ANOTHER DOUBLE FOR REIGNING CHAMP FENNYMORE
Ben Corley | July 16, 2007
Graham Fennymore gave a masterclass in race winning at Brands Hatch yesterday (Sunday), proving to all his Avon Tyres Caterham Superlight Challenge rivals that it will take an extraordinary effort to stop him retaining his championship crown.
The 42-year-old Oxfordshire driver led the way for all but a few hundred yards for the Ambitions Racing/Hyperion Motorsport team. The only driver to put a nose ahead of Fennymore all weekend was new championship leader Glen Denny.
Race 1
Fennymore’s Taylor Made Joinery and Sherlock Interiors-backed car made the best of its pole position start slot to establish the lead into Paddock Hill Bend, ahead of Nick Payne’s sister Hyperion car and the Fauldsport-prepared Superlight of Rachel Green. By lap’s end Fennymore was 0.9s to the good, and that was as close as anyone would get until the slowing down lap.
There was plenty of action behind, however, as Denny’s Colards Motorsport machine displaced Green from third and sparked a battle which would be maintained to the chequered flag. Will Mitcham and Peter Ratcliff meanwhile staged a spirited battle over fifth, swapping the position several times a lap.
A spin at Paddock Hill Bend by Steve Ross resulted in his car coming to rest in an awkward position in the gravel trap, stopping the race five laps early. It mattered not to Fennymore nor those pursuing him in vain: Graham was nearly five seconds clear. Said second-placed Payne: “I’m very pleased with my performance and the car is absolutely on song now. Unfortunately Graham managed to open a gap on me at the start and after that there was no way to catch him.”
Green regained third place five laps from the end with Denny staying ahead of the battling Mitcham and Ratcliff to collect fourth. Will won the fifth position argument despite some intense pressure from his wily rival. Craig Welsher took seventh ahead of Pat Gormley, Richard Reed and Chris Bialan.
Race 2
Although Denny managed to make the better start to lead into Paddock Hill Bend, it was not long before Fennymore hit the replay button and re-established himself in front. This time stretched his legs even further as he romped to his fourth consecutive UK Superlight victory. At one stage he was 13 seconds to the good, although he backed off on the final tour. “It was a bit lonely out there at times,” said Graham. “I eased off at around half distance but then I made a mistake or two and decided to pick up the pace again to keep my concentration. I’ve collected some useful points this weekend and I’m back in the championship hunt again.”
The battle for second place was the main feature of the race, disputed by Green, Payne and two drivers making impressive maiden Brands Hatch appearances, Denny and Reid. Rachel liberated second from Denny on lap two but later had it taken from her by Payne; she had to fight back past the Londoner six laps from the end to secure the position.
Payne successfully repulsed Denny to take third, with Silverstone Scholarship winner Welsher bouncing back to form to take fifth ahead of Mitcham and Reed, who could not maintain his strong early race pace. Andrew Beaumont placed eighth ahead of Gormley and Ratcliff, who had had to fight back from dead last after a first-lap tangle with Bialan’s car.
Fennymore, who missed the opening rounds of the championship at Oulton Park, is now up to third in the standings, only five points behind Denny, who has assumed the championship lead early in his maiden car racing season.
Backers for Caterham Motorsport’s UK and European race series include Bilstein, Brian James Trailers, Cheesman Products, Circuit Driver, Cooper-Avon Tyres, Demon Tweeks, evo, HSBC Insurance Brokers, Mitchell Cotts, Motorsport News, Stack and Steel Fabrications.
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ED’S ROADSPORT SV 140 BUILD PAGES
Ben Corley | July 15, 2007
Ed Renshaw builds a 1.8-litre Rover K-Series powered Caterham Seven Roadsport in these build pages. Read and be inspired!
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SOURCE: ED’S CATERHAM BUILD DIARY
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JALOPNIK REPORTS ON SEVENS (PART 1)
Ben Corley | July 14, 2007
Jalopnik reports here on his Seven experience. Good to see that Jalopnik has become a Seven fan.
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SOURCE: JALOPNIK
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JOACHIM WESTERMANN’S CATERHAM HILLCLIMB
Ben Corley | July 9, 2007
Looks like lotsa fun!
