NEW FACES FOR A NEW SEASON APRIL/MAY 2012
www.smrc-uk.com
NEW CHAIRMAN
Hugh McCaig took over as Chairman in April. Well known in motor racing circles worldwide, Hugh is the patron of Ecurie Ecosse. He is also a member of the British Racing Drivers Club and Regional coordinator for the BRDC. He said; “I am delighted to have been elected Chairman of our club, and will ensure we build upon the strong foundations we have in place. My intention is to bring the Club’s activities and way of doing business into the 21st century, and we have already brought in a new accounting system. “It is also my intention to improve our liaison and support for the grass roots of motor sport in Scotland, an area that our president Allan McNish is already heavily involved with. While our first meeting saw a record number of entries for a season opening SMRC club meeting, demonstrating the good health of our sport in Scotland. We are working on a number of initiatives, including updating the club web site and making race entry payment easier. “I would like to wish the new Competition Secretary Graham Brunton every success in this important role, and thank Chris Edwards for his hard work during the last 9 years in that position. We also thank former Chairman Mike Gascoigne and long term committee member Andy Fenwick for their work on behalf of the club. They have now stood down, but there are new members on the committee and we look forward to their input as we take the club forward.”
NEW VICE CHAIRMAN
Russell Paterson who is a Classic Sportscar racer and former Scottish Classics Sports and Saloons Champion. Well known for his involvement with Morgans and has raced these cars across the UK.
NEW COMPETITION SECRETARY
NEW CLUB SECRETARY & MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY
Heather Brunton takes over as Club Secretary and will also become the Membership Secretary, a role the Comp. Secretary has performed in the past.
NEW TREASURER Russell Paterson
Graham Brunton, has always been involved with Formula Ford. A driver originally now successful car preparer and team principle, he also runs a two seater formula car at Knockhill on corporate Graham Brunton days. He is the new Competition Secretary he will be assisted by his wife Heather.
Graham McPhee from the club’s accountants will be taking over this role.
NEW COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Elected at the AGM were Classic Mini driver Nic Boyes, Legends racer Gareth Davies and Saloons & Sportscars stalwart Andrew Morrison.
GOODBYE TO COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Chris Edwards has stood down as Competition Secretary. This is following 9 years in the job, where he proved to be enthusiastic and hard working. He will be missed as he put in an enormous amount of time and effort into the role, and he has been a committee member for over 10 years as well. He continues in his role as an MSA appointed Clerk of the Course and might even return to the track occasionally, he’s raced XR2s and had an outing in an ST last year. He has also
ECURIE ECOSSE WIN FIRST TIME OUT
Hugh McCaig
organised several SMRC winter indoor karting competitions. Mike Gascoigne has twice been Chairman of the club and although leaving the committee after being involved for many years the former Chief Observer will continue as a Clerk of the Course, along with his involvement in SMMC marshalling and rallying. Andrew Fenwick was on the committee for over 10 years and will continue as Chief Observer in the marshalling team, he has also organised the end of season marshal’s fun day at Knockhill for several years.
GOODBYE TO THE CLUB SECRETARY
Gillian Edwards has performed well in this role for several years looking after the club’s accounts.
WELCOME
There were many new drivers making their debut on April 8th, Mini Coopers, XR2s, Legends and Classics all saw new faces. Amongst them were in the Mini Copper Cup - Stefan di Resta, the 22 year old brother of Sahara Force India Grand Prix star Paul. Classics - Christie Doran,16 year old daughter of Scottish SUN Sports Deputy Editor John, she raced a Triumph TR8.
Legendary Scottish outfit Ecurie Ecosse returned to full-time top-level sportscar racing in superb style on Easter Monday (9th April) as they steered their Barwell Motorsport-run BMW Z4 GT3 to victory in the season-opening British GT Championship event at Oulton Park. Monday marked their highly anticipated return to competition with victory as drivers Alasdair McCaig and Oliver Bryant powered the team’s BMW to a dramatic last gasp win. Torrential rain greeted the drivers for the season-opening race. McCaig took the start from third on the 25car grid before easing into second spot on lap four. Bryant assumed the controls at mid-point in the 60-minute race and quickly began hounding the leading United Autosports Audi R8 LMS of Charles Bateman and Matt Bell. As the cars entered the final lap the Audi slowed dramatically after appearing to run out of fuel, sparking emotional celebrations in the Ecurie Ecosse garage. Bryant started race two from eighth on the grid but it was quickly evident that the team’s Z4 was struggling with major front-end handling problems, causing the car to lap some three seconds off its earlier pace. The issue was later traced to a rare block tread failure on the front right tyre that had been deteriorating throughout the race and was partly deconstructed by the flag. Without this a top five finish was within reach but the issue, coupled with an additional 15 second pit handicap following their earlier race win, saw the Scottish team denied another points haul. Nevertheless McCaig and Bryant achieved a 10th place finish, leaving them third overall in the championship.
Knockhill April 8th:
The Season Starts
APRIL
8 Knockhill
A record entry for the fi rst meeti ng of the season but the weather was changeabl e
Cel ti c S peed S cotti sh Mi ni Cooper Cup i n associ ati on wi th Yokohama Tyres, S uperchi ps & Wheel saround Race 1: (restart) 7 laps
Tim Sleigh leads Kenneth Brewster
A big grid of 27 Minis formed up on the grid for the first race of the season. The top five featured a real family affair with Tim Sleigh on pole, Kenny Brewster second, David Sleigh third, Kenny McLeod fourth and Steven Brewster in fifth. Steven lost two places off the start and was at the back of the front pack. On the second lap there was a big incident at McIntyres involving Stephan Di Resta and Kenny McLeod resulting in them being out of the race, and leaving cars littered around the chicane. The safety car came out then the race was red flagged. There was a long wait for the restart. From the start Kenny Brewster was hot on Tim’s tail and made him work hard to keep his lead, only being robbed of his second place when David Sleigh got a fantastic run on him. Kenny then gave David a hard time and that contest allowed Tim to build a comfort gap, and enjoy his first bit of relaxation in the race. Kyle Reid had a strong race in fourth. Steven Clark and Steven Brewster had a cracking race for fifth and sixth, Brewster managing to take fifth and keeping it to the line. Ross Wylie attracted a lot of justified praise from commentators for his drive in which he picked off car after car to finish in a very fine seventh. Good drive from Tim, hard luck for Stephan Di Resta making his debut today. The Ladies class went to Fiona Wallace a few seconds ahead of Elaine Marshall. Results: 1 Tim Sleigh 7m 35.7s 2 David Sleigh +1.78secs 3 Kenneth Brewster 4 Kyle Reid 5 Kyle Reid 6 Steven Brewster Fastest Lap: Kyle Reid 63.83secs Race2: 9 laps Tim Sleigh led by a car length from his brother
