Ottery St Mary’s Ed Hollier returned to winning form at Torbay Motor Club’s Wiscombe Hillclimb held on the third Sarturday of May, writes Rupert Barker.
It was a stunning last run that saw the Ottery driver take the Fastest Time of the Day award.
After a near two-year absence from competing in a regional-championship event at the East Devon venue, Hollier eclipsed all his rivals for the top spot on his last run of the day in his Pilbeam MP62, stopping the clock at 36.95 seconds, 7/10ths faster than the pursuing Andrew Forsyth (OMS CF04) and the best efforts of Mike Lee, Ben Bonfield and Rod Thorne, all of whom dipped below the 40 second mark in their pursuit of the leader.
The event again proved popular with competitors, with an entry of 100 cars and 46 motorcycles contesting a total of six regional, club, venue and marque championships. Despite the ominous clouds circling the park intermittently, the dry track appeared to improve progressively as competitors laid down more and more rubber, with no less than ten of the class winners, and both the motorbike FTD times, setting their times on the last of their three timed runs.
The event ran seamlessly until early afternoon when Luke Trotman contrived to barrel-roll his Mallock in the Esses, with just a nearside front wheel on the grass enough to end his day in a spectacularly dramatic fashion. His emergence from the car completely unscathed was a tribute to the modern mandatory safety equipment and the combined efforts of Westcountry Rescue, the marshals and the recovery unit soon had the event back on track.
In the classes, several of the contests were won by the smallest of margins, with Rodney Eyles (Alfa Romeo 4C) snatching the win in A3 by fractionally over 2/10ths of a second, Simon Glover beating Martyn Glover to the A4 award in their shared Mitsubishi Lancer Evo by just 14/100ths, Ian Ingleheart (Westfield Cosworth) taking B2 by just 3/10ths from Torbay MC member Steve Hill (Lotus Super 7) and John Tandy beating Ben Rolls' Austin Healey Sprite to the MG Car Club honours by an equally small margin.
The National Hillclimb Association Championship motorbikes again set an example of close competition, with KTM machines dominating the classes; Tommy Hodges took the award for the 2-wheel FTD, with Simon and Jayne Foster winning the same award for the combination machines.
As menacing clouds gathered after the end of the event, Gary Dawkins, Director of the Club's 2019 awards sponsor Fusion Fostering, had just enough time to present the trophies before the rain started in conclusion of a successful days competition.
The event was supported by Fusion Fostering, The Tipton Garage and H R Owen Specialist Cars.
Results
A1: Peter Stiles, Suzuki Swift GTi, 49.12; A2: Jonathan Wright, VW Golf GTi, 44.70; A3: Rodney Eyles, Alfa Romeo 4C, 45.61; A4, Simon Glover, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, 43.77;l B2, Ian Ingleheart, Westfield Cosworth, 42.56; B3, Adrian Lewis, Westfield Superbusa, 44.08; C1: Clive James, Peugeot 205XS, 46.89; C2: Martyn Pike, Ford Escort Mk1, 42.40; C3: Jonathan Williamson, Porsche 911 Carrera, 44.48; D1, Stewart Lillington, Radical SR4, 40.33; D2, Rodney Thorne, Pilbeam MP43, 38.14; E1: Ben Bonfield, Jedi Mk4, 38.76; E2/E3: Andrew Forsyth, OMS CF04, 37.72; F1: John Kirby, Mini Clubman, 46.02; F4: John Tandy, MG Midget, 47.61; Marshals' Entertainment Award: Jan Yeo, Ford 34 Coupe, 42.93; Fastest Torbay MC member: Chris Crocker, Jedi Mk1, 42.16; Fastest Time of the Day (FTD): Ed Hollier, Pilbeam MP62, 36.95: Z1300: Alan Jolly, KTM: 46.09; Z250: Antony Isaac, KTM: 49.68; Z350, Allan Harvey, KTM SX, 47.35; Z500: Callum Short, KTM, 44.01; Z750: Tommy Hodges, KTM SMR, 41.54: 2WD FTD Combinations: Simon & Jayne Foster, Honda F2, 44.96, 3W FTD; Trikes 2WD: Jon & Isaac Warren, Suzuki, 45.28
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