 2nd February Social 7Oaks&DMC 2007 Annual Awards Dinner Contact:
Viv Elcomb Hadlow Manor Hotel, Hadlow Social
Sunday 3rd February 12 Car Rally Blackpalfrey MC (Weald MC): Contact Andy Gibson
01227 792740 or email [email protected] TBC CS
15th February 12 Car Rally Weald (7Oaks): Phil Fawcett 07840 523439 or email: [email protected] or Chin 01732 823132 Email: [email protected]
TBC CS
Sunday 17th February 12 Car Rally
Eastbourne & RMC (Weald MC): Tim Smith 01424 222662 or email [email protected] Map199 1st car away 7.01pm
TBC CS
21st February Scatter Rally Weald (7Oaks): Organiser for the evening will be Chin phone: 01732 823132 [email protected] TBC CS
For further information contact :-
Competition Secretary: Ian Crocker 01892 546006 email: [email protected]
Speed League contact : David Balderson, 01689 601661 email: [email protected]
22nd/23rd February
Sunseeker Rally Bournemouth
Marshalling volunteers to Phil Fawcett 07840 523439 or email: [email protected] Bournemouth Area
16th March Car Trial Weald (7Oaks): Clive Cooke 01732 353814 Email: [email protected]
Stoneacre Farm, Otham, Nr. Bear-
sted, Kent M/R 188 800536
CS
30th March Car Trial Weald (Maidstone & MKCC): Contact Bruce Jenkins – [email protected] TBC CS
30th March 12 Car Regularity Run Weald (Eastbourne & Ram MC): Tim Smith TBC CS
9th March Car Trial Weald (Croydon DMC): Roger Sawyer Email: [email protected]
Further Fields Farm Nr Leeds, Kent CS
2nd March Stage Rally Sealed Surface
Bournemouth District Motorclub: Entries Paul Corbin 07976 361698 or email: [email protected]
Smeathorpe Airfield Taunton, Somerset Nat B
ASEMC: ASWMC; ACSMC
2nd February South Downs Stage Rally
Bognor Regis and Southseas Motorclubs: Phil Collings [email protected] Or visit www.southdownsstages.co.uk
Goodwood Nat B
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SCATTER SERIES 2008 Thursday 21st February Sevenoaks – Chin Email: [email protected] Tel: 01732 823132 Thursday 20th March Maidstone – Tom Solomon Email: [email protected] Tel: 07836 636622 Thursday 3rd April Sevenoaks – TBC in the meantime: Email: [email protected] Tel: 01892 546006 Details of start venues and maps to be pub-lished in due course. Please keep checking the club website and calendar in Acorn each month.
In the first instance the contact for the Weald clubs for the Scatters are as above for each organising club.
The BLACKPALFREY MOTOR CLUB of KENT Ltd presents the
2007/2008 WINTER SERIES of 12 CAR REGULARITY RUNS
The Series comprises seven events to be run on the following dates:
Sunday 3rd FEBRUARY 2008 (CoC John Fowler & Tom Ash) Sunday 2nd MARCH 2008 (CoC Dave Hughes) Sunday 6th APRIL 2008 (CoC Lee Busbridge & Craig McGurk) Sunday 4th MAY 2008 (CoC Charles Anderson & Charles Harrison)
These events are open to members of the Blackpalfrey Motor Club of Kent, the Historic Rally Car Register, the Weald Motor Club, the MG Car Club and the TR Register. The events are suitable for ‘older’ and ‘newer’ cars and are designed to be good fun and good navigation practice. All events in the Series will be run,in Kent, on Sunday morn-ings and will finish at a Public House for lunch. Further details can be found on www.blackpalfrey.co.uk throughout the Series….
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Marshals Musings
I hope you all had a good Christmas and New Year or for the more PC obsessed of you out there, ‘festive season’. First of all I would like to thank
everyone who helped at our events this last year; it would not have been possible without you. We have been very lucky with the weather this year with all but a few of the autotests being dry and sunny, the 20/20 and November PCT were cold though! Looking for-ward to 2008 we are running plenty of club level events which really seem to be thriving at the moment.
First off is our February 12 car, can you think of a better way to spend a Friday night? Yes, so can I but this will only cost you a tenner and you stand a chance of remembering everything come Saturday morning! If you can’t compete then wrap up warm and come out into the lanes and help marshal, get some points up on the board for the Chalky White trophy. If you need convincing further we will be starting and finishing in the Bull at Wrotham. The 15th February is the date you need to put in your diary, drop me a line if you want to have a go or help out.
The first of my biannual trips to Bournemouth is a week later for Rallye Sun-seeker, to help run the main service time controls. Hopefully the weather will be a little better this year (unfortunately the title sponsor doesn’t guarantee the weather!) I am looking
for a handful of volunteers to come down with me and help out. The rally is hosting the Metro 6R4 Super Challenge this year and is the first round of a number of national championships. The rally starts Friday af-ternoon on the 22nd February and finishes on the eve-ning of Saturday 23rd. Overnight accommodation is included so if you’re interested in helping please give me a call.
PCTs are dead, long live CTs! I don’t think that dropping a letter from the title is going to make a blind bit of difference as to how accessible the events are to newcomers, but the MSA has spoken so we’ll have to make do. ‘Ours is not to reason why’ springs to mind. Our first ‘CT’ of the year is at Stoneacre farm again, near Otham on 16th March. Since I’m getting too old to run up and down hills all day I’ll be looking for a dozen or so people to help out with marking the score cards and repositioning the course markers, especially after Steve Thompson has tried the hill! Put the date in your diary now and come out for a day of friendly, fun motorsport.
If you can help with any of these events then please ring me on 01403 258073 or you can Email me on [email protected].
Right that’s all from me for the moment; I will see some of you at the awards night, but for now I’m off to see Status Quo in Brighton. Cue the air guitar, and all together now: ‘Rocking all over the world…..’ Philip Fawcett
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Club Social Calendar 2008
Wednesday 16th January Quiz Night prompt start at 8.30pm
In The Buttery at The Bull, Wrotham
Saturday 2nd February Annual Awards Dinner Hadlow Manor Hotel
Wednesday 20th February (half term holiday week)
Scalextric Evening From 8:30pm in The Buttery, The Bull,
Wrotham
Wednesday 19th March Competitors Open forum —TBC
Wednesday 16th April
Sevenoaks & District Motorclub Annual General Meeting
Wednesday 21st May
Event TBA
Wednesday 18th June Event TBA
Wednesday 16th July
Find-a-pub/Skittles Somewhere in Kent/Surrey
Wednesday 16th August
Bat & Trap Somewhere in Kent
Wednesday 17th September
Wednesday 15th October Wednesday 19th November Wednesday 17th December
12 CAR RALLY SERIES 2008
The next event in the series: 11th January 2008
Start at Westerham Garage Signing on from 7.30pm with first car away
8.01pm Peter Turner 01883 623465 Mobile: 07778 857160 or
Email: [email protected]
Regulations for the rest of the series are now available from the website at:
www.sevenoaksmotoclub.com 15 February 2008 Sevenoaks & DMC 14 March 2008 Borough 18 MC 11 April 2008 Central Sussex MC
Organisers for subsequent events to be confirmed , please keep checking the club
website and calendar in Acorn each month. In the first instance the contact for the
Weald clubs for the 12 cars are as follows:
Croydon: Peter Turner Tel & Fax: 01883 623465 Mobile: 07778 857160 Email: [email protected] Sevenoaks: Chin Tel: 01732 823132 (Home) Email: [email protected] Borough 18: Roger McKensie Tel: 01732 884312 Email: [email protected] Central Sussex: Matt Fowle Tel: 01273 551145 Email: [email protected] Eastbourne and Ram MC are organising 12 cars events to which Weald Members are invited to join in, on the following Sun-day evenings in 2008 with first car away 7.01pm. For start information call: Tim Smith 01424 222662 Or email: [email protected]
Sunday 20 January 2008 Sunday 17 February 2008
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Social Stuff
H ere is your social calendar for 2008. We are now always meeting in The Buttery at The Bull, Wrotham, Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 7RF (MR
188 / 612591) for all social evenings, unless otherwise informed. Further details can be found at: www.thebullhotel.com The December social was well supported and lots of seasonal fun was had by all. Thanks to all who came with a small gift the Lucky Dip.
