Tag: VW Buggy

Northern Trial

Simon Woodall won the Northern Trial by one mark

Simon Woodall won Fellsides Northern Trial by the slimmest of margins, dropping a solitary mark to finish one point ahead of Dean Partington in his DP Wasp, Tris White, driving his Troll and Dudley Sterry in his familiar MG J2.

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The start was at The Stocksman, Wigton, the site of a market with plenty of room for parking and no problems to accommodate trailers and tow vehicles. Plenty of food was available and there was a nice place to sit down. John Blakeley was at scruitineering, as a competitor as Chris Veevers had kindly made his Beetle available for John to drive. 

There was a long run of 30 miles to the first section, down the A591 on the east side of Bassenthwaite Lake to the outskirts of Keswick and back up the other side of the lake on the A66. The Liege’s were delayed when Kevin Barnes had his alternator fail but was able to continue with some help from his team mates. 

Section 1 – Black Hole (Restart for 7 and 8) – Like all but the last hill this section is in forestry. As with a lot of the hills clears had to reverse back down as there was no exit track, and it wasn’t possible to turn at the top. There was plenty of grip though, and most competitors got to the top or very close to it, apart from the three Marlins, all of who failed at the eight, just after their restart. 

Setmurthy Special Test – Pat and Jonathan Toulmin were in charge of this nice simple affair on a smooth forest track. It was to be a deciding factor in class seven though as Julian Lack picked up a fail in his Leige and to make it a double went on to fail the second special test as well later in the trial. twelve points lost on the Special tests! 

Out of the forest it was back on the A66 for a few miles to the Wythop Plantation Forest Complex where there were four sections. 

Section 2 – Routen Romp (Restart for 7 and 8) – A nice smooth forest track which didn’t present any problems for the triallers who didn’t have to restart. The restart wasn’t class seven friendly though and Julian Lack was the only contender to get away. 

Section 3 – Big Cockup – It was a good few miles on smooth forest roads to the next three sections which were all situated together. Big Cockup really should have been called Quagmire, such was the mud at the bottom. There was some confusion here. The start line marshall was allowing some competitors to start some way back from the line. Then they moved the start line back. It seems that when Clerk of the Course Dave Miller came along he cancelled the section but not before Dean Partington went airborne and scored an 11!

Section 4 – Little Cockup – Not so much mud here. Dave Cook was taking pictures and there was an exit track at the top. Most of the experienced triallers got to use this but there were exceptions, including the low slung Midgets of Colin Biles and Steve Kingstone who bottomed out, Steve right up at the one marker. Nicholas Cross had been put in this class in his big engined Beetle and with more ground clearance was able to get to the top. In Class Three Kelly Thomas (Escort) was the only driver not to clean the section, which would be significant later! 

Section 5 – Lothwaite Side (Restart for 7 and 8) – The last section in this complex is a glorious long stony track, passing some fascinating rock formations before emerging through a gate onto a moorland full of grazing sheep. Julian Lack maintained his form and was the only re-starter in Class 7 to get away. The class eights faired better, but Alistair McVittie lost his clean sheet in his interesting Suzuki bike engined, ex Dean Partington, Cannon. 

Section 6 – Lowry’s (Restart for everyone) – After a nine mile road run it was back into the forest at the Hobcarton Complex. Everyone had to restart and this was to really shake up Class 1. First Dave Haizelden didn’t get away and picked up a 6. Then James Shallcross went straight through without stopping, scoring 6 as well. This put Charles Knifton ahead of both in his Peugeot, a lead he held to the end of the trial, the first defeat for the mighty Dave for a fair while! 

Section 7 – Long Crag – A stony track with plenty of grip, hence tyre pressure limits for all. It was another of those sections where cleans had to reverse back down and there was an unfortunate tree to catch the unwary if they came out of the ruts. There were a few failures here and Nigel Jones lost his clean sheet after fixing a water leak before Big Cockup. 

