Mildenhall Stadium Saturday September 11 2010
RDC's Runnin' Wild
Saloon Stockcars World Championship and Dash for Cash Super Final and all Granada National Bangers RDC RWD Seriers Final

The eagerly anticipated Saloon Stockcar World Final raised a cracking field of 57 cars on September 11, with all but two of the expected entry honouring their places. Almost every East Anglian based driver in the formula was in attendance and the field was swelled by a strong nine showing from Scotland plus six from the west country, several of which were making their track debut. Sadly the only overseas representative this year was Irish star 991 Andy Stewart. 

With only 317 Dwayne Powell failing to make the gate, 31 cars gathered for the last chance qualifier which was sufficient for an extra two places to be made available in the World Final owing to the shortfall in overseas racers. With the track in near perfect condition and the forecast rain being replaced by a very pleasant night the hopefuls were lined up in World Ranking order which placed 401 Steve Webster on pole position. It was a manic start as expected with 131 Timmy Barnes spinning 728 Kris Woods into the concrete blocks from the off as 964 Kenny Peters had 106 Jamie Stafford around. Meanwhile carnage exploded on the road bend as 312 Neil Payne removed 698 Danny Colliver and he was clobbered by 420 Ivan Street and Peters before 328 Ian Govier was planted into the wall and 861 Ben Royal, 13 Lee Petters and 417 Fred Powell joined the chaos which left the track briefly blocked for a second or two. As the drivers tried to force a way through Webster was sent spinning by 190 John Wagstaff which put 191 Shaun McMillan to the front but all this was for nothing as the reds came out to assist Govier who was in distress and with less than two laps completed a complete restart was ordered. The grid re-assembled but without Royal, Govier, Petters, 321 Ryan Mee, Payne and Wagstaff and Stafford immediately had his revenge on Peters as he span him. However the former was then dumped out by 184 Marty Colliver and subsequently collected by 731 Barry Wade with Street, Danny Colliver and 125 Mike Hibberd also getting involved. Webster made a fine start and raced into the lead while 19 Karl Stubbles charged into second as 638 Martin Bulldeath fenced Woods only to then be spun himself by 43 Karl Gilbert. Stafford rallied back and removed 26 Tommy Barnes as Webster continued to lead the way, extending his lead over Stubbles with McMillan, 777 Alan Ainslie and 738 Gary Munns in pursuit. Next in line was Fred Powell who then hit and climbed the home straight wall, nearly rolling in the process before 364 Nathan Olden removed Munns and he was clobbered by 377 Mick Osler. Webster led the field to half way, the top three remaining the same but with 389 Ryan Santry now in fourth as Munns shunted returnee 390 Leyton Hubbert into the wall. McMillan eased past Stubbles for second and then swiftly span Marty Colliver as the luckless Tommy Barnes was dumped out by Gilbert. The action continued as Munns span Danny Colliver and Fred Powell removed Street while Santry hooked out Hubbert. Hibberd then turfed aside Street as Ainslie lost time when he ran into the stricken Peters on the pit bend. A clearly fired up Hibberd now span Stafford as Webster drove faultlessly to a flag to flag win to secure his place in the main event. Following him home was McMillan, Stubbles and Santry who all earned a World Final debut, the latter unable to hide his delight on the track as the result was confirmed. Joining them in the main event were Gilbert, Timmy Barnes, Ainslie and Olden, the latter also to make his World Final debut and later revealing it was also the first race he had even finished in 2010. 

Onto the main event with defending champion 360 Carl Waterfield leading the 33 qualifiers onto the raceway, Waterfield piloting a smartly turned out re-shelled car which many would have mistaken for a brand new machine. He duly took his place on the inside of row two with 618 Stu Shevilly Jnr and 499 Dave Aldous filling the front row. A special presentation was also made to 490 Ian Jarman, who was unable to race due to an injury suffered the previous week at King’s Lynn to mark the achievement that he had qualified for four decades of World Finals. In another side note Santry was informed that his qualifying meant he had become the fourth member of his family to compete in the event, matching the record currently set by the Honeyman and Burgoyne clan and therefore the first English family to achieve the record. 

