A quality field of 75 starters headed for Twyford Wood Nr Grantham, Lincolnshire for the Sheffield and Hallamshire event.  Over 20 four-wheel drive machines headed the entry list, and such was the quality of the entries there were at least a dozen crews in with a realistic of the overall win. 

The terrain at Twyford is a mixture of broken concrete, good concrete and several link patches of gravel. Half the venue is fast open runways, the other half tight, twisty and technical. This was our second visit to Twyford in just over a year and having finished inside the top 10 last year we were hopeful of a similar result. But with such a good entry we would have to be pressing on hard.

Sunday dawned in glorious sunshine.  Stand in service crew of Ade Drury and Martin Auskerin (of 205 challenge fame!!) duly arrived and familiarised themselves with their car for the day. After some last minute fettling including lockwiring the rear brakepad retainers we queued up for Stage 1.  The plan of attack was to go steady on Stage 1 find our feet and then go from there.  Setting off at 30-second intervals it soon became apparent that dust was going to be an issue.  Halfway through Lap 1 we were slowed by the dust to a snails pace until we could see where the road went.  A few junctions later we were flagged down by marshals in the tight sections.  One of the earlier starters had stopped with transmission troubles and had blocked the stage.  About 8 cars were queued behind as Marshals pushed the car about 100 yards to the next junction.  The likelihood was that we would all get a notional time and Mark wanted us to just pootle on round to finish the stage.  It was soon obvious though that most of the competitors thought otherwise and set off like startled rabbits.  WE did likewise but with Marks words of ‘Don’t break the car’ ringing in my ears we didn’t do anything silly.

A quick look over the car revealed that the Dry Sump breather tank was blowing oil out over the rear quarter (having overfilled the tank after Colerne) so we cobbled together a solution using a spare drinks bottle and headed off for Stage 2.  The dust was causing organisers a real headache and for stage 2 they decided to start cars at a minute interval and only do one lap instead of two. Stage 2 passed without drama until we returned to service to find that the oil cooler had split and was spilling its contents all over the floor/drivers side of the car.  I knew that we could bypass the cooler and run the return line straight from the pump to the oil tank.  Ade and Martin set about this task with enthusiasm but it soon became apparent that the oil cooler fittings were a different thread to that of the oil pump!!!! All was not lost though and after Mark had done a quick recce around the service park a helpful Evo owner suggested cutting the swage ends off of the lines and mating the pipe onto the right fitting using two jubilee clips.  Time was running out before we needed to start Stage 3, but somehow Ade & Martin (with help from Peter and Graham Reeson) managed to get us to stage start without incurring any penalties.  We had to run without a front bumper or sump guard but we were just glad to still be in the rally.  We planned to have a steady run, keep off the rough stuff, keep an eye on oil temps and bring the car back to be re-fettled in time for stage 4.  I think I must have had brain fade due to the stress of the repairs because I had completely forgotten that the stage layout had been changed after Stage 2.  Halfway down the main long straight Mark correctly called right over bump through tyres.  Stage 1 and 2 went straight on after the jump and missing his call I couldn’t work out why the Marshals in front were running out of the way as we headed straight on over the bump!!  Reacting to Marks hastily repeated instructions I braked heavily and tried to turn the car right towards the tyres.  The third gear slide was completely under control and we neatly slipped through the tyres only just clipping the left hand side as we headed on down the runway.  The truth of the matter is that this was definitely a brown trouser moment and its probably only due to a bag full of luck, driver skill, and the Pugs characteristic to pendulum when they start to slide that we didn’t end up deep into the undergrowth or worse still, launched into a roll as we clipped the tyres.  Lady luck was definitely on our side.  Stage 4 was cancelled which gave the guys over an hour to do a final bit of fettling and get the car back to its full potential. 

