The latest updates are at the top of the page. Click on your Browser's Refresh key to be sure of seeing the latest news. Click here to return to the Event Index.

17:05

Dan Williams' newly built Chevy Impala came to the line but was pushed back. Nic Williams explained to us earlier it is a legal SS/NA car with a 327ci engine, 9" rear axle and rebuilt suspension with special shock absorbers which will help with the expected wheelies. Leo Lester followed with a 8.3624/168.52, closer to the 8.50 class index. Barry Giles on his fifth run of the day ran 7.3989/180.51 (1.0609 60ft), fantastic consistency.

Dan Williams reappeared, leak sorted, and the Impala ran 11.5431/116.52, Nic and Lorne smiling as they walked away from the line. That's our report finished, we'll post our gallery in a short while.

16:50

Matt Peters came out for a licensing run in the Lucas Oil Products Dodge Avenger. Spencer Tramm guided the car through its manoevures. The launch was a stronger 1.1231 60ft and the car started swaying a little coming up to 330ft where Matt lifted to a 11.4675/61.58.

Tom Watkins in Neill Watkins' pickup ran a 11.3558/114.06 followed by Mark Todd, the Aston making a move to the right off the line and Mark lifted. Amy Watkins ran 9.5394/139.81. CB803 ran 9.0123/175.04

16:25

Leo Lester's latest time was a 8.2454/169.80, bordering on index naughtiness. Kevin Jenkins then ran 8.7997/154.66, the car sounding clean down the track and launching straight. Steve Venables suffered a half track wheelie and lifted to a 7.9953/148.66. Ian Chrichlow ran 8.5091/156.84 on his 8.50 bike, nicely set up we would say.

Elaine Hancock's third pass of the day in Lethal Zephyr was a 8.5063/156.81 (1.2228 60ft) which makes three 8.5 runs in a row, looks like target achieved!

16:05

Alex Hope on the restart ran 9.664/143.91. Then Mick Howling made his third pass of the day, 8.3182/156.82. Next was Guy King in the Williams Bros Racing Chevelle, 11.117/122.41 and an audibly early gearshift along the way.

Tom Watkins took Dad Neill Watkins' Purple Express Mopar truck to 11.3804/113.49 followed by Amy who wheelied her way to 9.5531/138.96.

Ronnie Mercer ran 9.3778/142.02, the nitrous most likely engaged for that one as the ET is over a second better than his first runs.

Daniel Weir has a 'For Sale' on his car and he his JM went 9.2606/69.59 to Freddie Taylor's 8.9911/72.75 at a -0.0001 RT! Ben Newsome's crew chief Cliff followed with 9.0044/150.57 compared to three eight second tickets earlier today.

Joe Kellett then did a test run in the ex-Przybyl rear engined dragster, the Kelletts now a two car team and a new car in the making for the Przybyls for 2021. A gentle pass to 10.1227/86.50.

Mark Dainty pushed his Super Street Bike to another PB, 7.1815/202.34 (1.2540 to 60ft and 4.7755/164.85 at the eighth), well done Mark and crew!

15:55

Elaine Hancock with her second pass in Lethal Zephyr, crew including Mike Lacey, car running a consistent 8.5115/155.19. Next up Gary Lake v Debbie Taylor, 14.2334/93.14 to 13.2272/103.99 for Debbie.

Mark Todd in 6 Appeal, went up on the revs, but a puff of smoke at 330ft and off the throttle to 12.5/57.83, could be a planned launch. The startline crew then sprung into action as Dave Crowhurst's Camaro had spilt some fluid before and in the burnout box, the car being pushed away.

Andy Head on Sean Mills' black Super CC outlaw bike lined up pointing right and promptly suffered tyre spin which he rode out of to a 9.0508/177.81, turbo screaming at the top end.

Gino Bernadine then ran his Escort, a gentle run down the track to check what is presumably a changed setup. It was followed by the Giles & Hartley ragster which ran 7.3881/179.16. Then Ian Chrichlow ran a close-to-index 8.5173/156.97. Simon Cowley in his Comp Eliminator Mk1 Golf started with 1.7143 60ft but suffered after the eighth and eventually came to a halt just after the finish line, a gearbox selection issue being the supposed issue. On hold for retieval and cleanup.

