A reminder
and...
Summary of
the 02/03 season....
Round
One:
Conditions:
Dry & Fair.
Sorry about
the lack of
snow & fog on the moors everyone. Next time.
Anyway,
smashing turnout for another season opener. Keep it up. Nice to see new faces,
let's look after them…
With the
start & finish venue at Wall under
Haywood near Church Stretton, the route consisted of three sections beginning
with a short loop over Stone Acton, through Soudley, back to the B, followed by
a trip up & over Hazler Hill. SF1 was then located just S of The Hough,
crews then forced straight into two with a mirror image circular herringbone to
play with. A pre-planned amendment caused no problems but the “yellow”
lay-bye near Felhampton surely did. A short sect two finished just W of Woolston,
not before crews had tackled the vicious Gate Ho yump with gusto!
At 28km,
sect three, beginning near Plowden was
obviously where the event would be won or lost. This proved a correct assumption
as Roberts/Smalley proceeded to plot code boards with serious accuracy. Mynd
Town, Boiling Well, Ratlinghope & Robin Hoods Butts (!) made up the filling
in a very verge-less sandwich.
Newcomers,
Bentley/Franklin, Ben Taylor (running with olde hand Matt his
brother,) & SimonM, (having to run expert because of his driver’s status,)
all produced excellent performances “over the top”.
A
navigationally
unsettling trip SE to All Stretton allowed crews to loop
under the actual event finish to take in the wicked hairpin at Womerton.
Finishing sect three at Inwood, competitors travelled the 9km back to
"Wall", collected their thoughts and checked all twenty (!)
references. Results, finalised at 22.40 showed a class win for Ben & Matt
Taylor. Dropping only 71 points out of a max 400, the winning crew are going to
take just a little beating come Round two.
Results:
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st "Timo" Roberts Richard Smalley Polo E 0 072
2nd Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 0 104
3rd Paul Bunch David Clayton Avensis E 0 143
4th Pete Bonds Chrys Bonds Isuzu E 0 151
5th Anthony Ellis Simon Matthews Vaux E 0 210
6th Matt Taylor Ben Taylor Metro N 0 238
7th Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 1 117
8th "H" Andy Rousell Ford E 4 200
9th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 6 204
10th Simon Bentley James Franklin Mini N 6 265
11th Nic Nicolaou Dave Millard Peugeot N 8 234
Round Two:
Conditions:
Rain & Fog:
The rains arrived as if on queue, but they certainly didn't seem to
dampen anyone's spirits! The now familiar Hundred House greeted ten eager crews
and a relatively straightforward plot. Or so we thought! This was to allow us to
set out and enjoy three sections, which ultimately circled Knighton & Clun.
Starting near Hopton Castle competitors dropped S to Bedstone, keeping away from
'B' roads, we then circled down & through Bucknell to then drive due W courting
the River Teme. Crews finished the section prior to a run through Knighton. The
good olde fashioned triangle certainly seemed to be in fashion this night but
certain crews had, critically, missed one already!
The filling or in this case the mist in the
sandwich, arrived on S2. A climb to 400m levels taking in Upper Dolwilkin & a
slide down to Heyop compounded our problems with pretty poor visibility.
Crossing through Knucklas we again joined the Teme & via the lovely h/pin L in
sq2377, the route then headed N to an awkward Stoney Pound slot. On to an
equally foggy Spoad Hill, S2 ended just W of Clun & with the remaining section,
beer & stew seemed a distinct possibility!
Woodside
& Fiddlers Elbow paved the way to Obley, the cracking Llanadevy h/pin not being
utilized on this occasion. N to Cwn & a small re-route (bridge out,) via
Twitchen brought R2 to a close. Due thanks go to Chrys & Pete, not to forget the
cook! Fancied runners SimonR/RichardS fell at the first hurdle, as did your
scribe, missing the M at triangle 1! Another great result from Kingstanding lads
Nicolaou/Millard, (that must be a 50mile trip to start,) 4th o/a
first in class. Sorted. Well done too, Mick, Jon & Richard, 2nd in
class. Nick/Julie have this annoying habit of making the podium, this time 2nd
o/a. It's one I wouldn't mind! They take an early Challenge lead. Well done then
to the o/a winners on the eve, PeteB/ElwynM.
