Post by Catriona on Jun 17, 2010 12:33:03 GMT
(Originally posted 20th April 2009)
After a year learning the ropes in the fast and furious SMRC Scottish Legends Championship in 2007, I wanted to come back in 2008 in some capacity but with money being an issue (most racers know what I mean) it didn't look too likely. As he's proven prone to over the past few years in getting Legends north of the border to where they now are, Aly Hunter once again came up with an idea and suggested that Rory Bryant, Gordon Mann and myself, the Scholarship drivers from 2007, should form a team to run in the Team category which awards the car with more than one driver at the end of the year for scoring the most points, therefore giving drivers who can't run all year the chance to still compete for some honours at season's end.
With the "Class Of 07" team duly formed and the car I had used as the Number 60 in 2007 repainted and now with the number 07 for us to use ready, we showed up at the first round with Rory first in the driving seat. Things started less than brilliantly during Saturday testing when he bent a steering arm after clipping a tyre wall but things got better on raceday though he was denied two podium finishes by other drivers making mistakes on the damp track and assisting him off the road, though he did salvage a 5th place finish in the first heat. Controversy waited for him in the final when he and Oliver Mortimer were attempting to bumpdraft their way through the slower cars, a strategy which was working until they locked bumpers and went off at the top of Duffus Dip, Mortimer's car going head first into the barriers.
The second round formed part of the British GT Championship support on its first visit to Knockhill in a few years and was my first time back in the car since the previous season ended. In the first heat I was feeling okay and was pleased to be keeping up with another pair of cars towards the back but was really starting to wonder how long we'd been on track, especially when all of a sudden (on lap 12 of what should have been an 8 lap race!) my brakes overheated and I spun wildly from the top of Duffus all the way to the bottom, thankfully not hitting anything! With cars falling off track with overheating problems and no fuel, we eventually got to 15 laps (an administration error by the visiting Club officials) and the next two races passed without incident.
Then followed a double-header with Gordon driving in the morning and myself in the afternoon. Gordon was a little nervous having not driven since the late Summer of 2007 but he did well, despite a DNF for a broken oil cooler in the first heat. In the afternoon I felt like a bit of a punchbag, being driven off the road and over by another car in the first heat but having started at the back for the second heat I just had to watch the carnage in amazement as cars littered the side of the road, only 15 making the finish! The final started just as the first heat had - another car turned into me on the back-straight and pitched me off the road so I wasn't in the best of moods by the end of the day.
Our star driver, Rory, was back in the car at the round supporting the Classic Speedfair in June. The first two heats hadn't gone well with Rory having brake problems in the first and complaining of no straight-line speed in the second. Aly changed the oil to see if that would help (the engine having just had a rebuild) and it transformed the performance. Because of the two bad finishes in the heats, he started among the slower drivers at the front and upon taking the lead, vanished into the distance before the quick guys could get through the field so that when they did, they just couldn't catch him, taking the team car to its first victory! Everyone in the paddock was really pleased for Rory as he's clearly a top driver in the making and this gave us such a lift it was difficult to see how anything could bring us down.
That thing was just lurking in the shadows waiting on us, however. After the July round which had seen Gordon really picking up the pace and getting three solid results, we arrived at the August round with me in the car again. After a fairly standard first heat, I found myself on the front row for the second. As the field reached the top of Duffus, all hell broke loose. Chris Hynds had been on pole and spun at the top of the hill, slowing down the pack while David Thorburn went off on the left. With the front pack slowing to avoid these cars, someone banged into the back of Andrew Donald, turning him across the front of my car and slowing us to a crawl. At this point, the rear of the field arrived and Sasha Pearl jinked left to avoid the slowing cars, straight into the back of me, pitching me into Sandford Imrie and Alex Knight who was launched into a huge roll. When I regained my senses I had a neckbrace on and the roof of the car was being cut off, followed by a trip to hospital. I had some whiplash and brusing but had got away with a pretty brutal impact as had Alex for the most part though Sasha needed some treatment.
The car was a gonner and the team had to do some thinking ahead of the next round. Aly came to the rescue yet again and was able to source the parts and body to put a car together out of the remains, having the all-new blue and red Car 07 out in time for the September round for Rory. As the car was only just completed in time for the event and Rory's first run in it was the day before the races, we weren't expecting miracles but the fact he led the first heat for a while was a miracle in itself, showing just how talented he actually is. In the end the car needed setup work so he couldn't hold on but took three very solid results, coming home with no damage as did Gordon at the final round of the Championship the following month, taking the trophy for Driver Of The Day.
The team tasted the highs and lows of the SMRC motorsport world with a race win, a trophy and a wrecked legend during the 2008 season and we had fun doing it. With the exception of the destroyed car, of course!
