The Long Way Round | Easykart UK 2015 Rd 8 & E plate

"Leaf no tyre marks" - Steve Webb 2015

On the weekend of the 26th-27th September the final round of the Easykart UK 2015 championship was held. This year it was combined with the e-plate, which gave a reason for everyone to go for the win. I was coming into this round comfortably in 3rd place in the championship, and knew pretty much all I had to do was finish in the top ten in each race.
We arrived late Friday evening to drop the trailer off, acting like complete yobs with music blaring out of the car. Then it was off to the premier inn for dinner and a good sleep before testing the following day.
Saturday, Practice. We got set up early (seems like a repeating pattern here) and went on a track walk. We were expecting it to be damp up at the first corner because, it being Buckmore and late September, that's the norm. However it was dry, a nice surprise I have to say.
Any way the first session felt a bit slippy as we had the tyre pressures a little too high, but after that they were pretty much as we hoped, good grip through the corners, no understeer and the only time I had oversteer was when I went a bit too quick through a corner. I set some good times on the Saturday and was feeling very confident about Sunday.
Sunday, Race Day. We arrived in plenty of time, discovered we had nothing really to do on the kart so went out to check how dry the track was. Not a damp patch in sight. JV did his usual drivers briefing and then we were ready.

The Koden certainly looks a bit less.... mean compared to the Bell.

Warm up. We planned to go out in the warm up for maybe 5 laps, taking it fairly easy for the first 4 laps then doing one flying lap before coming in. Unfortunately we couldn't do that. As I tried to start my kart the end cap of the exhaust decided to evacuate the area. I didn't realise this, I just thought my kart hadn't started, so I did the normal thing and try to start it again. This was met by a unanimous response of "STOP!" from everyone else on the dummy grid. In the end I was allowed to do 1 lap just to check that the transponder was working. I couldn't hear anything for about a minute after I got into the pits as the noise from the unsilenced exhaust was deafening!
Qualifying. Having not been able to get the tyres scrubbed in I had to use the first couple of laps of qualifying to get them up to temperature. It was an uneventful qualifying for me, since I didn't know where I was after each lap. I managed to get 3rd which was good as it was on the inside for the first corner of the heat.

They knew I was one to watch

Is this what you call "eco friendly"?

Heat. I was hoping to have a decent race as, well, that's expected. I pulled out of the dummy grid for the rolling up lap and didn't seem to have any acceleration. I just assumed it'd sort itself out so continued with the rolling up lap. It didn't sort itself out so I had to be on high revs for the majority of the final rolling up lap (Buckmore is 1.5 laps for rolling up). Anyway I managed to get a half decent start, pulled a bit of a gap to 4th in the first couple of corners. However, as I was coming down the hill my rear axle felt like it locked up a for a split second, and my kart whipped round. There was nothing I could do and to top it off my engine stopped. Everyone flew past. I got my kart back onto the track and tried to start it. It didn't. I rolled it back into the dummy grid where it finally started, and amazingly was allowed back out on track, 1 lap behind. I was pretty annoyed with myself at this point, so finished the race in 16th, 1 lap behind everyone but with lap times pretty close to the front 2. And knowing my performance at G-y-G from the back I was fairly confident.
Pre-final. Starting 16th clearly was not ideal, but I knew I had a few overtaking spots so it wasn't too much of a problem. It was a fairly uneventful race. I made up 6 places in the first 3 laps and then had to try and close up a gap of about 3 seconds to the guys in front. I managed to make up the gap and get past before the end, putting me in 9th for the final. Up 7 places!

Just checking it is actually my trophy

Final. Now this was the big one. Final race of the day, my final race in juniors and most likely my final race for an uncertain amount of time. I know, no more blog updates! How will you survive!? Anyway, back to the race. By the first corner I was up to 6th place I think, and was hot on the tail of 5th. I then made a move on the second lap and was up to 5th. My aim originally had been a podium, this then changed to top 5 after the heat, however given this amazing performance (Not vain at all) by myself I was pretty confident I could make the podium. I closed in on 4th place Toby Goodman fairly quickly, he seemed to be being held up a bit by Harry Barlow in 3rd but couldn't find a way past. I dived up the inside at one of the corners and made it stick without losing too much time to Harry. I caught up and was right on his tail as we approached the lower end of the track. I knew I could overtake down there in a few places and did. Up to 3rd, within touching distance (again) of the third step of the podium. I held 3rd for a few laps before Barlow found some speed and managed to get back past, giving the push signal. Normally this would annoy me but I could see that we still had about 6 minutes of the race left so I let it go and stuck to his rear bumper for a few laps. I could see we weren't making any ground on the leading duo so made a move down the bottom again to put myself into 3rd. This caused a little bit of jostling and dropped the group behind me back a bit. Having a decent gap was good as it allowed me to just think about my driving. With clear air my times started to improve, and I began closing in on Jenson ahead. I didn't think I had enough time left to catch him but kept pushing just in case he made a mistake that I could capitalise on. Unfortunately he didn't, but I held 3rd place so I was happy. Since this was also the E-plate I got a second trophy for getting 3rd in that! (Its the shiny gold one in the picture!)

I look like I'm going to fall off....

A good end to a surprising season. Very happy with 3rd overall in the championship, collecting a couple of trophies along the way as well as technically a race win. No pole position from qualifying but you can't have everything. What I'll be doing next year is still undecided, but I'll try and keep an eye on the championship, putting comments on here when I feel it deserves it!

Points vs Possible Prizes | Easykart UK 2015 Rd 6 & 7 Whilton Mill

I like the new Le Man style grid - works well!

