Got Me A New Toy .......

The way we do it, it is. None of the slow handbrake turn stuff, we save that for the tar.
That was a slow one, one at the end of the month is on a huge flat field, that is a bloody laugh.

 

4th Grass test event. I really like this site, big, flat'ish and bit more speed. Pleased to get 6th overall on the day, but did lose about 10 seconds on my 4th run by having to loop round to get a gate I nearly missed . Made no difference overall, but still don't like to make mistakes.
My overall time was only 107% of the quickest, which is the best I've done so far (111% previous best) this year. Only my first full year in my own car, so plenty of time to improve and get into the top 5 regularly.



Grace did really well too, 2nd in Ladies and a top 10 finish. Shame she hit a cone on her first run, otherwise would have been 9th. She beat some expierenced men, so well chuffed for her. Her 1st runs are always really slow, just needs to get confidence to push from the off.

The fella that finished 8th, managed to roll his Fiesta on his 3rd run You can see the black mark on the score sheet. We rolled it back onto it's wheels, cut the windscreen out, topped up the engine oil, belted the roof up with a sledgehammer and he continued on racing

 

Depends on how rough the ground is. We all run sumpguards, but there is a lot of granite around Dumfries and Galloway. Plus if you are going for it, you do bounce around and doesn't take much to bend the front panel under the radiator.
You could always to them a lot tighter, so the speeds can't be too high, plus stick in some reversal gates, etc.
A lot of our members are also stage rally, so they enjoy the bit of speed.

 

I believe it is possible to rent this place out for events... The grass is nice and level and won’t damage sumps. They might get a teeny bit vexed with people doing donuts on the grass...



Alternatively you could hold your events on Trumps Golf course in Balmedie, Aberdeen. The advantage is that for additional competitive pressure you have to avoid the Secret Service agents and people dressed like Rupert Bear on the fairways... Or not, depending on how you wish to score your trials.

 

Skip to 1:55 (not learnt video editing)


New location again today, friend of mine let us use her land. Pleased with the results, managed 8th overall, and got a 3rd in class. Always like to get placed, as you get mentioned and a wee round of applause from those attending



I was 11th before the final run, so really put the boot down and went as hard as i dare. No cones hit today, so I'm now on 3 clear events.

 

A proper photographer was there today !!!

 

When I'm done with it, it'll be just a pile of sweepings.

 

Is that a testament to your mechanical skills?

Just kidding!

PS - loved the videos.

 

More of a testament to what we do to that poor wee car

 

Thought it was time the road wheels needed to be white, to match other two sets.
1 down, 3 to go.
This hot weather is great for paint drying times

 

Busy day on the Mini today.......

Drilled out the front bumper to make it easier to take off, gotta love a toy when you don't care about extra holes in the bodywork


ANd the reason why, was to fit an aux cooling fan. Got a 12" reversible job of a pal of mine, so chucked that on.





With all the stop/starts/thrash that 3 of us do on a days autotesting, it does get a bit hot, so I am going to just run this permenantely on. Hopefully the battery can cope with it, we'll see.

ANd then.....



Found these on Facebook. £60 for 4 alloys and tyres. Plenty of tread left on them, and the're winter tyres, so will be used for 12 cars and we're also going to do a Targa Rally in September. Full gravel tyres would be good, but they are banned from targas, due to damage they cause to the surface, I believe.

Spo thats now 4 sets of wheels/tyres I now own for the Mini

16" Road Tyres
15" Winter tyres
15" Gravel (grass tests)
15" Toyo R888's (tar tests)

 

It’s actually where you have mounted the forward looking machine guns isn’t it?!?

 

Doing our first Targa rally next month, which means we need two of us in the car - driver & navigator. A Targa rally is a mix of racing round cones and speed through farm/ forest tracks, a poor man's rally, compared to full stage rallying. Entry is only £100, as opposed to £500+ for a stage rally.

So picked up a s/h seat for £25, daughters repaired the rip, cleaned it and I sprayed it with Autoglym black die. Think we did a nice job.