For future events, in 2008 and beyond, your input in the form of ideas would be greatly appreciated, and if anyone has an event they wish to organise/run, please let me know! Daniel Whittington
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Date
Event Status Name of Event/Venue
16-Mar Car Trial Clubmans Stoneacre Farm
06-Apr Sprint Nat B North Weald
08-May Autotest Clubmans Farningham 22-May Autotest Clubmans Farningham
05-Jun Autotest Clubmans Farningham 19-Jun Autotest Clubmans Farningham
03-Jul Autotest Clubmans Farningham
17-Jul Autotest Clubmans Farningham
27-Jul Autosolo Nat B North Weald
31-Aug Sprint Nat B North Weald
13-Sep Sprint Nat A & B Cadwell Park
12-Oct MV Trial Clubmans Kent—various
14-Nov 12 Car Clubmans TBC
16-Nov Car Trial Clubmans Stoneacre Farm Dec Scatter Clubmans TBC
Aug date TBC
All day Autotest Clubmans Farningham
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Sevenoaks & DMC Club Events Calendar
T he above list shows all of the various events that Sevenoaks & DMC will be or-ganising in the year 2008.
It is not however, a complete listing of all events that Sevenoaks members are eligible to compete in. The club is a member of 6 regional associations, these being the Association of South Eastern Motor Clubs, Association of Eastern Motor Clubs, Association of Central Southern Motor Clubs, Association of South Western Motor Clubs , Association of West Midlands Motor Clubs and the London Coun-ties Association of Motor Clubs. This means that as a Sevenoaks member, you can compete in any event run by another club that invites any one of these associations.
Additionally, all of the above events will score you points in the club's various championships such as the Rose & Crown, Tyrrell Fleming and the Chalky White.
Don't forget that if you are competing in the Marketing Machine Speed League, then you will have to marshal at one of these events in order to qualify you for a championship trophy should you be quick enough to win one!
Please note there has been a change to the published date of the March Car Trial from 23rd March to 16th March.
Blowing Away the Cobwebs
T he Crown Point Inn on the A25 between Seal and Igtham was the start and finish venue of the now rapidly becoming traditional Sevenoaks
&DMC New Year ramble. The walk was a 3 mile route, a bit hilly but organiser Chin had made provi-sion for anyone jaded by any previous night’s New Year celebrations and had allowed for a 'cut' to return to the pub halfway through. Although using the cut did add 2 fails and first round at the bar!!
An initially damp early morning dried up to a cold if slightly murky day and saw 19 walkers come out to play with several more meeting for the almost as tradi-tional lunch, back at the hostelry. A jolly time was had by all.
The 7Oaks & DMC Ramblers...
....and their dogs!
Follow the leader!
Roy & Sid exercising jaws...
...and legs!
Text: D Travers Photos: Andy Elcomb
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t’s nearly the end of the year so it is crucial that you get any results that I’ve not had to me as soon as possible so that I can finalise the tables ready for our
Awards night in February. The events that I have so far are:
Date Name 12-Jan-07 CDMC 12-car 18-Jan-07 MMKMC Scatter 20-Jan-07 Carpetbagger 04-Feb-07 Southdown Stages 04-Feb-07 B19 PCT feb 08-Feb-07 SDMC Scatter 10-Feb-07 Wydean Rally 16-Feb-07 SDMC 12-car 16-Mar-07 B18MC 12-car 25-Mar-07 7oaks PCT 31-Mar-07 Horiba D'Isis 01-Apr-07 North Weald April 05-Apr-07 April Scatter 07-Apr-07 750 Saxmax 13-Apr-07 Census 12-car 13/April 15-Apr-07 Cadwell 07 25-Apr-07 Pirelli International Rally 25-Apr-07 Pirelli National Rally 09-May-07 MMKMC A/test 9 May 10-May-07 Evening a/test 16-May-07 MM<MC A/test 19-May-07 Ian Bax Memorial 21-May-07 BRSCC S1 22-May-07 BRSCC S1 Race 24-May-07 Evening A/test 24 May 26-May-07 Prescott Hillclimb 28-May-07 Millbrook Stages 08-Jun-07 Jersey Festival 09-Jun-07 Jersey Festival Hillclimb 13-Jun-07 MMKMC A/test 13 June 21-Jun-07 Evening A/test 21 June 21-Jun-07 Eve A/test 23-Jun-07 Neil Benfield Sprint 27-Jun-07 MMKMC eve a/test 30-Jun-07 Dick Mayo Sprint 05-Jul-07 Eve A/test 11-Jul-07 MMKMC eve a/test 15-Jul-07 Shelsley Walsh 19-Jul-07 Eve A/test 21-Jul-07 Llandow 21-Jul-07 Barbera Carter Memorial Rally 22-Jul-07 Llys-y-Fran July 27-Jul-07 Priestly Rally 29-Jul-07 Eve A/test 01-Aug-07 MMKMC Atest 1Aug 04-Aug-07 Historic Harry Flatters 05-Aug-07 Lotus Hethel 11-Aug-07 Owen Development Stages 11-Aug-07 BARC Curborough Aug 11 01-Sep-07 Woodpecker Stages 08-Sep-07 BARC SE Race1 8th Sept Lydden 08-Sep-07 BARC SE Race2 8th Sept Lydden 08-Sep-07 TWMC Brands Sprint 08-Sep-07 Brighton Speed Trials 22-Sep-07 Longleat Woolbridge Sat Sept 23-Sep-07 Longleat Woolbridge Sun Sept 06-Oct-07 BARC SE Race1 6 Oct Lydden 06-Oct-07 BARC SE Race2 6th Oct Lydden 27-Oct-07 Clitheronian Rally 27-Oct-07 Saxmax October 09-Nov-07 SDMC 12-car Nov07 17-Nov-07 44142 18-Nov-07 SDMC PCT NOV07 So if you know of any event not listed – speak now
or forever hold thy peace (or you can hold your piece if you must!)
Well, what a turn up for the books! Pipped at the post! Daren Hall strikes again! On the final event of the year, Daren wins the Rose & Crown Trophy having won the December Scatter with Andy Elcomb while poor Nigel Mead with Rosemary struggled in 5th place.
So here is the final table together, with the associated awards, for the:
Rose & Crown Trophy Member Points Award
Daren Hall 280 Rose & Crown Nigel Mead 264 Seigle-Morris Andy Webber 228 Chris Judge 216 Consolation Darren Tyre 206 Rosemary Mead 160 Boadicea Bowl Kevin Ablitt 159 Steve Hatton 146 Stepen M Thompson 145 Jim Bate Chris Penfold 144 Stephen Dann 130 Ian Crocker 130 Roy Nicholls 130 Clive Cooke 126 Jay Grossmith 126 Ralph Travers 125 Sam Collins 121 David Balderson 116 Suze Bisping 110 Martyn Ellis 108 Chris Fulke-Greville 104 Jim Giddings 100 Tom Luff 90 Andy Elcomb 88 Tom Murphy 87 Ray Brown 78 Mark Biddle 78 Dawn Travers 66 Russell Giddings 60 Gordon Franks 59 Chin 59 Graham Child 56 Adam Wilks 55 Chris Scudder 53 Alex Giddings 52 Richard Scott 52 Oliver Thompson 52 Andrew Bisping 44 Iain Gibson 41 Peter Wilks 40 Tarna Ablitt 37 Tony Forbes-Marsden 37 Stephen Stringer 37 David Judge 32 Gareth Richardson 31 Claire Kemp 30 Michael Druce-Smith 30 Hales Vaughan 30 Robert Waters 25 Mike Knapman 22 Charles Armstrong-Wilson 22 Winston Bunn 21 Don Scales 13
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Sean Moriarty 13 Lorraine Chappell 12 James Bateman 10 Matt Oliver 10 Richard Scotchmer 10 Bill Oliver 10 Craig Broadway 10
The Tyrrell-Fleming Speed Trophy has no change from last month with Andy Webber well ahead.
