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Reet then - Final Plan... https://goo.gl/maps/pVvfvtsvxJR2 I will be leaving Rammy @ 0830hrs ish (PM me to meet up near me) Tesco Superstore, Wren Nest Rd, Glossop SK13 8HB - Leave @ 0930hrs Stepping Stones Pub, A52, Ashbourne DE6 1AY - 1030hrs The Swan Inn, Main Rd, Mayfield, Draycott in the Clay, Ashbourne DE6 5GZ - 1050hrs Shell, Warwick Rd, Kenilworth CV8 1HY - 1200hrs - Fill up with Petrol Stoneleigh Park, Stoneleigh, Coventry CV8 2LZ - 1230hrs ish arrival So far we have @marcusb / @Chris King - Webmaster and Joint North East AO / @Sand Dancer / & me @Dave (OnliestSmeg) - Joint Manchester AO @ Glossop, then @Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - WSCC AO Rep @ Ashbourne & @finkangel @ Draycott Anyone else BUT please let us know which of above meet points you'll be at and be there ready to leave on time. Muchly Ta

If you helped at stoneleigh in previous years and have a helper t-shirt, please bring it with you. If it's your first stoneleigh as a helper we will provide you with a t shirt..

I'll post a final timings and pickups to account for all convoyers by tomorrow eve.

Me myself and I

GETTINT THE BIG TRANSIT AGAIN THIS YEAR SO IF ANYONE IS SHORT OF DIGS THEN SHOVE AN AIR MATTRESS IN AND BINGO ONE FORD CAMPING HUT , WILL POST UP SATURDAYS RUN THIS WEEKEND .

bob and lorna

Looks like there is now 2 of us coming up from Newbury and depending on how refined Martins watering cans , aka Webers are, we will stop and top at Tescos in Stow and wait there. We will be leaving Newbury for 8:15 ish if anyone else is heading from this area ?

You mean this one? @marcusb

Absolutely agree! Our cars are our hobby - so we spend what we want (or can afford) or justify to SWMBO!

Just awaiting confirmation that @Sand Dancer is up for this - as it's a pretty early start for us two!

Hoping to join up with a few of you en-route in the RoadRunner. Hope it's ok to tag along in a non Westfield I live near Cirencester, so will be aiming for the 9.40 Co-op petrol station A419/A429 junction. martin.

