by Steve Wilkinson
After the sunshine and heat of Angelsey the windswept vistas of Llandow were a bit of a shock to the system. With the entry numbers down on the last two years MAC also struggled with a low turn-out of marshals. Maybe it was the low entry numbers that also meant that the throughput of cars was slow, anyway with no less than 19 entries from championship runners at least the run-off would breath some life into the event.As usual practice and none arrivals dealt a blow to the entries and the championship 'lost' two off its strength. When the rain squalls arrived at lunch time it dampened the track and sent several drivers into a panic as to what tyres to put on. John Sampson spun out on his first timed run whilst Mark Smith took a lead in the Mod Prod class. Fred Currell had finally managed to get a couple of practice laps under his belt in the Reynard. He then promptly spun on his first timed run. Straight after Fred it was Tony Wiltshire and the Devonian was another to over estimate the grip! His double 360 was perfectly executed and the additional swishing about on the grass just highlighted the high technical difficulty of the manoeuvre! Well done Wilt. Still on the first timed run Stuart Webster, who was making his 2004 Championship Debut, heard the engine in the Swallow emit a terminal rattling noise and switched off to prevent a complete disaster. This heralded the end of his day and possibly his season!On the second timed runs John Sampson was just a couple of tenths shy of Mark Smith's time in the Mod Prods. In the 1600 Racing Car class Steve Broughton, who along with co-driver Kim Kingham, has fitted the suspension upgrade tested by Trevor Willis over the last couple of week-ends was relegated to second in class! Roger Lee put the 2002 version of the OMS to the head of the times as Broughton struggled to find the right suspension settings. Fred Currell then had more problems with the Reynard when the gearbox started to play-up. Whilst John Jones in the ex-Paul Ranson MP82 set the best time for a two-litre and Tony Eyles reset the class and outright course records in a superb display. Everyone else seemed to have a trouble free second run and as the Imp engined cars, Jaguar XKs and the Classic cars took their second runs the Top Twelve Runners were getting ready.
Top Twelve Run-off
Tracey Ashby was in her first run-off since Lydden and was in determined mood. Her first run was super, she clipped the right kerbs and kept off the ones she needed too avoid and stopped the clocks at 75.78, a new Ladies Course Record. Next it was John Payne in the 88D and again he improved but by not much and although quicker than Tracey it could have been better. Peter Howgate, who had been the slowest qualifier, had as his target a PB round Llandow. This he achieved on his first run despite still having to keep an eye on the oil pressure gauge. Then all hell broke loose! The mighty Quantum roared to the line and as John Sampson dumped the clutch the behemoth lurched forward. Through the chicane and out onto the back straight all was well until that is he reached the braking point for the chicane. With the tyres barely hot he jammed on the brakes and everything locked up! The tyres billowed smoke as the car slewed towards the entry to the chicane, finally he got it to turn but too late as he lumbered his way over the grass and dust avoiding the cones (he mustn't have been well!) and slowly crawled back to the paddock and retirement. Mark Smith meanwhile was sat on the line and missed out on all the fun. However he was not joking when he finally got the green light. He was on the pace and set his personal best on this run clipping apexes to perfection; there seemed little left in the tank for the second run but on home soil he was not to be ruled out.
Phil Lynch and his family were enjoying yet another Sprint Championship event and for the second week running he had qualified seventh. His first run was just too kerb-happy through the chicane and although quicker than his Q-time there was definitely more to come. Then it was Simon Ashby, who explained that his spin at Angelsey last week-end was due to a loose undertray, could he make it an error free Llandow? Well no! As he came through the chicane on his flying lap he caught the ignition switch and cut the engine! Coasting round onto the back straight isn't the quickest way round and he aborted his run. Steve Broughton was still fiddling with the suspension settings prior to the run-off and first time round the car did seem more capable of a smooth turn-in. His times also reflected the improvement with his best time so far and two tenths quicker than Roger Lee's class winning time. Martin Dowling had still seemed to be struggling with braking points and as he came to the line his Q-time was some way off the pace. His start was spot-on as was his negotiations through the early part of the lap. He was again too early on the brakes for the chicane and paid the price. His time was quicker but only just. Wilt was next and with the double spin now a distant memory he was in determined mood. Off the line and out onto the back straight the Pug engine was singing. Into the chicane and the Ralt was unloading the inside wheels and sliding off the kerbs in a flurry of dust clouds. Round the back of the track again and over the line stopping the clocks in his first sub-70 second run moved him to top spot with just two runners to go. Terry Holmes, who was again without co-driver Graham Porrett, set off well but seemed to be slightly slower and more cautious than earlier in the day. His time reflected this and slotted him into second behind Wilt. Tony Eyles then put in his banker run. That is if you can call a 67.82 a banker! He had confided in me earlier that not only did he want the Outright Course Record but he also wanted to get inside the 66 second barrier. The second run was going to be a stonker!