The afternoon stages were ran in reverse but we decided to take it steady and get to the finish.  Mark told me that we were in front of our championship rivals so there was no point in taking any chances.  The reversed stages passed without any major dramas and we really enjoyed the air time over the bumps in the afternoon.  We made it to the finish despite some car dramas (think the car missed Daz and Ben to be honest) to finish 12th overall and 2nd in class.  An excellent result given all the days dramas, and should put us in a strong position for championship honours come year-end.

Our sincere thanks the Ade and Martin for coming down to help us out with the spanners.  Sorry we gave you so much to do but we wouldn’t have made it the finish without you.  Well done!

Azinghmur Stages – Colerne Airfield nr Chippenham, Wiltshire Saturday 14th July 2007 - Bath Motor Club Colerne airfield is reputedly the best venue in the South-West with plenty of wide, fast and smooth tarmac. The venue is the UK base for the Air Training Corps and is used by them and Bath University flying club much of the week. It is a great centre for motorsport and is actively used for track days, sprints and rallies throughout the calendar year. A near full entry of 95 cars is a testament to the popularity of the place.

The venue certainly lives up to its billing as the fastest venue in the UK. With three wide main runways inter-linking there is plenty of scope for fast sweeping bends and long straights. Our brief recce on Friday night confirmed at least three areas where we would potentially be on the rev limitter in 5th (120mph) before breaking hard for 2nd gear corners (30-40mph). The engine and brakes were in for a hard day!!!!!

Overnight rain and early Saturday drizzle saw the first two stages start on a damp surface. We started stage 1 on intermediate tyres and knew from the off that this was the right choice, however, a misfire at over 6000 revs saw us struggle on the opening 6.5 mile stage 1 costing us about 10-15 seconds to our rivals. It didn’t stop us having several entertaining sideways moments though, Mark commented that once again a front wheel drive car shouldn’t get into those sort of shapes!!! A coil was changed in service which sorted the misfire and our stage 2 time on an identical, if drying track, was some 17 seconds faster and we set a top 30 stage time.

Stage 3 and 4 were much longer at nearly 9.5 miles a piece. I was changing my driving style to be much smoother with less left foot braking to preserve the tyres and brakes. Two uneventful runs saw us claim a few more seconds here and there and climb a few places on the leaderboard to end up around 35th overall at the lunch halt. The venue is so fast that there are only a few places to gain any time, in fact we were in a gaggle of about 10 cars all separated by a handful of seconds. If we could be quick out of the blocks after lunch we would move up the order and be placed ahead of our championship rivals.

The reversed afternoon stages passed without drama (other than us having to run around and scrounge a couple of litres of fuel for fear of running out – I have never ever used so much fuel on an event!!!) saw us consolidate our position to finish the day off in 33rd overall and 8th in class (out of 28 cars in class 3). It also saw us finish 3rd overall in the Heart of England Championship and first front wheel drive car to cement our position as title challengers.

Three rounds remain and you can bet your bottom dollar that we will be pushing hard to lift one if not both titles come the end of the year.

Once again many thanks to Darren and Ben for prepping the car beforehand and coming down South to spanner for us on the event – once again the car ran faultlessly, as many around us fell by the wayside. Next event is Twyford Wood on 4 August where we will be going it alone as Daz and Ben head off to Santa Pod for UCS – Good luck boys

Hinckley and Nuneaton area

The 2007 Rally of the Midlands is based around Hinkley and Nuneaton and is the TSM home event.  After last years successes we had targeted this year’s event, with more horsepower, familiarity of the stages and a new face in the service crew we were more than hopeful of a good result.  Darren and Ben had worked tirelessly in the weeks before Le Mans to get the dry sump fitted and when I picked the car up I was pleasantly surprised by their efforts, but there were lots of little bits and pieces that kept me burning the midnight oil before scrutineering on the Friday – not least my first attempts at welding that left me with a nice shade of sunburn all over my face!!!