More drama followed as after the call for the engines to start and the fireworks exploded, row two starter 120 Shane Brown broke away from the pack on the first rolling lap, stopping on the pit bend and frantically began working under the bonnet with some last minute problems. With the race about to start he was ushered back into the car and the second rolling lap begun, Aldous making a perfect start when the green feel to blast away from Shevill Jnr with Waterfield slotting into third. Timmy Barnes continued his current feud with McMillan as he fenced him on the pit bend while Waterfield slipped past Shevill Jnr and into second with 641 Willie Skoyles Jnr getting the better of Brown for fourth. 428 Lee Sampson then fenced 18 Jamie Clayton as the rapid Skoyles Jnr rocketed into second and Brown bounced back into third before 402 Shaun Webster nailed Shevill Jnr and span him. Meanwhile on the back straight 658 Chris Lattka did a full roll and was collected by 96 Willie Mitchell before the reds came out, not for Lattka but instead for some debris which was in a dangerous position on the track. With only a couple of laps completed, it was a complete restart which meant Aldous and Skoyles Jnr would have to do all the work again while Shevill Jnr was among those to get an early lifeline. Initially it looked as though all 33 cars would contest the restart but then it was stopped the aforementioned debris had come from Clayton’s rear bumper which had suffered significant dangerous and with the exposed ironwork deemed dangerous to other drivers, a disappointed Clayton was informed he would have to leave the grid. The race resumed once more and 305 Nigel Parker instantly span Stewart and 2 Paul Tuppen hooked out 607 Stevie Honeyman. This time Shevill Jnr made the start and raced into the lead with Brown getting the better of Aldous who dropped to third ahead of Waterfield, Skoyles Jnr and 115 Scott Aldridge. Timmy Barnes hooked out fellow last chance qualifier Stubbles as Santry, McMillan and 311 Steve Newman all suffered spins. Brown dropped down the order and Aldous and Skoyles Jnr moved into second and third, Brown hitting back to fence the latter as they fought for third while Timmy Barnes again removed Stubbles. 619 Steve Triggs was the next to suffer a spin and on lap three Aldous hit the front again as he eased past Shevill Jnr, the latter then fired into the wall by the recovered Newsman as 156 Darren Goudy ended Parker’s hopes with a home straight spin. Aldous led with Aldridge up to second, Waterfield, Brown, Skoyles Jnr, Goudy, Lattka and Sampson next in line as Gilbert became one of the first retirements. Shevill Jnr had now come to rest on the inside of turn one following the aforementioned fencing and he was then hit by Honeyman which brought the reds out for a shaken Shevill Jnr but with the race on lap six a lap sheet order was ordered. With the red flags being shown the cars relined first to last with the back markers retaining their laps down at the back of the field. However this meant the advantage Aldous had built was erased and he restarted with Aldridge breathing down his neck. Behind came Skoyles Jnr, Goudy, Waterfield, 900 Rob Burgoyne, Brown, Sampson, 570 Simon Venni and Lattka, just shy of 20 cars remaining on the lead lap at this stage with 27 cars still in the race, McMillan and Stubble joining the list of retirements. Venni instantly stuck the bumper in on Brown who in turn hit Sampson as Waterfield’s reign ended with mechanical problems and he dropped off the pace which in turn delayed Burgoyne, the latter then spinning along with Triggs. Aldous blasted away into the lead again with Skoyles Jnr quickly passing Aldridge for second while 149 Jamie Sampson, who had restarted 15th had shot to eighth. Triggs battled back to remove the recovered Gilbert as 834 Dan Climo went round on the road bend and was collected by several cars, among them Skoyles Jnr and Aldridge whose hopes faded as a result. Aldous now held a commanding lead as Brown also span and Goudy moved in to spin Aldridge and take second with Venni up to third ahead of Shaun Webster and Jamie Sampson. Aldous fired Timmy Barnes out of the race as he continued to charge through the field before Goudy cruelly expired handing Venni second. The race hit the half way mark of the 30 lap marathon and Aldous was well clear but finding it hard getting through the traffic. Webster had got the better of Venni for second and Jamie Sampson was third. Mitchell hooked out 600 Barry Russell as Honeyman span Olden and Venni did the same to Burgoyne. This delayed the former slightly and Jamie Sampson slipped up the inside on the road bend and snatched third as Skoyles Jnr fired Lee Sampson into the fence. Venni then squeezed Ainslie into the wall as Aldous led the field into the final five, still comfortably ahead of Shaun Webster, Jamie Sampson and Venni. Lattka landed a hit on Steve Webster only to be spun aside by Brown with Lattka recovering only to be fenced by Stewart. The game Lattka recovered and span the latter in revenge which also claimed Triggs as Aldous motored to the flag making history by becoming the first driver to win the event three times and the first man to win the race on both tarmac and shale. In the final stages Jamie Sampson got the better of Shaun Webster for second, and he struggled to contain his delight when the result was confirmed. Venni completed the trophy positions in fourth on a fine World Final debut. These were the only drivers to finish the race on the lead lap, Skoyles Jnr the first of the lapped cars in fifth ahead of Aldridge, Steve Webster, Lee Sampson, 199 Phil Powell and Lattka. Aldous duly celebrated with donuts on the home straight before the euphoric driver climbed on his roof to celebrate and was shown a tremendous cheer from the large crowd before he was joined by his family who were as delighted, if not more so. The rest of the top four was soon joined by their teams and families in celebration as more fireworks filled the skies, the trophies presented in front of a firework shower before the drivers enjoyed two very well deserved laps of honour. 

