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The UK's leading tuning specialist for "A" series engines |
News Archive Page (10)
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Just a quick message to those of you attending the MiniWorld Action Day at Castle Combe on Saturday the 24th of September. This year Bill Richards Racing will not be able to attend this event due to racing commitments. The team have always enjoyed this event but this year it clashes with the next round of the B.A.R.C. Track and Race Championship on the Stowe circuit at Silverstone. If any of you are available to attend this round of this popular race series - try to get there !.....It's an ideal chance to see both Bill and Lee in action - highly recommended
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The Track & Race Cars
championship returned to its home circuit of Lydden Hill to take part in the
Lydden Festival Of Motorsport as part of a varied bill of racing during the day. The Mini headed into the day leading the championship overall by a
single point and a good days racing was anticipated with rolling starts to get
the races underway. Qualifying With the predicted rain absent
the Mini headed out into qualifying with some new tyres fitted and therefore
spent the early laps of the session scrubbing in the new rubber.
With the tyres bedded in the Mini picked up the pace and began to post
some quick lap times, a damp spot in the braking zone for the first corner posed
an added hazard but the Mini sailed through qualifying with no problems.
The times recorded during the session would see the Mini line up 2nd
overall for the race, a superb result given the size and quality of the field. Race 1
Race 2
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Qualifying
Throughout the session Geoff
lapped comfortably with the traffic following cars when possible to learn the
lines and also trying various braking points in an attempt to reduce the lap
times. After completing the full
qualifying session with no dramas Geoff returned to the paddock to check his
times. As expected the lap times were quicker than Geoff's previous
outing in the car, the greater circuit knowledge and the increased comfort
factor with the car combining to give the improvement. As the team prepared the car
for the race Geoff talked through the qualifying session with Bill and Ron
Watson to see if there were any areas that could be improved upon.
Ron's help here was to prove invaluable, watching from the sidelines Ron
was able to analyse Geoff's lines through the corners and his familiarity with
the Lydden Hill circuit enabled him to give Geoff some advice on how he could
further improve his lap times. The
two key areas noted were the entry into Paddock Hill bend and The Devils Elbow
– both of these corners are critical to lap times and Geoff felt sure there
was more time to come from these areas. Race
The restart saw Geoff launch
the car off the line and immediately gain a place as he passed the MG on the run
down to the first corner. The MG
fought back and Geoff was able to fend off the attacks over the opening laps of
the race. Eventually the MG found a
way past but was never able to relax as Geoff hung on to its tail and was always
lurking behind it as a threat. Geoff
took the chequered flag behind the MG and returned to the paddock with the hire
car intact and having performed faultlessly.
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The
Bill Richards Racing hire car was back in action again in the hands of Geoff
O’Nion who enjoyed his first outing in the car so much he came back for
another go!
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Saloons & Sports Cars
Championship Qualifying
Race A good start saw the Mini
immediately gain a place as it passed an ailing V8 Focus, the larger machine
falling away as the field passed by. However,
before the first lap was complete the red flags were out and the race was
stopped – a spinner and the stranded Focus saw an immediate halt brought to
the proceedings.
Although the Mini didn’t complete the race the team can be pleased with the cars performance up until the component failure, the Mini set the fastest lap in its class in both qualifying and the race and once again proved that it can duel successfully with bigger, more powerful machinery. The team will now prepare the car for the forthcoming BARC championship round next week!
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Qualifying After heading out onto the
circuit the Mini completed the obligatory slow laps to build up the temperatures
in the Avon tyres. Once up to speed
the Mini showed itself to be performing well in all areas, the grip provided by
the Avons was superb, the new KAD brakes were stopping the Mini well and the
engine was pulling well all around the circuit.
The times recorded saw the Mini in 8th place overall and 2nd
in class – a testimony to how well the Mini had performed against the field of
substantially more powerful cars. Race 1
Ra
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The
Track & Race Cars championship moved on to Snetterton for the latest rounds
and the Mini headed into the weekend leading the championship!
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Please note that due to problems with our main e-mail account we have reverted to an alternative address: bill.richardsracing@virgin.net You may wish to update your address book with the new details
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Many thanks to Bert Mk II for another great report but please check out the photos below - got to be one of the best photos of Bill in action: Many thanks from your Webmaster
Saloons & Sports Cars
Championship Qualifying
Race
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The BARC Track & Race Cars
Saloon Championship returned to home soil and Lydden Hill following the brief
French sojourn. The Mini was
running the new wheel and tyre combination after the successful introduction of
this upgrade at the previous SEMSEC meeting. Qualifying After heading out onto the
circuit the Mini spent the opening laps of the qualifying session generating
heat in the tyres and brakes rather than going for outright speed straight out
of the box. With the initial laps
out of the way the Mini upped the pace and set about posting some quick times.
