Take the hard knocks and be King of the Road

King in his Mark II Cortina was desperately looking for a bit of form to take to Ipswich for this weekend’s Spedeworth championship event - and boy did he find it, writes Michael Burnage.

He was competing in the ‘Historics’ as they are commonly known, where the aim is to turn the clock back to the roots of where most of today’s formulae began. The class offers limited contact (or at least that is the idea) but drivers are encouraged to push and spin their way through the field.

With their iron work surrounding the shell, they are always a lively formula.

After a difficult night in the rain at Arlington recently, King blossomed after a testing start.

On the wider track, and in dry conditions, the power of his Ford engine came to the fore but in the first race he was bumped and shoved all over the place.

Some savage blows meant that King was literally knocked down and out of the placings and the second race was even more eventful as he bounced back to cross the line in an amazing third position.

Although he was looking to preserve his car for the upcoming championship, King still wanted to achieve a decent result in the final. And charging from the back at the outset, he soon found himself challenging for the top places.

A strong challenge over the closing laps saw King, against all the odds, take the chequered flag.

Meanwhile, Hayward Heath’s Paul Kaynes was also at Aldershot, continuing to gain valuable experience in the aggressive formula.

In the first race he was spun out by one of the more experienced drivers but recovered well and finished strongly. He did not fare quite so well in the second race as he appeared to be off the pace with what may have been mechanical problems. With such old vehicles it is not uncommon for wheels to come off and bits of engine to fail without warning.

Kaynes did so much better in a very hostile final. Forcing out a rival, he took the lead and led the race for three laps. In turn he himself was then nudged out of contention but did well to recover and finish midway down the pack.

All valuable track time for Kaynes, who hopefully will garner more experience as the season moves on.

The Spedeworth season continues at Arlington with three formulas being showcased every Wednesday evening, through to the end of September.

Next Wednesday (July 24) another packed grid of the popular ‘non-contact’ Rookie Rods is guaranteed. Well, they are supposed to be non-contact but with the Sussex Championship at stake, some ‘close’ driving can be expected.