In the Tyrrell-Flemming Non-Speed Trophy I
suggested last month, Lorraine has been pipped at the post too, Stefan Davis on his great performance in the British Rally Championship has done it by a long way (you get lots of points for competing at that level). Bad luck Lorraine and keep trying. Member PointsStefan Davis 778 Lorraine Chappell 451 Kevin Ablitt 340 Daren Hall 282 Gareth Hurford-Jones 230 Graham Child 173 Clive Cooke 145 Antony Wright 142 Rob Sartain 142 Emlyn Hurford-Jones 128 Richard Lee 113 Mark Instance 76 Jennifer Klee 76 Chris Judge 60 Aaron Wright 57 Chris Kemp 54 David Judge 50 John Kemp 44 Dawn Travers 40 Ralph Travers 40 Claire Kemp 35 David Balderson 35 Stephen Dann 30 Rosemary Mead 25 Nigel Mead 25 Matthew Randle 23 Chin 23 Stepen M Thompson 20 Antonia Hodgeson 20 Darren Russell 18 Chris Scudder 18 Mark Lee Philpot 10
The Chalky-White trophy has a few corrections now but I’m still in the lead with the Marvic Trophy going to Stacey Thompson. Member Points Trophy Chin 19 Chalky WhitePhilip Fawcett 17 Andy Elcomb 15 Stacey Thompson 11 Marvic Colin Shipway 9 Kerry Simmonds 9 Colin Billings 8 Roy Dawson 7 Christine Balderson 7 Chris Scudder 7
Gee Dawson 6 Rees Thompson 6 Andy Kilby 6 Chris Dennis 6 David Balderson 5 Daren Hall 5 Rob Waters 4 Karen Webber 4 Rosemary Mead 4 Clive Cooke 4 Viv Elcomb 4 Dawn Travers 4 Stephen M Thompson 3 Keith Crocker 3 Steve Hatton 3 Ralph Travers 3 John Kemp 3 Simon Waters 2 Judy Cooke 2 Tom Murphy 2 Hales Vaughan 2 Martine Kilby 2 Andy Webber 2 Daniel Whittington 2 Ian Crocker 2 Leonard Calver 2 Gordon Franks 2 Ben Webber 1 Claire Kemp 1 Darren Russell 1 Suze Bisping 1 Sam Collins 1 Sue Billings 1 Steve Stringer 1 Jim Giddings 1 Russell Giddings 1 Richard Athow 1 John Symes 1 Martyn Ellis 1
The Basil Tye Trophy which is for competing in any event but without consideration of performance, i.e. the more you do the more points you get, is won this year by Andy Webber, he has been a busy boy. It’s good to see that this year 82 members scored in this table.
Member Points Andy Webber 30 Daren Hall 28 Jim Giddings 24 Kevin Ablitt 23 David Balderson 22 Nigel Mead 22 Mike Knapman 21 Stephen M Thompson 19 Lorraine Chappell 18 Rosemary Mead 16 Matt Oliver 15 Bill Oliver 15 Gareth Richardson 15 Gordon Franks 15 Suze Bisping 15 Daniel Whittington 15 Stephen Dann 14 Chris Judge 14
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WEALD MOTOR CLUB 12 CAR RALLY Friday 7th December 2007 Organized by Borough 18 Motor Sports Club Round 3 of the 2007/2008 Rod Wray 12 Car Rally Championship CAR DRIVER NAVIGATOR Score Pos. No.
N 1 Nigel Mead Rosmary Mead 1 Fail / 19 mins 7th
N 2 Tarna Ablitt John Hodgson 7 Fails / 32 mins 8th
N 3 Mick Rose Gavin Lane 0 Fails / 13 mins 5th*
N 4 Howard Shaddock Keith Edwards 1 Fail / 8 mins 6th
E 5 Jenny Gibbs Paul Gibbs 0 Fails / 13mins 4th*
E 6 Clive Cook Kevin Ablitt 0 Fails / 2 mins 1st
E 7 Nick Powter Willie Williams 0 Fails / 6 mins 2nd
8 No Entry
E 9 Dave Bushby Dave Clark 0 Fails / 12 mins 3rd
Congratulations to Clive Cooke and Kevin Ablitt on their win.
Stefan Davis 12 Clive Cooke 12 Martyn Ellis 12 Ralph Travers 12 Darren Tyre 11 Jay Grossmith 10 Richard Scott 10 Steve Hatton 10 Chris Fulke-Greville 9 Sam Collins 9 Chris Penfold 9 Peter Wilks 8 Graham Child 8 Chin 8 Antony Wright 6 Ian Crocker 6 Dawn Travers 6 Neil Armstrong 6 Tom Murphy 6 Declan Armstrong 6 Roy Nicholls 6 Rob Sartain 6 Adam Wilks 6 Chris Scudder 6 Michael Druce-Smith 6 Gareth Hurford-Jones 6 Russell Giddings 6 Iain Gibson 5 Darren Russell 5 David Judge 4 Tarna Ablitt 4 Claire Kemp 4 Andy Elcomb 4 Alex Giddings 3 Don Scales 3 Mark Biddle 3 Richard Lee 3 Ray Brown 3 Paul Goddard 3 Emlyn Hurford-Jones 3 Richard Scotchmer 3 Mark Instance 3 Oliver Thompson 3 Keith Crocker 3 Joseph Druce-Smith 3 Winston Bunn 3 John Start 3 Jennifer Klee 3 Tom Luff 3 Tony Forbes-Marsden 3 Sean Moriarty 2 Andrew Bisping 2 Antonia Hodgeson 2 Robert Waters 2 Stephen Stringer 2 Charles Armstrong-Wilson 2 John Kemp 2 Matthew Randle 2 Mark Lee Philpot 2 Craig Broadway 2 Aaron Wright 2 James Bateman 2 Hales Vaughan 2 Chris Kemp 2
The Trog Trophy for organising our events goes to Stacey Thompson again for all her hard work clerking and secretarying the summer autotest series, but there
are several others with high scores to whom we are grateful. TROG TROPHY POINTS Stacey Thompson 770 "Chin" 510 Andy Elcomb 500 Karen Webber 450 Chris Scudder 340 Clive Cooke 330 Dawn Travers 310 Suze Bisping 250 John Kemp 240 Philip Fawcett 230 Christine Balderson 200 Ian Crocker 160 Steve Pattinson 140 Colin Shipway 140 Andy Kilby 100
That’s all the sums I’ve done so far but the year end is almost with us. You may find an insert to this mag. with a full report of the 2007 competition year.
Keep those results coming in during 2008 and I hope you all have a really enjoyable and successful season. Chin
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3 hours later the car was back together, so I reached for my lunch… as I did, we were called to the
collecting area for race 1! I quickly made a small tweak to the damping to ensure no repeat perform-ance and off we all went to the collecting area, still sporting an enormous amount of Brands Hatch muck.
The good news was that during the few laps com-pleted I had qualified 19th out of 35, only 32 would make the grid. Also, race starts would be rolling, which is safer and less stressful on the car. I enjoy standing starts and seem to be quite good at them, but with an ageing clutch and engine mounts, rolling is better.
Race 1 was interesting to say the least, having chucked it away in practice, and now the track was dry, I spent the first few laps finding the right braking points and gears. This did mean I let a few cars slip through rather than robustly defend my track position. There were a few incidents in front of me, a couple of cars getting together at Druids and, most memorable, an Alfa spun in front of me in Clearways, forcing me to take to the painted tarmac and grass near the pit lane entrance to avoid a huge accident. The result was that I finished a healthy 2nd in class and 17th overall.
