The clouds were diesel smoke, not rain, luckily. SAM Spring Gala

The SAM Spring Gala was the first chance this season to run tethered cars, yet the whole event was in the balance due to the horrendous weather that had affected the area. The entire field was waterlogged and the caravan site almost a lake so that all caravans and motor homes had to use the competitors car park and hard standings. The tethered car infield resembled a hydro pool, and as to what might happen when 300 + cars needed to be parked, concentrated the mind of Manny and his volunteers somewhat. Luckily there was no further rain so that the area used for parking although soft, was useable without getting stuck, phew.

For reasons as yet unknown the Redfin trophy and Roberts Trophy were not going to be run leaving just the Speed trophy competition for wheel driven 2.5cc cars. For the aircar runners it was a chance to get as much track time as fuel supplies would allow. Many new cars on parade, variations on the Redfin theme and more 'lateral thinking' inspired creations including a full electric and an EDF model of Thrust. Most gratifying was the number of newcomers joining, some with their own builds and others with Redfins. Also on hand were half a dozen or so spectators with cars of various sorts 'in the pipeline'. The 'lads' have been hard at it over the winter with new chassis designs, refined versions of previous cars and some new bits and pieces. The lever 'knock off' that Mike Francies has produced is the answer to a lot of problems, very positive in action and easy to make. His new car with a fully suspended motor and bevel drive was another interesting concept that dating back many years in concept, brought right up to date with damped suspension but without the need for an expensive, and currently unobtainable, gearbox.

Nigel's electric car	Mike's engine/gear unit	Roger Gedge's RC cut out

Star turn for me was John Goodall's recreation of the 1950s Oliver twin car, using the original 5cc Oliver twin motor that was amongst the auction lots after the death of John Oliver. Not a slavish copy as the motor had gone through several modifications in its time, but very much 'in period'. Considering that it had not run in a car for nearly seventy years it cracked off first push and completed a run, well into the 70s. John had also produced an Oliver Ferrari in the Harry Howlett mould that looked superb and ran equally well.

The recreated Oliver twin	Oliver Ferrari with scale touches	Original 1950s ED spur car

Technology was well to the fore as we have seen an electric RC car on the track before, but this time it was a purpose built and superbly engineered job that is still in need of a bit of sorting, but could be a serious bit of kit. Simon's EDF Thrust sounded like a jet, performing well on every run. Roger Gedge has joined us from the CL circle, using a JG Aries aircar but with interchangeable pylons that have different motors. He has also come up with a micro RC system that operates a TR type cut off that he can trigger to stop the car, a most useful idea given that a smother blanket is hardly an option at 80mph? In the pits were no less than three rolling roads, one very hi-tec with digital readout, one medium tech that we saw last season and a distinctly low tech eco version that pre-dates them both by many years. The purpose built starter box was an impressive alternative to the more normal hand starter that most use, but something seldom seen were a couple of clockwork starters, most ingenious, as long as the motor starts first time that is?

Starter box with Mike's new KMD car	HiTec rolling road with readout	Eco friendly rolling road

Sunday is predominantly about the swapmeet, engines galore, plenty of interest for tethered car enthusiasts with complete cars, car kits, tyres, motors and more. Paul Goodall has a large stock of tethered car castings and parts so well worth investigating what he has available. Some traders reckoned that it was probably their best ever at Buckminster, but inevitably, others had 'not sold a thing', yet when you are asking double for an engine what anyone else  in the hall is, then that is hardly surprising. With the plethora of engines for sale currently, the pricing structure has to recognise this. Kevin Richards had an interesting display of engines that had come from Alexander Matusha, rescued from his factory after the Mig 29 went through the roof. These are going to be sold off in a 'silent auction' to aid the rebuilding of the factory, more details to follow, but they include two YJs, two MVVS 10s and a Holt four stroke.