Sorry, not had a chance to sit down until now! As Barny mentioned I’ve run in the Javelin series for the last three years so I’ll cover off a couple of queries I’ve seen raised in this thread. Scrutineering: a fair number of competitors will often travel to tracks the evening before, and more often than not the Javelin team will be running a trackday or similar the preceding day. Once this is done they are usually happy to scrutineer any cars that are there from about 5.30pm. Scrutineering of the remaining cars takes place on Sunday morning first thing, and they typically have two teams of two (plus other helpers) looking over the cars, helmet, paperwork etc. The scrutineers are generally pretty detailed, I’ve been pulled up in the past for a loose wheelbearing and the odd fluid leak, but generally their focus is to make sure everything is attached to the car properly, no fluid is being dropped and there’s no fire risk from uncovered battery terminals etc. If a harness is out of date they don’t mind, if it’s frayed or damaged they do. I’ve seen people with faulty inertia-reel seatbelts refused a drive until a replacement is sorted. Running of the day: the Javelin team do a very efficient job of keeping everything moving. Scrutineering, sign on, noise testing and the morning chat are all over by 9am and it’s straight on track for two sighting laps (usually done in two groups). By this time the marshals are all out and the untimed practice run begins. Cars are called in class order (by sub-class if it’s a big class) with the tin-top classes (A, B and C) going in order, followed by F (Caterfields etc) and S (Single seaters, Radicals and the like). The lady in charge of the tannoy does an excellent job of queue management, calling the next class up in time so that there’s no gap between cars and no unnecessary queueing. F and S get a bit more warning as we usually take longer to tog up. Cars are released at roughly 30 second intervals, but they keep an eye on faster/slower cars to ensure no-one catches the car in front. Reruns are dealt with immediately (you literally get sent straight back into the queue when you come in) and break-downs involving a tow are usually dealt with in 2 minutes. Yellow flags are minimised if at all possible – if you spin out, where safe to do so, you must continue at race speed so as not to impede the car behind you. After all if they catch you, they get a re-run on warm tyres Usually the sighting, practice and 2-3 timed runs are done by lunch, with the remaining 3-4 timed runs in the afternoon. There’s a 5-min turnaround to sort timing between runs. Generally you’re going for a run every 40 minutes or so. If the runs finish early (as at Blyton, where it rained and about a third of the field stopped running) they will open the track for as many fun (un-timed) runs as you can fit in. Think I did about half a dozen at Blyton to give me some wet practice… Cost: this season it’s £139 for the ‘lesser’ tracks (Blyton, Woodbridge, Kendrew) and £159 for the ‘bigger’ tracks (Snet 300, Anglesey, Cadwell). Regs: all on the website. I won’t go into too much detail as I don’t know how stuff compares to the MSA regs. It’s operated under the IOPD and a licence is required for each driver (£15 a year or £5 a round). Timing: historically it has just been total elapsed time, but they have new timing gear which will apparently give split timing, top speed etc. This is new so can’t really comment yet, they weren’t using all the functionality at Blyton. Stoppages due to timing issues are rare, if anything happens they let the 2-3 cars on track finish and reset before sending the next car out. Single-make sprints: Javelin currently also run the Toyota Sprint Series and Mazda Sprint Series, both of which have far more class definition. I have no idea if they’d be available to run a dedicated WSCC event, but I’m sure they’d be open to the conversation. It may give the firmer class structure some people seem to favour? I hope this is useful to some. As I said I’m not affiliated with Javelin in any way, nor have I taken part in an MSA sprint so I cannot draw any comparisons nor do I want to detract at all from all the hard work that goes into running club events. I’m happy to expand on my experience or answer any queries here or by PM if necessary. Cheers

This is the worst political period we have ever had and I have seen a few. With Brexit, for or against, the will of the people spoke and as a result our politicians have a duty to carry out our wishes. However, some feel they know better and feel the electorate was too stupid to be given the choice so are deliberately trying to derail the process, hence her calling the election as it would then give her the ability to say she has a mandate. Corbyn on the other hand is a knob, but at least he is a consistent knob and has made himself and his party unelectable. The Liberals with Tim but dim, are equally unelectable. Add in UKIP and Greens and the rest, again nothing to see about them. And that is the problem. People will vote, or not, for the party they feel they should. Traditional Labour heartlands like S. Yorkshire will vote anyone in from labour, same Tory areas and it will be the swing areas that are now in confusion. Who would you vote for when there is no real opposition to the Tories? Between them the rest are hopeless and in opposition are not affective. Any government needs a strong opposition to keep it sensible and we have none and the signs are we will have none going forward. What is different this time around is the use of social media. My wife's facebook is awash with absolute b*****k* being pushed by the Labour, socialists greens, anarchists, which is rubbish. But if you list down everything that Labour is promising, wow, it is an impressive list but there is no mention of how we will pay, except higher taxes on the rich. That is always popular with lower paid. So I think the outcome will be another Tory government, with pretty much the same majority, with still no opposition and still too many (like Blair) hell bent on showing the public how wrong they were and making what is already a difficult task, extracting from the EU, almost impossible. We are in for a roller coaster ride with the economy and social unrest

We have some cracking run outs on superb roads and as you have an aeroscreen you'll fit in perfectly! Tasters...

Already looks to be a few familiar names on the entry list, so should be a good WSCC turnout Who else is hoping to come along? https://ldmc.wufoo.eu/reports/entry-list-three-sisters-21st-may-2017/ I'm planning to leave the trailer at home for this one and document my day, showing that you can still have a great time without needing all the gear!

