Our motorsport client Ben Power had to contend with a burst brake line as well as snow, as he launched his campaign in the 2018 National Legends Car Championship with MRF Tyres.
In a freezing cold, and at times snowy, opening round at Oulton Park in Cheshire, Power, from Guilsfield, near Welshpool, finished 8th and 6th in the heat races before taking 8th place in the final.
The meeting attracted a 32-car entry from around the UK and mainland Europe, including top drivers from Belgium and Finland.
“I’ve never been so cold in a car,” he said. “It took me a while to thaw out. With some brake problems too, it wasn’t the best start to the season, but there’s a long way to go.”
From 8th on the grid in the first race, he had progressed to 4th place by lap 3, when he started having brake issues with the pedal going to the floor. It turned out a brake line had burst, leaving the car with no brake fluid by the end.
Race 2 was plagued by safety-car periods, with only a handful of racing laps, as cars spun out. Power did well to finish 6th, having started 19th on grid.
In the final, he again started back in 19th place, but quickly worked his way to the front. However, some contact on the way through damaged a shock absorber and more brake issues meant slipped back to 8th.
Legends Cars originated on the US oval tracks and are 5/8-scale replicas of classic US models. Guttercrest Racing runs a Ford Coupe 1934 replica, with a 1250cc Yamaha motorcycle engine.
With identical cars and the fastest drivers having to start at the back of the grid, there is said to be more overtaking in a single Legends race than in a whole season of Formula 1.
Guttercrest Racing is backed by the family-owned aluminium guttering company Guttercrest, based in Oswestry. The team has further support from us, the award-winning communications consultancy Weltch Media.
