Round 1 of the Elise Trophy held at Brands Hatch on March 24th 2007.
After months of preparation, the Lotus on Track Elise Trophy 2007 season opener, the Lotus Brands Hatch Celebration, held on Saturday 24th March, was a phenomenal success. A lot of people had put a great deal of work into this series and the last few weeks have been frantic to say the least. As the big day got closer, it didn’t look as though the weather was going to be too kind to us, with snow falling in the South of England only 3 days before the race meeting! The MSV test day, on Friday, was a damp and drizzly affair, with Andrew Walsh looking like he meant business as he consistently set quick times throughout the day.
| Class A | Class B | Class C | Handicap |
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Qualifying
However, as dawn broke on Saturday, the sun came up and it looked like the peculiar Brands Hatch micro climate was going to favour us after all. Some late arrivals, accompanied by some pretty bleary faces, attested to some of the last minute herculanean efforts by some to get their cars ready for the grid. With 11 novice drivers, a lack of sleep all round, and enough caffeine consumed to keep the population of Kent awake for a week, pulses were racing as we lined up for the qualifying session. The session went by in a flash, and with 32 cars on the 1.2 mile Brands Hatch indy circuit it felt a bit like the M25 at times but most people managed to get one or two clear laps. As expected, Andrew Walsh (6 – Elise S1) was on pole, with David Harvey (51 – 340R) 2nd and Mark Funnell (26 – Exige S1) 3rd.
On what turned out to be a bitterly cold day, the support from the Lotus community was amazing, throughout the morning there seemed to be a never-ending stream of Lotus cars pouring into Brands Hatch. As well as the packed race schedule, there was plenty for them to see, with lots of trade stands from Lotus dealers and specialists, on track demonstrations of historic Lotus race cars and the latest offerings from the factory (e.g. the 2-eleven circuit car, bio-ethanol Exige etc.), plus music from Doctor and the Medics!
Race 1 – Class Race
Finally it was down to business, all 32 cars lined up on the grid, the red lights went out, and we were off. Steve Williams (18 – Elise S1) showed that there really is no substitute for experience as he moved from 9th to 4th by the first bend. Everyone got through Paddock ok and the race was on! Andrew Walsh held the lead from lights to flag but was kept honest throughout by Mark Funnell, who crossed the line less than 2 seconds later. Behind the front runners there were some great battles throughout the race, especially between Steve Williams & David Skeggs (5 – Elise S1) who swapped places throughout and provided some cracking entertainment. David Harvey & Sean Bicknell (19 – Exige S1) had strong races to finish 3rd & 4th overall respectively. Malcolm Sanders (21 – Exige S1) was running well in 7th when a spectacular fire in the rear of his car ended his race. The oil this incident left on the circuit made for some interesting moments for us all turning into Surtees! In the end 30 cars finished the race and all the drivers should be congratulated for the standard of the driving and the quality of the racing. Congratulations to overall winner Andrew Walsh, plus class B winner Sean Bicknell and class A winner Gavin Kirby (95 – Exige S2)
1st ever Elise Trophy race – 32 starters (full grid), 30 finished and no red flags.
Race 2 – Handicap Race
Once the adrenalin levels from race 1 had calmed down a bit, it was time for the twilight zone that was the handicap race. The official handicappers had worked out how many laps each car would (theoretically) have to complete to cross the finish line at the same time! We were started in groups of around 8 cars, with a 10 second gap between each group. This made for some exciting action, as the faster cars tried to unlap themselves, while the slower cars became embroiled in their own battles and had no real reason to make it easier for the faster cars to pass! In the end the handicappers were pretty much spot on, with all the cars from 2nd to 27th crossing the line within 40 seconds of each other. Congratulations to the winner, Christian Watkins (3 – Elise S1), who was followed home by Paul Quinn (15 – Elise S1) and Mark Funnell.
Race 3 – MSVR Invitation Handicap
As dusk fell and it started to rain, several of the more hardy (or perhaps foolhardy) Elise Trophy racers lined up to compete in the MSVR Invitation Handicap race. This was run as a sealed handicap where all the drivers started at the same time (as for a scratch race), then afterwards the handicappers applied some sort of magic formula to work out who had won.
The race was open to any SELOC or LoT members in any car, and was a bit of a “wacky races” affair, with Caterhams, Radicals, Elises, BMWs, a Noble, a Tiger and a Rover Metro all lining up on the grid!
Andrew Kell (67 – Elise S2) had a flier from 8th on the grid and was 4th going into Paddock, eventually finishing 5th. Several drivers fell off the circuit as it got progressively darker and wetter, and congratulations to the 3 Elise drivers who brought their cars home and therefore finished all 3 races in the day: Andrew Kell; Jeremy Braker (27 – Lotus S1); and Graham Walsh (8 – Lotus S1).
| MSVR Invitation Handicap | Car |
|---|---|
| 1. Chris Brooks | Tiger R6 |
| 2. Daniel Ludlow | Rover Metro |
| 3. Andrew Partridge | BMW 3:20 |
Conclusion
What a day! It really felt like the months of preparation were worth it, as the pits seemed to be full of grinning (and in some cases steaming!) drivers.
Some facts from the day show just how big a success the Lotus Brands Hatch Celebration was:
- Full grids of 32 cars for both Elise Trophy races.
- The first time a single-make sports car series has had two full 32 car grids at Brands Hatch on one afternoon in its inaugural race meeting.
- No red flags in either race.
- Thousands of Lotus enthusiasts supported the series on a bitterly cold March day.
- Many Lotus clubs attended in large numbers bringing classic and modern sports cars into the circuit in a riot of colour and noise.
- All available hospitality suites sold out as did trade stand pitches.
- Welcome support was received from Lotus Cars and Lotus dealers alike, with a full array of the latest Lotus offerings on display.
- Group Lotus CEO, Mike Kimberley, was on hand to present trophies to the winners of race 1 while MotorSport Vision Chief Executive, Jonathan Palmer, presented trophies to the winners of race 2 as well as praising the series and drivers at the 2nd briefing, something greatly appreciated by all the drivers. Martin Donnelly was also on hand to present trophies for some of the other races at this inaugural Lotus Brands Hatch Celebration.
Further info on the day on the MotorSport Vision site:
- First Lotus Brands Hatch Celebration a success
- Walsh wins first Elise Trophy race
- Walsh takes first ever Elise Trophy pole
Look out for television coverage of these 2 races on Motors TV over the next few weeks. For further details of our television coverage and to see a short promo, please check out the Race Television web site.
In summary, roll on Snetterton! (Sun 22nd April)
