Spitfire: Et hårdt liv

Jeg købte min Spitfire i 2002, primært med henblik på at bruge den til historisk race. Jeg kørte mit første løb i den i 2003, og har kørt race i den siden - langt fra lige meget hvert år, men noget er det dog blevet til. Men jeg var jo ikke dens eneste ejer, og faktisk blev bilet i 1990 bygget til historisk rally i England, og så vidt jeg har kunnet finde ud af var den ganske aktiv dengang også. Jeg købte bilen af en engelsk advokat, der forsikrede, at den i hans ejerskab skam kun havde kørt asfaltrallies - men advokater skal man som bekendt ikke altid tro på. Han påstod også at bilen var udstyret med en close-ratio-gearkasse, hvilket heller ikke var rigtigt.

I hvert fald er årene ikke gået sporløst hen over bilen: Det har egentligt aldrig generet mig, for hvis den var helt perfekt, så ville jeg bare blive så meget mere ked af det, hvis den en dag skulle blive bulet. Nu er den så blevet bulet, og jeg har kigget nærmere på skaderne, især dem under karosseriet. For det første kan jeg se en masse skader, der stammer fra før min tid - det ser vitterligt ud som om chassiset har været en hel del i nærkontakt med selve England. Jeg vidste også godt, at bilen ikke var helt lige før, for antallet af shims (afstandsstykker) ved hjulophængene var ikke ens i højre og venstre side. Men skævhederne er blevet v ærre, uden at jeg dog kan se helt nøjagtigt, hvad problemet egentligt er: Men bilen står i hvert fald ikke helt lige på det jævne underlag ude i garagen.

Spitfiren ligner for tiden en groggy bokser, sýnes jeg - og det er der for så vidt ikke noget at sige til. Min egen ømhed i halsmusklerne har fortaget sig, men min kære bil gror ikke sammen af sig selv.

Noget af det skyldes den defekte tandstang, men også bagtil er der også noget galt. Umiddelbart ser det ud til, at det bare er højre støddæmper, der er ødelagt, og så er det ikke så slemt. Værre er det, hvis det er hjulsophængsdele eller aksler, der er slået skæve. Jeg er nok desværre nødt til at skille det ad for at afgøre det nøjagtigt - jeg har et ekstra sæt hjulophæng liggende, som dog ikke er klargjort til montering.

Noget andet er, at garagefællen Cavis mente, at det eneste rigtige ville være at skifte det hele under alle omstædigheder. Det ligger jo fast, at det har fået et ordentligt skrald, og skævhed eller ej, så gør det næppe noget godt for brudstyrken fremover. Den tygger jeg lidt på endnu. Forhjulsophæng har jeg slet ikke liggende, men en telefonopringning her til aften sikrede mig et komplet sæt arme, som så bare skal forsynes med mine egne nav, lejer, bøsninger mm. Så der er såmænd arbejde nok at tage fat på: Jeg har nemlig tænkt mig at få bilen klar, så jeg kan køre den ud til en buleopretning et sted - og jeg er jo også nødt til at finde ud af, om der er andet galt, eks. med teknikken. Det tror jeg nu næppe, for det er anderledes solidt kram: Det holdt eksempelvis til, at jeg skilte det ad og samlede det igen.

English blog downsized

In 2006 I proclaimed that the English version of my blog would be revived, and that the content would be more or less the same as on my Danish version.

I absolutely love writing about my cars (and anything car related, in fact), but in order to do so must also have at least a vague connection to the real world of classic cars. A fair way to keep this connection alive and well is of course to drive the cars, get around the people in the scene and occasionally even doing some maintenance work. So now as my stable is 3.5 cars (besides the Spitfire there is a 2.5PI Mk1, a GT6 Mk2 and a halfpart ownership in a Scimitar SE5a) quite a lot of time has to be dedicated to the garage instead of the computer.

Well, I actually still spend a lot of time in front of the computer, and have been quite active with my writing - witness the almost 200 posts to my Danish blog since March 2007. My intention in 2006 was to get the English blog up to that frequency as well, but I've finally realized that this is just not possible - at least not if I should also be able to actually work on my cars.

Therefore the English blog will return to its initial coverage of my Spitfire and its doings. This means that the coverage will mostly consist of race reports, but as before there will also be some technical background and quite probably a lot of maintenance related posts. I hope this will be of more use than my good intentions solely.

One of the reason for spending a lot of time in the garage is visible behind this cylinder head: My new and hopefully much more powerful engine for later this season is still just a box full of parts

Race Report: Frijsenborg Hillclimb

The first arrangement of the season was almost in my back yard, and I owed my participation: Last year I was ready to race as well, but the head gasket blew the evening before race day. I wasn't nervous about repeating this, even though I had only driven the Spitfire about one kilometer since the overhaul of the cylinderhead (finished and torqued down the day before the race) - I had regained confidence in the car. Or maybe just found my usual optimism? Anyway, on the 30 kilometer trip to the race venue at Frijsenborg the car behaved fine - neither better nor worse than last year.

