And it was all going so well!
Then.....BANG!!! And what a bang it was!
The East Midlands Champion Of Champions race was the first race of the day on Sunday and after a week of on and off rain the track was always going to be a bit on the tricky side. For Gary this wasn't proving that much of a problem, he was quick away from the start and making ground up on the other cars from the word go.
The main problem with these sort of races is the handicap system used - the lower classes of car, less modified than ours, start up to a full lap ahead of the quickest. This makes for a more exciting end to the race as, in theory, the last lap or two will see everyone in with a chance of taking the win. Great for the spectators, not so if you're the one battling from the rear of the grid!
Around 3 laps into the race and Gary was on one of his famous wide line charges around the pit bend, going right around the outside of one of the Class 3 cars (modified front engine, rear wheel drive) as if he wasn't there! Just as Gary set off up the back straight the Class 3 "lost it", shooting off his racing line and taking Gary straight in to the post and wire fence! End of race!
Then.....BANG!!! And what a bang it was!
The East Midlands Champion Of Champions race was the first race of the day on Sunday and after a week of on and off rain the track was always going to be a bit on the tricky side. For Gary this wasn't proving that much of a problem, he was quick away from the start and making ground up on the other cars from the word go.
The main problem with these sort of races is the handicap system used - the lower classes of car, less modified than ours, start up to a full lap ahead of the quickest. This makes for a more exciting end to the race as, in theory, the last lap or two will see everyone in with a chance of taking the win. Great for the spectators, not so if you're the one battling from the rear of the grid!
Around 3 laps into the race and Gary was on one of his famous wide line charges around the pit bend, going right around the outside of one of the Class 3 cars (modified front engine, rear wheel drive) as if he wasn't there! Just as Gary set off up the back straight the Class 3 "lost it", shooting off his racing line and taking Gary straight in to the post and wire fence! End of race!
The end result was a re-run, that we were not allowed back in, as we had been the reason for the stoppage, and some pretty heavy damage to the car! All the left hand rear of the car was pushed in around two or three inches and the rear wheel pulled out of line by about 4 inches! Some quick work in the pits (thanks Micky Manning for your help!) and the car was sort of straight enough to run again.
As the meeting wore on we became aware that if we could just get the very battle scarred MG to the finish of the next two heats then Gary would still win a hat-trick of titles! The overall Club Points Championship had us 8 points clear going in to this last meeting. Our nearest rival took a first and a second in his races; Gary did a second and third which left him Overall Club Points Champion, as well as Class 6 Club Champion and also League Class 6 Champion!
As the meeting wore on we became aware that if we could just get the very battle scarred MG to the finish of the next two heats then Gary would still win a hat-trick of titles! The overall Club Points Championship had us 8 points clear going in to this last meeting. Our nearest rival took a first and a second in his races; Gary did a second and third which left him Overall Club Points Champion, as well as Class 6 Club Champion and also League Class 6 Champion!
In the end not a bad day but the damage picked up now means that the planned trip to St. Neots, in two weeks time, is in the balance.
No comments:
Post a Comment