Race 1
Race 2
Race 3
Race 4
Race 5
Race 6
Race 7
Final points
Round 1 - Sorell Creek
1st - Scott Wyman
2nd - Phil Kalbfell & Mal O'May
*Not sure what happened with the photo Phil, I promise i did actually have our cars side by side when I first arranged them !
1st - Scott Wyman
2nd - Phil Kalbfell & Mal O'May
*Not sure what happened with the photo Phil, I promise i did actually have our cars side by side when I first arranged them !
Race Report - Round 1
After an aborted start to the Cartrix Series at the BatCave last week, things finally got underway this week at Sorell Creek. With a smaller than normal field it was back to running the full 3 minute heats as well, much to the chagrin of some. In face there were some unkind suggestions to the effect that heat times for this series could be reduced to 1 minute even if only 6 people showed up for racing……They were routinely ignore & the drives all prepared to lock into the massive extra 30 seconds worth of concentration required.
In the racing, there were some occasional moments of unsettling handing seemingly focussed on one specific area of the track approaching the top hairpin, with no obvious visual signs of a reason for this. However, this will be investigated somewhat more thoroughly over the next couple of weeks hopefully before the next round is held here.
One car & driver who didn’t have this handling issue in this location, or in any location on track in fact, was the BRM of Scott, his total of 95 laps leading the way this round to take out the win by the length of the long back straight from another 2 drivers sharing that 95 lap total.
In the end it was a tie for 2nd on the top corner between Phil & the writer when all was done & dusted.
In another very close 3, way battle for 4th, it was DB, JB & RF (Rhys Filbee!) who all racked up 81 laps on the night with DB taking 4th on track from JB in 5th & Rhys the unlucky driver in 6th.
1 lap back on 90 & all alone in 7th was Callan Thomas displaying exactly how much he enjoys driving this class, which is almost as much as 8th placegetter Rob Golley who was seen to be smiling, dancing & enjoying himself immensely throughout all of his 89 laps of the track this week.
Another Cartrix fanatic, Bruce Thomas was next in line in 9th with his 85 laps, and rounding out the top 10 was a welcome return from Sean Schofield with 80 lap total.
Both Dave Gray (11th) & Dave Schofield (12th) had major car trouble this week 7 will be looking forward to round 2 to redeem themselves somewhat.
Dave Grays next week.
After an aborted start to the Cartrix Series at the BatCave last week, things finally got underway this week at Sorell Creek. With a smaller than normal field it was back to running the full 3 minute heats as well, much to the chagrin of some. In face there were some unkind suggestions to the effect that heat times for this series could be reduced to 1 minute even if only 6 people showed up for racing……They were routinely ignore & the drives all prepared to lock into the massive extra 30 seconds worth of concentration required.
In the racing, there were some occasional moments of unsettling handing seemingly focussed on one specific area of the track approaching the top hairpin, with no obvious visual signs of a reason for this. However, this will be investigated somewhat more thoroughly over the next couple of weeks hopefully before the next round is held here.
One car & driver who didn’t have this handling issue in this location, or in any location on track in fact, was the BRM of Scott, his total of 95 laps leading the way this round to take out the win by the length of the long back straight from another 2 drivers sharing that 95 lap total.
In the end it was a tie for 2nd on the top corner between Phil & the writer when all was done & dusted.
In another very close 3, way battle for 4th, it was DB, JB & RF (Rhys Filbee!) who all racked up 81 laps on the night with DB taking 4th on track from JB in 5th & Rhys the unlucky driver in 6th.
1 lap back on 90 & all alone in 7th was Callan Thomas displaying exactly how much he enjoys driving this class, which is almost as much as 8th placegetter Rob Golley who was seen to be smiling, dancing & enjoying himself immensely throughout all of his 89 laps of the track this week.
Another Cartrix fanatic, Bruce Thomas was next in line in 9th with his 85 laps, and rounding out the top 10 was a welcome return from Sean Schofield with 80 lap total.
Both Dave Gray (11th) & Dave Schofield (12th) had major car trouble this week 7 will be looking forward to round 2 to redeem themselves somewhat.
Dave Grays next week.
Race 2 - Mornington Park
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Rob Golley
3rd - Adrian Gray
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Rob Golley
3rd - Adrian Gray
Race 3 - Stratton Valley - 31/3/26
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - John Batich
3rd - Scott Wyman
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - John Batich
3rd - Scott Wyman
Race 4 - Sorell Creek - 7/8/26
1st - Scott Wyman
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - John Batich
1st - Scott Wyman
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - John Batich
Race Report - Round 4
A small, but very select group of drivers gathered this week for round 4 of the Cartrix GP series held on the Sorell Creek circuit. When I say “select” drivers, I mean they were the select few who actually made it up the hill to the track this week to compete!