Fiona Wallace batlled through for Ladies Cup wins
David on a damp track. These two were tied together all race but Tim held on for a fine win despite lots of pressure from David. They were 9 seconds clear of the pack. Kyle Reid ran second on lap 1 then dropped a place as cars slithered around at Butchers. Kenneth Brewster moved into third on lap 2 but Kyle stayed with him and retook thirrd on lap 4. He held the place until lap 7 when he had a tank slapper at Duffus while on the outside of Brewster, and dropped places. This allowed Steven Brewster to nip into third, he’d been chasing his brother and Kyle all race and was on their tails when he took the pass. Kenneth recovered for fourth. Steven Clarke was a lonely sixth for much of the brace then moved up a place late on. Stevie Kerr chased him and kept Malcolm McNab a second or so behind all race. Top newcomer was Clarke with McNab second in class 3 seconds back. The ladies had a good scrap. Elaine Marshall had Fiona Wallace all over her for the entire race but held on well. Results: 1 Tim Sleigh 10m 42.7s 2 David Sleigh + 0.43secs 3 Steven Brewster 4 Kenneth Brewster 5 Steven Clarke 6 Stevie Kerr Fastest Lap: Steven Brewster 65.78secs
Ross Wylie heads a typical Mini scrap
Race 3: 9 laps The reversed grid had the top 6 cars switched round. Stevie Kerr led from a fast starting Tim Sleigh who got from sixth to second in no time or as they turned into Duffus. He was leading by Clark chased by Kenneth Brewster. On lap 2 David Sleigh moved into third with Steven Brewster fourth, then a second back came Kyle Reid with Ross Wylie on his tail. Wylie had started eighth and was charging. By lap 4 he was up to fifth. At the front Tim Sleigh was under serious pressure from Kenneth Brewster as the top 4 ran nose to tail. Lap 6 saw a sort out David Sleigh got into second then Kenneth Brewster went off at Clark letting Wylie through to third now chased by the recovering Brewster. Right behind them was Kyle Reid, with Steven Clarke a second back. The last lap on a wet track saw a few moments and a back straight crash. David Sleigh took the lead at Clark passing Tim who was also demoted by Ross Wylie. Kenneth Brewster and Kyle Reid clashed on Railway Straight and both ended up in the tyre wall. Steven Clarke took fourth half a second behind Ross. Kenny McLeod then arrived in fifth after a sterling drive up from 14th, with Michael Falconer a
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few seconds back in sixth. Results: 1 David Sleigh 10m 58.1 secs 2 Ross Wylie + 0.85sec 3 Tim Sleigh 4 Steven Clarke 5 Kenny McLeod 6 Michael Falconer Fastest Lap: Kenneth Brewster 70.68secs
S cotti sh S al oon & S portscar Champi onshi p Race 1: 10 laps
Stewart Whyteʼs 4WD Escort took 2 wins
Fifteen widely assorted normally aspirated cars and turbo charged fire snorting monsters assembled for their first race. Stewart Whyte’s mighty Escort had a close exciting race. Stewart took second from Cameron Purdie off the line and Garry held him off until lap 4 when he took the lead. Garry wasn’t finished with and gave him a good run for his money. The field spaced out quite early on leaving some drivers a bit lonely, but Fiona Kindness, Andrew Morrison and Alex Bruce enjoyed a good battle until Alex dropped off the back of that group. Andrew eventually took fifth from Fiona. On the last lap Philip Duncan who had been lonely in fourth closed on Cameron who had been equally lonely in third, but there was not enough time left for them to have fun racing each other. Results: 1 Stewart Whyte ( Escort Cosworth) 8m 51.9sec 2 Gary Watson ( Westfield) + 0.5s secs 3 Cameron Purdie ( Westfield) 4 Philip Duncan (Westfield) 5 Andrew Morrison (Seat) 6 Fiona Kindness ( Skyline) Fastest Lap: S Whyte 51.94secs. Class winners: Whyte, Watson, M Robson, A McGowan Race 2: 10 laps Results: 1 Stewart Whyte 9m 58.5 sec 2 Philip Duncan +8.9secs 3 Gary Watson 4 Andrew Morrison 5 Fiona Kindness 6 Alex Bruce (Mitsubishi Evo) Fastest Lap: Whyte 58.42secs Class winners: Whyte, Duncan, M Robson, A McGowan
Philip Duncan at speed in his Westfield
S cotti sh Formul a Ford Champi onshi p Race 1: 10 laps
Ivor Mairs took a surprise Race 1 win
Alistair Dow led from Ian Munro. Strangely the field spaced out on the second lap with no really close fighting for position. By the fourth lap the front two were stretching their lead and a big gap had developed behind Ross McEwan in fourth. Now things began to get exciting! Ian closed on Alistair and took the lead at the hairpin with Alistair in hot pursuit. They were side by side through the chicane, Alistair retaking first. They sped off to Clark nose to tail now with Jordan Gronkowski as company. Ian took the lead again and Alistair had Jordan right on his tail. Alistair took the lead again at Clark. The fight was really on up the start/finish straight with Jordan giving us a splendid pass by taking the two of them on the outside at Duffus, a move not for the faint hearted, but beautifully executed. Ross McEwan had joined in the party now. Then disaster struck, Jordan developed a problem in his electrics at the start of the last lap so that was an end to his race as he retired. Then more disaster Alistair and Ian having fought so hard, excitingly and close through the race got a bit too close at the hairpin and both went off, so that was the end of their race, only yards from the flag. The race win then went to a delighted Ross McEwan, but
Ian Munro was victorious in Race 2
post race then it was taken away because he was underweight. That was the end of the disasters and next up came the somewhat bemused, but very happy people. Ivor Mairs won, Andrew Chesher took second and Keiron Blake was third. That was certainly one of the very best, most exciting Formula Ford races I’ve had the pleasure of watching. More of the same again please guys! Results: 1 Ivor Mairs (Mondiale) 10m 6.07secs 2 Andrew Chesher (Van Diemen) + 2.3secs 3 Keiron Blake (Van Diemen) 4 Laurie Hughes (Van Diemen) 5 Paul Kopec (Ray) no other classified finishers Fastest Lap: I Munro 56.56secs Class winners: Kopec, Mairs Race 2: 10 laps Light rain greeted the cars as Ivor Mairs led the field
away chased by Keiron Blake. The faster cars all started at the back following race 1 dramas. Ian Munro shot into fourth as Paul Kopec spun off at Scotsman from that place on lap 1. Munro meant business the former XR2 star was second by lap 2 and as the lap ended dived past Ivor to lead at the hairpin. He was never headed again as he opened up 2 seconds gap by mid race. Jordan Gronkowski took second as the cars finished lap 2 and then had Alistair Dow all over him. These two ran nose to tail for a few laps before Dow went through on lap 6 he quickly dropped Jordan but was only taking a few tenths out of Munro each lap. Ross McEwan started last and worked his way through the field, taking fifth from Andy Paterson on lap 5 as he went up the hill. He got fourth on lap 8 demoting Ivor. Well done to Ian Munro for his first Championship win. Results: 1 Ian Munro (Van Diemen) 10m 49.1sec 2 Alistair Dow (Ray) + 1.09 secs 3 Jordan Gronkowski (Van Diemen) 4 Ross McEwan (Van Diemen) 5 Ivor Mairs 6 Andy Paterson (Van Diemen) Fastest Lap: Dow 62.75 sec
S cotti sh Legends Cars Champi onshi p Heat 1: 8 laps
Ross Marshall took a maximun 600 points for his 3 wins