Presumably this would also mean that the speed would be comparable to last year - and would that be enough? Well, the participant's list suggested that a class win would be within possibilities - I was the only contestant in my class!

My closest sompetitor from last year, Sten Laursen in Fiat Abarth, had been moved to the class for newer cars up to 1971. I was not too happy about that, as I had been looking forward to competing with him all winter - on more than one occasion our best times last year were separated by tenths of seconds. But his car had been modified with newer features, which didn't appear u ntil 1967, so he did rightfully belong in that class. But the risk of being alone in class was not comforting, and I thought of alternatives - and would you believe it, the Spitfire is also homologated in 1966. Therefore I'd be able to run in the 1971-class as well, and meet the Fiat Abarth once again. The battle would be much harder fought here, as there were several Abarth listed as well as a very quick Sunbeam Imp - and I guess more will follow during the season. So I made a quick decision and decided to change class, into tougher company.

And then hard work awaited! As usual we had two training runs in the morning and three timed runs in the afternoon - and the fastest two were counting. The first results from the morning clearly showed that my new competitors were quick - my best time of 1:06,5 was third-fastest, as the Abarth and the Imp had posted 1:02,9 and 1:06 respectively. So the Spitfire and I were in for a hard match. The route was very exciting - good combinations of slow and fest corners, and a very slow chikane. As I could see were to improve my time I was pretty keen after lunch, when the timed runs would start.

In the first run I came away pretty good with exactly the right amount of wheelspin - but braked too early for both the first and second curve. The exit was good though, and this was important in especially the second curve, as this was followed by a long winding stretch of full power - at least in my car. I exited in second gear, and wound the engine over 7000 rpm in order to be sure to land in the powerband after the shift to third. Unfortunately the engine then misfired again - the problem that plagued me last year was apparantly still there, although not too serious this time: I immediately changed up as I felt the misfiring, and while they last year continued in the new gear this wasn't the case here, so I felt that they didn't cost me too much of a time loss. Then to the chicane, where I again braked too early, but exited quite well - as I also did in the last lefthander before crossing the line. I was pretty sure that time was much faster than the practice runs, and it was: 1:03,6 was great - and the Fiat Abarth did 1:06,2?!? That meant that I was leading my new class, so I was feeling pretty snug. My exitement lasted until I heard that the slow Abarth-time was due to a five second penalty for touching the chicane. Hmmm - that meant his actual time was around 1:01, so I would have to really get going in order to beat him. Enginewise the odds were bad, as I decided to stay under 6700 rpm next time to avoid the misfiring. Any time gains would have to be found elsewhere, then. I tried that in my second run, but was too agressive in the start and excessive wheelspin meant a slower getaway. Braking for the first corner was again too early, and too violent for the second - I locked a wheel. Exit was very good though, and speed along the winding section of full power was better - enough to get the rear end slip over a very small righthander crest: Always invigorating getting sideways with 130 km/h on small forest roads. Unfortunately I lost the potential improvement after the chicane, as I put a wheel in the rough (as golfers would say), so couldn't accelerate properly until back on the firmament. The time was again 1:03,6, but as I used fewer rpm and made a mistake after the chicane the was indeed room for improvement. This would be very necessary too, as Sten in the Abarth didn't make mistakes this time, and posted a very real 1:01,1. Almost enough to catch up on aggregate time - while I was still leading the class, he was only a tenth of a second behind.

So the third run would settle it - the two fastest runs would determine the result of the day. I would have to make the perfect run to come out on top, and I tried to: This time the start was fine, but I didn't exit the important second corner as fast as in my second run, and also did a slow change to third on this stretch. I could tell the speed was lower, as the car was more stable over the crest. In the chicane I was very aware of not touching the cones, as that would ruin all my chances, but the exit was very good, and I was very fast though the last lefthander - I'd been a bit cautious here, as there was a Jaguar between the trees after an off. In fact I crossed the line much faster than before, but it wasn't enough. 1:03,7 was even my slowest time of the day. And the Abarth? Well, actually Sten made a mistake in the chicane again - in fact in order not to touch a cone, and his visit in the rough cost him, so his time of 1:04,7 was slower than mine. But on aggregate his 2:05,8 was better than my 2:07,2, so although it was close, there were no cigar for me this time. Behind me was a Sunbeam Imp with an aggregate time of 2:08,9, which indicated, that I couldn't have afforded mistakes either. But surprise, surprise: Top of class was another Fiat Abarth, as Francesco Averso had driven both reliable and fast times, and had an aggregate time of 2:05,4. p> So it's closely fought in my new class, and that is a good thing: I felt much more motivated under the competitive pressure, and am really looking forward to the rest of the season. I'll put in some hours in the garage before next race, as I must have solved the misfiring problem. With those gone and new tyres I'd say the Abarths are within reach. But there is one small thing - Sten told me, that he is preparing a new Abarth, which should be much faster that his present weapon. Now that would raise the stakes. But then again: Even though I don't have a new car up my sleeve, I do have a new engine coming - how will that arms race end? Watch this space.