On the weekend of the 5th and 6th of September, the 6th and 7th rounds of the Easykart UK championship. This was an unexpected double header, my second at Whilton Mill, but it played into my hands quite well. Whilton is my local track and I've logged plenty of hours there over my time in Easykart, so I was expecting a good result. Since it was a double header the official practice day was scheduled for Friday 4th.

Discussing tactics I'm sure....

We arrived on Friday fairly early on and got set up. The day was dry which was good - allowing us to get sorted for Saturday and Sunday which were forecast to be dry. The first session I was running in my engine, so the footage we got is absolutely exhilarating... Anyway the rest of the day felt good. I was certainly quick - not pole position quick but up there. There was a new junior testing who'd not done Easykart before, so for the last lap or so of each session where, to be honest, my tyres were starting to disagree with their treatment, I followed him and gave him a few pointers. We managed to shave 6 seconds off his time over the day. Friday finished and we felt we had a decent setup - only tyres to sort now.

Sticking to the back of Jonathan a lap before I get past

Saturday, Race day #1. We arrived bright and early thinking the track may be a bit damp as there had been some unexpected rain overnight. But no. Dry track so all looked good. Juniors and Cadets were given a 15 minute warm up instead of the usual 5 minutes as quite a few of them were unable to test on the Friday due to it being the first day back at school after summer, however only 2 or 3 drivers used the full 15 minutes.
Qualifying went ok - I was struggling for pace as the tyres just weren't giving me enough. We had tried to inflate the tyres enough to allow me to set some quick times early on, slow down to let them cool, and do another fast stint. However that didn't work. The tyres took a long time to heat up and I only managed to get 4th place - setting that time on my last lap. The good side was that I was only 0.005s off 3rd place.
Heat. I got a bad start and dropped back to 5th by the end of lap 2. I managed to hold this position to the end of the race which, for me, was pretty uneventful. I was glad to be on the inside as well as my starts tend to be good, and hoped to be able to make up a place or 2 off the start.
Pre-final. Unfortunately my hope of making up places didn't happen. I held 5th until Jonathan made a slight mistake and ran wide, slowing down to regain control. This allowed me to take 4th place, obviously, which I held until the chequered flag. I actually finished 3rd as Jenson's chain and guard decided they'd had enough and removed themselves from his kart. Starting on the inside again for the final, in a prime position to gain a place into the first corner.

Close racing

Just about hanging onto the back of Sam

Final. Starting on the inside I was hopeful for a good start as throughout the day they had been pretty much perfect. My luck held and by the first corner I had made my way into second place. I held 2nd for about half the race, not feeling pressured but knowing any mistake and I'd lose 2nd. By about haf way Jenson had managed to drive his way from the back and onto my tail. I only knew this as going into the boot he flew up my inside. I tried to compensate for this and ran a bit wide with a view to putting myself on the inside and take 2nd back almost immediately. Unfortunately Jenson ran wide as well so all I did was lose time. I was, in the failure of my 'counter move', overtaken again and dropped into 4th place. I held this till the end of the race. No podium but good championship points and a chance to do it all again the next day.
Sunday, Race day #2. We arrived bright and early again to a dry track. Warm up was only 5 minutes this time and my strategy was exactly the same as every other warm up, about 5 laps 5 seconds off my pace from the previous day.

Showing off the 'expensive' new sticker kit

Qualifying. Now the problem with a double header is that everyone has time to work out what they were doing wrong in the previous day. I felt qualifying was pretty good however I didn't think we had quite got the tyre pressures right, but hoped for a decent position. I got 6th, not far off time wise, but still a fair way down the grid.
Heat. Now unfortunately because I was on the wrong side of the grid, and a couple of rows back, my start wasn't brilliant. I lost no places but didn't gain any. I managed to get into 5th on lap 4 and started closing on the leading quartet who, by this point, had started to squabble. I didn't have enough of a lap time advantage to get into the fray but I wasn't far off. And finishing 5th meant I was on the good side of the grid for the start of the pre-final.

Modelling career perhaps?

Pre-final.  I have to say this was one of my best starts to date. I made up 2 places by the first corner, so I was into 3rd, and managed to hold them for the rest of the race. Toward the end of the race I started to close on Sam and Jenson, but as usual it wasn't enough to pressure them.
Final. Starting 3rd I was, as usual, hopeful for a good result. I made an ok start and was sitting in 3rd. However a small mistake in the infield allowed Jonathan to get past and dropped me into 4th. I felt I had the speed to get 3rd back, but it would involve going 100%-105% for the entire race. Although a trophy would have been nice the championship, I felt, was more important. The rest of the race was rather processional and I crossed the line within touching distance of 3rd, but not actually in 3rd. A good day for my championship hopes but not for my trophy cabinet. Roll on Buckmore for the final round!

I'm sure there's meant to be a bolt here....

It's Taken Me Three Years | Easykart UK Round 3 Llandow

Some close racing - even on the Saturday

On the weekend of Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th was the third round of the Easykart UK Championship. This year held at Llandow. It was the third round in 2012 that I attended my first Easykart Event, making this 3 years of Easykart for me and 3 whole seasons completed. Just wanting to thank everyone at Easykart for being so kind and helpful, it appears this kind of camaraderie is unique in karting, with everywhere else being closed awnings and the like. Also thanks to everyone who supports me back at base but is unable to come and watch me race. Thanks guys for making these years possible.

