14/15th August 2010 - RICHARD BURNS MEMORIAL RALLY

A puncture SS2 puts the presssure on!

• Organisers:  Kings Lynn Motor Club
• Venue: RAF Marham
• Competitors: 135
• Stages: 8  Stage Mileage: 105 
• Overall position: 14th

This two day event is a must for any rally fan whether competing, marshalling or spectating, there’s something for everyone.                                                 Apart from fantastic viewing areas for the spectators with live commentary there’s also fly by’s including an RAF Tornado which starts the rally on Saturday morning to the Lancaster which ends the event on Sunday afternoon. In amongst the service areas there are also static displays to amuse the young and old. A BBQ is laid on for Friday night’s scrutineering and a party on Saturday evening so the marshals and crews can chat about the heroics of the day over a drink and the hog roast and maybe spend some money in the auction for the Richard Burns Foundation.

With the flat lands of Norfolk being notorious for rain (with no warning) always makes tyre choice a nightmare. Into the first stage then with inters on seeded at 5, start the stage in 3^rd and finish the stage 1^st. This happened because cars 1 and 3 who started before us both punctured and had to stop and change due to the RAF not allowing you to run on a flat so not to damage the runways. Sixth fastest was a good start as we had not had a chance to resolve the flat-shift and water injection issues from the last event. However the car was not handling very well in the slower and tighter parts of the stage with the rear of the Corolla acting more like a gravel car, and the front under steering. In Service, we had time to bleed the brakes and clutch and make some small adjustments to the suspension but noticed the front right was a bit loose, possibly a bearing but we had no time to change so headed off to Stage 2. The front wheel held okay but our luck run out half way around the stage when we also punctured and had to stop and change the off side rear .............This was a new experience for Gary and I, it’s something neither of us has ever had to do before!  The wheel change itself went pretty well but we then lost another minute or so getting back in the car because you must be buckled back up before you set off again, (not easy when you’re exhausted). This was not helped when Gary couldn’t get his intercom re-connected and with still 7 miles to go we didn’t want to lean on the rear corner and chance another puncture. We lost around six minutes and ended the stage in 68^th overall.

With the front wheel bearing replaced in service we put in a good time for stage 3 with the under steer now cured, however the rear was still loose so some more tweaks were made for stage 4. This the last stage of day was good with the improvements we had done and even got away with another puncture when we hit a pot hole at speed which broke the wheel but thankfully the tyre stayed up.

With day two being reseeded we had clawed back 22 positions in two stages and were lying 46^th overnight, so day two was going to be interesting!! Sunday was dry so the plan was to press on and try and get the car handling properly. We had sorted out the high speed handling so needed to concentrate on the low speed. The two morning stages at 12 miles each we recorded 4^th and 3^rd fastest times, looks like our adjustments had worked, and not bad considering we overtake 11 cars to achieve this.  SS7 was not so good as the tyres were getting very worn and the brakes were suffering with the long stages. Our charge up the leader board was hampered then when this stage was abandoned due to an accident.

In service we went back to our previous settings to conserve the tyres and this seemed to work very well as we posted 2^nd fastest time on the final stage and ended the event in 14^th.                                                                               Although not the best result we left happy with the advances we have made and are looking forward to our next event over the Epynt ranges in a fortnights time, and hopefully we can resolve the other issues and have the car up to full power.

Paul Hollingham

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31st July 2010 - Fat Albert Stages

photo by EDP Photography  

• Organisers:  Tavern Motor Club
• Venue: Keevil
• Competitors: 90
• Stages: 10  Stage Mileage: 80 
• Overall position: Retired

COROLLA DEBUT 

The start of the week was spent with some final ‘Running in’ procedures but the car felt too hard for Gary’s liking so some softer springs were fitted. Then Wednesday having the car aligned and set up at Dave Appleby Engineering after which Gary felt  much happier with the way it felt.

Myself and Andrew arrived on Thursday to assist in final preparations for the weekend and my first chance to ride in the car. 

After spending the day calibrating the fuel levels with the trip, fitting the intercoms and adjusting belts amongst other jobs, we managed a few more road miles for Gary to try and get used to the sequential gear change and being left hand drive. This was more important as the flat shift was not working properly and we were awaiting a new gearbox control box which hopefully would arrive in the morning to allow us to refit and use on our test session booked for Friday afternoon at Llandow Circuit.

Friday morning was mainly spent packing the service van and sorting tyres, putting on decals and awaiting the new control box, but as this hadn’t arrived by 2pm we made the decision to cancel our trip to Llandow as logistically we couldn’t get from Somerset to Cardiff – test and then back over to Keevil all by 6.30pm! So an alternative location was found nearby at Westonzoyland and although it was only big enough to get up to 3^rd gear it was a great opportunity for Gary to try out starts and see how the car braked and turned. We set up a small loop of corners and a chicane using road cones and had a very successful hour spent seeing what the car would do.We then headed off to Keevil and as the car had not long been Log Booked we had no real dramas at scrutineering so headed back home ready for the car’s debut the following morning.

