My Shamefully Mediocre Racing Exploits

Curtain Call (For Now)

2009-09-21T07:54:00.004+01:00

So that's it for the time being. Due to the costs of racing and the fact I got engaged recently and may be moving, I probably wont be back in a racing car for a while. I've enjoyed my time racing a legend immensely as it's a purebred racing machince that even when driven a few seconds off the pace is still a huge amount of fun and one of the ultimate adrenaline rushes. I'll always have a number of fond memories racing them, especially in my rookie season in '07 when I seemed to be much closer to the pace and had some great battles.

The only regret I have is the accident in August last year - my return in '09 has been somewhat blighted by this as I've been a bit more restrained in my driving style to the point that even though I've felt I've been flat-out, I've been quite some way slower than I once was which has been a little disappointing. Still, it's always been fun!

So it's farewell for now but maybe I'll be able to put on a racesuit and gloves in something else at some point in the future, wherever I end up!

The Last Two

2009-09-21T07:37:00.003+01:00

Forgot to update this recently, had a lot to think about.

The June 28th meeting went reasonably well with red flags in both of the first two heats keeping me closer to the field, especially the second race as the restart was run over 5 laps in the wet allowing me to keep up with Mark Lees and match his times, though I think he was just holding back given the conditions. The final was held in the dry and I managed to hold on to the lead lap with a decent enough (if a couple of seconds off) lap time.

Then followed a big break up until what is likely to have been my final legends race - the double header at the BTCC meeting in August. On the Saturday I was absolutely nowhere on pace which was disheartening. The field was huge and I found myself struggling to stay on the lead lap with Jon Jon Higgins and Ross Marshall creating a stellar pace at the front matched with my inability to go any quicker than 67 seconds a lap... in the final I think I possibly created a bit of excitement by trying my best not to get lapped at the end and racing JJ and Ross into and out of the hairpin at the last gasp.

On the Sunday we started in wet conditions and I had my best race of the weekend, dropping to the back but hanging on to Stevie Coull and Mark Lees for most of the race and setting comparable laptimes which I was happy with but in the second race I dropped to the back and had a spin at McIntyre/Scotsman when I missed third gear. Just avoided being lapped but then the engine died on the slowdown lap requiring a tow back behind the recovery discovery. The car fired when we got back to the pits so there didn't seem to be a problem, must have just been a blip or me hitting the electrical cutoff with my elbow or something similar - never did find out for sure. The final was pretty poor by me, got lapped towards the end by Jon Jon and was a long way off the pace, but still enjoyed the whole weekend hugely as ever.

Sunshine!

2009-06-18T13:17:00.002+01:00

Somewhat strangely both the meetings since I updated this blog were held in (at least during all Legends activities) totally dry conditions. With some sunshine!

Especially at the May 31st meeting which, frankly, was uncomfortably hot. Didn't get any practice in the morning as Ross Marshall popped an engine and doused the track but strangely going straight into race one produced my best performance in a while, getting a 64 second lap plus my best time behind the leader at the end of a race for a while (36 seconds). Had a good dice with Tim Nichol all race and managed to stay ahead.

The second heat and the final however weren't up to much at all - in the second race I missed a gear and Tim took off, my pace being a lot worse than in the first race. In the final I was out of it before we really began, going sideways through a gravel trap on the first lap while going by Frank Ogg's stricken car too quickly off line and compromising myself. By the time I got going again I was well down.

At the British GT meeting this weekend the Saturday started with a practice session I'd rather forget - thinking the engine was going as I couldn't get much more than 6500 rpm, I pitted to find the restricter bolt was still attached to the throttle after the car had been used in a track day! On to the race and with a couple of (very eager) national runners starting off the back I soon found myself at the back, watching quite a bit of bumping and off-track moments ahead. Some hot heads afterwards though I suppose all the action kept me closer to the pack.

On the Sunday in the second heat I had a lonely time of it, getting left behind pretty quickly and in the final it was much the same story, though I got my first "more than ten points" finish in 18th after quite a few retirements littered the roadside.

I'm having fun this year but I'm a little disappointed in my performance - the car is obviously a brilliant one but I've been really inconsistent with my dry running laptimes yo-yoing between mid 64 and mid 66 seconds and no real further improvement despite me trying to tidy my lines, brake a little later and carry more speed into the corners. I've noticed I'm pretty nervous in heavy traffic in a way I never used to be, think that's the consequences of last August coming back to haunt me!

Hopefully have some improvement to report at the next SMRC round on June 28th which is my last run until the Touring Cars in August.

