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Jenkins Victory in Thruxton
The opening round of the Thruxton weekend saw David Jenkins on the number one spot for round 10 of Delphi British Truck Racing Championship.
Pulling a sizeable gap on current leader Oliver, Jenkins took home the victory.
Race 2 was not so plain sailing as damage from a close start finally came away just out of the chicane a few laps later.
The silver man lost the offside side guard and supports leaving a large obstacle for the pack to avoid. Dropping a place momentarily to 3rd place Steve Horne, Dave quickly came back moving to 2nd but with a premature end to the race had to settle for the middle step on the podium.
One 1st and one 2nd gave Jenkins the vital points he needed to move him from 3rd to 2nd in the overall championship standing.
Nurburgring, Germany 13th July 2008
No stopping Jenkins for the podium
An action filled weekend for the Jenkins Motorsport team provided stopping problems and champagne. Race 1 of the Mittlelrhein Cup atthe Nurburgring in Germany started with Dave in the centre of the action as he spun to a rapidhalt after the first corner of the notorious Nurburgring complex. Failure to get the truck started in time left no option than a red flag and the race had to be restarted. Second time around and no such problems at the start.
As the race was going according to plan, the MAN blew a brake disc out leaving very little to stop with. By this time the rain was heavy on the German mountains. 3 laps to go and a final finish in 6th place was more than could be expected and demonstrated the driving abilities of driver Dave Jenkins.
With a 6th place finish comes a 6th place start for race 2 and a lot of work for the truck and driver. With lap times of 2 minutes dead for the challenging 3.629km GP Circuit, Dave was clearly heading for the podium. With a final position of 3rd place Dave managed to once again bring home the silverware.
The battle for third heats up!
Dave Jenkins was in the middle of the action again at Pembrey on the 19th and 20th of April. The battle between Jenkins and Horne for 3rd saw some of the fiercest racing of the Class A pack. This all led to a coming together in the final race with Jenkins coming out in front and taking his second podium of the weekend. Conditions over the weekend were ‘varied’ and really gave Jenkins a chance to show off his flexible driving skills.
Heading towards the Nurburgring for rounds 6 and 7 of the Delphi British Truck Racing Championship, Dave has third place 5 points ahead of Horne.
2 rounds x 2 classes = 4 trophies for Dave Jenkins 24th March 2008
The opening rounds of the Delphi British Truck Racing Championship saw Dave Jenkins on the podium for each of the four rounds. Given that 2 of the rounds were for class A and 2 for Class B, this was a first for Truck Racing. Dave was out in class B with the former (now modified) class A Sisu whilst using the newly acquired MAN for Class A.
Adding to the excitement was the changing weather conditions and the diesel coated Brands Hatch track. Due to a mechanical problem, one of the trucks in the first race of the day (09.20) was spraying diesel down onto the track. Unaware of the problem, the surface became more dangerous as the race went on.
Picking up 2 3rd places in class A, he currently sits 3rd in the championship. With a further 3rd and a 1st in B class he is also running high in class B as he currently sits 2nd! Dave is using the Sisu more as an experiment to demonstrate that a clean (non smoking) B class truck can put in some very respectable lap times. He has certainly proved that. The next outing for the Sisu, which will not compete in all events, will be at Donnington on the 27th July. After this, the only other chance to see the Sisu will be in the Anglo French Cup at the high speed Thruxton circuit on the 3rd August. If you didn’t get to Brands Hatch, make sure you see the truck at one of these events.
Santa Pod - UK Truck Show 2006
Recently, twelve of the BTRA teams, including Jenkins Motorsport, had a weekend away together at the Santa Pod Raceway. They had been invited along to the UK Truck Show so that visitors could get a close look at race trucks and chat to the teams about the thrills of truck racing.
The ‘fun’ part of the event for the drivers – and their supporting crews and friends – was the competition element in which the trucks took to the drag strip in pairs to see just how the race trucks would perform on the ‘sticky’ surface. In contrast to procedure at a normal race circuit where the drivers do a warm-up lap, in this situation the trucks had to move off from a standing start which had an interesting effect on the tyres as the drivers revved up (not before a few trucks thrilled the crowds with some drag strip burn-outs) and waited for the lights to go green.
Then it was foot down on the accelerator to get the speed up and complete the quarter mile course in the fastest possible time.
Throughout the competition, friendly rivalry was very much in evidence between the top drivers, and in particular between Dave and Stuart Oliver in the MAN. In the first day’s final it was a very happy Dave who took first place, beating Stuart into second position, although the best speed reached over the weekend was clocked by Stuart whose MAN peaked at 100m.p.h. Dave was really having fun and the winner’s trophy was the icing on the cake.
That evening, after the first day’s final, such was the playfulness between the two drivers that there were rumours of an attempt by Stuart to assist (sabotage) the Jenkins Team by letting his tyres down! However, James Jenkins caught Stuart in the act.
Whether or not this was true, it was Stuart who was all smiles on the second day when he made the fastest time and pushed Dave into second place. So that made the weekend score a draw – one all!
Dave said afterwards that the weekend had been great fun with everyone enjoying the relaxing atmosphere – and brother James hadn’t had any emergency repairs to do!
Brands Hatch, Kent - 4/5 November 2006
True to expectations, a crowd of thousands filled every corner of the prestigious Brands Hatch circuit over the weekend 4th/5th November to witness the thrills and spills of the final meeting in the 2006 British Championship season.
