IOWCC racer Steve Wells recently completed the 6 hours of Birkett endurance race and all details of the day can be found here

Congratulations to Steve and his team for the completion of the event and good luck for the 2012 season with the new race car.

Sunday 30^th October saw the final unsealed surface event of the season, with Daniel Morgan, of Island PC Services, and Neil Glasbey neck and neck for the title the challenge was on. The complete opposite of the event 2 weeks prior at the very same venue as the rain God had given us wet weather for the last fortnight. Very slippery under foot and with a forecast of rain further into the day the dust of the last event was long forgotten.

Andy Williams started the proceedings, getting grip on the slurry was going to be the key to a good time.  With a time of 1:14.89 you could tell Andy had the bit between his teeth. 

The only two to get anywhere near Andy were Martyn Cutler with a 1:16.48 and Neil Glasbey with 1:16.93. Dan Morgan was feeling the pressure as he battled with a sticking throttle, causing a minor coming together with cone and soil causing the tyre to leave the rim. Run over for Dan and round 1 to Neil.

With a patched up car Dan showed his mettle recording a 1:15.49 followed swiftly with a 1:12.61. Now it was Neil who would feel the pressure as his following three times all recording time faults for hitting cones. In fact his 4^th run involved more than just a cone as Neil tried to reshape the front of his mighty Mk2 Golf by adding some concrete girders! Andy Williams efforts to try and keep Morgan honest were dashed when he picked up a puncture on his third run At the half way point Dan was sailing pretty, top of the leaderboard and poised to take the trophy for consecutive years, leaving his rivals hacked off.

Meanwhile the battle for fastest lady was hotting up, at the midway point Vicky Cox best time was 1:19.74 and Rebecca French 1:19.47. The battle lines had been drawn and the coveted award of fastest lady of the day was being hotly contested.

Daryl Turner was also trying to reshape the little red MX5 by drifting into banks and Paul Wills had a go at 4×4 trialling with his MX5 as he tried to mount a bank of rubble.

The slippery conditions were proving very difficult for everybody to master. Turn your head for a second and you would miss a moment of pure glory and amusement.

Back at the top Dan was sitting pretty, nobody had told Darren Taylor the fairytale though. Taking his first ever victory at the last event Darren again popped up with a 1:10.66 to push Dan Morgan back down the table and put himself on top of the tree. Andy Williams had also got to grips with both surface and machinery and he also put himself above Dan with a clean 1:12.20. Neil was struggling, the times were just not coming for him, perhaps it was a little too soon to be racing cars after a bicycle accident earlier in the week.  With his last run Neil recorded a 1:13.59 but it was never going to be good enough to catch Morgan on the day.  Dan, pushing for victory launched the Golf off a bank and was lucky not to roll as it took a very big hit. Returning with a damaged rear beam axle the victory was easing away. Darren could not improve on his table topping time so it was left to Dan with a damaged car to try and snatch the victory. A gallant effort took second place away from Andy with a time of 1:12.08 but was nowhere near enough to threaten first place.

And so the day drew to a close, Darren Taylor once again victorious. Darren will be one to watch out for next season as his times have improved tenfold.  

Dan Morgan taking the Unsealed Surface championship by four points from Neil Glasbey. A closely fought battle that went right to the wire.Well done Dan! Andy Williams finishing both third on the day and in the final standings with 228 points.

Vicky Cox eventually ran out victor as the fastest lady with a very respectable 1:15.47 leaving her in 7^th place on the day. Vicky also takes fastest lady of the championship finishing with 203 points, just 6 points in front of Rebecca French. It is nice to see so many ladies competing this year, long may it continue.

The end of another unsealed championship, closely fought battles, entertaining moments and a lot of drifting from the RWD boys. Looking forward to next season already, bring it on!