Scott Hynds led from Gerard McCosh and a fast starting Ross Marshall at Duffus. Ross was in fine form and led as the cars headed into the hairpin for the first time, taking the inside line and leading up the hill. He was never headed again and won as he pleased. The fight for second was good. Scott held off Gerard until lap 4 when Gerard got past. These two were shadowed closely by Carol Brown who had raced up from seventh on lap 1. She dived past Scott at the hairpin on lap 5 and stuck to Gerard’s tail as these three ran nose to tail. On lap 7 Carol went wide at the hairpin and Scott was up to third but on the last lap Carol regained the place. Gerard sat about a car length ahead of these two in a close finish. Behind this scrap came a train that yoyoed between 5 and 7 cars. Led by David Allan then Keiran Murray mid race before Robbie Burgoyne charged into fifth at the hairpin on lap 6. He held off Murray though it was often close and they swapped places twice on lap 7 but he was there at the flag while Dean Brace moved into seventh. Results: 1 Ross Marshall 8m 17.6 sec 2 Gerard McCosh + 5.8 secs 3 Carol Brown 4 Scott Hynds 5 Robbie Burgoyne 6 Keiran Murray Fastest Lap: D Hunter 60.96 sec Heat 2: 8 laps David Hunter led the charge into Duffus, but Robbie Burgoyne shot into the lead at Butchers on the opening lap. Ross Marshall may have started down in 12th but was soon ripping through the pack. By lap 2 he was third a lap later second before taking the lead at the hairpin on lap 4 from Robbie Burgoyne. But Robbie fought back and was ahead again by Duffus before Marshall repassed him on lap 6 at the chicane. Ross then stormed away to win
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Robbie Burgoyne heads Ross Marshall
number two on the day. Burgoyne was safe in second as Carol Brown kept close to him. Carol had started 10th and moved up taking fifth by lap 2 then was up to third on lap 4 at the hairpin. Just behind them David Hunter battled with Paul O’Brien. A couple of seconds back was a 6 – 8 car train with Kieran Murray at its head mid race, then Chris Hynds was there but Murray retook the place on lap 7 only to spin at the hairpin delaying Chris Hynds, letting Scott Hynds through. On lap 7 we also saw Gerard McCosh stopping at the hairpin as his car engine caught fire, but the marshals moved quickly to douse the fire. Results: 1 Ross Marshall 9m 34.1 sec 2 Robbie Burgoyne + 1.6 secs 3 Carol Brown 4 David Hunter 5 Paul O’Brien 6 Scott Hynds Fastest Lap: R Marshall 69.8 secs Final: 10 laps Pole man Paul McKay led into Duffus but Chris Hynds was soon up into the lead. Some drivers were blasting through the traffic. Robbie Burgoyne had started 14th but was up to 4th as lap 1 closed, then into second on lap 2. Chris Hynds led until lap 4 then Burgoyne was through on Railway straight. They were joined moments later by the hard charging Ross Marshall. He has started 16th but shot up the order to be fifth on lap 2 then third a lap later demoting Dean Brace who retired on lap 4. The top 3 ran nose to tail on lap 5 with Hynds leading at the hairpin only for Burgoyne to repass him going up the hill as lap 6 began. Marshall was not hanging about, he took second at Clark on lap 6 then was leading a lap later as he exited Clark. Burgoyne gave chase but Ross was soon clear and off to his third win of the day and a rarely seen maximum haul of points in Legends. He had been in excellent form all day. Chris Hynds battled with David Hunter over the closing laps, they swapped places a couple of times before he just held onto third. Carol Brown came through from 15th to finish fifth a place she got to on lap 4 but couldn’t quite close down a few seconds gap with David Allan following in a lonely sixth. Results: 1 Ross Marshall 12m 5.1 secs 2 Robbie Burgoyne + 3.7 secs 3 Chris Hynds 4 David Hunter 5 Carol Brown 6 David Allan Fastest Lap: R Marshall 70.1 secs
S cotti sh Fi esta Champi onshi p
Race 1: 10 laps The first race where all cars were on Yokohama tyres, and starting off one grid. George Orr led away in an ST chased by 3 STs headed by Dave Colville who had moved from XR2s. Then came Blair Murdoch and Scott Robertson. They were all glued together during the race. Peter Cruickshank was next and top XR2 chased by Stuart Haston in an ST. Haston got into fifth on lap 2 leaving Cruickshank to hold off Wayne MacCauley in another XR2. These cars pulled away from the rest headed by Stephen Russell who slowly got away from Hamish Smart. At the front we had 4 STs running very close. Scott Robertson got past Blair Murdoch on lap 6 to be
Peter Cruickshank took a win in the XR2 Championship
third. On the last lap Orr and Colville were side by side at the hairpin but Orr held on to win, as Colville took a wide line while Robertson in third tried a tight line. These two were side by side on the run to the flag with Colville getting second by 7 hundredths of a second from Robertson. Murdoch was less than half a second back in fourth with Haston under a second behind him. In sixth was top XR2 Cruickshank who absorbed more pressure late on to beat MacCauley’s XR2 by 3 tenths of a second they were just 4 seconds back on the ST train. Russell took eighth and was third XR2. Three XR2s retired while further down the field Chris Hannah took the XR Newcomers class.
George Orr won the ST Cup in Race 1
Results: 1 George Orr (ST) 10m 44.4 secs 2 Dave Colville (ST) 3 Scott Robertson (ST) 4 Blair Murdoch (ST) 5 Stuart Haston (ST) 6 Pater Cruickshank (XR2) Fastest Laps Collville (ST) 63.2secs W MacCauley (XR2) 64.10 secs Class winners: Orr, Cruickshank, Hannah Race 2: 10 laps George Orr once again led a tight bunch of STs on a damp track. In second was Colville while up to 5th came Cruickshank’s XR2 demoting Haston at Duffus as MacCauley zipped past them both. The cars went sliding through the chicane and third and fourth placed drivers Robertson & Murdoch STs went off. This put MacCauley’s XR2 into third chased by Cruickshank. Orr had a second lead which he held all race, until crucially the last lap. Colville closed up on him and as they braked for the hairpin
Dave Colville won the second ST Cup race
and Dave dived up the inside taking the lead. He held on to cross the line and win his first ST race. Around 8 seconds later MacCauley took third as Cruickshank who was a couple of seconds back all race let two battling STs past at the hairpin on the final lap, not wanting to lose class points by becoming involved. The STs were Haston and Murdoch. We had seen Murdoch reel in Haston from lap 3 onwards after passing Stephen Emslie’s XR2. Emslie would later spin, while Robertson charged back and finished seventh. Hamish Smart got eighth and was third XR2 just holding off Mike Strong’s XR2. Dave Colville said: “Fair play to George he gave me room, it was a good clean race, I really enjoyed it.” Top XR2 MacCauley said: “It’s raining, it’s my time to shine when it’s raining, and I was quite surprised to keep up with the STs.” Results: 1 Dave Colville (ST) 11m 31.3 secs 2 George Orr (ST) + 0.13secs 3 Wayne MacCauley (XR2) 4 Stuart Haston (ST) 5 Blair Murdoch (ST) 6 Peter Cruickshank (XR2) Fastest Laps: S Robertson (ST) 67.4 secs, W MacCauley (XR2) 68.4 secs Class winners: Colville, Maccauley, Hannah
Alex Montgomeryʼs MGB GT V8 ran well
3 Raymond Boyd ( Porsche 911) 4 Willie Robertson ( Datsun 240Z) 5 Robert Marshall (Escort) 6 Alex Montgomery ( MGB GT V8) Fastest Lap: W Robertson 61.6 secs Class winners: A Smith, S Bernard, R Marshall, D Laird, N Boyes, Race 2: 10 laps
