Chester & Liverpool Motor Clubs' Speed Championship

sponsored by Belgrano Services Ltd & InterconnectIT.com

For a printable version of the report please click here

Down to the wire for the 2nd year

A Championship Review of the Year 2006

With the championship regs allowing just 8 rounds to count in Division 1 and 5 in Division 2 the championship has a nasty habit of springing surprises as we trundle through the year; however the one advantage is that there are often surprise leaders emerging.

The 2006 Championship got underway at Harewood back in April, however it wasn’t very well supported with just 8 contenders scoring points. Roger Fish moved into the lead of Division 1 with Graham Thomas second whilst Gary Thomas and Russell Thorpe jointly led Division 2 from James Kerr.

Needless to say a week later at Aintree the entry was back to what we had come to expect in 2005. Division 1 saw three drivers in diverse cars score the magic 100 - Dave Coveney in the Elise, Dennis Doyle in the Mallock and Andrew Dobson in the OMS. Meanwhile in Division 2 Gary Thomas took over the sole lead with his Elise and Stuart Tranter on his first appearance took over second place.

Round 3 was at Curborough and again a disappointingly thin entry saw Roger Fish bag maximum points in Division 1 (he was the only points scorer!) and retake the lead; whilst in Division 2 Gary Thomas consolidated his lead, whilst James Kerr moved into second place.

Rounds 4 & 5 took place over the one week-end at Anglesey Racing Circuit (Trac Mon) and again we had a massive entry in both divisions. In Division 1 Roger Fish consolidated his lead whilst Dave Coveney moved into second and Andrew Dobson took over third. In Division 2 James Kerr moved into the lead and Russell Thorpe grabbed second as Gary Thomas played elsewhere that week-end.

Two weeks later and the championship was back on Anglesey for Rounds 6 & 7 which shared the billing with the British Sprint Championship week-end. The lead in Division 1 went to Andrew Dobson in the OMS despite failing to pick up a perfect 100. Chris Elsmore brought the Focus up to second spot as Roger Fish was having a break! In Division 2 James Kerr scored well and retained the lead but Keith Webster outscored him to move into second in what was turning into a Peugeot 205 dogfight!

Round 8 at Aintree saw another massive entry and the championship battles were renewed. In Division 1 Andrew Dobson maintained his lead with another 100 whilst co-driver Jeanette Hunton was a handy second overall and Bryan Hartshorne quietly moved up to third spot. The Division 2 battle of the 205s was still led  by James Kerr despite neither he or Keith  Webster being present, however in their absence Howard Parkinson in the Sports Libre Nemisis moved up to split the pair and grab second. 2005 champion Mark Wallwork started to look a threat with yet another 100+ score his third of the season.

Round 9 at Loton saw a mixed bag of entries; Division 1 was well represented whilst in Division 2 there was a meagre turn-out. Bryan Hartshorne took over the lead of Division 1 by dint of more scores whilst Dave Coveney moved into second ahead of the absent Andrew Dobson. In Division 2 Gary Thomas moved back into the lead ahead of the pair of absentees, James Kerr & Howard Parkinson.

So to Round 10 at Three Sisters and it was game on in Division 1 as Andrew Dobson regained the lead. Graham Thomas also did well and moved into second just ahead of Chris Elsmore. In Division 2 Gary Thomas retained his lead whilst Steve English slipped into second behind the absent Elise driver.

The first week-end in September through up a dilemma as Rounds 11 & 12 were on the same day! Round 11 was back at Aintree for the British Sprint Championship event and Round 12 over on Anglesey. At Round 11 the Division 1 lead changed once again as Dave Coveney slipped past Andrew Dobson. However on Anglesey Dobson took top points in both Round 12 and Round 13 and ended the week-end leading the division from Chris Elsmore and Janette Hunton. The confusion was just as great in Division 2 where Howard Parkinson scored well at Aintree in Round 11 and led from Russell Thorpe and Gary Thomas. Meanwhile on Anglesey Mark Wallwork rocketed from the mid table to lead the division on Sunday evening from Keith Webster.

Round 14 that had been scheduled for New Brighton had to be cancelled due to a clash with the Longton Sprint at Three Sisters, Wigan and it was thought that due to the close proximity of the two venues that there would not be enough entries for the event to be viable. This left the fifteenth and final round at Thoresby Park. This event despite its popularity had little effect on the championship as in Division 1 Andrew Dobson cruised to victory. Dave Coveney was a game second with Dennis Doyle’s last round push moving him into third spot. The Division 2 battle saw Mark Wallwork consolidate his victory ahead of Keith Webster with Russell Thorpe holding third despite a last round surge by Gary Thomas.

All in all it was a thoroughly enjoyable championship, with deserving champions and slick organisation. With even more rounds in 2007 in the schedule one hopes that the success of 2006 will breed more of the same!

Report is courtesy of Steve Wilkinson