The focus of the evening now shifted to the big money Dash for Cash Super Final and 25 cars gathered for the first qualifying heat. 317 Dwayne Powell marked his first race with an early spin as Hubbert removed Munns leaving 13 Lee Petters to set the pace as Mitchell climbed the wall exiting turn two to roll and was helped over by Stewart, landing on his roof to bring the reds out and a complete restart was ordered. This began with Danny Colliver and Stubbles going round and getting collected by 311 Steve Newman as Stafford had Wagstaff around. Hubbert set the pace this time as the recovered Wagstaff was again taken out by Stafford and Aldridge also went round. Marty Colliver got the better of Lee Petters for second with 731 Barry Wade also passing the latter but Lee Petters hit back and had Wade round. On his track debut 834 Dan Climo was holding his own and battled to sixth as with five to run Marty Colliver claimed the lead while the luckless Wade was fenced by 912 Andi Newman. Steve Newman then had Marty Colliver out and they were clobbered by 404 Rob Bulldeath and Olden as Lee Petters lost time when he tangled with brother 22 Karl and Stubbles. Hubbert duly inherited the lead with Venni and Parker now his nearest rivals as Danny Colliver had Rob Bulldeath around and Lee Petters bounced back to spun Olden who was subsequently collected by Powell and Munns. Hubbert meanwhile held his nerve to take the win with Venni and Parker next home. 

With not as many drivers competing after the World Final as hoped a much lower than anticipated field of just 14 cars contested the second heat. Santry led them away with Timmy Barnes and McMillan in tow as the spun Russell was whacked by Lee Sampson and Jamie Sampson flicked out 321 Ryan Mee. Santry then expired gifting the top spot to Timmy Barnes with McMillan still in chase ahead of Fred Powell and 2 Pail Tuppen as the luckless Mee crashed into the infield blocks. Aldous fired the bumper in on Gilbert which in turn sent Tuppen wide as Brown and Shaun Webster enjoyed a great battle over fourth. Not to be outdone Jamie Sampson and Tommy Barnes were enjoying a titanic struggle for sixth and when the former got away the latter enjoyed an equally fierce scrap with Aldous over seventh which Tommy Barnes eventually won. Russell ended the action by spinning Tuppen as Timmy Barnes reeled off the laps to win from McMillan and Fred Powell. 

