2020 - Historic Tour - Charade - F3 Classic et FR Classic

The start of the classic F3 and classic Formula Renault race was a rolling start.

The race that attracted me to the August Historic Tour meeting at Charade was the Formula Three Classic race that also included Formula Renault Classic as well.  Twenty three cars took to the grid on Saturday of which twelve were F3 cars.  The F3 cars dated from 1977 to 1984 and the Formula Renault cars from 1984 to 1994.  At the front it was a battle between March, Ralt and Martini but nice to see Alba and Chevron  represented as well.  As well as French participants there were drivers from Italy, Switzerland and Monaco as well.  In one of the F3 Ralts was none other than Carlos Tavares.  

Frédéric Rouvier led early on from pole but eventually Valerio Leone took control.  Alain Girardet was a steady third throughout.  Eric Martin fought his way up from fifth to third.   Lovely to see these cars race again.  All the photos were taken from the last to first corner which is the main spectator viewing area.

A few seconds later the field approaches the first corner.

The eventual winner was Valerio Leone in this March 783-Toyota. 

In second place was Frédéric Rouvier, also in a March 783-Toyota.

Third was Alain Girardet in a 1982 Ralt RT3-Alfa Romeo.

Fourth was Eric Martin in a 1983 Martini Mk39-Alfa Romeo.

In fifth and sixth places were (22) Laurent Vallery-Masson in a 1984 Ralt RT3-Alfa Romeo

and (81) Davide Leone in a 1981 Alba AR1-Alfa Romeo.

Seventh was the March 813-Toyota of Brady Beltramelli.

First of the Formula Renault cars was (41) a 1987 Martini Mk51
driven by Swiss driver Christian Vaglio-Giors.

Ninth was Nelson in a 1984 Martini Mk42-Alfa Romeo.

Tenth was a 1977 Chevron B38-Toyota driven by Italian driver Gianluigi Candiani.

Carlos Antunes Tavares drove this 1983 Ralt RT3-Alfa Romeo.

First of the Formula Renault Atmo cars was this Alexandre Faucher in a 1993 Martini Mk63.

The lovely looking 1988 Martini Mk54 Formula Renault Turbo of Philippe Baudin.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.

Stéphane Gosset in a 1994 Martini Mk65.

2020 - Historic Tour - Charade - ASAVE '65 et '75

A very fast 4.7 litre 1965 TVR Griffith 400 was second in qualifying driven by José Beltramelli.

In the 45 minute race on Saturday it was to take the win.

ASAVE racing has two groups of cars.  One is for GT and Touring Cars (the old Groups 1, 2 ,3 and 4) that were homologated prior to 1966.  The second group is for GT and Touring Cars from 1966 to 1975 and Sports prototypes until 1970. At each meeting they either have one 60 minute race or two 45 minute races.  Each race has a pit stop and thus two pilots can take part in each car.  The groups are further divided into classes.

The field at Charade was relatively small with just fourteen cars but this was made up by the quality.  I was only at Charade for their qualifying session but thoroughly enjoyed seeing them all.   Highlight was the lovely Porsche 910 but also the variety.

My favourite was this original 2.4 litre 1967 Porsche 910.  Driven by Sylvain Regnier, seen here in qualifying.

A lovely view of the last part of the Esse de Thèdes with Porsche 911 2,8 RSR leading, TVR Griffith and Alpine 110.

A 2.8 litre 1975 Datson 240 Z shared by Valinho and Mathon.

Alfa leads Porsche and TVR up the hill towards the Epingle Marlboro.

A 1965 Lotus Cortina 1.6L driven by Philippe Raffin leads a 1957 2.2 litre Triumph TR3 driven by Christian Tetot.

Jean-Pierre Fazi in a 1963 Triumph TR4.

The Besson's 1.8 litre Alpine A110 from 1973

A 1964 Lotus Elan 1.6 litre driven by Jean-Pierre Vacher.

The fastest car was this 1973 Porsche 2,8 RSR driven by the Gauberts.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.

Datson 240Z chasing the Porsche 910 down the hill back to the start line.

2020 - Historic Trophy - Charade - Formula Ford

The start of he the first Formula Ford race of the weekend.  On the left Arnaud Dousse spins his tyres in his 2002 Van Diemen.  His was the only Zetec runner.

Always lovely to see a Formula Ford race and to see one at a great historic circuit like Charade is even better.  For the Historic Tour at the end of August I was there for the first race on Saturday with the Trophée Formula Ford Kent-Zetec which had seventeen runners.  It was actually a good race with good battles throughout the field and a good race particularly for the podium. There are a number of classes for cars from1966-1981, 1982 to 1989, and 1990 to 1993.   No surprise that I loved the older cars.

