Compres 082 by CompResults

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CompRes

LaFerrari Breaks Cover

ISSUE 082 MARCH 2013

CompRes Chevy Chase, Leeds Road, Selby, North Yorkshire YO8 4JH T: +44 (0) 1757-702 053 F: +44 (0) 1757-290 547 E: cs.man@btinternet.com

CompRes is available by subscription and is published 10 times a year for the FERRARI OWNERS’ CLUB

FERRARICOMPETITIONRESULTS SPOOF INTERVIEW With little Ferrari competition to report on in this issue of CompRes we had a bit of room to spare for something different. We chose to reprint a spoof interview of Nigel Mansell which appeared in a back copy of CompNews, the forerunner of today’s CompRes. The article appeared in a 1989 issue of the mag, a year when Sebastian Vettel was just two years old and Mansell was in his first year as the lead driver at Ferrari (the following season Alain Prost joined the team and so out-drove his team mate that Nigel announced his resignation at the end of the year). Enjoy!

DAYDREAMING In a recent piece in MAY Autocar their former road tester Vicky Parrott posed an interesting question – a sort of Desert Island Cars. You can have three cars – any three cars – for the rest of your life. Their cost is irrelevant, they will always be in tip-top mechanical condition, taxed, insured, full of fuel and free of rust. They are permanently at JUNE your disposal at any time. They are, however, the only three cars you will ever own or drive; once you have made your decision it is final and they’re yours for ever. What would they be? That there are three cars make this particularly difficult. If you could have only one car, you’d just have to choose a vehicle that could do everything you

needed. If it was two, you’d have one car to do the daily grind, and another for kicks. But three? Well, there’s a dilemma. When you have agonised over your choice please let us know what it is. We would like to share your thoughts in the next issue of CompRes. Please drop an email to cs.man@btinternet.com

NEW CLASSIC SPONSOR We are delighted to announce that the Pirelli Ferrari formula classic series will be sponsored this year by Superformance UK Limited. Superformance, established for over 25 years, are recognised

as one of the world’s leading Ferrari parts suppliers. Their aim is to provide high quality parts at affordable prices. The company is based in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, and can be reached on +44(0)1992 445300. In the next issue of CompRes we shall carry their advertisement which will give you their website and email details. In the meantime you will see their banner on the windscreens of all the Ferraris competing in the 2013 Classic series.

VITON O RINGS.CO.UK

We give a warm welcome to a new sponsor joining us this season for the first time. Viton-orings.co.uk is a trading name of Dichtomatik WHAT’S ON Limited, one of the largest manufacturers and 11 Harewood Hillclimb Rd 2 PFHC stockholders of Viton O Rings. Viton O Rings are used for the 11 Harewood Dinner: Walshford majority of high temperature, Bridge Hotel aggressive fuel or chemical sealing applications 12 Harewood Hillclimb Rd 3 PFHC throughout the automotive, chemical processing or oil and 14 FOC: Oulton Park Track Day gas industries. Dichtomatik is also able to offer sealing 19 Donington Park: Pirelli Ferrari solutions for all static, formula classic; Pirelli dynamic or rotational Ferrari Open [double headers] applications in a wide variety 1/2 Shelsley Walsh Hillclimb of additional materials including DuPont Kalrez for all demanding sealing 6 FOC: Snetterton 200 Track Day applications. Nick Taylor, the MD of 15/16 Silverstone GP: Pirelli Ferrari Dichtomatik and competitor in formula classic; Pirelli Ferrari Open [combined races his rapid but slightly sinister - double headers] looking Mafioso-style matt black Mondial t, will have an 16 Blyton Sprint emergency supply of Viton O Rings available free of charge 23 Gurston Down Hillclimb should any Classic or Open racers be in need at a race 28/29 British Grand Prix meeting.