S cotti sh Cl assi c S ports and S al oon Champi onshi p i n associ ati on wi th Yokohama, Water Revol uti on and TMS Motor S pares
Race 1: 10 laps Dark clouds were overhead as the race started. Andrew Smith had his Morgan +8 ahead from pole. He didn’t get away from the rest as Stan Bernard had his 911 right behind the +8 with Raymond Boyd‘s 911 with them. A few cars length’s back was Willie Robertson’s Datsun 240Z . These 4 kept close all race. Behind them in 5th Robert Marshall had his MK2 Escort going well. He dropped a few seconds then closed up as the race wore on. As Smith slowly opened up a gap the 4 cars behind him were getting close over the last few laps. On lap 9 Robertson passed Boyd. The rest were well behind. In sixth was a new car to classics, the MGB GT V8 of Alex Montgomery he eased clear of the a train of 5 cars
Andrew Smithʼs Morgan took two fine race wins
headed by Tim Reid’s Marcos. Reid was constantly pressed by Nick Boyes flying Mini which headed class A all race. On lap 8 we had light rain and the Marcos retired pulling off at Butchers. Boyes then held off the 3 litre Capri of Robin Benn until lap 10 when they swapped places but Boyes dived past the Capri at the hairpin to beat it by a tenth of a second to the line. David Scott had his 924 Turbo up to 9th passing Alan Barron’s Alfasud Sprint on lap 9. Post race Robertson and Marshall got 10 second jump start penalties promoting Boyd to third. Andrew Smith said: “Stan was always there, it was pretty slippery and its the first time out for a while so it blows the cobwebs away.” Results: 1 Andrew Smith ( Morgan +8) 10m 30.1 secs 2 Stan Bernard ( Porsche 911) + 1.9 secs
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George Leitch out in his new Class A Fiesta Mk1
There was a dry line on a dampish track. Andrew Smith led the charge into Duffus then quickly opened up a second lead. He eased it out another second mid race and won after a smooth drive. Stan Bernard chased him but was under pressure. Raymond Boyd’s 911 is going quicker this year and he stayed with Stan though Robert Marshall was also all over him. Then on lap 8 Marshall got past Boyd, and they all stayed close. In fifth was Alex Montgomery the MGB GT was outpacing the rest. Where was Willie Robertson’s 240Z? He had been late out from the paddock and had to start at the back of the 21 car grid. So he was in for a busy race. He climbed up to 11th by lap 2, and had got to seventh by lap 5 passing Nick Boyes on Railway Straight. He took sixth at the hairpin on lap 8 from Donald Laird’s Elan which was going well. A lap later the 240Z blasted past the MGB GT on the back straight. Willy Toye had also moved up with his TR8 after also starting near the back following an early retirement in race 1. The TR8 was 11th by lap 3 and made up a few more places by the end. Nick Boyes took class A again but this time George Leitch was closer, out in a class A Fiesta MK1 for this meeting and he was just behind Scott’s 924 Turbo. Results: 1 Andrew Smith 11m 8.3 secs 2 Stan Bernard + 1.5 secs 3 Robert Marshall 4 Raymond Boyd 5 Willie Robertson 6 Alex Montgomery Fastest Lap: R Marshall 65.5 secs Class winners: A Smith, S Bernard, R Marshall, D Laird, N Boyes
Kevin Pick & Maggie Miller (My thanks to Maggie for reporting on Minis, S&S, FF1600 first races)
Knockhill May 5th / 6th:
The Spring Meeting
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It was one of those 4 seasons in one day meetings. Sunshine, cloud, light rain, hail and snow, then back to sunshine, and all that within an hour or two! We also had races for visiting NSSCC who brought a wide assortment of cars from the North of England. The meeting stretched over a day and a half and ran to time. Saturday saw qualifying for everyone and 4 races, with 15 races on Sunday.
S cottish Legends Cars Championship Round Two – Heat One: 8 laps
Carol Brown used pole well to lead away she was nearly 3 seconds clear of a big pack by lap 2. Kevin Ketterwell had led the pack on lap 1 then Scott Hynds took over for a lap before Ross Marshall was past him. Marshall has started 12th and was on top form. He caught Carol by lap 6 and was into the lead at the hairpin. He held on for a good win despite a slide exiting Clark on lap 7. Carol kept close as these two were over 5 seconds clear of the rest. Paul O’Brien took 3rd having moved into that place as early as lap 2. He was never troubled as a train of up to 9 cars jostled behind him. By lap 4 Glen Burtenshaw emerged at its head and stayed there despite Scott Hynds being on his bumper for several laps. Gerard McCosh started 13th and moved up taking 9th from David Allan on lap 4 at the hairpin, he grabbed two places on the last lap at the hairpin to finish 6th. Results: Ross Marshall 8m:18.89s (73.89mph); 2 Carol Brown + 0.33s; 3 Paul O’Brien; 4 Glenn Burtenshaw; 5 Scott Hynds; 6 Gerard McCosh; Pole Position: Brown. Fastest lap: Marshall 1m00.38s (76.31mph). Starters: 20. Heat Two: 8 laps Gerard McCosh had pole but was 4th into Duffus as David Hunter led Robbie Burgoyne and Ross Marshall. Marshall was into 2nd at Clark demoting Burgoyne before taking a lap to pass Hunter also at Clark. Marshall then sat about a second clear of Hunter who chased him all the way to the flag. The fight for 3rd was an 8 car pack headed by Burgoyne until lap 3 then McCosh dived past at the hairpin. Burgoyne sat on his bumper and repassed Gerard on lap 5. We now had a huge pack of 10 cars all nose to tail. In there was Carol Brown. She started 11th and was working up the order. By lap 4 she was 7th, a lap later 5th as she dived inside Burtenshaw at Clark. She sat there for a couple of laps then on the last lap moved up to 3rd. Burtenshaw managed a quick spin at Scotsman on the last lap when in the pack, they all missed him, but it broke up the train a little. Up into 4th came O’Brien but he only got it on the last corner of the last lap demoting Burgoyne who had run 3rd from laps 5 to 7. McCosh took 6th with David Newall only a few feet back in 7th. Results: 1 Marshall 8m18.2s (73.98mph); 2 David Hunter + 0.55s; 3 Brown; 4 O’Brien; 5 Burgoyne; 6 McCosh; Fastest lap: Marshall 1m00.54s (76.11mph). Starters: 20. Final: 10 laps Chris Hynds had pole and led away. Kevin Ketterwell stayed with him during lap 1. Robbie Burgoyne was flying, up from 8th he was 3rd for much of lap 1 then 2nd as they exited the hairpin. He dived into the lead at the hairpin on lap 2. Not far behind came Ross Marshall. He had started 13th and was charging In 4th on lap 3 he went up past 2 cars at the hairpin to be 2nd. One lap later he was leading. He quickly opened out 2 seconds lead, which was reduced a little by David Hunter, then Marshall eased off a bit on the final lap and the gap was half a second. Hunter had eased away from a 6 car scrap which Burgoyne led until lap 8 then Burtenshaw moved past before
Burgoyne was 3rd on lap 9, then David Newall had the place on the last lap, as he slid up the inside at Clark corner. But a sort out at the hairpin saw Carol Brown who had been 7th in a close pack slip past them all. O’Brien and Burgoyne demoted Newall as did McCosh. Just one second covered this group at the line. It was Ross Marshall’s 2nd clean sweep of the year all 3 races won, no problem. Results: 1 Marshall 10m25.44s (73.67mph); 2 Hunter +2.51mph; 3 O’Brien; 4 Brown; 5 Allan; 6 McCosh; Pole Position: Chris Hynds. Fastest lap: Marshall 1m00.74s (75.86mph). Starters: 19.
