Lancashire"s MkII grabs victory

Trevor Lancashire"s MkII didn"t mind the cold at Latton on Sunday and it was in sweet form as it carried the Drum driver to victory. He had more than four seconds in hand over Joseph Smith, one of the most consistent drivers at the quarry venue, but both Escorts looked fantastic on the twisty confines of the wintry track (it never gets warm there, the regulars informed the Anglo-Celt!). Mark Wedlock was driving his father"s new MkII Escort and enjoyed a clean run, going quickly enough to be blocked and earn a re-run on his first outing. He finished five seconds behind Smith, which you could put down to him minding his father"s car... Mervyn looked cosy enough as clerk of the course in an ice suit, taking his level of participation in the championship he sponsors to new levels of intimacy. He is fighting for the overall title and will have earned average points for his CoC duty. Tommy Donlon from Longford won class one and finished fourth overall, a great result that reflected his neat driving style, and the pair fighting for overall class honours - Micky Conlon and Alan Pickens - finished second and third in class, separated by less than two seconds. Shane McGirr and Andrew Lang had a good battle in class two and finished less than a second apart, and Anthony Lynch had a good run too. In class three Barry McArdle (the son of former winner the Dozer McArdle), showed Colm (on his first drive at Latton) and Martin Brady the way home. Justin and Gerry Smyth shared the family MkII, Justin"s first time in the car having done a few quarry events to get a licence upgrade. That worked as he was nearly six seconds ahead of his father and second in class, behind Joseph Smith. Stephen Wright had mechanical trouble in the second run and his car was well off the pace for the final run, which kept him away from a class win. There were 42 entries and in all it was a successful day for Cavan Motor Club... despite the biting wind. The final round of the championship is on December 27, when the various battles of 2008 will be settled.