Pilot Custard

CarComputer monitor

2011-09-08T14:53:00.002+01:00

The monitor for the in-car mapping computer has been playing up for a while.... it caused me problems when I was down at Forrest Lodge doing some mileage and route confirmations, and again when I went down to the Merrick Rally.

It came to a head when the monitor was totally unusable when I went to recce for the Bathgate Comp (fortunately I was able to follow the route on the Garmin GPS.)

Various investigations lead me to believe the problem is a dry joint in the low-voltage side (the problem exists whether running on mains it the 12V feed; in the car or in the house.) I'll dig into the monitor some time, and try to find the dry joint, however I've had a look for a replacement monitor, just in case.

I've found an ebay company that sells the same monitor: £27 delivered!

I've ordered three :chuckle:

Pst... want to put on a demo?

2011-04-27T14:15:00.000+01:00

Interesting Times....

Round two of the SCCC was cancelled (well, cancelled, then postponed) as the ground was booked for the wrong date, and couldn't be moved to the right date.
I've reasons to think that this was less accidental and more machination, but I can't be ar$ed with the politics of it, so I'm finding a new site and we'll just carry on from there.

I got a message from Knockhill ("Scotlands National Motorsports Centre") - they are running the Scottish Motor Show, and could I put on something that was "noisy and entertaining and related to Off Road." I'm sure I'm up for that :)
I roped in the help of Robert Agnew (let someone else take the strain of getting cars), and we have 7 different vehicles to show: a standard 90 (with a roll cage); an ALRC 88"; a modified 110; a rear-engined Tornado; a 100" QT Wildcat; a Warrior; and a Simbuggini.)
Knockhill want to be able to get the punters involved, and possibly have reason to talk to the competitors (questions like "car 12 is ahead of you, how do you plan to catch them?" and stuff like that) so we need a competition... timed to the nearest second, and all that - which means "Comp Safari."
I have a short course designed, just half a mile long, but with all the good bits in view of the public. We have the Permit, the people to run the event.... and even competitors. It's all coming together!
SLROC are going to put up a stand in the main concourse, and I've a DVD coming down to show off Comps & Hill Rallies - SLROC will get the passing trade, and I'll get my promotion (with both my Hill Rally and my Comp Safari hats on to boot :grin: )

The "Borders" Hill Rally is also shaping up well - the regs are nearly ready (I wanted to see how Andy had written his regs for the regroups & things) - they won't be out when I wanted them (SCCC Round 3: 18/19 May), but it won't be far off that: we have most of the senior officials in place, and 90% of a budget drafted!

I've got two possible sites for a July comp: Ron is trying to get MOD ground up near Stirling, and Martyn is going back to a farm down Morpeth direction.

Scottish Comp, round one

2011-03-15T14:06:00.000Z

Some old news first: There was the annual MSA Clerks & Stewards Seminar at the beginning of February, which was good (but very light on Cross Country), and a Cross Country sub-committee later in the same month (consultation papers are here: http://msauk.org/site/cms/newsarticle.asp?chapter=276&nid=1397 )

Anyway, that's the first round of the Scottish Cross Country Championships been and gone.

The weather forecast gave us mild concern, but the site is one of those that can be used in any weather.... actually, the wet weather works in our favour as the cars are slower!
When we set up on the Saturday, we thought we might even get an Alpine Winter Rally: white snow everywhere, and a course marked by the passage of vehicles.... sadly all we got was rain & more rain :sadness:
(for those of you who set up the "Borders" Hill Rally in 2010, or the "Perthshire" in 2002 - it was that wet!)

The shocking part of the whole event was the low turnout of competitors: we had people travel hundreds of miles (I'm not sure which is further away: Inverewe or Leeds), but was deeply embarrassing to have a great turnout of marshals, very few local competitors :cry:

The land-owner came up to watch, and spent the day shaking his head - bemused at the madness of people charging around in the mud.... but he had a smile on his face, and is more than happy for us to come back next year (and maybe even a Trial later in the year...)

All change at the Custard-Shed

2010-12-13T11:39:00.002Z

As some of you know, every bloke needs to have a shed, somewhere to retire to of an evening and tinker with this'n'that. I, like every bloke, have a shed.... however the normal 6'x8' clapper-board shed at the foot of the garden is not really going to cut the mustard when ones tinkering & contemplation is in the arena of motorsport. No, my shed is 2,000 square feet of barn (shared with a classic-car restorer & a man slowly converting a 101 into a camper-van.).... with about a third again occupied by farm machinery & other stuff.

For the past three years, the doors at the west end of the barn (the wider end, and the end with the pit) has been blocked off and we have used the doors at the east end - which has lead to a long narrow workshop, with cars stored either side of the pit.

The farm want to change things around: they want to take over the eastern door and 450 square feet of the floor-space I'm currently using, so I'm taking over 450 square feet of space currently occupied by farm machinery & stuff. As you can imagine, the juggling of things is not easy (given that about the only thing that can be left outside the shed whilst the shuffle happens is my caravan!)

Still, I reckon that we will end up with a better (read "wider") working area, and the space for storing long-term projects (not dead cars, thank you very much) will now be well away from any space we want to work in.

There is some debate, at the moment, as to whether the wee alcove space we have acquired should become a workshop, or have a couple of cars stuffed into it.... but I think "workshop" makes more sense in the longer run.

Still - the shuffle keeps me out the pub :)

The Roger Albert Clark Rally

2010-11-29T10:07:00.002Z

Whoever says you can sleep in the back of a discovery..... they're lying. Well - either their short, or they're lying! With the back seats folded up and most stuff either under the car on on the front seats... I'm about 18" too long!

I'd agreed to go and marshal on a stage at the rally.... In twiglees, no less (just over the road from Castle O'er)! I combined it with a trip to Forrest Estate to collect the stuff we'd left behind 'cos we'd run out of space to bring it up at the end of take-down. (In the end, I couldn't fit it all in.... there are still a couple of hundred stakes down there!!)
I then drove over to the start of Twiglees, and set up to sleep in the back of the Disco. Whichever way I lay, I just could not stretch out.... so had a broken & fractured sleep - and woke up with cold feet, aching knees, sore hips, and a pain in the small of my back. Mind you - with three layers + padded romper-suit + 13.5 tog duvet, the rest of me wasn't cold :)

Sunday dawned.... as I was boiling the kettle & making a couple of hot rolls. The lads in the van that arrived during the night (I must have been asleep at that point!) told me it had dropped to -8 overnight.... which would explain the ice on the inside of the window :chuckle:

Anyway - it's strange the people you meet on a Rally stage: I wasn't surprised when Big Eck turned up; however the two lads in the van run a garage in the village I live near, and the small bundle of wrapped up person turned out to be Cat Ratter!

The stage itself was largely un-eventful: one car managed to spin it into a ditch a few hundred yards down the road from me (and I'm not build for running!!), however driver & navigator wanted to stay with their car rather than come into the (relative) warmth of my car (and the stage wasn't going to be stopped as the course was passable)..... so I gave them a reflective tabbard and a warning triangle, and left them to it.

The drive home was fine, however the water nozzles for the screen-wash froze up, so I was washing the window with Mr Muscle [need to be below 30mph to spray it sensibly] and having over half-a-tonne on the back of the car made some of the back-road corners.... "interesting".

But it's snowing today, and the world is looking far more fun :D :D

The 2010 Borders Hill Rally

2010-11-25T09:20:00.004Z

Well, another year passes by, and another damn good event brightens the world for quite a few people.

With the help of Forrest Estate, we had managed to increase the field to 50 entries, and every single place was filled as the cars started the opening round. At one point, we were up to 58 entries for the event, however the second half of the motorsport season retired a few cars, and health issues forced a few drivers to reassess their plans.... but it all worked out in the end!

A huge amount of work by a large number of people saw a brilliant event (the MSA Steward was reported as saying he didn't think he had ever been to a single venue rally that had been as well organised.... and that MSA Steward has been to many events over the years!) Planning takes many forms - from stage routes and the time schedule, to getting everyone into the (tight) service yard & getting the burger van to open for breakfast :)

We set up in three days, with a crew of about twenty people working hard to ensure everything was ready. The weather was not kind - continual rain kept the water levels high, and played havoc with car electrics as wet coats dripped water everywhere....

The event itself was brilliant - I started the day chaperoning a pair of media students who were part of a group filming the event (I think there were a dozen media folk at the event, in all!), then ended up running the Arrivals station for SS5 & SS8 (never done it before, but you pitch in where needed.... and actually it's a doddle to do!)
Sunday was much quieter for me - enabling me to do what I needed to do: go and talk to competitors, and get a feel for what we should be doing in 2011.

Much Kudos to Rupert for making us all do our wee bits & making the whole greater than the sum of the parts; and to Campbell for a stages design that was an elegant use of the limited options. Special mention to Colin, for pulling a slew of new faces into the marshalling pool as well as gathering in some familiar faces (and November is a busy month for marshalling - I'm back down to the Borders area for the Roger Albert Clark rally this weekend!) and to Sharon, for getting everyone into the tight service area (with not much friction, and very few cross words)

As noted above, we had 50 starters. 35 Finished the event... which is pretty good, considering Hill Rallies are about endurance, not outright speed: Preparation is paramount. There are a couple of videos on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jaKO5Qg0Qs is from a regular at the scottish comps, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRriNfA-dV0 is some in-car footage from the new Britpart car (on SS1 - so this is the very first time he's seen this stage. Remember there are no pace-notes, so he's literally driving it as he sees it!)