15:35

Mick Howling ran a 8.3322/157.43 sans throttle stop on this run. Ronnie Mercer then ran 9.8095/132.43, sounded like a misfire at the top end. Debbie Taylor ran 13.1647/104.70 on her seventh run of the day. Dan Todd's JD ran 12.2873/50.99 on his fourth pass. We understand from tutor and Junior Dragster guru Andy Fensome that Dan's license has been signed off, well done Dan!

Then John Tebenham brought out the 'Crew Killer' and was more adventurous with the burnout but not to the extent that the startline crew were taking out new life insurance cover. A leak was found and car pushed back.

Paul Hambidge times were 8.4005/115.03 however the bike drifted left and knocked both 1000ft reflectors out of position. On pause to reposition them.

15:30

Barry Giles ran a 7.3912/179.87. This was followed by Steve Venables who ran 7.3317/209.84 with possibly a gear shift issue early in the run.

Next were Thomas Cook Abbott and Chevrolet Checkett, 7.9661/80.49 (0.0094 RT) for Thomas to 9.1095/71.91 (0.1755 RT) for Chevrolet.

Luke Stevenson continued his amazing string of tens, 10.9384/132.17 against Ozzie Brown. Then we had Kev Jenkins, 8.8100/151.54 showing the work on curing various engine issues is paying off. Earlier Kev had suffered a big fuel leak as it was coming out of the burnout.

Michael Gooding v Alex Hope was 9.3297/144.30 to 9.6749/131.82, Alex getting to the finish line first. Michael had mentioned earlier he suffered a broken chain on his first run, his spare was short a few links and so he had to fit a friend's spare.

Thatadoo Racing next, Harrison Brown's 9.5170/139.38 and Ozzie 14.5482/91.24 in her Sportsman ET Camaro. Pause for Gluebird...

14:45

Junior dragster racers Purdie Hadfield and Chevrolet Checkett were next, 8.0363/79.80 (0.0210 RT) to Purdie against 9.0676/71.46 (0.3071 RT) for Chevrolet.

Mark Todd then brought the 6 Appeal Aston Martin. Pre-stage, then an issue with the staging became apparent when the engine wouldn't go up on the chip. The car was pushed back for investigation so it doesn't look a big issue.

Steve Saunders on his next run, he and Babs had explained on my pit walk during lunch that during 2019 the car had performed to mid 8 ETs but in the two events this year had struggled to get below 9s. The run was straight but 9.266/154.17 continued to be far from where they want to be. Steve was followed by Amy Watkins who ran 9.5623/139.81.

Mark Dainty ran a 7.2789/200.53 (1.3079 60ft time) for a new PB and his first over 200mph, well done Mark and crew!

Comp Bike racer Andy Head, back after a long absence, on Sean Mills' black Super CC outlaw bike ran a check-out pass, 9.0792/179.18. We noticed Sean's other bike in the pits with its new swing arm, so you could say he is fully equipped.

14:35

A Pro ET match-up saw Ronnie Mercer v Dave Crowhurst with Ronnie leaving first (0.0268RT to Dave's 0.3156) and Dave getting across the finish line first, 10.1230/131.78 to Ronnie's 10.4910/125.83.

Junior Dragster JM racers Daniel Weir and Freddie Taylor was the next match-up, 8.9239/72.98 for Freddie to 9.2766/70.56 with Freddie leaving first 0.0173 as well.

Ian Chrichlow v Paul Hambidge saw Ian through first with 8.4372/157.95 to Paul's 10.2489/81.83. Then Luke Stevenson, who will be reporting from the pits on the live stream brought out The Loaner and ran another ten, 10.9108/129.57.

The return of Paul Marston Racing to on-track action at SPR was marked by Mick Howling in the four link dragster who ran 8.8768/156.29. The throttle stop operated although the car is entered into Super Pro this event, we'll get Paul and Mick's comments on that later.

14:05

After lunch, Elaine Hancock brought out the Lethal Zephyr and ran 8.5188/156.27, great pass. Harrison Brown ran another nice 9.4686/139.90, 8.50 Bike racer Ian Chrichlow a 8.3898/157.38, SSB racer Mark Dainty a 7.3603/197.18 and a couple of passes later Steve Venables a 7.0891/207.97. There was a short break for sledding after Stacey Fenton's pass 10.8647/112.91.

