Mixed
fortunes at Snetterton
After
a rush to get the engine and gearbox sorted it was a relief to get out on the
track for qualifying on Sunday all be it an early start. After a couple of laps it was apparent that all was still not well
in the ‘box with changes from 4th to 5th taking several attempts. It’s surprising how much
it can affect your lap times when you have to think about the car as well as where the track goes. After 10 or so laps I decided
to just do one more and call it a day. That last lap was my quickest and put m e on the 3rd row of the grid. Steve
an Mark worked hard to isolate and fix the problem and we made it to the grid for race one
Race
1
With
the rain set to last the morning we opted for rain tyres and a wet set up – softer suspension to give the car more ‘feel’.
I made a poor start and dropped a couple of places into the first corner. Coming to the second corner I was hit on the RH
side by a car that was going for a gap that wasn’t there, this pushed me into another car, we both spun and I started
off again in last place. The next 10 laps were spent fighting my way back up the field (I’m getting used to this after
Silverstone). I was back up to 3rd and catching 2nd place when the car started to misfire badly. I got
it back to the pits where we found a broken wire on one of the ignition coils. It was too late to restart so we retired. This
is the first DNF for the team in over two and a half years and 35 races, and hopefully the last!
Race
2
With
the wire reconnected we formed up on the grid for race 2. The rain was now torrential and visibility was very poor. On the
way back to the grid on the warm up lap the pole position car suddenly spun across the main straight, hit the pit wall the
cannoned back across the track. The race start was delayed while the clerk of the Course took an inspection lap. He returned
and decided to start the race. Once again I made a poor start (Note to self – sort this before Combe on 28th)
this meant that visibility was non existent due to the spray from the cars ahead. I decided to take it easy for the first
lap and then see what we could do. The standing water on the track was a big problem and the car was aquaplaning everywhere.
The guy who hit me in the first race span off in front of me so that was a place gained. I passed a few other cars and was
back up to 5th when the race was stopped because of the conditions number of cars that had spun or crashed.
They
were the worst conditions I have ever raced in so to finish 3rd in class and another trophy was a good result at
the end of a hard weekend.
Next
Race is Castle Combe on Bank Holiday Monday 28th May – Let’s hope the Sun comes out again!