Section 8 – The Grotto – A very muddy, rutted track with no restarts. It needed the tyre pressures pretty low to find the grip and this caught out a few people including Nigel Jones, Colin Biles and Nicholas Cross. 

Section 9 – Ladyside – A grassy track that became very rutted on the upper reaches. It was possible to drive out the top, but all but a few of the Class 8 supermen got stuck at the two facing a tricky reverse under the supervision of a marshalling Thomas Aldrian. 

It was back onto the road again, but for less than a mile before turning into The Whinlatter Visitor Centre. The sections in this complex were high above the lakes and the views of Lake Bassentwaite were truly magnificent. 

Section 10 – Lords Seat (Restart for 7 and 8) – Mark Simpson was in charge here. There was a restart for 7 and 8 but lesser mortals could blast straight through and most managed this successfully. In class seven Steve Kenny picked up a six while the other Lieges went clean. 

Section 11 – Ullister Hill – You have to back down if you fail this rough track which gets very rutty at the top. Phillip Middleton (Marlin) and Simon Woodall (VW Buggy) got to the one but most failed at the two or three. Dean partington (DP Wasp), Tris White (Troll)and Dudley Sterry (MG J2) all dropped two. For Simon, Dean, Tris and Dudley these were the only marks they were to drop all day and this is how they finished in the overall standings after Special Test times were taken into account. 

In class four Nicola Butcher got her revamped Beetle to the two, one further than Michael Leete’s VW, securing her the class win. In class Seven Steve Kenny had the top front A arm bolts snap on his Liege. He was able to continue with the front wheel flopping about a bit and won the class. 

Section 12 – ’24’ – This section wasn’t to bad once you got round the 90 right over a steep muddy bank at the bottom. This wasn’t friendly to low slung cars and Colin Biles and Steve Kingstone both grounded their Midgets under the watchful eye of Fellside’s Myke Pocock. Myke was probably glad he wasn’t driving his Skoda when he saw Nigel Jones do the same thing. 

Section 13 – Sheepfold – Rough and rutted, there was plenty of grip but an awful lot of tree roots. Kevin Barnes saw the possibility of a class win slip away when he couldn’t get going and scored 12. Julian Lack did exactly the same thing, putting Steve Kenny into a class seven lead, despite failing Lords Seat. 

Section 14 – Sandale (Restart 7 and 8) – It was a long road run of 20 miles to Sandale, a section with a very different character to all the others. A track through farmland it relies on ruts and mud rather than gradient to be competitive, but competitors really enjoy the challenge, or should I say the blast. John Blakeley certainly did, going clean in Chris Veevers Beetle to the delight of June and Alex. The family really enjoyed their trial and it was super to see them taking part. The low slung cars had problems on this one, as did some of the 7’s and 8’s who had to restart just where things got really sticky. Steve Kenny dropped three, but still went on to win class seven despite Kevin and Jules going clean. In class eight only Boyd Webster picked up points and it was a 12 for him.

Greenrigg Special Test – This was a nice blast across a muddy field. Kelly Thomas (Escort) and Colin Perryman (BMW) were equal on the hills at this stage. However, Kelly had a howler of a special test so it was Colin that took the spoils. 

With no results on the day, and a long way to travel home, many competitors skipped the excellent meal available back at The Stocksman. However, consensus was that this was an excellent trial, spoilt a little by the number of hills with no exit track at the top. This meant a lot of time wasted in some long reverses so competitors were rather spread out at the end. Fred Mills took time to talk to as many competitors as possible as they went round, explaining that Fellside had lost quite a few sections due to logging and the weather had prevented them doing as much work as they would like prior to the trial. But all in all a good event in a very nice part of the country.