Calm as usual

Anyway, onto the race review.
We got up to the track Friday evening to drop off the trailer, then onto the Premier Inn for dinner and sleep.
Saturday morning we were up early as usual and were at the track by around 8:15 I think. With a drivers briefing scheduled for 10:45, and the first Junior session at 11:00, there was a lot of time to kill. We were set up by about 9:00 so I went for a wander to see who was about, and then a track walk. Having sustained a bent axle in the pre-final at Three Sisters I was running with a bent axle for the first 3 sessions. Unfortunately this meant that my braking was a lot worse and harder to control. I was really struggling into the big hairpin but I managed. During lunch we changed the rear axle and fitted some new brake pads. Although this meant I would have to bed the brakes in during the 4th session I wasn't too bothered, I had a decent axle so my braking should be a lot better. As it happens I set a time only 8 hundredths slower than I had in the previous session, and the track was starting to get slower. By the fifth session the air had warmed up a lot more so times were slower, but I set a pb of 45.2 - not as quick as Sunday but I was happy.
Saturday evening was a laugh. Having had food we sat with the combination of the Fox's and the Jerger's for a drink, orange juice in my case (Not quite on the alcohol), and ended up doing a lemon challenge of all things. Apparently eating the whole lemon slice, rind included, isn't normal.... When we got back to the room I was asleep in a couple of minutes max.

Modelling Career?

Sunday, Race Day. We arrived at the track to find sun shining. Actual sun! In Wales! It was a sign, I'm sure.... maybe. Anyway, warm up went well, setting times about the same as the Saturday but trying a lot less.
Qualifying was rather annoying. I went out and immediately I could feel the rear end slipping a lot more than normal. Admittedly on cold tyres this was to be expected, however it didn't sort itself out. I spent the whole session sliding around each and every corner, trying to get grip. Anyway, my run of 2nd place qualifying sessions has ended. I qualified 5th.
Heat. This has got to be one of the longest races I've ever done. A whole 3 laps! I made a lunge into the hairpin on Toby, and got past him. Unfortunately I caught Harry's rear bumper, pulling my front pod off my kart and giving me a mechanical. Luckily I was the only one to lose out, so no DSQ for me. However it did mean I would have to start from P14, right at the back of the grid.

Driver coach putting me to sleep?

The pre-final was a great race, from 14th on the grid up to 7th place. Overtakes were many and I have to say it was a very enjoyable race, even if I didn't get as many points as I would have liked. Finishing in 7th meant I had a chance, if not a very good one, of getting a podium. It would require a lot of effort though...
Final. The first start resulted in a rather large pile up with damage being done to most karts, luckily mine was only cosmetic, a few dents in the front pod. From the restart I held my position, and by the end of the first lap had made my way to 6th position. By this point the front 3 had pulled a bit of a gap, so overtaking quickly was a must. I was up to 5th by the end of the 2nd lap but with a fair gap to the guy in 3rd. Although I was quicker than 2nd and 3rd place drivers at this point, I was unsure if I was quick enough to catch up and overtake them both. Luckily I had the speed and the consistency to do so. Once I caught up it didn't take me long to get past them. Now I was into 3rd, as during my overtakes Jenson managed to get past. Fortunately for me, unfortunately for Jenson, his exhaust was loose and he was given a mechanical flag towards the end of the race. This promoted me to 2nd. I held 2nd for the rest of the race until the final corner, where I decided to go very defensive to stop Toby and anyone else behind him from cutting up my inside and stopping me from getting my podium. This plan didn't really work. I kept my podium but ran a bit wide, allowing Toby to creep up the inside and collect 2nd place by only 0.033s. I'm looking forward to the official footage to see how much space I had before that corner, and whether I'd have been able to take my normal line.

3rd step, only 2 to go

3rd place isn't something to be unhappy about. 3rd full year in Easykart, first podium, highest finish to date. Hopefully the first of many podiums.

It has been announced that Rowrah has been cancelled and removed from the Easykart calendar as not enough people signed up for it. It's a shame as its a new track for me. But on the bright side a double header at Whilton has been chosen as a replacement. Roll on Clay Pigeon!

Fast on Track, Slow in Writing | Easykart UK Round 2 Three Sisters

On the weekend of the 18th-19th April the second Easykart UK round was held at Three Sisters in Wigan. I know it was a long time ago but I'm sure that doesn't matter.... too much.
Wigan is a fair distance away so no staying at home this time. Having never been to Three Sisters before I wasn't too optimistic about getting a decent result (Podium) but it was still a possibility.
Arriving on Friday allowed us to be setup and pretty much sorted for Saturday before hand, this meant I could do a track walk and actually work out the circuit before going out. Having never been I obviously didn't really know the track. There's only so much you can learn from Youtube.
Saturday was quite simply about learning the track and trying to go a bit quicker than the majority of the others
After completely destroying the sprocket protector during the first session and throwing the chain, we decided to run with out a sprocket protector. By the end of the day I was running pretty well, seemed to be in the top 5 time wise so I was looking forward to Sunday. There were a few huge incidents with the air ambulance having to be called. Luckily all those involved in the incidents were OK, if a little bruised.