I  must thank all the marshals that dedicate their time to these events, without you we could not operate. If there was a podium for marshals then Phil Munday would have scooped it this weekend doing three stints throughout the day. Well done Phil, if you put as much skill into driving as you do marshalling one day you will be at the top of the report for opposite reasons 😉

Next event is the double header Healey weekend, Saturday 12^th November at BAE systems and Sunday 13^th at the IOW College. Another closely fought battle to be settled between Dan Morgan, Dave Goodwin and Dave Dutch. Not one to miss!

See you all there.

Knighton top 5

Darren Taylor 1:10.66

Dan Morgan 1:12.08

Andy Williams 1:12.20

Martyn Cutler 1:12.54

John Dutch 1:13.38

Final championship standings

Dan Morgan  244

Neil Glasbey  240

Andy Williams 228

Its Sunday 16th October, Knighton Sandpit at 08.30 in the morning, sun shining and cars raring to go. Of course its another round of the IOWCC unsealed surface championship, the penultimate round in fact. With Dan Morgan, the current leader absent it was a perfect opportunity for the chasing pack spearheaded by Neil Glasbey to take valuable points leading into the final USS on 30th October at the very same venue.

Andy Williams as ever kicked the proceedings off, after a run stating ‘it was like driving on marbles’ the surface was very slippery. With the unseasonably dry weather dust was also going to be an issue for competitors. Andy recorded a 1:16.84 which was soon cut down to size by Neil Glasbey in the Northwood Golf with a 1:14.98. The third rival to Mr Morgan was Andrew Leppard but he seemed to have a continuing issue with hitting cones and incurring penalties.

Meanwhile competition was hotting with the ladies, a fierce (but fair) battle has risen between Rebecca French and Vicky Cox. Vicky set her stall with a 1:19.52 which Rebecca had no initial reply but as the conditions improved so did her time and she took the fastest lady over Vicky, Marion and Jemma with a 1:12.44 driving the wheels off the little orange Golf. Vicky looked disappointed as she was leading the pack with a 1:14.04 right up to the last runs. Unlucky Vicky and Well done Boo! Its nice to see so many ladies competing, the more the merrier ?

Back at the top and a new leader had emerged, it was the half way point and Martyn Cutler was over 2 seconds quicker than the chasing pack. Using the Northwood Golf as the WWC car was out of action was obviously working for him. Conditions were getting ever better and times had started to tumble, the Dutch brothers beginning to get the hang of their space framed Mini were starting to threaten. When Dave Dutch popped in a 1:11.61 the battle was on. Neil, striving for the top popped up with a 1:11.43 to top the leaderboard only to be cut down by Darren Taylor with a 1:10.27 from absolutely nowhere. Only a few drivers remained, Andy Williams having dropped out earlier with wheel bearing issues. Neil had one run remaining, topping the table would leave him 2 points clear of Dan. Unfortunately for Neil his final run was a disaster, recording a wrong test as he was upset with how the run was evolving. Bad luck Neil, but still second place would have left him 1 point ahead of Dan. Alas it was not to be, Martyn Cutler put himself inbetween Darren and Neil on his final run with a 1:10.31 just 0.04 seconds behind Darren. A tough fought battle at the top but with Darren emerging victorious.

I caught up with Darren at the end and he said ‘this is my first win, I am so happy! The little grasstrack car did me proud today’ Well done Darren you deserved the victory for plucking a time from oblivion.

Just one round remaining, Neil and Dan are joint first and uncatchable by anyone else. This is set for a battle of the titans, miss it at your own peril!

Top 5

Darren Taylor 1:10.27
Martyn Cutler 1:10.31
Neil Glasbey 1:11.43
Wayne Hole 1:11.44
Dave Dutch 1:11.61

Top 3 league positions

Dan Morgan 195
Neil Glasbey 195
Andrew Leppard 186

IOWCC round 4 was held at Atherfield yesterday (25th September), why round 4 I hear you all ask? This was a rescheduled event due to the venue not being ready earlier in the year. An unsealed surface event which is usually ever changing throughout the day due to the initial wet grass right through to compacted soil.