Race 2 began with me planted 16th on the grid, alongside the Citroen BX which was one of those who slipped by early in race 1. He was my target for this race! The start was incident free and we quickly set-tled into a real battle. I perused the BX for lap after lap, managing to close up to him significantly under braking and in the corners. On lap 7, as we let some of the leading cars lap us, my chance came. Allegedly due to a missed gear he was slow out of Graham Hill bend and I pounced. From that point onwards it was a case of no mistakes. Under acceleration out of the corners the BX was able to close up on me from time to time, I suspect due to more appropriate gearing, but I was able to keep the buffer by braking late and hard (causing my front discs to glow furiously according to onlookers). Whenever I moved off line to allow a quicker car to lap me the BX would catch up, when-ever there was a clear track I could keep him behind. Despite growing understeer as my front tyres ex-ceeded their optimum temperatures, I managed to stay ahead and finish a satisfied 18th overall, but this time 3rd in class as I couldn't hold off a hard charging Gary Chappell in the much improved Celica.
By the time I had finishing packing the car it was absolutely pitch black in the paddock and I needed a drink, so I headed to the Kentagon for the day’s prize
The Sun Sets on a Golden Year
T he season finale at Brands Hatch promised to be an interesting day, with a cool breeze and the promise of rain. This was an exciting pros-
pect for me because I love driving in the wet and really looked forward to finding how the Xsara would be-have.
Half an hour or so before practice, the rain arrived. Those whose cars were sitting on slicks swapped tyres immediately, others took longer to ponder and then make the move. I stuck with the R888s, as there appeared to be little standing water and the rain was easing anyway. Fully treaded road tyres would have lifted the water but I was worried they would get dam-aged if the track dried.
Practice was wet, wet, wet! During the first lap it became apparent that I was going to struggle to get some clear track and I was going to struggle to see it anyway, as the windscreen was beginning to mist up. After a couple of laps I was a little fed up of sitting be-hind a trail of other cars and started to make some moves. It started well but then in the way into Pad-dock, as I passed Gemma Morris’ Mini, the back of the car whipped round and I was heading down the hill backwards! Conscious of the other cars nearby, I had to keep it sensible and make sure that I didn’t head back across the track; this meant I was going in the gravel. The other consideration is that the vast major-ity of cars that go sideways into the Paddock gravel end up rolling, so I had to keep it straight… back-wards! As ever, the gravel stopped me quickly and that was it, game over. Switch off and get out. No sooner had I reached the barriers, the marshals told me that they were going to continue practice and “live snatch” the car from the edge of the gravel, to the bar-rier… not the best idea and in the process it was bur-ied even deeper! Not long after that was complete, the session was stopped and we then had to extricate the car. With gravel now over the wheel centres, it wasn’t easy to get it out and any attempts to steer it were ut-terly fruitless. Eventually we managed to reach hard ground, marshals collected the engine under shield, which had been unceremoniously ripped from the sub-frame, chucked it in the back of the car and off I went, around on the grass to the back gate of the pit lane.
A quick visit to the clerk of the course, to ensure that I had qualified, meant I ran from the lower pad-dock, through the tunnel and up to the control tower.
Back in the paddock I now set about removing the many kilos of gravel I had brought back with me, and the damaged engine under shield and front wheel arch liners. Of particular importance was removing several stones that had found their way into the callipers and discs… a reminder to everyone that you must always check these things carefully after a visit to the scen-ery. The radiator and subframe had collected an enor-mous amount which meant the front bumper, head-lights and front panel had to come off. This looked dra-matic and attracted a lot of attention, but really isn’t a big deal. Two wheels had stones jammed between the rims and the tyres, so they needed to be deflated to get the stones out, then re-inflated and checked be-fore reinstallation.
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Three wheels on my wagon....
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Membership Renewal
M embership renewals should now be with you and many thanks to those who have returned their renewals so
promptly A pleas once again to get these in and to
check through the details and update any changes as necessary. Importantly please check that any email address we hold for you, is accurate and up to date.
Don’t forget to check the box if you wish to access the Acorn through the website each month instead of receiving it through the post. Some members prefer to do this and if you are one of them, please tick the box on the form.
Andy Elcomb Membership Secretary
T hank you to everyone who has sent me get well wishes, vis-
ited me or picked up the phone and called me to find out how I am. I have really appreciated how much people care and this has really helped to keep me positive and fighting all the way.
Karen Webber
giving. I’m glad I did too, I was recognised for a “dynamic drive” of the day, for the determination to get the car back out and have two great races, taking home a Dunlop cap and a nice bottle of bubbly.
Later investigation revealed that the demist fan heaters have blow their fuses, why I don't yet know. Just something else to add to the growing list of planned improvements to the car, which will need careful prioritisation and determined action to ensure more fun and hopefully better results in 2008.
Daniel Whittington
RALLYE SUNSEEKER 2008
Following the first meeting of the Organising Committee in early October the provisional details of the event which takes place on 22/23 February 2008 are as follows:
Opening round of HANKOK 2007 MSA Gravel Rally Championship and ACSMC/ASEMC and ASWMC Championships and Metro 6R4 Super Challenge. Start: Canford Service Park – 18.25 Friday and 08.30 Saturday Finish: Bournemouth 17.30 Saturday Route: 205 miles including 62 miles over 13 Special Stages Title Sponsor: Sunseeker Marketing Partners: Turbo Dynamics, Elliothire, VK
So Near Yet So Far – Wales Rally GB
W e came so close to the Super 1600 British title in 2007 despite a host of problems being thrown our way this season. Although things
did not go as smoothly as I would have liked, they were still going to plan when we pitched up for the start of Rally GB in Wales.
However my stand in navigator didn’t get us to the first stage to carry out the recce, due to vastly under-estimating the job in hand. This made the event hor-rendous as I ended up managing both sides of the car and was forced to drive all the stages blind, without pace notes and in the worst weather conditions ever.
The team of friends and family worked so hard and resolved most of the problems in the high adrenaline Swansea Waterfront Service Park. A host of problems were fixed but failing electrics saw us with half power throughout the entire rally. Despite this, I set a time on the spectator stage just 9 seconds off World Rally Champion Sebastian Loeb.
All I had to do was finish so I kept focused on get-ting to the end. However all our efforts were to no avail. I could not believe it when the lower suspension arm broke on the penultimate stage. I rolled in the mud to fix it and got out of the stage before it had closed, but then had to argue for my finish time for 3 minutes with marshals who appeared not to know the rules and refused to write in our finish time! We ended up then being 2 minutes late for the final stage and out of the rally. I couldn’t believe that the event had done
this to me after all the hard work. The organisers did offer their apologies to me after the event.
So now my thoughts turn to finding the support and even more energy to pour into a 2008 BRC campaign. The SDM Rally Team would like to thank Eastern Fab-rications Ltd, In-tuition.net, Maidstone Signs, McLean Reid, Brise Ltd and everyone that endured the horrible conditions throughout the year and especially Wales Rally GB.
Stefan Davis
Sevenoaks Speed League 2008 – Regulations -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 Sevenoaks Speed League 2008 is organised and administered by the Sevenoaks & District Motor Club Ltd. in
accordance with the General Regulations of the Royal Automobile Club Motor Sports Association (Incorporating the provision of the International Sporting Code of the FIA) and these Championship Regulations.
1.1.1 MSA Championship Permit No. xxxxxxxxxxx MSA Championship Grade C Status National B 1.2 Officials 1.2.1 Championship Co-ordinator is Karen Webber 35 Chestnut Close Kings Hill West Malling Kent ME19 4FP.
Tel: 01732 875091 e-mail: [email protected]
1.2.2 Eligibility Scrutineer is Mike Betts 52 New Road London E4 8ET 0208 529 8294 [email protected] 1.2.3 Championship Stewards are: Steve Pattinson, Iain Gibson, Colin Billings . 1.2.4 Championship Scorer & Registrar is David Balderson, 17 Glentrammon Close Orpington Kent BR6 6DL
Tel: 01689 601661 e-mail [email protected]
1.3 Competitor Eligibility 1.3.1 Entrants must be fully paid up valid membership card holding members of Sevenoaks & District Motor Club
and in possession of valid MSA Entrants Licences. 1.3.2 Drivers and Entrant/Drivers must be fully paid up valid membership card holding members of the Sevenoaks &
District Motor Club, be registered for the Championship and in possession of a valid 2008 MSA Competition Licence (minimum Non-race national B). Members must display at least one Championship sticker on their competing cars In order to recognize our sponsors who are Storguard and Verdant.