Results are here: http://www.nersresults.co.uk/html/2010/sb_hillrally/

Takedown was good: John & Diana pulled in most of Sections 2 & 3 by lunchtime on Monday, whilst Colin and I cleared the Rally HQ area (take down the big SLROC marquee & return thirty-odd pallets to the estate workshop-yard.) Tuesday saw a big help from Forrest Estate again, as they send a couple of people off to pull in Section 1, whilst Diana and I took down the smaller SLROC marquee and finished clearing Section 2.
By 4pm on Tuesday, all stage furniture was in; all signage was either away with Campbell or in my trailer; all sticks were away with John or Charlie, or lying ready for me to pick up; and all tents were packed away.

A big thanks to everyone involved: competitors, without whom there would be no event to run; marshals, without whom the event would not even start; the organisers, without whom nothing would have happened at all; and Forrest Estate, who have already asked us back next year (and Brian wants to be '0' car again!)

Bring it on!!!

The Perthshire, 2011

2010-11-13T07:16:00.004Z

We had our meeting (well - five of us had a meeting & two emailed comments.... and perhaps that is partially indicitive of the problem) to discuss the where-we've-been and what-to-do of a Cross Country event in July.

We know that there are major issues with competitor numbers over the years. Just looking at the raw numbers we can see that: 42 in '07; 36 in '08; 24 in '09; and just 10 entries in 2010!

There are two (maybe three) reasons for this: road legality, VOSA & cars have moved on; its the same old stuff every year & boring now; and maybe one could lay some blame at other events crowding out the space.

Road Legality is a big issue: it takes time, effort & money to get a car sorted for an MOT/SVI (the Borders wins from this to a certain extent, in that cars can bypass all that expense and still have some of that "Hill Rally" experience). A lot of the current crop of "Road Legal" cars would get pulled over (it claims its a white 1972 range rover, but it looks nothing like a range rover, and is definitely not white), with the fear of being impounded/crushed by an overly zealous beaurocracy.
There are road-legal cars, but are they as tough as the old-school vehicles? (and an extra £20K is a lot to spend on a toy!) - not with just one event in the year requiring the toy to be road-legal, there will not be many people who are prepared to go that route.
The Perthshire hasn't changed in 15 years. Well, yes & no.... and re-read that sentance again: "15 years." That's a long time for an event to run! Yes, one could say that the event hasn't changed, in that we are still using the same core sites that we used five years ago, however one could say the similar things about the Scottish Comps, NORC, AWDC, & even the BCCC (there's very little new ground out there to be had, and unless you have an "in" with the land-owner, most are not interested in a bunch of hooligans ripping their ground to shreds).
Like any events, the "Perthshire" has been loosing ground: as farms are split-up & sold off; as Land Owners grow weary of the small return for the amount of hassle it puts them through; as farming practices change; etc.
I have a 2006 Hill Rally mug in front of me - here are the sites that have gone in the last five years: Athron Hall, Candy, Clow, Dollar, Law Hill, Glen Tarkie, Heatheryleys, Knockhill, Lochelbank, Montalt, Rossie Ochil, Struie, Tillyrie. We have been getting new ground - not enough open hill-side for my preference (the clue is in the name HILL rally club), however new ground will rarely be in the same locality as the exisitng sites (not a problem for the comps, but a big factor for a multi-venue event!)
Being crowded out by other events is another issue: there are, I think, something like 27 "national" comp safari events in the UK. The BCCC is an obvious one, and then NORC, AWDC & the SCCC all cater for competitors from a wide geographical area... and we are all competing for the same 'customers.'
Competitors need time between events, both to service (and repair) vehicles, and to gather the money to enter the next event. Two weekends is a minumum, three weekends is good, and four if it has been an arduous event. Organisers, therefore, need to plan when they hold events to maximise the number of competitors they can get, whilst also providing the greatest opportunity for competitors to take part in the "major" events.
Competitors will, obviously, choose which series they prefer, and if there is a dates clash, they will need a lot on incentive to miss an event from their own series.

So where does this leave us for 2011?

Well, there will definitely be no Multi-venue cross-country rally (the classic Hill Rally) in 2011.

I am unsure if there is merit for a Single-venue, multi-stage rally (the sort of event we do at the "Borders") in 2011 - particularly as we share competitors with the BCCC, and there is just one weekend between a BCCC round and the "Perthshire."

We, the Scottish Hill Rally Club, will run something - we need to as history is littered with events that have taken a year or two off, and then lost the date as another organisation has appropriated it.

I think the future for the "Perthshire" needs looked at - we need to go "Bigger" and "Better": We need to go National A; move to be three days; have more competitive milage.... and accept that the cost of the event will go up.
This will require major sponsorship (£1,000 here, £200 there is not enough.... we need to look at £5000+), and a LOT of work!

..... but we (I) need to talk to competitors, to see what will interest them -- Roll on the "Borders"

Three down, one to go....

2010-11-11T10:23:00.002Z

The final Borders Hill Rally Organisers meeting was a Telecon on Monday evening. Everything is going sweetly: the printing is printing; the stages are sorted; and we have a good set-up crew ready to go. The Response crews are sorted & the fundamental marshal points are covered (but we can always do with more marshals!)

Tuesday evening was a Scottish Hill Rally Club committee meeting - a good turnout of the usual faces, and a useful meeting for us all to get an overview of what is happening with the various events we are running.

Last night was a Scottish Land Rover Owners Club committee meeting, where we had a review of past & future events; discussed the glossy Annual Review and the news-fliers (notice I avoid using the term newsletter in both cases :chuckle: )
Alan proposed a superb idea for linking lots of the club events together... I'm going to say no more on that, other than to say "watch for information on that" - it's a belter of an idea!

Tonight is a meeting to discuss what we do in July... the "Perthshire"

A busy week ahead

2010-11-08T06:53:00.002Z

Looks like its going to be a busy week:

The last Borders Hill Rally organisers meeting (a telecon) tonight
Hill Rally club committee meeting Tuesday evening
Scottish Land Rover Owners Club meeting on Wednesday evening
Perthshire organisers meeting on Thursday evening
It looks like I'll need to go to Dundee on Friday evening to work through the service area details with Campbell
Saturday some of us meet up to load trailers with stakes, arrows & stuff to take down to the Borders

.... and I head down the following Tuesday, to start Setup on Wednesday!

Dunbar trial

2010-11-07T21:04:00.002Z

An excellent 10 sections - All sections were cleared by someone, and everyone cleared at least one section, yet nobody ended on zero points.

I came second-last on 25, beating Jumplead Jonny by a single point, and a full 21 points behind the winner!

A great day, and it was fun to be on the competitive side for a change :grin:

Setting up a CCV Trial

2010-11-06T16:06:00.003Z

Just back from Alex's, where we were setting out the sections for tomorrows CCV.

Alex & I did some, and Sharon & Big Eck did some.... and Andrew & Peter set out 10 tyro sections.

Some of the Sections require grunt, some require finesse, and most require you to think three gates ahead.

It's gonna be a good day tomorrow :)

The old 80/20 rule.....

2010-11-04T20:18:00.002Z

It's always the last 20% of the organising that seems to take 80% of the time!

Tonights task is to review Campbells notes for the course builders (I know this years routes better than Campbell, however if he writes the notes it means he understands the various twists & turns), and to review the Road Book.

I'm reckoning there's about 4 hours work here, which is not a patch on the work Campbell has put in to get them to this state for us!

SACC 2/11/2010

2010-11-02T23:31:00.002Z

I'm just in from the Scottish Association of Car Clubs meeting.

Not a lot to report, really.... however the Scottish GoMotorsport man came along, so we can hope things improve there.

I'm going to try to get the AutoTest co-ordinator to pop along the the SLROC Boxing Day Bash, and we can see if there's a way to get Cross Country involved in AutoTests (we'd not be interested in the tarmac stuff, but the grass-stuff could be interesting...)

Perthshire 2011

2010-09-17T10:09:00.003+01:00

I've been musing plans for the Perthshire for a while now - working out what to do in 2011.

There are a number of alternatives, each with Pros & Cons, and each deserving serious consideration.

Run a standard Perthshire: 100 competitive miles over two days - basically re-impliment what we had planned for 2010.
Go for broke: Go larger - try to find enough land to run 150 miles, over three days, under a National A Permit.
Try to emulate the Borders: find the space to run 100 competitive miles in a single venue (or possibly spread over two venues.... but with no road-miles between the sites
Do something completely different..... like an AutoCross or an AutoTest
Do nothing.... just let the whole thing rest for a year (or two)

Even after three months, I really don't know which way to jump.

Number (1) is dead easy, but lets be honest - are there really enough cars out there? (and the Hill Rally club cannot afford another expense like we took in July 2010)

Number (2) is the preferred option for a couple of people I know.... but this does require us finding new land.... something we struggle with even for the standard Perthshire

Number (3) has the merit that it avoids the whole "road-legal" issue, but (to me) it avoids one of the major tests a Hill Rally throws at you: the Navigators role in keeping Time and Distance under control.