As was suspected the first few runs were akin to what you may see on TV as dancing on ice. Wet grass made not only navigating tight turns difficult but indeed trying to come to a halt in the stop box was virtually impossible. Steve Glasbey was the first to tame the conditions and record a sub one minute run with a very respectable 58.18 driving a mk2 Golf Gti. Dave Dutch once again kept the field honest with a decent 57.90 in a classic Mini but it was Neil Glasbey who not only looked the fastest but was actually the quickest at the half way point with an amazing 55.15 in the Golf he shares with his brother.

Meanwhile the battle for the fastest lady was on, Rebecca French driving a 57.52 only to be bettered by Vicky Cox with a 57.30. Marion Saunders was trying her best to keep her little Mini up there but could not quite catch the leading lady finishing with a 58.48. Vicky went on to better her time and finish 9th overall with a very credible time of 55.52. Vicky put her new found speed down to the newly installed limited slip differential. Well done Vicky!

Back at the top competition was hotting up, Dan Morgan joining the fray half way through due to competing in a Triathlon in the morning. Dan was using a borrowed Diesel Mk3 Golf as earlier Martyn Cutler had killed the gearbox in the WWC Golf. Dans second run of 55.86 put the cat right amongst the pigeons and the battle was on. Andy Williams took to the challenge with a certain confidence about him and duly delivered with a 55.13. Neil Glasbey came back at the two of them coolly slotting back into the top spot by being the first into the 53 seconds driving the wheels off the little red Golf. Andy replied with a 53.70 only to be bettered by Neil with a 53.65. With a 1-2-3 of Neil, Andy and Dan the competition for the table was getting tighter and tighter. Nobody was looking over their shoulders though when Andrew Leppard stepped up having not read the script. Driving a 205gti on standard road tyres Andrew drove a quite exceptional 53:79 to take third place away from Dan.

And that was how it ended, the times had indeed tumbled as the grass was replaced by compacted soil and as the dust settled Neil came away with a very valuable 50 points. With just 2 rounds left in the USS events and competition getting hotter by the week it all points towards a grand finale.

Driver of the day goes to Neil Glasbey for guiding the red bullet to ultimate victory.

Top 5

Neil Glasbey 53.65
Andy Williams 53.70
Andrew Leppard 53.79
Dan Morgan 54.92
Martyn Cutler 54.97

Unsealed Surface Top 3 Positions:-

Dan Morgan 148
Neil Glasbey 147
Andy Williams 145

Round 7 of the IOW car club could be found at the IOW college on Sunday, rescheduled from last week due to issues with venues this promised to be a cracking event as the college offers us a lot of space for course layouts. Just 28 competitors turning out, probably a casualty of the Bestival!

With fewer competitors you may think there is less competition but the exact opposite proved true with fierce competition in both class 3 and class 4.

Dave Dutch set the early pace recording a 1:15.07 in his Mini Pickup but Chris Greenen was keeping him honest driving a Mini saloon car and laying down a 1:15.90. The day was looking very much like a FWD mini would take overall honours as the RWD cars were struggling to get anywhere near those times…..

Up steps Mr Daniel Morgan of Island PC Services, driving his specially built ‘7’ type vehicle. With a first run mishap meaning he hacked up some of the course, having to drive further than necessary and still recording a 1:16.92 everybody had a right to feel threatened, a second run of 1:11.03 proved the apprehensive justified. A time from the skies that was going to prove impossible to beat was the feeling around the paddock, had an event ever been won so early in the day? And that is how it turned out, everybody else competing for the other honours, Dan went on to better his own time with an incredible 1:10.51 a whopping 2.25 seconds from Dave Dutch in second.

Class 1 was once again Jemma Westerns all to herself, we need more class 1 competitors. Where are you all hiding? Jemma recorded a 1:31.09 in a Ford KA to take all of the class points. Well done Jemma, hopefully we can find you some competition soon!

