Wiscombe hillclimb 12 May
 

I did a hillclimb in my blob wagon on Saturday, at Wiscombe in Devon. Great fun, and I won my class with a 47.5 second run!

One of my runs here:

Most hillclimbs do driver days.
I have been to Prescott nr Cheltenham twice.
A bit of classroom then walk the course then you are let loose.

Hillclimbs (and sprints) are one of the easiest forms of competitive speed events to get involved with. Basically they are point to point time trials, the only difference with a sprint is that it's usually on some sort of track, it's basically a hillclimb without the hill.



Apart from having a car, there are a few things you'd need to do:

1. Join a motor club (most areas have one, or you can join a national one; mine is Sevenoaks & District in Kent, also a member of the Vintage Sports Car Club, which is how I got an entry at Wiscombe). Being part of a club means you are covered by the basic MSA insurance (although if you break your car, that's not covered)
2. Get an MSA licence (cheapest one you can use in speed events is National B non-race, about £50 I think, and no medical or driving test required)
3. Get some approved safety gear – minimum of fire-proof overalls, helmet and gloves. Plenty available on eBay, or borrow from your mates/club unless you can buy new
4. Check the entry regulations, which will be published by the organising club when entries open. That will explain the classes you can enter in, and most will have a 'road-going production car' class, probably defined by car year, drive type and/or engine size
5. A few car preparation things need to be done to pass scrutineering (a basic check before the event that your car and gear is safe to use), usually having a fire extinguisher, ignition off sticker and yellow tape on your battery earth cable, and that's it. If you're in a road-going class you don't need a roll cage, HANS device or full harnesses etc.

Sounds like a lot when you write it down but really it's not that much hassle and is well worth it!