PETIT EUROPE TOUR 2009 - Saturday 17th January 2009

The PETIT race is an annual affair organised by the owner of the French RC website petitrc.com - Nicholas Petit. The French focus of the website means every Petit race so far has been in France itself - until now. This year the organisers wanted to spice things up a little and gain a wider audience by taking the race over to the UK for the first time -the so-called 'Europe Tour'.

The venue chosen for the meeting is the Maritime Raceway in Kent, Southern England. Maritime Raceway is a permenant indoor facility usually used for electric on-road racing, located on the third floor of an historic dockyard building.

Jorn Neumann from Germany has dominated previous Petit races - winning both 2WD and 4WD classes in the 2006 and 2007 events held in Paris. With the absense of Jorn from the 2009 event and the addition of many top UK drivers on home turf, things would be interesting.

Hotel helicopter madness - For bonus points, guess who's got the bin (helicopter landing pad) on their head

Doors opened at 7am and drivers were greeted with signs at the door directing them up three flights of narrow stairs to the 3rd floor of an old mill. The entire level is open plan with the track taking up half of the available space, and pitting tables, race control, scrutineering and a kitchen in the remaining space. TVs had been positioned around the room displaying race information. Booking in closed at 08:15, meaning that any late arrivals wouldn't be allowed to race - oops.

The first day consisted of 2WD buggy mainly - with one heat of Trucks. The trucks weren't big in numbers but still had a talkented field, with the likes of Richard Lowe (T4) and a slew of XFactory drivers headed up by Ellis Stafford and Tom Cockerill.

Track building started on the Thursday evening before the event, with some dedicated souls staying until 4am the following morning to get the track ready - with finishing touches applied on the Friday evening. The actual jumps were constructed over the weeks leading up to this event and hadn't been used before - this being the first off-road event the club had ever run.

Drivers briefing got underway at around 9am and 'shouty chap' announced the rules, followed by a brief introduction by Mr.Petit. Most rules seemed to end in drivers being escorted off the premises, or thats how it seemed - but in actual fact only smoking on the premises or being 1 gramme underweight would end in physical extraction from the building. LOL

Timing was announced as FTD instead of round by - not a popular choice going by the jeers by which it it was met. Racing started at 9:30am with heat one of 2WD - Trucks would go in the middle of 11 qualifying heats.

Round One

Ellis looks on top form	Lee says oOple is his favorite website - Lee loves us

Ellis Stafford TQ'd the first round with 15 laps in 305.52, followed by JConcepts superstar and long-time oOple fanboy Richard Lowe. Top ten from round 1 were as follows:

Round Two
Round two saw Ellis Stafford stretch out his lead with the new X6-squared on a blistering 16 lapper, Lee Martin second just ahead of Richard Lowe, both on 15/305 times.

Round Three saw a mistake early on from Ellis, leaving Lee Martin to take up the lead in the top heat and 0.2 seconds off TQ pace. Lee was on a charge but a mistake coming over a small jump saw him on his roof and three seconds off pace. Lee continued to push hard and made back the time but more mistakes saw him lose out on 16 laps by 0.84 seconds.

Ellis wanted to give others a chance, maybe.	Lee Martin on his way to some 'roof time' - oops

Pos

Name

Results

1

Lee Martin

15/ 300.84

2

Ellis Stafford

15/ 308.31

3

Matt Benfield

15/ 310.55

4

Elliott Boots

15/ 311.46

5

Cyril Baldini

15/ 311.96

6

Simon Moss

15/ 312.70

7

Grant Williams

15/ 313.62

8

David Orbell

15/ 315.55

9

Chris Bowater

15/ 317.05

10

James Helliwell

15/ 317.63

Ellis and the rest of the XFactory team were using the brand new X6 Squared at the Petit race. Indeed, this is the first official race for Ellis with the new car, after plenty of testing ofcourse.

The new car uses a new 1-piece chassis (nose plate now part of the main chassis), the carbon fibre motor plate is a one-off on Ellis' car and the 'squared' comes with the usual alloy plate, new carbon fibre rear shock tower and battery brace. The car also comes with all the modifications that have crept in since the original car was introduced, such as the 4-gear gearbox. The finish of the car excells the previous car and is now up there with the best.