Back to the beginning at it was Tracey Ashby who may have been a little too smug after Simon repeated her ignition switch incident from Angelsey. Off the line it was typical Tracey, head down and charge. Everything was going well until the chicane on the flying lap then suddenly it all went pear shaped! Over the kerbs, tail sliding out and as she exited the complex another climb up the kerb unsettled the car for the charge onto the back straight. I think she knew it was futile as the clocks stopped some five seconds slower and the Tracey Charge was halted. However the 75.78 from the first run meant she was in eighth, could she hold on? John Payne then clipped a further half second off to retain seventh but would it be enough? Peter Howgate again lowered his PB but remained tenth. John Sampson had it all to do and in a less aggressive drive he set his best time of the day to claw his way to ninth spot and relegate Smith and Howgate to 10th and 11th respectively. As Mark Smith sat on the line news filtered through that he had been beaten by John Sampson. Flipping down the visor, he set off on a barnstorming run. Through the chicane the Westfield seemed to be on rails and the speed it carried onto the back straight proved conclusive as he clipped half a second off Sampson's time to slip back into ninth. Phil Lynch was another whose second run was smoother with less kerb climbing and he duly cut his time to retain sixth. However Simon Ashby's first aborted run meant he was dead last with no points; it was time for a charge! Simon was super and with his back to the wall put in a superb time to set his own PB and slip into a well deserved sixth spot. Although he improved his time Martin Dowling was still firmly fixed in fourth. Wilt then clipped a half second off his time to make Terry Holmes task even more difficult. Holmes was quicker but he was unable to match the power of the Pug and had to settle for third. Then all eyes turned to Tony Eyles. The white and blue Lola launched itself into a blistering run. So smooth through the chicane and on the two runs down the back straight the Judd engine was howling. As the car disappeared into the last corner and the engine note rose on the drive to the line all eyes flicked to the clock and a 66.11 meant a new Outright Course Record, his second of the day, but it also meant the 65 second run he so desired had eluded him.With three wins in a row Tony has now moved up to fourth spot in the rankings. A win at MIRA next month will not improve that position however with no points from the first two rounds he holds a massive advantage for later in the season when others ahead of him will be dropping scores. The championship challenge looks on course, could this be another Eyles Championship Year?
Results
Rd 5 British Sprint Championship: 1 Tony Eyles (3.5 Lola-Judd/Connaught T90/50) 66.11s; 2 Tony Wiltshire (2.0 Ralt-Peugeot/Longman RT34) 69.06s; 3 Terry Holmes (2.0 Reynard-Ford/Tegra SF84) 69.60s; 4 Martin Dowling (3.5 Reynard-Judd 88D) 71.94s; 5 Steve Broughton (1.5 OMS-Suzuki/SBD 2000M) 72.30s; 6 Simon Ashby (2.0 Reynard-Millington 883) 73.51s; 7 Phil Lynch (2.0 Ralt-Alfa Romeo/Connaught RT30) 74.27s; 8 John Payne (3.5 Reynard-Judd 88D) 74.54s; 9 Tracey Ashby (2.0 Reynard-Millington 883) 75.78s; 10 Mark Smith (2.0 Westfield-Vauxhall/SBD SEiW) 76.49s; 11 John Sampson (5.0 Quantum-Rover Xtreme) 76.91s; 12 Peter Howgate (1.8 Ralt-Rover/QED RT30) 78.15s.
Championship Positions: 1 Steve Broughton 53pts; 2 Terry Holmes 48pts; 3 Tony Wiltshire 46pts; 4 Tony Eyles 40pts; 5 Simon Ashby 39pts; 6 Martin Dowling 36pts; etc
FTD Tony Eyles 66.11s - New Course Record
Class Winners: John Palmer (1.6 Westfield-Rover SE) 84.65s; Mark Smith 78.13s; Tony Luxton (4.4 Ginetta G27) 83.13s - Class Record; Simon Gee (0.6 Jedi-Suzuki Mk 4) 74.75s; Richard Gittings (0.9 Megapin-Kawasaki 95/12) 74.87s; Paul Barritt (1.6 Jamun-Ford M92) 82.09s - Class Record; Roger Lee (1.3 OMS-Honda SF2002) 73.62s; John Jones (2.0 Pilbeam-Vauxhall/Swindon MP82) 70.02s - Class Record; Tony Eyles 66.72s - Class Record; Simon Benoy (1.1 Rawlson-Imp) 84.84s - Class Record; Philip Porter (3.4 Jaguar XK140) 91.24s; Lyn Padfield (1.7 Lotus Seven) 90.92s.