Hi,
I know you guys must be tired of hearing this over and over again but oh well, I am new to the area and the sport and I thought I'd introduce myself in hopes of getting some advice and help on how to join and start enjoying myself in my car a little bit above the usual road driving.
After graduating from Hertfordshire in Automotive Engineering and getting a job at a large automotive manufacturer here in Essex (quite obvious which one) I have moved to a place in Basildon. To commute to work I happened to buy a 1.7 Puma. Never have I ever expected that the temptation to explore the car's limits is going to be as strong as with this one, which is why I'd turned to Road Rallying. Having only done a little bit of snowy winter autotests prior to uni and some occasional karting while at it, I can safely say I am a fresh beginner, so any direction and help will always be appreciated.
So firstly, my intention is to just blatantly turn up to the club meet this Thursday (17/12/2015) to nose around and figure out a way to join and what I need to get started. If this is not the preferred method of getting in touch with the club and if I need to book a place prior, please let me know.
Secondly, I was having second thoughts about entering my own Puma into road rallies since it is my only daily commuter at the moment and I would be slightly screwed without it, so if anyone happens to have something "cost-effective" for sale, I will happily consider. Please attach pictures if you have.
Thirdly, the whole thing with navigating and clues seems a bit daunting and would seem to be quite hard to figure out for a first timer, therefore if anyone is happy to lend a helping hand and share some material on how things happen and are done by the vets, it would be again very much appreciated.
Then lastly, I would be more than willing (if circumstance and schedule permits) to lend a hand at marshalling but I would need advice and direction as to what, where, how etc.
Apologies for the long post and thanks for your replies in advance. I hope to see some of you soon.
Thanks,
Antons
Hi Antons
Turning up at the club night on Thursday is exactly the right way to get to know people. Just be aware that things don't really start to get going until at least 8.30 and probably closer to 9 - I'd hate you to arrive at 7.30 and wonder where everyone was! John Conboy is our club development officer, with a watching brief to look out for new faces, but just ask anyone and they'll find the right person to answer your questions. Not only that but this month we have mince pies and sausage rolls to celebrate the season!
Welcome
Paul
Hi Paul,
Many thanks for your welcome and for letting me know, otherwise, yes, I would've been there 7:30 and, yes, I would've been wondering where everyone was if not left altogether!
Just to make sure I got things right - it's 8:30-ish (pm) at the
CM3 4SE Little Baddow , Essex
right?
Is there anything else I need to be aware of, should do or should have with me to join the club? Do you take membership payments on the day?
Thanks again,
Antons
Hi Antons,
and welcome to the club, dont know very much about the road rallying side of things but i am sure you will find plenty of info from current members on Thursday night, you might also want to consider having a go at a few Targa Rallies as these are great fun and great value money wise at only £50 per entry, these can easily be done in your Puma 1.7 as thats what i use but if your interested in somthing different i have a 1.4 MG ZR on a 2004 plate sitting on my driveway at present and i am looking for offers around £1000, i bought it approx 2 months ago as my grandson was taking his test however he has now failed it twice and unfortunately has now lost interest in doing it again so the car is up for sale, it is a good runner and very clean both inside and out, and everything works as it should.
Cheers Roy Ineson
Hi Roy,
Many thanks for your message. I will gladly consider the car you have on offer. I have sent you a PM to discuss the matter off-Forum.
I would also be very interested in trying a Targa Rally, however, this is where my inexperience takes over, as I have no idea what it is and how it is different from the Road Rally. Would you care to explain in a nutshell? I've read it's more demanding on the machinery but that's about it.
Thanks,
Antons
Hi Antons
Yes. Thats the right time and place.
Membership runs from 1st January to 31st December but you can join for 2016 on Wednesday its only a tenner for single or family membership. Gary Nicholls is our membership secretary and will be happy to take your money! If you print off the membership form from the website and bring it with you that will save you having to spend time filling it out on Thursday.
A targa rally consists of drivng round cones on an old airfield as quckly as you can. Our last one had 70 starters and 67 finished so not too heavy on the machinery but that's all to do with how you drive it!
Cheers
Paul
Thanks Paul, I will approach Gary on Thursday then.
I thought the cones and airfield stuff is called Autotest or AutoSolo! I am really confused with what people call different competitions but I guess no other to find out but to try it! I am definitely interested in Targas then as well. Do you have some sort of members' newsletter that gives the heads up when the competition is confirmed and open for entries?
Many thanks,
Antons
Hi Anton
As Paul has hinted am the clubs development guy,
I will be there on Thursday night, I will bring some passed event paperwork for you to look over
A good place to start is with marshalling and we have a 12 car coming up at the end of January, i am sure Andy would welcome your help,
We can discuss ways of getting you hooked
Hi Antons
and welcome to CMC, if only Carslberg gave prizes to the most welcoming and friendly motor club...