Number (4) is interesting, and something I've already put out some feelers for.... but is it right for us?

Number (5) worries me most: will we be able to come back? Will the land be there? Will the competitors want to come back? Will Cross Country move into a whole new area?

What's needed in the next wee while

2010-09-13T09:22:00.002+01:00

Looks like there's a fair amount to do in the next few weeks (apart from the usual fettling of cars & sorting out the shed):

I need to head down to Forrest Estate to do the road-book, and confirm the stages with Kilty... and talk to the estate about where I would like to do a couple of bits of work
I need to then go back down again, with my digger-man, to do the work (there's a paper-work trail like you wouldn't believe)
I need to go into Fanny Hill to do some work I agreed to do post Perthshire, except I need to have copies of tickets (recognised certificates of competence) for anyone who's going to use any form of machine on Forestry Commission ground - and finding someone with a Dumper Truck ticket was really hard...
I need to go and do a recce for the Comp Safari down at Galashiels, and probably go back to clear some broom/gorse bushes out the way.

No rest for the wicked, eh? :chuckle:

Bathgate

2010-08-26T12:26:00.002+01:00

The Barttech Engineering Trophy

Well, the night comp has been.... and what a good event it was too!

With a course mostly designed by Mark Caisley (with Alan Agnew, Davie Stewart & Davie Bartlett throwing in their ideas, and me just ensuring that we kept to the rules), we had five miles of interesting (and different) fun.

In practice, the course laid out was 4.85 miles (as driven once the pegs were in the ground) - giving a 30mph average time of 9 minutes & 36 seconds, and a target time of 30 minutes. Given I had a Doctor, Rescue Unit & Recovery Unit on site, I was able to not panic if people put in times down to 5 minutes 49 seconds.... which is always good to know, and a bogie time nobody was going to break :)

The format for the day was different to our normal schedule: this time we had three sessions, with the competitors putting in five laps in the afternoon, five laps at night, and five laps again on Sunday.... for a total of almost 70 miles!

From the outset, Davie Bartlett showed why he's last years SCCC champion, putting in five consistent lap times, from 9:54 on his first lap to his fastest of 9:21 (basically, an average speed of 32mph)
Hot on his heels, and looking to recover the trophy he won in 2008, Mark Caisley was less than a minute behind him after the afternoon session.

The following pack, all sitting in the 11-minute-lap area, were all the V8's, with the diesels of Ross & Abe Hamilton and newcomer Robert Scott coming in around the 12-minute lap times.

One issue that a significant number of competitors suffered from was overheating... Higel Hails, Mark Caisley, Stu Howe, Ben Gill, Jonathan Barker, Billy Philips, and all three from team Bartlette having big problems.

During the early evening, the heavens opened, and a good inch or two of rain descended upon us. The night stages saw a reduced field
Andi Harrison retreated to replace a diff; Brian Hilditch & Chris Cruikshanks decided discretion was the better part of valour, and racing in those conditions was too risky for them; and Mark Caisley retired, concerned about his engine blowing steam.
Davie Bartlett's charge came to an abrupt end on lap 9, when he broke a rocker-shaft.

When we reconvened for the sunday runs, we were back to an almost full field: only Davie Bartlett & Mark Caisley were not back with us.

Robert Scott ran into problems, with three blown dampers from lap 9, he needed to work fast to get to the start-line in time.

Sunday saw two other retireals: Ross & Abe Hamilton broke their fuel pump and Chris Cruikshanks blew his drive-train.
Billy Phillips managed to finish, however the final lap tore his rear axle from its mounts, and the car came in with a definite sag.... and a spring dangling in mid air!

The man, however, with the worst luck was Chris Sainter: he knocked the end off his oil-filter on lap one (and couldn't get parts until supper-time); knocked his timing out; and then lost his lights. In all, he only managed four laps.... but had an absolute ball!

Congratulations go to Ben Gill, who managed to beat Stu Howe to the win by less that 10 minutes. Full results are on the scottishcompsafari web site.

it's been a busy wee while....

2010-08-07T14:19:00.002+01:00

It's been busy, certainly it doesn't feel like two weeks since I put finger to keyboard in this Blog...

Borders Hill Rally
I've been down to Forrest Lodge, to review the stages that Campbell and I planned out on the paper maps. Every road & off-road section has now been driven by me, in the Disco, on road tyres... slicks, as near as dammit.
Every stage is different to last year, and even though the BCCC & SCCC have been there this year, none of the stages match those routes either!
There was one off-road section I didn't drive: it looked blocked from the end, and the possible blockage was just after a soft bit..... so I bypassed it!
I've found a couple of new potential off-road sections, so I need to run them past the estate manager, see what we can do.
The Service Yard is also going to be a challenge: 50 competitors into a 5,000m² yard is not going to be easy - it ain't 100m² each! There's service in, service out & through-service traffic to route... two-way traffic at that!... and each area needs access, so that complicates things too!

Scottish Comp at Bathgate
This is all planned, however there's a crossing I need to put in - so we can link the top & bottom tracks without going round the (badly damaged) duck-pond.
I was out today, speaking to the farmer, about where to cross - and we have identified the place to put the crossing in: close enough to my original plan that the map will suffice, and also good for him when he needs to chase the cattle :grin:
So, I'm booking a minidigger & dumper to do the work next weekend...... except it turns out I've managed to get hold of TWO minidiggers! excellent!
I can now do the crossing (which will need a pipe & several tonnes of hard-core); the buggered track beside the duck pond; and repair the track in the wood!
This is all good, and keeps us in favour with the land-owner!

From the MSA Cross Country meeting

2010-07-16T10:16:00.004+01:00

The meeting was good, very enjoyable.

An interesting mix of people, with a range of passions & personalities, so should make for an interesting series of meetings.

We had brief reports from Ian Davis (MSA) and Chris Tomley (chair) regarding general MSA matters:

There is a review on Stewarding, primarily focused on Karting, but will extend across the board in time
Cross Country permits are down about 1%, and competitor numbers are down about 8%
Road Closures are getting a lot of attention, and there is pressure to produce something, but there are no outputs from that group as yet.

The consultation process is being changed
The current process is that:

The sub-committee meets & comes up with some ideas.
These go to the general council who like it or kick it back.
If they like it, it gets published in Motorsport Now & we all get to see it, review it, and write to the MSA to tell them how daft they're being... if not, it goes back to the sub-committee for re-work
The consultation report then goes back to Council, who review it, and then....
It either goes live, or goes back to the sub-committee to start again.

The new system is both more streamlined, and keeps the focus for rule changes at the sub-committee level:

The sub-committee meets & comes up with some ideas.
These are then posted to the MSA web site for consultation (http://msauk.org/site/cms/newslist.asp?chapter=276&cat=10).
The second sub-committee meeting then reviews the responses from the consultation process. There are either major changes requiring another round of consultation or minor changes & the new rules are passed to Council for ratification.
Council meet & then either pass the rules or kick them back as being daft.

Given the time-frame mentioned above, the deadline for Cross Country to get new rules to Council will be June/July, so we are going to move our meetings to Early December & Spring-time.

Challenge Events
We spent a long time (over an hour) discussing Challenge Events. We'd had a long email from someone about the proposed Challenge rules, many of which were centered around the principle that the proposed rules tried to cover both the extreme, frequently-submerged, winching, full-on Challenge events with highly specialised vehicles with 97" tyres, 43 winches, and fiddle/lockable everything; to the gentler events, where winches are not wanted & the challenge is in the navigation, not the terrain.

We have re-purposed (well, just slightly re-worded) the rules for Cross Country Orienteering & they will then cover the gentler challenge events, leaving the new rules less encumbered by the need to support both styles of events.

It will be interesting to see what comes back from that....

Speeds at Comps
We then moved onto comps, and the thought that average speeds had gone up.
Karl Reilly borrowed a speed gun and tested speeds at the BCCC event at Sweet Lamb. He found that speeds were generally about 20% lower than the drivers thought they were, and were about 15% up on 2003. The biggest difference was not the top-end speed, but the handling into & out of corners, and the improvements in suspension that allowed cars to cross rougher ground at higher speeds.
This single report implies that top-end speed is not as big an issue as was first believed, however one report is inconclusive, so the committee wishes more tests to be done, across the range. (Roger Reed will take some readings at some Scottish Comps, and the Borders Hill Rally.)
The results will be fed back to the committee, so we can get a feel for what's happening out "in the field" (if you forgive the pun.)

Tyres
Malatesta Kobra NT (http://www.tyresdirectuk.co.uk/xcart/home.php?cat=271) are to be included, and two Colways re-moulds are to be added.

Generally speaking, however, unless its obvious that the tyre is a pattern-copy of a tyre on the list, the committee needs to see an actual tyre to accept them (photo's are all very well, but you don't get a feeling for the size & aggression of lugs & lumps from a photo... and it allows an independent verification of the tyre rating ... 'cos its written on the carcass :) )

[As an aside, I was having a chat with a Competitor last night, and he swears by UK-made tyres... reckons the side-walls are way stronger that European imports!]