Race report 2007: Ganloese Hillclimb

During the fall of 2006 I had booked the Spitfire for a track day at Ring Djursland. Besides engine work I had changed dampers all round and put in more negative camber at the front, and the idea with the day was basically to test the car and see if it with withstand the trackwork. Well, to cut a long story short, it wouldn't - and I got really, really tired of it all.

In fact I didn't touch the car until March, and of course this was a rude awakening. Electric problems persisted, but the engine trouble turned out to be loose cylinder head nuts. With some of the problems fixed I had entered the car for the first hillclimb of the season - and then the head gasket blew the day before. Well, well. As I changed the gasket I also inspected the cam followers, only to find many of them seriously damaged. Nothing new there either, then. For some reason I still wanted to race (!), and entered the Spitfire for the second hillclimb, Ganloese in June. Ganloese is in Sealand, some 300 kilometers from Aarhus, and naturally the electric fan stopped working before getting there...but at least the radiator was newly uprated, and had enough cooling capacity, and we were only going to race one minute, and then wait an hour before the next run.

Then at the tech inspection: The car would suddenly only indicate left! They let me pass, but it could have ended there...

A relaxed moment in the lineup, where I let the engine cool off by pushing the car forwards

The route at Ganloese is not ideal for the Spitfire, as there are in reality only 2 corners - the rest is acceleration, at least in my car. The timetable told the same story, and I was further of the pace of cars I'd raced against before than I used to be on the twistier runs. I tried to get below 53 seconds, but missed that with some hundreds of a second.And basically there was no need to push, as I was the only car in my class. All in all I found the time respectable, and was quite happy with the result.

Ready for the start, when the red lamps are turned off

I've often found the Spitfire happiest, when it was being driven hard, and saw that happen here again: On the road trip over the was some hesitation and spitting from the engine, but now it ran very well up till 7000 rpm. I tried 7500 once, but that caused some missing and loss of power, so stayed at the 7000 for my other runs. That might indicate a problem as well, as 7500 has been possible before.

Nicely balanced though the lefthander before the hill - other runs saw plenty of oversteer here

At the end of the day I managed first in class (I finished!) and a total time of 25th out of 38 finishers. OK on 1150 not-quite-OK cubic centimeters. But on the way home the electrics went mad again, and blew the fuse to the fuel pump. A few days later I got my mechanics' honest opinion: The wiring loom is a rat nest! Many years of bodging (on behalt of the former English owners) had taken their toll, and the best solution would be a new loom. And I have ordered one from Rimmer Bros and hope this solves the electric problems.

Race report 2006: Silkeborg Hillclimb

Finally the Spitfire was in battle again, and this time with a decent result. Saturday 26th August saw Gjern as the venue for the 4th race in the hillclimb championship. just wednesday the Spitfire emerged from a quite thorough technical upgrade, and the hillclimb was primarily meant as a test to see if everything would work. And I changed wheels Thursday and afterwards drove the car home, I found out that engagement of overdrive burned out the fuse - the same fuse that would power the fuel pump. Normally I don't use the overdrive during racing, but it was nonetheless not ideal.

Perfect collection area at the Jysk Automobilmuseum - the turn out of cars was large and varied, as it has been all year in the hillclimb championship

Towards Gjern that early morning the car went fine, but in the first timed training the engine had a problem: Halfways in the 1700 meter course the engine started missing again, just as at Padborg Park. First time was a 1.12, and I cursed myself that I had not looked the electrics over more thoroughly. But worse would come, as the engine simply died on me on the return route to the starting point. And there I was, in the middle of the silent forest! Luckily a fellow club Triumph-member stopped his TR5 to give me a ride back, as well as advice towards the possible reasons. Back at the car I scratched my head - and deciced to try the old Bosch coil instead of the nearly new Lucas Sport. And hey presto! The engine started as if nothing was ever wrong. Quite strange, but although it didn't show when driving on the street the Lucas coil apparantly couldn't deliver enough power for continous revving to 7000 rpm. Now I was quite suspicious of the stability of the car, but made a belated run for the second training session, and although cautious posted a 1:08. Hm, mayby I really show go for it?

We might be talking of Lucas versus Bosch-coils...

As I was lined up for start I decided that I was here for a real test, and that if the Spitfire couldn't stand this, it wouldn't stand a circuit race either - so I went for it. I had a poor start, as the engine still couldn't hold the wheelspin. I now used all 7000 rpm again, but I couldn't remember the route properly, so took the cautious approach - but was happy with the 1:03,1. The engine ran well, and I only detected a slight amount of pinking and retarded the ignition slightly at the next stop.

