On Saturday the 13th of August, after what felt like a very long time between drinks with July’s round four at Wakefield canceled, we headed to Sydney Motorsport Park’s Grand Prix circuit for round five of the 2022 CSCA supersprint series, kindly hosted by The Morgan Owners Club of Australia.

Early that morning we awoke from a soggy couple of days (months?) to iffy weather predictions, grey skies and wet tarmac. Thankfully, that was about the worst of it, with clouds lifting and Mr. Sun shining upon us like he’d never gone anywhere by the time the groups were out for their second run.

An excellent 75-car entry set times during the day, with 19 of those running under Club Lotus Australia. With some very quick machinery out and about and tricky conditions to come to terms with early on in the day, the top few spots on the day would prove uncharacteristically elusive for the club. Jeffrey Schmitt went quickest in the 2007 West WR1000, running a 1:38.69 in a close competition with Adam Savic in a 2018 Stohr F1000.

Richard Wodhams was the quickest Club Lotus driver of the day, putting in a 1:44.61 in his 2006 Exige for fastest P2, but fell just shy of the quickest Lotus – Porsche Club driver Steven Sher running a 1:44.55 in a 2016 Exige. Interestingly, Richard set his fastest lap on only lap 9, with most other drivers finding their pace in the drier conditions later in the day. Brett Stephens and Christopher Daniels were also in the 1:44s, the Exige 202 pilot leading class M3 and Christopher fastest M2 in the Elise S.

No matter where they’re running, Colin Rudd and Liam Sheppard continue to be closely matched. Colin finished the day in eighth overall on a 1:45.87, with Liam chasing on a 1:46.93, ninth. Likewise, Peter Taylor and Gino Valdes had a good run, Peter putting in a 1:47.84 in the 2019 Exige 410 and Gino a 1:48.32 in the ‘07 Exige S.

Mark Meletopoulo was the quickest R2 driver on the day, ending on a 1:49.65, just a tenth or so faster than Grant Paisley in the 2013 Exige 350. Len Goodwin piloted the Elan 26R to fastest CD1 on a 1:50.96, just ahead of Christopher Pearse, Graham Allen and Craig Sheppard, who covered about half a second of track time in the Exige 420, Elise and Exige Cup.

Terence Waugh had the 1995 Renault Sport S out for a run, claiming fastest in R4, Paul Tilse a second and a half behind in the 2016 Porsche Cayman. Meanwhile, Melanie Valdes was able to sneak away from ensuring the smooth running of our club membership to run a quick 1:57.33 in the Exige S she shares with Gino, with Derrick Cho consistent in the 2002 Civic on a 2:00.89.

Lachlan Klumper ran with the club for the first time at Pheasant Wood in 2021, and hasn’t had too many opportunities to run on the city circuit since, putting in a great run in the MX5 to finish with a 2:03.19. He was followed by Tina Cho, who has also been incredibly consistent since her debut with the club in March last year, running a 2:08.39 in the ‘16 WRX.

Thanks to The Morgan Owners Club of Australia for hosting a smoothly run and most enjoyable day of sprinting, and of course to Sydney Motorsport Park and the many volunteers behind the scenes who make these days possible. You are most appreciated.

With round six of the 2022 series unfortunately canceled, we’ll be going into a minor hibernation until Sunday, the 23rd of October, when the Jaguar Drivers Club of Australia hosts the season finale on Sydney Motorsport Park’s North Circuit.

The final outing of the year should be a good one, with the driver’s championship closely contested. Going in to the final round Len Goodwin holds a slim lead, ahead of Colin Rudd by just two points, with John Whittaker two points behind Colin in third.  Melanie Valdes holds the lead in the lady driver championship, followed by Sue Tahir and Kristy Crampton.

Entries are set to open soon, so keep an eye on this space!