PRI Banger Team Championship Q/r 1 1300 Stock Cars Group A Hot Rods

PRI Banger Teams
Good Friday had seen the Gravesend Condoms team finish their run of team success when they failed to win the Suffolk Open, and they returned to Arena Essex on Monday, April 17, for the first round of this years' PRI Banger Team Championship with something to prove, or so one might have thought. However, as with the previous year, most of the other PRI teams were too busy wrecking each other to do anything about the pink cars running across the line, extending their unbeaten run, at least on home ground.

With a smaller number of teams competing this year, it meant that each team supplied three cars rather than two in the heats. As usual, this was the meeting when we saw the fruits of the off-season horse trading between teams which meant that the Canvey Cowboys returned after a year off, the Cowboys taking Gary Brown along with them as they exited the Cream Team which, this year, seemed to have absorbed some of the multitude of Rats that had been responsible for much of the wrecking in 2005, notably the Laybourns. Even with the top teams there seemed to be some exchanges, with Darren Nash going pink this year though, given Matt Fullers' pink outing at Mildenhall a scant few days before, there seems to be a healthy link developing between those two teams. Whilst quite a few old teams disappeared from the list, one new team did pop up, that being the Firm, a team that didn't do too badly for themselves on their first trip out.

The first heat quickly turned nasty as the Creams took on the Gladiators in a series of hits that left the corners clogged with debris from both teams plus a few that got caught in the crossfire. A win for Jason Jackson gave the Midnight Runners a healthy start but second to fourth for the Condoms meant an early pink lead, courtesy of new boy Dale Hughes and old bugs Andrew Davies and Rob Farrington. The hitting got a little out of hand in the second heat leading to a stoppage to extract Phil Milner from his Volvo. As before, the Gladiators, Wrekin Krew and Cream Team were going at it on the QE2 bridge end, with some involvement also from the Cowboys, possibly the remains of some team loyalty from the previous year. An order restart gave the advantage to Martin Bowmaker but, in the closing stages, Karl Douglas swept him out of the way to give the Bad Company a welcome points boost ahead of Mark Woolner for the Eastenders, Bowmaker having to settle for third, the best finish of the day for the Firm. After getting clogged up in his heat, Billy King rodded home in the consolation while the Cowboys went at the Gladiator affiliates, the Creams having been mostly reduced to scrap by this time.

After plenty of hitting in the heats, the final was pretty much hit free as Jackson held out in front of a large number of Condoms. Although only one Condom had lifted a trophy to that point, getting large numbers of cars over the line gave them the first round, especially here as they picked up a massive 56 points for five finishers, Farrington leading the way by the end. A healthy number of finishes on the day gave the Runners second spot, whilst third place went to the new team, the Firm. Lee Turner of that team then went on to win the Rawlins 2000 qualifier, preventing Boxer Jack from taking any further trophies from the meeting, Kevin Lee of the Gigglers doing the last car running bit.

Group A Hot Rods
April 17 was possibly the unluckiest day for Lee Hall so far this season at Arena Essex. Not that the season has been long in running for the Group A Hot Rods, but Hall did seem to end up on top of cars rather a lot that day. In the first heat, one by Mark Nichols from the front ahead of a determined drive by Alan Thorndyke from the back with Dave Lamb on his tail, Hall ended up on top of Mick Gola on the exit to turn four. There also seemed to be a problem with gold cars; Brian Davison's new golden Tigra and the Joe Weal special which had carried him to victory in the previous meeting both seemed to attract trouble. Davison had his rear end disassembled in the same incident that had put Hall on Gola, whilst Weal was given the bumps through the meeting. Thorndyke, however, had had his share of bumps at the first Group A meeting and was driving well in his not so smart Citroen, holding back Steve Gooch in the second heat for the trophy, the red tops dominating the front by the end of the race with Simon Simmons in third. Then, in the final, all seemed to go wrong again as, following a spin on the back straight by Ken Gillman, Hall ended up on top again, wedged by the fence. Chris Smith had had a promising drive up to this point but he got a little too friendly with the cars in front and was asked to leave the race in the closing laps leaving the race open to Dave Lamb, though the defending-almost-everything champion had to work hard to get to the front, finishing ahead of Dave Hutchins and Steve Gooch.

1300 Stock Cars
The April 17 meeting at Arena Essex for the 1300 Stock Cars was dominated by the cars at the front, with Ian Hall taking the meeting final trophy ahead of Paddy Palmer, whilst Neal Gardiner held off Terry Reynolds and Paul Haralambou twice to take both heat victories, coming third in the final.

Last car: 262 Kevin Lee

Team points (after one round)

Crashnet Photos

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Also see Matthew Bull Photographic for more photos from this meeting.

© 2006 Chris Johnson (Crashnet) / Promotasport Raceways