Warwickshire News Mine

Tour Britannia has attracted a diverse entry, running from 5th to 8th September and combines the best of the country’s race circuits with special tests in the grounds of castles, stately homes and parks.

This year the event has been sponsored by Warwickshire County Council and partners as part of `The Winning Technology: Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire’. The partnership recognises motorsport as crucial to the region and aims to enhance its reputation and attract more companies to the area.

Cllr Chris Saint, Warwickshire County Council’s Cabinet member for Economic Development, said: “I’m pleased to see Tour Britannia based at Coombe Abbey. We are very proud to have such a high profile event in the sub-region of Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire – hence our support through sponsorship.

”Events such as this are great news for Warwickshire and partners, for example, you only need to look at the economic benefits from accommodation. The event lasts for four days, there will be about 75 competing cars with crews and 40 officials, this means about 1,500 bed nights over the four/five days.

“The event should provide a real spectacle for the people of Warwickshire. During the four competitive days Tour Britannia will cover 640 miles on public roads and it is estimated that 750,000 people will see the event.”

First run in September 2005, Tour Britannia was inspired by the famous Tour de France Auto, an event that took place annually in France from 1951 to 1975. The concept of that event involved the principles of rally by taking place on open public roads, but with the competition elements taking place mainly on race circuits and hill climbs.

The British event is the brainchild of former racing driver. Alec Poole and international rally co-driver Fred Gallagher. Hillclimbs, sprints and action at some of the regions top motorsport venues will be taken in next week.

There is an exciting list of drivers and cars committed to the event and leading the field away from the start at Coombe Abbey will be the competitors in the Touring – Regularity category. 2005 winner John Ruston has exchanged his 1934 Talbot for an AC Ace, and a similar car will be driven by last year’s third-place driver, Belgian Marc Vandendijk.

Exotic V8 fan Philippe Olczyk exchanges his Bizzarini for an Iso Rivolta, Julian Taylor brings a pretty Ferrari Dino 246GT while Daily Telegraph motoring writers Peter Hall and Andrew English will share a Triumph GT6.

In the Competition category, 2005 winner Ray Bellm has swapped his Ford GT40 for a Lotus Elan and the ex-FIA GT World Champion promises to be a top contender for overall Tour Britannia honours. Last year’s runner up Howard Redhouse also has a Lotus, but his is a monstrous V8 powered 30, and the Irishman will be looking to go one place better in 2006.

Chevrons have replaced Ford GT40s as the most popular weapon of choice. Michael Schryver, Chris Chiles and Gareth Burnett are all in B8s and their races should be memorable.

With more twisty circuits and an increased stage mileage in the 2006 Tour Britannia route, Porsche 911s may well feature at the top of the leaderboard, especially with the likes of Nick Faure, Peter Lovett, Nick Whale and Paul Howells at the wheel. Robi Bernberg returns with his more standard 911, while Adam Wiseberg drives a similar machine.

Austin Healeys didn’t feature in the inaugural Tour Britannia entry list but this year already three have been entered. 1994 Tour Auto winner Bobby Bell drives Oliver Harris’s 100/4, while Chris Levett-Prinsep has a 3000 MkII. Eric Woolley swaps the Mustang he campaigned in 2005 for a 3000 Sebring.

Ford Mustangs are as popular as ever with David and Caroline Betts hoping to repeat their success of 2005 with their Shelby GT350, while Colorado’s Doug Allen is back again. Newcomers Roy Stephenson and auction house boss Simon Hope bring along similar examples. Other big V8s include the Chevrolets of Richard Lloyd and Rob Potter, with ex Formula 2 star Jac Nelleman sharing the wheel. Jonathan Bradburn’s Cobra, Malcolm Verey’s Sunbeam Tiger and Pietro Silva’s de Tomaso are also V8 powered.

Frenchman Yves Junne comes fresh from his post-historic victory in the Tour Auto, where Tour Britannia Sporting Director Fred Gallagher was co-driving. Junne swaps his Porsche 910 for a 904 this time and should be a top contender for outright victory in the Index of Performance classification.

Rudiger Friedrichs, last year’s Tour Britannia Index victor, comes from Germany with his 1932 Alvis Speed 20 while, from Switzerland, Arnold and Diego Meier have a Ferrari Daytona and an Alfa Romeo GTA respectively.

Other interesting vehicles to feature on the start list for Tour Britannia 2006 are Norman Grimshaw’s Mini Cooper S, Michael O’Shea’s Fiat Dino Spyder, Kevin Zwolinski’s Jaguar XK120 and Peter Mullen’s Alfa. Mike Smith, who took his Ford Escort TC to a giant-killing 13th overall in 2005, is back and looking forward to continuing his class battle with the Alpine-Renault of Charles Reynolds and John Day.

Tour Britannia will run from Tuesday 5th to Friday 8th September 2006 and will be based at the exclusive Coombe Abbey Hotel in Warwickshire.

For more information visit http://www.tourbritannia.com or email info@tourbritannia.com

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