The 2011 PCGB Club Championship
- Thread starter paulf968
- Start date
Great weekend good weather and good company! Some Saturday pics here - [link=http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy158/A9XXC/Britcar%20Saturday/#!cpZZ1QQtppZZ36]Saturday[/link]
paulf968
New member
Full race report here from racecar.com Sumpter Seals Porsche Club Championship at Silverstone 3rd October 2011 Mark Sumpter claimed the 2011 Porsche Club Championship title at Silverstone, third place in the final race of the season enough to see him outscore reigning champion Chris Dyer by just four points after seventeen races. Dyer did all he could, winning Class Two in all three races, but it was not enough to deny Sumpter’s Paragon Porsche 911 the overall crown. “I raced this car in the mid-1990s and never won anything with it†said Sumpter, who raced the oldest car in his class, “but now we have it back we have worked hard to develop it and have squeezed very drop of performance out of it. Next year we’ll be out in some more modern machinery.†Sumpter won Friday’s race, with Saturdays’ two final rounds going to Ben Demetriou and Mark McAleer. Qualifying The Porsche Club Championship runners were sharing the track with the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge field, the series running on the new Silverstone Grand Prix circuit for the first time. Sumpter was quickest at the end of the 20-minute session, with McAleer second quickest and Demetriou third. Each driver’s second best time was good enough to put them in the same order for race two. “I didn’t think the car would be that good here,†said Sumpter after qualifying, “but the traction is brilliant and I have an advantage there in some places. It should be some good racing and we need to sit down and work out exactly what we have to do. I intend to race today – and start thinking about the points position tomorrow.†In Class Two, Marcus Carniel set the pace ahead of Dyer. Race One Sumpter had McAleer close from the start of Friday’s 25-minute race, Demetriou third ahead of Miles Masarati and Pete Morris. Demetriou slipped past McAleer on lap three, and set about closing down Sumpter who had opened a gap. The hard charging Demetriou never quite got on terms with Sumpter, who recorded his eighth win of the 2011 Porsche season, with McAleer third. In Class Two, strong opening laps from Dyer got him up with Carniel, and the reigning champion took his 944 S2 past to take the class win and the vital championship points. “That was really hard – not what I had planned!†said Sumpter, “I was getting oversteer near the end, the traction was still good and there was a bit of oil down which made it slippery. We are getting closer, but Chris Dyer won in Class Two so it’s still close.“ “That feels like a comeback!†said Demetriou. “It’s nice to be back at the front, the car was going really well and I got a good start, got past Mark McAleer and tried to close down Mark Sumpter. The GT3 leaders got in the way a bit but it was the same for all of us, I’m happy with second.†“We’re just doing what we can,†said Dyer, “I opened a gap on Marcus Carniel and I just have to try to win every race and see what happens.†Race Two Sumpter used the traction of his 911 to make the best start, McAleer slotting into second with Demetriou right with him. Miles Masarati was with the leaders but retired with a gearbox problem on lap one. Sumpter and McAleer were side by side through Luffield on lap three, and on the next lap McAleer was ahead, Demetriou in turn looking for a way past Sumpter a lap later and going by into Copse. The top three were running close and Richard Ellis was closing up in his 993. On lap seven Sumpter was one of a number of cars to get caught out on some oil down on the track, sliding wide and allowing Ellis past, and on the same lap Demetriou moved into the lead. In the final laps it was a five car lead train, Pete Morris now up with Sumpter, but Demetriou won from McAleer and Ellis. “There wasn’t a minute we weren’t battling all race and I had almost forgot what it was like to win,†said Demetriou, “it’s great for Hartech who have put so much work into this season. “The race was good fun,†said McAleer, “there was oil down at one point which made it a bit slippery, but there was no moment to relax at all the whole race.†“I got a good start which made a change†said Ellis, “new tyres helped and I had the confidence to push hard when things were tough.†“That was painful,“ said Sumpter, “I thought if Ben and Mark got away I was happy with third, but they were slowing themselves fighting and that brought everyone else back up to me. I lost third sliding on the oil but didn’t have a clear way of getting back past. I did get the fastest lap point right at the end.†“That was hard work with the GT3s blasting past us,†said Dyer, who again claimed Class Two, “I nearly lost it on the last lap. I went past Marcus and went off briefly with the fluid down on the circuit.†Race Three McAleer got the better of poleman Demetriou on the opening lap of the final race of the season, Sumpter third and Morris fourth ahead of Ellis. Less than one second covered the top four by lap three, but it took Demetriou until lap seven to take the lead, McAleer striking back before the end of the lap to take control again at the front. The leaders stayed close all race, McAleer cannily putting a backmarker between himself and Demetriou into Copse on the last lap and staying clear to take the win, Demetriou second with Sumpter having stayed clear of Morris in third and taking the title. Dyer again took Class Two for his third the meeting, but he fell just short in the points chase. “It’s nice to finish with a win, and three podiums at this meeting,†said McAleer. “Ben drove very well, he was quicker than me in some places and I just had to make sure I made the most of where I was quicker – I really enjoyed it.