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Nick’s company will provide a generous quantity of Mumm Cordon Rouge Champagne for both the Classic and the Open series. At every round of each series the overall winner will be presented with a Magnum of Mumm and each of the three other class winners will receive a bottle of the same delicious fizz. In addition, at the End of Season Dinner, each of the class winners in PFfc and PFO will get a Magnum of Mumm with which to celebrate their success. All cars competing in the two series this year will wear Viton O Ring decals on their flanks. This is a particularly attractive sponsorship deal which I feel sure will go down well with all our Ferrari drivers!

CLASSIC DRIVER OF THE MEETING A year or two ago, the Classic series had a ‘Classic Driver of the Meeting’ award. We are delighted that this popular scheme is being revived this season thanks to the generosity of preparers RnR Performance Cars. RnR’s Richard Dougal has commissioned a series of superb glass trophies, each engraved with the appropriate layout of the circuits at which we shall be racing this season. As in the past, the trophy will be awarded to the Ferrari Classic driver who, in the judgement of a small and hopefully arms-length ad hoc committee, has displayed the best effort during the meeting. It will not necessarily be given to the most successful driver but the one adjudged, regardless of finishing position, to have given his or her maximum effort. We hope that this scheme will encourage drivers of all cars in PFfc to do their very utmost at the wheel in the knowledge that their efforts will not go unrewarded.

MICHELIN STAR MAGIC Anne and I have just returned from our little sojourn to

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Michelin Magic. A view across Ullswater to the beautiful Cumbrian fells from the Sharrow Bay Hotel, where Anne and I chose to enjoy a splendid Michelin star dinner courtesy of our racing competitors.

the Lake District. Racing competitors will recall that at the End of Season Dinner last year you kindly presented us with a Michelin Star Dining Gift Box to enable us to sample a splendid dinner at a restaurant of our choice. Included in the Box was a generous sum of cash to pay for our accommodation. We chose the internationally renowned Michelin-starred Sharrow Bay, a member of the Relais & Chateau group of hotels. Sharrow Bay is located on the stunningly beautiful Lake Ullswater where, in 1955, Donald Campbell set a new world water speed record in Bluebird K7 at 202mph. We were fortunate with the weather for our little jaunt. While most of the British Isles was shivering in snow and rain, the Ullswater district was bathed in glorious sunshine with the surrounding fells looking like the peaks of Switzerland. Our six course tasting menu, preceded by Champagne and accompanied by a collection of wines suited to each course, was memorable for not only being near perfect but also incredibly long in duration. We drank a toast to all our friends who so generously made it possible before we waddled off to our impressive suite to sleep it all off. Thank you all very much indeed!

RA’s HILLCOMMENT The 2013 Season unfolded in the wilds of Essex at North Weald in March and you can read all about it in this issue of CompRes. Last year, the entry levels in most PFHC rounds were at record levels, and even though the numbers at North Weald were down this time there were notable absentees who should be out at the next round. On the day, Nick Taylor used the firepower of his F430 to great effect as did Pauline Goodwin with her California; it is nice to note once again the great variety of Ferrari tipos in action. A Long Wait for Round 2 (with the absence of the usual Easter weekend Bouley Bay) before things get serious at Harewood on May 11 & 12. Traditionally one of the most popular PFHC rounds, this will see a big entry and some serious action that should give an idea who looks most likely to challenge for the overall win in 2013. A double-header meeting with the chance to enjoy the social scene on Saturday evening at the Bridge Hotel near Wetherby, where John Swift has kindly made the necessary arrangements. You should by now have booked your accommodation at the Bridge, applied for your tickets for the Dinner, and put your entry in for the two hillcimbs as well. Around the Hills there is news of practice days being cancelled, especially over Easter, with Loton Park calling theirs off due to heavy snowfall. Harewood also pulled the plug on their March date, so if you are one of those keen competitors who like to get in extra hill time you will have to fork out for one of their school days. Loton run three dates this year, the first one handily in advance of our double-