Best OverallSimon Woodall (VW Buggy)1
Class Winners
1Charles Knifton (Peugeot 205)6
2Bill Bennett (MG J2)4
3Colin Perryman (BMW 2002)5
4Nicola Butcher (VW Beetle)6
5Nicolas Cross (VW Beetle)15
7Steve Kenny (Liege)26
8Dean Partington (DP Wasp)2
0AAlan Smith (Marlin)13
0CJohn Kenny (Beta ALP)3

We have been publishing stuff about Classic Trials on the Web since 1995 and always appreciate feedback. Comments, Corrections, Criticism & Concerns are all welcome. You can leave a comment to have your say here on this web site or our Social Media

Simons Clee

Simon Woodall wins Clee Hills Trial after Dean Partington fails Longville Special Test

Simon had a narrow victory. After dropping five in Meadowly Wood Simon slipped behind Dean Partington on the observed sections. However, Dean lost three marks when he failed the excellent, but infamous, Longville Special Test, giving Simon the overall win by one mark.

Long time Clee Hills Trial Organiser Simon Woodall storming Flounders Folly on his way to an Overall Win (Picture by Dave Cook)
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There was a new Clerk of the Course this year, Simon Woodall and Jonathan Toulmin handing over the reigns to Adrian Tucker-Peake who had Graham Austin to assist him. There were some changes to the route. No Alez Oop, as agreement couldn’t be reached with the landowner. This meant taking the long way round to the Priors Holt sections but this was more than compensated for by the lower classes having Castle Hill introduced for the first time.

Adrian kept the double loop system, where the route is two circles, forming a figure of eight with the start in the centre. The entry is split according to class. So 7 and 8 do one loop first while the other classes do the other. It’s a bit more complicated as class 0 have some unique sections and omit some used by 1 to 6, while 7 and 8 also have some unique sections. Why am I telling you this? So you understand that as a competitor in class 4 I didn’t see all the sections and this report starts at section 10!

There was no Penhale’s Puzzler Special Test this year so Classes 0 to 6 started proceedings at Section 10 – Flounders Folly, while 7 & 8 went over The Long Mynd via Castle Hill to Rattlinghope, although they bypassed the new section itself. Flounders Folly is a slippery affair though the trees with a more difficult route for the higher classes which stopped all of them. There were a few cleans for the lesser mortals, including the amazing David Haizelden in his Class 1 Golf.

Section 11 – Harton Wood – John Sergeant was in charge here, for this track through the woods, which was Class 0 only this year, although John was able to give a wave to the other competitors as they drove by the foot of the section. Richard Andrews and Nick Woolett both went clear in their Dellows and it was shame that Nick had failed in the gate area at Flounders Folly as they were to be very close for the rest of the day.

Longville Special Test – Adrian Tucker-Peake reintroduced this old favourite, which was to decide the winner of this years trial. This section is as much a restart as a special test. After going all four wheels over line B you have to reverse all four wheels back before going forward again. The problem is this is on a slippery slope and its very difficult to get going forwards again. Drivers have to decide how far to back down past the line. Go a long way back and it takes time but you get to clear the section. Back up just a bit and you will get a good time, if you get away. If you don’t you get a 3 mark penalty. This is exactly what happened to Dean Partington and it cost him the trial.

James Shallcross was another one of many to fall foul here as well. That was a shame as he was running David Haizelden very close on the other sections. Its only a matter of time before James triumphs over the all conquering Dave.

Section 12 – Easthope 1 –  This is in the same complex as Ippikins Rock and Majors Leap.  It’s a muddy track with some pretty deep ruts, despite some work by the club during the winter. There were only four clears, all in class eight, Simon Woodall and Andy Curtis in their VW Buggies, Dudley Sterry in his venerable MG J2 and Dean Partington in his self constructed Special. Outside of class eight most people came to a stop when they ran out of ground clearance, somewhere between the seven and nine.

Section 13 – Ippikins Rock – Only the lower classes tackled this nice little section which is all about a very tight hairpin right. There is usually a restart here, but Adrian T-P had dropped it this time. That made a difference as only a couple of cars in Class 0 dropped any marks here.

Section 14 – Majors Leap – Only attempted by the reds and yellows this defeated all of the Class Sevens and many of the class eights as well. Four of the top five in class eight went clear, Dean Partington being the only exception in his DP Wasp.

