jeffw
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 06:54 PM |
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North Weald Sprint 17th March
Cold/Wet North Weald with a very good entry including the Ferrari OC, TVR OC and LoT sprint guys. I did 2 practise runs in the wet and then 1 timed
run in the damp after which it started to rain again. Got beaten by Stephen Laing in his R500 (again!) by 1 sec. 2nd in class and 8th overall with a
83.2 sec run. FTD was an Impreza with 80sec.
http://youtu.be/JLHf2bV3-eo
Make sure you up the resolution to 1080p
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mark chandler
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 07:29 PM |
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Hello Jeffrey, how do you get into sprinting ?
Does it cost a lot, I quite fancy a competitive element that is missing in track days.
Cheers Mark
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rodgling
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 07:48 PM |
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North Weald is fairly local to me so I would also definitely be up for some sprints there later in the year.
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jeffw
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 08:01 PM |
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Mark, its Jeff....Jeffery is my full name but nobody calls me that
Anyway....this is what I did for another forum might help.
1. A car (pretty obvious):- Lots of different classes but I'll assume for the sake of this that we are talking about a road-legal kit car. The
class of this is specialist sports cars and normally has all the Lotus Exige/Elises & the kits in. Typically split at 1700cc and therefore I run
in the Over 1700cc class whereas a 1000cc BEC would be in the under 1700cc Class. I have ended up competing with a 7.3l Ultima! As the car is road
legal you will need to prove Tax, MoT (if required & insurance when you sign on. The car most be road legal in all respects and you can use MSA
List 1b tyres (R888, A048R etc etc) and you can also use the standard road tyres listed in 1a but you will not do very well unless it rains. Update:
BEC now appear to be running in over 1700cc class.
1a. Car Scrutineering :- They will check the car is safe which includeds if you are using harness it must be good condition (doesn't need to be
in-date or FIA/MSA approved for road going but I would recommend it), they look under the bonnet (you need to have a yellow earth lead to the battery
for easy identification). Although not required in a road class if you have fitted a roll cage it must meet the MSA requirements, same with master
electrical switch & manually activated extinguisher. You must also identify how to turn the car off on the dashboard.
2. Clothing/Helmet. You will need a Snell SA2005 or better helmet (open cars required a full face lid), a MSA approved and in-date suit and approved
gloves. You don't need boots or underwear but it would be wise to wear them anyway. First time you compete you will need to pay £1 to the
scrutineer for "MSA approved" sticker on your helmet.
3. License. To compete in a road-going kit car at Sprints or Hill Climbs you need a MSA Non-Race National B license. The cost is £38 or so and you can
apply online at http://www.msauk.org
4. Club membership. You need to belong to a MSA approved club. There are loads of these around but I belong to Sevenoaks & District Motor Club (
http://www.sevenoaksmotorclub.com/ ) & also Tunbridge Well Motor Club ( http://www.twmc.org.uk/ ). Cost is about £20 and it allows you to enter
their series.
5. Sprint Entry. Normally the Regs are published a few months before the event and you simple fill in the form and send off your dosh. Small airfield
sprints are around £100 and ones on proper circuits can be upto £200. The bigger events get booked up very early so be quick.
Your first sprint 
Preparation
Check your car over, make sure everything is connected/tight/bolted down. You will need a timing strut (made and fixed as per the MSA Blue Book, to be
fitted on site), some numbers (or black tape) to match your entry numbers (remember to do this once you arrive at the venue not before), your
clothing/helmet, a few tools and chair/drink etc.
Turning Up
Be as early as possible as this gives you the time to sort things out. All the instructions will be on the entry information sent through to you.
Typically the following happens
a. Turn up and park in the designated area
b. Sign on.....remember all you bits of paper (Insurance, V5, MoT, MSA License, Club Membership card)
c. Fit numbers and timing strut
d. Take car/self/kit to be scrutineered.
e. Walk course (watch flash gits with push bikes do it in a few minutes while you walk round)
f. Drivers Briefing
Competition
Normally sprints consisting of 2 practise runs and 3 timed runs. This is typically done in number order do make sure you are ready to queue up, in all
your kit, when your class is running. After each run all the times are printed up on a board somewhere so you can see how much in the lead you are
Prize Giving
After the event is finished you will need to hang about to pick up your Fastest Time of the Day trophy (!) or applaud the winners. Normally a pot of
1st & 2nd in each class.
Once it is all done you need to take your timing strut and numbers off the car before going on the public road. This is the point you start planning
the next time
It is great fun and I would recommend anyone who fancies it to have a go. Anyone who can drive a car on a trackday can sprint it....
Feel free to ask any questions and I will attempt to answer them with my limited experience.
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mark chandler
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 08:33 PM |
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Sorry Jeff, my ipad adding letters 
My car although registered is not road legal as I would rather spend the tax, insurance and MOT costs on a track day or two, does this matter?
Thanks Mark
[Edited on 17/3/13 by mark chandler]
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jeffw
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| posted on 17/3/13 at 09:18 PM |
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Yes, you need to be road legal to enter the 'road-legal' class, otherwise you will be in Sports Libre and then need in-date harnesses etc
(basically it gets treated as a full on race car).
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jeffw
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| posted on 18/3/13 at 03:21 PM |
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Photo from the day
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beaver34
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| posted on 18/3/13 at 04:38 PM |
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looks good,
not watching the vid yet im at work, will watch later
did you ever get the boost reading dipslying right on the dash 2 fomr the omex?
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jeffw
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| posted on 18/3/13 at 04:49 PM |
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Not yet....one of those jobs I'll get too...
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jeffw
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| posted on 19/3/13 at 02:42 PM |
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