Singing In The Rain

2009-05-20T16:33:00.003+01:00

Pic by the excellent Power Images at the last round:

Week and a half to round two... not going to be doing the Saturday testing this time out so hoping for good weather on the Sunday and hoping for an improvement in my form!

Rude Awakening

2009-05-08T15:06:00.002+01:00

Been away for a bit following the races a couple of weeks back so this is my first chance to update. My first race meeting back wasn't a particularly brilliant one if I'm honest - settled back into the flow in Saturday testing (I was out with the Classic Saloons as the legends session had for some reason been lumped in with the XR2/ST field, the two biggest entries, and was full) and on Sunday morning set a 66 in the warm up which is a couple of seconds behind where I was at the height of my learning process back at the end of '07 but not too bad for my first timed session since August, though it was still a disappointment given how much I like the #68.

It then went a bit downhill - I drew the pole for the "Gentleman's Grid" in the first heat which was around 18th of 26 but at the race start I immediately felt a bit uncomfortable as it was my first time back in crazy traffic since the accident. Fell back pretty quickly and tried to settle but I'm still getting used to the gearbox in the 68 which requires a much firmer hand on the downshift than my old car did and I managed to miss 3rd gear at MacIntyre a couple of times during the day. I then went into the chicane far too quickly and smashed the corner marker to pieces (should look good on TV if they caught it) but was lucky to not lose control or be hit by Tim Nichol who was following on behind. Got the black and white driving standards flag for hitting the bollard (bit unfair - I was clearly out of control at the point I hit it rather than cutting the corner to gain any advantage, but still) so just hung back and completed some "testing" laps to get to the flag and register a finish.

The second race was held just after a downpour at lunch time - nightmare. The spray in the pack was utterly hideous and I could barely see a thing. That was solved by spinning at Clark a couple of laps in with Pat Hynds and Nichol in close attendance, Tim following me round in sympathy. With the car pretty much undriveable as it felt like it was on ice and me being a bit rattled I just tried to learn what I could, doing my best to keep well out of the way of the leaders when they lapped me at the end.

The final was in greasy half-dry conditions and I did my best to hold Tim back but once again missed 3rd into MacIntyre and he nipped by. My confidence in these sorts of conditions is always pretty low but I was way off the pace I should have been and was so determined to just finish that I didn't push the way I should have done and paid for it by coming home stone last.

My pace in the dry (warm-up and race 1) was two seconds per lap off what it should be and I'll be looking to make an improvement at the next round at the end of May as even given my time away from the cockpit I should have been quicker than that.

No excuses next time!

Back On The Horse (as it were)

2009-03-18T15:11:00.002Z

So, for the first time in almost 9 months I climbed into a legend (three actually) last Thursday and went for a drive.

Aly hasn't decided who's driving what this year so we got a shot in a number of cars to see what we thought of them. First off was the ex David Thorburn #70 which I didn't drive too hard as I wanted to ease back into the way of the cars. Just as well I did as it's a very tail-happy car with a lot of oversteer. Next was the Stevie Coull #37 - very nice car, does what you want it to and doesn't have too much of a mind of it's own. The steering column is a lot further forward than any car I'd driven before so I found I had to stretch too much to try to go too fast as I wasn't all that comfortable.

For my last two sessions of the day I got to go out in the #68 - yup, the car I first drove in the Legends Experience in 2006 and which Carol Brown drove to the Championship last year. It's a little rocketship on rails - feels brilliant and goes like lightning, shame about the driver in this case. One thing I noticed was that the seat was very tight and I was pinned very much in place, I'd never thought much about that before but it made for a much more confident driving position so something I'll have to remember, as obvious as it might seem now I know!

So now there's nothing to do but wait to find out which car I'm driving this year and for the first of my races - SMRC Round 1 on the 26th of April. Can't come soon enough.

Unexpected - maybe, welcome - definitely!

2009-03-05T16:28:00.002Z

So, despite being pretty sure that I was unlikely to be back in a legend in 2009, things have taken quite a change for the better... having had a chat with Aly Hunter it seems I'm back on for this year and I currently plan to run at the first round of the SMRC Championship on April 26th, the round supporting the British GT Championship on the 13th/14th of June and (most excited by) the double-header round supporting the BTCC in August. That'll be brilliant fun as it was a blast in 2007. If possible (money willing, basically) I'd like to add the double header that's supporting the GT Cup in September but that'll have to wait. Now I just have to wait for the next 7 weeks to the first round to get out of the way!

The official legends test day is the 12th of March so I'll be heading down in the afternoon after work to get reaquainted with a legend - haven't sat in one since the accident last August!