I don't think I've ever lost contact with the tarmac in the Spitfire before - but just that happened at a hilltop after the first corner

In the second run I used more revs in the start, but still couldn't hold it spinning. I slowed too much for the jump, but was faster towards the chikane, and more importantly faster out of it. The timing showed 1:01,7, and I felt that there was more to come. Third run was the best, as a brutal clutch treatment held the start, and I was so much quicker out of the woods, that I went for fourth gear towards the chikane. I braked too late, but still passed it OK, and then used 7500 in second gear going uphill in order to cover the wider gap beween second and third. The time was 0:59,9, which really pleased me.

So: Although the car was fast enough there are still electrical gremlins - so back to the garage!

Race report 2006: DM 3 and 4

A very early Saturday morning June 17 I drove towards Padborg Park - the car was loaded with spares, tires and a hint of optimism: Friday evenig I collected the car from the rolling road of Kurt Mejer, and the latest session showed 90 horsepower. Still not as expected, but much better than Ring Djursland. I hoped the weekend would give decent results, even though there suddenly were 3 Porsches in our division A2. It started badly, as the engine lost water - small dripping turned out to be from a core plug. My technical advisor from the Danish Triumph Automobil Klub looked closely, and we chose to carry on - with an eye on the temperature gauge. Furthermore a front brake caliper was sweating a little, and I had to keep an eye on this as well, while setting a decent qualifying time. Although I thought the session went well the times were disappointing: My best was actually half a second slower than my previous best in 2004. But I was held up by a slower car on lap 3, and felt confident for Sunday. And I did shave another second off - but most others did as well, so mygrid position was about the same. I realized that I once again was no threat for the Midget - more than 2 second separated us. Before the Sunday race 1 my tech crew adjusted the rear brakes, as they tended to lock up under braking at the end of the straight.

Unfortunately I blew the start, again because of too low revs, and I came away very badly.

On the other hand I handled the traffic quite well, and soon was behind a Lotus Cortina - which was of course ver much faster than the Spitfire on the straights. But in the curves the Spitfire was much faster, and since I did not brake for the chicane I was able to pull alongside him twice out towards the looooong lefthander. After two halthearted attempts I breathed deeply and went for the inside though here - and nice and easy drifted the Spitfire past the Cortina, which used all the tarmac and a bit more. That was a nice feeling, and as I entered the straight with good speed, the Cortina couldn't even fight back. It didn't last though, as the engine started missing 2 laps later. It kept running, but unsure of the reason for the rough engine I stopped pushing it, and lost places the rest of the race.

Then my tech team went under the bonnet: The Webers were dripping badly, and their manifuld nuts were tightened. Ignition was checked and the coil changed, valve play was too loose. The 12 liter tank was filled, and suddenly Race 2 was on: The engine actually went better, and I was hoping the best.

This time I hold the engine at 5000 revs for the start, but the same happened - it only spun the wheels shorthly and then overdosed on petrol and had no power - the rest of the grid flew past, and I tried to take up the fight. But heading for the chikane the engine missed again, and coming out of the chikane it almost died. I realized that would not work for the whole race, and pitted. Even though the tech crew checked away nothing definitive came up, and the laps were ticking away. I stayed in the pits until the race was flagged off, but I drove half a lap around afterwards, and there the engine responded as usual - very strange, and my first ever DNF (Did Not Finish).

As if that wasn't enough the technical inspector found my ride height too low - and on the way home the differential screamed like nothing I've ever heard before. At least the weather was nice and sunny for open motoring. Strangely the Spitfire went perfectly well on the 200 kilometer drive back home.

On the other hand my newly rebuilt close ratio gearbox was perfect for Padborg Park, the weight 697 kilos was not as far from the minimum of 675 as I had feared - and when the engine wasn't missing, it went sort of allright. Under the circumstances my lap times were OK, but must of course improve dramatically to threaten the Midget.

Race report 2006: DM 1 and 2 photos

The Austin and the Spitfire had the closest race during the weekend, which was of course something of an consolation.

Race report 2006: DM heat 1 og 2

Saturday may 27th I packed the Spitfire and headed for Ring Djursland. The car went fine, but after the hassle I wasn't my usual optimistic self. First qualifying was an eye opener, as the time of 1:13,7 was 2 seconds slower than my previous best - and 6,5 seconds slower tha the rival MG Midget. it was a catastrophe, and quite clearly something was not right with the car. The engine sounded OK, but didn't pull as it should, and less than 4000 rpmnothing happened. It revved to 7000, but still not much happened. I was devestated - that time was far, far too slow. Qualifying too was only marginally better with 1:13,2.

Later saturday we raced Heat 1, and I started dead last. The conditions were with me, as it drizzled and the track was wet and trecherous. Unfortunately I flogged the start, as the engine didn't have enough revs, and almost died. I the first corner I managed to get by a Frogeye and an Alfa Giulia, but this didn't last. And on lap 5 the engine suddenly missed on a cylinder, and I pitted, jumped out of the car, pulled the bonnet up and found one plug lead loose. I rejoined several laps down, and only drove to finish. During the race my best lap was 1:16,9, 3,5 seconds after the quick Midget. Rain is good!

