Qualifying. The third visit to Santa Pod of the year played host the Summer Nationals, with only a week passing by since the previous event it was going to test not only the machines but also the teams' resources! Owing to the rain, it was Saturday afternoon before the cars got a look at the track. First out were Craig Gibbs and Graham Ellis. After missing the previous round the Obsession team were hoping to have seen the back of the persistent misfire problem that had plagued their season so far. After a slight hesitation away from the line the Camaro headed of down the track to card a promising 8.369 @ 160 mph. Although it was his first pass in the Cutlass since damaging the engine at the Big Bang, Graham was never going to be tip-toeing around and the Olds recorded a well sorted 7.68 @ 176 mph for low ET of the session. Next up were Simon Farmer and Andy Kirk. After his slalom at the Big Bang following a tyre explosion, Simon and Crew Chief Vince had repaired the damage and taken the opportunity to upgrade the drivetrain in the Nova and were rewarded with a new personal best of 8.288 @ 163 mph to take the Obsession Motorsports' "Personal Best Award". After struggling to come to grips with the newly installed rear suspension setup at the last event, the Kirk Motorsport team were looking for big things from the Camaro this time out. Despite a relatively soft launch, Rat Fink™ responded to a few minor tweaks and notched up a solid 8.020 @ 167 mph. Rounding out the first session were the F&M Racing team, headed by Andy Hone. After discovering some crankshaft damage at the culmination of the previous event, Fred, Mick and the rest of the team performed a mammoth task and got the Scorpio ready just in time. Andy decided to take it easy on the first pass and a no-nitrous 14.174 @ 101 mph ensured the Gleeson Wright backed Ford got a number on the board. The second session on Saturday evening opened with the two Camaros of Craig Gibbs and Andy Kirk. Despite a slight cough away from the line hampering progress, Craig kept his foot firmly planted to the bulkhead and recorded an 8.249 @159.52 to home in on a return to the 7 second zone. Speaking of the 7 second zone, despite their best efforts this was a magic figure that had so far eluded Andy Kirk and the team in competition. After studying data from the previous pass and adjusting the clutch to suit, the '67 ripped off a new personal best of 7.829 @ 170 mph to bypass the 7.90's and give the team some hope (maybe it was the lucky charm on the startline?).The next pair saw Graham Ellis stamping some further authority on the class with an astounding 7.652 @ 176 mph, as Simon Farmer was unable to improve. Rounding out Saturday's activity was Andy Hone. With the nitrous system again firmly switched on the Scorpio reeled off a strong but safe 8.080 @ 167 mph. Sunday morning provided a final qualifying opportunity for the teams and after his previous lap Andy Kirk was itching for another pass! Proving it was no fluke the Camaro was wheels-up and away to improve again with a 7.816 @ 170 to solidify the car into the 7's. In the other lane Simon Farmer was just shy of imrpoving on his previous ET with an 8.292 @ 160. Prior to this Graham Ellis and Craig Gibbs were trying to improve on their earlier passes. Despite their best efforts, the Obsession team were still unable to get to the bottom of their nitrous gremlins. An 8.52 @ 158 mph was the result and much head-scratching was abound in the Gibbs family pit area. After looking pretty much invinsible so far, Graham Ellis encountered some transmission gremlins on his run and was forced to abort to prevent the reverser from ingesting itself. Final qualifying positions were as follows: .
Andy Hone was drawn out of the hat by honoury SMRA track rep, Lee Kirk to receive the £50 qualifying bonus from Obsession Motorsports. Eliminations Round 1 Owing to his number one spot, Graham Ellis was rewarded with a bye. Despite a bit of a thrash due to the transmission damage, the Cutlass was all present and correct with plenty of time to spare to record a 7.759 @ 176 mph. Next out were Simon Farmer and Andy Kirk. After a couple of personal bests in qualifying, Simon was hoping for further improvements from the Belmont Auto Services Nova, while Andy Kirk was wanting to solidify the Camaro's 7 second credentials. Andy got the slight advantage away from the line and carried it all the way through, despite succumbing to tire spin on the launch. 7.888 @ 169 covered Simon's 8.32 @ 162 mph. After discovering some signs of debris in the oil filter at the culmination of Saturday's action, Andy Hone skipped Sunday's final session to concentrate on eliminations. Despite the team's efforts to get the Scorpio rebuilt and to the track, the Chevy lump was wounded and Fred just staged for the points. In the other lane was Craig Gibbs who was desperatley trying to get the beautiful SID built creation to run a number. Again the Z/28 stuttered away from the line but found it's feet and carded a 8.825 @130 mph for a date with the Oldsmobile. Semi-Finals First of the semi-finals pitted Graham Ellis against Craig Gibbs. As Graham confirmed any doubts about the integrity of the transmission with an 7.733 @ 176 mph, a dejected Craig Gibbs emerged from the car around 100ft. out as it refused to play ball and came to a halt. On the other side of the ladder was Andy Kirk who was greeted with a bye. After another bout of wheelspin away from the startline the PSI backed mount dug in and charged to a 7.892 @ 170. Final For the first time ever it was Graham Ellis and Andy Kirk in the final. Despite a 3 hundreths of a second jump away from the line by the Camaro, Graham had recovered the lost ground by the 330ft. mark. However, by half track the Clive Bond tuned Chevy under the hood of Rat Fink™ was really on song and hunting down the Oldsmobile's lead. Around 700ft and they were neck and neck but a missed shift and a visit to the rev limiter left Andy wondering what could have been. Graham carded a 7.715 @ a staggering 177mph to best Andy's valiant 7.880 effort. With a couple of cars returning to the fray and a couple more promised at the Bug Jam, the road to the National Finals is set to become increasingly challenging. Although the Ellis Racing team posess a healthy lead at the top of the points, the emergence of some promising E.T's from the Kirk Motorsport team could make it less than easy. There are plenty of other cars snapping at their heels too so with the excellent track conditions normally exploited at the Bug Jam it should make for an interesting outcome. Stay tuned!...... |
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