†“That was a hard race, full on from start to finish,†said Demetriou. “I tried everything with Mark and did get past once and he got me back. I couldn’t ask for a better end to the season.†“We did all we good and the old girl has been good this weekend†said Dyer. “We couldn’t do anything else and pushed from the word go, but Mark is so experienced that I have no problems coming second to him.†Porsche Club Championship Race One (10 laps): 1 Mark Sumpter (911 Carrera); 2 Ben Demetriou (968 CS) +0.334s; 3 Mark McAleer (968 CS); 4 Richard Lambert (964); 5 Peter Morris (968 Sport); 6 Miles Masarati (968 CS); 7 Richard Ellis (993 C2); 8 Paul Follett (968 CS); 9 Chris Dyer (944 S2); 10 Richard Bennett (993). Class Winners: Sumpter, Dyer. Fastest Lap: Sumpter 2m30.848s (87.35mph). Race Two (10 Laps): 1 Demetriou; 2 McAleer +0.516s; 3 Ellis; 4 Sumpter; 5 Morris; 6 Bennett; 7 Kevin Harrison (964); 8 Dyer; 9 Marcus Carniel (944 S2); 10 Richard Higgins (968). Class Winners: Demetriou, Dyer. Fastest Lap: Sumpter 2m30.007s (87.84mph). Race Three (10 Laps): 1 McAleer; 2 Demetriou +1.030s; 3 Sumpter; 4 Morris; 5 Ellis; 6 Lambert; 7 Harrison; 8 Masarati; 9 Follett; 10 Dyer. Class Winners: McAleer, Dyer. Fastest Lap: Morris 2m30.861s (87.34mph).
paulf968
New member
Some great photos there guys - you've all done a great job supporting the racing this season - true unsung heroes. My own brief report here from the Silverstone races -- a slight come down for me after a good season with 17 finishes from 17 starts PF's SILVERSTONE RACE SUMMARY The caravan of travelling Porsche racing folk pitched up at Silverstone on Thursday 29th September. With a quali and one race on Friday, then the final two races on the Saturday immediately before the start of the Britcar 24hr race. A big field was present, all keen to race on the new F1 layout for the first time in a PCGB event. There was also the added attraction of 20 extra points for starting each of the races. I had done a bit of testing there two weeks earlier and had got down to a 2m 35s on old tyres. Then I visited the circuit to spectate on the official practice day on the Wednesday before and noted that some of our quicker drivers were getting much closer to 2m 31s per lap. So before I had even started I knew that I had to find 3 or 4 seconds to keep in touch – that sort of became the theme of my weekend. Qualifying saw Sumpter romp in with a 2m 30.4 followed by McAleer and Demetriou in their 968’s one second down. I broke my previous best by 2.25 seconds to record a 2m 32.7s but was well adrift in 7th place in Class 1. RACE 1 saw Sumpter win with five 968’s in the next six cars trying to extract a win from the experienced 911 Carrera driver. I found myself in 8th place in Class with a fastest lap almost identical to quali. RACE 2 saw Sumpter drop to 4th place for some reason unknown to me, this gave Demetriou a good win in his 968, seeing as he had McAleer crawling all over his bumper for most of the race. I got held up a bit by a squabble between two Class 2 cars and finished a lowly 10th in Class. RACE 3 had the same main players out front and this time the dice fell kindly for McAleer who grabbed his win ahead of Demetriou in his hard charging Hartech 968. Best I could do was 9th in Class this time. Well Silverstone is my home track and I know it very well, however there must be something about my driving style that just does not suit the circuit. Frankly, I was gutted as this showing badly affected my position in the championship, where I was lying 4th before the meeting. Provisional Class1 Championship results for 2011 are as follows: Sumpter 471 McAleer 392 Morris 364 Demetriou 359 Ellis 329 Follett 323 NB so 4 of the top 6 cars are 968's
We like a challenge – but to put our reputation in public view by sponsoring two cars in the 2011 Porsche Club Championship (with Ben Demetrio and Paul Follett) – was always going to be risky – why? Because although we are amongst the very best at what we do with Porsche cars and engines – we just never have been involved in motor racing – and so did not have that vital experience (that many competitors and sponsoring businesses have taken 20 years to learn) of how to set up a race car for different conditions and circuits. Fortunately - Paul Follett – mainly looked after his own car (except for a few minor engineering jobs that we did) but we did most of the work on Ben Demetrio’s car and we didn’t always get it set up right every time. The trials and tribulations of racing car preparation were hard to manage until we realised that – up until we missed the Castle Combe round (for private personal reasons not associated with the business or racing) we held 2nd and 4th place in the Championship and were running the top 968 – having achieved several 2nd, 3rd and 4th places, fastest laps and pole position – so I suppose we managed to do OK (although it was a struggle at times – especially being so busy with engine repairs for road cars) and our position in the Championship demonstrated that other competitors had their share of problems and frustrations as well – that’s just racing I suppose. We managed the season without any engine, clutch or gearbox failures (in either car) and our only DNF’s were a broken drive shaft and one brake problem (caused by old age more than anything else so successful form the reliability point of view) but a win seemed a step too far with Mark Sumpter running away with most of the races. It was therefore really satisfying to get two 2nd places and our 1st win – at Silverstone – with half our staff there to witness it and to end the season on a high note (although that “Castle Combe†weekend off inevitably dented our Championship points position - as you can see from Paul's list - just a few more points would have lifted us back up again). But we