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....

Screw Loose | Easykart UK 2015 Round 4 Clay Pigeon

Nice and dry on Saturday

The 4th round of the Easykart UK championship was held over June 27th-28th at Clay Pigeon Raceway. Last year Clay Pigeon wasn't a great race for me, having struggled with tyres all weekend. This year I was hoping for better.
We arrived at the track on Friday to drop off the trailer, it was so misty/foggy that at the track you couldn't even see 20m in front of you! We then headed onto our hotel. Not much to say about Friday other than it was a good nights sleep.
Saturday, Testing. We arrived at the track to beautiful sunshine, a complete contrast to Friday Evening. We were set-up and signed on ready for the "official" Easykart Track Walk. Although I have been to Clay Pigeon multiple times the official track walk is always useful, sometimes showing me where I can gain time. The day went well, I seemed to have the pace and we were pretty confident on setup. We then went back to the hotel for dinner - steak as usual.

Qualy

Sunday, Race Day. We arrived at the track, and although it was damp it appeared to be drying. However just before the first warm up session the heavens opened and the track was soaked. I was fastest in warm up by 0.3 seconds, but that's warm up so not sure how much people were pushing.
Qualifying was good, I found grip and managed to put myself P2 on the grid for the 3rd time this season.

On the grid for the heat

The heat was good, I had a blistering start and managed to get into first by the end of the first corner. There's so much more grip on the outside! Anyway, I had a decent lead of about 1 second then my tyres started to struggle for grip. I had to change my line to try and find grip, however that didn't work out too great. I dropped down to 3rd after 2 laps of struggling for grip and held my position. Then, some laps later, Jenson's wheel flew off in front of me, promoting me to 2nd place. I finished the race on the road in 2nd, however after penalties I was promoted another place to 1st. I technically won the race!!!
Pre-final. The track had now dried off and me having to start from pole was rather daunting. I made a real hash of the start, losing 2 places by the end of turn 1. The rest of the race was OK, I got back up into 2nd for a bit but then Jenson appeared and I was back down to 3rd. I tried a different line near the end of the race, hoping to gain a bit of time, but it didn't work. I finished in 4th place.

Leading the heat - 2/3 laps in

Pole Position!

Now the final.... Oh the final..... what a great time for something to go wrong! As you can tell, something did go wrong. I had no acceleration or top end and struggled for the whole race. People were able to fly past me on the straight and also pull a gap out of every corner. It was so frustrating! How I managed to finish 8th I don't know, it was a real struggle. So that ended my weekend. It looked promising a lost screw stopped my podium chances. The loose screw was the one that holds the high jet in, having lost this my kart was seriously down on power.
Problems aside - on to G-y-G!

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 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!

2014 Race Preview - Round 2, Three Sisters (Wigan)

Coming up on Saturday 12th of April and Sunday 13th of April is the second race of the Easykart UK season, also the first time Easykart has been to Three Sisters for a race meeting - I think. From what I have read on the Easykart UK facebook page Three Sisters is an extremely fast track and "... corner speed is what it is all about." So unless you keep your momentum going it will be difficult to keep up with the people in front. At Three Sisters, like at Shenington, you can get a lot of toe at along the straights - like DRS, ish.

Unfortunately there isn't a Club 100 track guide for Three Sisters, or at least not one that I can find, so all the notes and comments about the track will be coming straight from the notes on the Easykart UK Facebook page or from karting1's track guide. According to the karting1 track guide "THE most important corner of the circuit is lunar" as it sets you up for the long start/finish straight, get this corner wrong and you are liable to be overtaken and lose time all along the straight - which nobody wants.
The kerbs seem pretty big - bent axles likely. After some spectacular fights at Buckmore, for example Sam Blower in the heat and James White in the pre-final, with people flying through the field Three Sisters should be a good race.

Three Sisters Club circuit (in red)

Andy's suggested set-up for Three Sisters (Junior)

Set up

• Carb setting start 50mins to 55mins low jet
• Main jet 83
• Exhaust Flex 65mm to 70mm
• Sprocket size 71 Teeth
• Recommended chain length 96 or 98 links (Must be a CZ chain!)

Dry set up

• 20mm or 25mm front spacers
• Rear track 138cm to 139.5cm Depending on your driving style
• Tyre pressures between 9 and 12 psi

Wet set up

• Full 30mm front spacers
• Rear track 134cm to 135cm
• Tyre pressures:

1. 11 psi grease
2. 14psi wet
3. 18psi MONSOON

Unfortunately I will not be at Three Sisters for the race weekend so it is unlikely that there will be a full race review, but if anything unexpected happens be sure to let me know and I might do a brief note about it. Next stop Shenington.