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Yes I DID Tighten it!
Given that we have not touched the beast since before the "accident", we are happy that nothing major needs doing. We run it up a few times and for the two days before the meeting decide to put it up on axle stands and a jack (and tie the back end down just in case) and practice going through the gears.
The preparations are made and I hit the starter button. A few turns and then a worrying “clunk” and the starter spins freely. It is pretty obvious that there is no compression but I immediately go into denial and insanely decide that if I hit the starter again all will be well. I do. It is not.
A check of the engine shows that the cam vernier bolt is loose and the belt has slipped. Still in denial I decide that no damage can possibly have occurred to the valves and that if I retime the cam all will be well. I do. It is not. My compression tester has been loaned out but I think, really, I did not want to know just how bad the damage might be. I retime and try to restart the engine for the rest of the day—all the time ignoring the fact that there is no compression. It was, I think, an alternative to sobbing or suicide. We would not be racing at Shakey either.