The Formula Ford field streams into the first corner with Geoffroy Horion in the lead in his 1992 Van Diemen.   

I particularly admired this Crosslé 16F of circa 1968/70 driven by Serge Depla.

Action down the field with Claude Thetiot in a 1985 Reynard leading this battle for fifth place at Virage du Petit Pont.

Another old Formula Ford Crosslé battling with a 1968 Dulon.  The 1971Crosslé 20F driven by Jean-François Comte on the outside and on the inside, Belgian,  Michel Dupont in a Dulon LD4B.

The 1988 Swift of Loic Bouquet, that finisherd third in its class, cutting the apex at Petit Pont.

I had to take and publish photos of the podium as they will hopefully look very strange in years to come with everyone wearing their surgical masks.

The first of three FF podiums.  This is the one for the top three overall.  On the left is Antoine Weil who came second, in the middle is Geoffroy Horion who was the winner, and on the right is Gislain Genecand who fought his way up to third.

The second FF podium for the pre-1990 cars.  On the left is Michel Kozyreff who was second, the class winner Claude Letiot is in the centre, and on the right is Loic Bouquet who was third.

The third FF podium for the older GHI cars.  On the left is second placed Vincent Missistrano, in the middle the class winner Augustin Sanjuan, and on the right Michel Dupont who was third.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.

A family day out, as they watch the leaders, all in Van Diemens, on their last lap.

2020 - Historic Tour - Charade - GT Classic + Saloon Cars

The 1970 BMW 2002 Ti of Bernard Frugier in the Virage du Petit Pont at the Charade Circuit.

it is four years since I last saw the Historic Tour at Charade, so I was long overdue a return.  The first cars that greeted me this year were the GT Classic and Saloon Cars.  These cars vary in age from the sixties to the nineties but there are some gems amongst them.

I was just there for the Saturday qualifying session but it gave me a chance to admire the cars and get reacquainted with the magnificent circuit de Charade.

Fastest of the GT Classic competitors was Laurent Sabatier in this 1995 Porsche 993 GT2.

Lovely to see an 8 litre 1988 Dodge Viper in the Historic Tour.

Porsche - BMW and Audi in the Virage du petit pont.

Always great to see a 5.8 litre 1968 Chevrolet Camaro.  It was driven by the Fachinettis.

A 1967 Alfa Romeo Bertone 1,750cc driven by the Drouilleaus.

Thierry Lortal in a 1989 Caterham Superseven 

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.

The Camaro begins the downhill run back to the finish line.

The BMW 2002 Ti speeds past the back of the paddock.

This 1983 BMW 323i E30 took second place in the hands of Alain Derognat.  The following car was the oldest car in the race and was a Lotus Seven.

March 783/793 F3

Noel Delplanque, March 793, Charade, Historic Tour 2016.

Pour plus de photos de Historic Tour 2016, suivez ce lien.

For more photos of the 2016 Historic Tour round at Charade, click on the link above.

March, Bicester, England.  Along with almost every other formula, March made F3 cars from 1969 to 1981.  The March 783 and 793 models spanned the years 1978 and 1979.   In 1978 Ralt produced the dominant car.  For 1979 Chico Sera won the Vandervell British F3 Championship in a March. The 793 differed from the 783 by having some additional ground effect skirts and updated sidepods. Many famous drivers drove these models including Nigel Mansell, Teo Fabi, Tiff Needell, Michele Alboreto, Thierry Boutsen, Andrea de Cesaris, Jean-Louis Schlesser, and Stefan Johansson.  The car pictured was driven by Bret Riley who scored a number of F3 wins.  These cars raced with a number of motors but Bret Riley and Nigel Mansell's used to be powered by a Triumph Dolomite Swindon engine.  Nice to see the car in authentic livery from the time.

A post like this every day on my other blog AutoVitesse.blogspot.com.  See more by clicking here.

HISTORIC TOUR 2016 - CHARADE

Alain-Jean's Porsche 964-3600 makes its way around the Charade circuit with Puy de Dôme un the background.

The Charade Circuit is very near Clermont Ferrand in the Auvergne and has a beautiful mountain setting with the Puy-de-Dôme volcano looming above it in the distance. The circuit was built in the late fifties as an 8 km circuit and held the French GP in 1965,  1969, 1970 and 1972.  The last race on the old track was held in the late eighties and then in the nineties the track was revised down to 3.86 kms and racing has continued to be held their since.