R3, a little W of J14 M6 brings with it a brand new challenge. Can our Welsh
wizard go for the double in Staffordshire?
Results:
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Pete Beards Elwyn Manuel WRCar E 0 035
2nd Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 0 043
3rd Paul Bunch David Clayton Ford E 0 084
4th Nic Nicolaou Dave Millard Peugeot N 0 090
5th "Timo" Roberts Rich Smalley/Sam RobertsPolo E 1 056
6th Karen Matthews Phil Matthews Ford E 1 057
7th Mick Cooper Jon Martin/Rich Cooper Vaux N 1 090
8th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 3 100
9th Ian Jarman Simon Matthews Ford E 6 174
10th Simon Bentley James Franklin Mini N 7 205
Round Three:
Conditions:
Rain &
Mud:
With a route
divided N & S of the A518 Newport/Stafford Rd,
unfamiliarity sprinkled with just a touch of mud deemed that for most it was to
be trick or treat immediately! Paul/Dave's now obligatory lay bye start venue
(helped ably by returnee Gwyneth L) saw ten crews assemble. Route instruction
was precise & to the point. So precise in fact that 80% of entrants were to
fail at the very first junction! Never take your finger of the pumpkin with
these two; clever play on words forced most the long way into Pyebirch Manor! On
through the short S1 which ended simply near the A519. A longer S2 included
Knightly Dale & Ranton before F2, Haughtondale just S of Four Lanes End.
S3 offered little in the way
of respite from muddy conditions, in fact, making matters worse, the Church
Eaton lanes are renowned for many not as map bends. S3 then circled round Church
Eaton to include an amendment caused by the v-swollen ford at Apeton. An
entrance to the local sewage works concealed the orgs, ready to pounce &
supply crews with route info for the final section. Starting in earnest near
Plardiwick we endured the final 20 miles taking in some well quick lanes through
Shelmore Wood, the floods near Aqualate Mere & end the evening with a run
past High Onn & the clever final CB just prior to Lapley.
Now - the last time I saw a pile
that high, Simon Roberts had just opened his wallet! I'm talking about the chips
of course, fair spread. Well done's must go to the organizing crew & the pub
staff. Class winners once again & taking a clear lead in the Nov section;
Nick N & Dave M. A stunning three 2nd o/a's on the trot hand Nick
& Julie D a useful advantage o/a.
Well,
it was a Land rover type night; this one "cruised" around, the crew hot foot from a hol in Greece. Excellent stuff from Jane & Jon T. Jane's
first o/a win… more to come
Results:
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 1 084
2nd Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 1 089
3rd Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 2 097
4th Karen Matthews Phil/Simon Matthews Ford E 2 100
5th "Timo" Roberts Rich Smalley/SamRoberts Polo E 2 106
6th Pete Bonds Chris Bonds Trooper E 2 110
7th Nic Nicolaou Dave Millard Peugeot N 2 138
8th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 2 146
9th Simon Bentley Philippa Bentley Mini N 3 152
10th Dom Fratorolli Tony Fratorolli Suzuki N 8 220
Round Four:
Conditions:
Rain
& mud.
It's perhaps
a good thing that Andy chose a large PH for the
finish venue. We needed it! Welcome to all the new, (& olde!) faces, well
done to all. As you know, placing is only allowed for the top 12 crews, having
said that, everyone finished.