Race 2 was Sunday, and I went for maximum attack. At the start I used more revs, and came away OK - but last, close to an Austin A40. Lap 2 I came close and passed, and built up a lead over the next 4 laps. I drove quite determined, and used all the car had - which wasn't much. The exit out of curves was essential, as my ability to accelerate down the straight was near nil. As I was lapped by an Elan, I had to drive off the line which killed my speed, and suddenly the Austin was there, overtaking me on the straight. I took the Spitfire by the neck, and the next 5 laps a the Spitfire and the Austin were separated by tenths of seconds. I had several attempts, but couldn't pass. Very good fight, and at the flag we were separated by half a second. That duel saved my weekend.

And unless many other I left the track with an undamaged car: The wet weekend took its toll. On the drive home it was quite clear, that the engine lacked power, and it didn't work at street-revs at all. With only 14 days to the next race I was desparate - I had to get closer to the Midget.

English blog revived

I actually haven't posted news to the English version of my blog since may 2006. But lately I have really written quite frequently on the Danish version, and I have once again mustered the courage to try to maintain the blog in English. So here we go - to resume I have decided to translate the race reports, and from there on post largely the same news to the English and Danish blogs. So, what can you expect? Well, since 2006 I have a wider scope on topics posted - although the blog is still called "News from TriumphRacing", and TriumphRacing is still racing a Triumph Spitfire, the content will also feature my other cars (a Triumph 2.5PI and a GT6) and not least other topics related to the motoring world. Watch this space.

Tech update: Nightshifts and panic for last preparations

Last update boldly declared the bonnet back on the car - and it was, but the lights and locks weren't, and that required some late Thursday night work to get right. As I am really not into electrics I fumbled with this for far to long, but got it working in the end - it is really easy to check the lights at 2.30 am, at it is very dark at that time. Almost as frustrating was my discovery of why the bonnet stood high at the back - it didn't clear the radiator, so that had to be lowered in its mounting. Of course, that meant the oil cooler had to move downwards as well, which in turn meant that the oil cooler lines had to be altered - boy did I need a good nights sleep afterwards. I had to get up early on Friday though, as the car was entered for final tuneup on the rolling road at Kurt Mejer, where we would finally see the results of the engine work. But no: A routine check (paranoia is my middle name) showed metallic deposits on top of the cylinder head. And I had only driven 45 kilometers with this completely rebuilt (that was Wednesday night...) rocker gear on a new shaft. Hmm - this was far too like the symptoms after last years catastrophic engine failure to be any good. There wasn't anything to be seen on the rockers or the valve stem, though, but metal particles in the oil is never any good. Although Kurt Mejer thought that the engine sounded healthy enough, we decided to drop the rolling road session, and he only did minor adjustments on the Webers - using his sensitive ears. It went much better afterwards, but back in the garage I decided to make a final adjustment on the rocker gear by spacing the pedestals up - using aluminium plate, appropiately drilled for oil delivery. That way I made sure to enter the race Saturday completely sleep deprived. And extremely nervous for the reliability of my car. I dreamt of shiny metal flakes in hot oil...

Tech update: Steel bonnet back

I received the bonnet back from the painter Sunday, and with the help of Jesper Møller, Analysis and Data Acquisition Manager in the TriumphRacing team, got it bolted on Tuesday. This bonnet was on the car back in 1990, but at some time before I bought the car replaced by the GRP-bonnet that I have used until now. That bonnet was not legal to use under our racing regulations and had to go. The weight disadvantage is quite large, and most of last weeks weight loss is now lost. But with 3 days to go before our first race my car is legal - an important point.

Tech update: New gearbox

I prepared everything for extracting the gearbox Saturday, and got the helping hand of my Transportation and Inventory Manager Jørgen Klithom, when it finally came to lifting it out Sunday morning. The parts for renovating the gearbox and change the ratios to close-ratio specification were all lying ready, supplied by Rimmer Bros and Canley Classics respectively. This was done by a local expert, and I had the gearbox back in the garage by Sunday evening. Monday evening the new gearbox assembly was installed in the car again - with much sweat and tears by myself and sponsor Claus Hagstrøm. I am now pretty sure that pulling out engine and gearbox in one operation and mating them outside the car would be the easier option, should gearbox work became necessary again. But we did it, and everything seems fine. After connecting the hydraulics up again I should be able to test the gearbox Tuesday evening.

Tech update: Lost 15 kilos more

The safety tank is in place, and the old steel tank is out. The weight difference is around 10 kilos, and the price for this advantage is a significantly reduced fuel capacity - the new tank contains 12 liters. On the track this is more than enough, as the Danish races are so short that the Spitfire only uses around 4 liters in a heat. On the road the small capacity is going to be a nuisance, as for example a trip from Århus to Padborg Park means refuelling will be necessary. The last 5 kilos in this weekends weight loss programme are from the ditching of the tank of the Lifeline fire extinguisher system. My halon-based system is not legal anymore, and therefore I removed the tank. According to Lifeline it is not possible to substitute the tank with a newer model containing a legal extinguisher substance. I hope to find a solution to this, and so far I have kept the plumbing to the engine department.