Seeing The Season Out

2008-12-14T14:02:00.005Z

Forgot to write about the last meeting of the year then wandered off to the States for 3 weeks and forgot to write about it when I got back, so here's a much belated update to finish the season out!

The last round was in mid October and Gordon duly lined up in the car, the three of us pretty determined to have the team finish what had been a very busy year. With Rory having got through the September meeting in one piece, we were hoping for a calm end to the season with no-one doing anything too daft through the field after the chaos the two previous meetings had seen.

Gordon hadn't been in the car for quite a while but still put in a surprise 10th quickest of of the 23 cars on show in the morning familiarisation, though he elected to start in the "gentleman's grid" which starts behind the main field of pros but ahead of the rookies. The weather was very tricky and through the day the rain came and went with it being very cold and windy indeed, making conditions difficult. As it happened, the field was well behaved this time and the races mostly passed without incident, Gordon finishing 21st in the first heat after having to avoid a wild Mervyn Wilson with a stuck throttle then a late spin and 20th in both the second heat and the final. He was then awarded the Driver Of The Day trophy as the driver from the gentleman's grid to have scored the most points. As it turned out these maths were a bit flawed but by then it was a bit late and the trophy was his!

So there you have it. The "Class Of '07" team made it through the year even though it took two cars to manage! We hit the highs with Rory's race win and Gordon's trophy and the lows with the original car being destroyed and my trip to hospital. All told it was a lot of fun despite the down points and the fact we were all still talking to each other at the end of the season can only be a plus! I'll more likely than not write up a story about the year for ScottishClubRacing.co.uk and Wheelspin Magazine at some point in the next few weeks too seeing as the 2007 article proved fairly popular.

The 2009 season looks like being a quiet one for me on financial grounds - I'm sure it's a story everyone's familiar with for their own reasons in the current economic situation. Add to that I'm not 100% sure what's happening with my current job beyond the winter. I'm going to renew my racing licence though so maybe I'll try to get out in one of Aly's cars once or twice depending on various factors. Supporting the BTCC and Brtitish GT Championships in the last few years was fun so maybe I'll try for that. I believe Rory and Gordon will be looking to carry on in some way too.

Couple of shots to finish up for now - Gordon at the last meeting (the light was awful as you can see) and a pic taken of me with the car in August just prior to the very race it was wrecked.

See you in '09.

Mark II hits the track.

2008-09-15T19:49:00.004+01:00

First things first, here's the video of the crash in August:

I warn you, it's not pretty. That said, they do gloss over the fact three of us were injured pretty much entirely in that kind of "All's ok!" way club motorsport tends to cling to. Bad things don't happen. And if they do, try not to mention them too much.

Anyway, as far as I'm aware, there was little left of the old car to make into a new one but with it being one of Aly's track cars - we broke it, so we bought it and a new one has been built. It was completed and hit the track for a shakedown this Friday just prior to the next round of the Championship and as Rory was determined to keep going, he hit the track. He did well, especially in the first race where he actually led for a while before dropping back while he got used to the car. Still, three solid results were had and most importantly given recent events he brought it back with no dings... Here's a couple of pics of the new incarnation:

I dunno if I'm expecting too much when I say once again there was a lot of trouble in the races. A gentleman's grid was introduced to have drivers who aren't on the pace of the big boys start in a grid of their own at the back ahead of the newcomers and this saw the potential for slower guys bunching the field reduced. The slower guys are generally the scapegoat even though those standing at Duffus on any given raceday would tell you the problem at the moment is more the aggressive and occasionally kamikaze driving style sometimes on show. Indeed, there were two red flag incidents with Ali Thom's day ending backwards in the wall off the main straight with the roof ripped off and big rear end damage, and Sanford Imrie being flipped onto his roof at Clark. Frank Hynds received a bump on the arm after a big pileup at Clark which saw a number of cars damaged while Rich Crozier had the left side wheels ripped off his car in another first lap crash at the bottom of Duffus. Even father and son Marshall took each other off the road! If you add the national series crash at the BTCC meeting that saw Derek Pierce and another car rolling bigtime, that's massive accidents in the last three outings of Legends at the 'Hill. Hope we have a quiet finale in October.

Last but not least, well done to Carol Brown on winning the Championship with a round to go - great stuff!

Fleeting moment of notoriety.

2008-08-25T17:06:00.003+01:00

Recovered from the aches and pains now, the week after the crash wasn't much fun. Went back to work a week later (couldn't really afford much downtime) which was uncomfortable but ok. Still waiting to hear from Aly about the car, that said he had a lot of repairwork to trackday cars to do and preparations to run some cars at the BTCC meeting last week so the wreck is probably still in the corner of the garage awaiting salvage. Really not looking forward to the bill (neither is Rory) as the car was totally fecked what with the rollcage being cut through to recover my remains so it's going to be a big one.

