After finishing third in 2003, Kirk Hallam School from Derbyshire
showed the necessary improvement to step up on their performance
of last year and see off the challenges of the other three
BIG FOUR teams from Langley Park, Ash Manor and Tuxford
in a thrilling, high quality competition to win Formula
Schools VII.
Race
Day 2004 at Silverstone, the home of British Motor Sport,
was the culmination of months of hard work for over 100
schools from as far away as Liverpool and Kent. This year
saw a number of new schools taking part, and if warnings
about the size and the demands of the track had not been
heeded before the day, they certainly proved to be valid
as the track looked even more unforgiving than in previous
years, with two high speed straghts and a series of tricky
corners.
The week preceeding Race Day had seen sky high temperatures
throughout the country, a potential difficulty for many
schools, but fortunately the weather relented on the day,
with cool temperatures helping teams to keep their engines
running at optimimum efficiency.
As usual, action on the main track was not the only activity
available to schools. IC cars were also able to enter sections
on the Sprint and Slalom tracks, with the new Electric Challenge
also attracting a large number of entries. There were also
a host of other attractions, ranging from the construction
challenge provided by REME, through to displays from Engineering
Your Future and Formula Student. Many students took the
opportunity to look closely at their rival entries in the
pits, perhaps hoping to gain that competitive advantage
for next year!
As is traditional, Heat One of the morning action saw holders
Langley Park take to the track in defense of their title.
The team from Kent looked determined to keep their trophy
and other teams were diasppointed to see 
they
had retained the services of the champion driver from 2003!
Due to the expanded nature of the competition this year,
it was necessary for ten heats to take place to decide which
schools should participate in the three leg Grand Prix Final.
Each heat was divided into two legs, to allow schools who
suffered with mechanical failure another opportunity to
qualify. The 18 schools with the largest number of laps
completed would go forward to the demanding Grand Prix.
From the very beginning racing was of a high standard and
as usual there were a number of spectacular crashes that
brought gasps of amazement form the huge crowd. Marshals
were kept busy retrieving cars from the unforgiving tyre
walls, and team mechanics had plenty to do patching cars
up for the next race. As time wore on it became clear that
the number of laps required to reach the finals were going
to be extremely high, with schools performing much better
than in previous years.
The Grand Prix Final was as exciting as ever, with a large
number of cars racing around the track at high speed. With
the increased traffic, driver skill was at a premium and
there were plenty of prangs and near misses to thrill the
crowd.
After the thrills of the Grand Prix, the large crowd assembled
behind the barriers to hear the results. Prizes were presented
by various sponsors and supporters in a number of categories.
As
ever, there was generous sponsorship by many too numerous
to mention here. The fact that prizes are awarded in so
many categries shows what a multi-faceted event Formula
School is, reflecting as it does, the world of Motor Sport
Engineering.
History
will record that Fomula Schools VIII was won by Kirk Hallam,
but like Langley Park and Ash Manor before them they will
know that retaining their trophy will be even harder. Rookies
St Dunstan, Darrickwood and Fulwood all showed that they
have what it takes to compete at the highest level, and
they will return next year confident that they can give
Kirk Hallam a real run for their money.
Winners
2004
| Electric Challenge |
|
|
|
| Driving |
Dronfield |
Teamwork |
Matthew Holland |
| Body & Aero |
St Pauls Catholic School |
Engineering |
Tudor Grange |
| Overall Winners |
Tudor Grange |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
| IC Class |
|
|
|
| Teamwork Rookie |
Fullwood |
Teamwork Expert |
Langley Park |
| Body & Aero Rookie |
Fullwood |
Body & Aero Expert |
Ash Manor |
| Engineering Rookie |
Bircotes & Haworth |
Engineering Expert |
Kirk Hallam |
| Fastest Lap |
St Dunstan's |
Driving |
Kirk Hallam |
| Sprint |
Slough Grammar |
Slalom |
Tuxford |
| Race Day Display |
St Dunstan's |
Web Site |
St Dunstan's |
| Innovative Engineering |
Farnham Heath End |
Composites |
Kings Nottingham |
| Heat 1 |
Langley Park |
Heat 6 |
Marlborough |
| Heat 2 |
Lord Williams |
Heat 7 |
Shirebrook |
| Heat 3 |
Kirk Hallam |
Heat 8 |
Queen Elizabeth's |
| Heat 4 |
Ash Manor |
Heat 9 |
Hillside |
| Heat 5 |
Darrick Wood |
Heat 10 |
Toot Hill |
| |
|
|
|
| Overall Scores |
|
|
|
| |
1. Kirk
Hallam |
|
|
| |
2. Langley
Park |
|
|
| |
3. Ash
Manor |
|
|
download
results spreadsheet here