never expected to be anywhere near that level this season anyway - so are all really made up with the results and all really enjoyed our involvement – so I guess most readers will expect us to exploit that experience with the 968 – finally getting it in tip top condition by the end of the season by starting off next year with the same set up. Perhaps we are a little crazy not to – but with our business being the leading engine repair and rebuild centre for M96 and M97 engines – we feel it is incumbent on us to race one of those instead next year – to explore the weak points and prove our ability – although it will have to be with an entirely new car (not one with a background of 20 years racing development) – so an even bigger challenge than we faced this year and it may take longer to get it capable of a win than it has been with the 968. I am very fond of the 968 (we started our business with 944’s and moved on to the 968 many years ago) and it has done us proud this season – but it will take all our focus to build a new car and get it competitive - so it seems it will be goodbye to future racing involvement in a 968 (unless any current 968 competitor would like to suggest any ways we can assist them next season – by taking advantage of our expertise - stock of spares etc (just get in touch with Baz by E-mail with any proposals). We are in the process of building our new car – so should be able to get some track testing in before the new season starts – fingers crossed. Finally we must express our gratitude to Paul (for setting up the team and consistent driving and team support) and Ben (for driving hard with a car nor always with the best set up) and their supporters for trying their best all season, to the club officials (for organising a great Championship) and to the PCGB catering team (great food just when we needed it - thanks). We are (as you can tell) all hooked on the Sport and the Championship and look forward to taking part again next season. Baz
Steve Brookes
Moderator
Good to hear your experiences of your first year as new team, Baz. If the set up of a racing Porsche is not, as you say, your strongest suit, maybe you could look at working with another small Porsche specialist to help you with that? There's a small specialist near you that are very strong in set up (they did the setup on the Class 1 winning 964 last year) but don't have the funds to run their own team. Maybe your expertise in the power plants and their expertise in tuning the set up could be a good recipe for future success?
paulf968
New member
Well overall a good season for me, finished every race and came 6th in Class 1. In three seasons that is my highest placing and I was not far off being 5th or even 4th until the Silverstone rounds. The good news is I think there is more to come, so that keeps me motivated ...... so currently planning to come out again in 2012 (my 60th year on the planet!!) I do feel there is unfinished business for me in PCGB racing, I think I said the same last year! Certainly I am still after my first podium, I can learn more about being a good sprint driver and if we can extract a bit more out of the car that might get me there. The engine is out and stripped, it is in surprisingly good condition. I do change the oil every 8-10 hours running and swear by the Fuchs/Silkolene PRO S oil that I use - it sticks to everything. It will get new bearings and rings and be bolted back up ready for a trackday or two to run her in. The gearbox needs some attention as well, 3rd to 4th synchro in poor condition and the LSD will be serviced with new plates. Apart from a fresh clutch, new seals in all the brake calipers and brake/clutch fluid changes, that will be about it. .......... almost forgot, the car has had a full body respray in a flat orange colour so it will look pristine as well. two things to finish off: 1) Look at Page 43 of the Nov issue of Porsche Post -- Hartech have put a half page advert thanking everyone who was involved with the two car Hartech team in 2011 -- nice touch Barry. 2) My thanks go out to all of the same people and additionally Mike Pollock & Chris Valentine should get a special mention, they have taken loads of photos during the season and kept us up to date by posting them here abouts. Thx guys
paulf968
New member
Well, the engine and gearbox are on their way back into the car at Ninex, Maidenhead. - The engine, was a straightforward refresh, crank & bores were good, so with new main and big end bearings, plus piston rings it went back together. A new water pump was included as the bearings sounded as if they were starting to grumble a bit. Just before it was put back together, we decided to have the crank/flywheel/clutch dynamically balanced. We were not expecting much wrong with the Porsche crank on it's own but we found that the flywheel was not great and some minor tweaking was required to get it all spinning evenly. - The gearbox, was most definitely in need of a strip. Both pinion bearings were showing signs of wear, the synchro rings were in poor shape (as I knew from the driver's seat) and I think one other bearing needed to be changed. All that plus a preventative refresh to the KAAZ LSD means that I will have virtually a new box to play with next season. So sometime in Jan/Feb I will need to find a couple of trackdays and run the engine in for 6 to 8 hours with a few heat cycles - the engine will be tight and I do not want to rush the process. Then an oil change. When run in I plan to go back to Wayne at Chip Wizards and have the mapping checked - at the end of the day it costs relatively little money to do that and it will mean that the engine will run at it's optimum all the time.
][Neil Haughey
New member
Same here but need more money, or rather work to give me that money in the new year.
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