bl0498

Guys, I hope you all had a great Longcross and Llandow. Richard has set out above the relevant paragraphs of the 2006 Blue Book - which have not changed since 2005. Why we may be seeing an issue is on the definition as to whether our cars fall into 'Roadgoing Production/Roadgoing Specialist Production rather than Modified Production. The definition for the former (see L.11) includes things like List 1A tyres which for our Classes 3, 5 and 6 does not apply and hence a scrutineer - who will not know our Classes, just the standard MSA ones, may assume the car falls into the Modified Production category - for which the seat belt and other requirements in L are different. I have not seen this issue before at L7CGB events but if any competitors in Classes 3 and 5 do then we simply need to indicate to the scrutineer that the class into which the car falls is a roadgoing class - and if necessary have a formal copy of the Championship regulations to hand. For Class 6 - where carsdo not need to be roadgoing we have a problem in that these cars would correctly be judged to be Modified Production (L.12) and hence they should comply with the extra safety requirements that entails - which means mandatory harnesses. The non safety requirements in L.12 I believe we can ignore because they are covered by our own technical regulations. So in simple terms harnesses are not required for Classes 1-5 inclusive - but our competitors should assume that they are for Class 6 - for which a 4 point harness is a minimum requirement. In practise I would strongly recommend that ALL of our competitors have at least 4 point harnesses. The main benefit with harnesses as well as the obvious one is increased confidence and the ability to focus on driving the car and not worry about being thrown around the car whilst trying to control it. The downside is when I have my harness fully tight I can't even touch the handbrake! I also think this is an area that will be tightened up over the next year or two - all the safety areas are gradually getting tougher. So I would encorage everyone not to do the bare minimum on any of the safety side. As for FIA homologated harnesses etc - the Blue Book is clear as Richard has stated - it is a recommendation where harnesses are mandatory. The category of event has no relevance on any of the above. Our own events are at the Clubmans level - but the events to which we are invited (Longcross etc) are at Nat B level. Not to be confused with licenses! I am concerned to hear of drivers having their helmeted heads above the roll bars/cages. The Blue Book states (Q.1.5.4) that there should be at least 50mm between the top of the helmeted head and the top of the roll bar. Even if scrutineers think that our cars are classified as Roadgoing Production/Roadgoing Specialist Production (except for Class 6) where rollbars are optional in the standard MSA classes because we state in our Championshiop Regulations and Sprint Regulations that rollbars are mandatory then the 50mm rule should apply. As a Clerk of the Course I automatically refer any driver whose helmet is above a fitted rollbar to the scrutineers to talk to them - Roadgoing or otherwise. I know of other Clerks who do the same. As someone who has seen a Caterham roll over at a sprint event at speed - all of our competitors must take this seriously. Both of the above issues I will take on board for the 2007 Championship regs - with the suggestion that if the MSA have not clarified the Blue Book we will need to clarify our regs. I will be talking to our eligibility scrutineer later this week on a few issues. I will let you know if he has any other thoughts on the above. Hope this helps. Brian

Not sure Steve without seeing it - I suspect a more rigid type of mounting is much preferred. I guess it will also keep the pictures a bit sharper too? Brian

Guys, A couple of comments on cameras mounted on the cars: - As David has correctly pointed out the camera does need to be securely mounted - and it does have to be presented to the scrutineer for inspection - NOT attached afterwards. Please remember you must not change anything on the car (including wheels etc) after it has been scrutineered without checking with a scrutineer. - E.12.19.5 ALL cameras must be approved by the event organiser - which means in practise the Secretary of the Meeting. This is to protect any licensing rights which may have been sold etc at a meeting or venue. DO NOT simply assume that you have permission. Please contact the Secretary of the meeting at sign-on or afterwards and before the car is scrutineered. I have never known permission to be refused - but please follow the protocol. Best Regards, Brian Clerk of the Course.

Martin, If you have a BRG coloured car I would not suggest you use black numbers. Some scrutineers - and timekeepers - will complain about the lack of contrast - particularly if the car is being double driven with additional numbers or deletion bars on.. Either use white numbers od use a white background and black numbers. Brian Clerk of the Course.