Section 15 – The Jenny Wind – A well known section which has been used on The Clee for many years and was trialled before the war. After the sharp right hander its straight up if you can. For most it was a reverse back down but both Pete Hart (Marlin) and Tris White (Hillman Imp) had the ultimate experience of seeing the exit track at the top. Dean was the only one of the top class eights to fail. He stopped at the two and well done to Giles Greenslade in Class 4 to better this with a one. We expect you to come out of the top next year Giles!!

Section 16 – Harley Bank – This used to be a wonderful long track but the old route has become too easy after council re-surfacing. There are now three different sections. The Class 0’s get to run straight through the old section which they all cleared. 1 to 6 used the same track but had a horrible left had hairpin in sticky clay and nobody got around.

Classes 7 and 8 had a different route. The eights also had a nasty hairpin on their route and all failed. The Sevens had things a little easier and Mal Allen (Marlin) and Steve Kenny (Liege) joined Pete and Tris in going clear.

Section 16 – Meadowley Wood – Only the hard men were are allowed top tackle this, their last section of the trial. If you like mud, tree roots and deep ruts this is your hill. Class eight had to have a minimum of 15 psi. This handicapped them and only Dean and Paul Bartleman (Troll) came out of the top.

The 2nd loop, for the lower classes, the one that 7 & 8 started with, had a very different character. Much more picturesque, more rocks and less mud. It started with a wonderful new section called Castle Hill before climbing The Long Mynd. Unfortunately only the lower classes were allowed a go. There was only one failure but no matter, this was a really, really enjoyable section, very reminiscent of Axe on The Cotswold Clouds.

Rattlinghope Special Test – Adrian T-P and Grahan Austin had tried to spice up his delightful section by making it a regularity test. The Route Card told you it was 1/8 mile long, but you were only given the target speed of 7.5 mph , on the start line. Sitting here its easy to work out that the target time was exactly a minute. Around half the entry got it right and there were only two fails for an incomplete test, including none other than Dudley Sterry. Fortunately the six marks he lost didn’t cost him the trial win but if he had cleaned Meadowley it would have done!

Section 2 – Gatten’s Gamble – Starting in farmer Phil Harding’s yard the big disappointment was that the tank wasn’t there this year! This is another wonderful, long, up and over, Clee section with fantastic views crossing the summit. There was a restart near the top this year which claimed a few scalps before the muddy descent to the road.

Section 3 – Handless – Attempted only by Class 8 this was a new hill. It had a very greasy hairpin right followed by some good grip and a hairpin left. Dave Foreshew was in charge here, to see the three leading cars go clear with the others failing on one of the hairpins.

With Alez Oop off the agenda this year cars had to take the long way round to the Priors Holt Complex.

Section 4 – Priors Holt 1 – This is a steep, rocky climb that gets progressively steeper with tyre pressure limits for the higher classes. The leading class 7 & 8 competitors went clear but the lower classes found life much more difficult. In Class three the powerful Escorts of Dick Bolt and Andrew Martin went clear as did Terry Ball in his Beetle in Class 4. For the others it was a long and difficult reverse.

Section 5 – Priors Holt 2 – Deemed too easy for class eight the remainder of the entry enjoyed this long climb, very similar in character to priors Holt 1, but a little easier, hence a restart for some. This caught out a few experienced competitors. In Class three Andrew Martin dropped 8, denying him the opportunity to challenge Dick Bolt in his Duratec engined machine. Giles Greenslade bellied out here and with the points he lost on Priors Holt 1 had to settle for second in class to Terry Ball. At least Giles didn’t have to contend with the mud and ruts at the summit!

Section 6 – Priors Holt 3 – A steep climb with loose rock, demanding close attention to tyre pressures and throttle control. Thankfully there were no restarts this year and pretty much everyone got a clean to enjoy the trip through the forest at the summit.

Long Mynd Special Test – Nice timed rocky climb with a nifty descent where it was all too possible to overshoot the finish line. 

