Last weekend was the opening round of the British 1/10th IC on road championship, hosted by the ever popular Cotswoldâ™s Model Car Club with the Kemble Airfield, Cirencester.
The Saturday saw a hive of activity both on the track and in the pits with many racers either tweaking their new kit or practising hard to get rid of their rusty thumbs in what has seemed a long winter without racing.
As ever in this class the NT1 car proved very popular, around a quarter of the participants running the NT1 2013 chassis. Xray drivers, Simon Wood, Peter Spratley, Lee Chapman, Richard Boult, showed good pace within Saturday practice and other regulars such as Jon Withington, Mark Owen and Matt Williams improved throughout the day . Weather was playing a large part of the racers preparations and choices as rain was forecast for the Sunday!.
Another Random Jon Withington paint scheme for 2014!
Race day came and despite a very dull sky the track was dry to start with, however the forecast remained the same with rain expected. Due to this drivers knew that it was important to put an early quick run in. Everyone was concentrating hard on their pace as the skies continued to look threatening.
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In the Sports GT class, the NT1 2013 converted 220mm cars of Lee Chapman and Richard Boult were plenty quick enough to secure an A-final position throughout qualification (in fact Lee Chapman did his special rain dance and prayed for the rain!).
In 200mm touring Simon Wood held his usual calm composure and consistently held a top five qualification spot ready for his final. XRAY driver Peter Spratley, having recently returned from some pre season testing and practice in Monaco was showing that his Orcan powered NT1 2013 was a force to be reckoned with.
Round three qualification times proved vital and as the skies darkened even further and the predicted rain came down. Peter Spratley knew that his fastest time was good enough to secure him 10th place in the touring A-final as nobody would improve in round four. Now all dad Nick had to do was work out a fuel and tyre strategy for the 30 minute wet final.
With the rain still coming down a decision was made to commence with the finals, it was all about finding some grip out there, many drivers opting for rubber tyres. It was also so important to have a a car that could finish to race to, with waterproofing being the key.
In the 200mm touring B-final XRAY drivers Jon Withington, Mark Owen and Matt Willaims made different choices on tyres to complete this 25 minute long race. Mark Owen had just the thing in his pit box and took an early lead which was hard to catch. Jon Withington battled hard in the increasingly bad conditions to bring his XRAY NT1 in for third place.
The 220mm GT A-final was up next, with the rain still coming down Richard Boult and Lee Chapman persevered well to keep their NT1's running. The standing water on the track was now causing issues and it was inevitable that engine / electric problems would cause issues for drivers.
200mm Touring A-final got going straight after, many drivers had various attachments and ideas fitted to their cars to stop water ingress as much as possible. Three cars stood out as having an advantage in these poor racing conditions one of which being the NT1 2013 of Peter Spratley. As the race continued over the 30 minute period some drivers suffered either mechanical or electrical failures. Peter Spratley drove a superb race from his starting position to bring his ultra reliable NT1 Orcan powered chassis up through the field and into at a respectable third place.
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Final results:
Touring 200mm B Final
1. Mark Owen - XRAY NT1
2. Devendra Mahatme 3. Jon Withington - XRAY NT1
Sports GT Class A Final
1. Jason Thompson
2. Mark Newby
3. Bob Harley
4. Peter Hellawell
5. Devendra Mahatme
6. Glyn Beal 7. Richard Boult - XRAY NT1
8. Lee Chapman - XRAY NT1
9. Andrew Gregory
10. Martin Trice
Touring 200mm A Final
1. Mark Green
2. John Zottl 3. Peter Spratley - XRAY NT1
4. Neil Wallace
5. Joe Kerry
6. James Conolly
7. Alex Thurston
8. Andrew Hastings
9. Peter Hastings 10. Simon Wood - XRAY NT1