An Inter-Association Cross Country event
This is Roger Reeds baby, born back at the turn of the century with the help of Dave Barker.
The original concept was to be for an RTV, however the world has moved on since then, and times have changed.
After some discussion, the idea is now to have a Tyro event.
Each Association can put forward as many teams as they like, and the teams can be of any age, however the Inter-Associational Trophy itself is only open to teams where the drivers are under 17 (note to self: question if that is that up-to-and-including 17, or up-to-and-including 16.) Teams are three drivers (vehicles can have multiple drivers, etc...)
The event should cater for any number of teams, and should consider allowing non-associational entries to take part.
The plan is to have an event in early August, somewhere in the Midlands (Andrew Flanders will investigate).... in 2011
(Oh, and note that SACC has a history of paying for teams entering inter-associational events!)

BCCC
There was discussion about the BCCC, and it would be nice for the Cross Country Committee to see the results of the MSA Cross Country Championship.
There was some rumination on the current style of championship and if that was what was wanted, or whether it should be broadened to include the Baja & Hill Rallies as well as Comp Safaris.
I expressed my somewhat biased position (as the chairman of the only club running Hill rallies!), but would be delighted to have Hill Rallies as part of a larger championship.
This lead on to a rambling discussion about road legal & traveling to France & closed roads & event entries covering you on the public highway & ....

One question I did ask was "If there was a championship that had rounds run by different clubs, how many cars are you looking at for a comp?" - we reckoned it would be between 50 & 80 cars, and you would need to do a 15-lap, two day, comp safari.

And personally: I'm wondering if Scotland should host a Comp Safari round? Could we find a piece of land that could sustain 70 cars doing 15 laps over two days? -- that's over 1,000 vehicle-laps.... that's a lot of wear on the ground! Given we're already running the only available Hill Rallies, do we want to try and do a Comp too?

MSA Cross Country meeting

2010-07-14T05:42:00.002+01:00

Getting ready to catch a 9am flight down to London for a Cross Country group meeting.

This will be my first, given that I never made the proper first meeting due to Eyjafjallajökull cancelling my flights, and a car crash stopping me getting my train.

The major contentious issue this time appears to be revolving around Challenge vehicles - not something I have a lot of knowledge about.... we'll see what the arguments are, and stick my oar in occasionally :)

Getting ready to marshal

2010-07-08T23:04:00.002+01:00

I'm heading off to marshal at the Rally of Argyle (yes, the one that moved the "Perthshire" from it's original date this year), and I've been packing the car.... I've to be there at 8am on Saturday morning, so I'll drive up tomorrow night & sleep in the car.

But the stuff one takes!

Tools for a 300-mile round trip; food-box with cooker, kettle & custard; water; extra diesel, just in case; spade & mattock; tow-rope (well, full recovery kit); jump-leads & airline hose; stapler & tape & arrows & hammer & spike; chair & table; back-up radio..... the list goes on!

.... and don't forget food, waterproofs, and a change of clothes (or two - the weather forecast is for "Periods of rain"!)

2011 forestry allocations

2010-07-07T18:25:00.002+01:00

That's the 2011 forestry requests now applied for - yes, us clubs need to apply for forestry allocation now, for next year!

I've put in a pile of speculative forests, stuff I'm been planning for a few months now, knowing that I probably won't get half of them.... though I have a sneaking suspicion the right way is to have actually planned the whole event 2 years in advance, and apply for what you know you need [and hope that there are no clashes, or your screwed]

The not-the-perthshire-hill-rally comp

2010-07-06T14:38:00.002+01:00

When I was phoning round, dealing with the aftermath of cancelling the Scottish "Perthshire" Hill Rally, one of the competitors suggested a comp in it's place.

This is three weeks before the date of the Perthshire, and therefor the date of the comp.

So, I found the land (two options, so I spoke to both land-owners), got the club on side, persuaded rescue, recovery & doctors to come along for almost nothing, and even got a great turnout of marshals..... not bad for a weeks work, around paid-work & a weekend devoted to Lothian 4x4 Response and a trial (Leaf Sprung motors only :D )

.... except I've only got half-a-dozen people interested.
(makes me wonder why I devote so much of my life to this sport.... for so little return)

Time to revive this, methinks

2010-07-06T10:18:00.002+01:00

Time, I think, to revive this blog.... give me somewhere to vent, to rant, and to shout the joys of motorsport in all the forms I enjoy (or allegedly enjoy) it.

So, to recap who I am & where I sit in the grand scheme of things:

1) I am a bloke who likes Motorsport.... specifically, Cross Country motor sport.

2) I am the bloke who seems to have landed as the core around which the Scottish Comp Safari events revolve, and who is moderately important in the Hill Rally environment too. This is not a deliberate choice..... more a "well - if nobody else will, I'll have a go"
I am, for my sins, a certified National-A Cross Country Clerk of Course, the Clerk of Course for the Scottish Cross Country Championship, and the Chairman of the Scottish Hill Rally Club.... and I even go down to MSA house and stick my oar in on the Cross Country Committee.

I used to compete.... as a Trials driver -- I have never been a Comp Safari competitor in my puff.

Galashiels, and the MSA

2009-09-28T14:06:00.003+01:00

Second item first... I've been invited onto the MSA Off Road committee.

The MSA is

"recognised as the sole motor sport governing body for the United Kingdom by the world governing body, the Federation Internationale de L'Automobile (FIA).

As the governing body, the MSA is responsible for the governance and administration of all major forms of motor sports in the UK."

In practice, this means I will need to go down to the MSA's offices three times a year (the offices are five miles from Heathrow airport, so there's no difficulty in getting down.) We'll reserve judgement on the interaction between my informal style and the MSAs panchant for shirts and ties, however the role does place me at the centre of Cross Country motorsports here in the UK.

Refering to Galashiels: I was down there on Sunday with Tom, Tony & Martyn, and we have put in the third crossing.

----------- blurb -----------------
Galashiels.

The last round of the SCCC is upon us, and the event promises to be a cracker.

A small team of hard-working enthusiasts has been down and put in the final crossing, opening up the first field for use again - giving us a course in excess of 5 miles! (and the whole route has been driven - in a ladened Discovery, on road tyres)

Starting close to the service area, the first half mile is old-school: diving through a bomb-hole almost immediately after the start line, the course weaves through the whins, before curling up and around to plunge through a gate and into the Rig'n'Furrow field. A large loop to the left then nip round the back of the watertank to the top-right corner of the field, a loop back to cross a culvert and then into the Valley Field. Slip anti-clockwise round the pond and swoop around the Wall Of Death. A grapple handfull of steering wheel as you slide round and hurtle up to take on the Dips: ram it into overdrive and power down into the dip, feel the suspension bottom out as you ride up the far side. Throw the car into the nick at the back of the field, then haul it round to head back to the dips for a fast exit towards the quarry.

Choose your line: high or low... the center is so *not* an option.

Stand on the brakes before swinging around the quarry, then arrow out the far track. Hairpin around the Lonesome Pine and charge back up the field into an open right hander through the trees. Swing round the power poles and open up to the long run beside the old golf course...
be beware of the furrows: keep to the racing line or face a very rough ride!

The route disappears into the trees, hairpins, and then ejects you into the openness of Blaikie's Hill. Out through the gate opposite, and nip through the bracken to pick up the old track. Pull right at the next gate and down a step to the hairpin at post 12 where you pick
up the track again. A powerblast round (but watch for the hole, you *will* go air-born of you hit it at speed), then full-on towards the old forest.

Loop out to the right and head back, driving around the rocks, not over them!

Drop back into the Valley Field and hard right then sweep left to take the gate back into the Rig'n'Furrow field. Right again to a wide and lazy corner down to the far end of the field before looping back up to cross above the spring. A rolling drive down to the first wooden
bridge, through the next gate, and left to the second bridge. Now it's just a series of shallow climbs back towards the finish.

----------- /blurb -----------------

It should be a great end to the year!

SCCC 2010 meeting

2009-09-09T15:20:00.005+01:00

I'm organising a meeting for the main movers'n'shakers in the Scottish Cross Country Championship.

I've already booked the dates with the MSA (well, the Cross Country Committee within the MSA)

My agenda is:
1) Officials: CofC; Chief Marshal; club reps; stewards

2) Dates & venues:
* SCCC Round 1: 14 March. New Galloway (maybe - the owner got upset at some of the road conditions back in August)
* SCCC Round 2: 18 April. Fife
* SCCC Round 3: 15/16 May. Drumclog
* SCCC Round 4: 20 June. Coulport
(Perthshire Hill Rally: 9/10 July)
* SCCC Round 5: 21/22 August. Bathgate
* SCCC Round 6: 12 September: TBC
* SCCC Round 7: 18 October: Galashils
(Borders Hill Rally: 27/28 November)

3) Thoughts from the Field:
* Team entries (2 drivers, 1 car, 1 position)
* More weekend events, fewer one-day events
* Joint events with NORC/AWDC/etc (such as Drumclog or Forrest Lodge)
* Rescue/Recovery.... plus doctor? (for the likes of Dan L./John C.)
* ??

4) Alterations to the SSRs

5) Registering the events in the MSA calendar

6) AOCB

So much has happened

2009-09-08T10:26:00.002+01:00

Why the long hiatus? Lots of reasons.