Here are my moments of fame in Autosport and Motorsport News the week after (click for readable versions):

Going out the wrong way...

2008-08-05T11:33:00.002+01:00

In true Hollywood "Police Chief retiring in 2 weeks" style, my last race weekend for the time being ended in disaster. I'll post more thoughts later but the traffic stats for this blog have shown quite a few people have looked at it in the last couple of days so I've copy & pasted the forum post I made at SCR.co.uk and I'll post more thoughts a bit later when I feel up to it.

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Couple of days on and I'm going to be feeling it for a while but nothing lasting it seems which is a relief - my neck, back, shoulders, arms, finger joints and right ankle are all very sore though and I'm getting a selection of pretty bruises too!

As Mike Strong says, the car's clearly a gonner but given that they had no option but to take the roof off while I sat there muttering about back pain and elephants being orange that's not a surprise. I recall the initial incident in that when we reached Duffus Andrew Donald was turned across the front of my car and we ended up going very slowly off to the left of the track, at which point (due to a further accident taking place behind us) Sasha had to dive left and slammed straight into the back of me at full pelt. I got a brief word with her at the hospital as I was leaving and she says she saw me with about 10 feet to go so could barely do anything about it.

When she hit the world just exploded around me - it was utterly brutal. I recall more impacts (one of which being Alex Knight as he was sent into three rolls, so I'm told) as my car pinballed across the track to where it ended up on the outside of Leslie's in the gravel but I lose 2 or 3 minutes at this point as the next thing I really remember is the roof being removed and being surprised at how many other cars there were sitting in the gravel around me. F1 driver time as I'm lifted out on the board with blankets held up and up to the medical centre, my lower back really starting to hurt so it's off to hospital when another ambulance arrives (Sasha having been taken away in the one already at the track.) After all the tests and so on I get the all clear for any bad injuries at which point I foolishly demanded that my parents drop me off at the track so I can let everyone know I'm ok and so I can see the Legends Final and pick up my roadcar. Once the adrenaline started to drain though I really started to hurt but did manage to do all this and now I'm at home for a few days, sore but at least with everything still attached.

I can't tell all the marshalls and rescue guys on here just how grateful I am for all the work they do now that I've been at the (very) sharp end of their work - I know lots of you read the forum so PLEASE let your fellows know just how much I appreciate all they do - you're the real heroes out there, drivers be damned.

Just so that my thanks list covers (hopefully) everyone, here's the post I made at the SMRC forum:

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"Just a quick note to thank all those involved in the rescue work and marshalling at Knockhill on Sunday with regards to the big legends crash - my recollection of events is still on the hazy side but I do recall all the concerned faces throughout and hope thanks can be passed on to all the fantastic marshalls and rescue crew at the circuit along with the medical staff I encountered en route to and at the hospital. They all made a very unpleasant situation as easy-going as could be expected. Thanks as well to Nick Clarke, Ian Forrest and anyone else who stopped by before I was taken from the circuit. Nothing broken in the end but I'll be feeling every joint and muscle for the next while, that much I do know. Aly Hunter builds quality cars and for that I'll always be grateful given the impact involved.

Also, thanks to the SMRC and Knockhill staff who gave my parents information and guidance as best they could too straight after the accident. Your help was much appreciated."

Farewell To Arms

2008-08-02T19:45:00.002+01:00

My last race weekend of 2008 got underway today with two practice sessions in the legend. The first session was on a sodden track coated in oil so I couldn't really learn anything but the second was in the dry and the car felt good. Aly Hunter seemed to think I was doing ok too so that gives me some confidence for tomorrow if we get some dry running.

Fingers crossed for a good day!

Solid Day

2008-07-02T16:46:00.002+01:00

Good day for the #07 in the hands of Gordon this weekend - he took it easy on the first laps of the two heats to stay out of trouble and brought the car home in 14th and 15th places followed by 13th in the final, avoiding a pile-up out of Scotsman/McIntyre which would see the red flag fly.

That's it until the August 3rd meeting which will be my last run of the year.

2008-06-24T16:45:00.002+01:00

Next round is this coming weekend with Gordon at the wheel of the #07. In the meantime, here's a video of one of my two incidents on April 27th. The other wasn't really caught by the cameras so I probably wont upload it.

Winners!

2008-06-12T02:19:00.005+01:00

I know the part played by myself and Gordon was fairly minimal, but we're still on a high after Sunday's events and the fifth round of the Championship as part of the Scottish Speedfair event.