The weather forecast for the weekend (sunny intervals and heavy showers) saw us packing as many wheels and tyres onto the trailer as possible.  Friday dawned overcast and gloomy and a torrential thunderstorm on the way to Nuneaton saw us late at scrutineering.  However, no dramas were encountered and we duly signed on and met up with TSM service crew of Daz and Ben and new boy Mark.  The stage plans were near identical to last year and we had also ordered a set of the organisers pace notes for the event – our first attempt at notes.  Waggers looked decidedly worried about the use of the notes but as time went on he seemed to take to them like a duck to water and I have to say I was very impressed with his efforts all weekend.

Stage 1 was the very short spectator stage around the car park in front of Hinkley council offices.  Yes its Mickey Mouse (a bit like autotesting without the need to reverse!!) but it brings rallying to the people and I wouldn’t miss it for the world.  At only 30 odd seconds its just a series of short straights and hairpin bends but there were plenty of spectators and it’s a chance to publicly display our sport.  We ended up 11th overall but new the rally didn’t really start until Saturday morning.

Saturday dawned overcast but dry and after a short run out to stage 2 at the MIRA proving grounds we readied ourselves for the first proper test.  With 3 stages at MIRA that day totalling just over half of the overall stage mileage this is where the rally would be won or lost.  We have never had the best fortune at MIRA despite it being a venue that I thoroughly enjoy.  I new that if we pushed hard on this stage we could set a good time and hopefully leave us with an advantage over our rivals in class 3.  Off we set into the stage with Waggers reeling off the notes.  Square left into right three opens on exit etc etc.  We pushed hard all of the first lap and when we saw that the dry sump kit was keeping oil pressure nice and constant I was more than a happy bunny rabbit.  The tyres went off a bit on lap 2 but everyone was complaining about that and its very difficult to get tyres to hold up over 17 stage miles of very abrasive tarmac. We managed to catch and pass the car immediately in front of us taking over 1 min 30 secs out of him in stage and when we arrived back at service we had set the 13th fastest time and were 14th overall.  After a spanner check and a bite to eat we headed off to stages 3 and 4 at Mallory Park.  We had been warned that there was a lot of mud dragged onto a couple of corners and that several corners could be cut.  We set off and immediately worked out where the mud was and where we could take large cuts.  There was so much mud that it was like rallycross and we were sideways almost as much as we were going forwards.  Despite catching a slower Fiesta ST which we never managed to pass we set a competitive 11th fastest time on each visit leaving us 13th overall.

Next back to MIRA for Stage 5.  This stage was slightly shorter using the twistier sections of the handling circuit.  About half way through lap 2 there is a very acute hairpin left off of a cambered section.  I remembered it from last year and new that it was a difficult section.  On approach I saw that it was slightly wider and more open than I had remembered and handbraked the car in as usual only to hear a pop and bang as we accelerated through the exit.  A lack of drive confirmed our worst fears that a driveshaft had snapped.  Effectively this was our rally over unless we could limp out of the stage taking a maximum 29 minutes dropping approximately 14 minutes to our nearest rivals. Somehow despite a further puncture we limped out of stage and back to service where Daz Ben and Mark performed a swift driveshaft change getting us back in the rally without further penalty.  The only issue was that we had replaced the shaft with a 309 unit which gave us approx 1 degree more camber.

The result may have gone but we had shown that we were quick enough to turn a few heads and despite a conservative run through the next stage at Mallory as we learnt the characteristics of the hastily repaired car, we confidently pushed harder on the final stage through Mallory and onto the final stage at MIRA.  As we started the stage raindrops began to fall.  The surface at MIRA is very abrasive and grip stayed pretty good despite a deluge of rain.  For sure it cost us time to those that managed a full dry run but again we set a competitive 14th fastest stage time. 

Days end at service when a routine pad and fluids change were executed and we had a mixture of satisfaction and disappointment at what might have been.  A few beers over a Chinese meal soon put our disappointment to bed as we readied ourselves for the shorter more demanding Sunday stages.