Cars and more from the Goodalls	Steve's EDs & Kevin with Matusha motors	Tyres galore and a tasty RYTM

Plenty of track action for the rest of the day with the bulk of runs well into the 80s and the mid 90s showing at times, although several cars went home in need of some attention or alteration in the light of experience gained during the weekend. Thanks to Nigel and Steve for organising the event, along with Ian, Jan and Hugh for horsing duties. Next meeting is May 6^th/7^th, wheel driven cars only.

For a video of the event, go to OTWs youtube channel www.youtube.com

　Buckminster Tether Car Group. May meeting

When the calendar was agreed last year, the Coronation was due to be held in June as in 1953, so we were clear of any conflicting event or bank holiday with the usually attendant poor weather. Charles changed the date without consulting us, and just like in 1953, it tipped it down for a significant portion of the Saturday. The format for BTCG meeting is open practice all day Saturday with a short practice on Sunday followed by two rounds of competition. With the poor forecast for the weekend, street parties and other conflicting events, it resulted in a select group that enjoyed a couple of hours of non stop track action before it started to rain. Luckily, it had been relatively dry for a while since the Spring Gala so the site was not too soft and the car circle infield dry. The volunteers have done a super job getting the kickboards in place, now a third of the way round the track and protecting the public and pit area. Most of the cars on the track had been seen before some with minor modifications and most with needles and compression screws twiddled, sometimes in the right direction, others not. The relationship between these adjustments on a diesel engine remain a mystery to me, and others it appears?

Mike with his KMD spur car	Oh, it was wet	Nigel and Jan with TMP twinshaft cars

The newest car on the track was Nigel Bathe's experimental electric car with a 'twinshaft' inrunner motor obviating the need for any sort of gearing. Nigel intended to have a gently 'shakedown' run, which he did, with the car running perfectly in the mid 70s, but then he could not resist the calls to 'give it some welly', which he did until it was up to 95mph when the highly engineered LiPo retaining matrix proved insufficient to the task. The battery exited stage right, taking a considerable amount of important electrical gubbins with it. The performance proved the viability of the concept, leading to a conversation around possible configurations, cell and motor specs to establish a class for electric cars. These could well use existing RC components and technology making the class and tethered cars available to an even larger cohort of enthusiasts. Little noise and no smelly diesel, which might appeal to some?

Nigel was on horsing duties when a few spots of rain turned into a deluge and the car on the track resembled a hydro with spray coming off the tyres. After several hours of chat and lunch in the dryness of the hangar the rain stopped sufficiently for everyone to get back to running. The track was still wet, yet the 2.5cc diesels managed, with wheel spin only evident on the launch. By 4.30pm the track was dry enough for full action, but this lasted just a few minutes before the rain set in again, bringing action to an end for the day.

Late afternoon running	Hugh starting Chris' TMP car	Filming by drone

Sunday, by comparison, was dry all day, becoming sunny and very warm, messing up carefully arrived at settings after the morning's first run. Lyndon Bedford had arrived with a selection of exceedingly rare ETA prototype engines, possibly unknown to most? He had effected repairs to his vintage 2.5 ETA 15 car but is still struggling with the fuel feed on the ETA 29 powered version. His first round speed missed his nomination by 3mph below and his second round speed improved by 6mph to miss the nominated by 2.3mph the other way, such is life. Star performance from the 2.5s was Ian Wingfield with his BRM that sounded spot on, recording the fastest run in the class and winning the nomination in to the bargain just 0.468mph adrift. We were delighted to be visited by a young Polish couple, now based in the UK. He used to race as a Junior in the late 1980s until the tracks in Poland closed and his grandfather was a regular competitor previously. Currently he is very much into aerial videoing, filming much of the action on the track from his drone, seen above in a wonderful, blue sky. It was also  a pleasure to welcome two more potential newcomers looking to move into tethered cars.

