Lydden race report Credit Pros and my race (long)

[stevefoster]

Posted here as well as some of you may not venture to chitchat.

 

Getting a dry day seemed almost impossible.

The night before race day the rain lashed down almost unabated!

 

Amazingly it was dry. Bone dry. windy, not that warm but dry.

 

I did not get a good paddock spot as I only ran one race and didn't need to be there until 11.20!

After the morning sprinters had gone home we moved down and got a nice gravel free spot.

 

Nice to meet a few of you from BC, Low Flying readers or those who have seen my website and have a chat (come on, get you 7's out and have a go at racing, that all I can advise).

 

Since I only had one race (the last race of the day) I had plenty of time to watch this time.

 

The main spectator event for me was the Credit Professionals race.

4 (I think classes) and each class has a winner. The class winner with the most points wins the overall Credit Pro title, SIMPLE... NOT!

 

Trevor and Lol were the ones in the lead of their respective classes and thus battling for the overall

title.

What a thriller it was to turn out to be.

I cannot explain all the details of who must finish where to win the championship, but if Lol wins the race he wins.

If he doesn't and Trevor does well in his class I believe Trevor wins.

 

Up front Merrick, the SBD Westfield and Lol. The power of the Westie sets the pace and is in the lead.

Merrick, in 2nd is unlocking new speed from the SLR and is going great guns.

Lol's tyres come on song and the rhythm that is Lydden engages in his brain. He starts getting closer to Merrick.

Up to North Bend and down Hairy hill and into Paddock the pressure on Merrick is intense. First try, Merrick shuts the door firmly. Lol gets out of it a bit to avoid contact.

2nd time around Lol has a big moment at Paddock as he pulls all the stops out to make a move stick.

Quick oversteer, I am convinced he's spun it, but no! I wonder if his overalls are as clean as they

were when he started the race. This is seat of the pants stuff!

3rd time around pressure again but no way around. Oh no! Merrick is hard on the power coming out of Paddock and a spin starts. The car goes away from him so quickly. He's curb bound. The curb is 9" high.

It flicks the car up off the ground. Front and rear wheels of one side of the car are clean off the ground.

For a second you fear the worse, will it roll? A low centre of gravity helps here. The SLR comes down on all 4 wheels.

It is quite an impact and Merrick's race is run. Waved Yellows and marshals sought out the car. Merrick watches the rest of the race from the infield.

 

Lol is now in second place. He tries to close the gap on the monster SBD Westfield.

I dub Lol's 7 'flat brick', as it is very low and flat especially the view you get as he comes into the pits.

'Flat brick' is now working hard. But try as he might he can't catch the SBD monster.

The laps are ticking down. Suddenly several drivers are having 'moments', slipping & sliding, especially visible in the Devils elbow corner. The red and yellow oil flag is out to indicate a slippery surface. Last lap now. Lol runs wide at Chessons. The front left is visibly damaged. The car is on 3 wheels, the top link seems to have sheared. Lol finishes the race, crossing the line with 3 wheels and retains 2nd place.

 

Now where is Trevor has he won his class and overall championship?

 

I do not know. All will be revealed...

 

 

Ok time for me to perform....

The J.T handicap grid is worked out using all the best lap times you have hitherto done at Lydden. This the clerk of course has told me.

This prevents sandbagging on a particular qualifying and then sparkling race lap times from working in a competitors favour.. Well at least more than once at any rate.

In theory all competitors should cross the finishing line at the same time!!!

In practise the cars are gridded up and sent off in groups with 5 or 10 second intervals, so total equality cannot be achieved.

 

I am in the lead in the championship. Merrick and I were very close but his work commitments in September meant that he could not compete then. This has given me a 24 point lead over him. Had he been able to race and beat me by 12 x 2 point and I got none (D.N.F for example) he would win.

Sadly he damaged the 7 beyond repair in the Credit Pro's so I am perhaps the winner already.

I am not sure if Lewis Shaw (Radicle no 81) can catch me. No time to do arithmetic. Time to jump in the car...

 

We grid up. I am alongside a Ford Fiesta. Flagged off near the back of the grid, the Fiesta has no chance.

As soon as I am in front, I pop across to block a possible attack in to Pilgrims and round Chessons. This Fiesta I have to lap to beat, so the speed differential between us is great enough for a come back not to be a real threat, that much I know.

Then it's "Round round, baby round round" we go.

I pick of the Tiger Sunbeam. This one I have to get past twice to beat.

After 3 laps the tyres are fully warm, I push harder still. Later and later on the brakes. The Pagid race rears and the Ferodo fronts are working nicely as a team and haul me up with beautiful feel and effectiveness.

Time for a quick glance at the temps, all ok.

Focus ahead. Let the shift light do it thing almost in my line of sight on the JPE style screen.

The SPC built quaife semi heli Gearbox is sweet but cannot be hurried too much.

I pick off a sports coupe something or other, then something else. I keep the concentration up, pushing as hard as my tyres will allow me. I have softened the front ARB from 3/4" to 5/8" (actually it is the Freestyle adjustable one, set on 5/8"). I like it. It gives less understeer at the tight North Bend but I have to watch the oversteer a bit more.

Then we draw closer to a 7, XF or K series not sure what. Less speed advantage here but ok we are past.

We are catching Dr John with his all steel XF 7.

The Tiger is taken again, good.

"Then annoyingly" it's a new Mini and the Fiesta in the way having a battle of their own.

We give the Fiesta and the New Mini 'a whole new adventure' up the hill to North Bend. I hope to split them up the middle up the hill and under braking and go inside the Fiesta and outside the Mini. Nope, they gang up on me and I have to wait to get closer to the Dr.

Right, Fiesta lapped and new Mini past, game plan on.

Now focus on Dr John. I follow and harry him a bit. The extra grip from my 9" rears and extra low down grunt of the VX pay off. We shoot up inside at North Bend and rely heavily on the AP big brakes. Success. Dr John's ideal entry to the corner is blocked by my yellow peril. I use the grip and stay tighter. "Blending" (Martin Brundle expression) on the power we maintain an in the way position until the grunt cavorts me down Hairy Hill and out the Dr's clutches.

Ok, push hard now, we don't want the Dr too near. I pull out a 1.8 sec gap and the chequed flat is out....

Did I do well, the marshals are clapping me. This they do for a 1st, 2nd or 3rd place... At least no one past me.

 

I return to the pits to await the result.

I won! Dooh! I should have carried on round to the start finish line for a

lap of honour and collected my garland on the line! Oh well, never mind.

 

We pack up. I collect my licence and cup from the office and walk to the clerk of the course tower to collect my garland.

It is a beautiful evening. In the twilight I walk around Paddock Hill looking at the line I take in the 7.

Then cut over to the Devil's Elbow corner imagining my speed and braking intensity to haul up and the line I would take...

Very sweet indeed.

 

I check the lap times. My best ever time. It must be the new front ARB!

 

So mail me if you are up for the 30 minute 7 race series... go on. Do something wonderful in your 7!

 

 

/Steve

 

My racing pics, 7 DIY, race prep. Updated often here

Hants (North) and Berkshire area club site

here

 

[Eric McLoughlin]

Congrats Steve - not bad for a 1st season. Sadly I'm too scared of damaging myself and / or my car to risk racing... and I'm too old and slow.