Anyway, those who did show up were privileged to participate in this round of Cartrix that saw us push over the halfway mark of the series (cue much extended groaning from some)
As we saw on the 1950s motor racing documentary playing on the big screen this week, racing in those days consisted of:
And co-incidentally the 1:32 racing version of these Grand Prix cars seems to follow a very similar pattern….at least they seemed to this week.
However, in the 1:1 racing, these incidents were usually shared around among many of the drivers, although some did seem to suffer more than their fair share. Wheras in the 1:32 racing this week, all of the above incidents seemed to happen to just 1 car & driver combination (possibly in the same heat!).
In a very short space of time Bruce’s Vanwall suffered from at least 1 of each in the above list - as follows:
A small, but very select group of drivers gathered this week for round 4 of the Cartrix GP series held on the Sorell Creek circuit. When I say “select” drivers, I mean they were the select few who actually made it up the hill to the track this week to compete!
Anyway, those who did show up were privileged to participate in this round of Cartrix that saw us push over the halfway mark of the series (cue much extended groaning from some)
As we saw on the 1950s motor racing documentary playing on the big screen this week, racing in those days consisted of:
- Many breakdowns
- Many crashes
- Many breakages
- Many crashes due to breakages
And co-incidentally the 1:32 racing version of these Grand Prix cars seems to follow a very similar pattern….at least they seemed to this week.
However, in the 1:1 racing, these incidents were usually shared around among many of the drivers, although some did seem to suffer more than their fair share. Wheras in the 1:32 racing this week, all of the above incidents seemed to happen to just 1 car & driver combination (possibly in the same heat!).
In a very short space of time Bruce’s Vanwall suffered from at least 1 of each in the above list - as follows:
- Breakdown (well, having the motor part company with the chassis “could” be considered a breakdown)
- Breakage (Wheel parting company with chassis definitely considered a breakage)
- Very impressive barrel roll crash at the end of the straight, almost certainly due to Bruce running a car with less than the optimum number of wheels at the time….which looked eerily similar to this famous 1:1 crash of the same era…
All this led some to suggest that if Bruce’s car was to come in for re-fuelling.......................this is what it might look like….
*Note, the shareprice in Superglue companies have gone through the roof overnight due to a massive spike in usage & a drop in supply*
Aside from all of this, there was actually some racing that happened, and on this front Scott enjoyed the return to the slightly less grippy nature of the Sorell Creek Track, which seems to suit his car very nicely. His total of 97 laps ensured a good win by 2 laps over 2nd place Phil on 95 laps. 3rd place in the legal car list was JB with his 92 lap total.
Of the rest, the writer slotted into 4th on 91 laps, ahead of Rob Golley on 90 (5th) and Dave Schofield in 6th on 87 laps.
Ben had a few mechanical issues himself which saw his total of 61 laps tail off very significantly in lane 4 (Green). However due to both Callan (94 laps) & Bruce (82) running less than legal motors, Ben still managed to pick up points for 7th in the series.
Overall, with 3 rounds to go, & the dropped round coming into force, Phil holds a 1 point series lead over Scott, with JB holding onto 3rd by 1 point from the writer.
The challenging, extra grippy surface of Mornington Park to come next round however.
Aside from all of this, there was actually some racing that happened, and on this front Scott enjoyed the return to the slightly less grippy nature of the Sorell Creek Track, which seems to suit his car very nicely. His total of 97 laps ensured a good win by 2 laps over 2nd place Phil on 95 laps. 3rd place in the legal car list was JB with his 92 lap total.
Of the rest, the writer slotted into 4th on 91 laps, ahead of Rob Golley on 90 (5th) and Dave Schofield in 6th on 87 laps.
Ben had a few mechanical issues himself which saw his total of 61 laps tail off very significantly in lane 4 (Green). However due to both Callan (94 laps) & Bruce (82) running less than legal motors, Ben still managed to pick up points for 7th in the series.
Overall, with 3 rounds to go, & the dropped round coming into force, Phil holds a 1 point series lead over Scott, with JB holding onto 3rd by 1 point from the writer.
The challenging, extra grippy surface of Mornington Park to come next round however.
