Welcome to the TVR Car Club Speed Championship 2016 Season
Round 23 - Castle Combe, Saturday 22nd October
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Whilst Jes had already been declared 2016 Champion, there were still placings not yet settled up and down the leaderboard.
With a clear plan to knobble his competitors, Capt Chaos very generously offered to put everyone up at his house the night before, pronouncing with inadequately few days left for objections that he had booked his local curry house for dinner. Upon arrival at Chaos Towers, he further volunteered to drive everyone there in his minibus, thus obfuscating plans to pour copious amounts of Kingfisher down his gullet. Read more... |
Round 22 - Debden, Sunday 2nd October
Gentle rain tapped the windows as I awoke sometime before dawn.
Fortunately the remainder of Sunday 2nd October was dry as forecast. Pleasantly warm sunshine turned distinctly autumnal whenever the sky clouded over.
Reporting on this event was always going to be a challenge. There were five entries in class E20 TVR Car Club. Two Marks, two Richards and one Dave. Five similarly aged cars, two red, two green and one blue.
Fortunately the remainder of Sunday 2nd October was dry as forecast. Pleasantly warm sunshine turned distinctly autumnal whenever the sky clouded over.
Reporting on this event was always going to be a challenge. There were five entries in class E20 TVR Car Club. Two Marks, two Richards and one Dave. Five similarly aged cars, two red, two green and one blue.
The outcome to the contest wasn’t a forgone conclusion. Dave Barrowclough was quickest on scratch times for much of the day. Captain Chaos Mark Everett led narrowly on handicap times and proudly took home the 25 points.
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Round 21 - Goodwood, Saturday 24th SeptemberIt is often said in motorsport that to finish first, first you must finish. At Goodwood the earlier saying applied, to finish first, first you must start. With eight TVRs entered, three non-starters were always going impact on the spectacle. However amongst the remaining five runners there were some serious chargers, so a good day’s motorsport was still to be had.
Dave Barrowclough had made the long trip down to the South coast to sample the unique attractions of the fastest track we go to, although the driver had not been before his Chimaera in AHD’s previous ownership had done the event many times. Mark Harris is no stranger to the delights of Goodwood, being one of the few tracks he can really stretch the legs of his Cerbera. Read more... |
Round 20 - Shelsley Walsh
Exclusive: Moggy clinches nail-biting win at Shelsley to keep title-fight alive
An early bath prevented Jes Firth from securing the 2016 crown. A win here would have given him a virtually unassailable lead going into the closing rounds of the season, but his departure after just one timed run opened the door for Moggy. Read more...
An early bath prevented Jes Firth from securing the 2016 crown. A win here would have given him a virtually unassailable lead going into the closing rounds of the season, but his departure after just one timed run opened the door for Moggy. Read more...
Round 19 - Blyton Park, Sunday 11th September
Fresh from his recent victory at Harewood, Stevie D was first to arrive in his admirably toned 1600M. But would a double lapper of this 1.4 mile circuit really suit his car? What the car lacked in straight-line speed would have to be made up in the corners. But at least he was assured of adulation through the glowing comments about the cleanliness of his car from the neighbouring Morgan drivers. Read more...
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Round 18 - Aintree, Saturday 3rd September |
So a quick recap, Aintree has a long and proud history as a motor sport venue. The 3-mile track, opened in 1954 by Earl Howe and Raymond Mays, remains Britain’s only purpose-built Grand Prix circuit.
For your next pub quiz Aintree staged the British Grand Prix in 1955, 1957, 1959, 1961 and 1962. Stirling Moss scored his first World Championship Grand Prix victory in the 1955 event at Aintree. This also marked the first occasion on which a British driver had won his home Grand Prix. Read more... |
Round 17 - Harewood, Sunday 28th August
I knew I was in trouble when I saw the entry list, there were only three other contenders, but two were just about the quickest Vixen-type cars in the championship (Steve Dennis 1600M and Mike Roe S3 vixen) and the other was the current leader (Simon Cole 350i 5.0 ltr), so 4th was probably my best hope. Read more...
Rounds 15 & 16 - Loton Park, 6th-7th August
Snatch & Stiff
Loton Park Estate was mentioned in the Domesday Book as the ancestral home of the Leighton family. The estate has been modified over the centuries, with the current hall built in the early 1600s, with additions and extensions added in the 18th and 19th centuries. The rolling countryside of the estate is home to both a deer park, and a delightfully challenging speed hill climb track. |
It is rumoured that Guy Ritchie, famous for doing Snatch, Lock Stock and Madonna owns the estate. Further investigation indicates that his mother was briefly married to the now 11th Baronet, Sir Michael Leighton of Wattlesborough during the 70s, but there is no evidence of any further ties. Read more...
Round 14 - 3 Sisters, Saturday 30th July
3 Sisters for 3 Brothers
Roll Call – Mike “Magic Micro” Roe, Ian “Blaster” Horsfall and Richard “Blower Boy” Bream. Wigan is famous for a few things, being an inland town with a pier, being a 70s and 80s mecca for Northern Soul all-nighters (long before the term “Rave” was used in that way), but most of all it seems, Pies. Read more... |
Round 13 - Curborough, Sunday 3rd July
Recently, when it comes to sprinting, I seem to have more time to myself and so I have decided that if an event is more than 90 minutes’ journey time away, I shall use the opportunity to stay over and visit as much of the local scenery as possible. Sometimes I have now seen more of the local scenery than I had originally planned to (as have some of my fellow competitors), but more of that later.
