Mr. Laver is obviously a true Team Thicko member.
Fitz
David Laver wrote:
> Gerald Brazil wrote:
>
> > The Thickos a bad influence? Hardly! We have more fun for less money than
> > any other group in vintage racing. Let The Gold Chain boys have their
> > catered buffets under a white tent with white wine and Brie. We'll have a
> > chunk of Wisconsin Cheddar and a beer, Eh!
> >
> > GJB
>
> You make me proud to carry the stickers. Alas I've yet to recruit any UK
> Thickos but I'm trying. Nearly got the guy in an MGA with 'Viagra Special'
> on the back but he hadn't heard of the internet.
>
> One of the many highlights of my trip to the Isle of Man was entering my 40%
> primer, 10% chips and dents car in the Concours D'Elegance. The local
> organisers thought it a hoot (the Isle of Man is a magical place). The
> people over from Ireland refused to believe I was English. The other racers
> who had entered smiled a little. The TRUE concourse entrants were more than
> a little sniffy as I backed the car in belching oily exhaust fumes over them
> and their cars. Gave them an excuse to get the duster out again.
>
> As a taste of what the Isle of Man is about - they have a 69 club for cars
> that flip on the closed-roads Williston circuit. My race day session was red
> flagged when a car flipped. The driver walked away but an ambulance was
> needed for a spectator. I later found out the spectator only got knocked
> over by another leaping clear, then I was worried to hear she was a lady in
> her 70s, then relieved to hear she had formed the spectators 69 club as she
> ended up on her head. Apparently she blamed herself for standing behind
> someone so nervous.
>
> Another crazyness of the place is the first corner. Tigers were being timed
> at 145+ past the police station still accelerating. Braking is down hill
> over some nasty bumps. The corner is tight and blind with bumps, a stone
> wall on the inside, and a PETROL STATION on the outside. I stood in the
> petrol station to watch the fast cars. An E-Type hit four feet in front of
> me, one of the Tigers routinely brushed the bails and hopped the kerbs. An
> Aston swiped a bail so hard it jumped 6 feet.
>
> I won my class for the seafront sprint. They have chicannes over wet tram
> tracks outside the big pubs to liven things up. The chicannes are like the
> speed restrictions near my house so I felt at home and the dog had his day.
> Alas was up against some pretty hot race prepared cars on super sticky tyres
> so a bit outclassed elsewhere. Got some nice photos in the post yesterday
> with inside wheels at funny angles and the outside ones tucked under the
> arches. Maybe some progressive bump stops are in order, or put the narrow
> tyres on and drift a bit more.
>
> Driving highlight was the hillclimb of about a mile and a half up a
> mountain. The top bends eventually were taken flat out - turn in point is
> when you can't see any more road, just sky. Would have needed a search and
> rescue team to find you if late or over keen with those ones...
>
> Perhaps the whole event was a Thicko Special. Parties everynight. The best
> one being the marshalls party (corner workers). Even had a drink at the end
> of the week with a policeman I met manning a road closure. The Island LOVES
> motorsport. Stamps and coins have cars and bikes on. NO early nights all
> week.
>
> The end of week race meeting was a mellow wind down after all the public road
> antics. No drivers briefing - they said it was safer for people to sleep off
> the previous night. Sign on and scruitneering the previous afternoon leaving
> the previous event. Scruitneers prep your car for you !! He had rolls of
> various coloured tape to mark the earth lead, tow hitch, etc and wrote me a
> long list of 'advise' items. My acceptance letter started with 'thankyou for
> your entry' and I left the Island with a nice little contribution to costs.
>
> Given how the police and 70 year old ladies love their motorsport you can
> guess what the garages are like. A vistor from Nevada went into a hedge so
> hard the back wheels were off the ground. A garage rebuilt the front end for
> free, competitors gave wheels and tyres, and he raced the next day. When an
> Austin A35 waterpump exploded and ripped holes in the rad and inner wing news
> of an A35 in a scrap yard to the north of the Island was back in the paddock
> before the car. The yard was shut when he got up there but the plumber next
> door knew a man in his street with one which was leant for the week. The
> price ? A set of event stickers for his son's push kart. I was lucky to
> bash my exhaust over some bumps. Lucky because they refused to let me leave
> their garage without straight pipes. Lovely noise and little pops of flame
> on overrun. Repaired in time for my drive home.
>
> Next year they'll be a Thicko village, a party to shame the marshalls, and a
> Flounder's Spoon for the concours and a Cheetin' Dog award for whoever wins
> the most events. Then again no one cared about specs and eligablity -
> cheetin's a bit of a problem in a mellow run what you brung event where
> noise, incidents, near misses, heroic rebuilds, flame pops, and parties are
> the memories.
>
> David
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