|
|
|
Knockhill Race 19th August |
| I never really believed the assertion that "it always rains at Knockhill" and although I was greeted with a fine mist as I approached the Scottish circuit, the sun was not long in making an appearance. Nestled in some beautiful countryside it is not the obvious place to find a race circuit and we remained unsure as to how well the GT cars would cope around the little track. Furthermore it was my first visit here so I had some learning to do.
The test day continued to be fine and we were surprised at how well the Storm coped around the tight twists. We normally prefer the sweeps and flows of circuits like Donington but we showed that we would be competitive even running on old rubber!! We made some minor adjustments to the setup before qualifying, acutely aware that the forecast for race day was "inclement." I was pleased to be within a second of Mike's time particularly as he still held the Tuscan lap record!
We managed second slot on the Saturday morning but this was subsequently elevated to pole after an infringement by the Viper. The positions would not change in the second session and we retired for the night still not entirely believing the forecast for the morrow. Oh what folly that would be..........
I could not even see the circuit as we wound our way up the surrounding hills the following morning. The weather was atrocious and I had my doubts whether any running would be done. The warm up was delayed and then run behind the Safety Car which was a first! A number of races were cancelled but by late morning the mist seemed to clear a little and we were back on....
The rain continued unabated however and great puddles had formed on the circuit. We would start the race behind the Safety Car as well and hopefully clear some of the standing water...that was the theory! I was asked over the radio what the conditions were like and confirmed they were getting worse. To my surprise we went green the next lap although that was not apparent until the last moment. I immediately lost one place and I knew I was in trouble. For whatever reason the car could not cope with the puddles and slewed violently at each river on the track. I lost a considerable amount of places but was determined to keep my charge on the track. From a Championship point of view we were more concerned about the Speed 12 and once that gyrated in front of me and lost some time I knew we had a chance to beat it. I entered the pits 3rd in class and handed the boat to Mike. The track had improved latterly and my times had eased into respectability. I also knew Mike would perform and that he did making the most of an inevitable Safety Car period. The race was not unsurprisingly going to last the whole hour as the conditions worsened again and at the flag we had salvaged 2nd. I enjoyed the circuit but not in those conditions and hope for a more clement atmosphere at Thruxton in two weeks......
|
