Round One of the 2015 HSCC/FJHRA Championship, the first FJHRA race supported by very welcome new sponsor “Silverline”.

Well, any UK race in early April is likely to have 'interesting' weather conditions and the active airfield of Thruxton this year gave us a day of cold biting breeze whipping along under full overcast clouds.
Some dampness had made this very fast track slimy for Friday testing and also found out a few early season gremlins. Anthony Binnington brought his ex Peter Revson Cooper T67 with freshly self-rebuilt 6 speed Jack Knight Citroen gearbox with high hopes because this car has high speed in its genes, holding in perpetuity the fasted ever recorded lap speed for any Formula Junior in period ~~ 130 mph lap speed at Enna-Pergusa, Sicily, in 1963. But sadly a broken selector fork, with hardly a lap under his belt, meant that he wisely packed up for home before a buzzed engine added to his troubles.
After a dose of the seasonal flu, Westie Mitchell had run out of time with the De Tomaso rebuild, but he was at least able to race his FF Merlyn in the CRC race during the weekend.
However no such luck for Cooper stalwart Crispian Besley who had earlier withdrawn his T56 entry, the legacy of many ongoing unresolved overheating issues finally culminated in an identifiable cracked block at Goodwood two weekends previously, and the Elva 100 could not be readied in time.

So it was then that twenty three of FJHRAs finest, representing a dozen different marques, rolled out for Qualifying at 9.25 on Saturday onto a cold but dry track. Unfortunately the gremlins were not quite sated and they vented their spleen on Taff Smith's Lola Mk2 by causing detonation & resultant piston damage and thus he too pulled up after struggling on the opening lap, although the car had run faultlessly on Friday. Sam Smeeth placed his Uncle Paul's Lotus 22 on Pole position with a time of 1;27.984 which was 0.729 ahead of Andrew Hibberd's similar model with the second row filled by Steve Jones flying his Cooper T67 and Pete Morton's Lightning Envoyette. Chris Drake's ex Bernie Ecclestone Elva 300 was next up, heading Class D2 with 1;30.877 and Robert Barrie's Class C2 Lotus 18 time of 1;35.329 put him 9th on the grid two places ahead of Mike Walker's leading Class B2 Bond time 1;35.770.

The intervening hours were spent by most sheltering in motor homes etc but those with work to do included Lance Whitehead who had run his Lotus 20 for only 4 laps of Qualifying and Simon Durling, making his UK debut in FJ (he raced at Portimao last year), who was chasing an intermittent ignition issue with his Lotus18.
Bill Grimshaw's van provided a haven for Mike Hedger and for Martin & Jill Carter, Martin basking in the reflected glory of having previously owned the Lynx T3 which propelled Andrew Wilkinson to his splendid victory in the recent Goodwood Members meeting.
Just adjacent was Anthony Goddard's Cooper T56 newly fitted with 1500cc Alfa Romeo engine replacing the Ford T-C in deference to the HGPCA and he was doing a shake down in the CRC race. Originally an MRP FJ car it was taken to South Africa by Trevor Blokdyk and fitted firstly with Alfa Romeo and finally with Ford T-C engine for GP races. A sister MRP T56 was raced in RSA by Blokdyk's friend Ray Cresp also with Alfa Romeo engine but this car has been restored to original FJ spec in USA, where Formula Junior races are at last now going from strength to strength throughout the country.

With Taff Smith's Lola Mk2 declared hors de combat, twenty two FJs assembled for the Race start just before 2pm and what a start it was.
Smeeth shot away leading toward the complex with P.Morton, A.Hibberd and the rest all in hot pursuit, only to fumble a gear change and instantly spin at Campbell. Mercifully with phenomenal avoidances everyone missed him and it was wily old campaigner Michael Hibberd in his fabulous ex works Lotus 27 who emerged from the melee wriggling through from 6th on the grid and now well in the lead. Whilst Smeeth recovered himself from dead last a small group of fast cars sorted themselves out and at the end of the opening lap the order was M.Hibberd, A.Hibberd, Drake, P.Morton, Jones and then Wilkinson, who had quickly disposed of James Hicks' Caravelle MkIII.
The ever smiling Alex Morton moved his Ausper T3 up past M.Walker and Andrew Taylor's Cooper T56 to lie 9th behind Barrie, whilst Gill Duffy brought his Kieft up several places at the expense of Lance Whitehead's Lotus 20, Justin Fleming's Lola Mk2 & Andrew Tart's Bond only to then have failing oil pressure wreck his chances and he quickly pulled off at the Chicane with only 2 laps completed ~~ what a shame.
Chris Wilks initially made upward progress in the Deep Sanderson and it is good to see this distinctive car handling so much better nowadays after being properly sorted out by Stuart Roach a couple of years ago.
Meanwhile the lead had changed, the Hibberds had swapped places and then on lap 3 Drake dropped behind both P.Morton and Jones and a lap later he was also passed by Wilkinson, whilst P.Morton overtook M.Hibberd to lie 2nd.
By the end of lap 4 the pecking order at the front stabilised as A.Hibberd, P.Morton, M.Hibberd, Jones, Wilkinson and Drake, but all eyes were on Smeeth who was on a mission sweeping through the Chicane as if for him it wasn't really there, although observing the correct track limits. He gained places by the handful and by half distance, lap 7, had caught Drake and traded honours for fastest lap on the way with both P.Morton and A.Hibberd ~~ but that was it, his protesting tyres and engine denied him further gain and he finished a very creditable 6th . Well done Sam.
Sadly and almost unnoticed in all the excitement first Durling stopped his misfiring Lotus 18 way out in the countryside on his second lap, John Hutchison's Lotus 18 expired after just 4 laps, Walker's Bond followed suit one lap later with ignition malfunction and then finally M.Hibberd rolled his Lotus 27 into the pits to retire on lap 11.
Meanwhile, Chris Merrick was thoroughly enjoying his Cooper T59, his ERSA gbx playing faultlessly, Tart had Class B in hand keeping well ahead of Fleming and Bill Grimshaw's Moorland, which is the prototype Gemini Mk2, and finally Iain Rowley both giving Duncan Rabagliati's Alexis HF1 a test run, but also celebrating exactly 30 years since he first drove a FJ, then Alan Baillie’s Lola Mk 5, and at Thruxton, in 1985
So by three quarters distance with A.Hibberd commanding the lead, Class D finally secured by Wilkinson from the ever determined Drake and Barrie's firm grip of Class C2, it looked to be all over bar the shouting.
But there was shouting ~~ on the last lap and almost within sight of the chequered flag suddenly A.Hibberd was seen to slow at Church and P.Morton didn't hesitate to pounce but poor Andrew was done for, his spluttering Lotus 22 only just scraping over the line for 2nd place although actually still about 6 seconds ahead of 3rd man Jones.
The Thruxton Gremlins certainly had a good day but then so did FJHRA with another terrific display of uninterrupted fast but fair close racing from every competitor, which was very much appreciated by the spectators and also by the organisers HSCC who run our domestic Championship so well.

DCPR presented some rather elegant trophies, assisted by our new Sponsors “Silverline” represented by Kirsty and Matt who provided goody bags for the winners.
Given the somewhat chilly temperature the supply of beer was not threatened with immediate extinction and in fairly quick order we all dispersed to warm up.

Peter Jackson. 10th April 2015.