header event. Instructors include Roger and Scott Moran and our old chum Dave Parr. If you fancy trying this, contact Martyn Silcox on 01384 877502. Harewood run their School on 2 May, 11 July and 5 September, and Jackie Wilson on 01423 339062 will book you in. Breakfast Clubs have become very popular with enthusiasts and I Mark Wibberley is a welcome newcomer to the guess it was the Ferrari hillclimb scene this season. He is Goodwood Breakfast fielding a stunning 360 Modena spider. Club that probably started this, with others soon Prescott Picnic and Club Track springing up all over the place. Days. Latest to join in are our old friends at the MAC, making the An Old Player we lost most of their superb facilities and contact with many years ago picturesque venue at Shelsley (and no longer a Ferrari owner) is Walsh. The first one of 2013 Alan Tucknott from Kent, who attracted no less than 150 people called me recently. He competed despite abominable weather. in both a 308GT4 that had the They have them once a month rare factory build two seater from now on and if Shelsley was configuration, and a very choice a hundred miles nearer I would red 246GTS. Affectionately be there. known as “Tuckshop”, Alan was around in the late eighties and Welcome to a New Player early nineties and a keen who made his debut at North competitor at that time. He ran a Weald with a superb looking 360 substantial printing business that Modena spider in Tour de France became more difficult with the Blue – full marks for colour increasing popularity of choice to Mark Wibberley from computerisation, and eventually Stamford. Although a fairly new got out of Ferraris. Alan, now in Ferrari owner, 47 year old Mark to his sixties, is a serious surfer has been around for a long time would you believe. as the advertising agent for our Club media. Now all fired up with his recent acquisition, he has also started an Area Group for Lincolnshire so is also now one of the Club’s Area Group Organisers. New to competitive motorsport, he has already tried out his 360 Modena on the

The Hargreaves 308GTB has seen some serious action lately – and with both Jack and Mark driving, it is doing twice the work of all the rest of our cars. It seemed to be going very well in 2012 judging by their results; however Jack tells me that it was

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an old car and vintage person is involved in this instance! Maybe with the passage of time we will get used to the “ooh la la” Ferrari name, but in the meantime this astonishing and quite brilliant new Ferrari does look very macho to my eye. MOTs are a pain as I have moaned many times before in this column, and there is little doubt that they are a cash cow for those involved. I run several older cars, and I am not talking Ferrari here, that seem to encounter all sort of reasons for failure – not just the inevitable but questionable brake pipe corrosion, but tyre replacements necessitated not because of wear, but invisible lesions. Now I read that they can fail cars in future because things like the tyre pressure monitoring system is not functioning. My 575M system packed up years ago - as it was going to cost nearly £1000 to fit new sensors to all four

The Hargreaves 308GTB engine enjoyed some mechanical T L C during the winter.

beginning to smoke a little and showing signs that some attention was necessary. Unsurprisingly, the piston rings needed replacement, but inevitably there were flywheel cracks, the clutch needed replacement, and other odds and ends like bearings, pulleys and pipes. He sent me some terrific pictures of the engine in pieces for overhaul, but sadly there is room for only one. It is interesting to reflect the progress that has been made since the fifties with engine design and the materials used in their construction. Ferrari’s illustrious V12 in all its original guises delivered the power and performance required for both road and competition. It was reliable, too, but it did need regular overhauling. The 308 series of engines designed circa 1970 proved to have much better service longevity than those early V12s, but it is the 328 engine that was the first to have the extraordinary durability we have now come to expect from modern engines. Unless it has had some form of neglect or abuse, I doubt one would ever need an engine overhaul in the same circumstances. Sexing Cars could become more popular with the introduction of La Ferrari. The nautical chaps have always referred to their boats and ships as “she” and occasionally some car buff uses this term regarding his cherished machine – usually

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wheels I elected to use a tyre gauge in future. They will get me soon on this, so that is something else for me to whinge about. NACA Ducting you should be familiar with as it has been seen on sports racing cars (particularly of the Le Mans type) for years. I suspect now the shape of these ducts is old hat up against the latest aerodynamic technology and I doubt you will find one on an F1 car. I mention this because whilst in Barcelona Francia railway station in December I spotted a Spanish TGV with NACA ducts – see pic. Maybe this means that with all the EU money they have had to spend on their train sets the things are faster than Eurostar. FOC AGM Weekend with Spring Ball, AGM and Prizegiving Lunch, followed by the Silverstone Track Day, is less that three weeks away as I write these notes. I am not sure whether CompRes will hit your doorstop in time, but I look forward very much to seeing you there.

