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Post by moke on Dec 2, 2007 17:28:49 GMT
So how did it go Speedsport? Did you manage to uphold the honor of LMC again with an award? Was it to be 1st in class or maybe even FTD or did the wind and rain play a part in it?  Sorry I couldn't make it.  Spent a miserable day driving the paint roller round the bedroom as well as a quick trip to Ikea.  |
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Post by vanny on Dec 2, 2007 18:26:17 GMT
Hello all, I've spent today competing in my first ever Club Autosolo with Accrington Motor Sport Club, and wasn't it good! For those that don't know, Autosolo is a little bit like slalom, but for cars, you compete typically on a flat car park (this one was on two car parks at different heights with a link road!) and race against the clock around a course marked out by cones, simple really! Well the weather wasn't the greatest for my first ever attempt, it chucked it down all day, however it typically pounded down when i was marshaling and eased off when i was competing! There where twenty cars in all and i had been invited/dragged by a friend from Liverpool Motor Club. First run was very very timid, i mostly didn't want to hit the cones or the kerb or get the course wrong! And i didn't do any of them, and came in with i think the slowest time in Club solo, but when i am the ONLY novice in our category, and most have been doing it for years, i felt very pleased with myself! Second run, and while i'm on the start it was kindly demonstrate to me why i shouldn't hit the kerb, thanks John, so i didn't hit the second lap too hard either, but after that the second FLEW off! In my class i was was unfortunately pitched against a 3litre Golf VR6, you'd have thought i didn't stand a chance, but by the 6th attempt i was considerably faster! Couldn't catch up the 20second lead he gained from my first slow laps, but bugger me did i drop my times, lost 12 second between 1st and 6th run! How much to i rock! After lunch the course was slightly shortened (and hence the much faster times), my last attempt did not go well, i'd been playing with he suspension setting while waiting in the que and it had stayed very low, and as i took off it went the rest of the way to the floor! It was so bouncy and uncontrollable by the time i got to the first big U-turn i failed miserably and near smacked a cone, reversed back and still got it on the second attempt no real damage done, but i might get a plastic bumper if i'm gonna do it again So i came 2nd overall in class (well there was only me and the Golf) but good god how much better could i have done! Oh, i forgot to mention, the Golf was on LPG!!! surely not allowed  overall results;  Nice even if i do say so myself. One one seemed to be taking pictures, but if i find some i'll let you know! Oh, i can also reassure you that if you take a corner with enough determination the BX will deffinately thingy a leg! John wrote off an alloy, but did get first in class, even with an oval for a rim |
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Post by speedsport on Dec 6, 2007 23:49:00 GMT
Phew! That one was hard work. Finally broken my run of 2nd in class & got my first 1st. Yippee! ;D Broke a wheel in the process though, on an invisible kerb that jumped out at me.  I think the road must have shrunk in all that rain... I'm sure it was wider last time... or was I just going quicker?  What a horrible day. Can't remember such a combination of wind & rain and, just as Vanny says, it only seemed to rain really hard when it was our turn to marshal.  It was much more slippery this time too. I think the MacDonalds trucks that use 'our' roadways to gain access to the loading area at the rear of the services are dropping diesel which is soaking into the surface of the concrete. Not an ideal combination for motorsport. Still, it was great fun (despite the unintentional meeting with the scenery), just a pity that we didn't get a better turnout from LMC. If you have access to a small hatchback (Micra, Clio, Fiesta Mini etc size) you really should have a go. It is non-damaging if you are sensible - which clearly I'm not- and lends itself to husband & wife, or parent & teenager joining in as a team. Once again, we had a couple of youngsters taking part who have little or no motorsport experience. Indeed, one of them hadn't yet passed his test but was able to compete with father in the passenger seat. What great experience. Wish I'd had that chance when I was that age! Well, that's 1st in class in the bag, what about FTD? To be honest, I dont stand a chance when up against the lightweight Micra rallycars (of which there were several this time), but I'm quite happy now to chug along knowing that there's still some life in the old dog! (Me that is, not the car!). I think I'd better revert to smooth & tidy next time and forget the heroics. It's nearly as quick & far less costly!  Thanks for the entertainment Vanny, you sure can throw that BX about! As for future events, here's the dates for Accrington Motor Sport Club's 2008 events:- · 16 March AutoSolo & PCA - Blackburn Services · 18 May Autotest & PCA - Bolton West · 29 June AutoSolo & PCA - Blackburn · 31 August Autotest & PCA - Bolton West · 30 November AutoSolo & PCA - Blackburn |
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Post by speedsport on Dec 7, 2007 21:14:17 GMT
Now here's a first for our Forum. Listen to 2 radio interviews recorded at last Sunday's AutoSOLO at Blackburn/Darwen Services:- Click the link:- www.bbc.co.uk/lancashire/local_radio/weekend_presenters/ then select Listen again (On RH Side of page) Then select Phil Trow and Sally Bankes (2 hr 30 min) (On left) Make sure you are on Radio Lancashire Sun 02 Dec - 10:00 Click play, then FFwd 15 mins, then immediately FFwd another 5 mins & it should start at just about the right place. Then FFwd another 5 mins or so to 35 mins and you have another 5 minutes slot (till 10:40) with a live run at the test. Sorry about the quality of the interviews, but you try doing this live in the middle of a service area in the wind & rain! Tune in & chuckle! ;D |
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Post by speedsport on Mar 4, 2008 21:44:08 GMT
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Post by vanny on Mar 4, 2008 22:29:20 GMT
Working in a field in Shotton Saturday and Sunday that weekend building a horse shelter. I'm noticing though that working in fields and at farms is becomming more and more frequent!