For various reasons I couldn't be at the track on Saturday when the first heat was run but the race was a dnf for Rory due to a perceived problem with the gearbox which thankfully turned out to not be the case. Plus for whatever reason the brake balance had been moved all the way back so he's lucky he didn't crash the thing before he realised.

On to Sunday and the second heat in which he started towards the back and stayed there for most of the race, unhappy with the pulling power of the car in a straight line where he just couldn't compete. Clearly something wasn't right so in the big gap between the two races while Knockhill sent endless parades and track demos out various things were tried. The engine was rebuilt between the last race and this one so something had obviously not gone to plan. Thankfully, as it would transpire a second or so a lap would be found by changing the oil.

So on to the final. Due to the fact the final is made up from the results of the previous two heats, Rory started a promising third as the only one of the quick drivers to have a really bad day. He managed to jump the two rookies starting ahead of him and proceeded to vanish into the distance while the quickest drivers had to fight quite hard to get to the front. Indeed, it took 8 of the 10 laps for that to happen, Carol Brown eventually appearing in second but unable to close the gap with Rory winning by a pretty decent margin!

There were joyous scenes in the paddock afterwards as Rory had his entire family on hand and it's fantastic that the group has achieved something, especially as Rory was our only realistic chance of a really good result - though we'd expected a possible podium or two, not a race victory!

Controlled Agrression Or Just Rough Driving?

2008-04-28T20:22:00.007+01:00

So, the double header went ahead as planned as alternate fuel supplies were found. My feelings after the day are still a bit mixed so I'll try not to say anything I'll regret.

Round 3 was held prior to the lunchbreak with Gordon at the wheel for the first time in 8 months. He was a bit nervous about going straight into the races but given the relative lack of funding all three of us have, he couldn't test on Saturday (which I did with nothing spectacular to report - still off the pace I'd gotten up to last year which is a worry.) He got up to a pretty good speed in the warmup though so started in the grid, running pretty well in the first round and avoiding a big accident that happened right in front of him towards Clark, that said however myself and Rory's worst fears were realised when he vanished from the field with a couple of laps to go, eventually showing up on the back of a towrope in the paddock. A broken oil cooler was the issue and it was quickly replaced in time for him to get out again for the next two races which he got through both of with no further issues, setting a very impressive laptime in the final.

During the lunchbreak I was a little tense about running in the three afternoon races that made up Round 4 as Rory and myself had been really surprised at all the rough driving that was going on all down the field - quite apart from the two largish accidents that happened in the morning (Colin Atkinson needing a little medical attention after an airborne moment which ended his day completely and trust me, could have been much worse as it happened right in front of us and was close to being much bigger) there had been a huge number of aggressive moments with a lot of take and not a lot of give.

Still, drew 5th for the first heat and got underway, trying as hard as I could not to get swamped by the field. It was going quite well until I screwed up my braking for the hairpin and went deep into the corner, holding the outside lane so that I wouldn't get in the way. Right. Next thing I know impacts are coming and Alex Knight's car jumps over my front-right, tearing off the fender. The upshot was that I was left sitting in the gravel but after a push from the marshalls I meandered back to the paddock, the steering feeling to me like it was way off - turns out it wasn't - just dust, gravel and my inexperience making me think it was. I'll have to wait for the TV coverage to find out what actually happened there as I heard three different versions from three different people (one of which was very unflattering to one of the cars which hit me) but I really can't comment on it until I find out. Pic by Linz Gordon follows:

The second race was quieter as I was starting at the back but I made a terrible start and fell right to the back but managed to repass Ericco Palazzo into MacIntyres. After that I just had to watch in amazement as broken down and crashed cars proceeded to litter the track, only 15 cars actually finished in the end so I picked up my best result so far of 14th.

The final had me start third and given that this was my last race for the next 3 months or so I decided to try going for it. Nice idea I suppose! Got a decent start and managed to grab the racing line and only lost a couple of spots on the first lap. Then on the run up to Clark on the second lap whilst side by side with Rich Crozier, Chris Hynds lost a fender ahead of us. It landed on the road ahead of Rich and he jinked left to avoid it, clipping me and sending me off into the gravel. Got a push out by the ever-excellent marshalls and (in a bit of a raised state of adrenaline) pounded round in what had become something of an extended test session. One moment of note when the leaders lapped me was when John Marshall passed me at Clark only to go straight on and rejoin right ahead, but we got away with it.

Was pretty annoyed with Rich over the incident and made the mistake of not cooling off a bit before speaking to him afterwards and feel a bit of an idiot for shouting at him which hardly helped the situation. Sorted it out between us afterwards though and thankfully the car was fine, though it ended the day looking a bit battle worn.

