This event is very popular and was over-subscribed, we were fore-warned to enter early. One of my fellow lady drivers managed to get an entry for Saturday but not Sunday - the moral being "Get your entry in as soon as they open!". Most of the friends we have made at various venues over this season were there which made it very sociable; and we made a few new friends as well.
So, Saturday morning dawned to the afore-mentioned greasy track and everyone took it fairly easy. By the second practice run it was stickier and most of us put up a good time, while casting suspicious looks at the black clouds looming from the south west. It took its chance over the lunch break and started bucketing down; we ate our lunch in the Imp which has to be a first! All we needed was a newspaper and we'd have made a good impression of tourists at a beauty spot viewpoint.
The afternoon runs were done in alternate heavy downpours and sunny spells, which arguably were worse as the track was half-dry half-wet. Alex managed some decent times but I lost interest and had two shocking timed runs so was in my usual spot at the bottom of the fleet. Never mind, tomorrow is another day and driving in so many different conditions is very good experience and does wonders for confidence.
On Sunday morning, having had a night in the tent listening to more downpours, I was thinking "urgh, do I really want to do this?". Of course I did, and also couldn't possibly let down all the marshals who were doing a sterling job standing around getting soaked on our behalf. Once I was up and ready I was feeling much more positive and practices went fine, with pretty much a carbon copy of weather and conditions from the day before. A first practice of 63.07 and second at 62.42 meant I was heading in the right direction to break my previous personal best of 61.25 (also achieved in damp conditions). Alex had a slowish first practice but did 60.95 in the second one, so I was chasing him.
We managed to get the tent down reasonably dry at lunchtime, the breeze having got up and the sun out during our second practices. By the time we'd walked back down to the paddock the queues for the food were too long so my customary Sunday sausage and chips was put off until after the first timed runs.
Yet again during lunchtime the heavens opened right on schedule, to many sighs of frustration from those with more powerful cars. We weren't too worried in the Imp and our first timed runs were pretty good: 60.57 for Alex and 61.30 for me (0.06 off a new PB!). That definitely got my competitive spirit flowing, and the secret weapon of sausage and chips completed it: I was determined to really go for it in the last run of the weekend.
Alex, to my surprise, came in a bit slower at 61.02 in his second timed run because he left a gear change too late in the Esses. It was all to play for! On the way down to my start I could feel the adrenalin building up, this was my last chance. Alex and I had been talking about the "brake LATE and HARD" advice we'd had; and that when you want to brake you should say "A thousand" and then brake. Clearly even experienced drivers suffer from the automatic caution that our brains use to protect us! I'd been getting braver with late braking into the Gate and two hairpins, and on this run I totally forgot about any dodgy track conditions and went for it; the whole run felt fast, but that can be deceiving. When I got to the top my heart was going hammer and tongs, and I was desperate for the loo! Once I got to look at the time I was amazed to see 60.37 and had to check it several times before I believed I'd knocked almost a second off my PB, and beaten Alex... I had the biggest grin on my face then for the rest of the day, and all the way home in fact!
No comments:
Post a Comment