ETA 5 glow conversion	Unique ETA GP line up 29. 19. 15.	Ultimate ETA accessory

Nigel Bathe's 2.1 was really singing to top out at 98.683mph, whilst Hugh's similar car did not lean out until the last few laps and then promptly blew his nomination somewhat. David Giles had brought his superbly engineered 1066 Conquest with a Nordec 60 that is extremely loud. After coming close to his nomination to place second, he gave the needle a little twiddle to record the best ever speed for this car. David has designed and geared it so that it will run happily at around 80mph, with due deference to its age.

For the first time, all runs were recorded on a laptop in the timing hut, and as soon as power is connected to the hut then printouts should be available after each run. Other cars were running but not entered so do not appear in the results.  Thanks to all those who ignored the attractions of the coronation and the street parties, especially Ian Wingfield for the technical and physical help over the weekend, setting up, horsing and clearing up afterwards.  

Competitor	Car	Round 1	Round 2	Nom Error	Posn
Lyndon Bedford	ETA 15 Vintage	65.885mph	71.322mph	2.322	4th
Chris Maggs	TEMP HB	38.664mph	DNS
Ian Wingfield	BRM Redfin	81.468mph	79.732mph	0.468	1st
Nigel Bathe	2.1cc LS Nova	96.097mph	98.663mph	3.397	5th
Hugh Blowers	2.1cc LS Nova	75.202mph	DNF	1.702	3rd
David Giles	10cc Nordec Conquest	75.788mph	77.543mph	.788	2nd
Lyndon Bedford	ETA 29 Vintage	DNS	DNS
Mike Francies	KMD spur	DNS
Nigel Bathe	TEMP streamliner	DNS

For video of the event go to www.youtube.com

Buckminster Tether Car Group June meeting
 'seeking the shade'

Given that we have had solid cloud and temperatures no higher than 15C for three weeks, the prospect of a 'plume' from Spain in the high 20s made for an interesting weekend. We are often derided for preferring the cool of the hangar to the sun trap that is the pit area, yet by Sunday there was quite a crowd in there? One of the best supported meetings so far with almost 30 widely differing cars, vying for track time. A journalist and photographer from Autocar were on hand during the Saturday, preparing an article on tethered car racing for the magazine. To say he was impressed with the sight of a piped car at 120+mph might be something of an understatement?

Thanks to all the hard work from the volunteers at Buckminster, the kickboards surrounding the track are now in place (see photo above) so that the faster cars can now run on official track days. It is hoped that a work party one Saturday morning can complete the safety fence with plastic sheeting to meet all requirements?

Oliver and Aaron on a photo shoot	Jan being photographed	Ian Wingfield's brace of Oliver Redfin cars

Currently, the format is to have open practice all day Saturday for testing purposes or setting up cars for the Sunday. Aaron Monk had his E1 1.5cc car that we have seen before, and a current FEMA Class 1 model that sounded absolutely fantastic. Steve Turley had his venerable Stelling Class 4 car that unfortunately refused to run cleanly, possibly due to having spent the last six years in stately repose in a cupboard?

Not a new car, but the Bertold Kastle 3.5cc car has changed hands again, and after a bit of needle twiddling was well over 100mph. This car was the catalyst for a long discussion about paint as most of the eco friendly paints seem to have zero resistance to methanol and certainly not ether. We have used Holts 'rattle cans' forever on boats and cars without any trouble, but a change in formulation leaves very sticky and coloured hands. Strange really as full sized cars now run on 10% ethanol. Lacquer is the answer as enamel has almost vanished and epoxy paint is a whole different ball game. Ian Wingfield has built an Oliver Ferrari to go with his similar BRM, again Redfin powered and with front and rear suspension and he was also bemoaning the paint problem.

Oliver pushing off Aaron's E1	Horsing the 1.5 up to speed	Nigel's electric car

The 'lads' continue to come up with innovative and interesting cars, Nigel Bathe having fitted a somewhat over engineered battery retainer on his electric car. Very effective though as it topped 105mph with still more to come. Mike Francies is getting to grips with his KMD engined streamliner with another, even more potent, version in development. This has an exceedingly powerful and high revving glow motor, needing some sums to be done with gear ratios, tyre sizes etc to realise its true potential. Another streamliner made its debut, but this time very different inside. The beam chassis from a previous project had been liberated, and after a chance conversation with ace engine man Taff Bolen, a Eureka twinshaft, converted to glow to provide the urge. Very much last minute getting it all together and not even a chance to see if the motor would run, but it started first go, and responded happily to a push stick. A bit of needle twiddling next time should see how effective this conversion might be?

