Snetterton 300 - Easter weekend of racing

Snetterton 300 is another of Jonathan Palmer's circuits so the facilities are excellent but with many restrictions.  I've regularly commented on my dismay at his attitude towards not allowing video footage to be posted on the internet.  Most circuits allow video footage to be posted as long as there's no commercial gain from them.  Jonathan Palmer doesn't allow it at all - or face a fine of £25,000.  Why he continues to restrict the likes of myself - someone who loves his racing and wants to share the experience with his family and friends - is a mystery.  I can't gain from these videos if all I want to do is show how much I'm enjoying myself.  An awful lot of money and effort goes into my racing - with a huge amount coming from family and friends - and I'd love to be able to show them what I'm doing.  With his ridiculous restrictions in place, I'm unable to do this and I hate the fact that I can't put them on here without risking a massive fine.

For all the criticism I level at him, he should be congratulated for the amount of money he continues to invest in his circuits.  Snetterton has been overhauled during the Winter and there is a new in-field section to the circuit and Coram has been extended to make it even more difficult.  Sadly, not all the improvements have been completed successfully and the edges of the circuit are very soft.  Most circuits have some extra firm ground alongside the race track in the most sensitive areas but not here.  A lot of cars suffered damaged wheels on the test day (my own problems during the test were unrelated) after they just went off the edge of the track.  In this regard, I'd suggest the circuit wasn't quite ready for us - despite telling us to remember the 'Blue Book' regulations regarding the edge of the track - as cars will always find themselves on the peripherals of a circuit.

Anyway...

We had a weekend of racing to get through and this being the Easter weekend, we'd been shifted to Sunday and Monday so the circuit could maximise it's opportunity to put races on.  Sunday offered us a 20 minute Practice (we'd never had one of these before), 20 minutes Qualifying and a 20 minute Race.  Monday would give us a 20 minute Race.

The practice was my first chance to check my repair on the crank-shaft sensor.  Thankfully, it held up fine for the weekend.  Sadly, I was still struggling with the car and circuit.  In the Practice session, the car was understeering and I still didn't think it was braking very well.  Back in the pits, I raised the back of the car slightly and took a look at the rear brake pads.  One of them was worn to the metal - all of the friction material had gone.  Suffice to say, these were changed, too...

Come qualifying, I took a chance and went out alone - hoping to get some assistance from other cars' slipstreams.  Sadly, I got caught behind some slower cars and couldn't make progress.  When I did get ahead, I didn't have anyone to help me...

The end of Qualifying had me sitting in 20th place.  I was 4th on the grid at Silverstone.  I wasn't happy... and worse was that I couldn't put my finger on what was wrong.

The race took place in the early evening with a low sun (I'm thankful for my new, tinted visor!).  I had a poor start and one of the (few) cars behind me came past.  While I was trying to work out how he'd managed to get away so well, I forgot there was a corner coming.  I got onto the slippy part of the corner and hit the grass.  Keeping my 'foot in', I got back on the circuit and aimed to make up for my poor starting position.  It was quite intense but over the course of the race, I made some progress and as I passed cars or they dropped out, I tried to get on the back of a group squabbling for the mid-field positions.  In the last lap, I made up several seconds and crossed the line just behind this group.  I'd finished 13th which considering my starting position, I was reasonably pleased with.

The second race of the weekend was just after midday on Monday.  Much warmer but with a keen breeze.  Our hosts from our B&B (Karen and Mark) as well as my Best Man and his wife (Mark and Kerry) came to offer some support so I was looking forward to the race.

At the start, I was similarly poor off the line and dropped a couple of places from 13th.  I ended up just behind Matt Rigby (from Pistonheads.com) and looked to get past him and make progress.  However, there were a lot of cars all trying to do the same thing.  The racing was brutal.  Cars were bashing into one another (in fact, I got hit in the rear at the second corner) and I ended up being stranded behind one such stricken car.  My only way out was to push the car next to me...  On another part of the circuit, I hit another car as we approached a corner, and frankly, I have no idea what happened to him!

In the melee, a car went off the circuit and the yellow flags came out.  Overtaking is prohibited under a yellow but Martin Pass came past me.  I expected him to relent but he didn't.  My frustration just rose another notch and I continued the race without making a great deal of progress.

In the end, I finished in 11th.  As I came into Parc Ferme (where cars go at the end of a race before being released by the scrutineers), I saw Martin Pass had finished quite well and I asked someone what happens if someone passes under a yellow.  Expecting to have to go to the Stewards, I approached Martin and told him what I thought had happened.  After a quick chat, I decided I wouldn't push the issue and drew a line under the incident...  In Martin's own words 'Karma caught up with him' as he was disqualified for his car being too low and my final result was 10th.

I had a frustrating but enjoyable weekend and I'm as thankful as ever for my parents being with me along with my older Brother, John.  I love the fact that Claire, my wife, continues to come (and put up with me being grumpy).  Sadly, 'The Other' Claire and Ian 'DOPE' couldn't make it because Ian was poorly but I'm grateful for their continued support.

Pictures have been taken by Rachel Horgan.