Over night rain had left the airfield damp in the morning and we probably could have used slicks for the first stages, but decided to be cautious with our first time out and use some very soft intermediates. Into the first stage then, off the line well, 200 to a square left onto a narrow lane, 40 ‘K’ right over a nasty bump, 100 down to a handbrake hairpin right through gates. Approaching nicely knocking down the gears into first, apply handbrake but not enough revs and the electronics cut the engine !! Hit the starter but she wouldn’t fire back up, struggled to select neutral and try again and finally after nearly 30 seconds it fired into life and off we went. Not the start we were hoping for! Another stall again later in stage which cost a few more seconds but at least the car restarted straight away this time.

Into service with relief that at least we had finished the first stage in one piece, we had thirty minutes to try and work out what was going on. We think the stall was due to the flat shift problem and Gary was going to have to learn to drive around the problem, be brave and give it more revs when hand braking. Other apparent problems were that the car was under steering badly, we think possibly down to the tyres, so we changed to medium compound slicks and reset the front roll bar to a harder setting.

Stage 2 was a repeat of the first 7 miler and we emerged smiling, the adjustments at service had really improved the handling and as the miles ticked away Gary was growing in confidence all the time. We were 55 seconds quicker !!!  We bled the brakes in service as we felt they were a bit soft and adjusted the bias slightly, and headed for stage 3. Not a bad time but the car was sliding around a bit so decided to change the front tyres for another pair of part worn Pirelli’s. Again this was a repeat stage, but Gary was now experimenting with pushing the car to see what it would do and after shall we say ‘a lively stage!’, we went 6 secondss quicker.

My job was also to monitor fuel consumption as well as watch water and oil temperatures, which went a bit higher for some unknown reason on that stage. I had also noticed that the water level was not dropping. We were concerned that the water injection or spray was not working, so a quick phone call to the people that know confirmed this was okay as we were not using the anti-lag system.

Gary now wanted to see what it was really like, so he decided it was time to bolt on some brand new BF Goodridge’s and push the brake balance further forward to see how far we could brake into corners and chicanes. We clocked a very good stage time of 8.46 for this 8 mile stage and emerged very happy with the progress we had made.

Two of our service crew had been monitoring the noise levels and reckoned we were one of the quieter cars, especially over the escorts and the three wrc Suburu’s that were popping and banging on gear changes. So for the next stage we decided to use phase 1 of the FAS unit. This allows the water injection to work and therefore gives more power but isn’t as aggressive or noisy as phase 2 or 3 which we certainly couldn’t use at Keevil with the noise limits. We really enjoyed this stage, probably our best so far; it transformed the car as it wasn’t now being ‘held back’ and the Corolla was happier being driven this way. We went 16 seconds faster on this repeat stage!

Unfortunately on the stop line with the clutch fully down the car was creeping forward, and I had to jump out at the passage control so Gary didn’t need to stop. He went straight into service and luckily we had 45 minutes to try and rectify the problem. We could only make adjustments to the clutch and after attempting SS7 it was apparent we were not going to go any further, so decided to retire rather than risk any more damage.

After our bad start that left us in 24^th position we had steadily improved and were currently lying in 6^th when we pulled out. 

Overall we had a mixed day and were expecting teething problems, but left happy in the knowledge of doing 50 stage miles and had learnt an awful lot about the car and the whole Team is excited about the next event Richard Burns Memorial Rally in two weeks time. 

Paul Hollingham

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29th May 2010 - Co-OrdSport Stages

                                    

• Organisers:  Enthusiasts Motor Club of Stonehouse (Emcos)  
• Venue: Down Ampney, Gloucestershire
• Competitors: 65
• Stages: 10 Stage

The team was hoping to use this event as a shake down for their new Corolla, but sadly news filtered through from Holland that the car was not going to be ready in time.

Rather than pull the entry it was decided to dust off the Celica and use it once again. This decision was made to get back out rallying again after a six month break, especially after having just received exciting news that the team had been invited once again to compete in this years Festival of Speed at Goodwood.  

Whilst preparing the Celica for the rally it was found to have some play in the rear wheel bearings, so some last minute preparation was needed including the fitting of a new clutch just to be cautious. The car was given a good road test on the eve of the event and this put paid to any worries and the car felt good. 

Saturday morning started early, leaving the hotel at 6am we headed straight to scrutineering which was completed with no problems. We then set up our service area and awaited the 8:50am start with only our tyre choice to be made.

Light rain had been falling and although the conditions were wet it wasn’t that heavy. I suggested to Gary that we went on inters, but that was quickly over ruled as he wanted to take the safe option of going out on full wets!