Class 3 next as there were no competitors from class 2, our usual stalwarts of Dean Long and Daryl Turner nowhere to be seen. This class as usual is the class of the Mini, 7 drivers competing for top honours. As is common these days the Dutch brothers were fast from the outset, John getting a 1:18.76 only to be bettered by his brother with a 1:15.07 to briefly put him top of the leader board. Steve Brett, frequently keeping this class honest was struggling today, his car causing issues throughout. Marion seemed to be getting more out of the little Blue Mini than her husband. Meanwhile with the Dutch brothers thinking they had the class all their own way Chris Greenen was plotting their downfall, putting a 1:15.90 on the board showed intent and then a 1:13.78 to put the cat amongst the pigeons. Dave Dutch responded with a 1:13.25 and at this point the Greenen Mini decided it wanted no more as the clutch gave way. A shame as it was turning into a really nice battle. Dave went on to better his own time with a 1:12.76 to take the class and second place overall. Chris was second in class and third overall.

Class 4 had the lion’s share of the drivers, over 17 in total. A vast variety of machinery from VX220’s to Citroen Saxo race cars. Dave Bizzill was eyeing the class top spot and when he posted a time of 1:17.77 early in the day the line had been drawn. Andrew and Dave Leppard in their 205Gti were struggling slightly with the times, usually battling the front runners their car just did not seem to suit this course. Matt Price driving his freshly prepared Citroen Saxo race car drove a brilliant 1:17.41 to top the class followed by a 1:16.62 to further cement his place at the summit. Toby Allen was struggling with the course also driving an Mx5, we all knew he would come good later though as he got to grips with both course and machinery. Posting a 1:14.96 on his fourth run proved most right. Matt responded and was seen dancing a jig as he returned to pip Toby by just 1/10th second. The jig was cut short however as Martyn Cutler in his VX220 placed a time of 1:14.97 just 2/10th off Matt with a run in hand. Martyn went on to better his time with a 1:14.49, Matt looked glum, he thought he had the class.

So Martyn Cutler took the class victory and fourth overall closely followed by Matt Price in second place and Toby Allen in third. Rebecca French ran away with fastest lady with a time of 1:19.04, her nearest rival was Vicky Cox with a 1:22.84 in a 205Gti.

Class 5 had two competitors, Dan Morgan and Andy Williams, Andy was driving his car engined special and as always started the proceedings. A time of 1:18.55 in the damp and greasy conditions might have given Andy hope that he could do well in this class of two! A 3rd run 1:16.07 and all was looking rosy…..Up steps Mr Morgan, a rare mistake costing him time on his first run but still managing a 1:16.92 boding not well for Andy. A second run and an incredible time of 1:11.03 and Andy knew it was time to get the bus home. Dan went on to better his time with an unassailable 1:10.51 and Andy with a 1:15.77 leaving Morgan with not only class honours but the top step of the podium. Well done Dan, an amazing weekend for you equalling the largest ever win.

So another weekend of motorsport drawn to a close, the 7th round done and dusted and as the dust settles we can see a clearer picture of the championship. Dave Goodwin still tops the table with 149 points but now only 2 points behind is Dan Morgan. Only 2 rounds left in the sealed surface championship and both of those fall on the weekend of 12/13 November for the annual Healey weekend. Should be an amazing finish to the championship as both battle to take the top step of the podium and walk away with the coveted winners trophy.

Driver of the day goes to Dan Morgan for winning an event 4 hours prior to its finish, will this ever be bettered?

Top 5 College

Dan Morgan 1:10.51
Dave Dutch 1:12.76
Chris Greenen 1:13.78
Martyn Cutler 1:14.49
Matt Price 1:14.95

Sealed surface Championship

Dave Goodwin 149
Dan Morgan 147
Dave Dutch 145

Overall Championship

Dan Morgan 247
Andy Williams 231
Neil Glasbey 227

Next event is on 25th September, an unsealed surface event at Atherfield. Please see www.iowcc.co.uk for more information on how to join or spectate.
As always thanks to the land owner for kind permission to use the land, the marshals and the competitors.