ULTIMATE BMW SHOW 2008 REPORT
Sunday 21st September at Santa Pod Raceway
with RWYB Saturday 20th September

Ultimate BMW Show 2008 is over, read the report below and view photos on the 2008 Gallery page.

Sun! And lots of it! After a non-existent summer, a weekend of wall-to-wall sunshine brought thousands of BMW fans out of their hurricane shelters and up to Santa Pod Raceway in Northants to experience the third Ultimate BMW Show.

Billed as the most action-packed show on the BMW fan’s calendar, this show did not disappoint, with loads of static and full-throttle attractions- the most obvious of which was the dragstrip that cuts right through the centre of the site. Hundreds of BMWs were taken through their paces on the ¼ mile sprint, and the average times were excellent across the classes. A close and tough competition ensued, with the top times being separated by mere fractions of a second. The winners as declared at 4pm were:

				Class A (4 Cylinder Class) Paul Webster (A497) Mini One 12.7469 seconds @ 112.70 mph
				Class B (6 Cylinder Class) James Clarke (B517) BMW 320Ti Touring E30 12.912 seconds @ 114.3mph
				Class C (8+ Cylinder Class) Ross Buckmaster (C532) BMW M3 12.7783 seconds @ 112.03 mph
				Class E (Non Road Legal) Frank Burridge (E420) BMW 635 Dragster 10.8072 seconds @ 149.16 mph
				Class X (Non BMW) Craig Taylor (X522) Mazda RX7 7.1l V8 11.6101 seconds @ 124.46 mph

View the full RWYB Tables on the 2008 RWYB Times page and see where you came.

Also on the dragstrip were two screaming runs from the Fireforce Jet Car, both 6.0s, which makes them the fastest runs this year! Top work from the Fireforce team!

Off to the side of the dragstrip were the roundy-roundy refugees on the drift and handling tracks. The drift track was a popular feature last year, and this year it was positively bulging with well prepared and expertly driven BMWs. The lads and ladies involved put on an almost constant show of smoke and speed, and the days peaked with two choreographed shows that really left you breathless.

The Handling Track was right next door, and people were queuing up to throw their cars around the super-tight circuit, with some irregular slaloms, hairpin bends and a reverse-box. Some failed spectacularly, trying too hard and spinning out.

Tom Stanway in his BMW 325i took the Handling Track trophy with a time of 43.25 seconds by neatly and precisely getting around the fiendish route. The full leaderboard is on the Handling Page.

The Show & Shine competition was popular from the word “go” with 50 entries and a good mix of ages and styles. It’s a cliché to say it, but picking the winners was extremely difficult, but Paul from Total BMW magazine was on hand to help out with his expert eye and give valuable guidance.

The winners were as follows:

				Steve Wright – Best Of Show 2000 BMW 5-series touring This immaculate car had received a M5 conversion, with full engine, running gear, wiring etc etc transplant into the practical touring body. This was brave and well-executed work that made the car truly unique.
				Andrew Bealing - Best Custom 1997 BMW 318ti Compact A bold and pristine exterior with wild modifications was matched to a hardcore interior to make a seriously eye-catching and unique car.
				Kos Loizou – Best Original 1986 BMW 635csi (E24) This car was showroom-fresh, with deep red paint and originality all around. Rolling on 80’s Alpina alloys, it was a testament to 22 years of careful ownership.

The club displays were well worth a look too, and hundreds upon hundreds of cars were lined up and gleaming in the late summer sun, and very much worth checking out. Thanks go out to all clubs who attended the show- you really are the heart and soul of the event.

The best club display went to the Performance BMW Forum who had come together and put on a great show of cars with enormous variety and decent numbers too.

We hope you had a great time at the show and look forward to hosting it at the same time next year. See you there!

View the 2008 Gallery for more photos.