El NACA Duct. Railway enthusiast RA spotted some age-old ducting on the bodywork of a Spanish TGV recently.

PIRELLI FERRARI HILLCLIMB CHAMPIONSHIP: ROUND 1 NORTH WEALD SPRINT 17th March 2013

HE NORTH WEALD Ferrari entry list could have been very short this year; we had already heard that a few long term hillclimbers would be mostly absent this season and you have to be brave to compete in March at this Essex airfield sprint reports RICHARD PRIOR. I personally could have changed my mind and still joined in the week before the event, but work was unpredictably busy and I thought better not to enter. I could also have stayed home in the warm and dry on the day, but looking at the weather forecast I felt sorry for those competing and so I trekked down to Essex with the PFHC gazebo to provide some shelter and moral support. It was a pleasant surprise to still find 13 listed in the Ferrari class, unfortunately dropping to 12 when Caroline Cooper withdrew due to one of the winter bugs still doing the rounds. We still made up a large proportion of the field as there were only 57 in the whole meeting. Nick Taylor appeared to be favourite in his 430 Coupe riding on new tyres, followed by John Marshall in his newly acquired 360 Challenge Stradale. Pauline

Goodwin was also trying something new for North Weald in the shape of her gorgeous blue California (maybe a handful on a hill but could be good fun on a sprint). Amongst the others there were five in the Classic category ranging from Tony Attwood in the 246 GT up to the 328 of Shaun Smith. Normally the most popular tipos are 328s and 355s but this time the 360 overshadowed them, with three. Not only that, but red cars were in the minority for the first time I can remember.

Photos by Richard Prior

Mark Wibberley was the latest newcomer to the Championship in his blue 360 Spider, tempted out after experiencing some track days and the Prescott Picnic in his immaculate new car. This must be the only venue where we drive the cars to the scrutineers (just so they can keep warm in their caravan I suppose). There were no problems with the prancing horses, except the normally practical scruts had trouble working out how to open Pauline's California bonnet.

John Marshall was in action with his newly-acquired 360 Challenge Stradale. Unfortunately navigational errors spoiled his result.

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Pauline Goodwin, gave her powerful California a rare competition outing. She was impressively quick down the straights and was runner-up on scratch.

Despite walking the track, it does take a sighting run in the car to spot the correct way through the coned chicanes, gates and roundabouts, so the first damp practice was taken carefully by some, but adventurously by others. Shaun Smith missed a control gate at turn 5 when he went around the outside of the cones instead of between them, while Barrie Wood had the worst possible start when he spun at the first corner in his 355. Sean Doyle has registered his 308 GT4 in the Championship for 2013 and looked more comfortable than he had been in the 348 last year. Still able to throw the more nimble car around he unfortunately lost the back end under braking before a roundabout pin and wasted about 20 seconds while he recovered the car in the right direction. Nick Taylor was quickest on 95.60 seconds from Jack Hargreaves in the shared 308GTB on 98.66 (just ahead of Mark Hargreaves in the same car on 99.00). Also in the 99s were Pauline Goodwin and Jeff Cooper (360 Modena) who took his first run with the front bonnet only partly secured. As I stood near a track marshal while taking photographs I could hear the radio conversations going on, should they red flag him in case the lid came undone and flew up in front