Clearly a few of you need some help or just something to do! I make a habit of removing last year's stickers in October and then washing the car etc. Before applying this year's stickers I will be washing the car (again!) and waxing the area well where the stickers will go - L7CGB and number square etc. I do this because someone suggested this to me a few years back as a method of ensuring that the stickers will actually come off in October and without the paint coming off too! It does seem to work too. It doesn't mean the stickers will slide all over the place either (cue those that suggest I don't go quick enough to make any difference anyway!) Back to the garage! Brian

Just refreshing this for David and friends! Brian

Mike, Even MAC members get entries rejected at Shelsley Walsh! But yes MAC membership does help. Not sure attending the working party day helps but if anyone wants to try this it is Saturday 22nd April. Don't bring your best togs! Only the competing cars are allowed in the paddock area. There is simply no room for towcars or trailers. Parking for these is in the Officials car park - where the camping is. Due to the very tight layout in the paddock MAC don't actively encourage trailers to be unloaded in the paddock unless absolutely necessary. What isn't OK at all is trying to load up trailers in the paddock - it causes congestion. Practise runs are done completely differently at Shelsley Walsh - you largely select when you want to have your runs. There is a bonus to signing on very early too - the possibility of an extra practise run. I will provide more detail later. The hill is much steeper than it looks from the spectator areas - its a tough climb. If its wet its actually slippery walking up it! Brian

Guys, I am slightly surprised by some of the comments/queries on entries for Shelsley Walsh. MAC produce a set of composite regulations - just like we do so you just need to read the correct bits! The first misconception is that you have to rush now to get your entry in - you don't. MAC with Shelsley Walsh is one of several venues (eg Prescott and Loton Park when run by Hagley &D) that selects entries after the closing date has passed. The closing date for the 1st July event is stated as 9th June so as long as you get your entry in to the MAC office at Shelsley Walsh to arrive in good time for 9th June then that is all you need to do. Page 3 of the SRs details this. After the 9th June has passed then entries will be allocated. Noone - including Dave Jackson has an entry at present! So you will simply need to keep July 1st free until you get the acceptance/rejection letter. MAC events at Shelsley Walsh are always oversubscribed - so we will have some disappointed competitors. The second misconception is classes. Our class is Class N not B1/B2. The event is also only open to competitors within our Championship - NOT L7CGB members in general - hence L7CGB are not shown in the 'invited clubs' list. On the fees side - for non-MAC members it is £94. Cheques should be made payable to Midland Automobile Club (1901) Ltd and sent to Roger Thomas at the address shown (MAC has a full time Secretary based in a portakabin on the Shelsley Walsh site). I would advise anyone that is thinking of using any of the accomodation listed in the back of the SR's to book it now - it and camping (see Page 3) are very popular. The camping area (field across the road) is also used for officials/marshals etc On the Sunday 2nd July MAC and the Vintage Sports Car Club jointly hold a vintage cars hillclimb event at Shelsley Walsh - so if you wanted to spend a little bit of time in the Teme Valley and see some older cars this is a good opportunity. If there are any more specific issues that anyone has please contact me directly if necessary. As some of you know I act as a junior CofC for MAC at Shelsley Walsh and elsewhere - and guess what I am doing on 1st July assuming work commitments in India don't intervene?! There are a number of unusual operating procedures on the day at Shelsley Walsh - I will let you guys know details before the event. Above all I want to make sure we have an enjoyable day for our first visit there - and hopefully we might get invited back! Hope this helps guys. Brian Edited by - bl0498 on 3 Apr 2006 22:57:08

Hi Mav, The only problem with that Mav is that the headrest was not designed to be used reversed and hence will not pass muster with any regulations - which is what the headrest must do. Not sure scrutineers will be happy with that either. I would not rely on that as a permanent headrest solution! If I saw any headrests like that when acting as CofC I would be asking the scrutineers to check them over! Brian.

Martin, In general terms the competition insurance is for £xk cover - say £10k with an excess of say £1000. For a Caterham this will be approx £80 per event - about the same as the entry fee. The £10k is calculated as in most shunts you will not destroy the engine, hopefully. For minor shunts on a front corner etc this will fall under the excess limit. But on a big shunt/rollover it help avoid major expense. Brian

Shaun, To answer a few: 1. Strictly with our championship (whether our or invited events) you do not need a petty strut. However the FIA rollbar does not meet FIA requiremenmts without it and hence at events you will see most competitors use one. Others go further and have a full roll cage. Outside the Lotus 7 club championship if you enter your car into a non-roadgoing class the FIA bar and strut are mandatory. 3. Just buy one from Caterham - its a standard part. 4. Search the archives and look for my thread on Head Restraints. If you have the modern leather seats then no problem - but you may find with a helmet on your head may be pushed further forward than you would like. 6. Opinion is divided on this as to whether to bother carrying one or not at sprint events. I suspect over time though this will become mandatory - just my opinion. Fire Ex regs for other types of events have been gradually beefed up over the last few years. See the Blue Book for full details of what to carry if you do decide to get one. Bear in mind that for a marshal the order of priority is their safety, your and spectator safety. Looking after the car is clearly bottom of the list. This is where insurance or deep pockets comes in... Please do delve into the Blue Book. It looks a little daunting but you are expected to know the relevant sections. Hope that helps Brian