Above, new rear suspension arm is now flat - so it can be used on either side.

The underside of the new 1-piece chassis

Ellis put in a faster time than his previous best but Lee Martin was out front in the top heat and was on fire - and without the mistakes that cost him dearly in the previous round. With a new fastest time by 6 whole seconds, Lee took the overall TQ.

Pos

Name

Results

1

Lee Martin

16/ 312.77

2

Ellis Stafford

16/ 318.02

3

Tom Cockerill

15/ 302.29

4

Richard Lowe

15/ 304.27

5

Nathan Ralls

15/ 306.33

6

Elliott Boots

15/ 308.52

7

Chris Bowater

15/ 309.84

8

Grant Williams

15/ 310.49

9

Tony Truman

15/ 310.81

10

Bruno Heremans

15/ 311.78

Yoann Bukowski from 'Team PTIT'YO' was at the meeting working on his range of motors for various drivers. The PTIT'YO motors are based on the Figaro can but Yoann re-winds them by hand to produce tighter neater winds - and machines the cans.

The finishing touch is the intricately machined alloy fan which aids in cooling. - Check out the motors at: www.teamptityo.com

PTIT'YO motor wind left - vs standard machine wound

Pos

Name

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

1

Ellis Stafford

1

1

1

1

2

Richard Lowe

2

2

2

2

3

Dan Greenwood

3

5

7

3

4

Tom Cockerill

6

3

4

6

5

Michael Berty

4

6

3

4

6

Ben Hubbard

5

4

5

5

7

Paul Newman

7

8

Steve Thurlbourne

6

9

Sebastien Mure

7

7

10

Manolis Troullos

When four rounds of qualifying were completed, shouty-chap called racers over for a brief presentation to Nicholas petit, explaining that due to not being able to find a venue, the 2008 event is being held in 2009. However 2008 was the 10th anniversary of Petit-rc, so in recognition of this and to celebrate, the Maritime rc club presented Nicholas with a Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge cake and a fancy silver plate to eat it from.

Pos

Name

Leg 1

Leg 2

Leg 3

1

Richard Lowe

1

1

1

2

Ellis Stafford

5

2

2

3

Dan Greenwood

4

3

3

4

Michael Berty

2

5

8

5

Ben Hubbard

3

4

4

6

Tom Cockerill

6

7

5

7

Paul Newman

7

6

6

8

Manolis Troullos

10

10

7

9

Steve Thurlbourne

8

8

9

10

Sebastien Mure

9

9

10

Interview with Richard Lowe - long time oOple fan and superstar JConcepts driver - winner of Truck class on 2wd day.

Well done taking the win in truck Rich, you must be well pleased, what is your favourite pie?
Steak and kidney, and you've got to have gravy with that.

Richard Lowe - 2009 Petit TRUCK Champion

How long have you been driving for JConcepts?
About 5 years now. I had the first BJ4 in europe, woooh!

You continue to show your support for the JConcepts BJ4, what do you see the benefits are to running this car instead of moving to a similar model such as the B44?
It's stronger and because it isn't mass produced all the bits are really good quality and really nicely made.

Did you feel confident against the comptition you had in truck class yesterday, are you happy with your 2wd result?
Me and Ellis were about the same, it was whoever made the most mistakes basically. I had a bit of bad luck in 2wd but you can't complain with 4th place.

When did you start racing r/c cars, and what first attracted you to the hobby?
My 8th birthday which was 1990, my dad got me a Tamiya king cab truck and I raced it at Aire valley. The truck was too slow back then so after about 6 months I got a Tamiya madcap.

What was your first major win?
I won the 2003 Harrogate regional, that is when I knew I had made it to the top.

Which is your all time favourite R/C car?
It's got to be the BJ4, made my first national A final with it.

Where is your all time favourite track? And what has been the most exciting race meeting you have attended?
Lake park, florida where the first JConcepts clash was held. I've enjoyed the petit race but my all time favourite race would have to be the first clash in '07.

What's your favourite chocolate bar?
Snickers!