You've done the right thing introducing yourself on the forum before going to the club night, now some of us will be looking out for you. The best thing about club motor sport is that most events can be done in your 'daily' car without risking any damage, unless you drive like a tw*t! Best way of getting started in road rallying is by having a go at 12 car events; CMC run a healthy series of events during the winter months that are the perfect way of getting started, you will need to have someone to navigate for you, though.
Main difference between autosolos and targas is that for targas you will need a navigator to tell you where to go as the tests are longer and, most of the time, not as evident to follow. CMC does not currently organise autosolos but other friend motor clubs in East Anglia do, and CMC members are invited to join.
As said above, join in on Thursday and John and others will be happy to talk you through next steps.
Looking forward to meeting you.
Luis
Hi John,
Past event paperwork is the right sort of thing I am after! If you could bring some examples it would be very helpful for me to accustom myself with the format.
I was thinking about participating in the January Jaunt 12 Car but I think you are right, perhaps marshalling and observing the action first is the right way to start rather than diving in head first into unknown waters and falling hours behind everyone else.
I am looking forward to meeting you, Andy and everyone else too on Thursday then.
Hi Luis,
By the responses I am getting I think you're right about the Carlsberg awards!
Although driving like a tw*t is not my general intention, I've heard rumours that tight corners are especially sneaky at night! Taking my experience into consideration, although I'm always hoping for the best, it's only sane to be prepared for the worst as well, me thinks.
Oh, and I do have a navigator to join me and if he gets off work in time he should be able to join me there on Thursday, so he too can start familiarising himself with his mammoth of a task from what I understood. I had a quick read of the Edinburgh University Motorsport Club's guide/intro to Road Rallying, I found somewhere here on the website, and the clues featured there seemed absolutely horrendous for someone who is not local to the area, or is it not at all that bad and just requries some familiarity with a few solving techniques?
Many thanks again,
Antons
Hi Antons,
Having previously travelled the length and breadth of the country doing Road Rallies, I can say with some assurance that the Scottish navigation was amongst the toughest I've come across. I haven't done any of our own Chelmsford 12-cars, but many of the local clubs offer navigation based on experience, sometimes even marked maps for absolute beginners so that the navigator can get the chance to get used to managing 'his office' and timing without having to worry too much about plotting. Also, Chelmsford is a member of the Weald group of motor clubs, which means with a Chelmsford membership you are invited to enter events organised by other Weald member clubs and the Weald Clubman Challenge which runs over the whole year and a number of different disciplines. You can find lots of further information at http://wealdmc.co.uk including descriptions of the different types of clubman events, an events calendar and a link to the associated Facebook group.
As the others have already stated, marshalling is a great way to see what goes on, particularly if you can pair up with someone with previous experience that you can benefit from.
Hope this helps,
Ben
Hi Ben,
Many thanks for your advice. It is slightly more reassuring to hear that some clubs may even offer already laid out route for absolute beginners like myself.
I will definitely explore the link you gave and have a look at when I can join and what events I could do at other Weald Association partner clubs as well. I was particularly interested in Borough 19 MC organised Autotests and Autosolos and from what I can see they're also part of Weald Association. Does it mean I can enter the events with only Chelmsford MC membership?
Any info definitely always helps.
Thanks,
Antons
Hi Antons,
Yes, any clubman status event (basically anything listed on the Wealdmc site) that is organised by a Weald member club is open to members of all other Weald member clubs. Effectively, when you join a weald member club, you become a member of Weald MC also. Weald MC does not organise any events itself, but as an umbrella club it is invited to all the member club events. For example, the scatter than was run by Sevenoaks last Thursday had entries from Maidstone and Mid Kent and Chelmsford crews as well as Sevenoaks themselves.
If you've got any questions about this, feel free to speak to any of the guys who've already responded in this thread or to myself and Dave Town (organiser of the Weald Clubman Challenge). You can always post on the FB Weald MC page as well as there's a wealth of experience within the group members. One thing about Clubman Level motorsport is we're all keen to see new people getting out and entering events - if we can make that easier for you to achieve, then you'll be entering events more quickly and spreading the word which is all good for the future of Clubman motorsport.
Cheers,
Ben
Hi everyone,
I just wanted to say a big thanks for your warm welcome at the Club night tonight.
It has been a pleasure to meet you all, and it's fair to say we were surprised at how open and supportive everyone was, which did help to overcome the initial anxiety of joining a club where we didn't know anyone.
Special thanks to John Conboy who took time out of his day to explain how the events are organised and a bit about navigation as well.
Our crew will definitely be looking forward to our first events as marshalls, and not too long after joining in as competitors.
It seems that this is indeed the most cost-effective form of racing I've been looking for and it feels like it's almost embedded in the club's ethos. For anyone else reading this and wondering whether to join or not, please rest assured, if you're not racing somewhere else already, this is the place to start.
Kind regards,
Antons