Stats - 2005 Ferrari Hillclimb Championship - Club Racing Series'

<% theSection = "club_racing_series" %> Stats - 2005 Ferrari Hillclimb Championship - Club Racing Series' - Ferrari Owners' Club

FERRARI HILL CLIMB CHAMPIONSHIP

2005 SEASON STATISTICAL REVIEW
by Graham Easter

The 2005 Championship again embraced 14 rounds at 11 venues, North Weald, Bouley Bay and Doune were out, Llandow, Hethel and Cadwell Park in, plus the innovation of a Loton Park double-header and a Curborough two-lapper. Most were popular, all but Llandow stay in next season and Bouley and the dreaded North Weald return. The Championship is now extended to 15 rounds with the best eight to count.

Harewood (R12) was yet again the most popular venue, attracting 21 competitors, with Round 3 (Prescott) and Round 9 (Gurston Down) the least, but both still with a perfectly respectable nine apiece. The average number of entrants per meeting was up to 13.6, which reflects the popularity of this burgeoning series - 34 drivers (up four from last year) took part (plus Mike Haigh, but his car is not eligible), making it easily the most popular of the Club's competition series'. The average number of meetings per driver was up again slightly to 5.7.

Richard Prior was the only driver to compete in all of the meetings (for the fifth year running) and this year he finally did the business. Geoff Dark was second, missing only Llandow, but it is a heck of a long way from Essex! Nick Taylor, Chris Butler and Jon & Pauline Goodwin competed in ten events. This season 12 stalwarts (up from eight last year), the six already mentioned plus newcomer David Tomlin, Richard Allen, Andy Grier and Scuderia Hitchman competed in seven rounds or more. These formed the "hard core" of the Series, interestingly 41% of them came from Staffordshire - so move over Essex!

Our spread sheets allow you to play tunes on the PEPs, for example Richard Prior would have won by 17 points if the 308 had had its 2004 PEP of -1.5%, or Nick Taylor would have won by four points from Richard if he hadn't had the reigning Champ's +1%. The 355 would have needed a PEP of +0.75% to have won the Championship (Butler from Prior and Dark, tied). The 328 wouldn't have won a round without the help of the - 0.5% it got for this year. It would have taken a PEP of -3.25% for a normale 308 to have won a round (Brian Jackson at R4 Harewood), on which scenario Geoff Dark would have won the Championship by 15 points from Richard Prior.

Whatever - the Championship usually goes to the right man - a quick and determined competitor consistently getting the best out of his car and fighting it out over the whole of a long season - congratuations again Richard.

Anyway, here's the stats - make of them what you will...

Piloti

Pilota	Points	Pts. per mtg.
Prior Dark Taylor Butler Goodwin J Tomlin RA Grier Hitchman C Goodwin P Hitchman P Hitchman L	131 129 114 114 96 77 71 62 52 51 41 22	18.71 18.43 16.29 16.29 13.71 11.00 10.14 8.86 7.43 7.29 5.86 3.14 Best 7 counted

This year's Championship, as do so many, settled down to two protagonists slugging it out over all of the rounds. Richard of course (just) emerged on top after the very last round and his and Geoff's average points per meeting over seven rounds reflects the closeness of the contest. Third and fourth men Nick Taylor and Chris Butler's are identical and it went to eighth place results to decide. The 12 named are those heroes who did seven rounds or more.

Pilota	Mean Score	Std. Deviation
Hitchman C Prior Goodwin J Hitchman L Hitchman P Taylor Grier RA Tomlin Goodwin P Dark Butler Mineeff	7.43 17.43 12.90 3.14 5.86 15.20 8.38 9.25 10.25 5.50 15.54 14.30 14.67	1.29 1.80 1.87 1.96 2.10 2.23 2.50 3.19 3.27 3.41 3.50 4.20 5.79

The closeness of the above scores led us to seek some other measure of comparison. This table shows the mean score for all of the rounds in which a driver competed and the standard deviation from that score, which statisticians tell me is a measure of how widely values are dispersed from the average value (the mean) and which provides a measure of consistency The magnificent twelve again, plus Mineeff, whose tendency to win or chuck it off made him the Montoya of the FHCC. In contrast Richard (Alonso) Prior is second in the consistency charts only to Chris Hitchman; this (and of course high scoring too) is how championships are won.

Pilota	Superlative Performances
	Wins		Website reports writted
	Outright	PEPS
Taylor Goodwin J Butler Prior Dark Mineeff Spicer Hitchman L RA Wood	6 5 3 - - -	1 - 3 4 4 2	- - 1 - - 1 1 1 1 1

Three drivers took outright wins, with Nick Taylor in the lead with six, including a great run of four in a row. He also managed to beat his reigning Champion's +1% PEP to take one points' win. Gooders took five outright wins, but no PEPs, but Chris Butler won took three outright AND managed the PEPs double each time! Richard Prior and Geoff Dark tied on four PEPs wins apiece and Mineeff won twice, both times at Harewood. He was the only newcomer to the winners’ circle, with Nick Frost dropping out having done only one meeting. The more observant of you may have noticed a new category of superlative performance we have introduced this year. We have opened negotiations with RA on awarding bonus points for this in the coming season, so watch this space.

Tipos

Tipo	No.
355 328 308 Mondial t 348GTC 348 GT4 246 575M 360 Mondial QV	11 10 5 4 2 2 1 1 1 1 1

Eleven different tipos were raced with the 355 taking over as he most popular with eleven examples taking part. The 328, for so many years the mainstay of the Series, dropped to second with ten examples competing. Four Mondial ts appeared, two 348s and two 348GTCs. Colin Campbell ensured the 246's continuing prescence, Pauline Goodwin saved the 360 from being downgraded to full "hairdresser" status and Mark Hargreaves kept the GT4 in the Series. Quite a number of piloti drove two tipos, but once again RA was the driver to use the widest variety with three. I think he only fielded his 328 in the last round to ensure that he upstaged everyone else!

Tipo	No. Wins
Tipo	Outright	PEP
355 348GTC Mondial t 348 308m 328	8 5 1 - - -	3 1 - 4 4 2

This year only three tipos took outright wins. The 355 was the most successful with eight and was only beaten by a 348GTC, this year in Nick Taylor's hands, he also took an outright win with his faithful Mondial in the wet in the Series' opener at Loton Park. The 355 also took three PEPS wins (all by Chris Butler). Richard Prior scored four PEPs wins in his trusty 348. Geoff Dark took four in his 308 modificato. The 328 returned to the winners circle, courtesy of Mineeff.

Click here to go to the 2005 Ferrari Hill Climb Championship page.

Click here to go to the 2006 Pirelli Ferrari Hillclimb Championship page.