This was my first visit to to Charade and the occasion was the third round of the 2016 Historic Tour - Championnat de France Historique des Circuits.  I went along on Sunday 12th June for the last day of this three day meeting.  As it was a fair jog away, I just stayed for six races and walked the paddock and as much of the circuit as possible.  It was nice to still to be able to recognise parts of the original circuit. Below is my photographic report of the meeting.

Trophée Formule Ford Kent.
This category caters mainly for the old 1,600cc Ford Kent engined cars that raced from 1967 to the early nineties, but they also allow GHI and Zetec engined cars.

The start of Sunday's Formula Ford Kent race with ultimate winner Nicolas Beloou getting away from pole in his Van Diemen RF90.

The third placed Mygale SJ03 1800 Zetec of Eric Heudicourt who won the Zetec class.

The second placed Van Diemen RF92 1600 of Swiss driver Gislain Genecand.

Formula Ford cars on the start finish straight dominated by the old grandstand.

Two RF92 Van Diemens lead an earlier RF80 Van Diemen.

The first of the three Formula Ford podiums for the class winners.

Trophée Lotus

This category is for Lotus Sevens and the later Caterham Sevens.

The start of Sunday's Trophée Lotus with Pascal Metayer getting away well from pole.

The ultimate winner was Xavier Jacquet in his Lotus Seven.

A car locks up at the end of the long down hill section.

Pascal led Xavier until the last lap.  

Sports Protos Cup

The Sports Protos cup is for under 2 litre sports cars of various types and classes.

The rolling start of the Sports Protos Cup race.

At the first corner.

Winner was this pretty CESCA 740 Cosworth of Franck Metzger.

Second place went to this Lucchini SP390 driven by Jean Laffargue.

The first prototype and third overall was this March 81S-Ford piloted by "Nelson".

Fifth overall and second in class was this Chevron B8 of Eric Perou.

Last of the classified finshers was this Urban M2-Alfa Romeo.

Another Alfa Romeo engined car was this Arc MF16.

The Chevron B8 challenging a Grac MT14S JRD.  He eventually got past and both cars fnished on the same lap as the leader.

A Merlin MP88-Alfa Romeo that won the Alfa Romeo class.

A Grac MT14S-Renault.

GT Classic
A small field of GT cars entertained us just before lunch as I headed for a different part of the circuit. The field included an unusual Belgian sports car, the Gillet Vertigo.

Eventual winner, Franck Morel in a Porsche 993 GT2, chases the first lap leader, Laurent Sabatier in a Porsche 964 3800.

Another early battle with Patrice Faurie in a Porsche 964 RS leading Eric Gillet in his Gillet Vertigo and Sébastien Mathieu in a Porsche 964 RSR.

Alain-Jean's Bouchet's Porsche 964 3600 that was the last of the finishers, seen here seen at one the hairpins at the back of the circuit.

The winner, Franck Morel makes the last climb out of the hairpin in his Porsche.

The only retirement was this TVR Tuscan Challenge

The unusual Gillet Vertigo

Challenge ASAVE GT, Tourisme et Saloon Cars

This proved a good race with lots of battles going on down the field.

This 3 litre BMW 323i driven by Alain Derognat led the winning Porsche on the first lap. 

The Porsche RSR of Christophe Terriou makes its move on lap 2.

Lots of variety.  Here a Porsche Carrera 6 leads a Renault 21 and a VW Golf.

This Audi Quattro driven by Fabrice Lefebvre came second whilst this Porsche 911 driven by Franck Morel finished fourth.

The third placed BMW E36C of Patrick Fuet leads two Porsches

More variety as an Alpine Renault A110 heads a Ford Capri 2900

The winning Porsche takes the chequered flag.

Trophée Formule 3 Classic and Formule Renault Classic
The Formula 3 and Fomula Renault race was the last i was able to see and provided good single seater action.

The start of the classic F3 and FR race.

The first corner with a F3 Ralt leading.

The winning Ralt RT3-Alfa Romeo of Hugo Carini passes the pits.

Nöel Depllanque signals a problem in his March 793 as he is narrowly avoided by an Alpa 90 FR car.

Lionel Robert in his Formula Renault Turbo that finished second overall.

The battle for fourth and fifth place between the two Ralt RT3s of Ian Jacobs (9) and Bernard Honnorat (25).  The fourth posaition eventually went to No.25.

Two Formula Renault Turbos.  The Martini Mk38 of Mathieu Chateaux which eventually finish sixth and the Martini Mk48 of Antoine Robert that finished third.

This Van Diemen FR93 of Viny Beltramelli was the best of the Formula Renault Atmo cars.

Other Races

One of the Legends cars.

A Mini Marcos that competed in the 1,000cc race.

This Grac MT6 appeared in the Formula Ford Historic race.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.