Which racing achievement are you the most proud of?
Probably truck yesterday, that was the first major event that I've won I think.

What do you aspire to achieve in 2009?
Top 10 in 4wd nationals.

Finals
Three leg finals were being commentated by semi-american Dave Church, who's got the skills on the mic to add a professional touch to the proceedings.

2wd A Final Leg 1
Lee Martin lead them round with Ellis close behind. These two pulled a small gap out front but Ellis was driving like, erm, Ellis does - and jumping the large tabletop on the main straight longer and higher than Lee, closing the gap each lap. Ellis' bravery eventually paid off and saw him pass Lee.

Two minutes into the race and Lee Martin had dropped down the order - Tom Cockerill was now up to second and pressuring Ellis. Ellis eventually clipped a 'dot' and rolled which saw Tom Cockerill take over the top spot. It was Tom, Ellis, Richard Lowe and Lee Martin - with a minute to go.

Ellis was driving on the ragged edge to catch and pass Tom and eventually the two collided - the order didn't change but it allowed Lee Martin now in third to close the remaining gap. Tom held on till the end for a deserved win.

Lee leads them round

Ellis overtakes mid-air

Ellis out front

A mistake from Ellis saw Tom Cockerill take up the lead

Pos

Name

Results

1

Tom Cockerill

15/ 301.50

2

Ellis Stafford

15/ 301.95

3

Lee Martin

15/ 303.70

4

Richard Lowe

15/ 305.78

5

Chris Bowater

15/ 309.82

6

Tony Truman

15/ 310.59

7

Grant Williams

15/ 313.32

8

Matt Benfield

15/ 318.26

9

Elliott Boots

14/ 302.56

10

Nathan Ralls

14/ 305.08

2wd A Final Leg 2
Lee Martin lead from the start with Ellis and Tom Cockerill putting on early pressure. Ellis almost rolled on the first lap but did a proper job of it a couple of laps into the race, allowing Tom Cockerill past for second. The rest of the 5 minutes stayed the same up front with Tom close but unable to catch Lee Martin.

Pos

Name

Results

1

Lee Martin

16/ 313.82

2

Tom Cockerill

16/ 316.33

3

Ellis Stafford

15/ 307.43

4

Chris Bowater

15/ 315.66

5

Tony Truman

15/ 317.38

6

Matt Benfield

14/ 303.94

7

Elliott Boots

14/ 305.45

8

Richard Lowe

14/ 306.24

9

Nathan Ralls

14/ 311.58

10

Grant Williams

3/ 88.72

Tom sheepboy COCKerill makes a new friend

Lee leads from Ellis

Lee Martin led the way from pole position, with Ellis hot on his tail for the first part of the race. Ellis looked like he was going to pull a move and take the lead - he drew close, but not close enough and Lee started to pull off (lol). Ellis started to make silly mistakes, losing him valuable time as Lee gained more of a lead and drove a flawless race to win comfortably and take the 2WD Petit title for the first time.

Pos

Name

Leg 1

Leg 2

Leg 3

1

Lee Martin

3

1

1

2

Tom Cockerill

1

2

8

3

Ellis Stafford

2

3

2

4

Richard Lowe

4

8

3

5

Chris Bowater

5

4

4

6

Tony Truman

6

5

9

7

Grant Williams

7

10

5

8

Matt Benfield

8

6

7

9

Nathan Ralls

10

9

6

10

Elliott Boots

9

7

10

4WD - Sunday 17th January 2009

Sunday saw the start of the 4WD class and the track was basically the same as for the 2WD event, with just a few small jumps removed from in front of the wall ride section to make things more consistent and 'raceable'. Fastest time qualifying was again chosen and racing was to follow the same format as the 2WD event, with two finals for all drivers and three-legs for the A finalists.

Watch out - Ellis is comin thru!