The Perthshire took over my life for a while.... a long while. It was a learning experience, and I've learnt that I'm not a good event organiser. I'm good at encouraging people, and supporting them. I'm pretty good at designing courses. I'm not bad at drawing maps.... but organising stuff? no.... I just have stress breakdowns instead.

Drumclog was also a low-point, professionally speaking: I lost the rag with some competitors, and almost walked away from the whole scene.

Running the Perthshire was saved by Andy: he took over and kept everything on-track.
The event happened: it took some slightly underhand manouvering; some pretty blunt prodding; a bit of outright bribary; and a lot of self-sponsorship..... but it happened.

For a while, the BCCC was going to renege on the agreement I had with them, but that was averted (I was asked to keep shtum on that, and I am doing so)

The night-comp at Bathgate happened... though there was an attempt to move it to a more day-oriented event: so that wouldn't be a night-comp then?
There were several slightly hairy moments where people were getting stuck left, right, and center... and then John blew the bogie time out the water: 7'45" for a bogie time of 8'30" (why do I always react badly when he demands something from me?)

The Borders Hill Rally is now being oreganised, but not my be... by Rupert from Castle Rescue.

The Dunbar comp has been cancelled for the second year in a row. I think we need a new site for September - one not held hostage to rain & delayed harvests.

More Perthshire stuff

2009-03-26T23:09:00.002Z

Yesterday was 167 miles around Perthsire - some good meetings, some not so good.
None specifically bad, which is always a bonus.

Tonight has been creating maps & writing contracts... and failing to make phone calls.

The high's and lows of planning events

2009-03-24T11:21:00.002Z

Life, it seems, is fractal: things repeat & reflect on both a micro- and macro-scale.

For example, I've been having huge issues trying to sort out land for the Perthshire Hill Rally: defra have passed some concerns on one farm; and npower's wind-farm has taken out an entire farm (one which was pretty central role in the event too!)

Thinks were looking bleak.

But now I've got three new contacts to speak to... some new bits of land to look at, and maybe the rabbit can be pulled out of the hat :)

SCCC Round 1 results

2009-03-17T11:10:00.014Z

Round 1: Forrest Estate - Dumfries & Galloway

Drivers Name	Comp Number	Lap 1	Lap 2	Lap 3	Lap 4	Lap 5	Lap 6	Lap 7	Total Time
Colin Gould	34	00:11:52	00:12:51	00:11:15	00:11:35	00:11:18	00:11:13	00:11:02	01:21:06
Brian Carlin	10	00:12:11	00:11:58	00:11:32	00:11:16	00:12:10	00:12:09	00:12:14	01:23:30
David Bartlett	22	00:12:43	00:12:41	00:11:39	00:11:47	00:12:02	00:12:09	00:12:33	01:25:34
Tony Rae	11	00:13:08	00:12:30	00:12:00	00:12:27	00:12:12	00:12:06	00:12:10	01:26:33
Malcolm Millar	21	00:14:44	00:11:52	00:11:56	00:11:57	00:12:17	00:12:03	00:11:59	01:26:48
Robin Vance	35	00:12:47	00:12:35	00:13:21	00:12:29	00:12:42	00:13:01	00:12:31	01:29:26
Stu Howe	4	00:13:56	00:13:29	00:12:53	00:12:55	00:12:32	00:12:47	00:12:30	01:31:02
Peter Baird	19	00:13:32	00:13:36	00:12:54	00:12:55	00:13:01	00:12:56	00:12:50	01:31:44
Euron Williams	25	00:13:11	00:13:11	00:12:40	00:12:46	00:13:40	00:13:38	00:22:26	01:41:32
Billy Phillips	2	00:30:00	00:12:54	00:13:18	00:13:49	00:14:14	00:13:45	00:14:24	01:52:24
Lee Bartlett	5	00:30:00	00:12:39	00:11:49	00:11:25	00:11:37	00:11:27	00:30:00	01:58:57
Dan Lofthouse	13	00:30:00	00:10:30	00:10:33	00:10:11	00:09:59	Engine troubles		DNF
Brian Hilditch	7	00:30:00	00:13:50	00:30:00	Broken Gearbox				DNF
David Mitchell	6	00:16:28	00:30:00	Parked in a ditch					DNF
Johnny Drysdale	3	00:22:40	Engine troubles						DNF
David Drysdale	18	00:30:00	Parked in a ditch						DNF
Robert Law	16	00:30:00	Broken Gearbox						DNF
Colin Stevenson	37	Gearbox problems							DNF
Double Driven
John Cockburn & Greg McLeod	-	00:12:43	00:11:18	00:11:34	00:10:23	00:11:17	00:10:25	00:12:56	01:20:36
Paul Myers & Matt Morgan	-	00:35:12	00:12:46	00:30:00	Parked in the trees				DNF

Scurrelous rumours and mis-factual information

2009-03-10T09:58:00.003Z

Fact 1: The Perthshire Hill Rally is still on: I am talking to land owners and planning options and juggling costs. I do not want to be the man who killed the event... it will run!

Fact 2: I (on behalf of the Scottish Hill Rally) have been talking to Selwyn about the BCCC and the Hill Rallies. There will be a Hill Rally, and I am working on backup plans
(edit: Borders Hill Rally)

Fact 3: SHRC and BCCC can work together. This is what the position is, as far as I am aware:
BCCC are going to provide a gap in the BCCC calendar so that drivers who wish to enter the Perthshire have a free rein, and do not feel constrained to committing to enter due to a BCCC round before-hand (basically, nothing from the BCCC round at the beginning of June until the end of July.)

To confirm our (my) position vis-a-vis the Borders:

I would prefer a straight Scottish Borders Hill Rally, as we normally run: multiple stages, at most driven twice without alteration; distinct "stage miles", "road miles" (though there is no public highway road miles); service.... using timecards, roadbooks, and strict time-keeping... and no distinction between Hill Rally drivers and BCCC drivers.

This would be the simplest interpretation of the concept "The July round at Castle O'er has been dropped from the BCCC calendar to be replaced by the Borders Hill Rally"

What I believe we have on offer is a compromise from there:

The event will be a Hill Rally, run to Hill Rally timing. BCCC will buy into the event.
The BCCC competitors would drive fewer stages... but still something in the order of 60 miles.
The Hill Rally entrants (either non BCCC people paying the standard fee, or BCCC people who "upgrade" at their own cost) will drive more stages... in the order of 90 miles

SHRC will set up the event such that a BCCC driver can return to service after every lap (noting that the "super-rally" rules would give them a maximum for the stage missed, but keep them in the event)

This is a public note - for the record...

oh.... POODLES!

2009-03-04T11:14:00.002Z

The paperwork I sent to the manager of a quarry, so he could make supportive noises to his bosses, so we could use it for motorsports.... has not arrived - a month after I posted it too.

Buggerit.

I'll need to reassemble to documentation, and the CD, and post it again... actually, I may bloody DRIVE there and hand it in personally!

But this pretty much kills off the chance of getting the ground for April :(

Perthshire Hill Rally and landowners, take 2

2009-02-28T22:43:00.003Z

Well, another 100 miles on the clock (I wonder, should I get paid for this?)... I've a friend of a friend who's going to talk to a few of his friends (who are land-owners) and see about the Hill Rally coming onto their land... and therefor giving me an introduction.

Also spoken to another land owner, and clarified what bit of their hillside we can use, and which bit (most of it) we can't.... but I'm getting some firm possibilities coming together now.

I need to really get some definites sorted pronto, so I can define a price for the entry fee.

(PS: Can I go back to Comps please? they're so much easier :chuckle: )

Perthshire Hill Rally and landowners

2009-02-23T06:55:00.003Z

One of the hardest parts about organising the Perthshire Hill Rally is organising the route.

Like any true Rally, the event is Multi Stage.... and as the Hill Rally is on hillsides.... it's multi-farm.
This means that I need to rent land of multiple owners, and ensure that all of them are happy with what we are doing.

On Saturday I went to see most of them.... and the news was not the most wonderful:

Andrew needs a year out: there are sections of his hill that need time to recover
Donald has windfarms going up, so the third of his farm that he puts livestock on whist we race on the other two-thirds is part of the wind farm, so he's having to put stock onto the bit we normally use... and the field we use for servicing is out of commission too... so a no-go there at all.
James was happy to see us, and even has a bit more hillside we can use... so that's a big score there!
John wants to put the relationship he has with the Hill Rally onto a more formal footing, now that his friend has stopped running the event. One of the tasks we need to do is go over the route, and look at repairing stuff.
Magnus has moved house... I discovered this when I turned up at his old house... Oops.

I've had an offer from someone to give me an introduction to some places he knows, who may well be ammenable... but that's for later :)

The Forestry people seem happy for us to continue, and have even given a tacit nod to some plans for alternate routes I want to forge through the landscape :)

So it's all go on that front too :grin:

BCCC & SHRC

2009-02-23T06:44:00.002Z

I've had a good, and productive, series of chats with Selwyn about the BCCC taking results from the Borders Hill Rally as one of the rounds of the BCCC.

We've not reached any definite firm decision yet, however one of the conditions I wanted was to have clear space around the Perthshire Hill Rally (normally there is a BCCC round just before the Hill Rally, and closing date for our entries is before the BCCC event.... you see the problem) - well, there will be a clear space of several weeks either side of the Perthshire, do drivers can enter, and have plenty of time to do repairs before the next round of the BCCC in September... YIPEE!!

