Mixed Weekend on Anglesey

We had a weekend of mixed fortunes as the Legends Cars Championship travelled to Anglesey Circuit in Wales for rounds seven and eight.

Although the venue has existed for several years it has only come to prominence in the last 12 months thanks to substantial redevelopment work which has brought the track up to international racing standards. It's now one of the finest and most challenging circuits in the UK.

"Anglesey is a superb circuit," says team leader Simon Belcher. "It was designed by a racing driver for racing drivers. Often you go to a new circuit and it can be antiseptic but Anglesey has it all. Fast straights, gradient changes, difficult cambers and corners and even a slightly banked hairpin. I hate to use the cliché but it really is a drivers' circuit."

Simon's weekend did not get off to a great start as the KÄRCHER number 11 car got tangled up with another car in the first race which left him some way down the order. Despite this set back he recovered to finish 16th. "I was not pleased with that race at all. Getting a bad result in the first race compromises what you do in the next race - Legends is all about consistency although if you get a good result in the first race you can to some extent have more of a charge in the later ones. If you start off with a bad finish then logic says that some caution should be used to score better points in the next race without taking too many risks."

There was no evidence of Simon taking things easy in the other races as he scorched around the 1.2 mile Coastal Circuit to claim fifth place. The final race on Saturday would be a different matter as the top scorers from the opening two races have to start at the back of the field. Simon was well up in the points order despite there being an entry of thirty cars. He was soon on the case and worked through the field from near the back to finish in an excellent seventh place at the chequered flag. "Motorsport is all ifs and buts? I'd have probably been in the top three on the day had it not been for that first race."

Stephen Treherne in the number 12 KÄRCHER car finished 4th overall on the day with 8th in the first race and a brace of 4ths in the other two races. This consolidated his third place in the championship table.

Sunday's races switched to the 2.1 mile Grand Prix circuit. "Anglesey is the only place in the UK that offers the use of two different circuits over the course of an event. The GP circuit has two very long straights in addition to the rest of the shorter circuit which we raced on the day before."

Again a field of 30 drivers assembled with Simon taking two sixth places and a fourth. The aggregate result placed him 5th on the day. Stephen's excellent run came to an abrupt halt when fellow competitor Darren Gaulton spun in front of him. "I had nowhere to go," said Stephen at the end of the meeting. "I can't blame Darren as you can lose it anywhere when you are racing in a car with little grip at near on 100mph. He spun and I hit him. It's as simple as that." The team had to rebuild the entire front left hand side suspension if the car in just under an hour and they just made it to the grid in time. Hopes were high for a good finish but Stephen's engine seized at the end of the opening lap.

There was no doubt that two non finishes would hit Stephen's championship ranking and he has indeed dropped one place to third although he still leads the 'Team Car' standings. Simon's day however proved that consistency counts and he moved up from seventh to sixth in the championship.