Hall and Gould share British Hillclimb glory at a wet Doune

Will Hall and Sean Gould shared the glory at Doune last weekend as ever-changing weather made rounds 13 and 14 of the British Hillclimb Championship an unpredictable affair.

Sunday dawned wet at the Scottish hill and continued wet until late in the afternoon, when the sun broke through and quickly started to dry the hill.

However, for the opening run-off, it was fully wet as a heavy rainstorm passed through just before Matthew Ryder launched as the first runner. To compound the problem of going first on an unknown track Ryder had a massive problem getting the car started as the sprag clutch failed on the starter motor. The team push-started it four times, and finally it fired. But, when Ryder got to the line, the engine died. With one last push, they managed to get the car running again and Ryder set a 42.01s in difficult conditions.

As the run-off continued, the times dropped as each driver went to the line knowing what had just been achieved. Wallace Menzies and Gould both registered mid-39s and then Hall ran last as the fastest qualifier and clocked a stunning 39.04s to take his second win of the year.

“I’m really pleased with that,” said Hall. “I knew what I had to do. I think that seeing other people’s times just gives you a bit more confidence to push.”

By mid-afternoon, the sun had come through, and the hill dried quickly, though damp patches remained under the trees. Slicks were quickly bolted on across the top 12 paddock. Ryder once again ran first in the car he shares with Gould and, with the sprag clutch changed over the lunch break, there were no starting dramas this time.

As the first runner, Ryder had to put a marker down on just how dry it was under the trees. His 38.63s was a fine effort and ultimately good enough for fifth but it was a weekend that Ryder will probably drop if the rest of his season continues strongly.

David Warburton qualified impressively in his 1600cc Gould and set an excellent 38.01s to take fourth, but it was Trevor Willis who jumped into third on 37.70s. Having struggled earlier on old wets, Willis was delighted to see the sun emerge and finally got a run that showed his traditional pace.

Menzies was next to the line and his 36.90s was a fine effort on his home hill. But then came Gould with a bold 36.57s to jump into the lead. Only Hall was left to go, and he was three tenths of a second up on Gould at the mid-hill split. Sadly, the Gould GR59 then ran wide at East Brae onto the grass where it dislodged the nose and his run was over.

Gould said: “I left it in fourth gear through the damp bit, so I was slow up the tunnel, but I just wanted to be safe rather than sorry. But you just don’t know until you drive it how good it is. I could probably have gone faster.”

Showing typically strong form were Jack Cottrill, who took fourth in the first run-off, and Alex Coles with a pair of sixth places to make the long haul from Plymouth worthwhile.

The result takes Menzies closer to Ryder in the standings as the championship heads towards its halfway point at Harewood in early July.