I took along my own video camera, and this is my three and a half minute version of the days events. I have to say he did very well, but then that was to be expected…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3BMaE2SSR0

I can’t believe that all the fuss was that long ago, and I’ve only recently made this Youtube video public. Enjoy!

The photo on your UK driving licence is only valid for 10 years, after which it must be renewed. If you do not renew your photograph you are committing an offence. So it’s worth checking.

Generally, a reminder is sent by the DVLA, but occasionally this doesn’t happen, and often when a reminder is received it gets ignored or forgotten. The error is usually only discovered when you are stopped for a minor offence and given a ‘producer’ - of course this only aggravates the existing misdemeanour.

Check you photo expiry date by looking at note 4b on the front of your licence.

Ask you can see, Mr Beckham here has a while to go….

If you fall foul you may be charged with ‘Failing to surrender licence’, which, while it carries a maximum fine of £1000, the usual outcome is a fine equal to half of your weekly income… plus costs… plus a £15.00 victim surcharge. The offence does not carry any points, but it will be heard in a magistrate’s court, and usually you will be able to plead guilty in writing. There are very few reasons why you may be able to plead not guilty - and succeed. Take advice if you genuinely believe this is so! 

Occasionally the offence is incorrectly charged as ‘Driving otherwise in accordance with a licence’ which is an offence that does carry points – so be aware.

Renewing your photo is a simple operation via a form from the Post Office. Typically, as you may expect this process is not free (there’s a surprise!) it currently costs twenty quid.

We hope you’ve found this post helpful. You can put your licence away now…..

Starting on new years day the father and son team drove their 1975 Ford Mk 2 Escort arriving in Cape Town on January 30th – finishing 29th overall, 8th in class and the only Ford to finish! The only major problem encountered was a broken front hub which they managed to get repaired  by 2 blokes in a shed in the middle of nowhere. For this they received the ‘True Grit’ special award.

The event was run in the spirit of the rallies old days gone by, such as the London the Sydney marathon, and clearly just completing such an arduous event is a huge achievement – especially in a 37 year old car!

We’re pleased to say that Rough Diamond racing had a very very small part in the Dawsons’ success. Dave fabricated a super strong alternator mount, and two cradles which carried spare fuel jugs in the boot. We are happy that neither of these items were the cause of a problem for the Dawsons.

We would also like to congratulate our friend from Sevenoaks Motor Club, Andy Elcomb, for being the navigator in the 4×4 Toyota which came in second place overall. Unfortunately Rough Diamond had no part in this success!

The shirts will be quality Russell Super Ringspun in sky blue (the same colour as the race cars) which will be vinyl printed with a large version of the team logo on the back and a smaller print on the front breast…..

Sizes are XS to XXL with child sizes also available. They cost £17.00 each plus p&p (I’m guessing about £3.00). Be assured that this price demonstrates no profit to RDR whatsoever. Place your order by e-mailing dave@roughdiamondracing.com Payment can be made using PayPal.

If you miss this print run they can be ordered individually at a later date, unfortunately at a vastly inflated cost….!

On 1 January 2012, new rules were added to the current MOT by the Department for Transport (DfT) to comply with European testing procedures.

It’s a pretty substantial list, but there’s one which could mean big bills for thousands of drivers. If your car has any illuminated warning lamps, whether it is the airbag, seatbelt, ESP, SRS, ABS or others, it will soon fail the MOT.
It’s not all bad news. If your car’s MOT runs out before the 31 March 2012 and you have a warning light that needs addressing, the testers will treat it as an ‘advisory’, i.e. advice on what needs to be done for the next MOT.

However, if your MOT is due after 1 April 2012, you better get your skates on and get the warning light (or other faults in the list below) fixed, otherwise you’ll receive the dreaded fail sheet.

The AA has kindly published a summary of the new rules. If you think your car needs attention on any of the points below but still has a long MOT left, we recommend getting it seen to sooner rather than later.

The main changes from 2012

Electronic parking brake

Electronic parking brake controls are now included and must be present and not inappropriately repaired or modified – repair obviously likely to adversely affect the roadworthiness of the vehicle or modification that has seriously weakened the component.