Will be up for another soon though, and the other half is still keen to come with which is always good!
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Post by speedsport on Mar 25, 2008 23:52:36 GMT
Great event, excellent turnout too. As this was the first Accrington MSC event open to Nat B licence holders, there was a healthy contingent there who are contesting the ANWCC AutoSolo Championship.
Once again it was flippin' cold & windy at Blackburn services, but at least it didn't rain, well not enough to wet the ground anyway.
Competition was good throughout the day with no clear indication of a clear winner until all the times were in.
It was great to see LMC member Ian Mather competing for the first time in his MGZR. After a rightly cautious start, he quickly got the hang of things and his times gradually and consistantly improved during the day - ending up 4th in the Clubsport Class. Well done Ian, now how about posting your thoughts on how the day went for you?
Yours truely found this one tough going. I must be getting old! Either that or trolling around Race Retro at Stoneleigh the previous day had tired me out.
Though a very similar layout to previous tests at the venue, it was certainly tighter this time as the organiser had attempted to improve safety by slowing the cars down on this rather compact site. I'd stuck a couple of spare wheels/tyres from my RS2000 on the front of my Fiesta and found the handling rather strage at first. The wider wheels also had a wider offset, so the steering wouldn't try to self centre when on full lock & I had to consiously turn the wheel back each time. Not a significant problem once I got used to it, just different!
Well, I managed to finish the day wthout any close encounters with kerbs this time, thank goodness. I felt that I lost some time at one point on the course as I could /should have gone quicker through one particular chicaine, but having written off an alloy at that point last time out I guess I was extra cautious. The possibility of inflicting damage to the car that you need for work the next day certainly concentrates the mind!
And the result? Well, I won the Clubsport up to 1400cc class by over 21 secs, and in fact none of the over 1400cc Clubsport competitors were anywhere near the unders. I actually ended up 4th overall on the day, which for a absolutely standard 1250cc Fiesta I think was pretty good, especially in view of the number of proper stripped out competition cars taking part.
So, if you thing that AutoSolos may be for you, give it a go. Precision and smoothness are the way to success, not raw power in this branch of motorsport. And it's a great atmosphere too - eh Ian?
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Post by vanny on Mar 26, 2008 10:43:15 GMT
gear changes that change and suspension that doesn't take over and do what it wants helps as well Can't wait to finish in May and then actually enjoy the car! |
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Post by moke on Jun 30, 2008 23:02:37 GMT
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Post by vanny on Jul 1, 2008 9:58:38 GMT
and a full list of things that 'jumped out infront of your car'
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Post by speedsport on Jul 10, 2008 22:09:29 GMT
Ok, Ok! Here we go As dawn broke in foothills of the Pennines, and the tumbleweed rolled across the wild open plain......... oops, sorry, wrong story! Try again... Sunday morning 30th June & Blackburn with Darwen services maintained its record of wild weather. The overnight rain had cleared, leaving a dry course that looked suspiciously identical to that used in March. Good job really, because yours truly was (to put it politely) somewhat tired after running the Aintree Sprint the previous day. Not recommended! I didn't even look at the list of competitors to find out who I was up against, doh! It turned out that there was an excellent entry for the various classes in the Nat B AutoSolo, backed up by just enough in the Clubsport classes & the Production Car Autotest to make life interesting. Knowing that the rules state that if there is a tie at the end of the day, the winner will be the person setting the fastest time on the first test, I normally try to get a really good time on the first run. And so I went for it..... what a rubbish run! Ok, I didn't collect any cones (or scenery) or wrong slot anywhere, but I was far from satisfied with my time, I was exhausted after just one run and my shoulder wasn't half giving me some jip.  Reckon I must have strained it somehow whilst clearing up at Aintree the previous day. Fortunately everyone else seemed to struggle too, so maybe I wasn't doing so badly after all. Bit by bit, over the next 4 runs, my times got better but by now I was struggling to get the wheel round quickly from lock to lock, so I hoped that standing with the sun on my back for an hour whilst marshalling would ease things a bit. My theory worked and my shoulder pain eased a bit. Then the rain came! Intermittent showers were the order of the rest of the day, mostly when I was out in the open, marshalling! Though still struggling with my reluctant shoulder, I found that my attempts at the test were getting quicker as the day wore on, strangely my best times were in the wet. The two chicanes on the link road between top & bottom tests seemed to be much tighter