Race Report from Andy Hodson

Following the debacle of recent years, it was with some relief that the BRSCC had woken up to the fact that CFF1600 deserved a qualifying slot other than at 8.30am. Whether by accident or design, it was appreciated by all drivers who ventured into the collecting area at a leisurely and far-more-sensible 10:45. And the sun was shining too. What was even more pleasing of course was the lining up of 28 cars, for what proved to be the most populated grid of the day (bar the Carnival final). Something to be proud about at a time of year when the powers that be are looking to amalgamate or cancel championships for 2004. Ours is secure, but nevertheless it can only help our cause. Well played to all.

Making their debut with the Classics was a certain Steve Bradley, taking over from where Steve Pearce left off in the Jamun T3 previously campaigned by Tony Harman a few years back. A veteran of various championships over the years, including pre 74 (which he won in 1982..) and Toyota F3, Steve was summonsed to race control as he had missed the New Driver briefing ! Apparently it hadn't occurred to him that he was a 'new driver', having last driven Combe in 1988...
Peter Denham made a welcome return following the mending of his broken wrist, as did Nigel Lingwood, both competing in this years' CFF1600 championship for the second time. Robert Boyer also came out to play again following his Cadwell debut.

Qualifying :
For once, we got 15 minutes. Standing on the pitwall, all seemed to go reasonably smoothly for most - everyone managed 11 or 12 laps without mishap, except for the perennially unlucky Michael Whitehead, who ventured off into the scenery on his sixth tour, sustaining enough damage to ensure his non-start. Phil Norris spluttered round for 8 laps, discovering a burnt-out plug once back in the paddock.
There was a measure of disbelief when it was rumoured that Andy Powell had lapped well into the 14s, when all the other front-runners were in the 16s. How could that be possible ? The lap record was a mid 14, set in a warmer August climate. But no, the timesheets confirmed it - Andy had won pole by a whopping 1.5 seconds ! The usual culprits were behind, with Simon Davey down in 'only' 5th (he blamed the jet lag, having flown back from the US the day before), and Dave Malpas doing a creditable job hauling his fabulous looking RF78 into 11th spot. Jon Nash continued his newly-found pace (with a little help from Bernard Baxter) with a decent mid-field slot.

The Race :
27 cars sat ready for the green flag, all departing for their warm-up except for a stalled Dave Malpas, who hoped that the 17 cars behind him weren't going to do 'an Alonso' on him. Fortunately for him, they all veered past, allowing him to start from the back.
Everyone made a smooth getaway off the grid, and so began the usual frantic dash into Quarry. Everyone emerged unscathed, with David Penlington heading the field into Camp at the end of the lap, out-dragging Andy who had put a wheel onto the dirt at Bobbies. Nigel Lingwood was keeping a watching brief in 3rd. For the next 3 laps, these 3 drivers kept the crowd's attention as they diced for the lead. Sadly, however, it was not to last - the inevitable accident happened on lap 4, when Andy spun out of the Esses, and David clipped him. Both were out, albeit with minor damage thankfully. This left Nigel with a small gap to Simon, who had Dave Lowe snapping at his gearbox. Anthony Wills was doing another fine job back in 6th, on only his second visit to Combe (!), with Paul Walton, Roger Newman and Peter Denham all in close proximity.

Nigel and Simon circulated in 1st and 2nd for the remaining 6 laps, but this was not quite the case for those behind. Dave Lowe disappeared from 3rd on lap 6 when his throttle developed a mind of its own. The fact that he soldiered on to an eventual 10th (and an important 3rd in Class), playing around with the ignition switch, was quite an achievement, but something we have come to expect from the Guernseyman. Dave's misfortune promoted Roger into 3rd place, which he held to the finish - another fine drive following his 2nd at Donington. Anthony overtook Peter Denham on lap 7 then Paul Walton on lap 10 to take another 7 points , thus securing for himself 2nd place in the Class B Championship. Congratulations on a fantastic year Anthony !

Paul took 5th from Peter, the latter driving to a Class victory and earning himself Driver of the Day. If only you hadn't broken your wrist Peter, you could have given Dave a run for his money this season. Next year perhaps ? Steve Collyer took another big points finish, no doubt having a keen interest in 2nd place in Class A - watch out at Brands Keith ! Similarly, Martin Camp took a strong 6th in Class B, to make life very difficult for Colin Williams chasing him for 3rd place in the Class B championship.

And what happened to poor old Dave Malpas you may ask ? His recovery drive from the back of the grid got him up to 12th by the penultimate lap, only for him to pit 200 yards from the flag ! Having hit one of the bollards at one of those silly chicanes, he was shown the black and white flag for several laps. Being of an inquisitive nature, he pitted to ask what it was all about. Oh dear oh dear ! You won't do that again will you Dave !
Another retiree towards race end was Phil Norris, who suffered the same problem he had in qualifying. Having thought it was an ignition fault, the misfire worsened as the race progressed, until yet again a plug burnt itself to buggery. He traced it afterwards to a horibly over-rich fuel mix.

To those not mentioned, my apologies, but its mighty difficult trying to keep an eye on 27 cars all at the same time...

So - to Brands in 2 weeks. Basically, Dave Lowe must win Class A to take the overall title. Looking forward to it already. See you there, in the comfort of our usual hospitality suite.

ADH.