(The ‘inappropriately repaired or modified’ check is to be applied to a wide range of systems and components throughout the vehicle.)

The car will fail if an Electronic Parking Brake warning lamp is illuminated to indicate a malfunction.

Electronic Stability Control

Checks of anti-lock brakes will be extended to include Electronic Stability Control if fitted. The tester will check for the presence and correct operation of the ESC malfunction warning light together with looking for obviously missing, excessively damaged or inappropriately repaired or modified components and electrical wiring, as well as an ESC switch missing, insecure or faulty.

Warning lights

As well as electronic parking brake and electronic stability control warning lights (where fitted) the MOT test will also include checks for the correct function of the following, where fitted;

Headlight main beam warning light

Electronic power steering warning light

Brake fluid level warning light

Tyre pressure monitoring system warning light

Airbag warning light

Seat belt pre-tensioner warning light

Steering & suspension

The new test includes a check on the presence and correct function of the steering lock where fitted as standard.

Missing, or split/damaged dust covers on steering and suspension ball-joints will result in failure if they will allow dirt to enter the joint.

Power steering fluid level must be above the minimum level indicated on the reservoir.

Lighting

Products on the lens or light source that obviously reduce the light’s intensity or change its colour will become a reason for failure – applies to front/rear position lamps, registration plate lamps, stop lamps, rear fog and direction indicators,

Headlight requirements are updated to take account of the particular characteristics of High Intensity Discharge (HID) lamps.

HID headlights can cause dazzle if they are dirty or aimed too high so car manufacturers must fit headlamp cleaning and levelling systems. A car will fail if a mandatory headlamp cleaning or levelling system is missing, doesn’t work or is obviously defective.

Vehicles fitted with aftermarket HID systems must also be fitted with properly working washer and levelling systems.

If a headlamp bulb is not seated correctly the resulting beam pattern will be indistinct and this will result in a test fail.

Electrical wiring and battery

An insecure battery will be a reason for failure as will a battery that is leaking electrolyte.

Visible wiring that is insecure, inadequately supported or likely to cause a short will also result in a failure as will wires bared by damaged insulation.

Trailer/caravan electrical socket

There will be a basic security/damage check of 7-pin sockets,

13-pin sockets will be subject to a full electrical connectivity check and incorrectly connected or inoperative circuits will result in failure.

Tyres

Tyre pressure monitoring systems fitted to vehicles first registered after 1 January 2012 must be working correctly and not indicating a malfunction.

Supplementary restraints

The vehicle will fail the test if any airbag fitted as original equipment is obviously missing or defective.

A seatbelt pre-tensioner fitted as original equipment but missing or that has obviously deployed will be a reason for failure.

Seatbelt load limiters that are missing where fitted as standard or folding webbing type limiters that have obviously deployed are also reasons for failure.

The vehicle will also fail if an SRS malfunction light is missing, not working or indicating a fault.

Speedometer

The car will fail if a speedometer is not fitted, is incomplete, inoperative, has a dial glass broken/missing or cannot be illuminated.

Seats

It must be possible to secure the driver’s seat fore and aft adjustment mechanism in two or three different positions. On electric seats the motors must move the seat fore and aft.

Doors

A rear door that cannot be opened from the outside using the relevant control is a new reason for failure.

Doors must be easy to open and close – hinges, catches and pillars will be inspected.

Towbars

Inappropriate repair or modification to the towbar assembly will be a reason for failure if judged likely to affect the roadworthiness of the vehicle/trailer.

Exhaust

A catalytic convertor fitted as original equipment but missing will be a reason for failure.

Fuel system

Damaged or chafed fuel pipes will result in failure.

I’ve not seen this method used in other forms of motorsport, however I see no reason why it shouldn’t be used in the case of door-slammer style drag cars. It’s much safer and easier than placing a set of regular jack stands under a car.

‘How much is a Funny Car dad?’

‘Well’, I said, ‘It’s not so much the cost of the car but how much it costs to run a Top Fuel Car or a Funny Car’.

‘But you want a Funny Car don’t you?’

‘Yes, I’d like one, but I could never afford to run it.’

‘So how much money do you need to buy a Funny Car?’