There's been a lot of dicussion about the aggressive driving and the gulf in driving ability between those at the front and those of us towards the back among the drivers recently as the legends is really becoming a pro-am series these days. There are some extremely quick drivers and those who've come up from karts and may be eyeing futures in motorsport at the front and plenty of novices and those of us who are just out for some fun at the back and the way we all get mixed together in the big grid that currently exists is leading to occasional problems. Guess we'll see where that goes.

As for me, I get a big break until the August 3rd meeting until I'll be racing again, though I might get a go in the Saturday tests if Rory and Gordon don't do them just to keep myself in practice - and I need all I can get.

Results from April 28th meeting. Why I'm called Matthew by SMART Timing this time out, I'll never know!

Double Header?

2008-04-24T13:03:00.002+01:00

The question mark is over all this stupid fuel-shortage stuff which wouldn't be a problem if unions didn't insist on the impossible almost constantly and the public didn't all flock like sheep to the petrol stations and swallow up all the supplies even before the strike begins!

Anyway, assuming Aly can source the required juice as Knockhill have said they wont supply him as normal for this weekend, the plan for this event had been for me to test on Saturday, Gordon to do the Sunday warmup and then the three races for Round three in the morning and finally me driving in the three races of Round Four in the afternoon.

Fingers crossed!

Long Weekend

2008-04-14T23:07:00.003+01:00

Showed up on Friday to get re-aquainted with the car and did so, thought I was getting back into the way of things.

Saturday kind of showed me that wasn't - in the morning warmup I had trouble stringing coherent laps together but I was still feeling rusty so expected it. We were the last race of the day after the first British GT race of the weekend and I had drawn at the back and got a little left behind. Found myself fighting with Mervyn Wilson and Kenny Thompson (both newcomers this year) but was starting to wonder how long we had been going - I was sure we'd done 8 laps. With cars starting to litter the side of the road I was sure something was up and with my mind wandering slightly and (as it turned out) my brakes overheating, I had a massive spin down Duffus Dip. Got going again just as the top five or so lapped me and toured it back in for the last few laps, sure that the race had been a lot longer than it should have.

Turns out there was a misunderstanding with BRSCC who run the British GT Championship and therefore this meeting somehow getting the impression we ran 15 minute races. As this became 15 laps, a couple of cars had run out of fuel along with others suffering overheated brakes and tyres and possibly even engines. This led to Tony Caig (who led at 8 laps when a standard legends race would have ended) losing everything when his engine blew. A vote was put to the drivers afterwards and the preffered (but by no means unanimous) decision was to go for a result after 8 laps. It obviously made no real difference to me in terms of results so I just voted for what I thought made most sense - i.e an 8 lap result given that the last 5 laps had just been a comedy of errors as we all fell off all over the track. Obviously the top five finishers after 15 laps weren't happy with this idea and you can understand why.

In the event on Sunday morning the BRSCC decided that a 15 lap result would stand with regard to working out the grid for the final. Whether the result will stand for the SMRC Championship points, I don't know. Anyway, the second race was the first of the day and thankfully it was dry. I'd originally meant to be starting second but this became pole when Scott Hynds couldn't get started in the pitlane alongside me. I got an average start and this meant the quick guys mugged me pretty quickly and before I knew what was happening I was in the midfield. There was a lot of hard driving going on with a lot of wheel-banging and I was "moved" out of the way once or twice. Still, the race went well and I finished right with Murray Ford and Jason Ogg who had suffered a couple of offs.

The final was also thankfully dry and I was second again but things went much the same way as before and a pretty poor start meant I got pushed wide at the top of the hill and got a bit freight-trained. Had a few fights as I went backwards but was soon at the back again. Tried to follow Aly Hunter and Kenny Thompson but they dropped me in the last couple of laps. Finished 22nd of 24 finishers. Best lap of the weekend was a 65.1 so about half a second slower than at the end of last year which is a bit dissappointing but then it has been six months. Hoping for better things in two weeks when I'm driving in the second round of the double header.

Results can be found here.

Ups, Downs and All Sorts.

2008-04-03T16:57:00.006+01:00

Almost impossible to believe it's a year since the start of last season but my debut year has been and gone and year 2 started at the weekend. As practice on Saturday got underway and I stood beside Lance Gauld and Rob Johnston (Radio Knockhill commentator), I commented as Rory went by on his first lap out of the pits in our car that I was going to feel uneasy watching someone else racing it. Sure enough, 15 seconds later the red flags came out and Rory didn't come back round... turned out he'd hit the tyre wall on the outside of Scotsman chicane and been pitched head on into the perimeter tyrewall. The car came back on the flatbed looking a bit crumpled at the front but thankfully a few cosmetic repairs and a new left-side steering arm and the car was ready for the second session in which Rory was able to go 6th quickest.