Sunday arrived dull and gloomy with steady rain coming down.  Our objective today was to try and move up couple of places overall and set some quick times to boot.  A change of tyres at first service to soft intermediates and off we set to Merevale which would see a slippery run through the ground of the stately home.  Despite what felt like two slow stages we posted two 7th fastest times.  Bramcote Barracks up next (home of the Guerkas!!) and more slippy twisty tarmac round the live army base.  First stage was very slippy and the tyres took an eternity to warm up.  Second stage was better but still relatively slow by our standards – think we spent too much time sliding the car around and enjoying ourselves rather than concentrating on driving quickly.  The next two stages at Arbury hall were cancelled due to an early accident so it was back to Nuneaton for the final service of the event.  The afternoon stages were a repeat of the morning stages but in reverse.  Stage times were similar and we got some nice pics (and a sore back) over the infamous Arbury Hall canal bridge.

Overall we finished 29th and 12th in class.  Without our problems this could have easily been 10th overall and 3rd or 4th in class. 

The car ran perfectly, the dry sump worked a treat, handling was much improved with the TSM 25mm rear ARB and we are really looking forward to our next event at Colerne Airbase on 14 July.

Once again many thanks to Daz Ben and Mark for all their hard work leading up to and during this years Rally of the Midlands

Event Report: 27th May 2007

Event Name: Whitedials Stages
Organising Club: Wolverhampton and South Staffordshire Car Club
Track : Desborough Airfield
Report by: Richard Chown

This years May event at Desbrough Airfield, Wilbarston was renamed the "Whitedials Stages" in memory of Dave Williamson who tragically lost his life in an accident on the Wyedean stages earlier in the year. The event run by Wolverhampton and South Staffordshire Car Club attracted a healthy field of 50 cars to the startline and even though overnight rain had left the airfield soggy to say the least competitors, organisers, marshals and the like started the day full of optimism for an entertaining days Motorsport

Dunstable based driver Richard Chown and Derby Based co-driver Mark Wagstaff overcame difficult conditions and strong opposition to finish the South Leicestershire based event in a respectable 11th overall and 3rd in class, the overall win going to 2006 winners Ian Savage and Gary Heslop in their Mitsubishi Evo VI.

Richard and Mark were back out competing in the Spoox Motorsport backed Mi16 Engined 205 Gti after disappointment on the last round at MIRA proving grounds when an early engine failure sent them for an early bath. Long hours in between events had seen a spare engine fitted and tested at an earlier testing session at Bruntingthorpe proving grounds.

" We were planning to have our No 1 engine rebuilt and back in and running for this event but time ran away from us and the spare engine worked well at Brunters last month so we decided just to go with it. " said Richard

The rally started early on Sunday morning with a planned 10 stages and 60 miles of broken tarmac and concrete around the perimeter and service roads of Desborough airfield. The pair had never been to the venue before but managed a sneak preview of the venue through some in car footage posted on the British Rally Forum.

"There is a good mixture of fast and technical bends linked by fast and bumpy straights," said Richard. "We are hopeful that the rebuilt engine will provide plenty of grunt and speed to keep up with the other cars in our class

As it turned out engine power would not be the defining factor that it might have been as heavy overnight rain had turned the airfield into a near swimming pool. This shifted the emphasis somewhat and saw lower powered cars swamping the top 10, as they were able to put their power down more effectively.

Despite a two wheel moment on Stage 1 and a 360 degree spin on a fast section in Stage 2 the crew were easily inside the top 10 in the early part of the day.

"Andrew Knott of Slick Tyres had recommended a light cut in our Hankook tyres to help disperse the worst of the water and help generate more heat in the tyres," said Richard.

This helped enormously but a lack of confidence in Stages 3 and 4 due to a heavy cloudburst saw the crew drop down the order slightly. Drying stages through the afternoon and increased traction would have seen them claw their way back up the leaderboard. However, a curiously slow time through stage 6 halted their progress in its tracks.

" We caught a slower car in stage 6 and he wouldn't let us past for almost half a lap" said Mark.

