Saturday was a jammed packed event and attended by eager car enthusiast filling the grandstands to capacity making it so much more exciting for the drivers.
Race day mornings before qualifying are extremely hectic for me running in two classes and requires the pit crew to be highly effective, understandably aided by jugs of coffee to keep them wide awake.
Qualifying is always a bit of a rush as the temperatures fluctuate during the sessions of the morning requiring settings to be adjusted on the car for ambient temperature fluctuation which effects tyre pressures and air / fuel ratios.
Both sessions went as well as can be expected with lap times ranging in the mid-1,13s which was good enough to be right in the thick of things in both the Clubman’s and the 111 .
111 had a bunch of people coming up from KZN to compete on the day and made for seriously stiff competition.
Both 111 and Clubmans made for extremely close racing and was not without its regular action and drama in the form of a “bit to close for comfort racing” and the odd nudge and oils spills causing cars to go off the track besides the regular spin out as a result of tryes not reaching full operating temperature. Clubmans was fairly smooth racing for a change and managed to come home 1st in class however on the flip side it could not have been more challenging in 111 . The KZN team had come down fully prepared to sort us local boys out and had seriously done some home work . Finally on the last lap and coming out of turn 2 I had managed get past the KZN boys only to turn the Shield Golf around in Turn 7 on the final lap which was not part of the plan , but made for a massive roar from the grandstand. I just could not believe what had happened and can only imagine that this was due to oil on the track – (however my competitors as you can all imagine simply put it down to me running out of talent) .
Licking my wounds from the previous heat and whilst driving down to the pre-race paddock with butterflies in my stomach I made my mind up that I was not going to come up short again .Having my work cut out I therefore needed to do my utmost to pass both Roland and the KZN Goldwagen Golf quickly if I was to win this battle. Ultimately I had to regain some pride and frankly show them that the Shield Golf is boss …especially on home turf.
Heading out on the warm up lap I new this was going be a tough time and had to ensure that I was right up on their bumpers at the start of the race if I stood any chance of passing them .
On the start of the race and as the chequered flag dropped I kept the pressure on Ronald and Roland and ensured that there rear view mirrors were filled with the Shield Golf and banked on one of them making a mistake at some point .
Coming out of turn 2 I could not believe my luck as they both ran wide giving me the gap I needed to slip past and keeping my foot flat for the remainder of the race through top the chequred flag which gave me me back my dignity and a 1st in class .
Based on the current seasons results I am laying 3rd overall in the 111 championship and look forwad to catching up on some lost points at Phakisa on the 10th of September.
The Phakisa 200 is a race that requires quite a bit of preparation which has started in earnest combined with a solid strategy and support team for the critical pit stop on the the refueling and compulsory tyre change .
Many a Phakisa 200 Race has been lost in the pit stop …….
See you at the
Current Point Standing