Thomas Cook Abbott v Purdie Hadfield, round 3 was a repeat of earlier, 8.0598/80.07 (-0.0575 RT) for Purdie, and Thomas first with 7.9792/80.51 (0.0364 RT).

For John Tebenham, the 'Crew Killer' Pop went 8.9241/149.14. Barry Giles ran a 7.4327/179.23, Gino Bernadine an improved 9.2727/144.76, and Mark Todd in the 6 Appeal Aston Martin shut off after wheelspin in 2nd and 3rd gears.

We had first appearances of the day from Sportsman ET racers Ozzie Harrison and Gary Lake and the sun started shining on the track.

12:55

Dave Crowhurst in his Pro ET Camaro ran 9.9029/136.51 on his first run, getting close to the centre line in the second half but staying on it.

Gino Bernadine taking the STP left lane, did a full pass, and ran 9.4259/140.25 (1.3204 60ft) with more to come.

Staying with the STP lane, Tom Watkins in Neill Watkins' pickup (Tom's Charger having suffered engine damage at the Greenlight Nationals) ran 11.3377/114.64 followed by Amy Watkins 9.6805/136.47, misfiring at the top end.

Paul Hambidge on his Comp Bike then ran 11.6830/71.73 after getting sideways in the first 60ft and suffering tyre spin down the track. Cue Gluebird.

Jason Weir (Topspeed Automotive Street Eliminator) did a burnout and then the Procharger-assisted engine cut out, running at low revs. After restart he launched with some misfiring and ran 8.5924/142.94. Alex Hope followed in the Autoglym lane to another near-index 9.4854/143.97. Then Luke 'Mr 10' Stevenson ran 10.8227/132.95.

Junior Dragster time with Thomas Cook Abbott v Chevrolet Checkett, 7.9622/79.51 (0.0743 RT) to 8.8810/73.22 (0.1425 RT) for the JM of Chevrolet.

We're on a lunch break now, back around 13:30.

12:20

A short while later the Junior Dragsters came out again, Chevrolet Checkett 9.0826/72.84 (JM), Frankie Taylor (JMA) 8.1237/77.62, Dan Todd (JS) 12.3594/50.74.

Ben Newsome's crew chief Cliff with a 10.5446/126.15 was followed by Alex Hope with a 9.5445/140.45.

Mark Dainty (Super Street Bike) made a launch however the front end was up by the christmas tree and he lifted.

The Hadfield v Cook Abbott informal match race second round had Thomas off the line first 0.0333 to 0.1933, and 7.9869/80.64 to 8.0029/80.50 for Purdie.

Luke Stevenson v Simon Cowley resulted in Simon going left to the centre line and Luke getting there first 10.9149/129.78 to 11.8459/106.18.

Ian Chrichlow v Leo Lester went 8.5000/157.93 to 8.4934/164.25, well done on a perfect ET Ian, but the Perfect ET award sponsored by Twister Racing isn't available until tomorrow.

John Tebenham in his Pop, crewed by Paul Marston, ran a 8.9190/148.56 after a conservative (for him) burnout.

Michael Gooding (STTG) v Paul Adams (ET Bike) was 9.4074/143.41 with a wheelie after 60ft to 8.9133/148.61.

11:50

Steve Saunders with Babs staging the car went 9.2988/153.13 an easy looking run and the car still for sale.

11:40

Paul Hambidge (Comp Bike) went 9.1600/117.47 drifting left towards the centre line in the last few hundred feet.

Ben Newsome's crew chief cliff (Pro ET) made a checkout pass and was followed by Luke Stevenson who ran his second ten, 10.8541/131.29, like it was going out of style.

Purdie Hadfield with Haley and Andy in attendance went up against Thomas Cook Abbott (with Charlotte watching) in their JMAs. 8.0361/80.35 (-0.798 RT) to 7.9878/80.22 (0.0264 RT).

Daniel Weir (Junior Modified) then went 8.9640/72.06 (0.0498 RT). Ben Newsome went next, good launch but lifted, Gino Bernadine also launched well but then the car made a move to the right, he was back on it and then off in the second half.