‘Well, I ‘spose you’d get one for about 70 thousand pounds’.

‘You can have my money dad, I don’t need it…..’

So I’ve checked his bank account, and he’s got £284 …….

I think we’ll be sticking with what we have for the time being, but it’s the thought that counts…… Bless him.

June 1st to 4th - Main Event at Santa Pod

June 23rd and 24th – Summer Nationals at Santa Pod

July 14th and 15th – Dragstalgia at Santa Pod

August 25th to 27th – Open Sport Nationals at Shakespeare County Raceway

Testing is likely on May 31st, June 22nd, and July 13th, all at Santa Pod. The observant among you will notice that these are all days prior to race events.

We hope to compete at three sprint events in the Dallara:-

Saturday 9th June and Saturday 7th July at Lydden. Also Saturday 4th August at Goodwood.

This should give us a manageable (affordable?) season, and allow us to compete at other events ‘on a whim’. Possibly the Hot Rod Drags at Shakespeare on Sept 14th to 16th or the National Finals at Santa Pod on Sept 22nd to 23rd. We now regret not going to the Flame and Thunder event at Santa Pod last year, so October 27th might be a final blast…

We love seeing our friends and fans at the track, so let us know if you plan on coming along. Other than Dragstalgia we usually have an allocation of discounted tickets, but these have to be paid for up front and are non-refundable. Please check for availability. Santa Pod now have an E-booking system in place with discounts for early booking.

Let’s get out there and make some noise!

My dad Reg raced hydroplanes in the 1960′s and he was pretty good at it too, he was British champ several times and represented Great Britain 3 times in the European championships in Germany. I can’t remember how he did, but I do know it was pretty good – I think he came third one year.

In 1966 his achievements came to the attention of Timex watches who were to make a ‘torture test’ commercial to advertise their watches. Timex approached my dad to pilot a racing hydoplane over a ski ramp with a Timex watch attached to the centre of the propellor of the boat. Simple.

At the time no-one had attempted to take a hydroplane boat over a ramp, but my dad clearly relished a challenge and accepted – quite how my mum felt about the situation isn’t recorded. Reg prepared a spare boat with skids on the bottom, machined a ’widget’ to secure the watch to the propellor retaining bolt, and modified the engine mounting by the use of copious amounts of bungy cords(!) to kick out when it hit the ramp and return to it usual position when under power. He and his brothers, Jack and Frank, also modified a ski ramp.

After a stationary camera test in a swimming pool, dad and his brothers headed to Lake Windermere for the shoot leaving mum and me at home – they were gone for about 5 days. I can only imagine that mum nervously awaited a phone call at the end of every day.

After some Evel Kneival type run approaches and not knowing what would happen, dad hit the ramp for the first time. It had been suggested that the hydroplane may just as easily be smashed to pieces on impact, and he’d be left driving a bundle of firewood. Dad imagined that it could look like something from a Tom and Jerry cartoon, where the boat stayed where it was and he would continue flying through the air in a ‘driving a hydroplane’ position. Fortunately it was a success, the boat landed in the water and, assisited by the bungy cords, the engine pushed into the back of the speed boat and drove him out of the hole in the water before the craft was swamped. Safe to say, a lot could have gone wrong, but it didn’t, dad’s meticulous attention to detail and preparation saw him through (I think I get that from him too).

Once the jump was complete dad had to ‘beach’ the boat so that the camera could zoom in on the sweeping second hand – while Crossroads actor John Bentley commentated. The director drew a line with his heel on the beach and said to dad, ‘Could you stop about here please?’ As Reg would be approaching land at about 40mph his response was a terse, ‘There’s a fair chance I could end up in those bloody trees mate! It’ll stop where it bloody stops!’

Needless to say, after he’d done it once he couldn’t wait to do it again!

Dad was paid £350 for the whole deal, which back then was an astonishing amount of money – and I’ve still got the watch. I wound it up this morning and it still works. It’s one of my most treasured possesions

I hope this goes some way to explaining why I do things like have someone set fire to my car while I’m in it…

Happy new year.

We will be out competing in both the altered and the Dallara in 2012 and look forward to seeing you at the track! xx

Main image: Alan Currans