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SOURCE: YOUTUBE
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SIMULATED RACING PHOTO
Ben Corley | July 9, 2007
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SOURCE: ALEX KODA
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CATERHAM DE DION SUSPENSION
Ben Corley | July 7, 2007
The easiest way to describe a De Dion suspension is to say that it is a suspension system in which the rear, driven wheels are bolted to a transverse rigid beam. Power is delivered to the wheels by CV jointed half-shafts attached to a differential mounted on the chassis.
Image courtesy of The Car Bibles
BENEFITS
One obvious benefit is that since the wheels are rigidly linked by the transverse rigid beam, they remain perpendicular to the road surface regardless of chassis roll while cornering, resulting in relative stability. In comparison, in most independent suspension setups, camber angle may change while cornering or during up and down movement of wheels in unison. It is also lighter compared to a live axle since there is less unsprung weight.
CATERHAM’S DEVELOPMENT STORY
As Caterham continued with Seven production, it became apparent at about 1983 that live axles would become increasingly difficult to source as Front Wheel Drive cars become the norm. In late 1983 Caterham employee at the time Clive Roberts (an ex Triumph employee and post-Caterham a Lotus employee) noticed that the new Ford Sierra had an interesting rear differential which had loads of possibilities. He promptly asked Ford for one.
Caterham’s management team consisting of Graham Nearn, David Wakefield, Clive Roberts, Jez Coates, Reg Price, Mick Lincoln and Peter Cooper met to discuss the De Dion proposal.
It was realised that the De Dion system would allow:
- Live axle style wheel location without the complexity of a fully independent system
- Fewer structural changes to the chassis
- Lower component costs (about UKP100 compared to fully independent suspension, in 1983)
- Simpler development
- Better durability
- Precedent in the case of the Lotus Eleven
Clive Roberts and Reg Price (a teacher who, at the time, worked part time at Caterham), set about developing the suspension. They took just weeks to finalise the concept and within a month had built the new De Dion system into a development chassis. The CV joints, differential, hubs and brakes were borrowed from the Ford Sierra while the De Dion tube, locating links, hub carriers (or ‘ears’) and driveshafts were developed by Caterham. The De Dion tube itself was a straight tube, with ears at either end
By April 1984 the prototype De Dion Seven was running after numerous tweaks and adjustments had been made. Clive Roberts and Reg Price had racked up over 16,000 kilometres during the development period. An added advantage was that for the first time in the history of the Seven, tubes were added along the transmission tunnel, contributing to stiffness.
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SOURCES:
1) Caterham Sevens: From Conception to CSR, Chris Rees
2) Lotus and Caterham Seven: Racers for the Road, John Tipler
3) The Car Bibles
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V11 MOTOR DEVELOPMENTS CUSTOM CAM COVER
Ben Corley | July 1, 2007
The V11UFO cam cover from V11 Motor Developments is a custom machined piece from HE30 Duraluminium and is a nice finishing touch to a Special K-Series engine build. There are practical benefits too. The stock cam cover weighs about 3kg, but the V11 Motor Developments unit is only 1.3kg!
Two versions are available - for wet or dry sump K-Series engines.
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SOURCE: V11 MOTOR DEVELOPMENTS
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CATERHAM CARS BUILD MANUAL ONLINE!
Ben Corley | June 30, 2007
Caterham Cars has just made its Build Manual available online for current owners or prospective customers! You can download it at Caterham’s site by clicking here
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SOURCE: CATERHAM CARS
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FORMULA WOMAN DRIVER TO SWAP MINI FOR A CATERHAM SEVEN
Ben Corley | June 29, 2007
Image property of This Is Lancashire / Joe Foley
Michelle Perry, a 31-year old fragrance maker from Hollins Lane is to swap her beloved MINI Cooper for a Caterham Seven.
She will compete with 99 other women for a place in the final 16 who will compete in the Formula Woman Championship at Silverstone and Brands Hatch. Formula Woman was founded in 2004 with the ambitious aim of changing the face of the male-dominated world of motorsport.
Complete story by Joe Foley at This is Lancashire
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“DISASTROUS” CHILD ROAD DEATH FIGURES - PM MUST ACT
Ben Corley | June 29, 2007
RoSPA RELEASE
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents say new road accident figures released today were “disastrous” news for Britain’s vulnerable road users, particularly children.
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