A rare Cosford
start preceded what was to be a
slightly controversial section, but it was agreed that the organizers decision
is always final. A tricky loop past
Tong Lodge & Tong led us onto the M54! This was only the 2nd time
in NE history that a m/way has been part of the set route. J4 led us to the even
trickier loop N & then back to an old favorite… Wyke road. The next SH
section allowed crews to drop S through Kemberton, Grindle & Beckbury. Onto
138, half way at St James Garage followed by the mud in the sandwich. Oldbury,
Astbury & the Highley ford road. Finish now in sight, crews traveled N
through Scriven to finish at the spacious Down Inn just outside Bridgnorth.
Thanks Andy for your time & patience, well done to Mozza accompanied by
Vicki Price for the class win. Julie/Nick, sexy plotting as usual, a healthy
challenge lead-r-us.
Results:
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 0 015
2nd "Timo" Roberts Rich Smalley/Sam Roberts Polo E 0 025
3rd Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 1 033
4th Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 1 036
5th Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 1 039
6th Pete Bonds Chris Bonds Trooper E 1 040
7th Karen Matthews Phil/Simon Matthews Ford E 1 048
8th Mozza Morris Vicki Price Nissan N 1 050
9th Ian Williams Edwin Hughes Vaux N 1 058
10th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 2 050
11th Dick Lee Karl Ellis & Elaine Tigre E 2 055
12th Mick Cooper Jon Martin Vaux N 3 074
Round Five:
Conditions...
smooth...
Did
you notice the Bentley's faces as the results, in reverse order as
usual, were announced? Must be next, can't be any higher, must be next… Mick
& Jon also, always give their best, smashing result. From me then, congrats
to all, whether first or last on a night that could have turned nasty in the
lanes, every one dun good.
The
Route: Crews
had been pre-fed with a reasonably serious h/bone so just a few ice notes to
plot at the start venue & off. First of two sections began at SH52, looped
round Leighton to skirt W of the Wrekin (complete with the first ice section.) N
to Aston & across the 54, Wrockwardine & that not as map slot
right. From here the normally std lane W to Charlton was affected by serious
snow & ice ruts for 1km but few probs for crews. A CB free run around
Isombridge to Rodington had the navs visiting most x-roads more than once
en-route to Upton Magna &, dropping S, the very awkward 90L @ Preston. With
the end of sect 1 at Berwick Wharf, crew's enjoyed 3km`s to have a minute before
sect two. Straight in then with the famed Wroxeter triangles and a muddy run
through to Dryton! The remainder of R5 caught a few nav`s out at the Charlton
Hill h/pin R, that after they managed to ascend a very treacherous approach. A
quick loop back through to Rushton allowed a reasonably dry run back via Eaton
Constantine to base.
What it's all about...
Hat`s off to
Ellis/Jarman & the very competitive Bunch/Clayton on a night where some
fancied runners fell down. Nice
also to see two
new crew's out. Thing's are rosy just now, we also need the weather to be good,
we will see…
Results:
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 1 119
2nd Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 1 125
3rd Philippa Bentley Simon Bentley Mini N 1 147
4th Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 1 186
5th "H" Andy Rousell Ford E 2 169
6th Mick Cooper Jon Martin Vaux N 3 169
7th Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 3 199
8th Matt Taylor Ben Taylor Metro N 3 320
9th Pete Beards Elwyn Manuel Shogun E 4 170
10th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 4 202
11th Rob O'Dowd David O'Dowd Audi N 4 232
12th Nic Nicolaou Dave Millard Vaux N 4 235
Round
Six:
Would
you trust this pair with your results service...
Smilie...
Seventy Five up is something I think we can all be proud of. I was
certainly proud to win that one, but nonetheless, it was a surprise for us both!
Anyway,
dropped scores now come into play… keep an eye on the table. This
challenge isn't over yet! The
Route: After
an initial panic whilst trying to unravel the additional instructions crews were
faced with a trip across the Severn to start SS1 just W of Upper Farmcote.