1.4 Registration 1.4.1 In order to score points, members must register with the Championship Registrar. 1.4.2 This is free to members. 1.4.3 Registration will be allowed on the day of a championship round but members will only score points from that
event onwards. 1.5.1,2,3 Championship Calendar
Speed League 2008 Date Club Hill Sprint TT LT 1 Lydden 29th March TWMC
2 North Weald 6th April 7 Oaks
3 Wiscombe 26th April Woolbridge 4 Curborough 3rd May BARC Mids 5 Millbrook 8th May 7Oaks/ West Essex
6 Debden 11th May Herts
7 Bentwaters 18th May B19
8 Abingdon 7th June Sutton & Cheam
9 Lydden (All Day) 21st June B19
10 Either Castle coombe 28th June Bristol 10 Or Goodwood 28th June TWMC
11 Longleat 5th July Woolbridge 12 MIRA 12th July 13 Llandow 19th July BARC Wales 14 Llys y Fran 20th July Swansea 15 Hethel 3rd Aug B19 16 North Weald 31st Aug 7Oaks
17 Brands Hatch 6th Sept RMC/TWMC
18 Cadwell 13th Sept 7Oaks /B19 19 Debden 5th Oct Herts
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Best 10 scores from 19 rounds to count unless rounds drop to 15 then the Championship Co-ordinator will try to find a suitable replacement in good time (A29(c)). If that is not possible, the championship will be decided on ‘Best 9 scores less one for each round lost”. (Thus, best 9 from 15; best 8 from 14, etc.) 1.5.3 Obtaining regulations for championship rounds is the responsibility of the registered contender and
neither the club nor its officials will be held responsible for a competitor’s failure to secure an entry. Please note that reserved places are not held open by organisers.
1.6 Scoring 1.6.1 Members can only score points in one car per event. It is up to the member to advise the Championship
Scorer which vehicle is to score, (if more than one is entered, before the start of the event.) Points will be awarded based on class position (regardless of class size) as follows:
1st in class 10 points; 2nd 9 points; 3rd 8 points; 4th 7 points; 5th 6 points; 6th 5 points
All other finishers will be awarded 4 points. (To be a finisher, competitor must complete one timed run) A competitor making FTD will receive 12 points, regardless of class size.
One extra point will be awarded for each class competitor beaten up to a max of 5pts. [E.g. class of 10 places 1st to 5th will get 5 points, 6th – 4pts, 7th – 3pts, 8th – 2pts, 9th – 1pt, 10th – 0 pts. Class of 14 places 1st to 9th will get 5pts, 10th – 4pts, 11th – 3pts, 12th – 2pts, 13th – 1pt, 14th – 0pts. class of 4 1st – 3pts, 2nd – 2pts, 3rd – 1pts, 4th – 0pts,] (Any driver who starts practice, but fails to complete a timed run, will be considered as a ‘competitor beaten’ by a finisher. Competitors must advise the Scorer where this occurs; as such cars may be shown as DNS in the results.)
FTD winners will score the extra points against their regular classes. 2 points will be awarded to contenders starting practice but not completing a timed run. 1.6.2 In the event of a tie the MSA standard method will be used, as defined in G11 of the MSA 2008 Yearbook. 1.6.3 Appeals arising out of the Championship classification or points must be made in accordance with Section
C(D)65 of the MSA Yearbook 2008. 1.7 Awards 1.7.1 Awards will be presented as follows; 1st Overall-Marketing Machine Trophy+£220 6th Overall-Trophy 2nd Overall-Trophy+£100 7th Overall-Trophy 3rd Overall-Trophy+£75 8th Overall-Trophy 4th Overall-Trophy+£55 9th Overall-Trophy 5th Overall-Trophy+£45 10th Overall-Trophy Special awards will be made as follows;
a) The Tourist Trophy + £25 to the driver, other than the overall winner, with the highest combined score at Rounds defined as "TT" rounds on the calendar. b) The Local Trophy + £25 to the driver, Other than the overall winner, with the highest combined score at rounds defined as ‘’LT’’ rounds on the calendar. c) The Neil Davison Award + £25 to the highest placed driver competing in Hillclimb events other than the overall winner. d) The Kentish Times Cup + £20 to the highest placed driver of a taxed and insured road car other than the overall winner. e) The Muller Cup + £20 to the highest placed saloon car driver other than the overall winner. f) Special award + £20 to the highest placed single seater or sports racing driver other than the overall winner. g) Other awards may be made at the organiser’s discretion.
1.7.2 To qualify for an award, competitors MUST marshal or act as an official at ANY Sevenoaks organised event
in any discipline this must be an all day event or two half days/evening events equivilant to 1 days work i.e. Rally Events, Autotests, Speed events, PCT’s etc any event setups and any other club activity deemed to be equal to that of marshalling. It is the responsibility of the competitor to inform the Championship Scorer on the relevant form with a club official’s signature when and where this occurs or via Email endorsed by an one of the event organisers. This will be confirmed from event signing on sheets if deemed necessary. Qualifying Period from 15th Oct 2007 – 5th Oct 2008.
All awards will be presented at the dinner and dance to be held in 2009. Award winners not collecting their award will forfeit any cash bonus to charity.
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2.0 Sporting Regulations Judicial Procedures 2.1 Rounds - in accordance with Section C(d) and Appendix 2 of the MSA Yearbook 2008. 2.2 Championship - in accordance with Section C(d) and Appendix 2 of the MSA Yearbook 2008 3.0 Technical Regulations 3.1 Eligible Vehicles are those complying with the Technical and Safety Regulations laid down by the MSA, and
with the class requirements of each individual event. Eligibility protests should be made in writing to the Championship Co-ordinator. In the event of a protest the onus is on the competitor to satisfy the organisers of the validity of the protest and not the organisers to prove non-compliance.
3.2 Competitors will run in Classes as defined in the SR’S for each round. 3.3 All cars must comply with the requirements of Section I and C(c) as appropriate to the category of car. in the
MSA Yearbook 2008. All cars must comply with the current MSA Noise Regulations, and any special requirements applicable to a particular venue. Stated in the SR’S of each Round.
Published edition 1/2008
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Sevenoaks & District Motor Club Car Trial
Organised on behalf of Weald Motor Club At
Stoneacre Farm, Otham, Nr. Bearsted, Kent M/R 188 800536
Sunday March 16 2008
SUPPLEMENTARY REGULATIONS 1. The Weald Motor Club Ltd. will promote a Clubsport Car Trial, organised by Sevenoaks & District Motor Club on Sunday March 16, open to all members of the club and 6 invited clubs, including but not restricted to MGCC and Falcon MC. 2. The meeting will be held under the General Regulations of the Motor Sports Association (MSA GR) (incorporating the provisions of the International Sporting Code of the FIA), these supplementary regulations and any written instructions the Clubs may issue for the event. 3. The MSA Clubsport permit is TBA. 4. Club membership cards will be inspected at signing-on. 5. It is hoped to have at least 6 sections, all on private land, and at least two runs at each. 6. Competitors will not be required to attempt the sections in any particular order. 7. All cars will comply with the MSA Vehicle and Tyre Regulations. 8. The following classes will apply:- (A) Front wheel production cars up to 1400cc. (B) Front wheel production cars 1401cc and above. (C) Front engined rear wheel drive production saloons (D) Front engined rear wheel drive production sports cars (E) Rear engined production cars (F) Specials - any other vehicle, except four wheel drive. 9. Vehicles will be strictly scrutineered. Classification of any vehicle will be entirely at the discretion of the organisers, as will any amalgamation of classes. 10. Awards will be presented as follows:- FTD - lowest overall score (excludes Class F) Class 1st Class 2nd (subject to 5 entries) Class 3rd (subject to 8 entries)
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11. The entry list opens on publication of these Supplementary Regulations and closes on March 16. All entries must be made on the official entry form and be accompanied by the appropriate fee of £17.00. Entry fees may be refunded at the organiser's discretion. 12. The Secretary of the Meeting, to whom all entries should be sent, is
Clive Cooke, 13, Cornwallis Avenue, Tonbridge, Kent, TN10 4EP Tel: 01732 353814 E mail: [email protected]
14. Other senior officials are: Club Steward - T.B.A.
Clerk of the Course - T.B.A. Scrutineer - T.B.A.