After recording some good lap times the Mini returned to the paddock to
prepare for the first race. The
times recorded would see the Mini line up 4th on the grid and heading
its class. Race 1
Having escaped the mayhem with
only superficial damage the Mini was fighting fit for the restart.
As the race got underway again the Mini ran down to the first corner
again as part of a tightly packed group of cars, this time however there was no
contact and the race was truly on! The
Mini latched onto the tail of the Cosworth ahead of it whilst also fending off
the attentions of last seasons champion in a Fiesta. As the race developed the Mini and Cosworth pulled away from
the Fiesta and were soon duelling on their own.
The Mini was unable to find a way past the vastly more powerful machine
and had to settle for a 4th placed finish and a class win. Race 2
As the race progressed the Mini
continued to harass the Cosworth attacking from every angle and never giving the
Cosworth a moments respite. The
Mini was clearly being held up by the more powerful machine but couldn’t find
a way past the turbo charged leviathan. The
chequered flag fell with the Mini hard on the heels of the Cosworth to take a
fine 3rd place and another class win.
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Dave decided to enter the ACSMC
Guilford tyres sprint championship this season as most of the rounds are in the
south of England and he could then concentrate on dialling in and developing the
Mini rather than driving all over the country to race.
The third round was again to be
contested at Lydden Hill and this time there were only two drivers in Dave's
class. The car's rear tyre problem had been solved by the purchasing of a pair
of new un-cut wet compound Dunlop slicks to replace the Miglia compound that the
Mini had been wearing - these had proved proved to be slightly too hard. From
the first run Dave found that the Mini had been transformed with the new
tyres and soon found himself easily leading the class. As the day progressed the
lap-times improved and by the end of the day Dave had won his class and picked
up maximum points in the championship. The fourth round was to be held
yet again at Lydden and was on the 16th of July. For this round a healthy number
of competitors had entered the class and Dave was looking forward to seeing how
the Mini would perform with both the tyres and handling being spot on. After the
first timed run Dave found himself in third place - time for word with Lee about
sorting out those racing lines. During the second timed run Dave followed Lee's
advice and made a huge leap forward and found himself comfortably in second
place. On the third timed run Dave managed to post his quickest
time around Lydden but this was not quick enough to beat the very
experienced Paul Bernal-Ryan and his rapid Midget. Dave ended the day second in
the class collecting more points and being very happy with the improvement in
his lap times.
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The
first round of the championship took place at Lydden Hill on the 9th April.
Although his class had a large entry he decided not to concentrate on lap times
but just use this round as a test day. Dave's first run went well enough
and he was pleasantly surprised to record a competitive class time. Back in the
paddock he had a de-briefing with Lee and told him that the clutch did not feel
right and it was hampering smooth gear-changing. Lee decided to fit a new clutch
master and slave cylinder to eradicate these as being the fault. For the second
run, slight changes were made to the tyre pressures in an effort to get some
heat into the rear tyres. The Mini was starting to feel better but Dave was
still not happy with the gear-change. He persevered with the faulty gear-change
for the rest of the day as the problem seemed to be more complex than a
simple hydraulic fault. Dave finished his 3rd and 4th runs with no major
dramas other than a high speed spin at the fastest part of Chessons Drift. With
the final times and positions published at the end of the day Dave had managed
to pick up maximum points in the championship and finished fourth in his class. 
For
the second round of the championship Dave headed back to Lydden Hill on the 4th
of June. This event produced a class size smaller than the first round but
those entered were some of the fastest in the class. The gear change problems
were now fixed and had been found to be a culmination of both a faulty new
slave cylinder and and a worn gear linkage. With the gear change now
feeling better than it ever had done Dave spent the day learning the circuit and
making changes to the damper settings. Although he could not catch the quickest
guys in the class he improved his own times throughout the day and ended up
collecting some more valuable points for the championship. The only problem the
car still suffered from was the issue of not being able to get any real temperature
into the rear tyres.
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Going into qualifying Geoff
faced a daunting learning curve – an unfamiliar car, an unknown circuit and
the added problem of other cars in close proximity!
To ease the learning process Geoff followed Bill for the early laps of
qualifying to acquaint himself with the correct lines to use on the notoriously
technical Lydden Hill circuit.
Throughout the remainder of the
session Geoff continued to familiarise himself with the car and circuit, the lap
times starting to come down as the session progressed.
The session ended with Geoff having qualified 11th on the grid
and having set respectable lap times for a first attempt. Back in the paddock Geoff
talked through the session with Bill to discuss any problems encountered and
analyse where improvements could be made. Geoff
was his own harshest critic and had noted a number of areas he felt could be
improved – specifically he felt he was losing time in the braking zones and
was being over aggressive with the gear changes. Geoff headed into the race
determined to continue making progress in the car and improve on the areas he
felt were costing him time. A clean
start saw Geoff heading into the first corner hard on the heels of the MG ahead
of him and successfully avoiding any trouble on the first lap.
