Words By SSgt Dan Moughton
The Armed Forces Race Challenge Rounds 3 & 4 at Croft Circuit.
Hello Army Sports Car Racing Fans! The final weekend of June saw Croft Circuit playing host to the AFRC Rounds 3 & 4 and what a weekend of racing it was. All three services brought their A-Game, with the cobwebs dusted off from Silverstone, every driver was ready and willing to leave everything on the line to secure points and podiums for their respective Service. However, there was a considerable amount of bumps, knocks and scrapes with the 750 Motor Club officials paying close attention to the race craft and points to boot.... but we will get into that shortly.
The Army Sports Car Racing Team brought a serious fleet of cars to this weekends racing, with 13 Cars and Drivers and ready to take the fight to the competition of the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. It was great to see the return of SSgt Dougie Inlges and his AFRC Championship winning Mazda MX5 and, of course, seeing the current AFRC Champion in action. New to the Season WO1 Ben Moore and Lt. Col Paul Chapman, produced some excellent race craft in their Clio 197, however, it was electrical gremlins that put pay to 2nd Lt Alex Rivett's 350z, who was on for an excellent 3rd and 4th round in the AFRC.
A controversial situation involving racing veteran JC in his 306 GTI and Paul in the 197 Clio, where the drivers made contact on the track... of which some would argue a racing incident. This "racing incident" however, cost JC 3 points to his race licence and a 30 second time penalty from the 750 Motor Club Courses Clerk. Adding to his frustrations, JCs camera stopped recording just moments before the collision and so, could not prove that it was merely a racing incident.
Rounds 3 and 4 was, overall, a phenomenal weekend of racing. An incredible turn out from both drivers and the support team, with everyone coming together to take the fight on the track against the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. Croft Circuit is a favourite for many of the drivers, with long fast straights and a few technical corners to test the drivers, Croft Circuit delivers in every way! Rounds 5 & 6 sees the Army Sports Car Racing Team at Snetterton... we look forward to seeing you there!