After a very long and very stressful off season I was just about on target to make a pre-season test 4 days before Round 1 at Lydden Hill Circuit. Time to shakedown the car and find and issues before we started the season.
After a couple of laps of Pembrey Circuit and the RB powered Skyline performing well, everything seemed to be going well, then boom car stops suddenly on track locked in gear. One of the new additions to the build was a 6 speed ‘H’ pattern Quiafe dog box.
Unfortunately the box had previous issues before my purchase (unknown at the time) and during testing it blew 4th gear apart. So with only 4 days until I had to leave for Lydden Hill it was all hands on deck to not only find a gearbox but get it fitted up along with all the last bits of prep! Many late nights followed before we were on the road to Lydden Hill.
So with a last minute sponsorship deal from Cannabis Energy Drink U.K. on board and after tow vehicle issues, the amazing guys at #CED sent me down their own van to use for the weekend! Can’t thank them enough! We got set up in the paddock with our new look, showcasing our sponsors and had many positive comments on how good the setup looked.
With the new format in the championship, Friday was focused on the Pro-Am group but the Pro class managed to sneak in a 45 min practice session! Making full use of the time, the team dialled in all the settings on the car and set up the new ‘TDP.ie’ front suspension kit.
The car felt awesome by the end of the day and I was very happy with my performance and the cars. Saturday saw a massive two and a half hours open practice in the morning, this gave even more time to set the car up and play with tyre choice etc. I found the set up I was happy with and was nailing the judge’s line perfectly and was excited to get stuck into qualifying and really push hard. High noon and qualifying began.
The new format gave us two individual qualifying laps to show our worth and rise above the competitors in Pro class, first qualifying run I was flat stick into the entry and it felt the best run I had all weekend, which was until I came to the hairpin and blew 3rd gear in the gearbox. The car straightened and that was the end of the run, I was devastated but headed straight to the pits to see what I could sort for the final run.
I had a choice of running the course in 2nd or in 4th, 2nd gear would have put a lot of strain on the engine so I opted to up the tyre pressures to 70psi and with the aid of antilag try and do the whole course in 4th. As I left the start line for the 2nd qualifying run BANG! I blew a driveshaft.
This was the end of my weekend, I tried everything I could to continue the day but it just wasn’t meant to be. I’m currently looking into options for the gearbox and can’t wait to get to Knockhill for round 2, it’s my favourite track and I’m going to claim back some points.
I’d like to thank all the BDC staff and marshalls for making the event run so smoothly. Our media partners and of course my friends and family for helping me in any way they could.
And finally, a HUGE thanks to all my fantastic sponsors. They go way beyond in order to help and without them I wouldn’t be able to compete.
LINK ECU, CANNABIS ENERGY DRINK UK, HEL PERFORMANCE, EIBACH SPRINGS, WRAP IT GRAPHICS, CR TURBO ENGINEERING, FAST FOX PERFORMANCE, JDM GARAGE, SUPERFORMA, KLEERS, TDP.IE, OUTLAW PRODUCTS, ROTA WHEELS, KLEERS, CLARK MOTORSPORT, XTREME CLUTCH AUSTRALIA, DRIFT RELIGION, ZIRCOTEC, BOOSTJUNKIES.CO.UK, GFB MEDIA, PERFORMANCE 1 COATINGS, ZIRCOTEC, BOB DOVE MOTORSPORT, F1 CARBON AND MB AUTOMOTIVE.