Lee Martin and Ellis Stafford looked to be the fast cars in the top heat of round one but a mistake from Ellis saw him break early on - though his laptimes didn't suffer too badly until eventually he was forced to retire with only three wheels. Lee Martin was out front in the heat but it was Richard Lowe from the back of the grid that took the round with a crafty 17 lapper

Pos

Name

Results

1

Richard Lowe

17/ 317.14

2

Tony Truman

16/ 300.63

3

Simon Moss

16/ 303.93

4

Chris Bowater

16/ 308.63

5

Elliott Boots

16/ 310.42

6

Tom Cockerill

16/ 310.70

7

Matt Benfield

16/ 314.40

8

Lee Martin

16/ 314.80

9

Dan Greenwood

16/ 316.34

10

Cyril Baldini

16/ 316.84

Round 2
Going out in heat 9, Tony Truman put in the fastest time so far with his Hot Bodies D4 on a 17/315. Lee Martin, Ellis Stafford and Richard Lowe were all on the pace to take TQ in heat 10 but couldn't hold it together for the 5 minutes - Richard Lowe made a valiant last minute push past Lee Martin and pulled away to take the win and go second in the round. Lee Martins car was left stranded in the middle of the track before completing his 17th lap, with a desoldered motor the cause. Richard Lowe was the only other driver to step up to 17 laps.

Tony 'teddy bear' Truman - HOT BODIEEEES

Pos

Name

Results

1

Tony Truman

17/ 315.65

2

Richard Lowe

17/ 317.59

3

Lee Martin

16/ 298.70

4

Ellis Stafford

16/ 303.94

5

Dan Greenwood

16/ 305.64

6

Cyril Baldini

16/ 307.80

7

Matt Benfield

16/ 308.83

8

Jesse Saunders

16/ 311.60

9

Nathan Ralls

16/ 312.04

10

Kevin Lee

16/ 312.24

Above: Matt Benfield with the RACER magazine review CAT SX

Pos

Name

Results

1

Tony Truman

17/ 310.15

2

Simon Moss

17/ 314.23

3

Elliott Boots

16/ 301.78

4

Ellis Stafford

16/ 303.74

5

Dan Greenwood

16/ 307.46

6

Tom Cockerill

16/ 309.45

7

Kevin Lee

16/ 314.77

8

Grant Williams

16/ 317.09

9

James Helliwell

16/ 319.02

10

Lloyd Storey

16/ 320.74

Pos

Name

Results

1

Simon Moss

17/316.35

2

Tony Truman

17/ 317.02

3

Richard Lowe

16/300.04

4

Tom Cockerill

16/300.11

5

Elliott Boots

16/307.95

6

Matt Benfield

16/309.58

7

James Helliwell

16/309.74

8

Dan Greenwood

16/312.18

9

Jesse Saunders

16/313.42

10

Lloyd Storey

16/314.54

Round three saw Tony Truman step up the pace and put in another new fastest time to tighten his grip on TQ with Simon Moss coming in a strong second, 4 seconds down on Truman. These two were the only ones on 17 lap pace and round four told a similar story with Moss this time taking the win ahead of Truman - but Tony Trumans time from round three wasn't to be challenged and Tony was consequently on pole for the final.

Scott Dickinson was racing his new creation for the first time at Petit - Scott machined his own Durango-like alloy chassis for his Associated B4 and moulded a new ultra-low body to give the car the narrowest and lowest look possible.

Scott is the brother of Team Xtreme / Predator owner, Lewis Dickinson - and has possibly the only 'Durango' 4WD buggy in private ownership in the World, which he was running in the 4WD class.

Interview with petit-rc owner, Nicholas Petit.

Richard Lowe - 2009 Petit TRUCK Champion

Congratulations on the recent 10th anniversary of Petit, and for the well run event here in England, have you been pleased with the success of this weekend?
Hello and thank you for your congratulations. Of course I'm so pleased and proud of the success of my PETIT RC RACE in UK for his first time. It was for me a big challenge and also to test the notoriety of my race and my website. I know now :-D And also I was proud to celebrate the 10th anniversary of PETIT RC where are the best drivers of Europe.

What has gone very well, and what hasn't?
Was very well the race and his organisation! All was perfect for me... Due to my busy work to think a lot of thinks during the weekend, I forgot some details that some of drivers (came last year) has assisted. Never mind, next edition :-)

What inspired you to set up the petit-rc website 10 years ago, and did you think it would be as popular as it has proved to be?
HUGE website, AMAZING.... 10 years ago! When PETIT RC has been online for the first time (16th of December 1998), I didn't think it will be well-known in Europe and around the World!

