Brands spanking new - Indy circuit Track-day

After a night at Wes' house, we both set off for a track-day at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit.  I've been a few times to Brands and think it's a great spectator circuit - but I've never driven it and was looking forward to getting my first chance.

We were lucky to arrive and get the last of the available garages which really helped - as then it started raining...  Bear in mind that my last run on a circuit was in the wet and I'd spun off in the conditions.

After a few sighting laps behind the pace car, I got the opportunity to experience Paddock Hill Bend, Druids, Grahame Hill Bend and Clearways in the damp...  And there was more grip available than I thought.  The problem is that I couldn't see ANYTHING behind me and I spent more time trying to keep out the way of cars I couldn't see than making any progress.  My confidence now completely shot - I lined up to take some instruction.

When my instructor approached the car he just pointed and said, "I'm not getting in that!"  So my instruction took place in a Seat Leon...  Despite this, I got a great idea of the best lines (and there are some places where a small change in line can make a massive difference).

After instruction, I went out and started to gain speed and confidence - and as the conditions improved, I got quicker.

The rest of the day was spent learning the track some more and eventually, I got to overtake some cars in my own right.

A great day at a great circuit.  Once the weather improved, I really enjoyed it.

Snetterton Slippery Sprint...

Our final Sprint took place on Saturday 25th May at Snetterton.  I'd missed the test day the day before as I'd had a track day here earlier in the year.

A comfortable night in Blue Bell Barn B&B meant I felt comfortable arriving at the circuit in the morning - we'd even left the car and trailer there the night before so we were pretty much ready to go.

An oddity about the event here was that there were races planned for part of the program - we had to do our practice runs squeezed in among the race qualifying.  As a result of this mixture, the organisation left a little to be desired...  Cars were run out of order with really long waits in between.  Ultimately, we got two runs with about 30 mins between each trip - and we couldn't get out of the cars...

Sadly, the afternoon (and the official timed runs) were a complete wash-out...  Rain began just as we were about to head out and didn't let up for all the time we were in the cars - three runs taking about an hour.  I can confirm it's not much fun sitting in an open top car in the pouring rain.

When I eventually set off, I immediately got distracted - a piece of tape I'd put across the top of the windscreen flew off and started flapping in my face.  I tried to put it out of my mind and made it successfully round the first corner.

As the second corner approached, I chose an early braking point but had completely forgotten the advice I'd received to keep off the normal racing line in the wet.  The tyres locked and despite my best attempts to keep it pointing the right way, the car spun off the outside of the corner.  I had stalled and got the car re-started but as I set off along the straight (expecting to see red flags and not getting any) I realised my time was irrelevant as I'd had all four wheels off the circuit.

When I arrived at the Esses, I tried to get through quickly - it was effectively a practice run.  Sadly, I found the limits of adhesion were somewhat lower than I had planned and I was off again.  Rachel Horgan managed to catch me mid-spin for your viewing pleasure...

On returning to the pits, I found my car covered and full of mud - but I still had two runs to take...

My second timed run was just an opportunity to get round the circuit.  It wasn't remotely competitive but at least I had a time.  In the end, I ended up 13th.  A disappointing day - but a massive learning experience.

Rick Wilson should be thanked for the top set of pics - Rach can be scowled at for getting the picture of me spinning.  A link to her website can be found here and is well worth a look.

Another note on the day was that our friends Claire and Ian (as well as my Mum and Dad) joined myself and my ever-present wife.  In suffering the wet for my cause, I thank all of them.  For continuing to put up with the grumpy bloke in the driving seat, everyone should know I love my wife very much...!

Proof from this picture taken by my Dad...

Curborough Sprint - True 'Grass Roots' Motorsport

Curborough is a small Sprint venue just on the edge of Lichfield.  The sign on the way in says 'Grass Roots' and it certainly is!  It is a very narrow (and technical) course in a field.  It is a unique track with a start spur (where you also return after your run) leading on to the circuit.  Our event consisted of running down the start spur followed by two laps of the circuit.  It really is a technical circuit and despite taking only 65-70 seconds to complete, it requires constant concentration.  For this event, I'd been assigned '18' as my competition number.  The picture above was taken by Rachel Horgan.

It should be pointed out here that in order for video cameras to work, they need a charged battery.  For this event, mine didn't have one...

We were given two practice and two timed runs.  My first run proved competitive enough and the sunshine made our runs a little easier.  My second practice saw an improvement on my time.

