MENZIES AND A RECORD-BREAKING GOULD SHARE THE SPOILS AT LOTON PARK HILLCLIMB
Organiser: Hagley & District Light Car Club When: September 28-29 Where: Loton Park, Alberbury, nr Shrewsbury Starters: 120.
New British Hillclimb champion Wallace Menzies took victory in the penultimate round of the competition at Loton Park last weekend to underline his speed this season.
In changeable weather conditions throughout the morning outings and into the first top-12 run-off, it was
Alex Summers in his DJ Firestorm who finished second in the timesheets. That was enough to guarantee the former title winner second place in the points for 2019.
Summers had set a 51.01-second run with only two competitors left to make an attempt and looked like a strong bet to take the round glory. The penultimate runner, Zach Zammit in his Empire Wraith, clocked a 52.40s and Summers breathed a sigh of relief.
However, last to go was Menzies, who had already wrapped up the title last time out at Gurston Down, in his Gould GR59. He blasted up the track in 50.17s to eclipse Summers and snatch the spoils away.
For the second run-off of the day and the final round of the 2019, the track was drying and the drivers had the chance to use slicks and the times were much faster than the previous round.
Sean Gould put himself in the record books once again in his Gould GR59J. Gould set the fastest qualifying time of the day and was last to run in the second showdown.
Multiple title-winner Scott Moran has held the hill record since 2012 with a time of 43.52s. However, that benchmark was eclipsed by Gould. He clocked a 43.27s and he took the bonus point for setting his scorching pace.
Moran (Gould GR61X) was second from Menzies, with Richard Spedding (GWR Raptor) and Will Hall’s Force WH-XTEC) reinforcing his earlier fourth place with a fifth spot.
Outgoing champion Trevor Willis, in his OMS 28, had a spin at Fallow that put him out of contention to qualify for the second top-12 run-off.
Also during the top-12 run-off, Graham Wynn (Gould GRW59) hit and dislodged a flip flop through Keepers corner which resulted in a one-second penalty to his time and that consigned him to 10th spot.
Zammit also had an issue with his second run-off run when his rear wing on his Empire Wraith failed. Unknowingly, he turned left into Fallow from the high-speed Cedar straight and the rear end let go and spun him around and out of any points.
Results
Round 33
1 Wallace Menzies (Gould GR59) 50.17s; 2 Alex Summers
(DJ Firestorm) 51.01s; 3 Will Hall (Force WH-XTEC) 52.18s; 4 Eynon Price (Force TA) 52.38s; 5 Zachary Zammit (Empire Wraith) 52.40s; 6 Richard Spedding (GWR Raptor) 52.61s; 7 Trevor Willis (OMS 28) 52.70s; 8 Scott Moran (Gould GR61X) 52.87s; 9 Graham Wynn (Gould GRW 59) 52.98s; 10 Matt Ryder (Empire Wraith) 54.19s; 11 David Warburton (Gould GR59) 54.19s; 12 Jack Cottrill (Force PT) 54.81s.
Round 34
1 Sean Gould (Gould GR59J DB4) 43.27s; 2 Moran 43.94s; 3 Menzies 44.05s; 4 Spedding 44.38s; 5 Hall 44.73s; 6 Summers 44.88s; 7 Price 44.16s; 8 Dave Uren (Gould GR55B) 46.21s; 9 Paul Haimes (Gould GR59) 47.05s; 10 Wynn 48.69s;
11 Zammit DNF; 12 Warburton DNS.
Points (after 34/34 rounds): 1 Menzies 264pts;
2 Summers 220; 3 Dave Uren 195; 4 Spedding 191;
5 Willis 166; 6 Hall 157.