By Tom Hardman.
Anticipation and Permission….
The Vintage Seaman at VSCC Cadwell Park was a race that I had anticipated for a long time.
There was a great debate in our house about whether or not we should be attending, bringing ERA AJM1 up from the south, considering all the efforts involved—especially as Ben, the owner of both AJM1 and R4D, could not be there.
I’ve been driving for Ben for the last three years now, and I think I’ve conducted myself pretty well. Aside from one (or two!) spins, I’ve kept my nose clean and the car on consistently improving lap and hill times. So Ben, with some cautionary tales from his own Cadwell days, gave me permission to go for it. Helen finally agreed, and Alan (Ben’s mechanic)—well, I think he was always on board!
Why the Caution?
Some of you may not know, but in 2007, brake failure caused me to roll my Austin 7 racing car coming into the Mountain—an accident which nearly resulted in the amputation of my right leg below the knee. It was great surgeons and no small amount of faith that meant I kept my leg, and thankfully I’ve never lost my passion for racing.
I might tell the whole story another day, but for now, let it be said that returning to Cadwell in such an iconic car is a bucket list experience for me.
Family in Tow
Given the importance of the event, I wanted the whole family in tow—so all three kids piled into the car and we braved the heat together!
And it was impressively hot weather. By the time the race came about at 5pm, it was also a little bit drizzly. So—hot, sweaty, and with a greasy track fresh from just enough rain to make it interesting—we began.
The Start
I started in 5th. Now, I’ve become a bit of a start master in recent years… I think that’s down to how many times I’ve been up Prescott Hill Climb!
From 5th to 2nd in one jump, overtaking everyone except David Morris in the two-litre ERA R11B. I held that place until we came to the Mountain. Patrick Blakeney-Edwards, in the superbly developed Frazer Nash Super Sport “HU”, had been sniffing at my heels since the second corner. Here, with his lightweight car and very experienced hand, he whipped past me at the top of the hill.
Soon he was followed by both James Baxter and Wilf Cawley in GP2 and Piglet—again taking advantage of my limited experience in the car, the greasy road, and the thought of Ben Fidler, my wife, and not least Alan—if I had any incidents!
Red Flags and Recovery
The race progressed. Tight and fun—I had a good time in my own space, racing the curves and feeling the car. Just getting to grips with it all.
Things took a turn, though, when four laps in, I watched Piglet get onto the grass and end up in the barrier, just in front of James in GP2.
Red flag for sure. I was reassured to see Wilf moving before I passed him. Hoping for the best, James and I both slowed down and the red flag came. We parked up on the starting grid and waited.
And waited.
News soon came that Wilf and Piglet had been recovered, with little more than a scratch for Wilf!
Round Two
We started again. On the way back to the cars, Patrick mentioned my start and said, “You won’t get past again like that!”
Oh really? I thought.
We all decided to refuse a green flag lap and the race began again. Sure enough, I took myself from 4th and whipped past James and Patrick, straight up into 2nd after David. This time, I was determined to hold it. The rain had stopped during the wait and the heat had helped dry the track. I had a bit more to work with now.
Patrick, however, was on me—so I decided to let him go. James Baxter and I began to dice for third. I had six laps to make this happen and James certainly kept me on it. Corner after corner—every line and gear change had to be spot on.
I was in the running for third and then—shortly before the end—Patrick slowed and retired, giving me second and James third!
A Very Special Finish
So, we came home in an ERA 1-2-3. A great race—made even more special that my family were all there to watch.
James was delighted to finish in third—but honestly, just delighted to finish at all after considerable work to get the car running well. To make it extra special, David’s win in R11B came on his birthday, and it was the first time he had raced at the track in 40 years!
So, I guess we can all say, in the end—it was well worth it.