this time (Steve Johnson said he was determined to get speeds down, & it seemed to work) and most competitors found difficulty getting through without touching one or more cones. Touching cones = penalty points of course, 5 secs per cone. Trouble is that father & son team, David & John Robinson (who had been sprinting the black BMW M3 the previous day at Aintree) were out in a classic mini, and were as near as d**n it stright lining the chicaines - very quickly! Superb car control from both of them, though toward the end of the day were slowed (but only slightly!) by the absence of a working clutch. As these events are becoming more popular and are attracting ANWCC championship contenders, far more specifically prepared competition cars are appearing, rather than family hatchbacks. However, until drivers learn that accuracy & not all out speed is the winning formula, the standard car drivers with a neat approach still have the upper hand. Just look at David Dunlop's times in the results on the ANWCC website. Like me, he's competing in a standard Fiesta, & proving that by not touching cones & being consistant, you can take a comfortable win. So folks, Ex LMC member David Dunlop won his class in the Nat B competition, & I won the Clubsport part of the event (& nothing jumped out on me this time!) The next event should be a fantastic day out. It's 31st August at Lymm Truck Stop (Lymm Services) adjacent to Jct 20 of the M6. If you've ever even slightly considered having a go, this will be the time to give it a try. There will be simultaneous AutoSolo and AutoTests at this smoothly surfaced venue, and not a kerb in sight! More details in separate posting below. Now, all I have to do is get my shoulder to work properly again! |
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Post by speedsport on Jul 10, 2008 22:16:45 GMT
AutoSOLO, 31st August, Lymm M6/M56 jct
Dear all,
Just to let you all know about the next event, which I am Clerking, run by the well proven CSMA/AMSC team.
This is a new venue, at Lymm Truck Services (Poplar 2000) just off M6 J20/ M56 J9 so it's obviously easy to access.There are acres of space on a good concrete surface with not a kerb or lamp-post in sight! Services on site include McDonald's, large cafe, WH Smith, CB shack and even a hairdressers but I'll need to check its opening hours!
The CSMA Autotest (Nat B & Clubsport) originally scheduled to be run at Blackburn on 31st August has been transferred to this new venue, and is now a round of ANWCC, ANWCC All-rounders, WAMC and ANCC Championships. Dave Thomas has assured me the Championship calendar will soon be amended to the new venue.
We have added a Clubsport PCA (Accrington MSC) and a Clubsport / Nat B AutoSOLO (CSMA/ASMC) to be run in parallel. The Nat B event is being included in the ANWCC Championship although Dave Thomas has still to amend the Championship calendar.
We intend to promote the event to as many newcomers as we can as Clubsport entry is available by taking up membership of Accrington MSC for just £7 till December 2009!! Why not bring your brother, sister, neighbour, wife, neighbours wife(!), colleagues ??
The organising team are looking forward to a successful event at this exciting new venue and we hope to see a good turn-out, with both old and new faces or is that old & young faces?
Regs are available on ANWCC website and as usual we are offering a £5 discount on entries received more than a week ahead. I can't see any calendar clashes so why not come down and join in the fun?
As an interesting side-show why not do the Autotest and put the tow-car in the AutoSOLO?? There's a challenge!!
Please pass the info on to anyone you think might be interested and feel free to ring me on 01606-782317 if you want any more info.
Regards
Graham Maxwell, CSMA/AMSC
ps
Please invite anyone why would like to marshal too.
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Post by vanny on Jul 20, 2008 9:44:37 GMT
ooooh now that sounds like a bit of a laugh, me thinks perhaps i'll borrow the Corsa as the BX is eating fuel as though it was an american car |
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Post by speedsport on Aug 5, 2008 20:39:19 GMT
Regs now available for Lymm Truck Stop AutoSolo: www.anwcc.org/regs-080831as.pdf and regs for the Autotest, same place, same day : www.anwcc.org/regs-080831at.pdfIt's going to be a great day out, and not too far away. A brilliant, low pressure way of enjoying a day's non-damaging, low cost motorsport. ;D What are you waiting for? I've just sent in my entry - have you? |
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Post by speedsport on Aug 30, 2008 21:58:52 GMT
As at 28th August,
20 entries for Autosolo
8 entries for Autotest
2 entries for Production car autotest
Looks like it's going to be a good day!
If you are going along to this event at Lymm Truckstop, as a marshal, spectator or competitor, make sure that you get your car reg number recorded at Signing on, to qualify for free parking and avoid being sent a bill for staying over 2 hours!
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Spent a miserable day driving the paint roller round the bedroom as well as a quick trip to Ikea. 
Reckon I must have strained it somehow whilst clearing up at Aintree the previous day. Fortunately everyone else seemed to struggle too, so maybe I wasn't doing so badly after all.