Sunday. Race Day. We arrived at the track, obviously, and were setup on time. Warm up was uneventful with me simply getting some heat into the tyres as per usual.
Qualifying. Now this was interesting. I was stuck behind a group of slower drivers but wasnt sure I'd be able to get through them in time to give me a quick lap, so  I decided I'd drop back enough so I'd catch them just after I'd completed the lap. This meant I'd be able to hopefully get the slipstream down the back straight but also be far enough back that they wouldn't compromise on my time. After a few good laps my dad started signalling for me to just go for it and push through the pack, so I did. A couple of laps from the end I had cleared the pack and set a few quick laps in. I came into the pits thinking I'd probably have qualified around 5th or 6th place but no, 2nd place was mine once again!
The heat was one of my best races giving me my highest finish in a race of 3rd, only losing 2nd to Jenson. Nothing really astonishing happened in the heat so not much I can say except good clean racing by all.
The pre-final was a bit more difficult with me struggling for grip near the start, I lost a place to Jonathan and was down into 4th place. I made an attempt at getting past but slightly misjudged it, jumping a kerb and going off the track. I made it back onto the track but was down in 5th and a fair way back.
The final, the big one. My aim for the final was to try and get 3rd, as 2nd or 1st seemed to be out of reach unfortunately. I had a blistering start, jumping from 5th to 3rd by the end of the first corner. Unfortunately, tyre pressures failed us yet again and I struggled for grip toward the end of the race. I was close to 3rd and 4th but a huge slide around the hairpin before the pits left me too far behind to catch up by the end of the race. A 5th isn't too bad I guess, still holding 4th in the championship but no podium yet. Llandow next!

Touching Distance | Easykart UK Round 1 Shenington

Well the first race of the season has come and gone. As the first round was at Shenington this year we didn't need to stay in a hotel. We arrived at the track early Saturday morning as we needed to pick up the engine from Andy's since it had been in for a full rebuild. We were set up and ready very early considering the first session was at 11 am. The first session + 5 laps I was taking it easy to run the engine in.

It felt like a pretty good day testing, seemed to be pretty much on the pace. I had some fun in the last session just racing with some of the others, not really concentrating on lines as much. It has to be one of my best test days to date. Hoping for good things on Sunday.

Our Setup

Sunday arrived and we, junior, were first out all day. Warm up went as expected, pushing it a bit to try and get some heat into the tyres, but not going full out so they didn't get ruined for qualifying.
In qualifying I only did 8 laps as my times didn't appear to be improving. This turned out to be a great decision as my fastest time from those 8 laps granted me my second front row start! I qualified 2nd.

The heat went ok, my start kept me in second and I managed to hold my position for just over 7 laps, at which point I unfortunately got overtaken. I finished the heat in 4th place so it wasn't too bad.

Front Row for the heat

The pre-final went pretty much without a hitch. I started 4th and finished 4th however there was a fair amount of position changing during the race. I was up to 3rd a couple of times but unable to hold onto the position whilst keeping with the guy infront.
The final was the big one, the one being filmed, the one for the trophies. Unfortunately I finished 4th.... again. Although this matches my best result to date I could have had 3rd. I was up to 3rd on the final lap but left the door open going into Bruno Chicane. This proved to be a huge mistake as Jonathan shot up the inside, held the position and defended the rest of the lap. If it wasn't for that stupid mistake I would have gained my first podium and my best result.
It was a good but irritating weekend and lessons were definitely learnt.

The Easykart Paddock

Looking forward to round 2 at Three Sisters in Wigan. Round 2 is ALSO being filmed so fun times.

Easykart UK 2015 | Shakedown

February 14th, what better way to spend a Saturday than driving around Whilton Mill.

The annual Easykart pre-season Shakedown was held at Whilton Mill this year. The day started off damp, not wet but greasy, so wets were an obvious choice. Having been given a new helmet for Christmas, my old one was now able to be fitted with the helmet mount. This should give us a better view of my lines and steering etc. as I go around.

The first two sessions I was... not struggling but I definitely not going as fast as I would have liked. The third session however the track started to dry, meaning you could take an almost dry line with wet tyres. Lunch came and went, without any more rain so the slicks went on.
The 4th and 5th session were much more fun as I could drive my standard line. Got some decent overtakes in, and got the measure of the new Juniors. Fastest lap for me was a 49.0, not quick but I don't think it was a "quick" day.

All in all a great day testing and it was good to get back into the seat after a few months. Looking forward to Shenington in march.

Videos : Shakedown 2015

My 3rd Season | 2014

Looking Back
So, my third season in Easykart has been and gone. I've had some good races this year, gaining a personal highest finish of 4th, best qualifying of 2nd. However, no podium has come my way and I am yet to get a pole position. Finishing the season with a seeded number was a bonus (#8), expected but still a good feeling. Having hoped for better at the e-plate it was somewhat disappointing not to do too well, but that's racing.
Round 1 - A new beginning again as we got the new kart. Highlight of the round has got to be getting into 3rd by the end of the first corner in the final, even if I didn't hold it. Finishing 7th wasn't bad, and was improved on later in the year.
Round 2 - Well, having not gone to round 2 I can't really say much about it other than I had a great weekend with my family instead. Thanks guys!
Round 3 - Shenington is one of my favourite tracks (I know, I say that about most of them) and, although my results there haven't been spectacular considering my form later in the season, I still regard the final as being one of my greatest races this year.
Round 4 - Clay Pigeon.... Now, being a relatively short track there shouldn't be too much time difference between the quick drivers and the "slightly slower than the quick drivers but definitely not slow" drivers. This race weekend, I feel, was my worst of the year and I hope that another one of these types of weekends doesn't turn up for a while, at least the racing side of it. Thanks to my Dad for being supportive all weekend.
Round 5 - Glan-y-Gors is another track that I have said is my favourite, but I think it is simply because it has a good flow to it, not too many park and turn corners. Not my greatest weekend but a lot of experience has been gained from it I'm certain.
Round 6 - Llandow gave me my biggest high and biggest low of the season. High - I finished 3rd in a race! Low - I was under weight so was DQ'ed from the race and lost out on 5th place in the championship. But all mistakes mean a lesson learned.
Round 7 - Whilton Mill is my most local track and I have had the majority of my track time on that track. This year saw me get my first ever front row start having achieved a Personal best qualifying position of 2nd, not yet pole. Unfortunately in 2 of the following 3 races I got taken out so was having to force my way through the pack. Thanks to the majority of the male contingent of my family for coming down, along with my Mum (Not part of the male contingent!)
Round 8 - Ellough park wasn't kind to me last year, seeing one of my worst results. This year it felt like it was going to be the same, I wasn't feeling the track as I do at other venues. It felt like I was going to have to fight for a decent finish. As it happened I didn't, setting pretty good lap times almost the same as the front group. It also saw my highest finish of 4th so I was pretty happy.
Winter Cup - A one off race with hope of a podium. This race gave me my biggest incident to date but also made me realise how much a neck brace can protect your neck in a crash.