Thanks Rob, Brian

Charles, The idea of the rebore allowance is to allow old engines to be brought back into sensible use. It is not designed to apply to all engines - otherwise we would have people using the allowance on brand new engines.....! This was specifically done with crossflows in mind - as you know an extremely old engine design that in a Caterham needs a rebuild after 20k miles... It is not envisaged that this would apply to more recent engine designs - including the 8V 1600 VX. I guess its one for Mark and I to think about - but at present everyone should assume the rebore allowance applies only to Crossflows - thats why its there! Brian

Hi Graeme, Hope you are well! The 2006 Regs and entry forms have not been published yet (work over Christmas for me to draft them!) - although the proposed changes to the 2005 regs are shown on the other thread about the Technical Forum decisions. I would not expect the Regs/Championship entry form to be available until probably the end of Jan - at the same time as the finalised list of events etc. Brian

Steve, Shelsley Walsh is approx 10 miles west of Worcester. You are thinking of Prescott. Brian

Mark, I would suggest go with this for the reasons you have suggested. Competitors don't have to do both - they can make a choice of one or the other (or neither!). I too think its useful to start a relationship with Borough 19 as they have access to all the Motorsport Vision circuits I believe. Its also a new venue and will introduce more competitors to Cadwell. Well done! Brian

Rob, Keep up the good work. The Class 3 Loton time doesn't look right - even I can beat that!!! Brian

DSL, MIRA dates are always on a Saturday - so that provisional date should read Saturday 24th June. I have amended it. As for Longcross, Mark will have to answer that! Brian

What sizes are these stunners available in? Will they fit on 13inch wheels? Brian

Steve (Marsh), I have to say I think you are missing the point focussing on the small redefinition of the class structure for 2006 and alternate points systems, trailering etc. In real life most of us (I am in Class 2) do not have cars that are fully optimised to the regs for our class - I certainly don't have unlimited cash etc I want to throw at the car and most people are in the same situation. Indeed most people in Class 2 - and I am sure the other classes are the same, know that it is driver training that is the most effective upgrade for a lot of our competitors - myself included! This is one of the reasons why we don't rush out and upgrade the car - there will be little real benefit. We may delude ourselves from time to time - but we know in reality. Consequently you will find that there are quick drivers with less bhp than others in each class - these are the better drivers. I really wouldn't worry about 150bhp in Class 4 - its how you use that power on the track that is important. If you look at the results you will see that some cars in Class 4 are slower than those in Class 2 with less power... Within Class 2 I try to 'locally' compete with a few others whom I know are of similar skill/experience/power. Its good fun to have a bit of banter with them. I am sure most people who are not out-and out front runners do this. Everyone also tries to improve against their previous times at the venue, given similar conditions. As for trailering its down to the individual. A lot of cars in Class 3 etc are trailered because of the need for high grip tyres which really are not suitable for 200 mile drives to lots of events. I drive my car to most events - because I prefer to on the empty roads on Saturday/Sunday mornings - I don't drive any better/riskier when I have my trailer - my natural self-preservation mechanism still cuts in at the same point! Within the regs there is a spot for your car. Your car may not seem optimal for those regs - but really it is down to you. Without spending oddles of cash you can have lots of fun competing in that class - against yourself (against previous results) and against others of similar ability. This is the beauty of sprinting - you really don't have to spend lots of cash to enjoy yourself! Upgradeitis does not have to be all-consuming! Enjoy your speed events in 2006 - we have some great venues. I have been doing this since 1998, and am not a front runner in class 2 - but I still find it great fun. Brian

Bilbo, The noise limit comment should be read in conjunction with E.12.17. Essentially 2/3 max revs. The max for most hillclimb/sprint cars is 108dB anyway. Brian