Into the first stage and with the venue being mainly concrete and extremely slippery, it was soon realised that Gary’s choice was spot on as we emerged seven seconds clear of the field.

SS2 was even wetter as the rain fell harder, but with the knowledge gained earlier  our time was 12 seconds quicker than our first run, again setting fastest time by four seconds over our nearest rival Matthew Green in his Subaru Impreza. Third place was last year’s runner up Ben and Alice Williams in their Mitsubishi another 27 seconds behind.

Off the line on stage 3 the Celica developed a loud knocking noise, a driveshaft, or diff maybe ? We weren’t sure so took the first part of the stage quite cautiously and to our surprise we were still quickest by 11 seconds doubling our advantage in one stage.

But our dreams of a 4^th straight victory were soon dashed as the service crew diagnosed the problem to be the gearbox. ( drop gear missing a tooth ) , so the decision was made to retire rather than risk doing further damage.

Congratulations to Matthew and Louise who continued were we left of to take a well deserved victory by 40 seconds over Eric Weaver’s Darrian.

We shall have to return next year and try to regain our crown !      

Report by co-driver Paul Hollingham

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 22nd November - Carfax Stage Rally

• Organisers:  Oxford Motor Club
• Venue: Longcross Vehicle Test Track, Surrey
• Competitors: 70
• Stages: 10 Stage Mileage: 55 
• Overall position: 4th

CARFAX CHAOS

When the Finals arrived we were shocked to see that we were heading the field at Number 1!

This rally is always very demanding and challenging in the wintry conditions and with the last two stages run in darkness, this year was to be no exception!

The organisers had decided not to honour last years winner with the top spot, so Richard Edwards was seeded at 3, with Simon Gudgeons 6R4 between us. Mark Ellis’s (Subaru) at 4, Rob Dennis (Escort) at 5, and then Guy Wigley back in his old 306 Maxi. A late entry by Tim Wilson in a brand new Escort left us one short in the Service Crew as Andrew was called up for navigational duties.

With us running first car on the road it meant a cautious start tip toeing through the leaves on the infamous snake section and although the outside perimeter roads were damp, the infield area was extremely wet with lots of standing water.

Tyre choice would then be critical and would play a major factor in the result of this event, so we opted for a soft compound with cuts, whilst others chose inters or full wets.  To be honest, I don’t think there was a correct choice!!

Perhaps they should have put Edwards at one because he and Ellis set equal fastest time on SS1. Gudgeon, Wigley and Wilson all 5 seconds behind with us another second slower in 6^th.

A dry line now on SS2 saw Edwards again quicker, but Tim Wilson got over excited bouncing his new toy over one of the bus stop chicanes, getting a tank slapper and then hitting a kerb breaking the front left strut and steering so they limped out of stage taking a maximum.

Service was hectic for the Escort crew but they managed to straighten the components and sent Tim and Andrew back on their way.

Although just starting to spit with rain we stayed on the same rubber, however once we’d booked into the arrival control for SS3 a 20 minute delay saw the venue being hit by a mini typhoon. The deluge would be our downfall, clearly on the wrong tyres we lost 18 seconds. Edwards once again took a big advantage being 10 quicker than everyone else.  

We didn’t hesitate to bolt on the ‘wets’ for SS4 and we went 27 seconds quicker as a result !  Gudgeon was quickest this time, taking 6 back from Edwards.

Wilson completed the stage but decided the earlier damage too dangerous to continue and retired. This meant Andrew could now revert back to servicing the Toyota.

The organisers were having troubles with their timing equipment on SS2 and SS3 in the atrocious weather conditions and as a result co-drivers were busy trying to sort out who was where on the leader board.

The weather would once again play another big role in this event, it was still raining when we left the Service area, staying on wets we headed for SS5 only to find history repeating itself. Another delay this time longer saw the sun break out and the wind blowing the stage dry, more time lost. This stage saw Ellis quickest 10 faster then Edwards and Gudgeon, with us 9 Behind. At only the half way point we were realistically too far behind the leaders who were now only 14 seconds apart. Our only hope would be they would hit trouble.

SS6 and now on the correct rubber we set a competitive time, Gudgeon now quickest in the dryer conditions, as Edwards had indeed hit trouble with a bent strut, although this didn’t seem to slow him much.

SS7 also saw us happy to be on the pace and Gudgeon once again being fastest saw the Metro man take a slender 1 second lead

Because of the lost time earlier, the organisers took the decision to cancel Stage 8 and set up for the two finals stages, a pair of 3.5 milers set to be run in darkness. With the light-pod on the Celica for SS9 we set 3^rd fastest time of 2.43 minutes, however this rally would throw up another twist!! The bogey time was set at 2.48 so we, along with the top 2 all beating the bogey time Gudgeon retained his 1 second lead. Unfortunately this spoilt the fight a little, as long as the bogey was beaten again, Edwards nursing his suspension had no chance of taking the win.