Weekend of cleaning in prep for next weekend. Saturday saw the removal of the seats to deep clean the cockpit and touch in some marks, no carpets to worry about but despite only being four bolts per set my arms are now ripped and bruised to hell, space is tight. All wheels removed, arches cleaned, wheels waxed and suspension cleaned up Second set of new mirrors fitted, tiny but convex lenses give great field of view. Swapped out the original and grubby 5 3/4" headlights for a shiny new pair of 7" units with LED DRLs - pretty essential in something as small as this

@marcusb & me are travelling down to Stoneleigh early on Saturday, travelling through scenic Peak Districts rather than sitting chugging along the motorways. Anyone welcome to join us at Tesco Superstore, Wren Nest Rd, Glossop SK13 8HB @ 0930hrs. Then Buxton - A515 Ashborne - Lichfield etc. something along the lines of this https://goo.gl/maps/BR7HixG4PLy Edit (I'll be leaving Bury at 08:30ish if anyone would like to join from there)

So this was the first outing of the year for me in the Westie. It had been a long wait as I didn’t do too much to do to the car over the winter (or have the budget) and so it just sat in the garage gathering dust. What little work that was done to the car was a tad stressful. I dropped the car at my local motorsport garage a few weeks back, but only got it back on the Thursday night. The mechanic had a two-day race meeting over the intervening weekend and his wallet, cash and some tools were robbed from the cab of the lorry (which was parked in the paddock at Snett). This meant he was understandably delayed in finishing the works on the car as he had to cancel his cards etc. When I got it back, I worked on the car until 10pm on the Thursday, again on the Friday night and on the Saturday morning. Tiring, but finally I was ready to go. The journey to West Wales to race with the Welsh Sports and Saloon Car Championship was broken up with lunch in the sun. My wife and I, along with 4 other friends stayed at a hotel near to the circuit. The place was a little tired to say the least with some quite frankly, hilariously Trip Advisor reviews. Maybe I should have read the reviews before checking-in….. Nonetheless, I got a reasonable night’s sleep. A rarity for me before a race (see my previous Blogs). I got up at 5.50am, had a quick breakfast and my mate and I set off to the circuit, arriving at 6.50am. It was a bright morning and I was looking forward to racing at Pembrey in the dry for the first time. After sign-on and an uneventful scrutineering, I set up camp in Pembrey’s inner paddock. Qualifying was at 9.00am and I had to be in the assembly area 20-minutes before. Not a huge amount of time to get ready so it was all go. Sitting in the assembly area I was a little apprehensive as I have not driven the car at all since the previous September, except only for giving it a run down the road to bed in the new rear pads. As expected, I was properly rusty. Qualifying was over in a blur and my driving was annoyingly inconsistent. Still, that was to be expected without testing/practice so I dwelled on the positives (what few there were!). I posted a 1.08, which was a second quicker than my dry qualifying time of the previous August. I was happy with that, 11th out of 20. The first race was after lunch so it was a bit of a wait. We had to wait longer than expected as the trucks were racing and doing a great job of smashing each other to bits and generally making a lot of noise / vibrating the ground under your feet. I was on the inside line for the first hairpin and I intended to stay there. Indeed I did and I managed to get an ok start, hampered by the car in front obscuring the lights at the precise moment they went out. Lesson learnt. Despite this, I managed to get the jump on one car, although I was a little worried at one point as I momentarily had two wheels on the grass. Still, plenty of grip! I followed the pack round the hairpin and then lined a car up a car for a pass on the rear straight. I was drafting him as we went through the fast kink, mid-‘straight’, only for him to get a massive tank slapper, presumably on cold rears. He span in front of me and by backing out of the throttle a little – I didn’t know which way he was going to go I managed to avoid him, much to the relief of my Wife who was watching. Thankfully he also missed the tyre wall/bank and was able to carry on. Just as I was getting the bit between my teeth, the race was red flagged as a car had broken a wishbone at the hairpin and had to be recovered. Damn. I now had to do it all again. The restart meant a 10 minute race +1 lap, instead of the usual 15 +1 lap. I had a good re-start and managed to gain a place, only to be out-braked coming in to the hairpin, spending the rest of the race on my own from thereafter. I used the time to perfect (well I tried anyway) my lap and posted a 1.07.6, finishing in 9th. The second race was over in such a blur I can only remember overtaking two cars, both by out-breaking them into Honda. I bettered my lap time with a 1.07.3 and finished 7th overall. I was pleased with that and more importantly I was now lapping much more consistently. Cobweb’s well and truly blown away! A good time was had by all and most importantly the car and I were in one piece. Next I’m off to Silverstone with the CSCC on the 28th of May. I can’t wait to get out there again. Video added: Race 1 Re-start: Race 2: Trucks: On the grass:

