The Campfield family has been involved in motorsport for over 30 years, under my guardianship, from MGC’s with V8 engines, to Healey 3000s and triple championship winning modsports Frogeye Sprite. We have also raced the March 803 with good effect, and have now moved on to a Chevron B24 Formula 5000. We also own a works MGB BRX854B held as an investment and a show car.
The jewel in the crown is our gorgeous silver Aston Martin DB5 which we are considering using for promotional work or weddings (contact us).
Alongside this my three boys, Marc, Adrian and Jack embarked on a karting career, Jack moved on to golf, Marc went from karting to sports cars, winning the Austin Healey championship twice in 2006, 2007, while I won it in 2008. Marc has won several prestige races, probably the most spectacular ever being Castle Combe April 2012, where in the wet he beat a strong field of Porsches, Astons and Cobras in our red and green Austin Healey 3000. The car was sideways most of the race, he won by 1m 23secs and was awarded driver of the day. To witness that bit of driving was to see something at the top of high speed car control, it was amazing. There is also a very popular Spa on board video taken from the Healey using an iPhone taped to the windscreen with a bit of cardboard. It is stunning view of the circuit and how to drive a Healey with loose hub nuts.
Adrian stayed with karting, Super One, jica and the Kent formula ford in a Swift 93. He did well, our first race in it being the Walter Hayes, first time in the car, by Sunday we couldn’t understand why a lot had gone home, we made the grand final only to be taken out in the wet.
Andy Stapley then ran Adrian in Kent and then Duratec Formula Ford, we were the only guys in the national Formula Ford scene to have a trailer and van with an easy up awning. We then raced with Kevin Mills, using the weak suspensioned Spectrum, we had some podiums and a win outright but were always struggling against Jamun. To Germany for ADAC Formule Masters, some historic wins running with Otto and Henry in the Macon team, and 3rd overall after being taken out at the last race. A Formula 3 test with VW was organised, Adrian did really well, just a small question of finance in our way. He has done several Formula Ford races for Kevin, and after only getting his licence on Monday the week before the Walter Hayes 2011, starting from the back with a 10sec penalty in the first heat, he went on to win the race outright in spectacular style.
Since then he has done a Formula Ford at Brands, where he was narrowly beaten by Joey Foster, and a Healey race with Marc at Donnington, which he loved, but the car got a bit bent after an altercation with a Mustang.
I still love my racing, although 54 years young, I have won my class in the Frogeye Sprite in the Sprite and Midget challenge 2012, always running top 5, but not with the grip to beat the slick shod cars, we are on ACB10s. I have also run the F5000 this year at the Silverstone Classic, where I was airborne in the first race, dnf, last to 9th in the second, fuel problems put me back to 13th. The Oulton Park gold cup was fun, wets with no heat, last to 14th, 2nd race 14th to 4th with slicks in the wet, then back to 7th after a lack of talent moment. With 512bhp and 630kgs in the wet, it concentrates the mind and the throttle settings.
I wish someone would offer my boys some drives, they are very good and deserve a break, but maybe I am biased.
Paul Campfield