JOHN GRANT POWERS INTO COMPETITION LEAD
PAUL HERNAMAN MAINTAINS REGULARITY ADVANTAGE
JOHN CLARK OVERHAULS HOWELLS FOR MOTUL TOUR BRITANNIA TROPHY
At the end of the second leg of MOTUL Tour Britannia, competition remains intense after another day of great racing and fine British weather. In the Competition category, John Grant/Charles Elwell have powered the Chevron B16 from fifth overnight into the lead of the 43-strong Competition category field. Paul Hernaman and Ray Crowther continue to lead a closely-fought Regularity, while John and Chris Clark have snatched the overall MOTUL Tour Britannia lead - based on Index of Performance - from second placed Paul Howells (Porsche 911).
Today’s second leg of MOTUL Tour Britannia took the crews from Coombe Abbey, in Warwickshire, for another full day of action, including races at two of Britain’s finest circuits. After two runs at MIRA, the route then headed to Donington Park and onto the picturesque Belvoir Castle. From here, the crews headed to Mallory Park for the second race of the day before returning to the event headquarters at Coombe Abbey. Due to a timing problem at Donington, some competitors were unable to race, but enjoyed a second blast around Mallory Park this afternoon. Notional times were given to those crews who were unable to compete at Donington.
A ding-dong battle for the lead between a brace of Porsches and a Chevron B16 has seen the lead in the Competition category change three times today. Overnight leader Howard Redhouse lost the lead to Chevron driver John Grant before lunch, with arch rival and fellow Porsche pilot Nick Whale moving into second. Whale took the lead at Belvoir Castle but Grant was ahead again after the race at Mallory Park and takes a 4.6 second lead into the final leg, with Howard Redhouse a further 27 seconds in arrears.
In the Regularity category, the Porsche 911 of Paul Hernaman/Ray Crowther continues to hold the lead and has pulled out a narrow 3.3 second advantage over Belgian brothers, Marc and Stefan Vandendijk. The Vandendijk’s Triumph TR4 snatched second place with the Birch/Haylock Porsche climbing from fifth to third overnight. John and daughter Alona Simister's Lancia Fulvia HF remains in fourth position. The hard luck story of the day was the father and son team of Julian and Adam Taylor, who were only 1.9 seconds off the overnight lead. The duo stopped on a road section to take a call from Mrs. Taylor and, cruelly, the Dino’s starter motor failed when they tried to get going again.
As far as overall MOTUL Tour Britannia honours are concerned, the Clarks in their Jaguar E Type have turned a 13 second deficit into a 13 second advantage over Paul Howells and Neil Primrose (Porsche 911). The story of the day, however, has been Harvey Death and Elaine MacLeod, who have climbed from ninth to third in their giant-killing Mini Cooper S. MOTUL Tour Britannia’s policy of allowing all Competition entrants - irrespective of the power of their cars - to compete in overall victory is superbly demonstrated by the fact that after two days of competition, Death’s Mini leads John Grant’s Chevron by 0.1 seconds!
Tomorrow’s final leg of MOTUL Tour Britannia takes in two stages at historic Cholmondeley Castle before heading to one of Britain’s most challenging circuits, Oulton Park. En route back to Coombe Abbey for the finish, there are two runs over Loton Park and Weston Park respectively.
QUOTES FROM THE CREWS
#1 John Ruston/Rupert Bravery (GB/GB) – Talbot 105
“MIRA was okay, but we buggered up both stages. Donington was so good I rather think we forgot to count how many laps we had done…! MOTUL Tour Britannia has now become one of the top two Tours in motorsport and it’s grown up again this year. Hopefully they’ll stick to a maximum of 100 cars.”
#2 Marc Vandendijk/Stefan Vandendijk (B/B) – Triumph TR4A IRS
“MIRA was okay, but we were a second too slow the second time. Belvoir was much more fun the second run through when we knew the way.”
#3 Robert Newton (GB) – Bristol 401
“Belvoir was much better the second time. Once you know where you’re going it makes it a lot easier.”
#4 Stanley Gold/Andy Prill (USA/GB) – Porsche 356
“Donington was very good, loved it! Today has been really good, it’s a wonderful event and everything is just fine for us. At Belvoir Castle, what a beautiful place, we were just trying to keep it on the asphalt. We were much better the second time through.”
#5 Alexandre de Lesseps/Henry Morgan (CH/CH) – Aston Martin DB4GT
“The first MIRA was a bit slow but faster the second run. I really would love to drive the full MIRA circuit fast. Donington is a magnificent circuit, it was wonderful and we really enjoyed it.”
#6 Sarah Moody/Justine Moody (GB/GB) – Ferrari Daytona
“Wonderful! I just loved Donington. To drive on a Grand Prix circuit, wow! At Belvoir, we thought about stopping to give the horses some carrots, but we kept going and it was great!”
