Evening all, well what can we say, the Pete House memorial meeting 2024 was a amazing day. 🙂

Normally after a BMCC meeting the focus of the posts is about the racing, who won, and how the finals went etc, but this is not a normal post race report.

It may sound soppy, but on Saturday everybody won!, no matter what final, or place you finished. The idea of this event is to remember a very much missed member of our RC community, have fun, raise some money for charity, and to sit and chat, and race some friends old and new. Hopefully that’s what you all did.

We had past BMCC drivers turn up to race, current racers that have just not had time of late to race come and play, and even BMCC drivers from 20 plus years ago join us for the afternoon, and the raffle! We thank you all 🙂

The only winner of the day that this post will mention, (and you can’t actually win it by winning!) is Daren Wood.

Evey year the BMCC team choose a racer who “sees the bigger picture” of our little RC world, just like Pete did. It’s not about the winning, it’s about the place, the people, the hobby, and doing what’s right.

So in 2024 the Pete House memorial shield went to Daren Wood, congratulations mate, Pete would be proud.

We should take this chance to say thank you to the Aldingbourne Community Sports Centre. They very kindly gave us the hall for free for the day, which means that all the money raised from entries, donations, and the raffle can go to the air ambulance.

Also thanks go to Stuart Hollebon, he was in attendance all day taking pics and filming for his fb page, stuarts rc photos and video, and to Dave Rogers from flippin tasty for doing the food, and judging our concourse event, thanks guys👍

As always thanks go to Rob and Juilet and Gordon, on race control, and the rest of the BMCC team for helping to set up, and pack away.

Finally an absolutely massive thanks to all who raced, donated raffle prizes, bought raffle tickets, donated money, and made the day what it was, roll on 2025🙂

All the race results are in the Results section of the club website, and photos and videos are on the fb page. If you want more go to stuarts fb pages or youtube channel.

That’s all for tonight, the final total raised this year is £660.75.

Evening all, Sunday September the 10th 2023 will always be remembered as a good day for Bognor Model Car Club.

This was our second running of the Pete House memorial meeting. This meeting happens once a year in memory of our very much missed chairman Pete House. Pete was the chairman, and “face” of BMCC for over 20 years. It’s fair to say that without him, BMCC as we know it today would most likely not exist.

This meeting is not only to remember Pete, but also to try and raise money for the air ambulance service as this was Pete’s chosen charity. During this event we run a “normal” race meeting, but the emphasis is on having fun, and meeting up with ex racers, and racers from other clubs, rather than race results and lap times.

We run the event in this manner as this was all part of what made Pete so special. He always saw the “bigger picture” of the club, and how important it was to have fun, and help other members out during meetings, this is probably why the club is still going strong more than 30 years after it was started.

We also run a concourse event at the start of the meeting. Pete was a paint sprayer by trade, and always enjoyed preparing a smart new shell for a big event.

We hold a raffle during the event, with all proceeds going to charity. All of the racers entry fee also goes to the air ambulance as well.

This is made possible because the Aldingbourne Centre provides the hall free of charge for this event, so many thanks to them.

This is also a good time to again thank everyone who came and raced, donated to the raffle and, bought raffle tickets. We should also mention that one of our regular racers made a very kind gesture of donating 100 pounds to the air ambulance service via the club. Ian lane you are a star! We also had donations from the catering team, racers family members, and many more, massive thanks to you all!

The actual event itself started on the Saturday evening for the BMCC team, and some local club members. This time was spent setting up the track, pit areas, and making final plans for the day.