Glenn Burtenshaw was in the thick of the action all day
Legends Round Three Heat One: 8 laps The track was damp Alan Fearnley had pole but was swapped as they dashed down to Duffus. David Hunter had the lead from 4th at the rolling start as a long train headed by Glenn Burtenshaw chased him. On lap 2 David Newall shot into 2nd at the hairpin. He quickly opened out a second on the pack as he stuck to Hunter’s bumper. Burtenshaw eased out a few car length’s from Chris Hynds. Next up was Ross Marshall. He started 14th and moved up the train. He was 7th on lap 2 and 5th on lap 4. As the track dried now the sun was out Ross took 4th. He was up to 3rd a lap later, by lap 7 he had caught the top 2 cars and they all ran nose to tail. On the last lap Ross grabbed the lead a Clark then drifted wide as he exited the corner and Hunter and Newall blasted past him. The top 3 were covered by half a second at the flag, it was a good race. Burtenshaw held 4th with a second gap to Burgoyne who had O’Brien all over him as the race ended. O’Brien had been on a late charge taking 3 cars in the last 2 laps. McCosh got 7th just 3 tenths of a second ahead of Alan Fearnley. Results: 1 D Hunter 8m26.120s (72.83mph); 2 Newall +0.17s; 3 Marshall; 4 Burtenshaw; 5 Burgoyne; 6 O’Brien. Pole Position: Allan Fearnley. Fastest lap: Marshall 1m00.71s (75.89mph). Starters: 20. Heat Two: 8 laps The track was fully dry Ross Marshall had pole, it looked like a straight forward run but Paul O’Brien beat him into Duffus. In 3rd was Carol Brown with Robbie Burgoyne on her tail. As lap one ended Carol pitted with a rough sounding engine. On lap 2 Marshall took the lead as they braked for Duffus. Ross slid around at Butchers but held it well. Half a lap later from the mid field Scott Hynds slid off at Clark and kissed the tyre wall. A few hundred meters later Kevin Ketterwell went off at the hairpin. Meanwhile Marshall led by half a second from Paul O’Brien who
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Knock hill Kno ckh ill
still had Burgoyne on his bumper. These 3 drew a couple of seconds clear of David Hunter who was chased by David Newall. Lap 5 saw some changes near the front. Burgoyne and O’Brien swapped around twice for 2nd as Newall took 4th . On lap 6 Hunter was 4th passing Newall up the hill. Two laps later Newall was back past Hunter as these two had a good scrap. Behind this action we had a race long tussle as Chris Hynds closed on Billy Wait mid race then took 7th. He closed on Glen Burtenshaw and was through on lap 7, but Burtenshaw didn’t give up. He stayed right with him and nipped past on the run to the flag a lap later to be 6th. Marshall won again having led from lap two. Results: 1 Marshall 8m28.41s (72.50mph); 2 O’Brien +0.65s; 3 Burgoyne; 4 Newall; 5 Hunter; 6 Burtenshaw; Pole Position: Marshall. Fastest lap: O’Brien 1m02.09s (74.21mph). Starters: 19. Final: 10 laps Carol Brown led from pole as the pack chased her. She opened up a second gap quickly as a 7 car train followed headed by Scott Hynds then Billy Wait on lap 2. David Newall and Robbie Burgoyne were up to 2nd & 3rd a lap later. Championship leader Ross Marshall started 16th and was charging through. He was 6th by lap 2 and 4th a lap later, grabbing 2nd from Robbie Burgoyne on lap 4 at Clark having taken 3rd a few hundred meters earlier from David Newall at Leslies. This left him with Robbie and impressive rookie David Newall on his tail. They all chased Carol and caught her on lap 5. We then had 4 cars nose to tail at the front for a lap before Ross was through and leading by Duffus on lap 7. Robbie also passed Carol but ran wide at Butchers so Carol nipped past. She held 2nd to the flag as Robbie and David were side by side out of the hairpin on the last lap with Newall just getting it by inches. Paul O’Brien came through 5th having started 13th , he moved well through the pack passing Billy on lap 7 who lost another place on lap 8 to David Hunter. But Billy held off Gerard McCosh by less than half a second at the line for 7th. Results: 1 Marshall 10m26.822s (73.51mph); 2 Brown +0.96s; 3 Newall; 4 Burgoyne; 5 O’Brien; 6 Hunter;. Pole Position: Brown. Fastest lap: Hunter 1m00.34s (76.36mph). Starters: 19.
S cottish S aloon and S portscar Championship and NS S CC classes A, E, F
Race One Saturday: 15 mins + 1 lap A packed grid as NSSCC cars joined SMRC regulars. Two championships together, this mirrors what has happened at Croft a few times in recent years. This
Adam Kindness took Class B1 in both races
race was also longer than usual SMRC races. Stewart Whyte led from pole and had Gary Watson for close company. Cameron Purdie was close in 3rd for a couple of laps then dropped back a couple of seconds. The two Westfields were chasing the Escort Cosworth hard. David Headen had his Caterham in 4th and slowly got clear of Bill Addison who was the first NSSCC runner in another Caterham. Lap 5 Colin Simpson took his Marcos into 5th to be top NSSCC car. On lap 7 Purdie closed on Watson as the three leaders were loosing time in traffic having caught the tail of the field were several cars battled. Purdie nipped into 2nd and held off Watson who was only a car length behind for several laps. Whyte pulled out 3 seconds lead as this battle raged. It wasn’t until lap 15 that Watson regained 2nd at Seat Curves. He then closed a little on Whyte but the Escort was first over the line. Headen was over 10 seconds back on Purdie in 4th. We’d had a change for 5th on lap 7 as Philip Duncan got his Westfield past Simpson and he stayed there slowly easing clear to make the top 5 cars from SMRC. NSSCC cars were 6,7 & 8th but in 9th was Andrew Morrison’s Seat the only car entered in both Championships. Results: 1 Stewart Whyte (Ford Escort) 18 laps in 16m12.03s (85.33ph); 2 Garry Watson (Westfield) +1.44s; 3 Cameron Purdie (Westfield); 4 David Headen (Caterham CSR); 5 Philip Duncan (Westfield); 6 Colin Simpson (Marcos Mantis); Pole Position: Whyte 53.40s (87.93mph). Fastest lap: Watson 52.74s (87.35mph). Starters: 28. Class winners, Whyte, Watson, A Kindness (Subaru), A McGowan (Citroen) Race Two: Sunday 15 mins + 1 lap The track was damp but the sun came out. Whyte led from Watson and Purdie on lap 1 but Colin Simpson dived into 3rd at Clark. He had wets on the others chose slicks. A lap later David Headen also demoted Cameron Purdie this time at the hairpin. Simpson was really motoring and took 2nd at the hairpin from Watson on lap 5. By now the 4wd Escort was 4 seconds ahead. Simpson eased out a second gap holding it for a few laps then was caught as the track dried. On lap 9 Watson and Headen where nose to tail with him and almost alongside as they came out of Clark. Next lap Watson was back in 2nd and a lap later Headen took 3rd from Simpson, the Marcos then
Garry Watson leads Colin Simpson
started to drop rapidly back on the leading 3 cars. He was caught and passed by Cameron Purdie on lap 14 but Simpson was well ahead of the rest led by John Grant’s Evo. Grant had put in a good drive. Starting 14th he fought up the order and moved up to 7th on lap 7 and 6th a lap later. At the front Stewart Whyte took the flag easing up on the last lap. Results: 1 Whyte 17 laps in 16m37.34s (78.54mph); 2 Watson +1.01s; 3 Headen; 4 Purdie; 5 Simpson; 6 John Grant (Mitsubishi Evo); Pole Position: Whyte. Fastest lap: Headen 55.90s (82.42mph). Starters: 23. Class winners, Whyte, Watson, A Kindness (Subaru), A McGowan (Citroen)
Celtic S peed Mini Cooper Cup in association with S uperchips, Yokohama Tyres and Wheels Around,
