Gurston Down Speed Hill Climb hosts a weekend of great motorsport. Not only is it a round of the Meadens Skoda Championship and the Cavendish Ships Store Top Ten. We will also be hosting the BMTR Midland Hill Climb Championship and the TTC Group Top Ten Challenge which includes a run-off at the end of each timed runs! And Gurston’s first Formula Ford Festival!

Our first Formula Ford Festival sees 15 Formula Fords entered in the Formula Ford class! Paul O’Neill (Ex-BTCC, British GT driver and ITV4 BTCC commentator) competes in his first competitive hill climb after coming to the May Hill Climb School! He’ll be sharing Mark Alley’s Swift FB91.

PaulO

Around 140 cars and drivers will compete in road-cars, specially prepared hill climb cars, spectacular sport and racing cars. They will all face the challenge of the legendary 12 feet wide fast and twisty course at Wiltshire’s famous Speed Hill Climb Venue, Gurston Down.

With unrivalled access to the hill, paddock, cars, drivers and facilities available to our spectators, the weekend promises to be a spectacle of speed and sound. Gurston Down has excellent catering and refreshments on site too!

You really can’t get closer to the action!

Full Class Previews:

The Road Going Series Production car classes are split into two for this event. The drivers licence grade determining the class.

The Road Going Series Production Car Class up to 2000cc (B Licence) has the current class record holder Adam Greenen in that super swift Honda Civic Type R. Tim Forster (Lotus Elan), Daniel Clazey (Ford Puma), Kevin Thomas (Clio 172 Cup) and the Ford Fiesta of Alex England will have to fight hard for second.

May 2016

May 2016

The Road Going Series Production Car Class up to 2000cc (A Licence) sees Paul Webster (Mazda MX5) as the likely winner. Although Ken Williams (Lotus Elise) might well make Paul’s work for the win.

Webbo

The Road Going Series Production Car Class over 2000cc (B Licence) should be interesting, Clive and Jennie Stangle’s and their Audi TT are favourites but with Andrew Thorp and his Porsche Cayman it might not be plain sailing.

The Road Going Series Production Car Class over 2000cc (A Licence) has just two entrants. Stephen Moore, the 2015 Gurston Down Champion, (Mitsubishi Evo 6) and another Evo 6 driven by Paul Harris. Based on current form, Stephen should grab the win.

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The Road Going Specialist Production Car Class (B Licence) has five entrants. Jerry Neary’s Westfield Sei, Adrian Biggs’ Tiger Sports and Mark Parrett’s Autotune Gemini could be the winner here. This one really will be one decided on the day.

The Road Going Specialist Production Car Class (A Licence) has two Gurston regulars, Andrew Forsyth and Adrian Lewis in their Westfield’s up against Raymond Lohr and Joy Hoyle in their Caterham’s won’t be afraid to fight for the win and the points that go with that!

Andrew Forsyth

The Modified Series Production Car up to 1400cc Class has a good entry. James White, the current class record holder, and Neil Turner Mini’s have three other Minis, a G15 Ginetta (Andrew Russell) and an Opel Tigra (Ian Sargent) to play for the win. Form would suggest James…

AndyRussel

The Modified Series Mini Class has just one entrant, Richard Wood and his Yamaha Mini. Will Richard be looking to improve his personal best? Of course he will, just like every other driver!

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The Modified Series Production Car over 2000cc Class has three fabulous entries. The favourite is Mike Turpin in his Vauxhall VX220, which is quick. The TR7 V8 of Nigel Elliott and Peter Turnball’s 911 GT3 will be chasing all the way to the line.

The Modified Specialist Production Car Class has a huge entry, twelve drivers all in very different cars. Mike Rudge, Antony Orchard and Richie Gatt should be the front runners. But no-one can predict this class, it’s so competitive and always close.

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The Historically Interesting Car Class has three beautifully presented cars, Fyrth Cross and the Dempster Ensign LNF3, Geoff Hunt’s Lotus 22 and Hugh Kemp’s Palliser WDF3. Fyrth has the form but in June it didn’t go all his way.

Cross

Derek Harris has the Hillclimb Super Sports Car Class to himself. So Derek will be chasing his personal best and the class record.

The Sports Libre Cars up to 2000cc Class has the BMW engined Citroen 2CV of Alexander De Vries up against a mountain of competition! Peter Sexton with the Force LM and Tim Pitfield (DJ Firecat) should be the top two in this class.