The big day arrived, and the sun was out, and the racers arrived on mass. When all the drivers were booked in and set up, a drivers briefing was done explaining the running of the day. The concourse event was then held with all cars on track for photos, and judging. Allan Goodland’s daughter Holly was kind enough to judge the concourse event again, (she did such a good job last year) that it was never a question as to who would be doing it at the 2023 event. Same again in 2024 Holly? 👍

The concourse winners were,

1300 stoxcars, Ian Lane
2litres saloons, Keith Furminger
Mini stoxs, Jack Cooper
Hot rods, John Lemm

All the winners were given chocolates as their prizes. 😋

A timed practice for all drivers was then held before the 3 rounds of mixed heat qualifying started. At BMCC we use the bbk system, so all the racers have a “race slip” giving them there heat races and car numbers etc. Lee Young has gone one better than this, and has a small white board with his, and daughter Ella’s races on them. It also has space for race results, and extra room for a smiley face when daughter beats dad! 😉👍

The 3 rounds of qualifying for all then started. Racers were seen tuning there cars to the tricky BMCC oval, some were seen preparing to race by enjoying a full English breakfast from the kitchen staff! We are told it was rather good as well. 😋

After the qualifying heats were completed it was time to do the raffle. This did take some time as the raffle was mega! There was everything from a brand new TWR chassis kit, to beers, to a rc drone, to a very nice Michael Schumacher picture. It’s also worth pointing out that even with the huge amount of tickets that were sold there did seem to be a small group of people who were just lucky to win multiple times, but in the true sprit of the day they repeatedly said “pick another” giving others the chance to win a prize 👍

As everyone was in the main Hall it was then time to present the Pete House memorial shield. This is a prize that each year is given to someone on the day that BMCC believe has acted In a way that Pete would of approved of. It can not be won by being the fastest, or the best. Its awarded to some one who went out of there way to “see the bigger picture” just as Pete did so many times. Allan Goodland was the winner last year, so it was down to him to announce this year’s award winner, and pass on the shield to its new keeper for the next 12 months. This year the award was given to Keith Smith (very much to his surprise). Keith has raced at the club for over 30 years and was good friends with Pete. It was said that this was the only moment during the day Keith was lost for words!

It was then time for the finals. With a lot of cars, and races to get through it was straight finals for all classes. We will start with the 1300’s. The winners in each class, plus the top juniors would get vaiours prizes.

The D final would have Phill Reed on pole, with Ziggy Tate on grid 2, and young James Henderson on grid 3. Ziggy would go on to take the win in this one, from Phill, and young James.

The C final would have Andy Henderson on pole, Rob Driver on grid 2, Ella Young on grid 3, David Harrison on grid 4, luke Henderson on grid 5, and Keith Furminger on grid 6. This was a very close final with the top 3 all on 70 laps. Rob would take the win from Andy in 2nd. Ella would take 3rd, with Keith, luke, and David filling the other places.

The B final would have Marek Szrok on pole. On grid 2 would be lan Lane, grid 3 was Allan Goodland. Grid 4 was Darren Wood, grid 5 wad Nigel Furminger, grid 6 was Oliver Parham. This was another epic finish with the top 3 also all on the same lap. Marek would take the win, from lan, and Allan. Darren, Nigel, and Oliver would fill the other places.

The A final had Keith Smith on pole, with Harry Cooper on grid 2. Chris Booker was on grid 3, Matt Caney was grid 4, Paul Cooper was grid 5, and a very respectable grid 6 went to Dan Summerfield on his first visit to the tricky BMCC oval. This was yet another close finish. Keith would take the win from Chris and Harry. Matt Paul and Dan would fill the other places.

The minis went all in for their final. There were 9 cars, but the drivers seemed happy for some “mini madness” Alex Suckling would take the win, from Paul Cooper in 2nd. Ian lane would take 3rd, with lee young in 4th. 5th was Nigel Furminger, with Jack Cooper 6th, 7th was Allan Goodland, 8th was Harry Weymouth, with Austin Suckling 9th.

The saloons would also go all in with 6 cars. Lee Young would take the win from Alex Suckling in 2nd. 3rd would be Ian Lane, 4th was Dan Summerfield, with Austin Suckling 5th. Unfortunately Keith Furminger was a dns.

Brushed rods next, the B final would be won by Matt Caney, with Ian Lane in 2nd. Allan Goodland would take 3rd, from Darren Wood in 4th. Jon Lemm was 5th. Marek Szrok was 6th.

The A final was won by Chris Booker in a impressive drive. Keith Smith was 2nd with Harry Weymouth in 3rd. Jack Cooper was 4th, with brother Harry Cooper in 5th. Max Flynn was 5th.