15. The maximum number of entries for this event is 40 - accepted in order of receipt – and the minimum is 10. Should this figure not be reached, the organisers reserve the right to cancel the event. The Class minimum is 3, but the organisers reserve the right to amalgamate classes at their discretion in order to provide more equitable competition. 16. Two or more drivers per car will be accepted, each being treated as a separate entry. 17. We bring to your particular attention the General Regulations of the Motor Sports Association J13, and remind you that a front seat passenger must be over the age of 12 years, and that the passengers comprising the 'crew' at the start, may not be altered during the competition. 18. Marking and penalties will be as stated in MSA GR J51 19. Provisional results will be published as soon as possible following the end of the event, and will become final shortly thereafter. Any protests must be made, and will be dealt with, in accordance with MSA GR C(d) 45-59. 20. Identification numbers supplied by the organisers must be fixed in a prominent forward facing position. 21. All marshals and officials are appointed 'Judges of Fact' to adjudicate on items listed under MSA GR J27 22. All other GR's of the MSA apply as printed, except that General Technical Regulations 52-58 and 85-106 do not apply and Car Trial Technical Regulations 97 (a) (d) (e), 101, 104, 105 (a) (c) have been deleted. 23. As the event takes place on private land, there is no need for vehicles to be taxed or MOTed, but they MUST be properly silenced. EXTRA INFORMATION The usual on-site catering will be available - please patronise - as will the toilet facilities. As always, please take special care driving around the venue so as to avoid damage to people and property (the sheep need the grass as well!)
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little-known machines owned byMcQueen including a Siata 208Sand Mini Cooper ‘S’.
With the help of McQueen’s sonChad, plus his ex-wives and friendBud Ekins, there’s plenty ofanecdotes to add colour and thesagas behind the filming of TheGreet Escape, Bullitt, Le Mans andThe Thomas Crown Affair are alsoexplored.
As well as the highly readablestory, this top-value book is packedwith pictures, cuttings andmagazine cover art. If you onlyhave one book on the King of Coolin your library, this should be it.
CHAPMAN’S CARCOMPENDIUMISBN 978 1 8589 4414 2GiIes Chapman, Merrell£9.95With tills about to start ringing forChristmas, the launch of thismagnificent stocking-filler isperfectly timed. Yet the inherentcynicism of the suspiciously easy-to-wrap 190-page hardback shouldn’tput you off because it’s a hoot fromstart to finish. Prolific former C&S
CAN-AM CHALLENGER –THE COCKNEY F1MECHANIC WHO DESIGNEDAND BUILT AMERICA’SBEST CAN-AM CARS.ISBN 978 1 8936 188 6 2Peter Bryant, David BullPublishing, £34.99This is a rather low-rent productionby David Bull standards – poorpaper, only a sprinkling of colourand several below-par black-and-whites. That’s a shame because it’sa great story, engagingly – oftenhilariously – told, and informativethroughout. After a foreword byJackie Oliver, Bryant relates a life inmotor sport, from early daysspannering privateer Listers,through the Lotus years to his bigbreak into F1 thanks to RegParnell, and then across to the USand, finally, designing cars –including the awesome Ti22s thatthreatened McLaren’s CanAm
hegemony. Revel in this deft wit’sbehind-the-scenes perspective, andlearn why you should never accepta KFC from a race mechanic.Recommended.
McQUEEN’S MACHINES –THE CARS AND BIKES OF AHOLLYWOOD ICONISBN 978 0 7603 2866 9Matt Stone, Motorbooks,£16.99Fans of Steve McQueen are notshort of material, but Matt Stone’snew book focuses entirely on thestar’s on- and off-screen obsessionwith cars and ’bikes. Stone, arespected American car journalistwith a true passion for classics, hasbeen lucky enough to drive manyof McQueen’s favourite cars, oftenon routes burned up by theHollywood hero. Plus, in additionto the expected spotlights onvarious Porsches, Ferraris and theJaguar XKSS, Stone has uncovered
Wheels 01/08 i
REVIEWS FROM
Wheelsunstoppable. In any case the‘precautionary principal’ is still likelyto appeal – namely that it’s better toact then find climate change doesn’thappen, than to do nothing then findit proves worse than expected, whichis where current thinking appears tobe going.
So what resolutions can the sportmake for the New Year? Well, we canchange regulations to make usgreener but whatever we do has to begenuine not just window dressingotherwise we’ll get slaughtered.(Away from motorsport, how longbefore there are media scandals aboutcarbon trading for example? Myguess is months not years.)
We’ll have to be more flexibleabout our regulations. It is right thatthere are months of debate overthings like K37 and it is right thatonly changes affecting safety can bekicked in quickly. But in future wemay have to sacrifice some of thedemocracy for speed simply to keepour sport alive. Legislation mayimpact on us anyway with, say, rulesprohibiting you from opening thebonnet of a car.
Clubs will need to be alert to thewider world and will need tocooperate through the RegionalAssociations; those clubs which don’tsupport their Associations for
I think the question mark isjustified because it’s difficult toknow what ’08 holds after so
much negative news towards the endof last year.
Like…The proposals to increasespeeding penalties; before long if youengage a forward speed in daylightpoints will automatically be added toyour licence… The surge in fuel costs,with bookies now prepared to offerodds on when a litre will cost 150p…Plans to make manufacturers devote20% of car ads to highlightingemission levels… Proposed taxchanges to add a thousand or two toprices to force a shift to greenercars…. Etcetera.
Then add in the acres of mediacoverage of global warming. TheIntergovernmental Panel on ClimateChange, which represents around2000 scientists contributing to thescience on climate change, reckons itis ‘very likely’ that humans arecausing the change; in this context‘very likely’ means 90% certain. It’spossible that within the other 10%something could be discovered toblow away all present thinking, but ifyou’re experimenting in your shed toprove that everything’s simply downto an excessive consumption of bakedbeans, you’d better get a move onbefore the bandwagon becomes
whatever reason need to get onboard.
And clubs will need to seizeopportunities to emphasise how longour sport’s been around. Ananniversary function that takes placewithout the Mayor, MP and editorbeing invited is a lost opportunity(they probably won’t come but they’llremember the thought) as is onewithout pix being sent to the media.Which really means that clubs needsomeone looking after externalaffairs, keeping an eye onenvironmental issues as part of theirbrief.
For sure, we’re going to see majorchanges. Maybe we’ll see a quantumshift to smaller cars. Maybe rallycontrols will be easier to find becausewith electric cars they’ll all be underpylons. Maybe…well, use yourimagination.
I may be accused of being alarmistbut in the focussed (some would sayblinkered) world of motorsport wemay forget how quickly things canchange. Older readers may rememberthe teeth gnashing over the switch todecimal currency. That went sosmoothly that they don’t gnash theirteeth any more, even when they canremember which glass they’ve putthem in.
Stuart Turner
KARTINGThe Karting Show at AutosportInternational, 10–13 January2008, will honour BritishFormula One sensation LewisHamilton in his first dedicatedfeature at the world’s biggestmotorsport show, NEC,Birmingham. The Feature willdemonstrate how this remarkable22-year-old launched himself,from karting and through theformulas to a record-breakinginaugural Formula One season.
Lewis is one of the mostnotable graduates from theMcLaren Mercedes Championsof the Future series, now knownas BRDC Stars of Tomorrow, ofwhich Lewis is still Patron. Thefeature will form the biggestKarts to Cars display ever at thenew, dedicated Karting Show.