Tech update: Lost 10 kilo

The old battery was removed, and a new Varley racing battery installed. This is considerably smaller, both in size and capacity. The car still starts fine though, so goal achieved: Weight loss without drawbacks - except economically, of course.

Tech update: Keep cool

The renovated radiator is now installed and the temperature is back to normal. I choose once again to use a thermostat in the cooling system - instead of the constant opening used by many other racers. This is with the engine wear in mind, as wear is much less with a thermostat, since the engine warms up far quicker. And engine wear - well, I had enough of that last year.

Hot and bothered at Padborg Park

This weekend’s training didn’t go quite as planned, but as one of the other competitors said: Better to discover the problems now than at raceweekends. What did I discover? Well, after 175 monotonous kilometres from Aarhus to the track at Padborg Park I’d say that the car was ready for a few quick laps at the track, but after just half a lap I could smell cooling liquid, and returned to the paddock immediately. The radiator was boiling – even though the Spitfire has never ever had temperature problems. Of course it has only been used to cool less than 80 horsepower! It seemed the radiator wasn’t evenly warm over its entire surface, and presumably it was the radiator that was the reason for the problem. Another task added to the list before the first race. The end result was that I didn’t get the training I was there for, and couldn’t try the things I have been planning all winter. If I can get the technical issues solved quickly I may be going for another trackday before the start of the season the last weekend in May. The weekend also shows that my now almost 1000 kilometers of street driving couldn’t identify this problem, so even a road registrered racecar needs real track tests. On the positive side of this weekend counts that the skimming of the cylinder head has stopped the oil weeping, and that the engine itself felt good, and clearly pulls a lot harder than before. Now it just needs to do that a full season.

Kop&Kande sponsor for 2006

TriumphRacing has entered an agreement for 2006 with the Kop&Kande-stores in Randers Storcenter and Aarhus City. Both stores are run by Claus Hagstrøm, who is a great car enthusiast with a preference for British cars and - by pure coincidence! - especially Triumph. He plans to participate in the Danish hillclimb championship in his rally-prepared Triumph Herald 1962, and enjoy the summer in his newly acquired original Triumph TR6. As sponsorship with TriumphRacing means the right to do spannerwork on the car at the races (other sponsors queue here!), and because of this and our new sponsor's general enthusiast support for the Spitfire I feel that the team is significantly stonger with Claus on board. I am looking forward to our cooperation.

Training at KTI

Saturday there was a training session at KTI in Roskilde. I'll wait with my first training until Padborg Park in a week, but I carefully observed the competitor list at KTI. Spotted a surprise, at it seems that division A2 will see a new competitor: Alfred Mindegaard apparantly drove a Mini Cooper in A2. On one hand that is a car I've always feared should join A2, because it could be a very fast car in the division. On the other hand more cars is always positive, and I find it refreshing that someone would prepare a Mini with the smaller engine - all others on the grid are 1275's. As there was no official timekeeping at the training it is not possible to make objective comparisons of lap times. I am very interested in seeing those Matra Bonnet Djet-times. The day was a great succes with around 50 competitors, old as new, which seems a good thing for the season. Unfortunately some competitors had rather severe problems with their newly prepared engines. This makes me somewhat anxious with regard to my own engine - I still have a trauma from 2005.

Tech update: Cylinderhead

Removed the cylinderhead yesterday evening, delivered it to Carl Christensen this morning, and collected it again this afternoon: New valve guides, new valves and seat, cleaned up ports and skimmed the head itself. Great service! Unfortunately I am off for Copenhagen tomorrow, but will refit the head this weekend, and hope the oil weep has stopped. Booked for rolling road next week - interesting. The bad news: The guy rebuilding the gearbox has only started today, and discovered some parts missing. The hunt is on!

Lap time comparisons

You might have noticed that most of the mentioned competitors listed here are listed with lap times faster than me. This would seem to make it impossible to reach my ambitious goal for the season. However I have only listed the lap times in order to lull my competitors into the belief that they have nothing to fear! The trick is that my lap time is from the season 2004, where my car ran an engine with less than 80 horsepower. This season my engine will be much stronger (how strong is still a well kept secret, but keep an eye on this space), it will be coupled to an improved gearbox, the rear axle will be better geared - and there are even more tricks up my sleeve. In fact, I can't wait to see the effect on the lap times: I am sure that they will be very significantly improved. But don't tell anyone yet!