The Brushless (BRCA) rods went all in with 5 cars. Lee Young would take the win from Alex Suckling in 2nd. Ella Young would take 3rd with Austin Suckling 4th, and Richard Harris in 5th.

Full race results can be found in the Results section of the club website.

Thanks again to all that helped make the day a success, to Juilet and Rob on race control, and to everyone that helped pack up at the end.

The total raised for the Air Ambulance this year is £772.42. Roll on 2024!

Well what a day it was. The first Pete House memorial meeting has finally happened and it was definitely worth the wait! The weather was sunny, and the racers were happy, and a good day was had by all.

The event was run as a fun days racing, and a chance to raise money for Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex. Aldingbourne Community Sports Centre had very kindly given us the hall for the day free of charge. This meant that along with all the money raised from the raffle and collection boxes, that all the driver entry fees/donations would also go to the very impressive total amount raised of £704.21.

The winners of each class would receive car stand trophies designed and made by “Team Cooper”. 2nd and 3rd would win chocolate racing car kebabs. Our 3 junior racers would all be awarded chocolate bars. The other prizes of the day were all in memory of Pete House. Pete worked for many years as a paint sprayer and always enjoyed a concourse event, and was a regular winner over the years.

The “main” prize of the day was the Pete House Memorial award. This was something we kept under raps until the day of the event. Pete himself was never hugely competitive on the racing side of things, but he was always the first to offer help to others. He always saw the bigger picture of what the club meant, and his calm manner helped steer the club through good times and bad. With all this in mind the Pete House memorial award is not something you can win on the track. It’s about the person, and how they conduct themselves, rather than how many laps, or races they win.

The award itself was donated by Pete’s wife Julie, and his son’s Stuart and Mathew. There was also refreshments in the shape of tea/coffee, cakes and treats, and various bags of chocolates spread around the pitting areas for the racers to enjoy. Julie, Stuart, and Mathew were all present during the day to see the racing, and catch up with a lot of our long standing racers.

We also has some Ex-racers pop in to say Hi, which just shows how much Pete was respected. Steve Westbrook, Dale and Alan Goodchild to name a few. Maybe we will see them racing with us again in the future?

After booking in, and the drivers briefing the first event was the concourse. The cars were separated into classes. Holly Goodland very kindly acted as judge, and made a great job of it as well. The winners were,

Hot rod – Max Flynn
1300’s – Gordon Brett
2litre saloons – Ian lane
Mini stoxs – Stuart Morgan

So to the racing, an open practice session was held first for each class before 4 rounds of qualifying, with mixed heats for all classes but the saloons. There would also be bump up finals for all classes apart from the saloons which had an all in heat and final.

We will start with the mini stox. The heats were as you would expect for the mini class with lots of giggles along the way. The B final had Stuart Morgan on pole, Andi Tamplin on grid 2, lan Lane on grid 3, Matt Jordon on grid 4, Kevin Brand on grid 5, Darren Houston on grid 6 and the Gordon Brett mini, (which was a raffle prize won by Antony Figg), and thus raced by him in the final on grid 7. In a close race it was lan Lane taking the win, from Andi Tamplin, with both moving up to the A final. The other places were filled by Stuart, Matt, Kevin, Antony, and Darren.

The A final had Martin Watts on pole, Chris Booker on grid 2, Paul Cooper on grid 3, Richard Morgan on grid 4, Leo Houston on grid 5, Ian lane on grid 6, and Andi Tamplin on grid 7. This was a very close race, Martin took the win but only just from Chris. Paul Cooper was a couple of laps down in 3rd. The other places were filled by Richard, Ian, Leo, and Andi.

Brushed rods next. It would have been nice to split the cars for 3 heats, but as time was pushed with a busy day planned it had to be 2 heats which ment a busy time for the rods. That said it was not easy to qualify directly into the main final with some quick cars having to make there way using the bump up system.

The C final had Allan Goodland on pole, from Mark Smith on grid 2, Liam Booker on grid 3, and Paul Baker on grid 4. Young Liam Booker would go on to take the win from Allan Goodland. The returning Mark Smith and Paul Baker would fill the other places.