Race One: 9 laps The weather was interesting the racing more enjoyable. We had light snow then hail halfway through the race. David Sleigh led all the way from pole to the flag. He was chased hard by Steven Clarke who headed a massive 11 car train in the opening two laps. Third was Kyle Reid with newcomer Stefan Di Resta on his bootlid. Di Resta took 3rd at the hairpin on lap 3 but was repassed a few hundred meters later on lap 4 at Seat curves by Reid, who went round the outside of him which delayed Di Resta, allowing Ross Wylie and Kenny McLeod to nip past. Were was Tim Sleigh , double race winner in April he qualified 13th. So he had lots of work to do. By lap 2 he had got into 8th, he was 7th on lap 4 then as the snow came down moved into 4th on lap 6 at Clark corner demoting Wylie. He didn’t get any higher but it was a good effort in this closely matched field. Lap 7 saw Di Resta back in 5th and he headed a tight bunch of 4 cars that all slid wide at Clark together. On the last lap Wylie battled past Di Resta this was for the newcomers class win, as McLeod held 7th with Lewis Grant on his bumper. Three seconds later a close three car battle came through headed by Steven Brewster who passed Chris Reid on the last lap, as Andy Waugh finished on Reid’s bumper. Up front David Sleigh took the flag after a fine drive with Steven Clarke close behind. David Sleigh said: “That was incredible the way it changed so quickly halfway through the race.” Steven Clarke celebrated his first podium and said it was quite hard to stop at the hairpin. Kyle Reid also got his first podium. Results: 1 David Sleigh 9m45.74s (70.80mph); 2 Steven Clarke +0.33s; 3 Kyle Reid; 4 Tim Sleigh; 5 Ross Wylie; 6 Stefan Di Resta;. Newcomers class: Clarke. Ladies Cup: Elaine Marshall. Pole Position: David Sleigh 1m03.38s (72.69mph). Fastest lap: Wylie 1m03.50s (72.56mph). Starters: 27. Race Two: 9 laps Light rain greeted the cars, and a few changed wheels in the holding paddock. David Sleigh led the charge and was soon a second clear of Steven Clarke who had Tim Sleigh on his bootlid. As David eased out another half second on lap 3 Clarke still led a tight bunch with Tim Sleigh, Kyle Reid and Ross Wylie running nose to tail. The track was now fully dry David Sleigh started to pull away as Tim moved into 2nd at Seat curves. Tim soon opened up a second gap as Ross Wylie got into 3rd with Kyle Reid and now Kenny McLeod following. Clarke had been shuffled down to 6th, but it was still close. Lap 6 saw Clarke retake 5th and he closed quickly on Kyle Reid. As the flag came out David Sleigh was nearly 4 seconds clear, a fine drive from the Champion. Tim was half a second ahead of Ross Wylie, and into 4th came Steven Clarke passing Kyle Reid late on. Kenny McLeod took 6th half a second ahead of Steven Brewster. IKt was Hamish Brandon who got 8th holding off Malcolm McNab who along with Murray Muir behind him was always in the thick of the action. Wylie beat Clarke to the newcomers class. The Ladies Cup went to Fiona Wallace who passed Elaine Marshall at the start and got a few cars in between them, giving her a cushion as she finished 14th. Results: 1 David Sleigh 9m58.67s (69.27mph); 2 Tim Sleigh +3.79s; 3 Wylie; 4 Clarke; 5 McLeod; 6 McLeod; Newcomers class: Wylie. Ladies Cup: Fiona Wallace. Pole Position: David Sleigh. Fastest lap: Clarke 1m04.77s (71.14mph). Starters: 27. Race Three: restarted over 8 laps The top 8 cars were reversed so Hamish Brandon was on pole. At Duffus Steven Brewster led from Kyle Reid, as the lap closed there was a crash at the hairpin
6
Steven Brewster won Race 3 despite lots of pressure
involving a couple of cars. The red flags came out. The race restarted over 8 laps Steven Brewster led a train of 8 cars from Kyle Reid and Kenny McLeod. At Clark, Malcolm McNab slid into the gravel exiting Clark thanks to a friendly tap. He kept it going though. Brewster held on at the front on lap 5 there were spots of rain Brewster was at the head of 4 cars all running nose to tail. Reid, McLeod and Tim Sleigh were in the group. David Sleigh was now closing on them and joined the train a couple of laps later. A second back on the top 5 came Ross Wylie with Steven Clarke on his bumper. On the final lap Brewster held on for a fine win with Reid close behind. Third was David Sleigh. He benefitted from last lap heroics as Tim Sleigh got past Kenny McLeod at Duffus for 3rd then David was into 4th at Scotsman. He chased Tim and had the place as the lap closed. McLeod was a close 5th nearly a second ahead of Ross Wylie who was chased by Steven Clarke. Into 8th came Lewis Grant after surviving lots of pressure from Alan Waugh who was later disqualified. Malcolm McNab came through to 9th on the final lap demoting Hamish Brandon. Top newcomers Wylie and Clarke were 4 tenths apart at the flag. The Ladies Cup class went to Elaine Marshall who had a close race with Fiona Wallace. For much of the race Wallace led the class with Marshall a few lengths behind chasing, then Elaine she got past on lap 7. There was a fracas in the post race holding paddock and some drivers finished up in front of officials. Results: 1 Steven Brewster 8m39.813s (70.58mph); 2 Reid +0.35s; 3 Tim Sleigh; 4 David Sleigh; 5 McLeod; 6 Wylie; Newcomers class: Wylie. Ladies Cup: E Marshall. Fastest lap: David Sleigh 1m03.59s (72.45mph). Starters: 26.
S cottish Formula Ford Championship
Race One: 10 laps Ross McEwan had pole and led the cars away. Alistair Dow sat on his exhaust pipe as Jordan Gronkowski who qualified 3rd was crawling at the back. McEwan held off Dow for several laps then on lap 5 he spun at Leslie’s when leading. This let Dow take over, with Mark Brenan only a couple of lengths behind him. Next lap and Brennan spun off at Scotsman restarting 4th. Dow now led from Michael Gray but the recovering McEwan was closing on him. On lap 7 McEwan took 2nd at the hairpin and pulled out a couple of seconds gap but he was too far behind Dow who took his first ever FF win after spending last season finishing second twelve times behind Kenny Thirlwall. It was a sweet moment for Alistair who said: “I’m totally overcome, its been 4 years I’ve raced at Knockhill and not had a win. They don’t make it easy for me, there’s tough competition out there.” There were some twists post race as Michael Gray got a 5 second time penalty dropping him to 4th promoting Mark Brennan to 3rd. The field had spread out a little as the race wore on, Greg Stark had a quiet run to 5th easing away from Paul Kopec. Behind him there was a spirited dice over the last 3 laps as Ivor Mairs held off Mathew Chisholm for 7th Chisholm had put in a late charge passing and Andy Paterson on lap 7. Results: 1 Alistair Dow (Ray GRS09) 9m38.15s
Jordan Gronkowski holds off Alistair Dow
(79.70mph); 2 Ross McEwan (Van Diemen RF92) +2.21s; 3 Andrew Brennan (Swift SC92F); 4 Michael Gray (Vector); 5 Greg Stark (Van Diemen); 6 Paul Kopec (Ray GRS08); Class winner: Ivor Mairs Newcomers class : Brennan. Pole Position: McEwan 55.70s (82.72mph). Fastest lap: McEwan 55.86s (82.48mph). Starters: 11. Race Two: 10 laps Alistair Dow set off from pole and opened out a couple of car lengths from Ross McEwan. They were tracked half a second back by Andrew Brennan. Starting last was Jordan Gronkowski, not starting at all again was Ian Munro who blew his engine in practise. Dow held off McEwan for 2 laps but by Duffus on lap 3 McEwan led the race. Dow then spun at Clark restarting down in 9th. McEwan raced clear opening up 3 seconds lead on Andrew Brennan who was a few seconds ahead of Greg Stark. On lap 4 Michael Gray pitted from 5th . Up through the order came Jordan Gronkowski. He was charging, starting 11th he was 7th by lap 2, then 4th on lap 4. He chased down Stark and took 3rd on lap 6. That lap Mathew Chisholm spun and Paul Kopec glanced off him as they chased 5th place man Andy Paterson. On lap 7 Dow had moved up to 5th then had a quick spin at the hairpin but didn’t loose a place. Then we had the safety car out for a lap as Chisholm’s car was moved. The cars all closed up but Michael Gray was still quite a few seconds back from the end of the field when racing restarted. After only 1 lap racing resumed and McEwan had 3 laps to race. He eased away as Brennan held off Gronkowski for a lap, then Jordan was into 2nd but he couldn’t catch Ross McEwan. Alistair Dow took 3rd on the last lap at the hairpin off Andrew Brennan. Paul Kopec went into 5th passing Andy Paterson also on the last lap. Ross said: “That was the longest race of my life , once I got past Aly I was hoping for the flag. When the safety car went in I got a break and the win.” Gronkowski was given driver of the day at the Garage Door Company podium awards. Results: 1 McEwan 11m16.04s (68.16mph); 2 Jordan Gronkowski (Van Diemen); 3 Dow; 4 Brennan; 5 Kopec; 6 A Paterson (Van Diemen RF92) Class winner: Mairs. Newcomers class : Gronkowski. Pole Position: Dow. Fastest lap: Dow 56.27s (81.88mph). Starters: 11.