Here's Rory and his trophy for the day: the bent steering arm.

Sunday morning was wet and cold, but started really well. After being 6th in the morning warmup, Rory had a good first race. He was challenging for a podium finish when another driver put himself and our car off the road but Rory still recovered for fifth place at the end. The second race saw Rory with podium-pace again but David Thorburn spun directly in front of him and the avoiding action put him to the back. He still managed to fight back to 12th which in a field of 26 was really good.

Then in the final things went a little awry. After a poor first lap he found himself towards the back but along with Oliver Mortimer he quickly worked his way through the midfield. However with 2 laps to go he and Oliver got hooked on the pitstraight and in a cloud of tyre smoke both went into the tyrewall. The car suffered some front-end damage but wasn't too bad, Oli however suffered a fair amount of damaged bits and pieces.

Even with the DNF in the final we ended up third in the "Team Championship" standings for the day which was a good start.

Next up is my first shot in the drivers-seat at the British GT Championship round at Knockhill. It's going to be a three-day deal with testing on Friday aftenoon, warmup and a single race on Saturday and two races on Sunday and I'm really looking forward to taking part in a big event again. The timetable of events for the weekend is here.

The First Round.

2008-03-31T22:56:00.003+01:00

Just a quick note about the weekend with a full report to follow: it was a weekend not without incident (four of them to be honest) and on two separate occasions the car came back from the races needing repairs but the results weren't too bad. The first two races could have had Rory and the #07 on the podium but he had to settle for 5th and 12th and a potentially huge crash at the end of the pit-straight could have had dire consequences in the third race but we possibly were a little lucky despite not making the finish.

Full details to follow.

Various pre-season things.

2008-03-10T16:20:00.006Z

So, just to finish the below post off completely, I'm driving at the 2nd, 4th and 7th rounds this year. That's the British GT Championship support round over the weekend of the 12th and 13th of April, the afternoon round at the double-header meeting on 27th April and the August 3rd round. All are at Knockhill of course. The reason for the first two being so close together is that Rory kindly swapped the British GT round for one of my standard events as he'd drawn both of the "Big" races.

To get a little more seat time, I'm going to try to make it down to the track for the test days before Gordon's rounds as he's only doing the race events this year. I've had a frankly rubbish 2008 so far so I can't wait to get back to Knockhill in the Spring and get the motorsport under way again!

I wrote a report for SCR covering my first year in racing and so forth, can be seen here.

And finally - a video of my brief stab at glory in the final race of 2007! - video

"I love it when a plan comes together."

2008-03-06T20:36:00.003Z

Got down to the "official" Legends test day to see the car for '08. Myself and Gordon could only show up at the end of the day due to work but Rory was out on track in the car and set some pretty good times whilst bedding in the rebuilt engine. It's had a bit of a lick of paint to signify the "Class of '07" idea as you can see in the pic below. We've worked out who's racing when as well, I'll cover that shortly but I'm pleased to report I managed to get the support round on the British GT Championship bill in April which should be cool.

First round is on March 30th where Rory will be at the wheel with myself and Gordon in our "support" role. We're all showing up the day before to learn the basic stuff we need to learn to keep the car ticking over on racedays.

Quick vid.

2008-01-26T00:10:00.000Z

Forgot to link to this video, it's quite amusing if you want to hear the TV commentators having a go at my amateurish attempts at racing. I've made my excuses for this several times already, it was very wet, I braked too late, locked the wheels and ploughed straight on like a numpty. Yeah, yeah - I know.

Link

2008

2008-01-20T16:23:00.000Z

It's been a long off-season but we're approaching the end of January so we're starting to reel in Springtime, slowly but surely. SMRC events are due to start on March 30th this year, I'd assume the "official" test day will be a couple of weeks beforehand.

My plans for the year are falling into place bit by bit - last season was a lot of fun but extremely expensive (no-one ever said motorsport was cheap though so I've no complaints), I probably couldn't afford to run a full year again, though before I'd had much chance to think about it, Aly Hunter called the three scholarship drivers into a meeting at a cold and windswept Knockhill last month, just before Christmas. Given that all three scholars (myself, Rory Bryant and Gordon Mann) all probably couldn't afford to run ourselves, his proposal was that the three of us share a "team" car over the '08 season, each running at three rounds (should be a nine-round season again) and the other two drivers acting as "support staff" for the car when they aren't driving. To get the "Class of '07" concept going he (with some additional help from the SMRC) was able to offer us a pretty good deal in terms of finances so we should be good for the season. The "team" concept was taking off at the end of last season so there should be lots of cars with multiple drivers. The three of us worked out a deal with regard to how we'd decide who was running when, how damage costs would be paid etc etc and now it's just a case of agreeing the details with Aly and waiting for the season to arrive.