Section 8 – Strefford Wood 2 – No this isn’t out of order! This was the entrance track for the Class 1 to 6’s attack on the main Strefford Wood section. It turned out to be a great challenge. Slippery clay and as it said in the route instructions “flat tyres and flat out”. There was a friendly Land Rover to tow you up to the main section if you failed, all in all a great replacement for the much missed Round Oak.

Section 7 – Strefford Wood – The team had drained the “Gunge Pit” this year but it was still a challenge. Classes 7&8 approached via the Gunge Pit. This wasn’t very Dellow friendly and Peter Mountain and David Bache both stopped here in their Mk1’s, as did David Jackson in his Fiat engined FPS. Once through the Gunge Pit the other Class Eights all went clean.

Class 7 found it a bit more difficult, but it was Marlin friendly, with Pete Hart, John Ludford and Mal Alen all getting to the summit, as did Andrew Rippon his Baja before he retired after Flounders Folly.

None of the lower classes got to the summit. Missing out the Gunge Pit most were defeated by the ruts at the bottom, caused by 7 & 8’s earlier attempts. This was no place to be without good ground clearance and none of the class threes did better than a 10. The FWD contingent did better, perhaps they were able to pick a better line? They all got to at least to the eight and James Shallcross had another good drive to better Dave Haizelden to just behind him in class one.

In summary another excellent Clee. Adrian Tucker-Peake and Graham Austin living up to the challenge of following Simon and Jonathan. The new sections went down well and they had addressed the criticisms of last years trial.

We have been publishing stuff about Classic Trials on the Web since 1995 and always appreciate feedback. Comments, Corrections, Criticism & Concerns are all welcome. You can leave a comment to have your say here on this web site or our Social Media

Andy Curtis Wins Murrays March Hare

It was another Super March Hare. Conditions were good and the sections were mostly well thought out, giving a challenge to the more experienced but allowing novice cars and drivers to have a good day. There were five clean sheets; overall victory going to Andy Curtis in his Buggy on special test times.

March Hare winner Andy Curtis in his VW Buggy

The Start

Fred Gregory and Pete Stafford eye up the Robson Liege
Jason Crowleys immaculate Fugitive

38 crews gathered at The Watling Street Café, just of Junction nine of the M1, on 9th March to do battle with Falcon’s March Hare Classic Trial. Organisers John Parsons, Mike Pearson, David Sheffield and Arnold Lane had attracted a nice mix of experienced competitors, newcomers and some cars that aren’t usually seen on the usual Classic events. The event had taken another major step forward, dropping some of the sections on private land and adding another four byway sections.

Half Moon Lane

Byway – Starts with deep, muddy water which gets carried up the hill where there was a slippery re-start for 7 & 8. The section was run the other way round this year

Richard Tompkins struggled with his Fuel Pump before the off
Ed Nikel about to blast his way through the water

Competitors hardly had the chance to get their engines warm before arriving at the start of the first section, marshalled by the Herts VW Club.

The water caught out quite a few competitors who didn’t give it enough respect. John Rowland and Peter Manning coughed to a stop in Citroen and Midget respectively. Richard Tompkins was running the 1040 lump in his Imp but was in trouble even before the start of this first section. The car had been running fine on the road but as soon as it ventured onto the entrance track it popped and banged to a stop. Richard got the motor fired up and set of through the water but fuel starvation soon set in and the crew were stuck with a stationary Imp in the middle of the water and needed a tractor tow to get out! Fred Gregory was another to stop right in the middle of the water and needed the assistance of the tractor.

As cars went through the section they drew water up the hill, making the re-start area slipperier for the higher numbers and catching out quite a few of the restarting classes seven and eight’s, including Matt Robson who rolled back before re-starting. Geoff Hodge didn’t get away cleanly either; Geoff was having his first run in the ex-Reg Taylor RDT Special. The hill wasn’t very friendly to Reg as Clive Booth also failed in the Reg Taylor/Geoff Jackson built Dellow Replica.

Half Moon Lane saw the first retirement of the day when Dennis Beale heard all sorts of terrible noises from his transmission. Closer investigation revealed a split gaiter, letting all the mud and water in, and the crew wisely retired rather than risk further damage.