Thanks to Club100, ACR, Spellfame, All my family, My Dad and all the guys at Easykart for being so helpful and not scared to give a tip or two on my driving.

Next year
Next year I intend to continue in Easykart and, as mentioned in one of my previous posts, I should still be competing in Juniors as I don't meet the minimum weight for Senior lightweight. I intend to be much more active on twitter over race weekends, giving updates on how it is going and lap times etc. I have 2-3kg to put on before I have to move up to seniors, so I may or may not have to move up mid season.
If possible I'd love to be able to move from Easykart into a different, more known class, however the chances of finding one of them that goes to as many tracks as Easykart (without being super1) is highly unlikely... I think.

Easykart UK 2014 | Round 8 | Ellough Park

How much more advertising is needed?
Birel and Club 100 and CZ chains

On the weekend of the 20th - 21st September the 8th and final round of the Easykart UK championship was held this year, as last year, at Ellough Park Raceway. Although I have been doing quite well all year I wasn't particularly looking forward to this round. Ellough park has always been a difficult track in my eyes, you either really get it - or you really don't. Last year I really didn't get the track.

Friday evening - travelling. We left on the Friday evening to hopefully get down and be able to get a decent nights sleep before Saturday, and so as not to have to get up at a ridiculous time. I was shattered so got into bed as soon as we got to the Premier Inn, asleep within  a minute.

Saturday - Practice. I was optimistic about Saturday, the weather forecast looked clear and that is the best weather to learn or re-learn a track in. Breakfast was the usual bacon and mushroom scenario in one of my favourite 'restaurants' - The Fox Burrow Beefeater. We arrived at the track at about 8:30 and were set up pretty quickly. I went for a track walk, expecting the track to be greasy as there was a lot of mist in the air, but it wasn't, it was bone dry. I went out in the first session taking it quite easy, trying to learn the track again. The second session I really started to go for it and went about 2 seconds quicker, still not braking as hard as I could, but the kart felt good, so I was happy. Throughout the day I got quicker and quicker, getting down to a 45.00 second lap but still half a second off the overall pace. We got back to the Fox Burrow to have dinner. We went back to the room to watch the highlights of the Formula 1 qualifying - Motorsport all weekend.

I'm too quick even for the camera.

Sunday - Race. I went out in the warm up trying to scrub in my tyres but not destroy them, as expected.
Qualifying. Having had an OK day on Saturday, I was hoping for 7th at best out of the 14 drivers. To my surprise I came into the pits after the session to see my dad signalling 4th to me. I was amazed as, although it meant I'd be on the outside of the track for the first corner, it meant I had achieved more than I'd expected.
The Heat. I wasn't looking forward to the heat as on my inside I had some very fast people. By the first corner I was down to 5th place, however there was an incident at the next corner, pushing me back up to 4th place. The race was pretty uneventful for me after the first lap, having made a mistake and dropping a place to Mitchell White, I was chasing him all race but unable to overtake. Starting the pre-final in 5th could've been a good thing or a bad thing.
The Pre-Final. I held my position off the start and was keeping pace with Mitchell, unfortunately I couldn't find a way past so was stuck in 5th. Jonathan managed to get past me towards the end of the race, dropping me to 6th. Holding my position I managed to finish 6th.

Flying along the pit straight

The Final. Having not liked the setup  had for the pre-final, I changed it back to the set up we used for the heat. This turned out to be one of my best decisions of the year. I was able to make up a place on the first corner and just about kept pace with the front group. Although I was a few kart lengths back I was not dropping back. I was in 5th for most of the race until Esmee started dropping back as her neck was hurting - it was injured in an earlier collision. I made it past Esmee an up to 4th before the end of the race giving me my highest finish of the year. A good way to end a rollercoaster of a season.
Looking forward to next season, hoping I can stay in Juniors as 28+ kg of lead on a senior kart is just ridiculous.

Next stop - the E-plate.

Easykart UK 2014 | Round 7 Whilton Mill | Review

On the 30th and the 31st of August the 7th round of the Easykart UK championship was held. This year it was held at Whilton Mill and luckily the weather looked clear. I had been looking forward to the race at Whilton mainly because it is my local track, so not too much travelling, and some of my family were coming to watch.

Me with my Grandads and the kart

We dropped the trailer off and set up the awning on Friday night so that when Matt and Jacob arrived on Saturday (they were sharing our awning for Saturday) they could set up even if they were there before us.

Saturday - Practice day. We arrived before Matt and Jacob so we were pretty much sorted for the first session before they arrived. Matt and Jacob had recently bought an Easykart Junior, #70, with the intention of racing in Juniors next year. My brake pads were close to gone after Llandow and both myself and dad agreed that if I were to go out in the first session without new brake pads - I probably wouldn't survive the session. My first session gave me a low 48 second lap as my fastest, not very quick but as I wasn't going full on with the brakes I felt pretty pleased.