Many of Hamilton’s karts willbe showcased including his 1996MSA British Cadet winning kart,1997 Junior Yamaha titleclinching chariot, 1998 JuniorICA kart and the 2000 FormulaA World Kart Champion kart.
Pre-registered tickets for MSAlicence holders and members ofthe trade for Thursday 10 andFriday 11 January cost £24 perperson per day or £31 includingthe Live Action Arena. The priceincludes the 2008 Trade Guide.
Autosport International opensto the general public on Saturday12 and Sunday 13 January 2008.Avoid the queues and bookonline at www.autosport-international.com or by phoningthe ticket hotline on 0870 040 0396.
AAUUTTOOSSCCEENNEE
?1. Marcus Gronholm's winning margin
on the 2007 Rally New Zealand wasthe closest in history. What was it?
2. Name the round of the MSA BritishHill Climb Championship held inJersey.
3. In which year did Damon Hill win theWorld F1 Championship?
4.What make of car won the firstRAC Rally in 1932?
COD FILLET QUIZ
editor Chapman has compiled afascinating masterwork ofobscurism, a Schott’s Miscellany forpetrolheads, if you like. After all,could you really continue to sleepsoundly without knowing the top10 unique rear light clusters, or theinside story of the Peugeot peppermill? Maybe you have alwayspondered celebrity car-relateddeaths and the locations of theworld’s longest road tunnels. If so,then you will find enlightenment onthese – and hundreds of other –essential matters here.
ANSWERS ON PAGE ii
HAPPY NEW YEAR (?)
not included above, or if yourclub is close to this significantanniversary, please advise AllanDean-Lewis at the MSA, e-mail:[email protected]
Try kartingThe MSA is committed tolaunching a new participationprogramme in 2008 – aimed atgiving more young people theopportunity to try karting. It isnow looking for a commercialpartner with which to make ithappen.
Building on the recent successof Lewis Hamilton and theassociated growth of interest inkarting, the MSA believes thatthe provision of subsidisedopportunities to get behind thewheel will lead many moreyoungsters to experience thesport at an early age.
This initiative is part of theMSA’s on-going promotionaldrive to encourage more peopleinto motor sport. Furtherannouncements will be madeduring 2008, including a majorcampaign to take motor sportopportunities to the widerpopulation.
Free licencesWith immediate effect for all2008 applications, competitorsunder 16 years of age willreceive their first MSAcompetition licence free ofcharge.
The move is designed tocapitalise on the recent surge ofinterest in motor sport,particularly in karting, and thegoverning body has removed thefees to try to encourageyoungsters to make the step toMSA-sanctioned competition.
MSAnews
ii Wheels 01/08
MARSHALSPOSTby the BMMC
Does circuit racing or rallyingever seem a little slow?
The cars may be fast enough,but what about the gaps inbetween?
Kart enthusiasts will tell youthey can pack scores of racesinto a day and some hillclimbsand sprints can keep you busyall day, too.
But there is another branch ofmotorsport where you areguaranteed virtually non-stopaction – Rallycross.
The races are short, the actionis fast and furious and theemphasis is on keeping thingsgoing. The aim is to givecompetitors as many races aspossible.
The action really is non-stopand pretty muscular, too. Hard,but mostly fair.
Circuits are short and amixture of asphalt and gravel,so the time for dealing withincidents is minimal. If you can’tdeal with the incident quickly,then you have to live with it or– on very rare occasions – stopthe race.
Flagging is simplicity itself –you usually have a Yellow and aRed and that’s it.
The close nature of the racing– encouraged by the shortness ofthe races, the changing surfaceand the narrowness of the gravelsections, means you have to be abit more relaxed about contact.Contact is going to happen, soObservers need to understandwhat the Clerk of the Course islooking for and considerwhether an incident was causedby evil intent or just overexhuberance when they decidewhether to make a report.
Good radio procedure is alsoimportant.
Whatever the circumstances,radio users should speak onlywhen absolutely necessary, havetheir message clear in their mindbefore pressing the PTT (PushTo Talk) button and get off theair as soon as possible.
In Rallycross tight radioprocedure is crucial and so toois the speed with whichmarshals clear incidents betweensessions.
For marshals and drivers it isfast, furious, exhausting – and alot of fun!
The 2008 licence applicationform contains clear instructionsfor young drivers about how toclaim their free first-timelicence. More information isavailable from www.msauk.org
MSA BuddiesDuring 2007 Volunteers inMotorsport has been creating agroup of individuals who love tohelp. They’re called Buddies andare available to help you andyour trainee marshals. Theintention is that they will meetand greet a new marshal andwork with them for the day (orhalf day) to show them theropes and ensure they feelwelcomed and supported. Thisbuddy process may last forseveral events until they havegained sufficient confidence andexperience. If you’d like tobecome an MSA Buddy or usethe services of a Buddy, pleasevisit the Volunteers inMotorsport website where you’llfind contact details for the68 who are already on thescheme.www.volunteersinmotorsport.co.uk
Well done Priaulx andHamiltonThe MSA congratulated Britishdrivers, Andy Priaulx and LewisHamilton, for their successful2007 seasons. Priaulx onceagain retained the FIA WorldTouring Car Championship andHamilton finished as runner-upin the FIA Formula 1 WorldChampionship.
The MSA has commissioned aCentenary Club Award and atthe end of 2007 representativesof the first 11 MSA clubs whohad celebrated their centenariescame to Motor Sports House –to be presented with thesespecial awards by Alan Gow,MSA Chairman, and ColinHilton, MSA Chief Executive.
The Centenary Club Awardmay be used by the receivingclub, at its discretion, either as acommemorative award or as aspecial award for occasional orannual presentation.
Clubs who have celebratedtheir centenary to date (with theanniversary year) are as follows:Lincolnshire Louth Motor Club (2000)
Midland Automobile Club (2001)
Motor Cycling Club (2001)
Liverpool Motor Club (2002)
Lancashire Automobile Club (2002)
Stockport Motor Club (2003)
Coventry & WarwickshireMotor Club (2004)
Sheffield & Hallamshire Motor Club (2004)
Middlesex County AutomobileClub (2005)
Darlington & District Motor Club (2005) and
Cheltenham Motor Club (2006)
If your club has alreadycelebrated its centenary and is
1. Marcus Gronholm beat SebastienLoeb by 0.3 of a second
2. Bouley Bay3. 1996 driving a Williams FW184. Lanchester 16/18
QUIZ ANSWERS
BOOK NOW – Ticket Hotline: 0844 848 3229 www.historicmotorsportshow.com
EUROPE’S PREMIER WINTER CLASSIC MOTORSPORT SHOW
Featured Marque for 2008–
CLASSIC COMPETITION CARS & BIKESONROAD,OFF-ROADANDONTRACK
Sevenoaks & District Motor Club Annual Dinner & Awards (including Autotest Series)
Saturday 2nd February 2008
In the Hadlow Suite, Hadlow Manor Hotel, Goose Green, Hadlow.
Once again, by popular demand we will be returning to the Hadlow Manor on Saturday 2nd February to celebrate the achievements (good and otherwise!) of our club members in 2007. The awards presentation will follow a three course meal, with vegetarian and special dietary options (please contact us first) in the Hadlow Suite - the ballroom. There will also be a bar and other seating areas. All welcome – why not invite your friends and family to a good night out with great food. Like last year, there will be no band or disco, just good old-fashioned conversation with your fellow club members. Overleaf is the choice of menu, which please indicate your preference with this application and use copies or otherwise let us know the choices for any guests.
Tickets £25.00 each
7.00pm for 7.30pm, carriages at 12.00pm
Dress: Smart casual.