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of the windscreen? Happily he made it to the end in one piece. I also heard the surprise from a few of them as John Marshall went past in the 360CS howling like a banshee. "How did that thing get through the noise test?" Strange they think of noise testing at an RAF airfield in the middle of nowhere and next to the M11. By the second practice it was slightly drier so most went quicker after learning the route; the biggest casualty this time was Tony Attwood who pushed a little too hard through the fast chicane, losing the tail of the Dino and taking out a few cones. Julian Playford was following and was shown the red flag for a rerun. Mark Wibberley looked smooth during his run until the

last pin, when over excitement with the throttle caused the 360 to spin before heading towards the finish line. Jack Hargreaves was again ahead of his dad, this time by almost 2 seconds with 94.53. The Borough 19 organisers promised to get the 1st official run in before the lunchbreak as rain was imminent, so just the one shot at a smooth and clean run for glory today. Mark Hargreaves took to the track first and clocked 92.32, a big improvement on his earlier runs. Pauline Goodwin was up next and the enormous power of the California down the straights gave her an impressive 89.51 second run. Barrie Wood followed with a tidy run but not quite quick enough to catch PG 90.70 would be his best of the day. John Marshall had the chance to catch Pauline, but unfortunately missed a cone and received a failed run (or wrong route) so would be way down on any important Championship points today. Shaun Smith couldn't quite match the 308 of the Hargreaves family with 94.82 but Nick Taylor performed brilliantly and stole the show with 83.21 in the 430, and overall in the official results gave him 6th fastest time of the day. Tony Attwood followed next with a 99.02 but we're not quite sure what happened to Julian Playford behind him. We all saw him cross the finish line with a very fast 90.04 time, but he

Looking as pretty as a picture, Tony Attwoodâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dino 246GT assaults the cones on an enthusiastic run.

elected to take a re-run when it was offered. With warm tyres and brakes on his second attempt Julian was going well until turning at the tight single cone; getting his F355 into the spin put paid to a podium place and a trophy. It's not the first time this has happened, in previous years both Richard Prior and Andrew Holman have got over-excited during a re -run and ended up in the weeds while trying too hard. Mark Wibberley made it under the 100 second barrier with 99.21 on his first ever official timed run, just a smidgen behind Tony Attwood. Sean Doyle had his optimistic head on this time and drove a smooth and controlled lap, noisily crossing the line in 90.66 narrowly ahead of Barrie Wood by 4/100ths of a second, but had the tables turned

on him when Jeff Cooper recorded 90.57, just that 0.09 of a second taking the 3rd place trophy away from Sean. Unfortunately for Jack Hargreaves, the 308 had developed a fuel problem and had to withdraw from the meeting before Jack could get a score on the board. Despite conditions getting colder and wetter for the 2nd and 3rd runs, a few drivers were still trying hard despite the best opportunity of the day having already disappeared. Shaun Smith and Julian Playford were both in the 97s while Sean Doyle managed a 94.94. Pauline Goodwin was the top performer in the wet, even beating Nick Taylor on both final runs and less than 2 seconds off her best dry time.

So, based on the 1st runs, Nick Taylor had the scratch win and, after the PEP factor had been applied, also took the 20 points. Pauline Goodwin was overjoyed with her 2nd place and a trophy but the 308s had crept ahead of her on points due to their negative PEP factors. Sean Doyle took the 17 points and Mark Hargreaves got 15. Just before prizegiving it was confirmed in the official results that Julian's re-run did count, so Jeff Cooper was credited with the final podium position and a 3rd place trophy. Nice to see some different faces in the Top Three picture for a change. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a long wait until the next round, a double header at Harewood in May .... and possibly the start of summer! ď&#x201A;˘

NORTH WEALD SPRINT 17 March 2013 Round 1 Pirelli Ferrari Hillclimb Championship Pos Scr