Bit of a gap between me and 3rd place

The second session was quicker but I was still quite a way off the pace. It wasn't until lunch that I got some tips from a couple of seniors who were set up behind us that I realised I was taking most of the corners too slow. In the next session I took the lines they suggested and took half a second off my lap time - getting it down to a 47.01 second lap - fastest.

Sunday - Race day. My mum arrived at the track before I went out for the warm up, Juniors were the last class to go out. I went out for warm up and did a 48 second lap - which was about as fast as I wanted to go on the new tyres.
Qualifying. Now this has to be one of the best qualifying sessions I have ever had. Not least because I qualified second, but because I felt quick. I got a 46.450 second lap - 0.110 seconds behind Esmee but 0.140 seconds ahead of Mitchell. I should have come in a couple of laps earlier rather than staying out as I pulled a couple of other drivers along a bit - might have had an effect, but it might not. I came in and all dad did was symbol "2nd" to me and I couldn't stop laughing inside - more out of nerves than anything. I had never qualified on the front row before...

In the background after being spun in the Final.

Attempting to weave my way back up after spinning out

The Heat. Having never been on the front row before I hadn't got much experience with holding the rolling starts. I always used to go whenever the person in front went. Anyway my start was close to perfect as I held my position and kept behind Esmee, at least for the first corner. We hadn't got the tyre pressures right so my grip was no where near what it was in qualifying. I held onto my position for a couple of laps but then Jenson made a clean pass on me and got through, shortly followed by Sam Faulkner forcing me to jump a kerb to avoid him. Unfortunately I spun and ended up down in 10th position. Having to fight my way back up from about a quarted of a lap behind 9th was not something I looked forward too. I finished in 6th so a few good places gained.
Pre-Final. In the Pre-final I jumped the driver in 5th on the start and kept on the bumper of Bailey Acton (4th) for quite a few laps. I chose my moment well and got past him cleanly and into 4th. I managed to hold my position until the last lap board was shown, at which point I started to brake slightly earlier to make sure I didn't spin out. This worked for most of the lap until the boot section, when Jenson came flying up my inside to take 4th position. I had a better line through the next corner but clipped a kerb, throwing my front end out and costing me speed. This unfortunately meant I wasn't able to reclaim my position into the last corner.

6th place on the rolling up lap

The Final. In the Final I was starting in 5th place so I was hoping that, so long as I could hold onto the group ahead of me, I could get lucky and get a podium. It was not to be. I was taken out on the first lap and dropped down to 11th place. I was not happy as such a promising day seemed to have been washed away. I was angry at myself and whoever knocked me off, but I had to get over it, I couldn't change it. My lap times were quick in comparison to the people infront of me, but I was quite a way behind so it took a couple of laps. Then I got stuck behind 2 guys and although their lines were pretty good, their braking was not the best. Finding a way past was more difficult than I expected. Eventually I got passed them and was up to 7th (2 other drivers had spun). I now had to focus on trying to close down a gap of about a third of the lap to the next two drivers. Although my lap times were quite a lot quicker than theirs the gap was just too large. In the end I finished 7th. Congratulations to Mitchell White on getting his first podium at the weekend - Hopefully I'll be on it next time.

Looking forward to Ellough Park for the next round.

Easykart UK 2014| Round 6 Llandow | Race Review

Round 6 of the Easykart UK championship was held in "sunny" Wales at the Llandow Kart track. Not to be confused with the car track next door. Having arrived back from France on the Thursday we left for Llandow on the Friday, something I hope to not have to do again as it was a quite a rush. We arrived mid afternoon to set the awning up before getting to the Premier Inn for a hearty dinner and some much needed sleep.

Slow exit as we are just running the engine in

Saturday - Practice day. We arrived in sunshine and got setup, signed on and sat down by 9 o'clock roughly. With 2 hours to wait I went for a track walk to familiarise myself with the track again. First session was at just past 11am and, having had a top end rebuild between G-y-G and llandow, I was having to run the engine in. This was the same in the second session as well. I was able to really go for it in the 3rd session, just before lunch but still felt uneasy with my lines and braking points. The fourth session after lunch felt better as I was able to keep up and overtake a few people, meaning I wasn't the slowest. By far the best session for me was the last session where I was able to keep on the rear bumper of Jenson Murchison for pretty much the whole session. Rather than make a rash move and cause expense for both of us, and I wasn't really quick enough, I stayed behind him trying to see how my line could be improved. I went over 2 tenths quicker that session than I had all day.

Slightly too later turn in for the hairpin

Sunday - Race day. Bertha hit. All these people wondering where ex-hurricane Bertha was at the weekend. I can tell you it was over Llandow for most of the morning, with the wind coming later on! We got to the track in the pouring rain. The meeting was in danger of being cancelled but, after 15 minutes and some furious sweeping of the track to clear the water by the marshalls, the track was drivable and we were ready to go.
The warm up wasn't great as I felt my rear end grip was appalling. I was sliding all over the place, not just aquaplaning. Turn in? Fine, Engine? Fine, Rear grip? Not fine. We reduced the pressures for qualifying and just as we were about to go out the heavens opened. I could feel the wind and rain pushing my head and helmet backwards away from my body. Qualifying felt ok, good grip all round and the engine felt fine, but I only managed 8th place out of 10, so not great.
The heat was nothing spectacular but I still managed to gain 2 places into 6th.

