Croft Rallycross Grand Prix Weekend, 18 and 19 October 2014

Yes, it's that time of the year for the rallycross boys and girls to wash down their rallycross machinery and get ready to get dirty for the last time this season, including the 'everyone all together' Grand Prix on Sunday.

I'm there both days and looking forward to it. There's a good entry list, across all the formulae and it promises to be a great two days of rallycross action.

Wondered if anyone from here is going to be there too? Chance to meet up, maybe?

Gates open at 8.00am both days, which is a bit unlikely for me on the Saturday - I have a 4.5 hour drive from home - but have a B&B a few miles away for an early start on Sunday! Can't wait!

Cheers, Steve

That looks like a 'no', then!

I'm taking a display of rallycross models with me for the event, which I'll set up in the Retro Rallycross Arena for both days. Will be the first showing of my first non-British Leyland/ MG Rover model! It's Ray Morgan's BDA-powered Escort Mk3. Took a heck of a lot of work to create, but having done it, feel I ought to make Martin Schanche's similarly-shaped XTrac Escort some time soon too!

I'll report back after the event..... and may see someone from here, there? Maybe?!

Cheers, Steve

I am possibly gonna go

Excellent, Mark!

Are you going as a seller or spectator?

Hope to see you there - come and introduce yourself in the retro Rallycross area. It would be great to put a face to the name and finally meet you. I'll be the one handing out the DRM flyers!!

Cheers, Steve

spectator as i havent had time to sort stall details with croft as i was in jersey for the rally

Mark,

I've sent you a PM with my contact details. Hope we can meet up over the weekend.

Cheers, Steve

Sorry Steve but I won't be able to make it to Croft - I don't get home from a holiday in Devon till Tuesday!

Hope you guys all have a great day.

Thanks for your message David. Sorry not to see you there, but sounds like you'll be enjoying yourself in other ways.

Have a great break, mate, and speak soon.

All the very best, Steve

Steve

Sorry but looks like I wont be there but with all the "noise" I've had in my life over the last couple of weeks I just dont think I will have the time. Also it looks like that I will be at a rally every weekend in November (Malton Stages, Cheviot, Rally GB and RAC) so think my passes will have been well and truly used up by then and the repercussions of one more weekend away from chores and "quality" time might just be too much to bear!

Have to say I think the entry is relativley poor this time and guess it reflects that it is being held only a week after the WRX round in Turkey so guess the organisers will have to lok at potential clashes for future runnings of the GP.

Have fun anyway and hope the weather holds out for you as Croft can be extreme when its not!

Cheers

Chris

Cheers Chris,

Message heard and well and truly understood! Am often 'there' myself!!

Hey, it sounds like you've got plenty in hand anyway, and best not burn up your 'passes' - you're on your back foot already, you cheeky fella! That's a lot of rallying coming up!

Take care and we'll speak soon,

Steve

Forgot about the Grizedale Stages as well!

I might still be there on Sunday but its going to be an outside thing at best.

Have a great time and hopefully catch up in 2015 if not before.

Cheers

Chris

Haven't said anything till now because it was 50/50 if i was going or not but now it's 100% not Got that much on at the mo i just haven't got the time. Working 6days a week because we are short staffed and then trying to do others jobs aint working. Need more days in the week.

Have a good time Steve. I'm sure we will meet up again soon.

Decided not to go
One reason we have family probs and need to be on standby and the car ready

Shame as i would of enjoyed it

Got back from Croft (very) late last night having enjoyed two days of rallycross action.

There was plenty of it too. Saturday was the final round of the British Rallycross Championships (except for the Suzuki Swifts, which have their final round at Blyton soon) so a number of Champions were crowned. Congratulations to Julian Godfrey for winning the Supercar crown for the fourth year on the bounce. I can't see him adding another title next year unless things change massively, though!

There was some very close racing, as always, and the inevitable bumping and swapping of paintwork that has always been part of the scene. Thankfully, most of those cars that were 'redesigned' on the circuit were able to rejoin for the Grand Prix on Sunday, which saw the Retro Rallycross boys head out on track for their final round of the year too.

Sadly, the Minis of Lance Foster and Ian Biagi were involved in a skermish coming away from the grid, leaving some broken fibreglass and a Mini laying on its side!

I took a display of 25 rallycross models with me, including my latest creation, Ray Morgan's BDA powered Mk3 Escort. He and his wife, Heather, were speechless (in a good way!). Ray explained he was delighted that someone had taken the time and effort to want to make a model of his car and over the moon with how good it was. I received many wonderful compliments about the models on display and had some fascinating chats with drivers, crew and fellow enthusiasts about rallycross in the Group B days.

One fella, Paul, whom I hope will join us here, brought a load of old photographs from Croft circa 1990 and Swindon circa 1987, which were superb. I couldn't find myself in the paddock photos from Swindon but there were some great shots of cars long-since forgotten.

AMG were filming the on-track activities and I hope to catch these on Youtube at some point in the future, as I only have Freeview TV and the computer!! Hopefully we won't have to wait too long.... and I'm not going to tell you (yet) who won the Grand Prix. Lets just say that a lot can happen in 24 hours and whilst Ollie O'Donovan was by far the class of the field on Saturday, there were a large number of cars from all categories that didn't last through to the close of play on Sunday. 'Attrition' was the word of the day on Sunday.

Cheers, Steve

get some pics up of the mk3 please

Mark Lowe wrote:get some pics up of the mk3 please

I'll see what I can do, Mark, but I'm terrible at sorting out photographs!! I'll take a pic or two and send them to Chris or Juha and ask them to post the photographic loveliness for you!! I need to find a source of four spoke Revolution wheels before the model is complete, so would be better to wait until it's completely finished, which it currently isn't.

Sadly, I didn't take any shots of the whole display, with the DRM flyers proudly available alongside!! Several people took them and I'm hoping some will join us on here as a result.

Sorry you didn't get to the event yourself. The turnout for Sunday was very good, number-wise, though I suspect some folks decided to stay at home and fly kites instead! Boy, was it windy!!

I'll take some pics for you, Mark, but ought to sort out the wheels first. Any suggestions?

Cheers, Steve

Hampton Caught wrote:I'll see what I can do, Mark, but I'm terrible at sorting out photographs!!  I'll take a pic or two and send them to Chris or Juha and ask them to post the photographic loveliness for you!!  

No bother, just send them to me.

Thanks Juha, that's very much appreciated (again!).

I'll see what I can do at the wekeend - am under the kosh at the moment, which is not a nice place to be.

Cheers, Steve