Meet The Rent A Rookie Team

Cecil's Rent A Rookie have grown considerably over the years and we are very grateful to have a number of people that regularly help us out. The people below are the faces you will often see around the tracks.

Steve Anscombe aka Cecil

Steve has been building and racing Bangers for 18 years with his first meeting being at Smallfield with various outings at many other local dirt tracks, including; Horam, Chalvington (both now closed) and Worthing (pre concrete/tarmac days).

Eventually moving over to Spedeworth in the season of 1992 Cecil has enjoyed many race wins and places, highlights including; winning the English Championship at the 1996 Ipswich Spedeweekend, 2nd in the Banger World Final in 1997, winning the Southern Championship at Arlington in 1997 and part of the winning team BLITZ! at the 1997 Hednesford National Team Championships.

Vaughan Elms aka Big Hoss

Vaughan has been involved in Banger Racing for over 15 years now and has been the man on the tools (and hiab!) for many top drivers, starting out with Paul Anscombe (Cecil's brother) in the Bangers, before moving on to mechanic for such stars as Brian Tingley (2ltr Saloon Stox), Rick Lemmon (Stock Rods) and Perry Clack (National Hot Rods).

But Bangers is where his heart is and as well as Cecil, Vaughan has helped out Banger favourites Jerry "Bleach" Ansell and Mark "Marco" Glenister as well as former Rookie Banger, and current Stock Rod, man Stuart "Pecker" Bibby.

Danny Verrall aka Mr V

Yes, the one and only Mr V is back with us once again!

Always a favourite with the crowd, Mr V once again joins the Cecil's Rent A Rookie camp for 2008 and will no doubt be a great addition. Nothing is too much trouble for Danny and he always has a smile on his face.

Besides racing National & Rookie Bangers himself, Mr V will often be on hand at meetings to offer help and advice should anybody need it.

Rob McCabe aka Northern Monkey

A new member of the Rent A Rookie camp is Birmingham based Rob.

Although never having raced a Banger before, Rob has plenty of experience in the construction of them and works full time for Cecil.

With a vast amount of mechanical experience Rob will ,without doubt, be a great addition to the team for a long time to come.

Phil Hampton aka The Cheat

Phil is our 'in-house' mechanic and regular racer, when he isn't banned!

Having enjoyed his time in the Rookie Rods, this year sees 'The Cheat' trying his hand at Spedeworth's 1300cc Stock Car formula, and is sure to be a great addition to the already outstanding list of drivers.

Always on hand at race meetings, Phil can often be found with his head buried in an engine somewhere or generally doing what he does best, mechanics, and getting the drivers back out on the track.

Joe Brooks aka The Crook

Joe 'The Crook' Brooks is yet another new boy in the Rent A Rookie team for the 2008 season.

Joe is what you might call the 'Joker' of the pack, always up for a laugh and more often than not the one to orchestrate the clowning around. When it's time for work though, Joe isn't afraid to get his hands dirty and is often the first one back in the pits to help repair the cars.

You might see 'The Crook' the other side of the fence in one of his occasional Rookie Banger outings during the year, and if you are lucky enough to be racing at the same time you just know you have got to give him a rough ride!

Paul Reynolds aka Rats

Paul Reynolds is our other 'in-house' mechanic and, well ok, he is a complete car geek!

No job is too big for 'Rats' and many a times he thrives on a challenge, which is always a bonus when surrounded by this lot! On a mores serious note, without Paul many of our cars would never have made the track, he sure does know what he is doing with an engine.

Again, not a full time racer, but he will usually take the odd trip around the track at some point throughout the year.

James Lawrenece aka Spike

Spike is our PR man! Often the first person you will meet on race days and usually the one to put your mind at ease.

To be fair, Spike doesn't know a great deal about the mechanical side of cars but is the ideal person for trackside information and your first point of contact.

As well as being a valued member of the team, James also races regularly throughout the year and, was in fact, the very first person we built a car for way back in 2002 before the Rent A Rookie idea was even born.

Another joker in the pack and a great character to have around.

Karen Anscombe aka Kaz (The Wife)

Simply put, without Karen's hard work there would be no Cecil's Rent A Rookie at all.

Karen keeps the business going on a day to day basis with tasks such as office paperwork, invoices, books, emails, research and general business chores. Without these things being done, the business just could not operate.

As well as keeping the business running smoothly, Karen also keeps Cecil motivated as well as being there for the long nights and weekends.