#7 Melanie Coburn (IRL) – Porsche 356B Super 90
“This is all very new to us, but we’re having great fun, even though we’ve made some mistakes.”
#9 Anthony Moody/Willie Gilbertson-Hart (GB) – Jaguar E Type
“Interesting and amusing, but we were a bit fast at MIRA. There’s definitely room for improvement in our performance.”
#10 Nick Gatehouse/Nicole Ponsford (GB/GB) – Porsche 911S
“The first lap time at MIRA was five seconds off; the second was two seconds off, so we’re learning, slowly.”
#12 Robert Frost/Laurie Frost (GB) – Jaguar XK120
“We’re not doing very well, but it’s really good fun.”
#14 Richard Clark/Louisa Banks (MC/MC) – Porsche 356
“I’m suffering slightly from CO poisoning as we’ve got a new ducting for the oil cooler and the air coming through it from the engine compartment is coming straight back into the rear side window. So, we have bunged up the holes to try and stop it.”
#15 Martin Sharp/Franca Davenport (GB/GB) – Mercedes-Benz 230SL
“I was given the big hurry up on the second lap, otherwise we would have lost out badly.”
#18 Paul Hernaman/Ray Crowther (GB/GB) – Porsche 911
“Everything was good at MIRA, we had no problems there. At Donington we messed up quite badly, when we got confused about what was a bridge and what was a gantry over the circuit.”
#19 Ian Tandy/John White (GB/GB) – Porsche 911 RS Touring
“We’ve still got some niggling problems at MIRA because the car is idling at 2000 rpm, so it’s difficult to slow it down. We took steps to cure it. Donington is always a great challenge.”
#21 Andrew Frankel/Jonathan Frankel (GB/GB) – Porsche 911
“MIRA was fine, if slow, but that’s okay. After all, it is Regularity and not speed!”
#23 Brian Wallace/Bruce Ashmore (IRL/IRL) – MGA
“Donington was great and the car’s great too.”
#25 Brad Mottier/Bill Hoff (USA/USA) – Ford Bronco
“That was a terrific morning, with MIRA and Donington. After the first run at Belvoir, I knew we had to go faster, and I can go faster.”
#27 Julian Taylor/Adam Taylor (GB/GB) – Ferrari Dino 246GT
“It’s a long time since doing Donington, but great.”
#29 Gareth Burnett/Maurice Hamilton (GB/GB) – Talbot 105
“Belvoir was very interesting but it’s really a bit tight for a car of this size. Mallory was absolutely brilliant and Donington superb. But actually it’s even better to beat cars 40 years younger than this one; mega.”
#34 Harvey Death/Elaine Macleod (GB/GB) – Morris Mini Cooper S
“Mallory Park really suits the Mini; it was great fun and I can get in amongst them. We’ve really enjoyed the day, the road sections and the fact we can see all the other competitors after our races and not just rush off is a real big bonus.”
#36 Kim Taylor-Smith/David Cook (GB/GB) – Ferrari 250 GT TDF
“At Belvoir we tried to do the stage using the cross country route the second time through it and had to wait to get back on the road as there were cars behind us. It cost us a lot of time. This is the best fun you can have with your clothes on! It’s fantastic, great fun and the car’s behaving impeccably. We’re pleased to be doing the event; we’ve been bitten by the bug.”
#37 Mark Midgley/Andrew Siddall (GB/GB) – Aston Martin DB2
“MIRA was very interesting. We enjoyed it but didn’t really know what to expect. The Belvoir stages were very interesting, especially with no brakes..! The brakes then packed in again at Donington half way through, but we’ve enjoyed it, it’s great fun.”
#41 Malcolm Ricketts/Robin Longdon (GB/GB) – Lotus Elite
“Belvoir was much better the second time through; I really love the fast downhill stuff. We had a good race at Donington and had been having a great time until something broke in the rear transmission at Mallory, perhaps a differential output shaft, so we’ve stopped.”
#42 Richard Frankel/Peter Flood (GB/GB) – Alfa Romeo GTam
“Before Belvoir we had no brakes at all, the balance bar had come unscrewed. But, we’ve dropped so far behind I’m trying everything. At Mallory Park I found the limit on these tyres, with a half spin at the hairpin in practice. We’re giving it everything. Donington was wonderful, great fun. Our mechanics are working amazing hours and the car is fabulous. I’m a very lucky boy, this is great fun.”
#44 Derek Hood/Steve Riedling (GB/GB) – Datsun 240Z
“We were fine at Belvoir and seven seconds quicker the second time through.”