Nortonstreet Lane

Byway, long straight climb on loose stones with the left hand rut getting deeper towards the summit, Classes 1&2 have a straight run through, 3 to 8 had two re-starts, the second where the ruts were at the deepest

Keith Pettit took a high line on the re-start
Only to slip sideways into the bushes!

The section wasn’t too difficult this year as it is well drained and was bone dry. The second restart had plenty of grip but was tricky if you didn’t have the car positioned correctly. It was possible to straddle the line without the wheels in the ruts. However, you soon slid back into them, as Keith Pettit found out when the rear wheels of his Frogeye Sprite went sideways into the ruts while the front wheels stayed out. Keith needed all his skill on the throttle to get his crabbing car past the section end boards but he just made it.

The Owen’s weren’t so lucky. Owen Turner failing in his K series engined Imp and so did Owen Briggs in the VR6 engined Whinney special, which was giving some electrical trouble, a bit of a disaster with electronic fuel injection!

Whitehall Lane

Byway – Tree Lined Lane with a very good surface now the council have resurfaced it and removed the fallen trees

Alun Lewis on the special test (picture by Mike Hayward)
Jason Crowley’s Fugitive was a little muddy by now! (picture by Mike Hayward)

It was out with the foot-pumps here as there was a 20-psi minimum pressure to mitigate against the councils new surface, which is now rather better than the neighbouring M1! Mike Hayward was running a simple downhill special test before a nice gentle observed section. Andy Curtis really flew through the special test, breaking the 10-second barrier and setting a time more than two seconds faster than Owen Turner in his Rally prepared Imp.

Duncan Weaver and Paul Meyting were in a bit of trouble with their Morris Minor at the end of the section but managed to get going again although they were destined not to finish.

Cress Bed Lane

Byway – A straight, stony, tree lined gully with a re-start for classes 3 to 8

James Bounden sees the light at the end of the Cress Beds tunnel
Andy Curtis showing a clean pair of heels to the opposition.

There were no problems on Andy Clarke’s re-start on this nice little section, which has been the opener on the last two March Hares.

Richard Tompkins was back in the fray after his problems at Half Moon Lane. The recovery tractor had towed the Imp out of the section but Richard soon stuttered to a stop again on the exit track. Michael Leete towed them out to the tarmac road where Richard found the problem. His new electronic fuel pump had very flexible rubber mountings. This caused the pump to move about on the rough stuff whereby it stopped working. Richard fixed the pump solidly to the bulkhead and all was well for the remainder of the trial!

Water Tower Lane

Byway, just across the road from Cress Beds. Starts with a very Muddy, rutted, waterlogged track, leading onto a gradient through a tree lined gully with a re-start for classes 3 to 8

Dave Nash and Alistair Bray
John Looker and Keith Vipond

It was a good job there had been a bit of a delay at Half Moon Lane as Chief Official Arnold Lane had found the exit blocked by a load of Mountain Bikers parked cars which needed bouncing out of the way before proceedings could start. Once things got going start-line marshal Stuart Cairney watched with amusement as competitors tried to get into the correct rut ready for their assault on the waterlogged first part of the section. This caught out quite a few competitors, including Keith Pettit who needed the help of the recovery vehicle.

The mud and the re-start weren’t very Imp friendly and Richard Tompkins, Ed Nikel and Owen turner all suffered on the mud and the re-start. Jason Crowley was another one to struggle, his Fugitive being more at home off-road racing where it is allowed rather larger wheels and tyres! Jason was one of the many competitors attracted to the March Hare by the extensive Internet publicity.

Offley Rise

Byway, track along a field edge, with a very muddy exit road alongside a farm

Patrick Osbourne and family
Colin Perryman discussing Skodas

This was the first time this section had been used and the organisers had the start half way up the hill after the tricky bumps just as the track leaves the road. Reg Taylor was in charge to see both his creations, driven by Geoff Hodge and Clive Booth, make a clear run, as did the rest of the entry. There were problems though as John Rowland got his clean at the expense of a puncture and needed help form his fellow competitors to lift the car out of the ruts to change the wheel.