Driver

Tipo

Pract 1

Pract 2

Run 1

Run 2

Run 3

PEP %

PEP time

Pts

430 Coupe

95.60

90.43

83.21

93.19

91.99

+2.0

84.87

California

99.42

91.79

89.51

93.12

91.11

0.0

89.51

Nick Taylor

Pauline Goodwin

Jeff Cooper

360 Modena

99.21

95.59

90.57

99.82

999.00

+1.0

91.48

Sean Doyle

308GT4

118.88

95.86

90.66

98.68

94.94

-4.5

86.58

Barrie Wood

F355

4wo87.71

98.83

90.70

103.82

104.54

0.0

90.70

Mark Hargreaves

308GTB

99.00

96.45

92.32

---

-4.5

88.17

Shaun Smith

328GTB

wr100.85

104.34

94.82

97.76

98.02

-3.0

91.98

Julian Playford

F355

101.04

96.30

104.96

101.33

97.19

0.0

97.19

Tony Attwood

246GT

104.25

142.76

99.02

105.72

101.38

-6.5

92.58

360 Spider

103.69

110.26

99.21

115.35

103.19

+1.0

100.20

360CS

103.57

95.31

999.00

104.02

104.79

+4.0

108.18

308GTB

98.66

94.53

999.00

---

-4.5

Mark Wibberley

John Marshall

Jack Hargreaves

wr = wrong route. 4wo = 4 wheels off, 999 = no time

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS AFTER ROUND 1

Classic competitors in blue

Nick Taylor

Tony Attwood

Sean Doyle

Julian Playford

Mark Hargreaves

Mark Wibberley

Pauline Goodwin

John Marshall

Barrie Wood

Jack Hargreaves

Jeff Cooper

Shaun Smith

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Imaginary Interview

NIGEL MANSELL Nigel was wearing driversâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; overalls specially designed for h i m b y To p M a n . B a d g e s announced his new sponsorship deals with Berni Inns and Bernard Matthews Mini Kievs

he sun was blazing down on Maranello, legendary home of the Ferrari racing team as the mechanics and race engineers sat down to their traditional communal lunch. Plates were piled high with pasta, wine flowed freely and excitable Italian conversation echoed around the dappled courtyard. Here, perhaps, I could uncover the answer to that most perplexing of sporting questions: why is Nigel Mansell so unbelievably bloody boring? How

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can a man who drives for the most glamorous team in Grand Prix history, and does so with unequalled guts and skill, still manage to come across like a less interesting version of Steve Davis? Mansell was sitting at a table of his own, somewhat to the side of the main gathering, when I arrived. He was wearing driversâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; overalls specially designed for him by Top Man, complete with an elasticated belt with grey leather inserts. Badges announced his new sponsorship deals with Berni Inns and Bernard Matthews Mini Kievs. Appropriately enough, he had forgone the Continental lunch

menu in favour of a pot of tea and a packet of sandwiches. “Do you want one?” he said, pointing to the sandwich pile with the air of a man who hoped that my answer would be “No”. “Thanks,” I said. “Don’t mind if I do.” “Marmite or bloater paste?” he asked. I went for the Marmite, nervous of the effect that the 90degree heat might have on the fish, and we settled down for our conversation. It must, I suggested, be hard for him to get hold of such traditional English fare amidst the Italian culture of the Ferrari team.

“Not really,” he replied. “I had it written into my contract; three million quid a year, plus all the fresh sandwiches I could eat. My Aunty Ivy makes them. She prepares them every morning and we send my executive jet over to pick them up and take them to wherever I happen to be. She does a nice Thermos of tea, too.” I couldn’t help but wonder whether this still applied for the Grands Prix in Rio, Tokyo and Adelaide; surely the bread went stale after an eighteen-hour flight? “That’s right,” he agreed, “and they curl up at the edges. It gets me a bit angry, that, I can tell you. Affects my concentration. Two years running I crashed the car – once in Australia, once in Japan – blew the World Championship both times. As I say, I blame it on the sandwiches.” Speaking of sandwiches, how did he feel about his recent incident during practice at Monaco, when his car went out of control at 140 miles an hour? “Monaco? No, to be honest, I didn’t look on that as a problem. They were ham and cheese, nice and fresh too. Speaking for myself, I was quite satisfied at Monaco. Having said that, of course, the race itself was a write-off. Car broke down after 30 laps. When I got back to my changing-room someone had drunk all my tea. I won’t forget