What were your main objectives when you first set up the website?
My main objectives were to promote results of my brother, Geoffrey Petit. He was twice Euro A finalist ; 4 times French champion (both classes in the row)... and as I was his manager in the past, I sent some fax to his sponsors. When internet is arrived in France, I created the personal page called PETIT RC. I just added their results from France and European races where we went. And then, I beginned to add some others results and news from his sponsors also and did adverts on each races around Europe and USA (Reedy Race of champions)

Where do you see yourself being in 10 years time? What is the future of Petit-rc?
Good questions.... I don't know! The future of PETIT RC is to be continue to develop it as well.

Where would you like to see the next Petit-rc race held, and when do you anticipate this will be?
I already to confirm you that the next edition (the 4th) of my PETIT RC RACE will be in UK! This scoop is now confirmed just 1 day after the event. It will be held at Maritime Raceway for the second year in the row. I've others propositions (UK, Italy, Spain, France) but Maritime Racing did a HUGE work and help me to do this event as you enjoyed it! I could not refuse an another venue in your country and at Maritime with all efforts and all congratulations you did for me and the club.

What was your favourite part of the weekend at Petit 2009?
A lot of favorites parts for me... The first was when Maritime ask me to come in the pits... I didn't know why at this moment... And then when Ian Knight began to speak about PETIT RC and his 10 years, that was a big surprise... This big cake....I was so touch...so impressive by this beautiful cake... I was honored by these gifts and I would like to thank Cliff and others members of Maritime for that. Second was at the Trophies ceremony on Saturday night when each driver told me they enjoyed so much my race... At this moment I was so pleased...so happy....so glad! I was at this moment so much relax! Third was on Sunday where people were glad of this weekend and so glad when I announced at the briefing that I will agree to do my next edition at Maritime... And then I really enjoyed the UFO race. I knew that I said to drivers "no limit" that was so so funny with them....and they did that!

What are your plans so far for the next Petit race?
Some surprises one more time!

how many people were involved in the planning and running of the race this weekend?
24 members from Maritime club in total (involved & running). And some of my French drivers help me in the weekend when I did the Live coverage. When the club told to me their agreement to organize in their venue, only 2 1/2 months stayed for me... I worked day and night the first week (only between 2 and 4 hours by night) to do the new website of the race, to promote around the World, to contact sponsors... For all of that, I would like to thank in first, my wife and my child... Each year they know my hard work to prepare alone this big international race and my wife did a lot of effort to let me work in our desk. She takes charge of everything in our house during this time... and not easy each day with young child.

What is your favourite pie?
That was the beautiful Anniversary cake!

What was your favourite food served at the maritime raceway venue?
I enjoyed the UK breakfast and the burger with French fries. (sorry, chips! :-)

who do you think raced really well at the petit 2009 event?
Yes of course. I knew to organizing my race in your country that the level was higher. The best drivers of Europe are in England...

The UFO race held at the end of the event seemed popular with the spectators, whose idea was this and did it go according to plan?
The UFO (Ultimate Final Option or... Unidentified flying object!!!) race exists since the 1st edition. That was my idea in 2006. I wanted to do a different race to close the weekend and have an happy end. Each year is different but all the time so funny and that was the first time that I decided to tell to driver "NO RULE - NO LIMIT" As I know the character of these drivers, I was sure that was funny and spectacular and that was perfect as I wanted: so funnyyyyyyyyyyy!

Which was your favourite petit rc trophy girl?
Ha...ha...ha..... both of course!

Thank you for your time, and for organising an awesome event here in England for us all to enjoy!
Thank you also to you for coming and meet us since a long time. I would like to thank you Cliff Rice (Chairman & Part Time kitchen staff), Ian Knight, (my race director) and also all members of the club. Thank you also to all drivers and my French friends. Thank you for coming from around UK, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and Greece. Thank you very much and hope to see you again even more numerous for the next edition! You could say one more time: "J'Y ETAIS / I WAS THERE!"