Top hair pin - pretty much the right line

Lunch saw the rain ease up and the track start to dry, by the time it was our turn to go out the track was completely dry. I was starting 6th and not looking forward to having to weave my way through the field, but I was ready. The start wasn't brilliant and I think I dropped 1 or 2 places. But I was on brand new tyres, so it was almost expected. I was up to fourth by the 5th or 6th lap when Jenson's chain came off, handing me 3rd place - although I didn't realise it at the time. The race finished with me ecstatic to have finished in the top 3 for the first time, even if it wasn't the main final. I got onto the weigh bridge and my heart stopped. I was 1.5 kilos underweight. After a re-weigh I was only 0.9 kilos underweight, but that didn't matter. All I knew was that all my hard work to get into 3rd had been undone, simply because we had forgotten to top up with fuel and we were running lighter with a dry setup. Points - gone, 4th in the championship - gone. But mistakes are made and I just hoped I could make up a few places in the final.

Andy checking the weather...

The final, starting at the back. On the first lap I made up 3 places before I saw the false start flag, luckily everyone in front saw it at the same time so there were no collisions. Second start - I floored it slightly too early and to avoid a crash before the start line I locked up my rear tyres, "Great - 6 kart lengths behind ALREADY." By the end of the first lap I was up with the group again, and was in 9th by the end of the second. Up to 8th by the end of the 4th lap and 7th by the end of the 6th, things were looking up. Now I just had to catch up with the next group. 6th place by the end of the 12th lap and closing on the next racer. Unfortunately I couldn't quite catch them by the end but I got close.

Looking forward to Whilton Mill, lets see if I can get a podium!
#Videos to follow hopefully#

Easykart UK Round 4 - Clay Pigeon | The Weekend Review

On the weekend of June 14th and 15th, the 4th round of the Easykart UK championship was held. This year it was at Clay Pigeon, making Clay Pigeon the most visited track so far in Easykart for me - joint with Whilton Mill at 4 race visits.
I was looking forward to the weekend as the weather looked good, and Clay is a very quick track. As mentioned in my race preview (If you haven't read it why not?!) Clay Pigeon was the first track I ever raced at in Easykart.
As this is my GCSE year I have been doing GCSEs (obviously) in the weeks leading up to the race weekend with my last one being Friday 13th (unlucky?) so we were able to leave early and get to the track around 8:00pm and leave the trailer. A 3 hour 40 minute journey that took 5 hours and 40 minutes.

Saturday 14th June. Practice day. We arrived at the track at just after 8:30 and got the awning and the kart out of the trailer. We were sharing the awning with Mitchell and his dad again, almost a team? We were running on very old tyres that had seen about 4 hours of track time before the weekend, so they weren't at their best. Throughout the day I was running in mid to high 35 seconds, so slightly off the pace but we put that down to the tyres.

James White - Trailing behind?

I was able to keep up just about with people like James White and Mitchell, but not consistent enough to stay with them for the whole session, it would only take 1 mistake and they would pull 3 or 4 kart lengths on me.
We ended the day on a 35.9 second lap, but I got a 35.5 just before lunch, so I was quite happy.

Sitting 6th on the grid

Sunday 15th June was race day, and, like Saturday, we got to the track at about 8:30 in time to get the kart out of the trailer and set up ready for warm up. We had new slicks so were hoping my times would be a bit better. I set something like a 35.5 or 35.6 in the warm up, so quicker than the end of the Saturday, but still not quick.
Qualifying I set a 35.28 as my quickest time but that only got me 10th place, later 9th place as one of the drivers ahead of me was under weight.
Starting 9th for the heat wasn't brilliant as I had to brake earlier to get around the corner, but I held my line and managed not to lose any positions. By the hairpin I was up 1 place and in 8th place, as a driver managed to take their chain off. I held my position for the rest of the race, beating my qualifying time of 35.28 by 1 hundredth of a second.
Starting the Pre-final in 8th was better than I had hoped as I was on the outside and managed to avoid the collisions ahead of me before the false start flags were out. In the restart I managed to hold my position again and was tailing Mitchell and Bailey down to the hairpin. Both Bailey and Mitchell moved out onto the standard racing line so I was able to slip down the inside and take 6th place. I drove the rest of the session trying to catch up with the group ahead of me, which I was doing early on but started to slip backwards. I stayed in 6th for the rest of the race.

The grid for the final - I am just behind James White (#5)

The start of the final was without incident and I was able to keep my position. I was also able to keep up with the 5 karts ahead of me for a while, but they started to pull away and I never managed to catch up again. Later in the race, at about half distance, a mad lunge was made by Bailey into the hairpin sending him wide and allowing me to regain the position I lost for all of about 1 second, and allowing Jonathan to go through into 7th. He later got past me which put me down into 8th as Bailey got past as well. I was able to keep up for a bit but a mistake by me allowed Mitchell to get past, dropping me into 9th and further back from the group. I spent the rest of the race trying to catch up and unfortunately failing to get close enough meaning I finished my weekend in 9th.

Not the best weekend but still points for the championship. Next race G-y-G!

Easykart Round 4 - Clay Pigeon | Race Preview

Coming up is the fourth round of the Easykart UK championship, held this year at Clay Pigeon. All the way back in 2012, Clay Pigeon was the first race I went to. Although I have never done very well at Clay Pigeon I am sure I should do better this time, new kart, new mentality. It is a great circuit to drive, wet or dry, with lots of fast, but technical sections. It is one of the smaller tracks we go to I think, but that just puts more pressure on the driver - it also means we get more laps, Yipee.
From reading the Club100 circuit guide, as I normally do, I have decided that probably the most important corner is turn 7, or the Top bend (Winston's Flip), as if done well it allows you to get lots of speed along the start finish line and hopefully set you up well for the next corner(s). "This looks like a very straightforward bend but it is very easy to get wrong. It is very important to get the exit correct or you will not have the speed going into Billy’s Blind. It is possible to overtake going into turn 7 if a lesser driver has made a mistake at the Horseshoe or Symonds Grass track but can lead to accidents." Also it could give you enough of an edge to storm past someone before the next corner. With my rather unconventional race last time out at Shenington I hope to keep my position better.
Quotes from the Club100 circuit guide.