The B final had Max Flynn on pole, Anthony Figg on grid 2, lan Lane on grid 3, Chris Moran on grid 4, Liam Booker on grid 5, and Allan Goodland on grid 6. Max Flynn would take the win, followed by a very happy Chris Moran in 2nd. The other places were filled by Liam, Allan, Anthony, and Ian.

The A final had Keith Smith on pole from Chris Booker on grid 2, Harry Weymouth on grid 3, Harry Cooper on grid 4, Max Flynn on grid 5 and Chris Moran on grid 6. This was a fast paced race as expected. Chris Moran was a unfortunately dnf with shell problems. Keith would take the win from Max in 2nd, with both the Harry’s on split time in 3rd and 4th. It was Harry Cooper in 3rd, and Harry Weymouth in 4th. Chris Booker dropped to 5th with a car that had not been charged doh! and the unlucky Chris Moran in 6th.

1300’s now, the D final had Matt Caney on pole, from Paul Baker. Gordon Brett was on grid 3 and Kevin Brand was grid 4. Unfortunately Matt was out after just 1 lap. Gordon Brett would go on to take the win from Kevin with Paul 3rd and Matt in 4th.

The C final Cameron large on pole, Ethan Aldridge on grid 2, Andi Tamplin on grid 3, Ashley Aldridge on grid 4, Liam Booker on grid 5, Matt Caney on grid 6 and Gordon Brett on grid 7. The top 4 cars would all finish in there grid positions, Matt Caney would climb to 5th, followed by Liam Booker and Gordon Brett.

The B final had Chris Moran on pole, with Ian Lane on grid 2, rob driver on grid 3, Daren Wood on grid 4, Allan Goodland on grid 5, Cameron large on grid 6 and Ethan Aldridge on grid 7. Come the end it was young Cameron large taking another win! Could he go all the way? Ian lane was 2nd but on just on split time from Daren Wood. Rob Driver was 4th followed by Chris, Ethan, and Allan.

The A final had a normal club night look about the front row. Max Flynn was on pole from Harry Cooper, Richard Morgan was 3rd, from Paul Cooper in 4th, Stuart Morgan in 5th, Cameron large in 6th, and lan Lane 7th. We asked the question could Cameron go all the way? The answer was a amazing yes! He took the win a couple of laps ahead of Harry Cooper in 2nd, and Max Flynn in 3rd. Stuart Morgan was 4th, with 2nd to 4th all on the same lap! Richard Morgan, Paul Cooper and lan Lane filled the other places.

The Saloons had a very “hot racers ” feel to it. With a all in heat final it would be Leo Houston on pole, from Martin Watts on grid 2. Cameron large was grid 3, with Stuart Morgan grid 4, and Ian Lane grid 5. Leo would go on to win from good friend and rival Martin Watts. Cameron was 3rd, from lan Lane and Stuart Morgan.

When the finals were finished the winners were presented with there prizes. It was then time to announce the first winner of the Pete House Memorial award. The committee had decided that the first winner would be Allan Goodland. Allan only started racing with us during our lock down meetings. He is now a regular BMCC racer and is a real asset to the club. Amazingly he knew Pete through a model boat racing club many years ago. Allan was visible moved by being chosen which was nice to see.

Full race results can be found in the Results section of the club website.

So there you have it, the meeting we had waited for. Hopefully we did it justice, you all had a fun day and a safe journey home. The list of people to thank is so long, let’s just say a massive thank you! to absolutely everyone that made the day what it was.

After some unavoidable time offline, bognormodelcars.org.uk is finally back with a fresh new look.

In July 2020 the clubs long time chairman Peter House sadly passed away. Pete not only ran and organised club meetings for over 25 years, he also maintained the club website. Without Pete’s efforts BMCC would not be what it is today and Monday nights are certainly not the same without him. Keeping the club website going is just one small way of honouring Pete’s involvement in the club, but we will also be holding a Memorial meeting on Saturday 6th August 2022. More details on this will be posted on our Blog and Facebook page once confirmed.

Please let us know via Facebook messenger if you spot any issues with our new website and keep an eye out for further improvements.