Brands Hatch April 09

Well that weekend was good while it lasted.
Cruelly cut short by a broken diff.

Still, looking on the bright side, I had a good qualifying session and half an exciting race.

Having had a rain shower early on Saturday I thought we might be in for a wet qualifying, but for once the forecast was right and it was sunny by 9am. I got out on track about mid field and got stuck behind some slightly slower cars, but managed to get past (under a blue flag as it happens which doesn't happen to me often!)
I was really pushing on through Clearways which is an area where I reckon I can improve my time (the other one being paddock). I can get lots of oversteer through there which means I can get on the power early for the straight. It works, and it's great fun. I did have one major sideways moment on one lap-definitely not the fastest way round a corner, but it gets the adrenaline flowing!

Anyway, I end up with a best lap of 53.9 which is half a second quicker than I've ever done before round here. I am within a few tenths now of my nephew, Oliver's time when he drove this car here. But then he's a natural, and he probably wasn't trying very hard!

More importantly I was 12th on the grid for the race - row 6 - which is my best qualifying position ever (so far!). I was dead chuffed with that.

Back in the paddock I found an oil leak which was, thankfully, easily fixed, and a quick spanner check revealed some very loose nuts and bolts in the drive shaft which was a bit of a worry, but again, easily fixed.

On to the race then. It was quite a novelty to be sitting on the grid with only five rows of cars in front. I could almost plan my trajectory off the line stright up the outside of 5 cars at once to a heroic win. Sorry, daydreaming there. The reality was more like, when the lights went out I went backwards 3 places (relatively speaking of course although I woudn't put it past me to select reverse on the grid!). Too much wheelspin. I really need to practice those starts!

So now I'm chasing the same cars I was qualifying with. A good dice but frustrating because the first few laps are under a yellow flag at clearways which is where I'm most likely to be able to overtake, so the leaders pull away.
Then, on lap 8, I'm approaching paddock at full chat and suddenly it sounds like someone's shaking a bag of spanners behind my head. I have visions of the drive shafts coming loose and bashing me on the head. I then realise that that is not happening so it must be the diff. I find out later that at this point I am spraying oil all over the guy behind, but I didn't know that at the time, but I did know it sounded terminal. So I pulled off as soon as I could.
Sure enough the diff has sprayed oil all over the place and is clearly broken.

What is great about the RGB lot is their enthusiasm to help. Unfortunately no one had a spare diff so that was that for my weekend. Doubly dissapointing since I missed the second RGB race on the Sunday and the 2 bikesports races that I entered (for the experience).

So back home with my broken toy. I'm not out again until June so I've got time to get it fixed.
I'll be back!

I've since found out about Paul Rogers' story of his weekend with his new car. He totally rebuilt has engine on Friday night after testing on Friday - had problems on Saturday with a mechanical fault, and then went on to win on Sunday. Makes my efforts sound rather pathetic!
Once again, I am in awe of the RGB guys (and girl). All the more pleasing that I'm even in the game.