Tel's Tales 033– 3 Sisters 29^th June Sprint 2014

After a night that included more rain following yesterday's wet Aintree event we woke to a dry day but a track that was slippy due to a 4 hour kart race the night before. This time we had 11 Westfield guys out plus Nick Algar in his Force (he was also at Aintree). It was good to see Mark Anson back in the pack after a couple of years out whilst he rebuilt his car but he was concerned about his lack of seat time and adapting to the alterations on his new car particularly as he was up against myself and Matt Turner who holds the class record for this track layout. Dave Cleaver made it after fitting the new halfshaft and CV joint overnight and for a short while we even saw Steve Davis wandering around for a chat . One novelty for some of was being interviewed on a live radio sport programme and being able to describe our cars and their modifications! There was also an amazing purchase by John Hoyle who bough a pack of 100 numbers at a bargain price so maybe we wont see his insulation tape skinny numbers in future.

P1 saw most of us struggling to find any grip particularly on the first righthander and Lunar (cafe) bend with a few scary moments approaching the fast finish on cowards summit. P2 was not good for Andy Hargreaves as his clutch plates broke and despite a strip down and spare parts from Matt Turners spare yamaha R1 engine could not be repaired for the timed runs.

First T1 before lunch saw Mark Anson's times improving but he was having some problems with a sticking nearside brake piston cause some interesting brake lock ups. Matt Turner was determined to keep his class G record ad I wanted to have a crack at it so times were tight. Dave Cleaver (class F) and John Hoyle (class D) , who did a lightning diff change in the paddock again, were having their own personal battle as were Stephen Everall and Stephen Herbert. By T2 (in the afternoon) grip levels were improving and we could begin to attack the track with a bit more confidence . Best times at this stage were Del 45.13secs, Gary 45.14secs, Terry (me) 45.31secs, Matt Turner 45.52secs, Dave Cleaver 46.23secs and John Hoyle 46.76secs.

T3 saw a brown overalls moment for John Hoyle as he had a high speed 360deg spin before the finish and was lucky not to hit the tyre wall. So for most people T4, as the last run, produced the quickest times. Fastest Westfield was Gary Bunn on 44.65 secs which set a new class record (Del's car handling seems well sorted now!) and I was next on 44.93 secs beating Matt's 45.32 secs and Mark's third in class G of 47.10secs which he was pleased with after his time out. Del finished with 45.13secs, David Cleaver achieved 45.80secs for a new class record and John Hoyle did 46.43secs to break the class D record. Stephen Herbert beat Steve Everall with 49.05secs against 50.04secs. Michael Skidmore enjoyed his runs and ended with 50.83secs and Marshall Rowland on 53.84secs. Nick Algar was second overall and finished with 42.62secs but is unsure that the turbo Busa is the best tool for the job.

This was another exceptionally well run event and LDMC are showing that they take some beating as an organising club.

Next event for me is Curborough where there is a good Westfield entry and then I hope to see many of you at the Westfield Blyton weekend

Terry Everall

Speed Series Correspondent

Class G competitor