DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Looking good Graham.

Just back from the wettest hillclimb I can recall for about 15 years or more, the British Championship meeting at Shelsley Walsh.

Drowned for 2 days, and open car was a real pain!

Sat saw a very very slippy track, esp the infamous 'Esses' at the top of the hill.
Run 1 was a gentle affair to sound the hill's surface out, run 2 was a lot faster resulting with a 'kissing' of the bank with the OS rear wheel gathering mud and grass between the tyre/wheel but survived and scooted a bit shaken to the top.

Run 3 was worse.

Got to Bottom Esse thinking the track had dried a bit so more grip between the Esses, a distance of about 100 meters, how wrong i was. A good instant spin later was all unfolded in slow motion as the car slewed sideways and the OS front nose crunced (again) into the bank, bounced back and the rear NS rolled gently to a rest on the other side bank.

Somewhat disorientated, the marshals asked (told) me to carry on up the hill. Seemed to me the front corner was damaged and the car would not go forward or backwards. 'That's because you are reversing into the bank!'

(You Pratt).

With first selected I cruised to the top.
No chassis damage, but the front body of this poor car is certainly copping it big-time.

Race day today, Sunday and it poured non stop all the day. What a bloody drag.
First run was a bit 'light' as I wanted to reach the top without mud or damage, a truly average 44 Secs, all a bit pathetic.

Run 2 the final race run was more determined, and dropped to 40 secs in the pouring rain not actually being able to see too much.

This netted 4th in class of 7, but a huge 7 seconds behind a Pilbeam MP 43 on wets who won.

I learnt a lot this weekend.
Firstly, to take risks and when things went a bit 'off' to be relaxed.
The car ran faultlessly. The gearbox was sweet, the engine on all 6 and full of guts.
Starts in the wet are a very calculated affair in this light car.

Got the lot back home and it needed a good hosing down to get the worst of the crud off. Tomorrow will be a huge clean up of the car and some speedy repairs to the front shell ready for my favorite hill, Loton Park by Shrewsbury next weekend.

Never run the car there with the engine/box on song, so can't wait.

Please let it be dry.

At least with the car running properly you can concentrate on the driving, not on getting frustrated with it!

Good luck at Loton next weekend

Thanks Gary.
Fixed the poor front end again today with fibre glass and paint, really starting to look a bit rough now.
New body is £3K...

Made a demon tweek and re-installed the tacho where I can actually see it, 911 style.
Contemplating fitting narrower wheels, it has 10 Fr & 14" rear now, the stock Lola had 6" and 8" rear.

Have a nice pair of 9" rims so a set of 6 or 7" will be good.

Loton may be wet.

Well done at the week-end Graham, the car sounded great. Pity about the weather....................

Put a set of full wets on the narrower wheels and a set of full slicks on the wider ones!

At less than 50% of the cost of a front end, wets are a bargain!

Cheers!

JW

911hillclimber wrote:Thanks Gary.
Fixed the poor front end again today with fibre glass and paint, really starting to look a bit rough now.
New body is £3K...

Don't worry – you're in good company!

That made me smile!
It is not THAT bad, but unless my driving skills take a quantum leap forward very soon it could get there quickly.

Went well at loton too!
Cut a pb in the car at a slow 58.2 but only 1 sec off my Impreza time.

Winner in the class has a full-house millington 2.1 on 100+ octane etc (350 ish bhp?) so a bit tricky to catch at 100 down on that plus the driver is an ex sprint champion.
Terry was 3 secs ahead....
Still, came 2nd in class. Attrition rate was alarming in the class and else where, but struggled to take 4th in anger, down to the driver I think, so I peaked-in-practice.

Prescott in 2 weeks time.
A have a score to settle there with the car.

911hillclimber wrote:A have a score to settle there with the car.

For such a gentle start it was my best last weekend, 2.04 sec to cover 64 feet (very nearly 1g)
And you can see why the box needs a taller CW&P.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqGdW-hCrIA

where's the onboard footage?

Don't have a camera, but the hill is bloody quick in a quick car like a Raptor....

Last weekend no less than 10 class records were reset, the hill record fell 3 times in 5 mins.

This is the fearsome hill in Doune, Scotland.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpJ-Y-9o ... re=related

Yep, Doune is some place, managed to take 3 wheels off my Vision, which was sore on the wallet and my back, which got whacked in the process.

Then watched Graeme Wight Jr driving it "properly" by using the sleepers on the side of the track to assist in the corners !!

However I tamed the Demon a couple of seasons later and made both Run Offs in the Jedi

It's a Rite of Passage, Graham, you'll have to do it sometime

I have seen those scars on many cars Mike, what a hill to do but what a challenge to do fast.
Bike engined cars are getting in amongst the V8's now...

I have to say that having had a fair few encounters with circuit-racing barriers that are a huge way off in comparison with those hills, I couldn't even attempt hill-climbing!

Graham
(including my current 2 fractured ribs and slimmed down Radical)