Clever use of the detail provided forced us straight over all x-roads, this
directed us E just S of Claverley & on to Halfpenny Green. Local classics
followed in the shape of the Morfe House Farm yellow & on up to the
seriously muddy Beobridge sump cracker! A blast through Sytch Ho allowed us to
drive through 5 ways & the sect finish just prior to the A458.
Sect 2 kicked off near the Down,
dropped S to Scriven then looped W to take in Sidbury & the cleverly
situated c/board near SH147. Looking forward to the ample display of home made,
cars then turned left at Chris Green`s junction and onto SF2 near Sutton.
Our own
Mr. Darkin admitted to a mistake, this has indeed helped to close the once
massive gap for top spot. Bunch/Clayton hold their own just of late, another 2nd
place would be very interesting. Simon & Richard have to miss a round, it's
all happening. Not least the Novice class. One point the diff now. Swan Inn is
to be responsible for quite a lot come 7th February!
Results:
Conditions:
Fine
but muddy.
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Karen Matthews Phil Matthews Ford E 0 066
2nd Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 0 104
3rd Chrys Bonds Pete Bonds Izuzu E 1 075
4th Pete Beards Elwyn Manuel Shogun E 1 102
5th Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 1 107
6th Nic Nicolaou Dave Millard Vaux N 2 113
7th Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 3 139
8th Philippa Bentley Simon Bentley Mini N 3 168
9th Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 5 159
10th Matt Taylor Ben Taylor/Emma Metro N 5 166
11th John Morris Vicki Price Nissan N 6 192
12th Mick Cooper Jon Martin/Rich Cooper Vaux N 6 199
Round Seven:
Corin
knows the score...
Handbrake
worked a treat...
Mr
Redman put his
**th Birthday to one side & presented us with another
of his now customary original events. Nice gesture that. Yet again the signing
on sheet was overflowing… what a great season.
The Route: A
deceptively long route started just off the B4368 & looped NE to Stanton
Long. The lanes just W of Brown Clee are difficult enough, but add a few well
placed code-boards, sprinkle with mud & a navigator definitely needs to look
sharp. Abdon, Cleemarsh & Cold Weston followed, the route then pointed due W
through Haytons Bent to drop down to Stanton Lacy. The very clever tulip
diagrams around Ludlow racecourse confused many but eventually we all trailed N
toward home with the now std loop around the finish venue for desert.
With
the top nine crews running 0 fails, the competition really was down to the wire.
With a spot of inspired plotting, Anth & Ian take a 2nd win this
season. This jumps them to 3rd o/a. Talking about 3rd,
look at the top nov crew up there. Brilliant result, I know that's done these
two chaps a power of good. The class lead comes as a bonus. Julie/Nick retain
the challenge lead, the Bunch/Clayton duo can still halt their win but, it's a
tall order.
Results:
Conditions:
Fine
but muddy.
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 0 029
2nd Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 0 043
3rd Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 0 049
4th Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 0 059
5th Karen Matthews Phil Matthews Ford E 0 067
6th Mick Cooper Jon Martin/Rich Cooper Vaux N 0 069
7th Pete Bonds Elwyn Manuel Isuzu E 0 073
8th "H" Andy Rousell/Chris Wood Ford E 0 081
9th Matt Taylor Ben Taylor/Emma Smith Metro N 0 090
10th Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 2 084
11th Nicolas Nicolaou Dave Millard Vaux N 4 120
12th Philippa Bentley Simon Bentley Mini N 4 132
R
ound Eight:
The things we get up to in the evening...
Apparently the
stew pot content is still going strong! Anyway, before I do the thank you stuff
just have a look at the novice positions; looks good to me, this is what we have
been striving for since… well… it's quite a while anyway. Good stuff. Nice
one orgs. (Kate, I'm still not sure how you managed to concentrate whilst
scoring sat that close to the bar!)
Another challenge win, in style
with 1st on the eve, Julie/NickD…
very well done. The Nov class of course, goes down to the wire. Almost
anyone can take the award after the ninth round; Even R8 class winners Matt/Ben
& Emma could feasibly take the trophy!