Times were so closely packed together the 30 seconds of time dropped in Stage 6 just kept the pair outside the top 10 and 3rd in class at the finish.

"It was an exhausting day all told. Apart from our spin on stage 2 we didn't really have any close shaves all day. Right from the off Mark and I made our minds up that a finish was more important than the outright result so we decided to drive with caution and bring the car home safe and sound. Darren and Ben at Spoox deserve a big thank you for their car prep and standing out in the service area through some torrid conditions. Except for another broken bumper and valance (thanks go to Car 9 who flicked a tyre up in front of us!) and an intermittent misfire (you expect that with pugs and lots of standing water) the car never missed a beat all day long said Richard.

The Spoox Motorsport crew are looking forward to their next outing in June at the Rally of the Midlands based in Nuneaton and Hinkley.

Event Name: Bill Cammack Memorial Rally
Organising Club: Mablethorpe and District Motor Club
Track : Desborough Airfield
45 Entries, 12 in Class 3

First event of 2007 and we were all very anxious to see how the new Mi16 Engine would perform. Darren and Ben had spent many hours in the last 12 months stripping, prepping, fettling and rebuilding this engine and even though i've spent many miles running the engine in we were all anxious to see how it ran. Other changes saw us return to disc brakes on the rear, changing to a plate diff rather than the trustworthy Quaiffe unit and Xsara rear arms that have a little more camber and toe in for better rear end grip. We also ran new LEDA adjustable dampers on the rear.

Friday showers meant the track would be slippery and the overnight rain made things a handful first thing. Seeded at Car 18 we were one of the first 2wd cars to take to the track. The first stage a 7 miler took in a full circuit of the perimeter road and also two loops around the smaller service roads. We set off carefully feeling our way, trying to work out grip levels and how best to drive the free revving engine. The car was a real handful with the wheels spinning up in 4th gear, but the soft cut slicks were the best tyre option we had with us so we would have to make do. A steady stage with no real incidents apart from no handbrake saw us 16th overall and 3rd in class. Stage 2 a repeat of stage 1 saw us pushing a little harder but towards the end of lap 1 we aquaplaned on some surface water and nudged one of the large bales at a chicane. No real damage other than a headlight, indicator and minor wing damage but my confidence was dented. Further on and my wiper broke free from the arm leaving me with no visibility. I loosened my belts so I could see through Marks side of the screen and we limped home. Fortunately the times for this stage were scrubbed due to an accident that saw a stake pierce through the windscreen of a car, squarely hitting the driver in the middle of the forehead. Fortunately nothing worse than stitches at the nearby casualty, but it could have been far far worse.

Stage 2 & 3 were shortened versions of stage 1 & 2 and apart from a small fuel leak identified during service after stage 3 they passed without incident, our pace gradually improving as we got more used to the car and grip levels. At the lunch interval we were 15th overall and 2nd in class 19s behind class leader Kevin Proctor in his Lotus Exige.

A brief lunch break allowed us to change the front suspension setup (ride height mainly) and the blowing winds meant a dryer track for the afternoon with hopefully more grip. Within the first couple of corners it was obvious that the changes meant much more grip and we pushed on anxious to make some time up. Much improved stage times through stages 5, 6 and 7 saw us move up to 10th overall, this despite being blocked by a slower car for a full lap on Stage 6 which we estimate cost us at least 15 seconds. However, the final stage dawned and we were anxious to bring the car home safely. A neat final stage without drama saw us take 7th fastest time and finishing 10th overall and 2nd in class.
A pleasing result for the first time out in the car. No dramas to report other than the obvious slippy conditions and once again the TSM crew have demonstrated that they know how to prep and bring home a rally car during a tough event that saw many competitors fall by the wayside.

Some small adjustments are planned in time for our next event at the MIRA proving grounds in Nuneaton at the end of March. The competition is bound to be stiffer at this event but hopefully we will be up to the job.