Brickhill

Two sections on Private Land. The first was a trip through the trees followed by a steep climb just after a corner on deep sand with a re-start for 7 & 8. The second section went up the sandy gully where the ruts were quite deep, followed by a steep gradient with a re-start for 7 & 8

Herts VW Club marshalled Half Moon Lane and Brickhill
Class 3 winner John Bell emerging from the trees on Brickhill 1
Colin Biles fighting his way through the sand on Brickhill 2
John Looker and Keith Vipond needed a push start after lunch

The two Brickhill sections caused problems for quite a few competitors in the lower classes. Quite a few didn’t survive the run through the trees where Jason Crowley had problems in getting his long wheelbase Fugitive around some of the corners. Ted Holloway struggled in his Sierra as well, first straddling a fallen tree then falling foul of the deep sand. This was also the downfall of Patrick Osbourne who lost his clean sheet in his smart green Skoda.

JP and the Herts VW Club, who had dashed across from their early morning stint at Half Moon Lane, marshalled Brickhill. John had spent hours laying out the sections on the Saturday, only to find all his work destroyed by some bikers by the time he arrived on the Sunday. Fortunately, Brickhill was the designated lunch-halt so competitors enjoyed the fare from Tom Goggins chuck wagon while JP hurriedly re-marked the sections.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t time to do justice to marking the second section, causing one or two drivers to be confused with the route. There were problems for a few lower down though as the sandy gully did require a full blooded assault and some of the less experienced drivers couldn’t get through. Colin Sumner did well to get the low-slung Morgan through the ruts only to drop a one right at the end to loose his clean sheet. Ed Nikel also failed at the one marker and sadly, this was the end of his trial, as he had to retire with a badly slipping clutch.

Ivinghoe

Special Test and Section on Private Land. The section was all about a tricky restart on a grassy bank.

John Rowland drove one of the two Citroen 2CV’s on the event.
Simon Groves was another to struggle with Petrol Pump problems

Andy Curtis flew through the special test again but was just piped on time by Jason Crowley and Owen Briggs who set the fastest time.

On the observed section, the re-start was cunningly placed and it was necessary to get the positioning absolutely correct. Most of the competitors that went deep got away cleanly but those that stopped early struggled.

Edlesborough Hill

Two sections on Private Land – The first started in the field, going through the gate and through the trees before diverting into the bomb hole with a re-start for 7 and 8. The second section was all about a tight right hander on a steeply rinsing gradient, again with a re-start for 7 & 8

John Looker and Keith Vipond enjoying open air motoring!
Fred Gregory and Pete Stafford went better on dry land!

There was plenty of grip on the notorious Edlesborough surface as the wind had dried out any surface moisture. It wasn’t possible to see much from the start so Falcon regulars were at an advantage in knowing what was round the first corner! A few of the lower classes were caught out by the surface on the lower reaches and failed the first section.

Reg Taylor was in charge of the second section and saw Geoff Hodge fail to get away from the re-start in his old RDT Special, as did last years winner Ross Nuten in his Dellow who lost his clean sheet.

John Barber 1 & 2

Two sections marked out on private land at Kensworth under the control of Robin Howard. The second went up the gravel track before diverting through the muddy patch over by the fence

Katy Tucker-Peake on her way to a class win
Duncan Weaver battled with overheating all day and had to retire after Kensworth.

The first section was all on grass. Although it looked straightforward, there was a sharp left hander under some trees whose shade retained the surface moisture. This defeated all the FWD cars apart from Andrew Burt and a few in the other classes as well.

From the start, competitors couldn’t see how slippery the upper reaches of the second section were. Many soon found out and spun to a stop, including Katy Tucker-Peake who had gone very well during the morning but hit problems with grass surface at Ivinghoe and Kensworth. John Looker was to drop his only marks of the day here. John and Keith Vipond had been going well up to now, enjoying their day despite loosing their windscreen when a stone came up from a passing car and having to keep the engine running as the dynamo was charging the battery properly because of regulator problems.