Geoff successfully brought the
car home for his first race finish, in 10th place overall - a great
effort. The improvement in Geoffs
confidence in the car and his circuit knowledge was evident even though the lap
times did not reflect this (moving aside for others cost crucial time).
Geoff can be rightly pleased with his efforts throughout the day and for
bringing the car home in one piece (with all its wheel arches Mr Wilks!). A post race debrief with Bill
showed that Geoff was far more comfortable with the cars handling than he had
been in qualifying, again Geoff was analysing his performance and highlighting
areas he felt he could improve on his next outing.  The
comparison between the driving styles needed for rallying and racing was
interesting to note with both Bill and Geoff declaring that the others
discipline was the more difficult! Geoff thoroughly enjoyed his experience at the wheel of the
Bill Richards Racing hire car and is planning another outing later in the season
– armed with the experience gained here it’s something to look forward
to….
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South East Sports &
Saloon Car Challenge
A good start in the race saw
the Metro heading into the first corner amongst the sports specials and holding
its starting position. Over the
following laps an intense battle developed between the Metro and one of the
Radicals, the Metro initially holding the advantage with the Radical trying
desperately to pass. Finally the
Radical found a way past the Metro only to be immediately re-passed as the Metro
was able to duck inside and get the power down earlier. It looked like the battle would
rage until the chequered flag fell but the thrilling spectacle was cut short
when the Metro suffered a ball joint failure on the run into the hairpin that
pitched the car off the track and into retirement.
Fortunately the Metro wasn’t too badly damaged in the impact with the tyre wall
and the driver was pronounced fit to continue with the afternoons racing. Saloon & Sports
Championship
With the tyres bedded in the
hire car was left to fend for itself as the Mini picked up the pace and began to
lower the lap times. As the session
progressed it became clear that the new Avon tyres were a step forward and the
Mini was responding well to them. The
proof of this was in the times – the Mini had qualified on pole! As the lights went out at the
start of the race the Mini was overhauled on the run to the first corner by an
Escort, as ever the Mini showed no signs of giving up without a fight and
immediately latched onto the bumper of the hard charging Escort.
Throughout the rest of the race the two cars were never more than a few
metres apart, the nimble Mini snapping away at the heels of the larger Escort
and attacking from all angles. Although
the Mini was able to get within sniffing distance of the Escort it was unable to
find a way past and the Escort hung on for the win with the Mini crossing the
line to take an impressive second overall and a class win. Despite the disappointment of
the Metros early exit the team can be well satisfied with their days work.
The Metro again showed that it has truly stunning performance and
incredible presence both on and off the circuit. New wheels and the switch to Avon tyres helped the Mini along
to another great result and the team is hoping for further improvements as the
car is adapted to take advantage of the increased grip available.
In addition to running the Mini and the Metro for the day the team also
ran the hire car for the day – a full complement of Bill Richards Racing cars
were nestled under the awning for the day.
P.S. A message from members of the BRR crew: "The team would like to thank everyone for their concern and offers of help - particularly Peter Wilks and 'The Sarah Munns Team'." |
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After giving the car a final
check over the Metro headed out onto the circuit for its qualifying session, the
early laps of the session being used as installation laps to ensure that the
various elements of the car were functioning correctly.
Satisfied that all was well the Metro began to pick up the pace and the
lap times began to fall. The car
performed faultlessly throughout the session – a fact that was reflected in
the timesheets as the Metro claimed a superb pole position for the first race!
The Metro began to hunt down
the leader lap by lap and was soon snapping at the heels of the space-framed
Mini. The two cars then began a thrilling battle with each playing
to their strengths, the Metro being the superior car under braking and through
corners with the Mini having better straight-line speed.
The battle raged for several laps with the Metro seeming to be in the
ascendancy and forcing the Mini to take defensive lines. The crowd were robbed a
thrilling climax to the race when the Metro fell away from the Mini and pulled
into the paddock. The Metro had got
into the slipstream of the Mini on the long straight and the radiator had been
starved of its flow of cold air, this factor combined with the high ambient
temperatures caused the engine temperatures to climb to unacceptable levels and
the Metro had no option but to pull back into the paddock.
The team asked the organisers
if the race Mini could be used in the second race as a substitute for the Metro
– a role it’s fulfilled with gusto both in the previous years Fastest Mini
Race and at SEMSEC meetings during the Metros absence.