By this time, it was clear that I was in a far better mental state than Aintree.  I felt more comfortable with the process, got myself ready in good time and was happy with my driving.  There were less cars than at Aintree with far more Caterhams (but there were a few other cars - a Peugeot 206 GTi, a Scimitar and a brand new Nissan GTR...!!!  The last was barely narrow enough to stay within the confines of the track!).  Organisation was excellent and by keeping an eye on which cars were going out for their runs and when, made sure I was a lot calmer.  The picture below comes from Rick Wilson (or at least his deputy as Rick couldn't get to this event).

For my first timed run, I tried very hard to remain smooth without sudden steering and good throttle control.  I'd found the track slippy and sudden acceleration creates slides which were fun but not quick!  A time of 65.99 seconds put me in third place in my group - a good result but with other drivers close around me, I knew I could still lose out.  Another of Rachel's pics...

As soon as I returned to the paddock, I changed my front anti-roll bar (ARB) to a stiffer version - one of the few changes the regulations allow.  This ARB should stiffen the front of the car which creates less roll at the front of the car.  I'd never run this before so it was a risk but with a good time in my first run, I felt it was a risk worth taking - the front running cars had the stiffer ARB fitted...  The change didn't take long (which is down to the help given to me by my older brother and my Dad).

My final run started with a slide into the first corner and despite congratulations from the commentator for controlling it, I'd lost some time.  Ultimately, it cost me getting a quicker time but after a nervous wait, my time from my first run was good enough for third.

Once again, though, my starts have dropped me significant time.  I'm still among the slower starters and a better start time could have bagged me a second place.  The win went to Mike Hart - with a time quick enough to narrowly miss out on the class record - he was quick.

So a 'podium' netted me a trophy from Caterham and another trophy and book from the event organisers.  Rick's picture shows I was pretty pleased with my result.

Curborough - Practice makes...

Not strictly a sanctioned Caterham Academy event but a day practicing at Curborough the day before our Sprint could prove beneficial.  Arranged by a fellow Academy competitor, and with Caterham support in attendance, about 20 of us were able to use the Sprint venue for the day.  It was well organised despite having nobody from the facility's owner in attendence!

We all lined up and took it in turns to have our go - having been split into two groups.

The weather played its part, too.  With some trips round in the wet, it proved 'entertaining'.

Aintree - steeped in history and novices...

Aintree is one of the most famous 'race' facilities in the UK and for more variations of 'horse-power' than you may think.  Quite aside from the Grand National, Aintree is a very special Motorsport venue.  It is the UK's only purpose-built motor racing circuit and played host to the British Grand Prix five times between 1955 and 1962.  Stirling Moss took his first victory at Aintee in 1955 which was also the first time a British driver won a British GP.

So it was with a great deal of pride that on Saturday, 24th April 2010, my first competitive event in the Caterham Academy took place on three-quarters of the Club Circuit section of the famous track.

Arriving the night before the main event, I could dump the 'big rig' (car on a trailer towed by our SAAB).  Claire (my wife) picked me up and we met up with Wes (and his family) as well as Mike Linzey and his good-lady.  As an aside at this point, it's worth pointing out that Travelodge let us down badly and at the time of writing, I can't think I'll ever visit one of their hotels again.  The one we booked was closed for a gas-leak (fair enough) but I still don't have my money back and trying to get hold of them is terrible - they don't even look at e-mails correctly.

Suitably fed and rested, we arrived early for signing-on and a walk of the course.  This entertaining stroll was enough to show that despite being only three corners, there was enough to be thinking about - not least the huge (and significantly permanent and solid) jumps usually reserved for the race that usually takes place at Aintree...

Sprinting is a branch of Motorsport in it's own right and there are some people who make a success of it.  It attracts a wide variety of cars (Caterhams, saloons, old F1 cars...).  Essentially, you start at one point on the circuit and finish at another with the time taken to get between them your only opposition.  At Aintree, we had two practice runs (both timed) followed by three official runs - the best of which is compared to everyone elses' best time.  We also got an extra 'run for fun'...

In the first 5 seconds after being called to the collection area, a few things cross your mind.  Firstly, 'THIS IS IT!'  Secondly, 'BLIMEY, THIS IS IT...!'  Then comes, 'It takes ages to get in the car' (there are 8 straps to untangle).  Following that comes, 'I should have been ready for this ages ago...'  Frankly, I wasn't as ready as I should have been so by the time I'd got to the start line for my first practice run, I wasn't in a good frame of mind.