New recruit, Andy Soars, appeared with the normally super reliable Eureka, AC Cobra to get a first taste of tethered car racing. He was soon in conversation with Alex Phin regarding the availability of new twinshaft motors. Six hours of running cars in that heat was enough, so a few cold beers were sought out to prepare for the morrow.

Steve pushing off his 5cc FEMA car	Venerable Cobra back in action	Eureka twinshaft power

Given the prospect of a thunderstorm on Sunday, practice was restricted to 90 minute before the first round of competition. For a variety of reasons some of the cars from Saturday were unable to run with 13 cars being entered, each with a nominated speed. Interestingly, the heat did affect performances for the 2.5 cars, with only Jan Huning and Pete Hughes exceeding their nominations, the others were below. Several runs in the high 80s, not far off what the best 2.5s were doing in their day. It should not be long before the diesel record is exceeded? The TEMP engined cars are already well over what they were recording in their heyday. Lyndon Bedford discovered the hard way why we do not recommend using older tyres, as his vintage ETA came to a juddering standstill with half a front tyre. There are a lot of polyurethane tyres on the market as well, but these are for display only and must never be run. It is also worth noting that tethered cars take a great deal of hammering on any track where the forces and stresses are exceedingly high. For this reason, cars must be built to high standards of engineering with appropriate material and fixings. Remember the old axiom 'if it can break it will and if it can come off, then it certainly will, and probably at the most embarrassing moment'.

Aaron's Prijbo E1 1.5cc	2.1cc supplies now a casualty of the political situation

Fastest speed of the day was down to Lynn Blowers at 107mph, way over her nomination, leaving her bottom of the results list. David Giles' Conquest should get a prize for being the loudest and is usually very close to the nomination, but an error of 1.5mph left him in 7^th place. People are getting very good at this now with the first three being within 0.06mph of each other, how close is that? Even 4^th place was only 0.1mph out

Beautiful scale Hunter in the hangar all weekend	Chris Maggs' new TMP car

The heat was getting a bit oppressive so no one wanted to hang around outside too long and with long trips home for most we were able to get packed away and on the road at a reasonable time. As we headed south, the temperature went up from the 27 at Buckminster to a heady 34, what a wonderful invention A/C in cars is?

Thanks to everyone who helped prepare the track, horse (a seriously hot occupation) and most of all, clearing up at the end, thank you. Next meeting is July when we should be welcoming some more visitors from overseas. For a video of the event  www.youtube.com

Competitor	Car	Round 1	Round 2	Nom Error	Posn
Lyndon Bedford	ETA 15 Vintage	67.244mph	73.681mph	-0.22	3rd
Chris Maggs	TEMP HB	62.956mph	64.510mph	-0.044	2nd
Gerry Best	Redfin streamliner	82.544mph	80.512mph	-0.956	6th
Nigel Bathe	Schools car	73.778mph	DNF	-11.222	10th
Nigel Bathe	TEMP streamliner	DNF	WD
David Giles	10cc Nordec Conquest	76.650mph	74.855mph	-1.45	7th
Jan Huning	Schools car TEMP	87.972mph	88.937mph	-0.028	1st
Jan Huning	Oliver HB	82.187mph	80.547mph	+0.187	4th
Mike Francies	KMD spur	67.484mph	73.681mph	-2.469	8th
Pete Hughes	TEMP	DNF	52.422mph	-11.222	11th
Pete Hughes	Redfin	60.331mph	57.997mph	+0.331	5th
Lynn Blowers	Nova 3b	107.298mph	WD	+7.298	9th

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