“Well, as I see it, the thing is that, between you and me, q u i t e f r a n k l y, i n m y p e r s o n a l opinion I honestly don’t think I am boring”

that afternoon, I can tell you.” Clearly, the time had come to discuss some of the less fortunate aspects of Mansell’s public image. How did he cope with the ‘boring’ tag? “Well, as I see it, the thing is that, between you and me, I don’t reckon that’s really fair,” he said. “I mean, quite frankly, in my personal opinion I honestly don’t think I am boring. Ask my wife, she’ll tell you. I’m a fullyrounded personality. I've got lots of other interests. “Ah yes,” I interjected, “don’t you work as a Special Policeman?” “No,” he answered, “not as such. Well, having said that, in actual fact it’s true that I used to be a Special Constable. But my wife objected. It was the violence. She didn’t like the idea of me out on patrol on the Isle of Man in all kinds of weather, you know, every hour of the day and night. Who knows what might happen? It was the risk element. She wasn’t happy about it, not happy at all.” So what does he do now? “Oh simple – I just change uniforms as you might say. Now I’m a Special Postman. “It’s incredibly fulfilling, actually,” he continued. “I go out on my rounds whenever there’s a particularly heavy workload on for the ordinary chaps. Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Poll-Tax leaflets, all that sort of thing. Very interesting, it is. In fact, I’ve started a bit of a collection – postcodes of the world. Wherever I go, I collect local postcodes, then bring them back to show the lads in the sorting office. We have a bit of a laugh, I can tell you. Some of those foreign postal services, I mean, they haven’t a clue. They can’t get off the starting grid when it comes to running a proper code system. Almost as bad as their cooking.” Christ, he really was boring, even more boring than I had imagined possible. As Mansell began to gather up all his sandwich crumbs and tidy them into a pile on his monogrammed

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serviette (specially cleaned and ironed by Aunty Ivy, needless to say), I searched my mind for a more exciting line of discussion. In desperation I settled for the most clichéd question of them all: did he have any unfulfilled ambitions left in his life? “Well, I’d like to win the Championship, obviously. And it would be great to play in the British Open golf. But I wouldn’t call them ambitions, as such. I think the main thing I’d like to be is a bus-driver.” What, I asked, like in the advertisements he does for London Transport? “Exactly,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to drive a great big Routemaster bus. It was my boyhood dream.” So why had he ended up in Formula One? “Basically it was the traffic. I can’t stand having traffic coming in the opposite direction. Now, your average Grand Prix is no problem. Everyone’s going in the same direction, if you get my drift. But driving a bus is another matter. You’ve got all manner of vehicles approaching at a variety of speeds from any number of different angles and directions. It’s a nightmare.” As if inspired by this intimate revelation, Mansell suddenly became markedly more intense. His dull, nasal voice rose a tone and gained a new intensity. It was now like a cross between an embittered wasp and a particularly droning Gregorian chant. “Just take the situation at a roundabout,” he explained. “Now, there are no roundabouts on a typical Grand Prix circuit. Even Monaco or Detroit, which are run on street circuits, don’t have any roundabouts. But if you’re driving a bus, you’ve got to cope with roundabouts all the time. I hate that. I can never tell when to pull out into the roundabout without interfering with the oncoming traffic. And you’ve got to remember that a bus is very wide. It takes up a lot of road. Plus, it’s not half as

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quick off the mark as my Ferrari. It just doesn’t have the engine management systems. So, what I’m trying to say is, I could pull out into the middle of the road and I could discover, after I had already committed myself to the manoeuvre, as it were, that I was causing an obstruction to vehicles that were approaching from the right...well, I ask you, it doesn’t bear thinking about, does it?” I tried to interrupt at this point, but Mansell had gone beyond the point of no return. “And it’s not just the roundabouts, or even the righthand turns, either. It’s the whole matter of refuelling. In a Grand Prix you’ve got someone who tells you on the radio when it’s time to refuel. You get a message, you go into the pits at the appropriate moment, you sit there for ten seconds while they fill you up and then, Bob’s your uncle, you’re off and away. “But when it comes to a bus station, there’s just not the same kind of technical support. How am I meant to know when the bus has run out of fuel if there isn’t somebody telling me about it? I could run out of petrol, for example, right in the middle of a roundabout, causing an obstruction. As I say, interfering with oncoming vehicles, and what am I meant to say to the police? I can’t just say ‘Don’t you know who I am? I’m Nigel Mansell, I’ll have you know I’m a Special Postman’. I mean, it isn’t going to wash. And that’s not to mention...” As Mansell whinged on I gently got up from the table and tiptoed off towards the mechanics’ table. “Excuse me,” I said, “has anyone got a drink? I’m desperate.” “Izza whatsa matter?” enquired a friendly Italian technician. “I’ve just been talking to Nigel Mansell,” I replied. “Sheet,” he said. “You better hava whole bottle. That Neegel. Eeza greata driver. But mamma Mia, eez ee boring!” 