Will be making my way on Monday this year, (family commitments) so will miss the convoy down on Saturday but may come back with you Dave or Ian! Andy

Ian and Andy will be joining us at ESSO. Looking forward to a nice convoy!

Washed please Seriously though, would be good to have some back if they are in good order and not upcycled into polishing cloths. There are limited tees available, so if you can wear what you already have that would also be spot on - thanks.

I assume that the reduced price is for the early bird applications before 1st May £200 for the weekend

Me too - if I can find a brake master cylinder!

Campbell & Angela

Hi I'd thoroughly recommend going to 13" instead and a set of Compomotive CXR's with some decent rubber. Eg Avon ZZS or Toyo R88 or similar. Generally the 13" suits the car better from a dynamic perspective.

Gearbox is a Tremec TR6060, which I understand to be an option used on standard LS cars. It is the hardest bit of the car to package in my opinion, it is huge and needs a narrow pedal box area to cope. On the plus side, it and its corresponding clutch, should be bulletproof. The diff is an MX5 diff, with the mounting ears strengthened by RoadRunner. I believe it will be fine, to be honest it spins the wheels long before all 400lb/ft could reach and break the diff. I think the engine would fit in a Westfield chassis quite easily, with custom engine mounts. It is not significantly longer than a four cylinder, and the head width fits fine with exhaust headers exiting higher than normal. Intake is on top of the engine, so would need a V8 bonnet. I think the box would be the challenge though, I think the trans tunnel framework would need significant tweaks. Can take some engine bay photos if you would like, or weather permitting, the car will be around on Sunday for stoneleigh. Martin.

Hi Gary, I will PM you.

You should spot us Ian I will have my headlights on Steve

Another excuse for peeling money out my hand. Need to check the diary and see you Saturday to discuss.

Think thats the ignition switch

All of them. And Kwik fit depots. And underwear shops if it is anything other than bone dry ....... Who needs sensible in a car?

Hey mine is very frugal off boost... ...apparently that's a setting on the throttle but I'll be damned if I can find it.

OK, looks like us hardy northern types are up for an early kick off! Not sure SWMBO will be too pleased mind

Loving this thread mate. With all the technical stuff going on, I loved the "time to get the engine in the hole" line lol... Mart.

Not sure in the OP's case.. That's a dangerous question to ask with these cars! While there often is a particular goal, whether it's sprinting, trackdaying, or touring, they're also a hobby, as such doing it because you want to have a try is also an equally valid reason!

Bit of an update, the cars been a bit 2 steps forward 1 back recently. My Flywheel is drilled for use of either a pinto or zetec clutch kit. The best value for money and strongest clutch was the pinto one. I went for an AP CP2000-5 as I didn't want the pedal feel to be too aggressive so stayed organic over a paddle. It took 3 different company's to finally supply one. The company that came through was called Motorsport Tools, I'll defiantly be going straight to them first next time! Anyway after the clutch arrived it was time to get the engine in the hole. I bled the clutch first of all just to make sure it was working correctly since the swap to the pinto clutch. You need to remove the spacer from the release bearing when going from the zetec clutch too the pinto item. All was good! Next step was to get the ITBs on. Firstly I drilled and tapped the base manifold to take some air fittings to allow me to run idle control. This a pretty simple job and all went to plan. Now things started to go a bit backwards. There had been a miss communication between the machine shop and they hadn't matched the inlet to the head. When using Blacktop bodies on an ST head the bottom of the port needs opening out as ST ports sit higher in the head. This meant when fitting my bodies, there was a nasty lip where the port and manifold didn't match. I really wasn't happy about that so I decided to remove the head, strip it back down and get it sent back to the shop for matching. Luckly the machine shop were super super fast in getting my head sorted and it was ready for collection in less than 48h. It was a fairly quick job to get it all back together although I've lent out my DTI so can't redo the cam timing just yet. I also swapped over to a mechanical billet cambelt tensioner to try and help with "belt flap" at high RPM which is where the spring loaded tensioner starts to bounce and allows the timing to move. Next it was time to finalise the dash wiring and get it fitted for good. It was a bit of a PITA as the old contour dash had bolts for it all over the place and cut outs for the gauges meaning when using my carbon dash, I was very limited where I could use bolts as they were going to be on display and needed to be equal to look neat. I also used a bit of edging strip round the outside just to tidy it up. No long now and hopefully it will be time to try and start it for the first time.