The beautiful late autumn sunshine and crisp air served to enhance the friendly tension between the teams who were determined to pull out all the stops and grasp the best of those final points on the Championship table. After the previous meeting at Pembrey, nothing could be guaranteed, with top places in both classes within reach of several of the drivers, including Sisu driver, Dave.
The qualifying race on the Saturday morning came to a halt when Terry Gibbon (Volvo White) and Garry George (Foden) left the track. After the restart it was Chris Levett (MAN TGA) who crossed the finish line first, just 25 thousandths of a second ahead of reigning Champion Ross Garrett (Foden), with Dave achieving an acceptable fifth position.
In the first Championship race, the battle was on between the leaders and at the chequered flag it was newcomer Levett who triumphed, closely followed by Garrett. For Dave it was a less happy story as very early in the race the Sisu developed gear selector problems causing it to lose speed and splutter its way around the circuit. Dave was flagged, and after some confusion, was disqualified, but subsequently allowed to race the next day. This was a blow to the team as valuable Championship points were lost.
The result meant that the final round of the Championship on Sunday was to be an exciting one with Dave only one of the front running drivers going all out for a place on the podium alongside Garrett and Levett. As a result of the previous day’s misfortune, Dave had to start from the back of the grid, but was determined to go all out. Proving the power of these mighty machines, he stormed through the field against fierce competition, passing the chequered flag in a very commendable sixth place.
When the points were totalled for the 2006 British Championship it was confirmed that Ross Garrett had retained his crown with Chris Levett in second place and Stuart Oliver in third.
Dave, supported throughout by his dedicated team, can be proud to have finished fifth on the 2006 British Championship table.
The British Truck Racing season came to an end at Brands Hatch with a thrilling non-championship race around the Indy circuit. With the Championship settled, all the drivers were out to have fun and there was plenty of excitement for the crowd with overtaking and skids at a premium. Employing all his driving and showmanship skills Dave put his foot down and successfully crossed the line in fifth position.
The whole event was a highly successful end to the 2006 season, and a tribute to the teams and everyone who had worked so hard to pull it all together.
Pembrey, South Wales - 14/15 October 2006
Dave finished well against a strong field at Pembrey racing circuit in south Wales which hosted the penultimate event of the British truck race calendar.
With three rounds of racing in one day the Jenkins team was under pressure to ensure the truck was in top condition to make the grid, but their efforts were rewarded with two third place finishes.
Ross Garrett (Foden), the current Championship leader, saw his points lead reduced due to tyre problems in the second race forcing him to retire. Past Champion Stuart Oliver (MAN) came back into top form with straight wins in all races and fastest laps to add to his points tally. Unfortunately, this was enough to push Dave down a position on the Championship points table, but he still lies in a very respectable fourth place.
Chris Levett (MAN) drove a consistent three races in this his first truck racing season and holds second place in the Championship. Chris shows great promise for the future, holding his own when the racing gets tough against the experiences drivers.
The Sisus of Dave and rival driver Mat Summerfield were unable to match the pace but were never far away from the action and remain in touch with the Championship leaders.
With only a handful of points separating the top drivers in both classes of the Championship the final two rounds at Brands Hatch on 4/5 November are promising to be a nail biting final to the 2006 truck racing season.
Dave and his team are looking forward to an action packed weekend.
Thruxton 19/20 August 2006
BTRA points leader Ross Garrett was in unstoppable form at Thruxton,Garrett winning both encounters to take his tally so far this year to seven wins from seven races. Beaten to pole in qualifying by David Jenkins, Garrett stalked his rival for the first lap of Saturday's race before pouncing as they went past the pits. Jenkins never relented the pursuit, thrilling onlookers - if not the circuit staff - as he attacked the chicane kerbs with gusto.
Stuart Oliver was the only one to live with their pace, but was never able to demote Jenkins. Only in the closing stages did Chris Levett get to the front of a three-way scrap for fourth spot. Garry George was easily best of the Class B runners.
Sunday morning's race was a replay of the previous afternoon with Garrett ahead from the outset but surviving a ferocious early attack from Oliver, the pair somehow surviving a side-by-side run through the chicane.
Jenkins ousted Oliver on lap three as Mat Summerfield and Levett then made it a four-way tussle for second. George was again best of the Class B runners, although Terry Gibbon allowed him precious little respite. The fired-up Garrett also won both his heats and the grand final of the International Truck Challenge
Nurburgring, Germany - 22/23 July 2006
Class A driver and 2005 British Champion Ross Garrett in his Foden started round 4 in pole position on the grid and led throughout to race to pass the chequered flag first. Newcomer Chris Levett driving the MAN TGA also held his starting position to finish second. The real battle was between the two Sisu SL250s, but it was Dave Jenkins who eventually triumphed over his friend and rival Mat Summerfield to cross the line in third position.
Round 5 of the British Championship was held on Sunday. Once again it was Ross Garrett who led the field unchallenged and took top Class A points. The real excitement was going on just behind him. The two Sisus overtook second position Chris Levett on the first lap, with Mat Summerfield taking the lead over Dave Jenkins. Levett eventually managed to overtake Jenkins in lap 11, catching up with Summerfield on his inside at the hairpin on lap12. Levett’s MAN rear spun ninety degrees causing a deflection off the Summerfield Sisu. As Summerfield went wide, Jenkins slipped through the gap to take second place leaving Summerfield to come in third. However, Jenkins was later disqualified for over speeding, so it was Summerfield who took second place on the winner’s podium with Levett in third.
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