Thought this thread was about who's doin what to who with who and with what.....?? Not a bitchin session about what is elidgable and what is not, talkin of which are 1200cc imps elidgable ???
Bored, bored, very bored... stuck at work willing the season to start and that'll be Mr Underwood and self for the full season yiiiihhhhaaaa.....
Talkin of IMPS, just got Simons engine block welded up after he found a crack and took the opportunity to hacksaw one of the cylinders off so that will make it a 750 triple... so is that a bit more inline with a bike engine??
Ian do you seriously want to move to post classic/350 championship??!! Good luck with that one then, when they burn a big hole in your pocket (and im just talking about the entry fees!) maybe you will consider and Imp!
Whos doing what foreign meetings this year??
Never trust anything that doesnt stand up by itself!
missdonnybelles wrote:Ian do you seriously want to move to post classic/350 championship??!! Good luck with that one then, when they burn a big hole in your pocket (and im just talking about the entry fees!) maybe you will consider and Imp!
Vicky, One thing I can assure you is that I will NEVER race an Imp. I have no problem with those that do (other than it is a shame it seems to be at the expense of anything else - where are all the P2 machines and as for P1???). Have not looked at the entry fees yet but will do now! As our outfit is FRC eligible just fancy trying racing elsewhere to see what it is like.
Eddy Wright wrote:Why are you picking on IMPs Ian ?
I am not. It is merely a fact that the current CRMC grid is made up with a lot of them. 10 years ago the grid was amazing in depth and variety with the then 2 periods having seperate races. I can't help but feel either potential crews are discouraged from racing with the club for fear of being vastly out gunned by the Imps or from starting racing as it would seem, in general, that an Imp is the most competative way to go. An example of this is the Gristwood boys who have taken up raing in the last couple of seasons all with Imp's. My own feeling is that the grid should be representative of the period and it is not. We have a P1 class with no entries and a P2 with just a couple. It is all a question of balance and I would just like to see variety back.
I take your point Ian, but p3 is like the premership class, and the riders choose to ride in it in preference.
When I started racing with the classic club 2005 the grids were not good, and when they brought in push starts became very depleted.
Dave Gristwood, and his riders chose IMPs for the same reason I did. They are readily available for a new classic club rider, will run all season with very little maintenance, and sound fabulous. Grids are now healthy thanks to IMP riders, and Ian Johnsons input, also an imp racer. However more P3 riders are turning to Honda power I think there will be three on the grid next year, and the Honda will give the IMP a good run, it also has the reliability, and is lighter than the IMP.
I think the main problem with variety on the grid is the shortage of good 750cc outfits I cant remember the last one I saw for sale, and the only way to get one would be to build one. Not something a new rider would do to join our club in the first instance.
I myself am building a new 1000cc BMW which hopefully will be competitive before the start of the season early dyno runs indicate it will be more than a match for a good IMP. Until it is I will continue to race my 1200cc IMP which is eligible by the way Mike though no faster on top end than a 998cc.
Ian, I think that you're suffering from a case of rose tinted spectacles, there have always been a load of Imps racing with the CRMC. When I raced 1989/1995 (first time round) there were loads of us on Imps:
Paul Carr/ Bob Couldwell (later with son Ian)
Derek Langton/Alex Maclean
Me/Alex Robinson (nee Maclean.....how's that for confusing!)
John and Andy Smith
Stuart Digby
Doug Rankin/Mick Sanderson
Tony Howard
George Wilson
The guys that had the Windle that I bought and is now raced by Ian Johnson/Kevin Roughan (can anyone remember their names?)
Herve Truchet/Bob Couldwell
I'm sure there were some others as well.
There was also a young lad from Stanford le Hope who raced a PINK, rear exit one with the FRC.
P1 and P2 teams shouldn't be worried about it should they? As the results are split. F1 and F2 run alongside at most club meetings or always were anyway. Otherwise we'll try and win the P1 championship this year on Clint's Imp! There ain't a lot of 750's about, that was my original plan for this year, bought a BSA for P2 and ended up just talking about it, spending a lot of money and doing nothing, unless you can count one completing lap at a time. We shouldn't be worried about the amount of imps on the grid, it's the tits
Right been and got my programmes from 1996 (first year proper I was involved with CRMC). I am sure it is not a figment of my imagination and that things have changed greatly.
Sidecar count as follows:
Cadwell Park - 7th & 8th April (First meeting)
2 x BMW
5 x Triumph (3 of which Tridents)
4 x Weslake (1 a Mr Bellaby)
4 x BSA (1 Triple)
1 x Saab
4 x Imps
1 x Vincent
1 x Yamaha
Total = 22
Snetterton - 21st & 22nd Sept (Last meeting)
4 x BMW
5 x Triumph (3 Tridents)
3 x Weslake
7 x BSA (2 Triples)
5 x Imps
1 x Vincent
2 x Yamaha
1 x Norton
Total = 28
Guess I was lucky to see the number and variety back then?
Having just returned from a week's fact finding mission in Gran Canaria I was overjoyed to read on the forum that given the excess of good food, alcohol and time off work, people have felt free to view their ideas for 2010 and in Simon Smith's case 2015 and beyond!
Rod Chapman has indeed bought Jan Herbert's Imp (P3), hopefully Nigel Pratley BSA (P2) will be with us and hopefully Steve Stevenson with his BSA. Steve and Linda (that's two more for Ben) will be out on a Triumph, also P2.
If there are more Imps than bike motors on the grid it certainly isn't a bias on my account - it is just that they have been easier to eek back onto the grid. I would love to see more P1 and P2 outfits on track and will continue to try and lure them back. I just love racing, whatever the motor is. Clearly the fastest outfit last year was Nick Houghton's Weslake and if I had the budget I would love to give it a go.
What matters most is that now the officials/spectators enjoy the spectacle of so many sidecars on the grid.
My first outfit was the Banshee Imp so I do have a special feeling for the Imp. It's like my first girl friend was a blonde - a beautiful little thing - just like an Imp engine - a right little goer! So, blondes have a special place in my heart; however, that didn't stop me from trying out the other models available i.e. brunettes and redheads!
So whichever you enjoy - just do it - racing that is, P1, P2, P3, bikes/cars. You get the gist!
Back to Gran Canaria - I feel that as sidecar crews are pure athletes we should have a winter training camp. Passengers could practice their technique on the sunbeds and crews could perfect their technique of last man out of the bar at night is a slidey.
Not a bitchin session about what is elidgable and what is not, talkin of which are 1200cc imps elidgable ??? 
How did this thread get on to Imp bashing / eligibility moaning 
Whos doing what foreign meetings this year??