Just been double checking the map/route; once through the centre of Ashbourne, on the A52, you'll turn left at a roundabout, five/six hundred yards before turning right on to the A515 at the next roundabout. Halfway down this section of road, there's a pub on the right, called the Stepping Stones, just off Carnation Way. I'll wait as near as I can to the t-junction between Carnation Way and the A52, then I should just be able to pull out and tucking behind you both as you go past! I am of course assuming you're in Westfields so will be easy to spot!

With my half hood the first thing I did was send it back to be altered, took loads of surplus material out. That gave me a nice fit but still getting slapped on the head on the move so came up with this Used steel tube from B&Q covered in pipe insulation. Had it out on the motorway and no issues at all with it.

Thanks Kev for link. Location and timings are good for me. Looking forward to it

Well if Marcus is part of the convoy I might as well join. I'll proberbly tag on around Draycott in the clay on the 515 south of Ashbourne. Just give me an approx ETA.

Cool, could meet you at Ashbourne and convoy on down... Finally decided to skip the Sunday convoy, and come down in the Westfield on the Saturday, be nice to be in a mini convoy at least

What time do you expect to be at Ashbourne? And what time Stoneleigh?

I stopped voting 4 elections ago because 99% of them are career politicians and are as interchangeable as german luxury marque's But I never thought to write on the ballit paper. Then again those self deluded fools up top will never get to hear of it and would care even less if they did. I still say most folk wanting to run as an MP should be put on a register and never allowed responsibility higher than organising a Grand National sweepstake. Our parliament should be made up via a jury selection style lottery. And I know there are a few who do it for the right reasons, but they are so swamped by the poisonous majority as to be irrelevant Rant over...

I did Aintree on Saturday - a very well organised day. 125 competitors, between us they managed to get 784 cars over the start line, i.e. two practise and four timed runs. The day seemed relaxed with a decent break for lunch and even with this number of runs I think we finish between 4 - 5pm. Organisation is key, they had their own PA system and kept us advised as and when to go to the start area, once there they helped place us in the correct running order minimising any delays. To me, if you want to see how you can run an event succesfully, then go to their next event.

Thanks to Roger for agreeing to sell me this amazing machine, a true credit to you and Rob for keeping it in such superb condition, I'm sure I will enjoy every second of ownership Look forward to meeting you Chris and all of the North East members at the Church Mouse in a few short weeks at the next meet... Christian.

I think that a minimum of 2 practice and 3 timed runs should be possible at all events subject, of course , to abnormal delays

I thought you might ask that after our conversation on Saturday, the answer is yes, he had a little go. Pee'd me off, I had been building my speed up, he jumps in the car and straight away goes 10mph faster than me on Port Vite on his first lap. Huff.

Great idea, suggested something similar in the past. It wouldn't just save a bit of cash, I was given some covers I didn't know existed, for thins I didn't realise needed protecting for the IVA! Ian

Right here goes...........................................I'LL SHOW YOU MINE IF YOU SHOW ME YOURS!! I'll be at Stoneleigh on the Sunday and prepared to fit mine for your pleasure (only doing it once though cos I want to get around the show)

Cost/benefit analysis is subjective and a personal choice. I can honestly say for me that the benefit of being able to ask questions here has helped me solve things, or given me peace of mind that far outweighs a few quid spent. Cheers Ian