We actually set fastest time on the final stage but this was a just a small conciliation prize for a hard day’s rallying although 4^th overall and second in class is still a great result. 

Well done to Simon Gudgeon and Ashley Trimble for taking the win and commiserations to Richard Edwards.

Thanks again to all who helped on the day, especially Rob and Bill having to service in such terrible conditions.

Report by co-driver Paul Hollingham

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25th October - UTS Cheviot Rally 2009

photo by CMWI Photography  

• Joint Organisers:  Whickham & District M C and Hadrian Motor Club
• Venue: Otterburn Milatary Ranges
• Competitors: 81
• Stages: 12  Stage Mileage: 102  Road Mileage: 90 
• Overall position: 14th

With no chance of winning the BTRDA championship and only an outside chance of finishing on the podium, we went to Otterburn to gain more experience of the ranges in readiness for next season.

Saturday morning was spent doing some last minute changes to the Toyota, then onto the recce. The weather had closed in overnight which made it very difficult to check the notes in fog making it almost impossible to see any distance. Fortunately it was only on the high hill tops that it was causing a problem and for the most visibility was okay. We finished the recce feeling confident with our notes and were looking forward to the following day’s event although a little apprehensive as Gary had started to go down with a bad flu type virus.

On the morning of the event he was feeling less than fine and with the weather only slightly better than the previous day, we set off to do our first loop of stages a little under 18 miles. In damp conditions a good tyre choice was made and we were making good progress until the heat from inside the car along with the heater to demist the windscreen made Gary feel very unwell.

By the end of the first loop it was uncertain whether we would actually carry on but after an emergency dash from the service crew to locate some cough mixture we soldiered on. With a driver coughing his way round every bend and co-driver repeating every command, surprisingly we were actually making good, safe progress.

The afternoon loops were very long and demanding, each containing 4 stages totalling 30 miles, with similar road mileage it was tough on even the fittest crews.

We did make the finish at 14^th overall, and had succeeded in our task of gaining more knowledge, but felt a top ten would have been possible.

Paul Hollingham   

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29th September 2009 - Patriot Stages Rally

• Organisers:  Forresters Car Club
• Venue: Caerwent
• Competitors: 100
• Stages: 7 Stage Mileage: 70 
• Overall position: Retired

   TO FINISH FIRST, FIRST YOU HAVE TO FINISH 

How true that statement is.

After our win last weekend the whole team was excited about the penultimate round of the BTRDA championship, the Patriot Stages held at Caerwent.

Extremely demanding venue, with seven 10 mile stages held entirely around the military base. Lots of kerbs to catch out the unwary and an awful lot of junctions joined by short straights means it’s very tough on car and crew. 

Stage 1 started badly, we arrived at the first junction just 150m from the start, popped the Celica into 1^st and bang, there’s goes the drive shaft (or so we thought).

The Toyota was making horrible noises but didn’t seem to slow our progress.

Then on only the 5^th corner we arrived at a square left that tightened up a bit and maybe still on cold tyres the back slid wide and we clobbered the rear off side wheel very hard into a kerb, the tyre thankfully stayed up but unbeknown to us had badly buckled the wheel but again didn’t affect our pace. 

Now this is where I would normally get out my co drivers book of 101 excuses and blame the driver, but have to say that I over cautioned a square right into immediate junction right. Gary followed my exact instructions but turned too early into an entrance way that wasn’t shown on the map. (Apparently we weren’t the only ones to do this). We struggled to find reversed so instead drove forward into the yard, spun it round and out we came losing around 20 seconds.  

This wasn’t the start we had planned on, but to our surprise we had set 6^th fastest time, equalling championship rivals Adrian Spencer and only losing 15 to Mark Welch, both of which we needed to be ahead to keep our championship alive. 

Into service and some head scratching to find out what was making the noise, it was soon apparent that it wasn’t the drive shaft but probably knocked a tooth off first gear.

We changed the drive shaft as precaution anyway and headed of to stage 2 with a plan of not using first gear, but truthfully expected not to make it through the next 10 mile stage, and all those junctions in 2^nd! 

We did make it through that stage and in a good time as well, moving up to 5^th overall beating Spencer by 13 seconds, but lost another 4 to Welch. However we were now confident that the gearbox would last and we could push a bit in the next stage and keep the pressure on Mark. 

Stage three was going really well, Gary was learning to adapt his driving style to get the most out of the Toyota without using 1st gear, but after about 8 miles on a square right junction I watched our front left wheel disappear across a field and into the undergrowth, the Celica came to an ungraceful stop with the front side of the car now dragging on the ground. 

A failed front hub was the cause, and a very disappointed end to our rally and championship. 

Paul Hollingham 

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