S cottish Fiesta Championship in association with Yokohama Tyres
Race One: 10 laps Scott Robertson was poleman, the sun was shining but the track was damp after a light hail storm. Andy Allan got the best start to lead into Duffus from Robrtson. These two were chased by Dave Colville who had George Orr and Blair Murdoch on is tail as STs filled the top 5 places. In 6th Wayne MacCauley just headed Peter Cruickshank the top XR2s , as the lap ended Stuart Haston got past both XR2s in his ST at the hairpin. Wayne passed Peter on lap 2 with Craig Taylor’s XR2 hanging on a second back as the track dried. On lap 3 Robertson had the lead diving up the inside at Duffus. Andy Allan stayed with him and was only 2 car lengths ahead of Colville. On lap 4 Taylor went onto the grass at Scotsman but held his place
though dropped back a few seconds. He now had Mike Strong all over him. On lap 6 Andy Allan retook the lead and was able to defend enough to keep Robertson behind him all the way to the flag. It was a fine return after 18 months away for Allan. These two pulled nearly 4 seconds clear of Dave Colville who had George Orr for company. But Orr would be penalised post race and dropped down to 11th overall and 6th in STs. Stuart Haston and Blair Murdoch got promoted as were plenty of XR2s. Wayne MacCauley led the XR2s home in 6th Peter 3 seconds behind him. Mike Strong was 8th and 3rd XR2 as Taylor who had chased him home after a late race dice with Hamish Smart finished 2 seconds back on the road but was dropped down the order with a post race time penalty. Top XR Newcomer Grant Anderson was 10th having scrapped with Stephen Russell. Results: 1 Andrew Allan (Fiesta ST) 11m13.97s (68.37mph); 2 Scott Robertson (Fiesta ST) +1.44s; 3 Dave Colville (Fiesta ST); 4 Stuart Haston (Fiesta ST); 5 Blair Murdoch (Fiesta ST); 6 Wayne MacCauley (Fiesta XR2 XR Class winner: McCauley. XR Newcomers class: Grant Anderson. Pole Position: Robertson 1m02.65s (73.55mph). Fastest laps: ST Robertson 1m04.82s (71.08mph) XR2- Peter Cruickshank 1m 7.38s . Starters: 17. Race Two: 10 laps The sun was shining and the track was dry. Andy Allan led the filed into Duffus with Scott Robertson and Dave Colville all running nose to tail. Robertson dived past at the hairpin to lead, and Colville was 2nd
Andy Allan and Scott Robertson dicing for the lead
by the time they were at Duffus. Robertson was in good form and pulled out a couple of seconds gap on Colville who had Allan on his tailgate all race. George Orr took 4th from Murdoch at the hairpin on lap 5, Murdoch immediately fought back up the hill retaking 4th. He then eased out half a second and left Orr to fend off Haston. In the XR2s Peter Cruickshank sat on Wayne MacCauley’s bootlid before outbraking him at Duffus on lap 4. They then ran nose to tail with Peter just easing out around half a second by the flag. They slowly pulled 4 seconds clear of Mike Strong. Top newcomer Craig Taylor finished next after he had got past Stephen Russell on lap 6 and they remained close. It was a good win for young Robertson. Results: 1 Robertson 10 laps in 10m38.86s (72.12mph); 2 Colville +2.19s; 3 Allan; 4 Murdoch; 5 George Orr (Fiesta ST); 6 Haston; XR2 Class winner: Cruickshank. XR Newcomer class : Craig Taylor. Fastest laps ST - Robertson 1m 2.85s XR2 -W MacCauley 1m 3.89s Starters: 17.
S cottish Classic S ports and S aloons Championship in association with Yokohama Tyres Race One: 10 laps
A dry track and a good grid saw Andrew Smith lead away in his Morgan. He was never headed but he was kept honest by Barry Riddell in his TR8. These two were chased by Robert Marshall’s MK2 Escort which kept a second behind them until lap 4 when he started to come under pressure from Willy Toye’s TR8. He in
7
Raymond Boyd took a good third in Race 1
turn had Raymond Boyd’s 911 on his tail. They stayed close until lap 7 when Boyd got past both of them to run 3rd. He closed the gap on Riddell to less than a second but didn’t drop Marshall. Willy Toye fell back a little but Riddell, Boyd and Marshall were nose to tail on the last lap. Where was Stan Bernard, his 911 started last having missed Saturday qualifying. He blasted up through the pack but a 24 car field takes a while to pass. He was in 8th on lap 3 out powering Keiron Baillie’s Escort up the hill to be 7th by lap 4. Then he got past Donald Laird’s rapid Elan on lap 6 to be 6th but ran out of time as he was only 3 tenths down on Willy Toye at the flag. Class A for up to 1500cc cars saw the biggest entry and Nic Boyes run away with it in his Mini. He had his usual race long dice with Robin Benn’s 3 litre Capri, drawing a couple of seconds clear. Class A’s 2nd spot was tighter. George Leitch in a Mk1 Fiesta fought with Andy Walker’s Triumph Sports passing it a couple of times, then getting back past Colin Beveridge’s Alfa Sud on the last lap to be 2nd in class. Results: 1 Andrew Smith (Morgan +8) 10m16.04s (74.80mph); 2 Barry Riddell (Triumph TR8) +0.25s; 3 Raymond Boyd (Porsche 911); 4 Robert Marshall (Ford Escort RS); 5 Willy Toye (Triumph TR8); 6 Stan Bernard (Porsche 911); Class winners: Smith; Boyd; Donald Laird; Nick Boyes (Mini Cooper). Pole Position: Smith 59.57s (77.35mph). Fastest lap: Smith 1m00.12s (76.64mph). Starters: 24. Race Two: This was another Morgan win as Andrew Smith took off from pole and kept them all behind him. Barry Riddell sat close to him until mid distance, then a gap of around a second opened up. It grew a little then Barry closed on Andrew on the last lap, and there were only a few tenths in it as the Morgan had a power slide out of the hairpin and took the flag. Robert Marshall had 3rd on lap 1 as Stan Bernard had a good a good start and went round the outside of Willy Toye at Duffus. He sat behind the Escort in his 911 until lap 7 when Stan got through and opened out a second gap. He was around 3 seconds behind Riddell but the leaders hit traffic on lap 9 and Stan closed in but couldn’t get nearer than just over a second behind the TR8. Marshall was chased by Willy Toye all race and got some clear air from lap 8. Raymond Boyd drifted back in 6th then closed on Toye to be 2 seconds adrift. He got well clear of Jimmy Crow’s Escort which had been chased all race by Donald Laird’s Elan. Robin Benn got 9th with his Capri beating Nic Boyes Mini by 2 seconds. The Mini had a dented door following a first lap door handling moment with another class A car. Nic won the class but wasn’t too happy with the damage. He was well clear of Grant Allan’s 911 which overtook George Leitch’s Fiesta on the last lap. The Fiesta also fell back behind class rival Alan Barron’s Alfasud Sprint on that final tour. Results: 1 Smith 10 laps in 10m08.09s (75.77mph); 2 Riddell +0.70s; 3 Bernard; 4 Marshall; 5 W Toye (TR8); 6 Boyd; Class winners: Smith; Bernard; Crow; Boyes. Pole Position: Smith. Fastest lap: Bernard 59.70s (77.18mph). Starters: 19.