Tony Truman sits on pole for the Petit 2009

A Final Leg One
Tony Truman lead them off with Simon Moss and Richard Lowe close behind - Tony made an error coming over the corner tabletop half way round the first lap however and Moss was quick to seize the opportunity to take first with Truman only losing one place and chasing hard.

Truman looked on the inside a couple of corners later but Moss closed the foor and Lowe was past Truman for second as the Hot Bodies driver spun. Coming round after the corner table - Lowe came in a little too hard and got tied up with Moss, allowing Truman to capitalise and take back the lead as Moss and Lowe managed to get underway before losing any more positions.

For the next few laps, Truman lead them round, with Moss slowly closing ground and Lowe hanging on to third. Just as it looked like there might be a fight for first Truman took the corner table too close and clipped the inside - losing the position but a quick job or marshalling by Nathan Ralls saw him back underway right behind Moss. Despite his best efforts and some incredible racing, Truman just couldn't pass and the pair finished less than half a second apart.

Truman - Moss - Lowe

Truman looks on the inside

.....But it doesn't work out and Truman loses another place in the mayhem.

Moss tries to blend in with the background on his way to winning the first leg.

Pos

Name

Results

1

Simon Moss

17/317.84

2

Tony Truman

17/ 318.13

3

Richard Lowe

16/301.00

4

Lee Martin

16/303.31

5

Ellis Stafford

16/305.31

6

Tom Cockerill

16/310.43

7

Dan Greenwood

16/316.62

8

Chris Bowater

15/303.87

9

Elliott Boots

9/176.23

10

Cyril Baldini

7/143.79

A Final Leg Two
Tony Truman didn't make the same mistake this time - leading them away with Moss, Lowe and Martin in that order. Truman quickly pulled a gap as Moss made an error and dropped to 4th, though Lee Martin promptly made an error of his own and Moss took back a position. Maybe Truman was cruising too much - but it seemed that Richard Lowe caught quickly before crashing out and losing ground - and that was the story for the rest of the race, Truman didn't lookto be pushing hard but seemed to still pull away as a result of the chaos behind him to take an easy win.

Truman leads them off

Elliott Boots, a respectable 4th

Truman in full on concentration mode

Pos

Name

Results

1

Tony Truman

17/314.65

2

Lee Martin

16/299.84

3

Richard Lowe

16/301.11

4

Elliott Boots

16/303.02

5

Simon Moss

16/307.00

6

Dan Greenwood

16/309.72

7

Cyril Baldini

16/314.18

8

Ellis Stafford

15/318.37

9

Chris Bowater

10/207.72

10

Tom Cockerill

4/87.73

Schumacher
I was going to run the Tamiya Durga but a lack of preparation saw the poor thing fall apart after 1 lap of practice so Mark Musgrove from Team Schumacher stepped in to offer his spare CAT SX for the day, ready to go. I couldn't refuse that since I've wanted to try the SX for a while.

The car had was ready to go with fixed 4WD, but with a locked centre one-way installed - before I even drove the car I 'enabled' the one way by removing the locking pin and the car felt good if a little twitchy down the straight. A small setup change made things better but it was a move to a front one-way that I'd been kindly lent that made the car suit my driving style. The car felt great and with the addition of the front one way it suited my driving style well - many thanks to the guys at Schumacher for the loan.

Leon Morell watches in amazement as Robin Schumacher eats an apple - easily amused.

Phil Booth works his magic on one of the team cars.

Another of several homebrew cars at the Petit was this development of the AERO One that TRiSHBITS owner, Tristram Neal, had designed. This car features many changes from the original car it was based on, the main difference being the heavy alloy main chassis that Trish machined. The weight of the car ready to run is an incredible 1900g - but a move to LiPo should see the weight drop significantly and lower the overall centre of gravity. The rear gearbox is also moved forward to give the driveshafts a normal angle.

The car uses Losi shocks with Trishbits collars. The AERO slipper has been upgraded with Hot Bodies D4 internals whilst the rear differential is also D4. Outdoors the car has done well but sadly Trish had some problems on the day at Petit.

