Kitching and North on top

Henry Kitching won the first part of the Welsh Car Trial weekend at a very wet Cymru to become the seventh winner in the British championship this year.

Kitching slowly opened a decisive lead over Mark Hoppe in the New Car class as conditions deteriorated with heavy rain.

It was Kitching’s first win since claiming the Gold Star last October. Yorkshire driver Rupert North, who usually excels in North Wales, finished second and dropped the lowest marks.

The rear-wheel-drive class saw a close battle between Dave Oliver, Barrie Parker and Nigel Weeks. They were covered by less than 10 points with Oliver winning.

Rupert North won the HCC Car Trial near Prestatyn, in slippery conditions. North dominated his Small Car class to win by nearly 100 points.

Kitching and Hoppe continued their close class battle and, after 22 hills, were tied for position, but two star climbs by Kitching gave him the class and second overall. Dave Walker finished an encouraging third in class.

1 Henry Kitching (Vauxhall Corsa) 75.7 per cent; 2 Rupert North (Rover Mini) 89.9 per cent; 3 Mark Hoppe (Citroen Saxo); 4 Dave Oliver (Hillman Imp); 5 Barrie Parker (Westfield SEI); 6 Nigel Weeks (Hillman Imp); 7 Richard Pain (Toyota Starlet); 8 Kevin Roberts (Dutton Phaeton); 9 Tim Beard (Citroen Saxo); 10 David Allman (Citroen Saxo).

Organiser: Guernsey Motor Cycle and Car Club When: July 16 Starters: 100

On the southern outskirts of St Peter Port, with the seafront startline and promenade paddock, Val de Terres is the Monaco of British motorsport.

A larger field than on Jersey two days earlier and a road reopening time of 1730hrs, presented a challenge that was met, matched and beaten by the organisers.

But after winning twice on Jersey on Thursday, Trevor Willis met his match in the form of Scott Moran, who delivered one of his hillclimbing lessons to the usual suspects – with the exception of local superstar Darren Warwick, who pushed him all the way to the final short straight and tight finishing bend.

There was no recordbreaking run-off pace in either round as the public road – a main bus route – was dusty after recent heavy rain had left dirt on the surface.

Following Moran’s victory in the opener, ahead of second-placed Warwick, the winner said: “There is a 26s run in this car: it’s all about