Race 5 - Mornington Park - 14/4/26
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Rob Golley
3rd - Scott Wyman
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Rob Golley
3rd - Scott Wyman
Race 6 - Gotham Park - 21/4/26
1st - Phil Kalbfell & John Batich
3rd - Scott Wyman
1st - Phil Kalbfell & John Batich
3rd - Scott Wyman
Race 7 - Stratton Valley - 28/4/26
1st - John Batich
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - Scott Wyman
1st - John Batich
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - Scott Wyman
Race & Series Report - Round 7
And, so we come to the final round of this most beloved of classes, the Cartrix cars of the 1950s Grand Prix era, and already there were drivers looking forward to the next time this class will be run. I think 10 years was the suggested time-frame.
Anyway, whatever personal opinion you maintain, they do represent a golden, formative era of motor racing and plans are underfoot to standardise on a new motor which looks as if it will give these cars a much needed boost in performance, and (hopefully) make them a more responsive & rewarding class to drive.
In any case, there were certainly some drivers who found them rewarding enough to drive anyway, and it was a case of the same faces at the top again in round 7.
The Stratton Valley track once again proved to be a happy hunting ground for John Batich (surprisingly) , and he continued his barnstorming finish to the series by taking out the win with a total of 61 laps. In 2nd place, Mr Consistency (Phil) grabbed another 2nd place finish (the lowest he has finished this series) with his total of 59 laps, 1 lap ahead of the 3rd placegetter, Scott rounding out a very solid series with his 58 lap total.
The rest were not far back, and it was a procession of drivers just 1 lap back each time with myself in 4th leading the also rans with 57. Rob in 5th (56) and Schoee in 6th (55) were next in line.
It was a couple of laps back to DB in 7th on 52 laps, with Dave Gray just 1 lap back in 8th on 51.
In 9th, in a borrowed car, Ben Lewis on 41.
Mention must be made of Callan Thomas whose car continued to handle beautifully each round, and if it were not for the technical rule infringement of an illegal motor, he would no doubt have finished much higher up. Realistically, his original Cartrix motor was unlikely to have offered any improvement in performance over the spec BRM motor.
Bruce Thomas also ran an original Cartrix motor, and lost any chance of accumulating points ….but his car did not handle beautifully, so his lost points were probably not going to amount to much when added up in the series.
Speaking of the series, 4 wins & 3 x 2nd places ensured Phil of a clear series win, and despite JBs storming finish in the backend, it was Scotts overall performances that saw him slot into 2nd place overall by 2 points from JB.
Well done to all placegetters…..
And, so we come to the final round of this most beloved of classes, the Cartrix cars of the 1950s Grand Prix era, and already there were drivers looking forward to the next time this class will be run. I think 10 years was the suggested time-frame.
Anyway, whatever personal opinion you maintain, they do represent a golden, formative era of motor racing and plans are underfoot to standardise on a new motor which looks as if it will give these cars a much needed boost in performance, and (hopefully) make them a more responsive & rewarding class to drive.
In any case, there were certainly some drivers who found them rewarding enough to drive anyway, and it was a case of the same faces at the top again in round 7.
The Stratton Valley track once again proved to be a happy hunting ground for John Batich (surprisingly) , and he continued his barnstorming finish to the series by taking out the win with a total of 61 laps. In 2nd place, Mr Consistency (Phil) grabbed another 2nd place finish (the lowest he has finished this series) with his total of 59 laps, 1 lap ahead of the 3rd placegetter, Scott rounding out a very solid series with his 58 lap total.
The rest were not far back, and it was a procession of drivers just 1 lap back each time with myself in 4th leading the also rans with 57. Rob in 5th (56) and Schoee in 6th (55) were next in line.
It was a couple of laps back to DB in 7th on 52 laps, with Dave Gray just 1 lap back in 8th on 51.
In 9th, in a borrowed car, Ben Lewis on 41.
Mention must be made of Callan Thomas whose car continued to handle beautifully each round, and if it were not for the technical rule infringement of an illegal motor, he would no doubt have finished much higher up. Realistically, his original Cartrix motor was unlikely to have offered any improvement in performance over the spec BRM motor.
Bruce Thomas also ran an original Cartrix motor, and lost any chance of accumulating points ….but his car did not handle beautifully, so his lost points were probably not going to amount to much when added up in the series.
Speaking of the series, 4 wins & 3 x 2nd places ensured Phil of a clear series win, and despite JBs storming finish in the backend, it was Scotts overall performances that saw him slot into 2nd place overall by 2 points from JB.
Well done to all placegetters…..
Final Series - Top 3
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Scott Wyman
3rd - John Batich
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Scott Wyman
3rd - John Batich