PRE-SEASON TEAM KARTING THRUXTON 30th March 2013

he annual Pre-Season Team Karting race took place on Saturday, 30th March at the usual venue, the challenging outdoor track at Thruxton. Because the date of the event was also Easter Saturday, some of the regular kart drivers had conflicting family engagements for the Bank Holiday which may have accounted for a slightly reduced field from usual. Despite this, 13 teams (about 60 drivers) assembled on a cold but mostly dry day for this 2hour endurance race. Following briefing by a remote Tiff Needell (his informative chat was televised) each driver was dispatched on to the circuit for a mandatory three laps of qualifying, with the fastest time recorded determining the team grid position. Our hosts, as usual, were Pirelli who fielded two teams – Trofeo and Team Yorkshire, the latter including some lady drivers from their Burton headquarters. Also entered with two squads

were preparers RnR, accurately named RnR ONE and RnR TWO. Previous winners Meals on Wheels were without their team principal, Ben Orza (holed up in the Czech Republic in a snow storm). However, they also produced a second string team under the title Kartology. Of the others, PHR leader Derek Seymour was the manager of the much fancied Three Plus One while our pals from QV had sent some of their younger generation into battle with the singular name Solos. Fergies

Photos by SwiftyPix

Rascals are regular contestants under the managership of the Mondial racer Ray Ferguson and Rosneath Engineering looked useful with their lead driver, Pirelli Classic competitor Richard Stafford. Stuart Bitmead, proprietor of SB Engineering (preparers of Paul Bailey’s race 458 Italia) was in charge of the team of this name and The Fruity Boys consisted mainly of friends and relations of multi-Ferrari owner Wayne Marrs. Proceedings were punctuated by an excellent buffet

That’s Richard Stafford in 2nd place, looking more Teletubby than Sebastian Vettel with his strange on-helmet camera.

CompRes 11

lunch, also arranged by our generous hosts. The racing was, as usual, fast and furious, there were no casualties other than a minor injury to Pirelli race engineer Shaun Marriottâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s elbow (he had a slight argument with one of the barriers), and a great time was had by all. The results are shown on the attached table with the honour of the fastest race lap (in a rousing 1:01.227) going to Rosneath Engineering.

Position

Team

Qualify

Laps

Duration

Meals on Wheels

1:03.030

111

2:00:08.36

RnR Two

1:04.388

111

+0:53.63

Three Plus One

1: 04.483

110

+ 1 lap

Kartology

1:04.686

109

+ 2 laps

Cinturato

1:03.797

109

+ 2 laps

Solos

1:04.799

108

+ 3 laps

RnR One

1:08.947

107

+ 4 laps

Rosneath Engineering

1:04.286

107

+ 4 laps

Fergies Rascals

1: 05.453

107

+ 4 laps

Trofeo

1: 04.971

106

+ 5 laps

Fruity Boys

1:06.627

105

+ 6 laps

SB Race Engineering

1:06.241

105

+ 6 laps

Team Yorkshire

1:15.859

101

+10 laps

Track length 836 metres

Fastest lap 1:01.227 by Rosneath Engineering

CompRes 12

PIRELLI FERRARI formula classic LAP RECORDS to end 2012 TIME

SPEED (mph)

328GTB

55.355

76.70

Ben Cartwright

328GTB

55.845

77.86

David Tomlin

308GTB

55.315

78.61

Nick Whittaker

308GT4

58.874

73.86