Biography

Alan Forster started his motorsport career taking part in the Cars & Car Conversions Speed Championship in the year 2000.  Using an Opel Manta to compete in a mixture of sprint and hillclimb events it was a fantastic way to have fun whilst developing technical skill and ability.  All 12 rounds of the Championship were competed in resulting in a season best podium at North Weald and 4^th position in the Standard Road Going class.

For 2001, Alan took his racing off-road and competed in the newly formed Stock Hatch category of Rallycross racing.  The new category was extremely popular with up to 80 cars competing and by the end of 2001 Alan was regularly finishing in the top 15.  Putting the car on its roof at Lydden Hill in 2002 didn't deter Alan from continuing and during 2002 & 2003 Alan continued to enter regular events of the British Rallycross Championship.  With only a 1360cc Citroen AX GT against the benchmark 1600cc Peugeot 205, it became obvious that in order to enjoy success, a change of car was required.

Above: Alan Forster competing in the RallyCross Championship.

In 2004, a large increase in the entry fee for the now over-subscribed Stock Hatch Rallycross category meant that the build of a replacement Rallycross car was put on hold whilst a new budget was found.  A confident decision was made to move away from Rallycross and take the step up to Racing.  After a few lessons at the Silverstone Racing School, Alan had passed his Advance Racing Driver School test and gained a National B racing licence.  During 2004, a Toyota MR2 racecar was built to compete in the 2005 MR2 Championship and the car made a successful early debut at Mallory Park and Snetterton at the end of 2004.  The car also appeared in an article in Banzai magazine and at the NEC Classic Car Show in December 2004. 

Above: The MR2 before being race ready.

2005 should have been Alan’s first full season in National Racing but after lying 3^rd in the MR2 Championship going in to the fourth round at Brands Hatch, he was hit by a spinning car on the first lap and the financial consequences forced Alan to take a back seat for 2005. 

Above: An unlucky set back to a promising year.

The chance to drive a Formula Palmer Audi single seater racecar at Brand Hatch closely followed by a day at Jonathan Palmer’s Palmersport racing facility in Bedford gave Alan a tantalizing taste of single seater racing.  Having won the prestigious “Best Driver” award for driving the Formula Palmer Audi it was not long before the MR2 was sold and a Formula Vee single seater was sitting in the garage.

Having invested in a full day’s one-to-one racing tuition in a Formula Ford at the Three Sisters Circuit in April 2006, Alan was confident of doing well in Formula Vee.  However, getting married put an early end to the season after only 6 events.  Alan still finished runner-up as Rookie of the Year and came away with “Highest Grid Mover” award for Cadwell Park and Thruxton.  A top ten finish on the formidable Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in the wet was a highlight of the season.

In 2007 Alan competed in five rounds of the UK Formula Vee Championship and 2 rounds of the Lodge Sports 924 Championship.  9^th  place finish at Silverstone in the Formula Vee Championship was the best result of the season.

At the end of 2007 Alan purchased the Formula Vee Championship winning car from Martin Galpin. Another new arrival was the birth of Alan's first child, Alex, born in December 2007.

In 2008 Alan entered seven rounds of the UK Formula Vee Championship with a season best qualifying result of 3rd and highest race finish of 4th, both at Mallory Park.  Although the season promised much, it was a tough year with car problems, crashes, and difficulty balancing the demands of a young family with the time demands of a full season of racing in a self-prepared car.

It was inevitable that something had to give and in 2009 Alan took a step back from racing to make more time for his new family.  The Formula Vee race car was rented out for the 2009 season to racer David Joseph who successfully campaigned the which was run by Alan Woodward of GAC.