The Route: A
Kwik Fit start venue presented many (!) crews with even more 8fig refs.
Personally I decided to plot two of three sections & then make up ground
before parking up, 'avin a minute to sort the final section.
A now mandatory trip to the The Wyke showed the way to event proper taking in
the awkward Coalport yellow & an
even trickier loop toward Jackfield & Benthall. Wyke followed which
contained that code-board en-route to SF1 near Leighton. E then, via
Little Wenlock & a c/board pair along the infamous rifle range straight. SF2
allowed 150 meters of relax before the final sect looping around Wrockwardine,
then SE to Lawley. By this time fog had showed it's hand & a good route
could so easily have been ruined. But, with the finish venue perhaps the hardest
point to find, (o.k. I asked directions at a garage up the road!), things turned
out well in the end. And the stew…
Results:
Conditions:
Fine,
foggy later.
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 0 047
2nd Jane Taylor Jon Taylor L/Rover E 0 055
3rd Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 0 077
4th Matt Taylor Ben Taylor/Emma Smith Metro N 0 098
5th Rob O'Dowd David O'Dowd Vaux N 0 109
6th John Morris Vicki Price Nissan N 0 115
7th Philippa Bentley Simon Bentley Mini N 0 118
8th Simon Roberts Richard Smalley Polo E 1 073
9th Mick Cooper Jon Martin/Rich Cooper Vaux N 1 078
10th Phil Matthews Phil Matthews Ford E 1 086
11th Nicolas Nicolaou Dave Millard Vaux N 1 114
12th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 1 130
Round
Nine...
(Finale)
The
price of
fame...
Bet they even have
white underwear...
As crews
gathered near a Country Park ready to do battle, this the final round was
destined not to be a stroll in one by any means…
A tulip handout allows us to take to the lanes in good time but needless to say,
navigators had to plot on the move. Good stuff. One section then at 60km, not
bad!
The sting arrived earlier than usual, sq 7869 saw crews almost tossing coins on
the outcome of CB “J” being in/out. Following on, a loop back to
Heightington & then Rock allowed a tricky section past Bliss Gate &
Gorst Hill to travel NE with Beach Hay to follow.
Excellent weather was just a bonus as we skirted the Wyre & plotting
ahead it was possible to work out that, on this occasion we would remain E of
the feared Neen Savage fjord before taking in Bagginswood and good olde Stotte.
Just one small problem lay in wait in the shape of the micro triangle, (or not)
just E of SH147 near Sidbury. The remaining CB proved a bugger to plot, cars
then adjourned to the Cape of Good Hope to await results.
A giant killing night indeed for our sole Mini crew & v well done to Ben T
who almost cleaned the house top to toe in an effort to convince his Mum to
drive him! For Clayton/Bunch it was a great season end; 1st o/a
together with a solid class win in the 02/03 Challenge. On the eve it was Simon
B that performed (!), clinching the c/s class with a splendid 2nd
o/a.
Results:
Conditions:
Fine.
O/A Driver Navigator Vehicle Class Fail Points
1st Paul Bunch Dave Clayton Toyota E 0 064
2nd Philippa Bentley Simon Bentley Mini N 0 075
3rd Jane Taylor Ben Taylor Rover N 0 103
4th Anthony Ellis Ian Jarman Ford E 1 056
5th Julie Darkin Nick Darkin Galaxy E 1 057
6th "H" Andy Rousell Ford E 1 060
7th Chris green Andy Lawrence Ford N 1 084
8th Mick Cooper Jon Martin Vaux N 1 088
9th Karen Matthews Phil Matthews Ford E 1 110
10th Nicolas Nicolaou Dave Millard Vaux N 2 109
11th Chris Wood Steve Wyatt Peugeot N 2 136
12th Rob O'Dowd David O'Dowd Vaux N 3 132