Competitor portrait: Citroen 11

Again a French car, but quite another genre: This classic Citroen 11 was in production even before World War Two, but the yellow model of Frits Trøst Hansen is newer, and therefore runs in the same class as the Spitfire. Best lap time at Ring Djursland i 1:14,0 - 3 seconds slower than the Spitfire. It would be fair to say that the Citoen looks rather older than it actually is: The design is pre-war, but being a Citroen it was quite ahead of its time, which is most visible in the drive layout. Unlike most contemporary cars it is front wheel drive. The standard car had very fine handling, and these were tranferred intact to the racer version. But the car is very heavy in relation to its power, and must even make do with only 3 gears. Acceleration isn't the best feature, but the handling was demonstrated for me in e very wet race at Jyllandsringen, where we lapped within tenths of each other, and had a fine duel. Unfortunately we probably will not see that much of the car this season, as Frits has build a Ford Escort 1300 for the 1971-klassen.

Competitor portrait: Matra Bonnet Djet

This rarity is a real joker in the 2006 championship: Erik Jensby bought this Matra from Sweden, and we have yet to see what lap times it can run. Its specifications are a frightening read, though: The engine is the famous Gordini, which in this 1100-form is said to deliver 127 bhp. In a car as this Matra, weighing just over 600 kilos, that means terrific power-to-weight ratio. But that is not all: The Matra has an advanced chassis, where - as the first road car in the world - the engine was placed centrally behind the driver, pure race-car practice. And there is even more to come: Brakes are discs all round, and the suspension is all independent. Top all this technology off with a body that is as beautiful as it is aerodynamic, and what do you have? A fantastic race car is my guess! I mean, just look at it - even standing still it looks terrifyingly fast. It would seem almost impossible to beat this French wonder with a traditional English sports car such as a Spitfire. However, the car is in its first season, and reliability could be an issue.

Competitor portrait: Alfa Romeo Giulietta

These classic italians are in my humble opinion some of the best looking cars in the class, and the grid has seen 3 of this model the last couple of years. Per Wistoft (pictured) is so fond of the model that he has owned 2, and Lennart Henjer also visited the grid. Best lap time at Ring Djursland is 1:10,3 - 1 second faster than the Spitfire. Since the two drivers live in Belgium and Sweden respectively they are in reality guest drivers, presumably again this season. As such they play no role concerning the championship, but have very much done so on the track, where I have enjoyed good battles with both of them. Like the Porsche 356 the oldest Alfas can run a large 1,6 liter engine - well, large compared to the 1,1 of the Spitfire! The white Giulietta is a newer 1,3 liter engine, which is in a high state of tune. As the Alfas are much heavier they are not as much faster as you would think. And while Alfas are generally renowned for their fine handling it is actually my experience that the Spitfire corners faster - even though that car is more known for terrible handling. So much for prejudice.

Competitor portrait: Porsche 356

No less than 3 Porsche 356 have seen battle in my division during the last 2 seasons, and this mini-portrait cover them all: Niels Nordendorff (pictured), Carsten Risgaard Nielsen and Torkild Stamp. They have great speed in common: Best lap at Ring Djursland was Carsten with a 1:06,7 - 4,5 seconds faster than the Spitfire. They have another thing in common as well: They have only done a few races per season, and therefore not collected enough points to make an impact on the championship stand. They could have, though, as they usually are more reliable than the even faster Ginetta. Nothing seems to change this season, as international races and drives in other classes are also on the calendar this year. Since the Porsches are older than 1961 they can run a bigger engine than the newer 1961-1965 cars are allowed. The 356's use a 1,6 liter engine, but weigh only around 800 kilo, and as there is also tremendous knowhow from many years of racing the model the result is a fast and reliable car. And please note - these cars use a rear swing axle, like the Spitfire. I just thought I would mention that, as some people think that racing and swing axles do not mix. They must have forgotten the 356...

Competitor portrait: MG Midget

Next portrait is of Palle Krag Rühe, who debuted in his Midget in 2005. His best laptime on Ring Djursland is 1:08,7 - 2,5 seconds faster than the Spitfire. The MG Midget is very like the Spitfire in layout and concept - both are small, sporty, british, rear wheel drive carbriolets, with small 4-cylinder engines. In period they were rivals both in the marketplace and on the racetrack, and I am really looking forward to revive this rivalry, which I believe will show some very close racing. My Spitfire might have the edge powerwise, but the Midget is lighter, and legend says it handles better as well. I've seen Palle race in hillclimbs, and know that when he is behind the wheel he gives everything he's got. Last year we became direct competitors, when he bought this Midget for track racing. The car is a former Swedish champion for several years, and turned out to be much faster than the Spitfire - not least because I only drove a few laps of training before having to stop. In spite of this Palle has made several improvements over the winter - follow his progress on his Danish Only-homepage hére (I do!). Status now is that the Midget delivers almost 100 horsepower and weighs under 700 kilos. And that Palle generally seems to attack the task very seriously, and even got himself a servicevan and a trailer. Is it possible to compete with this, when driving to the races by public road in your race car? I hope so - he didn't believe me when I told him that service vehicles and trailers aren't allowed for cars under 1300 cc!

