Report by Phil Chambers & Elliot Harper.



The Don Valley Stadium played host to Round 3 of the BIWS series for 2007/8. Doors were opened early with enthusiastic racers preparing for the days event.

Another new track layout was prepared, approximately 420 ft. in length, on the indoor running track surface. The layout provided a comparatively short main straight, before sweeping down and back up in front of race control. This was followed by a high speed right to left onto a short straight, leading to a hairpin, then a complex chicane in front of the drivers rostrum and a sweeper onto the main straight.

Practice was well organised and all competitors were given 2 opportunities, controlled by tickets issued to each driver. This queuing and ticket process worked very effectively to provide a smooth practice session, regulated by Ian Howe.

Qualifying

The format allowed for 3 rounds of qualifying with FTD to count.

Round 1 provided the drivers with a competitive run whilst allowing a final opportunity to learn the track layout. The grip levels remained low, meaning 1st round qualifying times were unlikely to affect the standings later on in the day.

Results after round 1
27t FTD - Tim Woods

19t FTD - Tim Woods

Modified FTD - Sam Smith (Xray/Nosram)

Round 2 saw increased grip levels meaning the qualifying times were much improved. Most drivers took the opportunity to complete a safe and consistent run to ensure they would qualify well.

Results after round 2

27t
1. Darius Walker (Xray)
2. Tim Woods
3. Alan Howe (Xray).

19t
1. Matt Dunning (HB)
2. Tim Woods
3. Chris Clarke.

Modified
1. Elliot Harper (Xray/Nosram)
2. Ali Graham (Xray/Nosram)
3. Phil Chambers (Xray/Orion)

Round 3 provided a final opportunity to post a qualifying time, or to improve upon a previous time, meaning most drivers were pushing very hard. There were some small changes to the top 3 in 27t and modified but 19t remained the same.

Results after round 3

27t
1. Thomas Daley (Xray)
2. Tim Wood
3. Darius Walker (Xray)
4. Matthew Tuplin
5. Nigel Shaw (Xray)

19t
1. Matt Dunning (HB)
2. Tim Wood
3. Chris Clarke
4. Mark Jordon
5. Liam Brookes

Modified
1. Elliot Harper (Xray/Nosram)
2. Jonny Aird (Xray/Nosram)
3. Phil Chambers (Xray/Orion)
4. Stew Noble (HB/Orion)
5. Daniel Fallows



Concourse
Concourse was held between the end of the qualifying and the start of the finals. All the bodyshells entered were of a high quality and it was a particularly difficult selection for the judges. Stew Noble won the prize with his stunning Ninja Graffix painted shell!!



Finals

27T A Final Leg 1
It looked like it would be straight forward with Thomas Daley maintaining the pace in the early stages. It wasn't until about half way through the race, under heavy challenge from Tim Wood, that he lost the lead. Although driving hard to recover Tim had gained the upper hand and secured the first win, with Thomas 2nd and Matty Tuplin 3rd.

19T A Final Leg 1
This was a great race for the spectators, the lead changed hands many times and the crowd were really getting behind the drivers. Matt's car slowed near the end of the race and Tim Wood won in front of Chris Clark and Matt Dunning.

Mod A Final Leg 1
The start was clean until a small mistake from Jonny Aird in 2nd caused a pileup in front of race control. Elliot Harper held onto the lead followed by Stew Noble in 2nd and Phil Chambers in 3rd. Sam Smith had a very good start and came from 9th to 4th on the first lap.
Phil then made a pass on Stew, after a mistake through the high speed middle section, to take 2nd place. Sam also found his way past Stew after a small mistake to take 3rd place. Elliot's car was slightly off pace due to a tyre issue and Phil pressured him into a mistake in front of race control. This allowed Phil to take the lead. Elliot dropped further down the pack and 2nd place was taken by Sam Smith followed by Elliot, Ali and Stew. Sam was super quick and began to decrease the lead Phil had built up. Unfortunately Sam pushed slightly too hard and made a big mistake in the middle high speed section. Elliot also got caught up in this crash dropping him down to 4th. This allowed Phil to take it easy for the rest of the race to take the win, followed by Ali in 2nd and Stew Noble in 3rd.

Raffle
The raffle was held between finals with a host of prizes donated by Mirage, sponsors of the event. This helps to provide an opportunity for every one to take part and win a prize on the day - including the Mums and Dads - and helps to keep the event very family friendly.



27T A Final Leg 2
Tom Daley was off quickly and again maintained the lead for the first few laps until he was punished for a minor error. Tim Wood took the win in front of Adam Howe and Tom Daley.

19T A Final Leg 2
This race was super close and there was no clear lead built up by anyone. From a spectators point of view it was very enjoyable, but it was obviously very hard on the drivers nerves. The track was tricky at speed and minor errors were severely punished. In the end Matt Dunning held the lead, just keeping ahead of Tim Woods as both cars crossed the line only 2 feet apart. Matt took the win, Tim 2nd and in 3rd place Chris Clark.

Mod A Final Leg 2
The top 3 got off to a good start and pulled away from the rest of the field. Elliot sorted his tyre issue out from 1st final and was back on pace, leading the race followed by Jonny in 2nd and Phil in 3rd. Phil had an issue with his cells before this final, meaning he had to run the race with a charge of under 3000mAh. Some super smooth driving meant he held 3rd from start to finish, which was all he needed to win the meeting. Elliot won leg 2 by 5 seconds ahead of Jonny in 2nd and Phil 0.6 seconds back in 3rd.

Overall Results

27t
1. Tim Wood
2. Tom Daley (Xray)
3. Sion Wedley
4. Nigel Shaw (Xray)
5. Matthew Tuplin
6. Adam Howe (Xray)
7. Darius Walker (Xray)
8. Jeremy Clarke
9. Andrew Gregory (Xray)
10. Paul Boult

19t
1. Tim Wood
2. Matt Dunning (HB)
3. Chris Clark
4. Luke Thompson (Xray)
5. Liam Brookes
6. Chris Bosomworth (Xray)
7. Darren Wood
8. Martin Aldred (Xray)
9. Luke Humphrey (Xray)
10. Mark Jordon

Modified
1. Phil Chambers (Xray/Orion)
2. Elliott Harper (Xray/Nosram)
3. Ali Graham (Xray/Nosram)
4. Jonny Aird (Xray/Nosram)
5. Dan Fallows
6. Stew Noble (HB/Orion)
7. Sam Smith (Xray/Nosram)
8. Jonny Dronfield
9. Guy Thornton (Xray/Orion)
10. James Hart





Phil Chambers winning setup sheet - Click Here