Watch this space for developments on the Borders: we can do something, but it will have to be run as a Hill Rally, not a Comp Safari.

SCCC Round 1

2009-02-10T14:52:00.002Z

Sunday 15th March, 2009

Round one of the SCCC is at the invitation of one of our competitors: we have been offered access to this well known rally site.

The plan is to restrict ourselves to about 5 miles... of tracks, fire-breaks, water-splashes, and foundation roads.

This promises to be a very exciting opening round of the championship.

Camping is available: proper hard standing to boot!

Regs are available from the me, or downloadable from http://docs.google.com/View?docid=df8ssf5n_16q4m8p&hl=en_GB and the times and locations are available from http://docs.google.com/View?docid=df8ssf5n_45c6mxx9gp&hl=en_GB

SHRC AGM

2009-01-31T23:33:00.001Z

The SHRC AGM has been, and gone.

Ian Sykes has basically retired - to spend time with his family & mentor his grandson as he comes up through the world of motorsports (apparently he's very good on a kart).
We've managed to persuade him to stay on as President (but it took a LOT of persuading!)

Now I've notes and stuff to write up.

SLROC Committee meeting.

2009-01-29T09:34:00.004Z

I went to the SLROC committee meeting last night.
I'm in that weird position where I'm the club member who organises some of their events, but I'm not allowed to be on the SLROC committee as I'm on the committee of another Cross-Country Motorsports club (conflict of interest, you see)

Anyway... I updated everyone on the latest Scottish Cross Country Championship events:

Round 1 (15 March): Forrest estate.
- A 5 to 6 mile route planned , using tracks, unmade tracks, water splashes & quarries
- I was there with the Lombard Rally: VERY fast! we will need to work to keep our speeds down to 30mph max average.
- BCCC would love it :)
Round 2 (19 April): Not known yet.
- I've been given a lead to the Quarry at Lassodie (near Kelty), which I'm following - but it needs lots of paperwork :sad:.
Round 3 (16/17 May): Drumclog.
- Booked.
- Discussions on a route have started.
Round 4 (21 June): Coulport
- I'm leaving that one to other people, like I did last year.
Round 5 (22/23 August): Bathgate
- Confirmed :)
Round 6 (20 September): Probably Innerwick
- Dates issue: clashes with SORC's Wheels in the Wood - I'll let you know more when I know more
Round 7 (18 October): Galashiels
- Booked :)

So things are moving a-pace, and looking good.
Hope to have increased attendance figures this year.

MSA Clerks & Stewards Seminar

2009-01-26T10:14:00.002Z

A useful meeting...
The first half was pretty much the same as the previous few - not a problem, always good to know I've not forgotten anything :)

The afternoon breakout session was by discipline. If I'd not pulled the SCCC Championship Co-Ordinator out of the Rally group (he's a CofC for the some of the tarmac rallies), there would have been just myself and the MSA bloke!

As it was, we had a good bleather about the SCCC regs, and ensured that we were going along the right lines. It was good, as he gave us a few suggestions and alterations to make... which can only improve the way we run the events

The joys of old cars

2009-01-17T17:14:00.002Z

OK, so at 15 years, my Disco is not really OLD, but it's definitely been around long enough for people to learn most of the foibles and delicate bits.

One thing that happens to pretty much ever mk I Discovery is that you get "Disco Door": you unlock the car, but one of the doors won't open: you need to hold the 'Lock' button up for the door to unlock.

You ask your garage - "£100-£150 repair" What?

What's wrong? a wee circular spring has broken. You can by them off ebay... for a fiver!

I've just replaced the one in the drivers door: remove the trim panels; remove the glass and frame; delve deep into the door to remove the lock... 30 seconds to replace the spring (I have a wee tool to help, after the last time I did three doors)... two and a half hours work!

A storm in a mug

2009-01-13T09:23:00.004Z

Oh, politics.... why does it have to rear it's ugly head in clubs?

I was phoned by Kilty, asking me about a posting on the MadLandy forum:

Hot off the press from last nights BCCCCCCC Dinner

The July round at Castle O'er has been dropped from the BCCC calendar to be replaced by.....................................wait for it

The Borders Hill Rally, which will make up the last round in November.

Idea is that this will leave a big empty space in July, so we can all do the Scottish Hill Rally.

John Cockburn made the announcement dressed in traditional Clan McMuddy tartan, tears running down his cheeks at the joyous news that someone else was getting the beers in.

Sad to see Castle O'er disappear as it was my favorite venue in the BCCC but I've done the Borders a couple of times and it's even better.

So long as Marches keep the Hill Rally format and don't dumb it down to comp safari, all should be good. Plus will expose more folk to the hill rallies and hopefully increase interest there.

There was vague talk of increasing the entry fee to cover the hill rally which isn't good news, but miles = money with the Forestry Commission as we already know.

This was news to me (and as I'm part of the group that runs the Borders Hill Rally, I should have known!), so I phoned around... which resulted in the following comment to the above post:

Let me introduce myself, non of this secretive `handle' names, if you going to talk about a subject that is not directly yours then use a full name - just my own thought on forums. I am Ian Sykes, President of the Scottish Hill Rally Club

I don't normally look or reply but I received emails, texts and calls about someones posting, so I joined just to respond.
I will not enter into discussion after this via forum, please email me, emails on the club's/event's website.

The open message by John Cockburn (at the BCCC diner) was on behalf of Selwyn Kendrick and the BCCC. John heads up (so I Understand) the newly formed National A Drivers association.

1 It was not intended as an announcement but a heads up that this proposal was being discussed.

2 Marches 4x4 is not the organiser of the Scottish Hill Rallies, never have been. They used to host their own hill rallies in Wales and the UK's only Baja.

3 Currently the Scottish Hill Rally Club, is the only club to succesfully host hill rallies (sometimes a struggle granted) we took over the hill rallies in Scotland 3 years ago and there has been one or more every year since 1996 (except F&M year)

4 The idea which I support but the club's committee has to ratify, is that we host the Scottish Borders Hill Rally, as our event under our jurisdiction and control. BUT it also acts as a round of the BCCC, I understand their last round.

5 The details (and the Devil is always in the detail) are yet to be agreed and a contract signed. Things like BCCC don't need navigators but you will in the Borders, vehicle class/group to amalgamate or ??. Entry fee, the cost of a hill rally is high, simply because it's a round of BCCC does not magically make it cheaper to host. Confirmed high entry numbers, as always, helps spread costs and thus reduce entry fees.

6 There will be a National B (Clubman's entry).

7 Logistically there will be a maximum number of entries, my hunch is that will be 55 to 60. Because that's all the infrastructure can cope with.

To sign off, I am all for this, I think it helps clear the July Perthshire (original) Scottish Hill rally from BCCC clashes and should increase the numbers and thus viability of both events.

Look up the web site for ACCURATE, RELIABLE INFORMATION. if its not there then don't believe it, email or call me of another committee member.
Oh and new mobile phone site at shrc.scottishhillrally.co.uk or hill-rallies.ubik.net

regards to all, hope to see you in 2009 and may it be better than the end of 2008

So, after my palpitations have stopped, and my hackles have dropped, and I'm being sensible again, this is where we're at:

The idea has merit, and should be investigated
Marches and SHRC need to work out what's an immutable need for them, and what they are happy to move on.
Marches and SHRC need to get together and work out an agreement that both are happy with
We need to do it ASAP, so that fixture lists can be altered, and competitors have a chance to alter their own plans.

Experience from the SCCC has shown that if the clubs can pull together, both can benefit: Before the SCCC, SLROC was running comps, and pulling half-a-dozen entries an event. The SCCC now regularly pulls in 15+ drivers per event, and there will be more next year.

If SHRC and Marches can work together, then why can't they show the same improvements?

This IS beneficial, we just need to work at it....

Finding ground....

2009-01-13T08:57:00.002Z

I'm still looking for ground for the first round of the SCCC.
It's in March, and traditionally has a large turnout. For this reason, we like to hold it in a quarry, bing, or other working site: it's hard for 30 land rovers to make a mess of a site when bulldozers and diggers are pulling stuff out the ground, and lorries are running around the roads :)

So far I've looked at 4 places, and rejected all of them.

I've got a couple of site over Glasgow way I want people to go look at, and a couple up in Fife. Kilty is going to look at a place up Dundee-way.

I have a possible backup site, but it's really not ideal: the laps would be under a mile long; parking is very restricted; and access is over an active railway line (with all the problems THAT brings)

The hunt is still on....

2009 SCCC regs are now in final draft

2009-01-10T10:08:00.001Z

The Standing Supplementary Regulations for the 2009 season of the Scottish Cross Country Championship are now in Final Draft - I just need to verify the list of invited clubs and we can send them off to the Motor Sports Assocciation... yippee!

MSA report on the Border Hill Rally

2008-12-18T08:40:00.002Z

---- quote ----
Just to let you all know.

I have today received a letter from David Swinton, the MSA Steward for the Borders Hill Rally.

From which I quote:

You asked me to let you have a copy of my report on the hill rally. Unfortunately I have had major IT problems and seem to have lost a number of files one of which is my Motor Sport file in which I keep (kept) all my reports.

