![]() On Friday 4th October, the largest OUMF team ever to journey to a race meeting set off. With two races at Castle Combe in the Riley 1.5 racer at the last HRDC races of the year, and a bodyshell to pick up from nearby, there was lots of excitement and anticipation from new and old members alike; what a weekend this was about to be! The Riley had been set up on Phillips Tyres superb laser alignment rig earlier in the day, and was ready to go. But first we had to get there… ![]() With 2 trailers needed to bring both cars back from Castle Combe, the trailers first had to be in perfect running order. A simple enough task; just a new number plate for the old ex-caravan trailer, and one running light to fix on the left side of the ‘Tony Hall’ canvas covered trailer. Easy! Er…not quite. After much fettling with the lights on the covered trailer all but one running light and the indicators worked. Yes, after 2 hours of work we’d somehow made the situation worse, which was very confusing. As more OUMF students assembled and helped, the problem was found to be a short circuit and loose connections. As others left at 17:30-18:00 as planned, 5 of us remained to solve the mystery. Finally at 19:30 the wiring was jury rigged in place, and the last part of the OUMF convoy left for Castle Combe with all trailer lights working. I followed the van all the way to ensure the lights remained on, and we arrived at the local ‘The Bell Inn’ in the nick of time to get any food - at 21:00. The pub food was much needed, and afterwards we all travelled the short drive to the track, set up our pit in the paddock, and eventually retired to bed in the mixture of trailers, van, cars and tents. After being woken up by the buzzing exhaust of a race Mini, we discovered it was dry and warm…Hooray! Being a fresher and this being my first experience of OUMF at a race event this was a good sign for race day. After breakfast and a successful Scrutineering there was prepping to be done on the Riley before qualifying. From careful engine warming to tyre pressure checks and spanner-checking every conceivable bolt on the underside of the chassis, all us 18 students helped in whatever way we could. It was a great insight to the organisation of this team, and a hint of how busy work around this car might become. Then off to the paddock we went, a few minutes before our scheduled time, with Ding climbing into the car and driving to the collection area followed by students and all necessary pit equipment. With 39 cars out on the 1.85 mile long track, qualifying for the HRDC ‘Coys Trophy’ was inevitably busy but Ding manage to find good space between the loud and sideways Mustangs and Cortinas. With lap times ranging between 1:21s and 1:39s for the whole field, it was amazing to see the closing speeds between different cars. After 25 minutes, Ding did an amazing job of putting our Riley 1st in Class on the grid and 20th overall. Once the car was back to the pits for close inspection and the tyre pressure and spanner check, it was ready and refueled for qualifying for our second race, the HRDC ‘Allstars’. With 39 cars out on the 1.85 mile long track, qualifying for the HRDC ‘Coys Trophy’ was inevitably busy but Ding manage to find good space between the loud and sideways Mustangs and Cortinas. With lap times ranging between 1:21s and 1:39s for the whole field, it was amazing to see the closing speeds between different cars. After 25 minutes, Ding did an amazing job of putting our Riley 1st in Class on the grid and 20th overall. Once the car was back to the pits for close inspection and the tyre pressure and spanner check, it was ready and refueled for qualifying for our second race, the HRDC ‘Allstars’. With 39 cars out on the 1.85 mile long track, qualifying for the HRDC ‘Coys Trophy’ was inevitably busy but Ding manage to find good space between the loud and sideways Mustangs and Cortinas. With lap times ranging between 1:21s and 1:39s for the whole field, it was amazing to see the closing speeds between different cars. After 25 minutes, Ding did an amazing job of putting our Riley 1st in Class on the grid and 20th overall. Once the car was back to the pits for close inspection and the tyre pressure and spanner check, it was ready and refueled for qualifying for our second race, the HRDC ‘Allstars’. After lining up again, the red lights went out, and the full grid of 39 cars raced away – with Ding making 4 positions and up to 16th overall on lap 1. Laps and minutes ticked by and 16th was maintained as more powerful cars overtook and others up front retired or span off the track. On the pit wall was a small team monitoring track positions on their phones and putting out the pit board for Ding each lap. Just over 15 minutes into the race the pit board was put out saying ‘IN’ for the mandatory pit stop. Next lap, leading the Class, there was a team scramble around the car to fulfill the pit stop requirements, and then the Riley was back out on track with our stop well done. Then we waited, and waited…and waited for the Riley to come round. It didn’t. A front hub had failed on the out lap! Despondent but ready for any necessary repairs, we made our way back to the paddock. ![]() The Riley had to be lifted by a recovery truck and so didn’t return back to the pits until 20 minutes before race 2. Before it had returned the replacement parts were sorted and we had all been designated our particular parts of the car to work on; for me it was tyre pressures and spanner checks on the rear. The front right hub was completely sheared upon the Riley’s return, with only the caliper holding the wheel onto the car. Up onto the axle stands and all 18 students addressed all parts of the car. On my occasional glances up, I could see a big crowd of onlookers watching us and hoping we could turn the car around for the next race. Organised mayhem is an accurate way to describe those 20 minutes! The three working on the front right corner finished replacing the hub and the car was lowered and driven to collection 5 minutes before race start. An incredible job by the team to replace the hub and do a full maintenance of the car in just 15 minutes! It was an amazing experience to be a part of what had just occurred, and it really made me feel like a useful member of OUMF’s race team. On top of this, I heard on the tannoy before the start ‘It’s great to see the OUMF student teams Riley 1.5 back out there’, which compounded my happiness and pride in what had just been achieved. Starting 3rd in class in the HRDC ‘Allstars’, Ding raced up 7 positions on the opening lap putting him 19th, but still 3 places down on the Class lead. The race then continued for a while - until the red flag was brought out with 10 minutes to go after an A40 left the track at speed and disappeared into the tall maize crop growing in the infield. All the race cars were held on track for nearly an hour while it was recovered, but the race was eventually restarted with 10 minutes to go. A stellar start gained us 4 more positions on the opening lap of the restart putting us 15th and leading the Class. Ding held off a hard charging Jaguar XK150 for the remaining laps, as well as a Swiftune Mini, which eventually spun trying to dive down the Riley’s inside with a couple laps to go. So it all ended with a great Class victory at the final event of the year! Starting 3rd in class in the HRDC ‘Allstars’, Ding raced up 7 positions on the opening lap putting him 19th, but still 3 places down on the Class lead. The race then continued for a while - until the red flag was brought out with 10 minutes to go after an A40 left the track at speed and disappeared into the tall maize crop growing in the infield. All the race cars were held on track for nearly an hour while it was recovered, but the race was eventually restarted with 10 minutes to go. A stellar start gained us 4 more positions on the opening lap of the restart putting us 15th and leading the Class. Ding held off a hard charging Jaguar XK150 for the remaining laps, as well as a Swiftune Mini, which eventually spun trying to dive down the Riley’s inside with a couple laps to go. So it all ended with a great Class victory at the final event of the year! Jack Noller Ist Year Engineer at Oxford Brookes Footnote. We only learned after the HRDC ‘Allstars’ race that the driver of the A40, Marc Swaffer, had suffered a heart attack during the race and had very sadly had passed away doing the thing he loved most, motor racing. Our thoughts and condolences go to his friends and family
1 Comment
Dave Menzies
29/12/2019 06:57:36 am
I have a 1959 Riley 1.5 over here in Vancouver Canada, rare car over here. Left hand drive, as you are probably aware they were only imported in North America in 1959, so even less in Canada. You have all inspired me to restore my car to the best of my ability. I have been fascinated by your race endeavours and would love to see a video of the races. Keep up the good work all of you and congrats on your success.
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