Hawridge Lane

County Road – Downhill entrance road, the section started just before a mud hole, followed by a rising gradient through a tree lined gully with a restart for classes 3 to 8

Colin Sumner on his way to winning Class 5 in his Morgan (picture by Andrea Lane/Murray MacDonald)

This was another section that became more and more slippery as the day went on, as successive cars drew water up the hill. Andy Clarke’s re-start was sited just where the track formed a vee. Again, strategy was everything. Competitors who straddled the vee with the car level fared best, those who went either one side or the other hit trouble and the restart caught out a number of distinguished drivers, including Fred Gregory, Matt Robson, Peter Morley, Ross Nuten and Owen Briggs.

Simon Groves had to retire here with terminal fuel problems, as although the car would run when level, the petrol pump wouldn’t supply the carburettor on any sort of slope. The trial had also lost Duncan Weaver by now as he had given up the battle with his over-heating Morris Minor and gone straight to the finish after Kensworth.

Hill Farm

County Road – Tree Lined Track that had been used on the March Hare back in the 50’s

The sponsor checking the route is clear for the next car!
Normally we picture Neil Bray under a Skoda, this time it’s Neil and Alistair Bray watching Dave Nash under a Skoda!

With no restart and an easy start line, Hill Farm was a nice gentle end to proceedings that was cleaned by all the survivors. The run in to the finish was not without drama for Gary Booth whose Buckler cried enough at the days exertions and spluttered to a halt in Berkhamstead and was towed to the finish by Michael Leete with the help of other competitors.

The Finish

The field were a bit spread out at the end but quite few crews stayed on to sample the transport café fare at the finish where the quantity and price of the food certainly put the local Little Chef to shame.

Andy Curtis was the well-deserved winner on special test times from the five clean sheets. Andy was the only clean run in class eight and had some really fast special test times. Katy T-P won class one, representing the third generation of the famous trials family, which have done so much for Falcon, MCC and the ACTC for many more years than most of us can remember.

John Bell won class three with a clean sheet which was really nice as John has supported the March Hare ever since it returned to a road trial. Peter Thompson was second, only dropping 11 in a good run. Colin Perryman had to retire last year but made up for it this time with a clean sheet in class four. Michael Leete was second in class after another clean run but was slower on the timed sections.

Colin Sumner only lost 5 marks in class five to run out the winner in his low slung Morgan, ahead of the three Spridgets. John Looker was the only car in class 6, just missing a clean sheet when he came to a halt on the second Kensworth.

James Bouden had the only clean run in his Marlin to win Class 7 after John Ludford had problems on the second Brickhill. A special mention here for Pete Crawford who was third in class seven and best Falcon in his early Triumph engined Marlin. With Andy Curtis winning overall Ross Nuten took the class eight victory, dropping 12 marks, the same as Clive Booth, Ross taking the class based on the special tests.

Looking Back

What a wonderful trial. Of course, the sections can’t be compared to events in other parts of the country, there aren’t enough suitable hills for that. But John Parsons and Mike Pearson are establishing The March Hare as an event with its own style in its own right. An enjoyable event that is suitable for novice drivers or novice cars run in a friendly and relaxed way with enough bite to challenge everyone’s skill.

Overall WinnerAndy Curtis (VW Buggy)0
Best FalconPete Crawford (Marlin)8
Class 1Katy Tucker-Peake (Peugeot)17
Class 3John Bell (Escort)0
2nd in Class 3Peter Thompson (Opel)11
Class 4Colin Perryman (Skoda)0
2nd in Class 4Michael Leete (VW 1302s)0
Class 5Colin Sumner (Morgan)5
Class 6John Looker (VW)4
Class 7 James Bounden (Marlin)0
2nd in Class 7John Ludford (Marlin)4
Class 8Ross Nuten (Dellow)12
2nd in Class 8Clive Booth (Dellow rep)12
2003_march_hare_resultsDownload

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