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The Sports Libre Cars over 2000cc Class pits Nic Mann and his Mannic Beattie against Chris Cannell and Sue Hayes’s Force SR8, Keith Diggle’s WEV HCS, Geoff Tremlow’s Saker GT and Paul Punnett’s 6R4 Replica. The Manic Beattie is the likely victor here.

NicMann

The Racing Car up to 600cc Class sees three drivers. These small and light 600cc cars are always great to watch. Will David Cuff, Les Buck or David Tatham take the honours?

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The Racing Car 601cc to 1100cc Class has twenty drivers! Simon Fidoe is having a pretty good season and is “in form”. But there’s no way you can discount any of the other drivers. Last time, the top nine in this class were separated by just 1.5s!

No90

The Formula Ford Car Class (up to 1600cc) has fifteen drivers entered. Roger Moran, the British Hill Climb Champion in 1997, shares a Swift FB91 with Sam Lester, Shaun Macklin, who’s best time in 2006 is 0.9s under the current class record and Paul O’Neill (ex BTCC) sharing Mark Alley’s similar Swift FB91 won’t have an easy time with both Simon McBeath and Tony Wiltshire running their Swifts. Who will win? Your guess is as good as ours!

FF fun at Gurston Down

FF fun at Gurston Down

The Racing Car 1101cc to 1600cc Class has nine entrants. The favourite has to be Ed Hollier who by all accounts is having a fantastic season! He’s currently seventh in the British Hill Climb Championship! We mustn’t discount anyone else but they will have an uphill battle to win this class!

Copyright: Akina Media

Copyright: Akina Media

The Racing Car 1601cc to 2000cc Normally Aspirated Class has another great entry. Tim Elmer (Dallara F303), Tim Davies (Pilbeam MP88) and Terry Davies (OMS CF09 TKD) are all front runners here. This class will be decided by each driver’s performance on the day.

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The Racing Car 1601cc to 2000cc Forced Induction Class sees Peter and Simon Marsh’s DJ Firehawk pitted against Simon Moyse’s Gould GR59 and Kelvin Broad’s Pilbeam MP101. Hill knowledge might take this class but the MP101 and the GR59 both have class winner drivers

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The Racing Car Over 2000cc Class has just two entries. Jason Mourant and Alistair Crawford both running Gould GR55 although with different power should another great entry. Jason should be back after an off at Loton Park last month and Alistair hasn’t competed much this season so it will be good to see them both back!

Jason

The Sports and Racing Car up to 1971 Class has three drivers in two stunning cars entered. The Chevron B19 of Amanda and Richard George, and Brabham BT29X of Richard Jones are both gorgeous. No idea who will win.

The Sports and Racing Car up to 1985 Class brings more stunning cars out! The sound of Roger Dean’s 5000cc Lola T142 will get your attention every time it runs. If sound decided the win, then the Lola would have it. But, based on previous form, the win will probably be Stuart Ridge in his Pilbeam.

The MX5 Road Going Series Production Car Class has another good entry. Mark Crookall, who won the Tony Marsh Memorial Trophy in June, has his arch rival Dean Cubitt back from holiday! Nick Revels might be a threat, if he remembers to run his List 1B tyres this weekend.

MC

The Modified Limited Production Marque Sports Car Class up to 2000cc sees Dee Stapley and her MGF up against Graham Beale’s Ginetta G20. Dee will probably be wishing the 64 feet time dictated the result but it doesn’t.

GrahamBeale

The Modified Limited Production Marque Sports Car Class over 2000cc sees Simon Purcell, the leader in the Gurston Down Championship and class record holder go up against the TVR Griffith of Steve Holley and the Datsun 240z of Steph Colvin and Hannah Stapley. Simon should take this class.

SimonPurcell

The Downton Engineering Social Club (DEWS) Class sees some great Minis and a few other cars entered. It’s probably going to be between Steve Harris’s Corsa and the Maguire Mini of Derek Kessell.

It’ll be another exciting weekend of Motorsport at Gurston Down Speed Hill Climb!

Anthony Record – Press Officer Gurston Down Speed Hill Climb – BARC SW

Key info
Location: 1 mile west of Broad Chalke, 9 miles SW of Salisbury, Wiltshire. Turn off the A354 at Coombe Bissett on the unclassified road to Broad Chalke, follow AA signs.
Dates: Saturday July 23rd (practice) and Sunday July 24th (race)
Times: Saturday Practice from 0830 until 1500 approx. Sunday 0830 Final Practice then timed runs from approx 1030, followed by first timed runs, then lunch and final timed runs from 13:00.
Admission: £10 for adults Sunday (£6 on Saturday), accompanied under 15s free, free paddock entry, free parking.