The remaining four places in the big money race would be determined in the consolation which raised an 18 car field and was a cracker for such a modest entry. Olden was the first to show as he span Mitchell leaving Santry to again making the running while Olden came under fire from Steve Newman and Marty Colliver has Wagstaff around to take third, the latter then running into the spun Stubbles. Marty Colliver climbed to third and then took a wild lunge at the back marking Mitchell as Lee Sampson used the bumper to take fourth from Munns and he quickly past Karl Petters for third. Andi Newman then scaled the home straight Armco after running wide as Marty Colliver eased past Santry for the lead on lap six while further down Waterfield sent Gilbert spinning. Steve Newman meanwhile dumped out Munns and Lee Sampson in a single go to race into third, the latter recovering to land a hit on Rob Bulldeath who came under further fire from Santry before he was spun by Marty Colliver. However this delayed the latter enough to allow Santry to nip back into the lead as Wagstaff had Andi Newman round. Santry meanwhile raced to the win from Marty Colliver and Steve Newman with Powell just holding Waterfield off for the last place in the final.

Marty Colliver was the only qualifier unable to contest the Dash for Cash Super Final leaving 19 drivers to battle it out for the loot. However the race suffered an early red flag when Hubbert failed to get running and with his car moved to safety we were soon back underway. Santry leaned Lee Petters wide to take the early lead but the latter fought back and took a massive lunge at the end of the first lap. However he missed his target and hit the wall instead and was duly clobbered by Tommy Barnes which delayed everyone behind Santry and gave him a massive leap. Aldous hit the spun Lee Petters head-on as Fred Powell emerged in second ahead of McMillan and Stafford. This remained the same until lap five when Tommy Barnes got the better of Stafford for fourth and shortly after Brown span, Danny Colliver doing the same a lap later by which point Jamie Sampson had climbed to fifth with Parker on his tail. On lap 10 Jamie Sampson moved past Tommy Barnes to take fourth as Santry’s lead was finally reduced on lap 11 when he span Stafford but despite McMillan closing, Santry held on to lead all of the first 15 laps at which point the reds were shown with the young gun duly claiming all of the leader lap money to the cool tune of £450. For the second half of the event the cars were relined in the order they finished the first segment, albeit three abreast with Santry on pole and joined by McMillan and Jamie Sampson on the front row with Tommy Barnes, Fred Powell and Venni behind. McMillan made the best start and burst into the lead but drifted wide on the road bend which allowed the gutsy Santry to power back into the top spot on the back straight as Brown again spun. Shaun Webster meanwhile dived up the inside of McMillan to move into second but Santry pushed too hard and exiting the pit bend he hit the wall full chat and rolled himself to bring the reds out and with the race yet to start the final lap a complete restart of the second segment was ordered but with Santry out McMillan started on pole with Tommy Barnes up to the front row. Jamie Sampson raced into the lead as Danny Colliver crashed into the spun Steve Newman at the end of the back straight. McMillan got the better of Jamie Sampson but the latter bounced back to reclaim the top spot and managed to survive a shunt into the wall by McMillan to continue out front. Parker also span as Jamie Sampson managed to keep enough distance between himself and the closing Brown to take the win and the £300 top prize, Tommy Barnes rounding out the top three. Further drama as Steve Newman rammed Danny Colliver head-on long after the race had ended which led to words between the two which was quickly calmed down but resulted in both being excluded from the result. The big winners were Jamie Sampson and Santry, the former taking the £300 winners prize plus a further £150 in unclaimed prize money while Santry scooped £450 for leading all of the first £15 laps plus a further £100 for being the best of the three qualifying race winners. 

Last chance qualifier: 401 Steve Webster, 191, 19, 389, 43, 131, 777, 364, 125, 377
World Final: 499 Dave Aldous, 149, 402, 570, 641, 115, 401, 428, 199, 658
Heat One: 390 Leyton Hubbert, 570, 305, 834, 698, 641, 106, 13, 364, 912
Heat Two: 131 Timmy Barnes, 191, 417, 120, 402, 149, 26, 499, 43, 600
Dash for Cash Super Final: 149 Jamie Sampson, 120, 26, 402, 570, 191, 199, 499

