2-Litre Bangers Heat one for the Bangers saw 18 cars line up with only 8 managing to last the full distance as some heavy action took place most notably from 341 Andrew Jones who was in the thick of it, not least his blitzing of 474 Darren Polden in the west bend. 406 Chris Bridger led from early on but with half race distance covered and the track getting greasier with the rain, 190 Steve Bailey took the opportunity to dive down the inside and take the lead, which he duly held on to take the chequered flag. Heat two saw 23 cars take to the grid and again some firece action saw the field decimated before the race ended. 120 Shane Brown, making another of his rare Banger appearances was in no mood to take it easy as he buried 4 Tony Hulland in the pits bend, 372 Jay Matthews in the west bend, and then took 179 Stu Nightingale for a wild ride around the pit bend fence, before despatching Nightingale in the west bend which brought to an end both their chances of qualifying. 262 Buddy James led from start to finish and managed to avoid the action to take win, which was cut short with a few laps to go after 305 Mark Penfold briefly caught fire following another heavy fencing from 239 Steven Carter. Only 12 cars managed to make it out for the consolation and a mammoth pile-up ensued on the first lap as 341 Andrew Jones thundered 234 Paul Galliford into the pit bend fence. They were soon joined by 46 Cliff Friend and 266 Ian Meaker and then 120 Shane Brown blasted 222 Ricky Waters into the pile, before being hit himself by 158 Sean McCarthy. Unfortunately this meant that by half race distance only 4 cars were left running with 80 Matt Nutley taking up the lead from 66 Dave Spooner, 341 Andrew Jones and 96 Dave Tancock but with just three laps remaining Tancock's engine died and the three remaining cars completed the race with no more incident. The final started with 239 Steven Carter setting the early pace but when 191 Ashley Kemble clipped 262 Buddy James and ended up rolling onto his side the final was forced to be stopped and a complete re-grid called for. From the re-run, Carter again used his pole position to his advantage and put distance between himself and the following pack. 190 Steve Bailey took a heavy hit on the pit bend from 113 Aaron Brown, and after Bailey had rejoined the race he spun on the home straight his race was ended when James hit him head-on. Carter led all the way but was run close late on by Nutley and 702 James Dodge. However, Carter held on to take the 2-Litre Winter Open Championship for the first time in his career. Stock Rods The reverse grid formation for Stock Rods brought wins for 125 Mike Hibberd and 37 Barry Trickey, and they duly shared the front row for the final. Starting from pole position, Hibberd came under early pressure from Trickey, and especially from 78 Luke Gordon. However, Hibberd doggedly fought back, and with the chasing drivers all finding grip hard to come by on a very greasy track Hibberd led all the way to retain the Winter Supreme Championship he won in 2007. The wet conditions meant little action with not much chance of overtaking presenting itself although a great track debut from visting driver 78 Luke Gordon was the highlight as he came in second, with 500 Kim Carter diving down the inside of 37 Barry Trickey with only three laps remaining to finish third. Ministox A host of visiting drivers swelled the ranks of the Ministox, such that 20 drivers in total were to contest the day's trio of races. Heat wins were achieved by 164 Bradley Wainwright and 133 Robert Gamble, whilst 161 Billy Smith swept to victory in the final, ahead of 131 Timmy Barnes and 960 Dale Moon. Results - see also Bangers H1 190, 248, 406, 741, 191, 88, 714, 341 H2 262, 113, 908, 269, 249, 239, 55, 702 C 80, 66, 341, nof F 239, 80, 702, 406, 269, 113, 66, nof AC 741, 80, 406, 702, 341, 191, nof DD 741 Best Presented 66, 113, 266, 234 Oldest/Rarest 266, 4 Stock Rods H1 125, 221, 78, 181, 730, 37, 500, 565, 49, 69 H2 37, 565, 125, 550, 500, 78, 69, 221, 730, 193 F 125, 78, 500, 37, 565, 221, 181, 730, 550, 49 Ministox H1 164, 960, 161, 944, 133, 131, 170, 979, 971, 975 H2 133, 161, 991, 164, 971, 944, 131, 975, 170, 381 F 161, 131, 960, 991, 930, 923, 926, 979, 971, 381
Autospeed, PO Box 119, Truro, Cornwall TR1 1WT - Tel: 01872 271199 or 01934 631500 - Email: enquiries@autospeed.co.uk