For those that wish to stay overnight, accommodation is B&B – around £80.00 for two, around £55.00 single but please book accommodation direct with the hotel on 01732 851442. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ticket applications should be sent to: Vivien Elcomb, The Cottage, Deans Hill, Bredgar, Sittingbourne Kent ME9 8BB (01622 884856) ([email protected]) Please make cheques payable to Sevenoaks & District Motor Club Name…………………………………………………………………………………...... Address………………………………………………………………………………...... ……………………………………………………………………………………………. Telephone……………………………………………………………………………..... Vegetarian or special dietary requirements………………………………………..... I would like……….. tickets and to be seated with…………………………………...
To: The Cottage, Deans Hill, Bredgar, Kent ME9 8BB 01622 884856 [email protected]
Sevenoaks & District 2007 Awards Dinner - Saturday 2nd February 2008 Choose one option for each course – V is vegetarian:
Salad of Mixed Leaves, Beef Tomato and Mozarella with an Olive Oil and Basil Dressing Small Salad of Prawns and Salmon in a light Marie Rose Sauce
V Cream Soup of the Day
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Paupiettes of Plaice with Grapes & Veloute Sauce Baked Breast of Chicken with Smoked Bacon, Seasoning and Roast Gravy Medallions of Sirloin with Glazed Button Onions, Mushrooms, Lardons and Red Wine Jus V Roast Stuffed Peppers with Rice, Nuts & Vegetables topped with Cheese
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Cream Filled Profiteroles and Chocolate Sauce Fresh Pineapple & Orange Marinated in Caramel with Crème Chantilly Selection of Cheddar, Brie & Stilton, Grapes, Celery and Water Biscuits
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Coffee & Mints Name: ___________________________________________________
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Sevenoaks & District Motorclub Rally Championship 2007—Final Results
Stage Rally—Drivers Points Stage Rally—Navigators Points Gareth Hurford-Jones 57 Lorraine Chappel 126
Stefan Davis 51 Andy Gibson 46
Iain Gibson 46 Antony Wright 36
Robert Sartain 36 Emlyn Hurford-Jones 30
Ric Lee 28 Jennifer Klee 25
Mark Instance 25 Kevin Blackford 22
Andy Pecover 22 Tom Athow 5
Stephen Parry-Jones 15
Nigel Mummery 5
Dick Athow 5
Road Rally—Drivers Points Road Rally—Navigators Points Graham Child 73 Kevin Ablitt 105
Kevin Ablitt 30 Graham Child 30
Nigel Mead 18 Rosemary Mead 18
Chin 10 Andy Kilby 10
For Sale
Honda Integra Type-R DC2
Tarmac Rally/Race/Sprint ready. 2000 X registration; 20,000 miles built for 2003 season. 206 BHP a 8800; Spoon ECU; 4-1 stainless steel manifold/NI pipe. Full sump and tank guards;
FIA roll cage with X Diagonal / X door bars; 4L electric zero 2000; 2.4L hand held; Recaro SPGs, Sparco harnesses;
295mm floating Brembo discs and 4 pot callipers with carbon pads. 12 wheels, lamp pod, spares including nose cone,
lights, std Group N brakes; std exhaust, all trim etc; MSA log book/new MOT.
Full details from Iain Gibson (Rally Secretary) on 07808
923595 or home 01474 873573 (Nr. Brands Hatch)
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Autocross News
National and Regional Championship News What is Autocross?
A utocross events are run under MSA regulations by local clubs and may be club, regional or national level. There are over 30 events proposed to run in
2008. The events are run on grass or other relatively level surface (not tarmac or sealed surface). The circuits are up to 1200 yards in length and designed to incorporate left and right hand bends, testing handling and driving skill of both car and competitor. Each run comprises of 2 or more laps from a standing start
are timed. Two competitors usually run together, although some events do allow for 4 at a time starts.
Classes allow for most cars to compete with similar cars, including junior, standard, modi-fied, rally and specials.
Autocross is designed to be a relatively low cost clubman sport which can be enjoyed by any competitor over 14 years.
Junior Autocross Class
This class was introduced in 2007 so that any competitors from 14 years of age can com-pete. Cars are relatively low cost based and are included in regional and national champion-ships.
An open day event, where you can try out and see cars prepared for this class, is proposed for 10th February 2008 at Langley Park Rally School. For further details on this event and for further info on this class contact: Simon Clark 01279 777519
Autocross National Championship
It is proposed to run a 6 round National Championship over three 2 day events, running in the North East, South East and South West. For further details contact John White 01279 731039
Regional Championships
East Anglian Championship propose to run 7 events. Contact Antony Ashwell 01279 843118 Home Counties Championship proposes 12 events. Contact Sarah White 01279 731039 North East Championship proposes 14 events. Contact Dave Wellden 01912 629090 South West Championship proposes 14 events. Contact Colin Anderson 01404 41535
Flyers included this month are:
Sevenoaks & District Motor Club Car Trial
Organised on behalf of Weald Motor Club ENTRY FORM - Sunday March 16 2008
Driver’sName:…………………..............….…….…Club……................……....……. Address: ………………....……………….………………...…..……………….....………
……………………..…………………………………………………………………………
……………....................……....……Post Code ……….………………………………. Tel. No..……..…………………..….(Home)……………………………………(Mobile)
Email address (please write CLEARLY!!)…………………………………...……………….
Passenger’s name:…………………… ……….……………..……….……………...… Vehicle Make…………………………….Model…………….…………………….CC….……..…. Reg. No……………………...Colour…………………….…Class entered……………
Please send the completed entry form, not forgetting to sign the Declaration of Indemnity on page 2, with £17 (Still only £17!!) to: Clive Cooke, 13, Cornwallis Avenue, Tonbridge TN10 4EP (cheques made payable to Sevenoaks & District MC) The meeting will be held under the General Regulations of the Motor Sports Association (incorporating the provisions of the International Sporting Code of the FIA), these supplementary regulations and any written instructions the Clubs may issue for the event.
Declaration of Indemnity I declare that I have been given the opportunity to read the General Regulations of the Motor Sports Association and, if any, the Supplementary Regulations for this event and agree to be bound by them. I declare that I am physically and mentally fit to take part in the event and I am competent to do so. I acknowledge that I understand the nature and type of the competition and the potential risk inherent with motor sport and agree to accept that risk. Further, I understand that all persons having any connection with the promotion and/or organisation and/or conduct of the event are insured against loss or injury caused through their negligence. Any indemnity and/or declaration as prescribed by the paragraphs above which is signed by a person under 18 years of age shall be countersigned by that person's parent or guardian whose full name and address must be given below. Driver's signature..........................................................Age (if under 18)...................
Date..................................... Countersignature........................................Name/relationship.................................... Address....................................................................................................................... .................................................................................................................................... Passenger's signature.............................................Age (if under 18)........................
Date.......................................... Countersignature...........................................Name/relationship................................. Address....................................................................................................................... .................................................................................................................................... The above constitutes a letter of consent. In case of accident or injury, please contact.............................................................. Tel. no.................................................Relationship..................................................
Sevenoaks Speed League 2008
Registration Form 2008 The championship is only open to fully paid up members of Sevenoaks and District Motor Club. No registration fee is necessary. NAME.................................................................................………………......... ADDRESS...................................................………………................................ .........................................................................................……………...........…. ………………………………………………… POSTCODE.......................… TEL No...........................……….(Home ) ...........…………..........…...(Work) E-MAIL...........................................................................................……………. VEHICLE MAKE…….......................... MODEL................................ C.C. .........….... IS THE CAR TAXED AND INSURED?............................YES / NO SIGNED...........................……………............. DATE.......…............................. Send to Scorer: David Balderson 17 Glentrammon Close, Orpington ,Kent,BR6 6DL.
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Sevenoaks Speed League 2008
Marshalling Qualification In accordance with Rule 1.7.2 I confirm that I marshalled / officiated at the following event(s): ........................................................................................................................………………........ Please note that only one FULL DAY OR 2 HALF DAYS/EVENING events are required to qualify, but please do more if you can. Signed.........................................................................Please print name………………………….. Signed 7Oaks Official _______________________Print Name ______________ Send to Scorer: David Balderson, 17 Glentrammon Close, Orpington ,Kent,BR6 6DL once you have marshalled.