11:30

Paul Adams (ET Bike) ran 8.9339/148.07, keeping the front wheel on the ground, not wanting to repeat his flip from the Back On Track racer day in July.

Alex Hope and Ian Chrichlow came for side-by-side pass but Alex got sideways on the launch with Ian going 8.4380/159.06. That was followed by Michael Gooding (Super Twin Top Gas) who ran 9.3729/144.36 on his Suzuki TL1000R.

A family race next with Frankie and Freddie Taylor. Frankie's JMA went 8.1698/77.73 (0.0397 RT) to Freddie's JM 8.8656/74.07 (-0.0628 RT).

Alex Hope swapped lanes to the Autoglym lane and 9.615/119.64 was the result. We'll see how he does in the left lane, now sponsored by STP, later in the day.

11:20

Debbie Taylor's next run was 13.6307/100.06. She was followed by Gino Bernadine who made a soft chckout launch and fed the power in after 330ft to 14.1516/130.61.

The first Super Pro ET car out was Barry Giles with his usual crew of Daniel Giles and Phil Hartley. Barry ran a 7.4335/179.16.

Debbie Taylor's next pass was 13.5665/100.12. The team wrote on FB "After the Green light nationals it was clear the car had lost performance in a few places, along with a poor idle which we had been putting down to old fuel. We decided to revert the rear geometry back to 2019 as it seems it suits the car better than the more aggressive setup we had for this year. We also did a few engine changes and cleaned and check everything that could be removed and cleaned. We have also wrote a new tune which is slightly leaner at higher RPMs from 5000 onwards and a little lighter on launch".

Harrison Brown (ET Bike) ran a 9.4816/139.38, nice straight pass.

11:00

Thomas Cook Abbott made his first run with his family and the Andy and Purdie Hadfield overseeing, 7.9614/80.64 with 0.1197 RT.

Our first pair featured Debbie Taylor and Ronnie Mercer (Pro ET), Ronnie's 10.6190/126.59 getting there ahead of Debbie's 13.3977/101.26.

Chevrolet Checkett's second pass was 8.8107/74.16 (0.1'451 RT). This was followed by Leo Lester (8.50 Bike) who went 8.5995/166.69.

11:00

Frankie Taylor brought her Junior Dragster to the line and scored a 0.148 RT with 8.1482/78.82 times.

Debbie Taylor (Sportsman ET) took her DDT Racing Mustang with high revving 4600cc engine to a 13.3102/100.94. She was followed by Alex Hope's second pass, other side of the index at 9.4126/148.64.

10:50

Chevrolet Checkett ran a 8.9451/73.91 in her Junior Dragster with a -0.0387 RT. Closely following were Ian Chrichlow (8.50 Bike) 8.4106/160.80 and Alex Hope (9.50 Bike) 9.6034/141.23, a great start to the event for them.

10:40

First up was Dan Todd, son of Topspeed Automotive Street Eliminator racer Mark Todd for a licensing run. Andy Fensome was present to give coaching and Dan ran a creditable RT of 0.1745 and a run of 14.8471/35.94 in the Junior Stock machine.

VW Pro racer and announcer Luke Stevenson came round in The Loaner Golf and after one practise attempt, ran a 10.8785/129.92. After VW Breakout when he lost the held-over STP Greenlight Nationals Final to James Hodson, Luke had a point to prove, as almost every other racer driving The Loaner had run a ten. We also noticed Luke has cancelled his entry for this event, however VWDRC club racers Stacey Fenton and Simon Cowley will be competing.

09:50

Good morning and welcome to our John Woolfe Racing sponsored coverage of the Performance Test Day taking place prior to the Not The European Finals. It's a nice dry day with a covering of cloud and temperatures of 12C (54F) rising to 18C (66F).

We have around thirty vehicles planning to do test passes today so there will be some gaps in our coverage. Julian is here to take trackside photos and Diana will be arriving later this afternoon for a few pit photos.

A couple of cancellations in Pro Modified, Jean Dulamon has been forced to cancel due to the current quarantine rules between France and England. We also had an announcement this morning from Michel Tooren's Pro Dutch team that with the ongoing Covid-19 situation the team felt it's not 100% certain that they could travel freely. We look forward to seeing you in 2021 guys.

We'll be back when the cars start assembling to give you all the information from the track.