And so it was that I ventured to Curborough. What can I find there to entertain me for a day before the racing? Read more...
And so it was that I ventured to Curborough. What can I find there to entertain me for a day before the racing? Read more...
Rounds 11 & 12 - Epynt, 11th-12th June
Mynydd Epynt is a desolate tract of upland plateau in central southern Wales, one of a number of extremely high and remote moorlands towards the southern edge of the Cambrian Mountains that stretch between the Brecon Beacons in the south and the peaks of Snowdonia in the north. This bare plateau is dotted with small ponds and peat bogs and is deeply dissected along its southern fringes by numerous river valleys, among them those of the Honddu, Bran and Cilieni. A great escarpment falls away along the north edge to the valley of the Irfon, and north-east to the route of the Wye. Read more...
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Round 10 - Stowe, Sunday 5th June
Service from Stowe
Today’s sermon is taken from Genesis, Revelations and Numbers In the beginning God sent us some fog and mist, then about 10ish God said “let there be light” and things cleared up a bit. God saw that the light was good, though a little warmth might be nice so gradually turned the thermostat up to about 25 degrees. Unfortunately the good Lord didn’t see fit to quite show any of us clearly where to go after the hairpin of happiness to find the path to the chicane of righteousness (or indeed to get round the first bend for Brother Jeremiah!), so much so it is said that a fellow disciple on his white charger had to stop and ask for directions! Read more... |
Round 9 - Abingdon, Saturday 6th June
Well, the guys and girls that run the Abingdon Car-nival each year certainly have their work cut out. There were nearly two hundred sprinters entered on the Saturday, with two practice runs and two timed runs to enjoy on each of the two courses. Yes that’s right, a total of eight runs each during the day. They also run an auto-solo event and a rally over the weekend. This runs like clockwork, we barely have time to take a pee during the day! Read more...
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Coventry Motofest - 4-5th June
Round 8 - Prescott, Saturday 28th May
A moment frozen in time, Prescott represents all that is traditional in motorsport. And with the forecasted showers not materialising, a more fascinating day’s motorsport in glorious sunshine cannot be imagined.
Our planned group of 20 was already diminished as Jeff Ames was unable to make his debut this year, and Admiral Simonds was struck by the lurgy. Read more... |
Rounds 6 & 7 - Wiscombe, 14th-15th May‘You’ve got to be in it to win it!’
The weather on Saturday morning was beautiful, what were all these stories of rain so bad at Wiscombe that cars slid down the hill in the paddock sideways? Not this weekend. Eight cars lined up with Steve Dennis expecting two class wins over the weekend on his first visit to the hill, mainly as he was the only class A car entered. Read more... |
Round 5 - Hethel, Sunday 1st MayGerald: “Jo, can I make a suggestion about the handicap? Could you include an age factor for us retirees?”
With his head buried under his bonnet, Pete quipped: “Perhaps us geriatrics just shouldn’t bother. By the way, does my dipstick look right to you?” “Have a look at mine,” replied Gerald, “it’s the same length but a bit straighter!” Read more... |
Round 4 - Gurston, Saturday 10th AprilMay The Force Be With You
On a recent day in a field not so far away at the birthplace of sprinting an epic battle took place. The early morning peace was shattered by the engines from the fleet of the evil Empire Starship Chimaera destroyers arriving in the paddock. Tranquillity returned as their hyper drives were shut down. The storm troopers climbed out of their vehicles but what’s this, Princess Jo Leia is in a Starship destroyer. Has she been kidnapped by the evil Emperor Steve? Lord Mark Vader had his Chimaera destroyer specially converted for the day to share with his apprentice ADHD Maul. Read More... |
Round 3 - Harewood, Sunday 10th AprilIs maths useful for motorsport? When we arrived at Harewood, on what can only be described as a “fresh” spring morning, dense fog equalled no visibility. Walking the course provided only a vague reminder of which way the track goes as the next corner couldn’t be seen.
As is the way with motorsport, the requirements of the organisers can be asymmetrical with the requirements of the drivers. The start of the event was delayed, not because of the probability that the competitors wouldn’t be able to see their way around, but because of the probability that the marshals wouldn’t be able to see each other’s red flags. Read more... |
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Round 2 - Croft, Monday 28th March
It was recently reported that the difference between working class and upper class is whether the evening meal you were brought up with was ‘tea’ or ‘supper’. Your nominal class apparently has some bearing on the successes you are likely to achieve later in life.
The TVR fraternity has eschewed this notion - TVRs were cited as being the supercar for the masses. ‘Class’ doesn’t define TVR ownership as it does for say, Italian or German sportscars, as demonstrated by the range of backgrounds of previous Speed Championship champions (farmer, nursery teacher, solicitor, builder, importer). Read more... |
Round 1 - Rockingham, Sunday 20th March
Do you ever get that feeling when driving somewhere, that you’ve forgotten to bring something really important?
Despite baking a beautiful lemon drizzle cake for his upcoming birthday, Jes forgot to put it in his car. Despite studying Youtube relentlessly (or maybe because of it), most had forgotten to take their bravery pills. Having attended a wedding reception the night before, James forgot to bring his brain along. But rookie “Supercharged” Richard had done something that most of us haven’t done for years; he’d read the final instructions meticulously and had everything (and more) that he needed to compete at this, his first ever event! Read more... |