Guys/Ladies, A brief summary of what was agreed at the technical forum last Sunday. For some items there are details still to be worked out but what follows should enable competitors to reasonably assess whether they wish to enter the Lotus 7 Club Speed Championship in 2006 and also to assess which class to enter and what are the basic regulations in each class. Note that what is provided below is given in good faith, but is subject to details being concluded, final approval by MSA etc. We would not expect to publish definitive regulations before the first month or so of 2006. Firstly many thanks to all those competitors who spent time airing their views etc last Sunday - it was much appreciated. Amendments to Technical Regulations: Class 1: Will be amended to include the older/current specification of Caterham Academy and Supergrad cars as long as they are unmodified. Max 120bhp. Rebore allowance for 1600 crossflows - will be max 60thou overbore No sequential gearboxes. Class 2/3: Will be amended to permit the following modifications to 1600K engines: K16 head porting retaining standard valves, verniers, 52mm throttle body and forged pistons. Will be amended to permit the following modifications to 1800K engines: verniers, 52mm throttle body and forged pistons. The following modifications will be prohibited on 1600k engines: Use of VVC/VHPD cylinder heads, reprogrammable ECUs, VVC plenums, throttle bodies larger than 52mm. The following modifications will be prohibited on 1800K engines: Any porting of the K16 cylinder head or use of VVC or VHPD heads, reprogramable ECUs, VVC plenum chambers, throttle bodies larger than 52mm. No sequential gearboxes. Class 4/5: All cars must be fitted with a reverse gear. Class 6: It is likely that all cars in this class must be fitted with a reverse gear too but this is TBD at present. All classes: Maximum noise level 108dB at 0.5m. (Certain events may impose lower limits) There will be a general 'spirit of regulations' regulation to reclassify cars if necessary. Amendments to Scoring: Class Scoring: Current system retained with minor amendments. Max points for 1st place will be 21.0 (not 21.5 as at present). Points for 2nd/3rd etc as now. Additional up to 0.5 points for breaking class record available all competitors that break the class record. New venues TBD - for 2006 it is likely to be used to set class records only. Championship: Likely to be 7 events to count (although may be 5 for novices/ladies). Novices/Ladies scoring to be as for class scoring totalled up as now for best 5. Main championship to be scored using (say) 25 for first place in each class at an event, 24 for second place, down to 1. Up to 0.5 for breaking class record added - as for class scoring. Total of best 7 events. Full details TBD. Very Provisional Calendar: Sunday 23rd April - Longcross (Confirmed) Sunday 30th April - Llandow (trackday on 29th). L7CGB event Saturday 20th May - Curborough © L7CGB event (Sunday 21st May - Curborough Marshals sprint - not championship event) Saturday/Sunday 3rd/4th June - Pembrey (2 x 1 day events - Now Confirmed) Saturday 24th June - MIRA (P) L7CGB event Saturday 1st July - Shelsley Walsh © Sunday 16th July - Longcross 2 © Saturday 29th July - Loton Park © (Saturday 26th August - Curborough Marshals sprint - not championship event) Sunday 27th August - Curborough 2 © L7CGB event Saturday 2nd September - Aintree © Saturday 9th September - Wiscombe © Sunday 17th September - Harewood © All (P) above are provisional and very much TBC!!! I hope I have remembered everything! Brian Edited to amend Championship Scoring to include Class Record breaking points. Edited by - bl0498 on 24 Nov 2005 13:01:28 Edited to amend Pembrey Status Edited by - bl0498 on 24 Nov 2005 21:40:25 Edited to add Class 1 overbore allowance Edited by - bl0498 on 24 Nov 2005 21:44:27 Edited to amend Loton Pk Status Edited by - bl0498 on 25 Nov 2005 00:49:44 Edited to amend Harewood status Edited by - bl0498 on 28 Nov 2005 14:04:35 Edited to amend Shelsley Walsh status Edited by - bl0498 on 2 Dec 2005 20:09:15 Edited to ensure MIRA provisional date is actually a Saturday! Edited by - bl0498 on 3 Dec 2005 23:35:05 Edited to amend the Longcross 2 date Edited by - bl0498 on 6 Dec 2005 20:19:42

Dave et al, As Rob has indicated there were a number of discussions on various aspects of the technical regs for the classes, points scoring and one or two other minor matters. The current proposed/provisional calendar was also presented. I will post later a summary version of what was decided - I don't have the details here at work. But remember - all of this still has to be properly drafted out and approved by the MSA. Brian

Manx, I did wonder about the CofC bit myself. As a CofC at a busy venue as you say there is usually enough to worry about - and I suspect that most CofC's would suggest this is a club championship issue and one to be decided by the official representative on the day. Brian

Rob, Your F1 points system will be deeply unpopular with anyone that doesn't come in the first 6 as they will all score nil points. Given the numbers we often have in class 2/3 at events this would result in most of the field scoring nothing!! The Aldon HSA championship does this - not much fun scoring Nil points all the time! As for Dave's suggestion whats wrong with the slightly revised version of our current scoring system as used in the Midland Speed Championship as has been mentioned before?? This encompasses an element of competition against established class records for the fast runners whilst maintaining the strengths of the existing system for everyone else. And takes account of the weather, lunar cycle etc! Brian