After a year learning the ropes in the fast and furious SMRC Scottish Legends Championship in 2007, I wanted to come back in 2008 in some capacity but with money being an issue (most racers know what I mean) it didn't look too likely. As he's proven prone to over the past few years in getting Legends north of the border to where they now are, Aly Hunter once again came up with an idea and suggested that Rory Bryant, Gordon Mann and myself, the Scholarship drivers from 2007, should form a team to run in the Team category which awards the car with more than one driver at the end of the year for scoring the most points, therefore giving drivers who can't run all year the chance to still compete for some honours at season's end.
With the "Class Of 07" team duly formed and the car I had used as the Number 60 in 2007 repainted and now with the number 07 for us to use ready, we showed up at the first round with Rory first in the driving seat. Things started less than brilliantly during Saturday testing when he bent a steering arm after clipping a tyre wall but things got better on raceday though he was denied two podium finishes by other drivers making mistakes on the damp track and assisting him off the road, though he did salvage a 5th place finish in the first heat. Controversy waited for him in the final when he and Oliver Mortimer were attempting to bumpdraft their way through the slower cars, a strategy which was working until they locked bumpers and went off at the top of Duffus Dip, Mortimer's car going head first into the barriers.
The second round formed part of the British GT Championship support on its first visit to Knockhill in a few years and was my first time back in the car since the previous season ended. In the first heat I was feeling okay and was pleased to be keeping up with another pair of cars towards the back but was really starting to wonder how long we'd been on track, especially when all of a sudden (on lap 12 of what should have been an 8 lap race!) my brakes overheated and I spun wildly from the top of Duffus all the way to the bottom, thankfully not hitting anything! With cars falling off track with overheating problems and no fuel, we eventually got to 15 laps (an administration error by the visiting Club officials) and the next two races passed without incident.
Then followed a double-header with Gordon driving in the morning and myself in the afternoon. Gordon was a little nervous having not driven since the late Summer of 2007 but he did well, despite a DNF for a broken oil cooler in the first heat. In the afternoon I felt like a bit of a punchbag, being driven off the road and over by another car in the first heat but having started at the back for the second heat I just had to watch the carnage in amazement as cars littered the side of the road, only 15 making the finish! The final started just as the first heat had - another car turned into me on the back-straight and pitched me off the road so I wasn't in the best of moods by the end of the day.
Our star driver, Rory, was back in the car at the round supporting the Classic Speedfair in June. The first two heats hadn't gone well with Rory having brake problems in the first and complaining of no straight-line speed in the second. Aly changed the oil to see if that would help (the engine having just had a rebuild) and it transformed the performance. Because of the two bad finishes in the heats, he started among the slower drivers at the front and upon taking the lead, vanished into the distance before the quick guys could get through the field so that when they did, they just couldn't catch him, taking the team car to its first victory! Everyone in the paddock was really pleased for Rory as he's clearly a top driver in the making and this gave us such a lift it was difficult to see how anything could bring us down.
That thing was just lurking in the shadows waiting on us, however. After the July round which had seen Gordon really picking up the pace and getting three solid results, we arrived at the August round with me in the car again. After a fairly standard first heat, I found myself on the front row for the second. As the field reached the top of Duffus, all hell broke loose. Chris Hynds had been on pole and spun at the top of the hill, slowing down the pack while David Thorburn went off on the left. With the front pack slowing to avoid these cars, someone banged into the back of Andrew Donald, turning him across the front of my car and slowing us to a crawl. At this point, the rear of the field arrived and Sasha Pearl jinked left to avoid the slowing cars, straight into the back of me, pitching me into Sandford Imrie and Alex Knight who was launched into a huge roll. When I regained my senses I had a neckbrace on and the roof of the car was being cut off, followed by a trip to hospital. I had some whiplash and brusing but had got away with a pretty brutal impact as had Alex for the most part though Sasha needed some treatment.
The car was a gonner and the team had to do some thinking ahead of the next round. Aly came to the rescue yet again and was able to source the parts and body to put a car together out of the remains, having the all-new blue and red Car 07 out in time for the September round for Rory. As the car was only just completed in time for the event and Rory's first run in it was the day before the races, we weren't expecting miracles but the fact he led the first heat for a while was a miracle in itself, showing just how talented he actually is. In the end the car needed setup work so he couldn't hold on but took three very solid results, coming home with no damage as did Gordon at the final round of the Championship the following month, taking the trophy for Driver Of The Day.
The team tasted the highs and lows of the SMRC motorsport world with a race win, a trophy and a wrecked legend during the 2008 season and we had fun doing it. With the exception of the destroyed car, of course!