Competitor portrait: Ginetta G4

In the series of short portraits of competitors I start with the fastest: Palle B. Pedersen in Ginetta G4. For comparison his lap time at Ring Djursland is 1:02,5 - 8 seconds faster than my Spitfire. The Ginetta is from 1964, and one of the few cars on the grid with an engine smaller than the Spitfire - its 1-litre screamer is from a Ford Anglia. Why is the car that much faster than mine, then? Simply because everything is optimised for racing. The Ginetta has a stiff frame of small diameter tubes, ideal weight distribution, good aerodynamics and not least it is an ultralight car. There is absolutely no flab on the Ginetta that weighs in at a fraction over 450 kilos - almost 300 kilos less than my Spitfire. And it might have a smaller engine, but it is in a higher tune, and develops around 100 horsepower. These key figures mean that the G4 is the king in the division - NOTHING can touch it on lap times. How did I beat it in the 2004 championship, then? Solely on reliability, as I finished all races, the Ginetta only half of them. Better reliability is the only way to beat it, also in 2006. Its driver is an experienced racer, who doesn't make mistakes. In all fairness the Ginetta should win, and should that happen, it really would be no shame. A G4 is a formidable tool on a racetrack, and just having it on the grid pleases me.

Tough 2006-season ahead

Even when racing for fun you can have ambitions. Not least because of my terrible 2005-season I want to do my best in 2006 - and preferably repeat my super-result from 2004, where I won the division and came 3rd overall in the Danish championship. But since 2004 the grid has grown and cars have generally become faster - also in my division. It will therefore be a very difficult task - but also an exciting challenge, which I will attack as seriously as an amateur can. To illustrate the task I will write a series of short portraits of the sompetitors in the division of me and the Spitfire: A2 in the 65-class. As the name almost says, all cars in the 65-class are from 1965 or older, but there are 5 sub-groups within the class, called divisions. In each division competitors collect championship points within the division, and the winner of the championship can in principle come from every division - also from A2. As you will see from the coming portraits there are at least a couple of title candidates: To be continued...

Exhibited at car show

Since I finally had the car back on the street, I was searching for driving opportunities. The first longer trip had the Spitfire heading for Fredericia, where the car was to be exhibited at the stand of the Dansk Triumph Automobil Klub. Here it was placed in a quite motorsports themed display, with a TR5 and a Herald that both are to compete in the Danish Hillclimb Championship in 2006. There was also a Dolomite 1850 (quite rare in Denmark) and another Spitfire - these two cars between them presumably covers a lot more mileage than the three racers on aggregate. The drive down there was on a cold Saturday morning, and I kept the top up - and the earplugs in. This year I plan to put a lot of miles on the engine before the season starts. I want to run the engine in properly, before taking it to the rolling road for final tuning in. As I parked the car in the garage Sunday evening I had covered 200 kilometers, and the engine was running perfectly. Come to think about it: Those 200 kilometers are more than I covered all 2005.

Police escort

My halfyear-insurance finally allowed driving again, and for the first time since August 2005 I took to the roads. The car should have had its mandatory road worthyness test in 2005, but broke on the race track before I had a chance to drive it to the test. So, as I was mobile again, the test was first priority. I booked the test to March 30th, and in the morning I drove the 7 kilometers to the test station - my first road drive in half a year. I'd say it was highly unlikely to happen, but just as I pulled up in front of the test station, a police patrolcar parked directly behind me, and before I knew what had happened, a young officer asked to se my drivers license - which I had forgotten. The already knew that my test was long overdue, and I must admit that this wasn't my proudest moment. They could have taken my registration and number plates on the spot and fined me for the forgotten license. Instead the followed me into the reception - to check if my also unlikely story of having a booking for testing in 5 minutes was really true. When they had that story confirmed, they let me go with a warning. The test station personnel found that whole show very amusing, but the officers did not laugh. Actually I thought that was a bad start to a test, but the Spitfire sailed through. YES! I am rolling again.

Rimmer Bros sponsors 2006

Rimmer Bros today confirmed that they will support TriumphRacing again in 2006. When it comes to the parts supply for the car it is comforting to cooperate with one of the world's largest suppliers of Triumph parts. Rimmer Bros have sponsored my Triumph Spitfire since my first full season in historic motorracing in 2004, and I am looking forward to continuing our cooperation.

Engine running again

Finally the car is alive again: The engine has been started, and it sounds fine - in fact as though it's never had any problems. There were, though, and a serious one. After the change to the new camshaft the valve geometry was completely wrong, which put enormous strain on the valvetrain. The photo below show 3 old valves, and one new - the height difference is caused by wear, which is extreme. The problem should be corrected now, and the engine should hold together. Several other smaller problems were identified during the rebuild, and the engine should now be more powerful than before - I hope to break the magic 100 horsepower barrier. A rolling road session in the spring will show.

News have moved to blog

Welcome to the news from my website www.triumphracing.net. It's been awhile since news have been posted on my main site, partly because it was rather time consuming to update pages there. As from now all news will be posted here first, while the main site will host background information and downloads. This structure should see more news, more often, and not least much quicker. Watch this space.