No British Touring Car support round this year sadly - seems the National Championship frankly stole the slot from us having seen how successful the Scottish Series was, but I guess it reflects well on us that we caught their attention. Still a shame to be binned like that. On the plus side, we've got a support slot at the British GT Championship (making a welcome return to Knockhill after a couple of years away) in April so whoever draws that particular round when the three of us get round to doing so will be getting the "prestige" event of the year!

Roll on March.

Last bow taken for 2007.

2007-10-28T11:54:00.000Z

Taken a while to get round to updating this...

So, last week was the last meeting of the season. Like the September meeting, this was a double header again so a very busy day was in the offing.

For the first heat of the morning round, some low cloud had brought some light rain so I'd taken it pretty easy in the warm up. I (terrifyingly) drew pole for this one... When we got underway I mostly tippy-toed my way back through the field as the track was in greasy mode and it was very treacherous. With a handful of laps to go Murray Ford exacted revenge on me for the September crash which lost him a wheel by steaming into the side of me through McIntyres/Scotsman - totally accidental as he'd tried a move and just understeered wide into me. We banged wheels and both spun, me ending up in the gravel and Murray broadside on the track. We both got going again but I finished last having crawled to the finish in case of damage.

The second heat was mostly me checking that the car was ok (we'd had a look to check the rear half-shaft was ok and so on) and there were no heroics to speak of. Car felt fine though so I was ready for the final, which I was on pole for again!

The final wasn't my finest hour. I was down at the back from the fourth lap onwards and I just drifted backwards, well over a second a lap slower than the next cars. As Dave Newsham had taken off at the start of the race he had an easy run and set ten quick laps, lapping me on the last lap which gave me a kick in the head a bit to pick it up in the afternoon.

The first heat of the afternoon round wasn't anything much to write home about, though I did have a fun battle to the end with Sandford Imrie and Murray, actually managing what was apparently (I was told from trackside) a grandstand overtaking manouver on Murray at the hairpin. Turned out he had a few issues with his steering and so on but I claim the victory. :p Most important, in this race the track was finally bone-dry and so the line was fully available for quick laps. I finally got my 64 second lap in this race with a best of 64.624!

The second heat was fairly uneventful, after ending up towards the back again I had another fight with Murray, passing him before being repassed myself then we both got by Chris Hynds when he spun late on.

The final was the best race of the year by far as agreed by almost everyone. The entire field was involved in some sort of battle and the lead fight towards the end was apparently breathtaking (I'll have to wait for the Motors TV coverage to see it!)
For my own part, I was involved in a fantastic fight with five or six other cars for most of the race but I'll come to that after mentioning the start... I had finished lowest of the "regular" runners in the the first two heats so was on pole again alongside Mark Spiers who was back after a while away. Indeed, the really quick guys were quite far back. So when the lights went out to signal the start, I just thought "Last race to make an impression" and utterly went for it. Sure enough, I managed to get the inside line into Duffus and led down the hill! Mark jinked out to the right and got me into McIntyres but I floored it as best I could on the line and managed to get through the chicane (I think) in second - apparently the circuit commentator thought this was a really bizarre turn of events... By memory I think Jason Ogg got me into Clark with Ben Mason and Ali Gauld on the run down to and through the hairpin with Rory Bryant getting by on the pit straight but I finished the lap in 6th. Lost my nerve slightly on the next lap and lost a few spots to cross the line in 14th, followed by 16th the next time by. By this time the big fight I mentioned was underway - Chris Hynds and James Willis ahead of me, Frank Ogg, Scott Hynds, Rich Crozier, Imrie and Ford behind me. Hynds and Willis collided with James going off and I was slightly held up behind Chris as he blocked the line with his slightly damaged car, losing a handful of places myself. The group fought like tigers for the next few laps and although I ended up at the back of the bunch, it was amazing fun all the way.

Results

So it was a fantastic day's racing. Somewhat bizarrely it was probably the worst set of results I've had, despite being a good bit quicker! Think it shows the quality of the field in the series... After the presentations of race and Championship awards, Gordon Mann, Rory and myself all stepped forward to present Aly with a bottle of whisky with the label I've attached a picture of below to say thanks for the scholarship. Gordon had also written some comedy Burns-style poetry!

I'll write some final thoughts on my year here later, along with early predictions of what I may be doing next season!