I do however remember much of what I said

'I had the pleasure of commending the organisation for the way in which the event was run, commenting on the way in which everyone seemed to know and understand exactly what was required, and when. I made exceptional comment on the team that worked so hard to make the access road passable on the Sunday morning.'

I had a memorable weekend and hope that I will have the chance to experience hill rallies in the future.

My best wishes to you and all the team

David Swinton

Personally I think it was very kind of him to take the time and effort to send the letter, as most wouldn't nowadays.

I would like to thank everyone who was involved in the event, the reports that I have had back form a number of competitors and through the 'grapevine' is that it was 'an absolutely fantastic event', 'best event for a long time'

So well done to all. Please pass thanks to everyone else involved.

Andy Mills, Clerk of Course
---- end quote ----

SCCC 2009

2008-12-03T09:12:00.002Z

We've had a meeting to discuss the 2009 regs for the Championship.

All sorted bar two items:

1) I want to double-check that the definition for the classes matches that used by the Hill Rally (and also check against the regs used in the BCCC), and
2) I can't get the list of clubs I want to invite quite right: 5 regional associations doesn't cover the clubs I want to invite. Gonna pass the buck on this one, I think: let someone else have the headache :)

Peter Ingram, RIP

2008-11-28T12:05:00.008Z

On the evening of Tuesday 25th November, 2008, Peter Ingram died as a result of complications with his MS.
He was a good, and true, friend... and will be missed by many.

The future of Hill Rallies

2008-11-18T16:27:00.002Z

People have been concerned about the future of Hill Rallies in Scotland - indeed, I've been hearing that there have been some people going around proclaiming they are actually dead already.

Well, from a purely selfish point of view, Hill Rallies need to be kept alive in scotland:
If there is no Hill Rally, why should people spend tens of thousands of pounds buying the likes of WildCats or ProTrucks?

Ignoring the Hill Rally, which we are postulating as dead, there are basically 4 groups running off-road speed events, as far as I can tell: AWDC (which doesn't really come north of about Manchester); BCCC (which has, erm... Zero scottish entries, and a token event north of the border); NORC (who are also mostly south-ish); and SCCC (ie, the events I run.) Now, AWDC, NORC, SCCC & BCCC all run comp safari events: going round a single circuit lots of times. BCCC are the best for this, as they tend to have 10-mile circuits rather than 3-milers... but BCCC is also Nat A, so is not a club-level event.

So - for Scottish drivers, there are the 3-miler Comp Safari events (7 a year, mostly central belt or southern Scotland)... all run to a 30mph max average, all in the 3-miler category, all sub £50 to enter.

For Scottish competitors to have a challenge, to have a reason to go on from the SCCC, we need Hill Rallies: They need something that is more than 3 miles; more than 30mph max ave; and more than driving round in circles on your own... nice as BCCC is, you can do it as a single driver... there's no TEAMWORK!

That event would be the Hill Rally.

Likewise, the Hill Rally needs the SCCC: where-else will the future entrants come from? Where else will future marshal & senior officials come from?

No - for either to survive, they need each other.
Trying to promote anything else is just shooting yourself in the foot.

Borders Hill Rally countdown

2008-11-17T12:10:00.002Z

Well, two days before I head down to run the setup for the borders hill rally.

I don't know why, but this year it's more stressful than ever before: there have been a number of times when I've had to mediate between disgruntled factions; sort out things that others should take on; and worry about tasks that are someone else's responsibility.

This event will run, and I really really don't want it to be the last hill rally we ever run... but I can see a number of teddies being thrown at the de-brief meeting.

Such is life.....

Borders is back on!

2008-11-10T09:14:00.002Z

The Borders Hill Rally is back on!

A reduced mileage and a reduced cost.... but it's on!

£385 for ~75 miles.
£45 for !WARM! bunkhouse accommodation, £35 for a caravan/tent, with access to the commonrooms, kitchens & showers.)

SCCC, Round 7 - Galashiels

2008-10-13T21:38:00.002+01:00

This is the final event of the season, and with less that ten points seperating the top five drivers, the championship is still to play for!

Number two, Brian Hilditch, is not expected to enter, having totalled his engine in August, and hard-charging Johnny Drysdale in his big 110 has been steadily improving event on event. Malc Millar, absolutely flying in his diesel 90, may not make a podium finish for the championship, but he has definitely shaken a few drivers out of their complacency.

The ASRs for the event are here

The SSRs for the event are, as ever, here

A happy PR person

2008-10-08T10:39:00.002+01:00

OK, so maybe not a PR person, per sae (and that's a lot of "P"s!)

Sunday was a drive in the country: I have dropped PR letters and posters along the route from Keilder to Newcastleton.

I've still to do Hexam to Keilder, Newcastlton to Castle O'er, and Castle O'er to Moffat.

Galashiels

2008-09-30T14:29:00.003+01:00

Popped over to Galashils to look at the bridges we'd built, the hardcore we'd bought, and agree a route with the farmer.

The bridges have stood up to their first test: a field-full of cattle has wandered over them (you can tell, there is cow-shit on them), with zero damage :)

We need more hardcore, but he's going to source that from stuff he already has, and dump it in place (for a fee, of course)

We have a 3 mile route... with almost a mile lost due to politics (the farmer is going to stop renting to one of his tenants, and doesn't want to give them a bargaining chip by asking them to move cattle for the weekend)

Dunning Glen

2008-09-16T16:18:00.003+01:00

Went over to Dunning Glen (site of the "Fanny Hill" [now called "Burnt Hill"] stages), on Sunday - to look at the state of the ground after the rains have washed away the worst of the marks, to determine what groundworks need to be done, and to look at potential new route... and I took a man with a digger with me - just the man, the digger will come later - once the Forestry people have looked at my proposed groundworks.

Edit 18/9/08: The forestry are going to look at my proposes, and come back to me.

SCCC, Round 6 - Cancelled

2008-09-13T11:38:00.001+01:00

Due to deteriorating ground conditions, and unharvested crops, Round 6 of the Scottish Cross Country Championship has been cancelled, with no intent to postpone or replace it.

Lombard Recce

2008-09-08T09:22:00.003+01:00

On Saturday I went down to Newcastleton to meet the Selectif Commander for that stage (from Spadeadam motorsports club), and to have a drive through and see if there where any problems we could identify.

After dropping him back at his car, I went off to Castle O'Er (being run by the Scottish Off Road Club)to do the same checks there.

A wonderful drive in the country: the roads from Jedburgh to Newcastleton; from Langholm to Castle O'Re; and up through Eskdalemuir & Middleton Moor are all true glen roads: mostly single-track or narrow, and following the old cart/horse routes...
The lashing wind and the horizontal rain detracted a bit... but still an amazing drive!

Results from the Bathgate night Comp.

2008-08-25T19:08:00.007+01:00

This is the standing after the final 5 laps were cancelled by the Clerk of Course

Comp N0	Driver	Class	ss1	ss2	ss3	ss4	ss5	ss6	ss7	ss8	ss9	ss10	TOTAL	Class Pos.	O/A Pos.
33	George Orr	A	12:54	13:19	13:13	30:00	30:00	24:30	15:22	30:00	13:47	14:31	3:17:36	1	14
--
71	Matt Booth	C	14:31	14:37	14:56	15:17	15:32	14:53	15:29	16:12	15:38	16:06	2:33:11	1	9
31	Andy Bayliss	C	15:11	15:56	16:10	17:30	23:33	16:36	17:15	30:00	30:00	30:00	3:32:11	2	16
--
7	Andy Glover	D	13:21	13:45	14:25	14:04	13:42	14:11	14:16	14:04	14:07	13:46	2:19:41	1	5
90	Michael maxwell	D	13:54	13:56	14:29	14:52	13:48	13:59	14:49	13:36	14:05	14:45	2:22:13	2	6
29	Malc Millar	D	14:23	24:53	19:25	15:56	30:00	16:48	15:20	15:27	15:23	19:49	3:07:24	3	13
14	Kris Anderson	D	14:22	14:14	13:45	14:05	15:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	3:41:26	4	18
--
26	Brian Hilditch	E	13:00	12:46	12:48	13:51	13:38	13:48	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	3:19:51	1	15
30	Jo Bartlett	E	16:19	22:52	18:56	16:33	17:15	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	4:01:55	2	19
--
3	David Bartlett	G	12:02	11:56	12:05	11:54	11:20	12:18	12:23	12:46	12:32	12:28	2:01:44	1	1
20	Johnnie Drysdale	G	11:48	12:31	12:34	12:20	17:16	12:38	12:35	12:32	12:24	12:27	2:09:05	2	3
23	Stu Howie	G	14:26	14:18	13:34	14:24	13:54	16:20	13:40	13:30	15:08	13:47	2:23:01	3	7
19	Paul Aynsley	G	12:19	12:15	12:15	12:25	12:30	30:00	14:20	14:32	13:42	13:25	2:27:43	4	8
5	Robert Law	G	15:05	16:49	30:00	30:00	30:00	17:34	14:07	15:01	30:00	19:11	3:37:47	5	17
22	Tony Rae	G	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	5:00:00	6	21
--
25	Peter Baird	H	12:48	12:19	12:30	12:22	12:26	12:47	12:54	13:01	13:17	12:57	2:07:21	1	2
2	Norrie Deas	H	13:38	13:53	13:33	13:32	13:45	13:29	13:32	14:44	14:14	14:19	2:18:39	2	4
35	Dave Stewart	H	13:22	13:29	13:53	21:29	13:55	15:38	15:31	15:40	16:28	16:03	2:35:28	3	10
36	Mark Caisley	H	13:21	12:57	12:24	12:37	12:23	12:30	12:14	12:21	30:00	30:00	2:40:47	4	11
136	Sandy Murray	H	13:50	13:51	13:32	20:12	14:00	15:29	20:02	26:19	15:31	18:04	2:50:50	5	12
18	Robert Agnew	H	16:31	21:06	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	30:00	4:37:37	6	20