Unfortunately the teams request was turned down on health and safety
grounds as it was deemed unsafe for a driver of Bills vast experience to start
amongst the slower cars at the back of the grid, the team had no option but to
withdraw from the second race. Despite recording a DNF the
Metro showed that it has the pace to compete with the best, not only did it
qualify on pole position but it also recorded the fastest lap of either of the
races. So whilst the Metro may not have claimed the Fastest Mini In
The World title it did prove itself to be the quickest car over a single lap –
a superb performance from the little 1280cc powered Metro against some
exceedingly powerful opposition.
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The
team headed to Brands Hatch for the 2005 Fastest Mini In The World race with all
three cars – the Metro would be racing whilst the two Minis would be on
display in the paddock.
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After arriving at the circuit the team set
up camp and walked the circuit to assess the condition of the circuit and to
determine the optimum line through the corners.
The general view was that the circuit would be challenging to drive but
would also be a great drivers circuit. Qualifying Overnight rain resulted in a wet track but
with the rain holding off there was a good chance a dry line would appear before
the Mini went out for qualifying. The
tyre choice was left as late as possible and sure enough a drying line appeared
on the circuit and the Mini was sent out on slicks for its qualifying session. The early laps of the session were used to
learn the circuit, this process was aided by following the lines used by cars
that had tested on the circuit the previous day.
The Minis pace increased throughout the session as it became more
familiar with the track layout. The qualifying session also included a brief
stop to assess the tyre wear rates as the track surface appeared to be very
abrasive when the team had walked the circuit.
Returning to the circuit the Mini put in some more quick laps before the
session ended. The Mini qualified 1st
in class amid a pack of more powerful cars – a great performance given the
limited track time available to learn the circuit. Race 1
A good start saw the Mini running side by
side with a Cosworth into the first corner, whilst the Mini initially held the
advantage the Cosworth had the inside line for the second corner and was able to
hold the Mini at bay. The Mini was
able to stay with the Cosworth through the tight infield section of the circuit
and was close enough coming out of the final hairpin to be able to get a tow
down the straight. It became clear that the Mini would need to
get past the Cosworth as soon as possible as other cars in the Minis class were
starting to close in on the battling pair.
The Mini attempted to take the inside line into a corner but made contact
with the heavyweight Cosworth and damaged its steering.
Subsequent laps saw the now ill handling Mini fighting to retain its
position in class although as the race progressed this became harder ad harder.
After holding off the attackers for several laps the Mini finally
succumbed as the flying Peugeot 205 got past, the Mini was subsequently passed
by another car in its class – a Bill Richards powered Mini! The Mini battled on gainfully to the end of
the race and took a hard earned 3rd in class, a great result given
the extent of the handling problems – the team had work to do before the
second race. Race 2
Another good start saw the Mini gain a place
going into the first corner and join battle with its regular sparring partner
– the Peugeot 205. Another superb
tussle ensued with the two cars trading places lap by lap, as the dog fight
progressed throughout the race other cars joined the fray but the chief
protagonists remained the Mini and the 205 and gradually the other challengers
fell away from the duelling pair. The outcome of the race was in doubt until
the very last lap when the 205 was able to edge away as the coil on the Mini
began to give trouble. On the
approach to the final corner the coil finally gave up the ghost and the Minis
engine cut out! It would have been
cruel if the Mini had been denied a finish by such a short distance, but with
the finish line in sight a solution was at hand.
With the engine now producing none of its usual 160+ horse power it had
to rely on 1 Bill power to get to the finish
- after pushing the car round the final corner and down the straight to
the line Bill was able to record another 3rd in class. Bills determination in getting the Mini
across the line showed his ‘never give in’ attitude shining through as well
as his determination to record a finish – something that the watching crowd
seemed to appreciate as Bill crossed the line to great cheers and applause. It was another action packed weekend and
anther good one for the team, the Mini performed well and again was involved in
the most intense on track action helping to provide a great spectacle for those
watching from the banking. The
combination of superb race action and determination in the face of adversity
also earned Bill the Driver of the race award for the second race of the day! Finally, the team would like to thank all those who made the weekend what it was, special thanks must go to the marshals for making the trip out to France and also to Richard Brent not only for the part he played in the on track action but also for helping recover the Mini to the paddock after the second race.
P.S. A message from members of the BRR crew: "The Bill Richards Racing Team would like to say hello, and thank you to all our friends that we spent a great weekend with! Thank you to 'Mr Peugeot 205' for running to our rescue, we really appreciated that. And a HUGE thank you to Team Wilks Racing (Pete, Jane, Brian and Maria) for: going to so much trouble to move their campers to make room for us in the paddock at Croix, for keeping us laughing the whole weekend, the ice creams and for pushing our car back for us." |
The
latest round of the Track & Race Cars championship saw the team heading to
foreign lands and the ‘Circuit de Croix en Ternois’ in France. 
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Copyright Bill Richards Racing 2000-2005. |
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