Image from the Club100 circuit guide

Andy's suggested set-up for Clay Pigeon (Junior)
Set up

• Carb setting start 50mins to 60mins low jet
• Main jet : 83
• Sprocket 77tooth
• Suggested chain length 100 or 102 links (CZ Chains remember!)
• Exhaust flex 75mm to 80mm suggested

Dry

• 20mm or 25mm from spacers
• Rear track 138 to 239..... wait no, 139
• Tyre pressures from between 9 to 12 psi

Wet

• Full front spacers
• 134 to 135 rear track, unless you are James in which case nothing changes
• Tyre pressure 11 psi - grease, 14psi - wet, 18 psi - monsoon

I am looking forward to this weekend away racing because, as mentioned before it was the first track I raced an Easykart. Also unless it is the e-plate the weather is normally stunning. Hopefully see you there!

Easykart Round 3 2014 - Shenington

Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th of May was the weekend of the 3rd round of the Easykart UK Championship, held this year at Shenington Kart Track. Last year this was the highlight of my season as I got my highest finish of 10th and managed to drive well in tricky conditions. This year I was and still am hoping for better, which shouldn't be too difficult with a much smaller Junior grid, only 16 at Shenington.

Mitchell suddenly realised he had been overtaken.

Slipping up the inside of Mitchell into Wilkins

I'm starting 6th!!

Ritually cleaning the kart after each session

As Shenington is a local track for us we aren't staying in a premier inn. The journey took us about 1 hour 15 minutes from home to the track. We were sharing an awning with Jacob Wardle, dubbed by my dad as our "Junior Driver" (we wish), and his dad. We arrived at about 8:30 and were set up by 9:00. We signed on and I went for a track walk simply to set my watch up and check the track conditions. Jacob had arrived by 9:00 and they were set up pretty quickly as well.
For the first time in ages we managed to make it out for the first session on time, and without a breakdown part way through! My lines however, were atrocious and I don't think I hit any of my apexes. The day steadily got better and better, not necessarily my times but my line was getting better. All I had to do was brake later and get the power down earlier. I think my mychron may be slightly out on its timings as on Sunday it was giving me times half a second slower than I was actually going, and this was on two mag strip settings but Shenny has 3 mag strips. My fastest of the day was a 44.2 I think but with my mychron it may have been a 43.7.

Sunday looked daunting as the weather forecast was showing lots of rain, we were just hoping that it would hold off long enough for us to have a dry final. We arrived in the dry and the awning was still up. As Jacob isn't racing in Easykart this year he packed up and went home on the Saturday. Mitchell was without an awning and knowing the weather forecast we let them use half of ours. It is definitely much better having another person in the awning on race weekends.

Grid for the Heat

Warm up was good and with these new tyres dad just said "Drive like it is a normal session" and it worked, it scrubbed the tyres in nicely and as it was only a 5 minute session didn't take them over the top, after 2 easy bedding in laps I was attempting to get my line better.
Qualifying was amazing! There was a 3 way fight between Me, Mitchell White and Dan Walden which, I know, isn't the best for a qualifying session but I kept easing up and allowing them to go past so they could get a clean lap, and for me to then be able to catch up. I am told that I was in 10th or 11th place with only a few more laps remaining, when I suddenly jumped up to 6th position and stayed there. This was, and is, my highest qualifying position to date in Easykart.
The heat went well with me keeping my position throughout the race and finishing in 6th position, nothing amazing happened that I saw and I did no good overtaking. So nothing of merit there except that I held my position.

The Pre-final went.... ok. I was starting in 6th and got a really good start, keeping with the 5 in front of me and pulling away from whoever was behind me. But it was apparently a false start caused by none other than Mitchell White. This starts my downward spiral as from the start I dropped a couple of places down to 9th and had to fight the whole race to get back up. I managed to finish in 7th and was gaining on 6th, but I just wasn't close enough.

Close battling between us

Me trying to hold off Jenson Murchison in the Heat

The final is a tale of two halves. The start was appalling and I dropped right down the order to 10th because I was stuck on the outside around cafe, and everyone else was so close together that I just couldn't get in. I held my position for a lap until we got to Cafe again where I was spun around by another driver,taking us both out and into last. Completely a racing incident. I was enraged that it had happened but looking back there was nothing I could have done to stop it. Down in 15th place is not a nice place to be when you've been running relatively close to the front all day. Not only was I right at the back but I was now half a lap behind. The next 18 laps were a blur as I did lap after lap consitently in the low 44 second area. I only made 1 mistake and that was taking cafe slightly wide, but it gave me a better line out and I wasn't under attack from anyone. I made my way back up to 10th and was closing in on Matas and Dan Walden  as the final lap board came out, had I had 4 more laps at most I am almost certain I would have got past Dan, and maybe even Matas. Also a congratulations is in order for James White - First clean sweep of the Easykart UK Junior Championship 2014.

Not the greatest day for championship points, but a great one for showing my determination and accuracy with the kart. Sorry about the lack of preview for Shenny, I will try and get a post race preview (if that makes sense) up before long. Don't forget to check out my youtube channel for all the videos from test days.