The first ever all Granada National Banger meeting at Mildenhall attracted a fine entry of just over 60 cars with 24 of them seeded entries for the maiden RDC RWD Series Final. The field was swelled by 14 visitors, half of which came from TSR with PRI, Incarace and Spedeworth also represented although in truth the six Kent based RDC racers put in as many miles as anyone. On the car front the Mk2 was the most popular Granada with no less than 25 of which all but six were fresh and included a smart hearse for 210 Steve Hayward and a bizarre pickup for 346 Scott Saunders which was a cross between an estate and hearse. The Scorpio version numbered 17, just outnumbering the Mk3 which raised 15, the latter group including fresh limos for 303 Wayne Linsdale, 502 Kayligh Dighton and 538 Jake Swan, the latter’s one of many smart cars on show. A fine five Mk1s with a well worn saloon for 93 Ady Chilvers, 247 Lee Clarke returning a limo while 27 Terry King, 262 Jason Barnard and 439 Danny Sutton had fresh ones, the former’s one of the smartest in the pits while the latter’s very tender version was left in the raw. 61 Karl Totham meanwhile topped the bill with a stunning looking coupe and 577 Alfie Lee had a used version. All cars are Scorpios unless otherwise stated. 

A big field of 37 cars contested the last chance qualifier which was an action packed start to the night with 247 Bro hitting the spun 555 Sam Gelsthorpe (Mk2) head-on from the off as 346 Muttley nailed 400 Kevin Shinn over the rear wheel while 433 Ben Smith (estate) hammered the smart 381 Craig Upson (Mk2) before a pile-up quickly formed on the road bend. This allowed 210 Stevo to pile Lee through the passenger doors of 209 Ben Hayward before 148 Ian Redden ran 312 Tom Reynolds into the carnage which left the track completely blocked. Muttley homed in for a good hit on 233 Rob Aldridge before 503 Dan Hollinsworth (Mk2) nailed 400 Shinny only to take one from the immaculate looking 90 Adrian Harboard (Mk2) who was duly trashed by a rated hit from 604 Ross Cooper. Gelsthorpe then blasted Muttley as 439 Sutty nailed 334 Steve Court (Mk2) and 159 Darren Scarrow fired 356 Lee Basham into the wall. The luckless 334 Courty was hammered by 538 Swanny Jnr before Shinny rallied back to blast Basham only to take a big hit in turn from 169 James Rushton (Mk2). 492 Dean Harper (Mk2) then blasted 503 Odd Job only to take one in turn from 287 Paul Totham (Mk2) with 200 Wayne Holton completing this particular train. 61 Flash meanwhile delivered a T-bone to 21 Jason Colbert as Swanny Jnr stuffed Rushton into 492 Mullet before a head-on between 310 Chas Lee (estate) and 503 Odd Job once again left the road bend completely blocked for a brief time. Chas Lee now attacked Swanny Jnr as Flash stuffed Scarrow, the latter bouncing back to stop the leading Bro head-on on turn two. Scarrow continued to attack 200 Skippy in similar fashion only to come under fire from Chas Lee as Flash survived an attack from Mullet to take the win from Bro and 312 Turbo, all eight finishers going through to the title race.

All 32 qualifiers gathered for the RDC RWD Series Final but disaster for 53 Dave Palmer (Mk2) who failed to start and was soon joined by Skippy while the Incarace draw left Mullet on pole position. The first action saw 587 Alex Humphrey (Mk2) hit the spun 313 John Cullingford (Mk2 estate) head-on as 22 Dave Vincent (Mk2) set the early pace from 160 Perry Willings while a back straight pile-up claimed several and saw 370 John Cobbold (estate) tag 188 John Reeves before Bro stuffed Linsdale in a battle of the limos. 682 Paul Sparrow collected his spinning team mate 124 John Chaplin (Mk2) in the door as 502 the Chief raced into third before Vincent disappeared from the frame and handed 160 Pez the top spot but he was then sent spinning by 262 the Verger and it was 384 John Golden (Mk2 estate) who inherited the lead as the race hit half way. 688 Steve Collins (Mk2 estate) fenced Linsdale while the Chief followed 313 Cully in nicely before the former span Linsdale into the infield blocks. 349 Lee Saunders butted heads with the spun 101 Ian Norris and Mullet fenced Pez, the former then taking a hit against the flow from Sparrow. 384 Goldie meanwhile raced to the win ahead of 617 Jack Overy and Bro.