Despite this, I was overjoyed to find myself with the second quickest time in our group.  Having learnt the lessons of rushing to get ready for the last run, I jumped in the car early to get to the second.  In my haste, I broke my video camera...  The back luck didn't end there with me finding myself on the grass at the exit of the first turn.  Not to worry, just a practice...

For the timed runs, however, I found myself braking early (a legacy of not being sure how to attack after my 'incident' in my second practice run).  Ultimately, as a result, I ended the day in 6th place.  Not bad but still disappointing given my promising start.

I had a great day with my Mum & Dad turning up with my Brother Thomas & Louise (his wife).  We parked up alongside Wes and his family as well as Mike and his significant other.  Between us, we spent the day helping each other out.  You'll notice I'm car number 146 for this event - this was allocated by the organizers.

For future events, I need to work on my starts - each car is timed over the first 64 feet - and I'm among the slowest off the line.  In fact, had I matched the starts of the winning cars, I'd have been in the top three...

FULL RESULTS

The video below is a collage of my runs - note I've deleted the 15 minutes sitting in the car waiting for each run...  The first picture was taken by my Dad and the second picture is credited to Rick Wilson - the official photographer for the Caterham Academy.

Castle Combe Exclusive Track Day

The first time the group get to take to the track together is back at Castle Combe.  The venue of our ARDS test welcomed most (as there were some absentees...) of the 2010 Pistonheads.com Caterham Academy.

A comfortable night prior to the day spent at Principal Hayley's Alexandra House - just south of Swindon - saw myself Wesley Fox and Mike Linzey join Martin ( a friend of Wes') out for a curry.  Note never to ask a  taxi driver for his favourite Indian - he'll take you to his mate/cousin/pen-pal's restaurant and it ain't always the best.

Parking arrangements were set in a 'unique' way in the hotel...

On arrival at the circuit, we were split into four groups.  I was grouped with Wes and a chap called Mike Hart - both skillful drivers with some experience in cars and karts.  Note that I was given position '10' on the list which is why I run with a number 10 on the car and not the 13 I'll be running in the races.  Initially, the sessions proved frustrating - a lot of those in the Academy have never driven on track before (except for the few laps during the ARDS) and they understandably spent more time looking ahead rather than looking behind.  Mike took control and flew past me (ignoring usual track-day etiquette) so I followed him...

Sadly, my first session didn't include me setting the video up - time was against me but the second session was excellent.  It got lonely after I'd made a silly mistake but it was very enjoyable all the same...  The video below is cropped as the last minutes of the session is just me on my own...!

Session three was equally good except I spent my time driving with Wes Fox.  Sadly, I'd removed the video and not had chance to re-attach it before going out again...  Equally frustrating is the fact that I spun during the session...  Trying to do too much in too short a time frame...

Session four is shown below...  Another drive with Wes - taking it in turns to lead...

I should point out one of the sessions during the day (again, without a video) was a greatly exciting session as I spent the entire time swapping positions with Mike Hart.  It was really enjoyable 'dicing' with Mike and greatly rewarding - particularly as I felt a huge amount of trust in his driving and I hope he did in mine.

Silverstone Handling Day

On March 27th 2010, Caterham organised their first event for people in their cars and Silverstone was chosen as the venue.  The Championship ahead of us was already creating much excitement amonst us participants but to have our first 'event' at the Home of British Motorsport added a further touch of racing glamour.

Until we arrived and realised it was the car-park outside the main entrance.  And our 'circuit' was a set of cones in the aforementioned car-park.  Oh the anti-climax.

However, this was billed as a serious event from the moment the 'Final Instructions' were sent through.  As a test to our reading enthusiasm (and ability) the instructions insisted a tube of toothpaste be brought.  Cue the 50% of people who brought their favourite gnasher-whitening grout lending it to the other 50% who had either forgotten/ignored/hadn't read the instructions (in my defence, I hadn't been sent them - the fact I got an apology for this but still presented a brand new tube of minty freshness, was missed by the organising team...).

First up, a Le Mans-style start that finished when you flashed you headlights...  It takes a good two minutes to get into the car and entangle yourself withing the eight required straps.  Having a HANs Device adds a bit to the time needed...

Then we had practice starts, mini-slaloms and mock-scutineering (where everything required for racing was checked from your overalls to the boot floor being sealed).

Then after a good (provided) lunch, we had a couple of runs at a big slalom against the clock.  Rules were checked, re-verified and triple-confirmed...  On my second run, I put in a competitive time (would have been good enough for second) only for it to be ruled out for not stopping between a set of cones we'd specifically been told wasn't necessary...!  I'm still a bit bitter about this but what can you do...