Race Time: 4.5 hours
Qualified: 11th B Grade (25th overall)
Race Result: 15th B Grade (25th overall)
The day started out overcast and only got worse from there! After doing some good lap times in practice (10th fastest) on a track that was wet and greasy and on a set of wet tyres that were well and truly past their used by date – it was looking good for the rest of the day or at least we hoped it would.
Eric was nominated to qualify and as soon as he went out the heavens opened up and down it came. It seems every time Eric got in the kart that day the rain got heavier! He managed a respectful time of 57.69 in atrocious conditions, 3 seconds slower that he was doing in practice. This put us 25th on the grid out of 31 starters.
Chris started the race and soon struck trouble. After only half a dozen laps, one of the motors started to cough, too much water? He came in to have the motor restarted only to go out and have it stall again. He came in and the kart went back to the pits for a dry out. The motor was restarted and he went out only to have it happen again, this continued on throughout his stint.
Eric took over from Chris and right on queue the rain got heavier, this time both motors started to cough. Once again the kart was taken back to the pits, had both spark plugs replaced, cleaned air filters, sprayed all electrics, drained the water from the carbie bowls and sent him out again. Not much improvement.
In total we were about 50 laps down by this stage. I took over from Eric and lucky me, the kart was brilliant, no sign of any water being sucked up and I was able to put down some consistent times (having an absolute ball doing it). I must admit that during my stint the rain had stopped and the track was drying.
The remainder of the day (by this stage 2.5 hours into the race) the kart went really well, it was fast, had plenty of grip and all 3 of us were putting in some competitive times, this was evident by the amount of times all 3 of us managed to catch and pass teams that were running at the pointy end of the field. This could also be attributed to the fact that we had 50 laps less wear on out tyres compared to the others.
In conclusion, yes, it was a disappointing result but it was still a lot of fun and all 3 drivers enjoyed themselves. There are some very competitive teams in TEKA B Grade this year so the pressure is well and truly on us this year to see if we can repeat or improve on last years 4th in B Grade, either way we are there to have fun!
Also like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the teams that raced on that day. In terrible conditions every one behaved themselves and by doing so made the day that so much more enjoyable. Thanks also to our new driver Rob, even though he didn’t drive his help in the pits was invaluable. Thanks Rob.
Bring on Newcastle!
See you all then.
Cheers
Gil – Team Canberra
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