Dead on 30 cars returned for the first Allcomers with Cooper hitting the spun 430 Darren Cranston (Mk2) on the nose as Smith was battered from pillar to post by hits from Alfie Lee, 148 Shorty and 587 Humps at the end of the home straight. Gelsthorpe meanwhile stuffed Chas Lee as Bro ran in the Verger and 119 Davey Cox hit 220 Tom Pavett (Mk2) over the front wheel on turn one, the latter then blown up by a big hit from Shinny. The race then turned quiet until Chas Lee hit 209 Minge on the nose with a big push among the front runners seeing Gelsthorpe fire into 287 Paul Totham (Mk2) which in turn fenced 547 Tony McNeil (Mk2 estate) and caused a pile-up from which 119 Cruncher emerged in the lead. Gelsthorpe delivered the final action with a solid hit on the limping 349 Finbarr as Cruncher took the win from Pez and 90 Joe Ninety, just eight finishing. 

21 starters for the second Allcomers with a lively start seeing several spin outs but it was a few laps in when we saw some more noteworthy action with Stevo’s hearse the centre of attention. 837 Martin Wesby delivered a T-bone on the spun 210 machine with Flash then hitting it head-on before Rushton connected with a big T-bone. This left the Barton Boy young gun prone to a roof bending package from 88 Alan Read while 209 Tom Waller finished Stevo with a fine hit. Swanny Jnr now arrived to blast 88 Speedy hard and Wesby met Joe Ninety on the nose as the smartly turned out 511 Helen Licquorice came under fire from Humps. 382 Jack Foster Jnr laid into Rushton as Pez collected Flash and duly took a hard shot from Flash as 382 Chubby struck Sparrow over the rear wheel. Joe Ninety rallied back to hit the spun Skippy on the nose, the former then fired into the infield blocks by Pez. Waller turned round to connect with a big head-on to Flash which collected Cruncher but the latter made it through for his second win ahead of Overy and 97 Dave Allen (Mk2). 

17 repaired in time for the Accumulator qualifier with Bro running Basham before 547 the BFA nailed Wesby with a hard hit. Meanwhile Courty laid into Licquorice on the road bend which allowed the BFA to connect with a roof bending hit on the former. Rushton, who had done well to repair, nailed the former in turn but was swiftly trashed once again by Muttley. The race then turned quiet until the struggling Bro parked his limo across the track and took a hit from 430 Crango which allowed Finbarr to hit the latter before Chubby delivered a solid T-bone to Crango. Overy held off Cruncher for the win with Gelsthorpe in third. Into the DD but there were precious few left, Chubby blasting Finbarr who duly homed in for a head-on to Bro. Gelsthorpe attacked Finbarr who shrugged it off to again nail Bro which finished them both. Gelsthorpe tagged Overy over the rear wheel, the former then hitting Chubby on the nose which allowed Cruncher to hit the latter. Chubby battled on and hit Courty on the nose with Overy blasting the latter on opposite. Chubby and Cruncher met on the nose which finished the former, the latter then T-boning Overy before they enjoyed a solid head-on which finished them both for a dead heat result, the BFA taking the entertainer award for his early antics. 

Last chance qualifier: 61 Karl Totham, 247, 312, v209, 688, 492, 538, 200
RDC RWD Series Final: 384 John Golden, 617, 247, 349, 20, 160, 61, 682, 101, 688
Allcomers One: 119 Davey Cox, 160, 90, 349, 555, 262, 382, 22
Allcomers Two: Cox, 617, 97, 682, 349, 90, 160, 382, 53
Accumulator Qualifier: 617 Jack Overy, 119, 555, 349
Into Destruction Derby: Overy and Cox

A fine night of racing with both formulas providing some tremendous action during the evening as well as a few quiet periods at times. 

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