#46 Rob Williams/Steve Winter (GB/GB) – Porsche 911
“MIRA was great and I’m pleased with the way it went. Belvoir was also great and it’s making me feel like a rally driver this year. Overall it was a very good day, but we’re fitting new brakes tonight as we lost them at Donington and it compromised our performance. There’s a good variety of cars, as I normally only race against Porsches. I only got called up at the last minute so it’s been a steep learning curve. You need to take part in Tour Britannia to understand it. Being part of it is something very different, as I have crewed the last two events for Robi Bernberg. At the start of the event I had two different sets of overalls; the driving pair is being used! It’s a pleasant surprise to be so high up.” Rob Williams.
#47 Oliver Harris/Bobby Bell (GB/GB) – Austin Healey 100/4
“We’re very happy but can’t get second gear, which has been frustrating.”
#49 Tony Fall/Yvonne Mehta (GB/GB) – Datsun 240Z
“MIRA was nice, the wheels have now been balanced and the car doesn’t feel like it’s going through the sound barrier any more! It’s been a very pretty route today, with outstanding tests. For us it’s been a bit iffy because we’ve had a small problem, which might be clutch slip, which we need to try and get fixed.”
#52 Tim Lewis/Malcolm Scobie (GB/GB) – Ferrari 250 GT Lusso
“MIRA was brilliant.” At Mallory Park the oil light came on and the crew retired.
#55 Mike Anderson/Alan Brown (GB/GB) – Porsche 911S
“We didn’t have enough fuel round Donington and the car was getting slower and slower, barely going up hill in fourth gear. I’m not a circuit racer, I’m a rally man (Mike Anderson). We’re losing ground on the circuits, but gaining it back on the stages. I only bought the car for this event; I’m selling it next week…”
#56 Yves Junne/Elke Middedorp (F/D) – Porsche 911
“Mallory was great fun. The gearing wasn’t great for the hairpin, but it was great fun all the same.”
#57 Caroline Betts/Celia Drabble (GB/GB) – MGB
“The car is running like a dream, but every circuit is new to me. Mum (co-driver) half jokingly said to me she’d co-drive, so here we are! We’re loving every minute and it’s well organised, as usual.”
#58 John Clark/Chris Clark (GB/GB) – Jaguar E Type
“The car was understeering a lot on the quick corner at Mallory Park. We need to get it to handle some how.”
#59 Jonathan Turner/Rupert Bullock (GB/GB) – AC Ace
“MIRA was excellent. Mallory was great fun; I’ve only driven it once before and it could be a nightmare if we’d done it again… It’s challenging driving with all these other guys.”
#63 David Betts/John Whitley (GB/GB) Shelby Mustang GT350
“Mallory was a good race, although the steering seized before it started. But it was fine for the race and it’s been a good day of racing.”
#66 Richard Lloyd/Alan Rivers (GB/GB) – Chevrolet Camaro Z28
“It’s been a very good day, they’ve been great races and good tests. But, this car is a bit big for the smaller places, like Belvoir, but it was okay. In spite of that, our second run there was very good. Mallory was lovely, great fun. All round it’s been a great day and our aim is to be the best of the American metal. It’s been two lovely days so far.”
#69 Dennis Singleton/Charlot Singleton (USA/USA) – Ferrari 275 GTB
“Belvoir was real fun, and that’s what it’s about.”
#70 Steve Tandy/Mariella Tandy (GB/GB) – Jaguar E Type Lightweight
“Mallory was very good, I’m pleased. It was scary at Gerrards, with a Porsche spinning in front of us. The car went beautifully, but the driver needs to find a few more seconds!”
#79 Geoff Lister/John Davenport (GB/GB) – Porsche 911 RS
“We’ve had a whale of a time today, but above all we’re trying to return the car in the condition in which it started.”
#80 Nick Whale/Sally Wood (GB/GB) Porsche 911 Carrera RS
“At Belvoir we were looking for tenths of a second, as we’re in a big fight with Howard Redhouse.”
#81 Howard Redhouse/Richard Shaw (IRL/GB) – Porsche 911 Carrera RS
“It’s all good fun but the back was too soft and the car was understeering in the fast stages. But we’re having a really good time.”
#82 John Grant/Charles Elwell (GB/GB) – Chevron B16
“It’s been very difficult, because we’ve got a dragging clutch which makes it difficult to get the start right without stalling or jumping it. The clutch will be fixed tonight.”
#83 John Sheldon/Lesley Stevens (GB/GB) – Lotus Elan
“We’ve had a very satisfactory day, but the 911s have got a lot of grip and a lot of power on the fast corners at places like Mallory, so we can’t do much about them.”
#99 John Evans/Jeff Moyes (GB/GB) – Porsche 911
“It was very close at Donington with Yves Junne. I just got ahead of him on the finish line. Mallory was an exciting race but in the last lap I missed a gear and the Mini came through. It was a great race, the weather is lovely; can we do it again!”
