Walker is Miles faster in Autumn Classic
PHILIP WALKER AND MILES GRIFFITHS were the big winners as the GT & Sports Car Cup made a sensational event debut before a knowledgeable and appreciative audience at last Saturday’s sixth Castle Combe Autumn Classic.
On his first outing at Combe, Walker waged war from the start in his two-litre Lotus 15, trading the lead with Ben Adams (Lola Mk1) and Mark Williams (AC Cobra) as battles raged throughout the superlative 39-car field. A mandatory one-minute single-driver pit hold disadvantaged Adams and ignition problems hindered Williams in the final reckoning.
“It’s great racing with Philip,” said Griffiths, who had qualified second in the grizzly wet conditions that blighted the morning. “He did the hard work. My job was to keep it running, not make mistakes and bring it home. The car ran faultlessly.”
As pole-starter Chris Milner kept his Jaguar E-type in contention for Nigel Greensall to beat a strong Healey posse for GT3 honours, Williams and Chris Wilson topped the GT set in their Cobras. Williams clipped a car while leading overall, resuming fourth (sans headlight) behind Wilson, but thereafter his V8’s ignition timing slipped, blunting its power. When the unrelated Nigel Williams took Wilson’s car over, Mark regained third as his rival slowed. TVR Granturas topped GT2, Rick Bourne/ Malcolm Paul beating Joe Ward/hugh Colman by 25 seconds.
Having “thrown some resource” at making his Frazer Nash Super Sports quicker, to counter an ever greater threat from Eddie Williams in Charles Gillett’s example, Patrick Blakeney-edwards repeated last year’s Vintage victory over a record field on a drying track.
Tim Kneller (Riley) and tricyclist Sue Darbyshire (Morgan) were promoted to third and fourth after Mark Gillies (Aston Martin) was penalised for gaining two places before the green flag after a safety car interlude, called when Trevor Swete’s Invicta struck the Camp tyre wall on lap one.
“Well, that’s a first, but the Nortons will come flying past if it’s dry this afternoon,” grinned John Chisholm, who slithered his oft-recalcitrant Arnott-jap to 500cc F3 pole – by 3.609s – in horrid rain. It was, and they did, Darrell Woods and Xavier Kingsland jostling through to record a tremendous one-two for Staride cars. That Jon Erskine, son of constructor Mike, witnessed the marque’s finest historic hour made the result extra special. Stuart Wright’s Jap-engined Cooper Mk11 took third while Chisholm’s Arnott expired, having run sixth.
The Norman Dewis Trophy Jaguar race also started from a topsy-turvy grid, with 2016 winner Kevin Zwolinski’s XK140 on pole, hemmed-in by saloons, with Grant Williams fifth on his E-type debut. Williams made a demon start to lead by Folly, but Harry Wyndham bustled his trusty FHC through from ninth to second in two laps, then clawed past the clutchless Williams to win. Chris Milner snared fastest lap in beating