A Final Leg Three
Truman landed hard off the big tabletop on lap one - losing momentum and nearly the lead. Moss was up to second but on the following hairpin after the corner tabletop Elliott Boots dove for a gap that wasn't there, T-boning Moss and allowing Lowe and Lee Martin through for 2nd and 3rd respectively

Truman came across the line to complete lap one and promptly rolleded his way back to third as Lowe took up the lead with Lee Martin close behind. Lee was driving like a warrior and pushed Lowe hard for the next lap - eventually barging his way through for first. Lowe got messy in the centre section allowing Truman through - who promptly hit the dots and cartwheeled across the track and back to 5th. Lowe back up to second with Stafford, Boots and Truman behind - Stafford slammed into Lowe sending him back down the order.

Lee Martin wasn't to be caught for the remainder of the race - Tony Truman gradually fought his way back to second but couldn't close the gap. With a 1st and 2nd each between Tony and Lee, it was Tony with the faster winning time that took the overall 4WD title.

Truman comes over the corner table - lap 1

Lee Martin passes Lowe in the air

Lee went on to win leg three

Truman and Lee Martin - 2 and 4WD champs

Pos

Name

Results

1

Lee Martin

17 316.79

2

Tony Truman

17 318.05

3

Elliott Boots

16 301.32

4

Richard Lowe

16 302.89

5

Simon Moss

16 307.57

6

Ellis Stafford

16 308.86

7

Chris Bowater

16 310.00

8

Dan Greenwood

16 314.65

9

Tom Cockerill

16 317.77

10

Cyril Baldini

DNS

Pos

Name

Car

1

Tony Truman

Hot Bodies D4 WE

2

Lee Martin

AE B44

3

Simon Moss

CAT SX

4

Richard Lowe

JConcepts BJ4 WE

5

Elliott Boots

AE B44

6

Ellis Stafford

XFactory X5sq

7

Dan Greenwood

XFactory X5sq

8

Chris Bowater

?

9

Tom Cockerill

XFactory X5sq

10

Cyril Baldini

?

Manolis, the racer/designer from Greece that we featured in the 2008 European Championships report was here at the Petit race - again building his cars night and day and consequently missing the majority of the racing. Indeed, Manolis didn't even get his 4WD car on the track - eventually doing a few laps of the pit area after racing had finished. Both 2WD and 4WD cars were new and bore no resemblance to the previous cars we'd featured.

The 2WD was what you'd describe as 'unconventional' - but hey, this is Manolis right! With an aluminium semi-tub chassis constructed from flat plate and machined side pods - this mid-motor car features a saddle pack layout with half the cells suspended in a cradle at the rear, and the other half in front of the rear gearbox. The 'truck' version was based on the same design.

The 4WD car used Kyosho zx5 suspension and drivetrain components and was unusual as you'd expect, the chassis being one of the narrowest we're ever likely to see - with the motor centred and the centre drive train suspended above. A short heavy duty roller chain transmits power from the centre shaft down to the front gearbox input. Certainly a very interesting design and a real shame it wasn't quite ready in time to race.
Manolis expressed interest in working with a driver in the UK who could race and help develop his designs - if you're brave enough get in touch with us and we'll pass the message on.

The motor sits under the drivetrain

	Truck and 2WD buggy has cell 'pod' hanging out back

num num, we like cake.

Adam Lewis represents JQ Products in the only way he knows

The 'UFO' race was held after the finals and featured the top three in each class (2WD, Truck and 4WD) racing their respective winning cars over a full ten minute final - for fun. This quickly turned into something more akin to a destruction derby as cars were battered into each other and various track markings at increasingly dangerous speeds. The ones to watch (at this point, there really was no longer much 'racing' going on) were Tony Truman, Ellis Stafford and Elliot Boots, who were all going nuts down the back straight in order to attempt to fly as high and long as possible. Not the sort of thing you'd want to be marshalling but impressive to watch none the less.

Thanks to the organisers, Ian Knight, Maritime Raceway and the rest for putting on a great event - if you're looking for a good race experience then make sure you get your name down for

4WD Photos