SCCC Standings after 4 events

2008-08-15T15:40:00.012+01:00

After 4 rounds, covering 4 very different terrains, the results are as follows:

Name	Pumph.Bing (March)	Biggar (April)	Drumclog (Night Comp, May)	Coulport (June)	Total
Mark Caisley	8.70	10.00	6.88	6.67	32.25
Brian Hilditch	6.52	5.38	8.13	9.17	29.20
Ian Spowart	7.83	9.23	6.25	5.83	29.14
Lee Bartlett	10.00		10.00	8.33	28.33
Norrie Deas	8.26		8.75	4.17	21.18
Johnnie Drysdale	2.61	3.08	3.13	7.50	16.32
Tony Rae		8.46	7.50		15.96
Martyn Smith	4.35	7.69	3.75		15.79
Annette Chatham	3.91	3.85	5.00	2.50	15.26
Billy Phillips	7.39	4.62	2.50		14.51
Jo Bartlett	6.96		5.63	0.83	13.42
David Bartlett	833	9.57		3.33	12.90
Malcolm Millar	6.09	6.15			12.24
Sandy Murray	5.22	6.92			12.14
Dave Stewart	0.43	0.77	4.38	5.00	10.58
Rick Wells				10.00	10.00
Paul Aynsley			9.38		9.38
Brian Carlin	9.13				9.13
Kris Anderson	5.65				5.65
Peter Baird	4.78				4.78
Robert Law	2.17	1.54	0.63		4.34
David Drysdale		2.31	1.25		3.56
David Mitchell	3.48				3.48
Emma Bartlett	1.74			1.67	3.41
John O'Mara	3.04				3.04
Robert Agnew			1.88		1.88
Graham Provest	1.30				1.30
Martin Jenkins	0.87				0.87

Next event is the extremely popular Night Comp at Bathgate, where we have a number of visitors from down south come and play.

A Trialler again, and not last!

2008-08-11T08:37:00.002+01:00

After what I reckon to be almost three years, I went to a CCV Trial (Cross Country Vehicle Trial: the one where you need some ~~foolhardiness~~experience, where you could get it wrong and fall over or bend something) AND COMPETED!

OK, so I came second-last.... but I'd forgotten just how much FUN these events are!

I really must get on and fix my own vehicle!
(and AJs van, and the rear floor in the disco, and Alex's new toy, and scrap the range rover, and ...)

De-Brief

2008-08-05T06:43:00.002+01:00

The De-Brief has happened.

The usual things were highlighted (such as "The safety plan was late again"), and the usual reasons were given ("The information doesn't become available until the last minute").

We are going to try to attend more off-road events (all the BCCC and SCCC events for competitors, Knockhill & other events to garner SMMC marshals)

A useful meeting, highlighting how difficult the event is to put on.

Final Results, Scottish Perthshire Hill Rally

2008-07-18T16:16:00.002+01:00

Final results are available from the Flying Finish web site.

Congratulations to MaxTractions' John Cockburn for a well-deserved first place, to Steve & Ollie Lloyd for completing their first proper Hill Rally, and to seven (yes, 7) SLROC drivers who entered (and they all finished too!)

The Bathgate Night Comp (SCCC, round 5)

2008-06-26T10:03:00.003+01:00

The regs for round five of the Scottish Cross Country Championship are available.

Standing Supplementary Regulations are at: http://docs.google.com/View?docID=df8ssf5n_16q4m8p
Additional Supplementary regulations are at: http://docs.google.com/View?docid=df8ssf5n_22hbk97wcz

This is the famous Night Comp: Racing at night, over the Bathgate Hills ("UFOs Over Bathgate: Residents of the sleepy rural town of Bathgate, Scotland, were amazed to see bright lights shining in the clouds to the north of the town. The lights would appear and disappear, moving with great speed across the sky, and seeming to dance in pairs..")

Roadbook checking

2008-06-02T11:55:00.002+01:00

Just spent two days checking the roadbook for the Perthshire Hillrally.

400 miles, two breakfasts, four lunches, several cups of coffee, and three pizza... and I now need to compose some covering notes to feed my corrections back into the system.

Drumclog results

2008-05-26T18:46:00.017+01:00

Name	Door No.	Total Lap Time	Position
Lee Bartlett	4	01:33:49	1
Paul Aynsley	380	01:40:56	2
Norrie Deas	2	01:42:39	3
Brian Hilditch	26	01:44:22	4
Tony Rae	202	01:45:37	5
Mark Caisley	36	01:46:05	6
Ian Spowart	39	01:54:56	7
Jo Bartlett	30	01:57:03	8
Annette Chatham	38	02:03:20	9
David Stewart	35	02:05:13	10
Martyn Smith	32	02:16:40	11
Johnnie Drysdale	2000	02:22:51 (retired, lap 14)	12
Billy Philips	6	02:25:37	13
Robert Agnew	18	02:43:54 (retired, lap 14)	14
David Drysdale	2001	03:17:16 (retired, lap 12)	15
Robert Law	5	03:19:48 (retired, lap 11)	16

SCCC Round 4, Coulport

2008-05-20T14:18:00.002+01:00

The Additional Supplementary Regulations for Round 4 of the SCCC are available via Google Docs.

(The Standing Supplementary Regulations are also available)

Perthshire Hill Rally reccies

2008-05-14T12:14:00.001+01:00

Been to look at various woods around Kiellour, and down into Glendevon. Some work needed, but it should be interesting driving :)

Lombard Rally, 2008

2008-05-08T08:47:00.004+01:00

I am co-ordination the running of a small section of the Lombard 2008 rally (http://www.lombardrally.com/).

Specifically I am running two sections: On Thursday the 6th of November, I'm organising all marshaling from a lunch-stop at Hexham Auction Mart, with Selectives through Keilder, Kershop, Newcastleton, and Castle O're and handing over to Moffet motorsports club for an evening break at Moffet town centre.

From there, the competitors head to an overnight halt in Glasgow. Friday, they tour around Argyle & Bute and the Trossachs Park before returning to Glasgow for Friday night. On Saturday, the Lombard tours Dumfries & Galloway, before returning to my sphere, where the tour goes through Twiglees, Castle O're and Newcastleton again, before an overnight halt in Carlisle.

I'm trying to get the local clubs to run Selectives, giving them as much responsibility as they want for each Selective... and that can be quite a lot of people! Each Selective needs:

A Selective Commander (the person in charge of that challenge)
3+ crew at the start and end of each stage (preferably with an 81 radio at each end)
(ideally) a marshal watching each in-stage marker point
an 81 radio every 2 miles of special stage (more is good).

The route

Thursday:
Keilder: 14 miles, 30-40 markers
Newcastleton: 6 miles, 18-30 markers
Castle O'Re: 8 miles, 20-30 markers

Satruday:
Twiglees: 8 miles, 20-30 markers
Castle O'Re: 8 miles, 20-30 markers
Newcastleton: 6 miles, 18-30 markers

So far I have a Selective Commander for Castle O're, and a couple of (4x4) recovery vehicles (again, for Castle O'Re)

Results from SCCC Round 2

2008-05-06T16:39:00.021+01:00

Name	Door No	SCC Class	Total Lap Time	Position
Mark Casiley	36	H	00:40:59	1
Ian Spowart	39	E	00:41:44	2
Tony Rae	202	G	00:41:52	3
Martyn Smith	32	G	00:42:01	4
Sandy Murray	136	H	00:44:38	5
Malcolm Millar	31	D	00:45:38	6
Brian Hilditch	26	E	00:47:02	7
Billy Phillips	6	E	00:47:14	8
Annette Chatham	38	E	00:48:40	9
Johnnie Drysdale	2000	G	00:52:23	10
David Drysdale	2001	F	00:58:08	11
Robert Law	5	G	01:04:35	12
Dave Stewart	35	H	Retired, Lap 7	13

SCCC Round 3, Drumclog

2008-05-06T15:57:00.003+01:00

The Additional Supplementary Regulations for Round 3 of the SCCC are available via Google Docs.

Scottish Cross Country Championship, 2008

2008-05-06T15:46:00.005+01:00

The basic regulations for all seven rounds of the 2008 Scottish Cross Country Championship are on Google Documents

This defines the fundamental Standing Supplementary Regulations, and Additional Supplementary Regulations will be issued for each event.

Initial note

2008-05-06T14:44:00.004+01:00

This will be the preferred location for all regs and comments on the motorsports events I'm part of.