1970 Enniskillen Summer Tests

Posted in 1970, Archives by March 11th, 2023
Bertie Fisher was best Novice at the Manor House tests.

Another Win for Lyons

This report is from Motorweek dated 2nd September 1970.

Enniskillen MC were the hosts last Saturday for the second NI round of the RAC Autotests Championship, when they held their Summer event at Manor House Hotel, Killadeas. The tests were laid out at various points in the hotel grounds, and provided a good variety of manoeuvres and surfaces.

On test one, John Lyons (Cooper S) recorded best time, but spoilt this with a pylon, leaving fellow Castlederg man Ken Irwin, in a similar car, best. Test two gave Lyons a trouble-free run, to set fastest, while Southern visitor Dermot Carnegie, having his first outing in a 1275 Clubman, set the pace on the third test, despite being hampered by a gearbox which persisted in jumping out of reverse all day.

The overall winner, John Lyons, Castlederg, waits to receive his score card at the end of the final test.

Tests four and five also fell to Lyons, but his penalty on the first test was sufficient to leave him just 0.2 seconds behind the consistent Charlie Irwin, who led with a total of 236.5 at the end of lap one.

Charles Crawford and Harold Hagan were next on actual times, with 238.7 and 239.8 respectively, but their limited-slip diffs meant a 5 per cent penalty in an RAC round. For the same reason, only the best time of each competitor counted towards results, so it was literally anyone’s event.

Lap two started well for Lyons, with best times in the first two tests, improving on his first run in each case. The rather off-form Hagan took test three, while Crawford kept the Midgets in the picture by setting fastest in test four.

However, Lyons retook the initiative on the final test, giving himself a clear win, with Charlie and Ken Irwin making it 1-2-3 for Castlederg, and Carnegie next after his battle with his gearbox. The 5 per cent penalty dropped Hagan from second to seventh. Lee Lucas had a class win in his very standard looking Viva, as had Ken Shields (VW 1500).

RESULTS – General Classification:

  1. John Lyons, Cooper S, 228.5;
  2. Charlie Irwin, Cooper, 232.9;
  3. Ken Irwin, Cooper S 236.6;
  4. Dermot Carnegie, 1275 Clubman 236.7;
  5. Ken Shields, VW 1500 242.5;
  6. Albert Lucas, 998 Mini 24.4.2;
  7. Harold Hagan, Midget 244.4 (232.8 actual);
  8. Charles Crawford, Midget 245.9 (234.2);
  9. Mervyn Johnston, 1071 Cooper 247.3;
  10. Ted Hobson, 848 Mini 248.0.

Class winners – C. Irwin (Cooper), Lee Lucas (Viva) 268.8, Ken Shields (VW).

Best Novice – Bertie Fisher (998 Cooper).