I returned to Snetterton on October 25th 1997 to follow the 47th running of the Birkett Six-Hour Handicap Relay Race

The race caters for cars of every vintage and is open to teams of between 4 & 6 cars.
MG's have competed for many years with varying ammounts of success. A review of previous race can be found here

This year I was invited to follow a team which was put together Lorraine Clark, who races on a regular basis in the BARC/MGOC Championship which we always feature closely on these pages.

This is how the team was made up:

• Car A..Vanessa Wooley.........Austin Healey Sprite 1275cc
• Car B..Julie Clark...................MG Midget..............1275cc
• Car C..Anna Britnor Guest.....MG Midget.............. 1275cc
• Car D..Lorraine Clark............MG Midget.............. 1275cc
• Car E..Maggie Yeadon...........MG Midget..............1275cc

Other team entries included a variety of Marques:
ie...Aston Martin, Austin Healey, BMW, Caterham, Ford, Lotus, Porche, Rover, Triumph, Westfield, with team names such as: Hellava Healeys, Spridgeteers & Pedalling Porkers!

The Birkett Six Hour Handicap Relay Race, which is put on by the 750 Motor Club
(contact: Robin Knight, Competitions Secretary, West View, New Street, Stradbrooke, Suffolk, IP21 5JG)
is claimed to be unique in the world of motor racing, and was concieved to give cars of differing performance the chance to compete on equal terms in a long distance race. Now in its 47th year the concept has obviously worked!

For my money pictures speak louder than words and I managed to capture most of 'Girl Powers' day on film...

• MG Midget fends off the modern saloons!!
  
• Vanessa in the Sprite!
  
• Anna gets good grip through the corner known as 'The Bombhole'
  
• Under a yellow caution flag, rest of the field begins to bunch up
  
• Julie Clark through the chicane
  
• Metro & Midget chase a Caterham
  
• The red Austin Healey Sprite is from the 'Sprideteer' team
  
• Sprite V Midget thru the chicane
  
• Maggies Midget
  
• In the pits 'Girl Power' discuss tactics!
  
• Preparing to go out on the circuit once more
  
• Inside the garage, the cars wait their turn to run
  
• Anna Britnor Guest waits for the signal to go!
  
• Team manager's view over the pit wall, as Vanessa Wooley streaks past on the Senna Straight
  
• Thru the Esses, Maggies Midget
  
• Esses again this time its Julie Clark in the yellow MG Midget
  
• Some of the competition!- Rover Metro GTi
  
• Flat out on the Revett Straight, at around 90mph - Lorraine Clark
  
• On the back straight

There were some 39 race teams entered, the Snetterton paddock area was jam packed with race cars, car trailers/transporters, motorhomes and lots of people. A good crowd of spectators had turned out to follow the days events.

The race proper started at 11am prompt, the start of a gruelling six hours, team managers having to sort out tactics pretty quick, & in a race of this kind reliability is the key!. 'Girl Power' who I had come to cheer on had no such trouble, Lorraine Clark was first out on the circuit. Her little midget was pitched against some cars that were almost half as fast again, a little unerveing at first as she is just used to driving withs cars of the same power, but it did not take long for her to settle down.

Every hour, on the hour a sheet with times and positions was issused to allow the teams to keep track of their progress. Slowly, but surely 'Girl Power' crept up the list, reaching at one point 25th overall.....

It was a great days racing, and it was nice to see the spectators turn out in force, I spotted several MG's around the circuit, were you there? This was the second year in a row for me, and I intend to make it a hat-trick in 98, hopefully we will see a few more MG's.. A clash of dates meant that the 'Phoenix MG Team' that ran last year were at another race circuit, lets hope there is no such clash of dates in 98!

Post Race comments from Lorraine Clark:
"We finished 36 overall - went down fast over last hour or so! But all had a good time and thought it was valuable experience for the future."

Kelvin Fagan

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