Kevin Pick
• NEWS • NEWS • NEWS •
SMRC AGM 27th March
A lively meeting had many questions for the Chairman Mike Gascoigne, many regarding Legends. The accounts were not passed as many members could not access them on the club web site. Instructions how to view them were placed on the web site.
Championship Away Rounds
Entry forms and Supplementary regulations are on the club web site, please note these forms must be sent to the address shown on each form, usually the
organising club. There are several away rounds during May and June. We hope you will support these and enjoy experiencing new circuits. Any queries email k.pick@smrc-uk.com.
SPECIAL OFFER FOR SMRC MEMBERS 10% OFF RACEWEAR AT GPR
TOCA support meeting
Croft June 23/24 there are still places available for both Classics and Mini Coopers. This meeting will have big crowds and is televised on ITV. Note entry forms go to BARC,but the entry fee for those who have not already paid in advance goes to the SMRC Competition Secretary Graham Brunton.
RACE STATISTICS - PROVISIONAL POINTS
Legends Cars Ross Marshall has now won 8 of the first 9 races in the season. We haven’t seen this sort of dominant form since the days of Ben Mason and before him Colin Noble. To get three wins is always difficult as the top scorers in the two heats of the day start at the back in the Final. Others to shine include last year’s top rookie Robbie Burgoyne and this year’s impressive top rookie David Newall. 1 R Marshall - 1770; 2 R Burgoyne - 1380; 3 P O’Brien - 1345; 4 D Hunter - 1200 The Fiesta ST Cup has had 4 different race winners in its 4 rounds. ST Cup 1 D Colville - 81; 2 S Robertson - 73; 3 G Orr - 67; 4 B Murdoch - 54 XR2s have 2 drivers each with 2 wins and 2 seconds. So its tight at the top. XR2 1 = P Cruickshank - 90; 1= W Maccauley - 90; 3 M Strong - 56; 4 H Smart - 54 XR Newcomers 1 C Hannah - 73; 2 G Anderson - 65; 3 S Robertson - 54; 4 C Taylor - 41 Classics have had only one car win all 4 races Andrew Smith in his Morgan but it’s a class based championship and 3 drivers have a perfect score so far. Smith is joined by Robert Marshall and Nic Boyes. 1= A Smith - 100; 1= R Marshall - 100; 1= N Boyes - 100; 4 S Bernard - 95
SMRC AGM
Saloons and Sportscars see Stewart Whyte with 4 race wins but another multi class Championship means he has Gary Watson for company. 1S Whyte - 100; 2 G Watson - 95; 3 C Purdie - 70; 4 P Duncan - 67 The Mini Cooper Cup has had 3 winners in 6 races, two of them from the same family have won 5 races. The Sleigh brothers David and Tim have 5 between them, with Steven Brewster another racing brother taking round 6. Newcomer and Ladies Cups are also being keenly contested. Mini Cooper Cup 1 D Sleigh - 130; 2 T Sleigh - 116; 3 S Clarke - 80; 4 R Wylie - 76 Newcomers 1 S Clarke - 135; 2 R Wylie - 131; 3 M McNab - 90; 4 L Grant - 77 Ladies Cup 1 E Marshall - 140; 2 F Wallace - 110; 3= E Bruce - 92; 3= S - McMurdo Formula Ford has had 4 winners in 4 races, all taking their first ever Scottish FF wins, plus top cars retiring and being disqualified. This means a really open Championship and newcomers cup. 1 A Dow - 63; 2 R McEwan - 60; 3 I Mairs - 55; 4 K Blake - 37 FF Newcomers 1 P Kopec - 57; 2 G Stark - 54; 3 J Gronkowski - 50; 4 M Brennan - 45
Reconvened 7. 30pm Tuesday 29th May, Dakota Hotel , S outh Queensferry EH30 9QZ
New S MRC Chai rman Hugh McCai g wi l l chai r the meeti ng.
C O M P ET I T I ON
To t a k e a d v a n t a g e o f t h i s e x c e l l e n t o ff e r y o u m u s t o rd e r v i a t h e t e l e p h o n e o rd e r line on 08435 070 858. Yo u c a n a l s o re q u e s t a n e w G P R a c e w e a r catalogue. Check out the latest items o n l i n e a t w w w. g p rd i re c t . c o m To g e t y o u r 1 0 % d i s c o u n t o n a l l i t e m s except Hans devices and carbon h e l m e t s q u o t e re f e re n c e S M R C a n d y o u r c l u b m e m b e r s h i p n u m b e r.
SMRC COMMITTEE
Hugh McCaig
019686 76406
Russell Paterson
07979 911 111
Graham Brunton
07778 169512
(Chairman - email: h.mccaig@smrc-uk.com)
(Vice-Chairman - email: r.paterson@smrc-uk.com) (Competition Sec - email: g.brunton@smrc-uk.com)
Kevin Pick
0131 332 8287
Mike How
0131 339 3876
Sandy Denham
0131 334 2000
(Wheelspin Editor - email: k.pick@smrc-uk.com) (Club Clothing - email: m.how@smrc-uk.com)
Nic Boyes
Bernard Buss Nick Clarke
Gareth Davies
Kate Haston
n.boyes@smrc-uk.com 01361 882322
0131 441 2698
g.davies@smrc-uk.com 01324 556541
Andrew Morrison a.morrison@smrc-uk.com
Last issue we asked what was the car, who drove it and what was the cars nickname. There were no correct entries, it was a Citroen 2CV, driver Scotroen’s Norrie Taylor, car name Le Shark. It raced several times in the 24 hour race at Mondello Park, Ireland and Norrie often diced for the lead with the late Graham Harper at Ingliston and Knockhill.
This issue what is this car, and who is driving it? Bonus question, how many pairs of brothers are racing in Mini Coopers so far this year? Answers to your Editor by June 9th email k.pick@smrc-uk.com or ansaphone 0131 332 8287 Visit our website on www.smrc-uk.com Photos by Jim Moir Tel: 0131 552 8817 Printed by McKenzie Print Ltd. Aberdeen Email: sales@mckenzie-print.com Wheelspin designed by Vince Towns Graphic Design Tel: 0779 2050 786 Editor: Kevin Pick: Email k.pick@smrc-uk.com