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I've got 5 more race meetings this year to try and make it happen. Speaking of which, BRSCC have put on an extra race at Croft on Saturday 31st October. It's a circuit I've not been to yet and have always wanted to drive. So the entry is in.
Remaining races this year:
Snetterton 300 - Roadsports - 17th October
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
As you may remember, we didn't get to race last year so looking forward to it. I have to admit it's not my favourite circuit but a podium would change that
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Finger's crossed!
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
I've been watching the series, so good.
I wasn't racing at Cadwell but did at Silverstone for their second race. Hopefully, they do a video on that one too.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Big mistake. There was so much more grip than I thought and it dried up almost instantly. Qualifies 2 seconds off my best and P4 in class.
However, I ended up having a great race with a MK3 MX5 and an MG Maestro - both in the class above me.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
This weekend is the 70th running of the Birkett Relay - a 6-hour handicapped relay race held on the Silverstone GP circuit.
70 teams of 3-6 cars, running in relay format. The slower teams are given a headstart by way of credit laps over the 'scratch' team. Most laps wins, simple. We'll find out our credit laps after qualifying.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
The grid order for the race is determined by your team's handicap position with the scratch team at the front and the team with most credit laps at the rear of the field. We were given 36 laps so lined up in 62nd position, 8th in the handicap.
Qualifying then was just that, to qualify both the car and driver for the race. Complete 3 laps and you're in, regardless what time you set. Easy.
All 5 drivers qualified with no problems.
Race Time - let's go!
Jon drove a cracking opening stint, staying out of trouble and setting fast lap times in the process. We moved up a few positions and after 35 minutes, he radioed in and said it was time to swap cars.
As he crossed the pit entry line, his head gasket let go and he smoke-bombed the pitlane!
Nick went out in the BMW next for a 45-ish minute stint, again kept out of trouble and lapped consistently. He had a great battle with a Porsche throughout his stint.
Here's the full stint onboard
When I came in, the BMW went out in the hands of our other driver, Jonathan. As I pulled up to the rear of the garage Nick ran over and told me that the BMW had run out of front brakes, so I was to turn the MX5 around as quickly as possible and be ready for another stint. Unfortunately, after doing a whole hour I was a bit sore, to say the least. We got permission from Race Admin for the Puma's second driver, Alex, to drive the MX5 for a stint. It was looking like he wouldn't get a drive so thankfully, the stewards said yes.
Fuel the car up, nut and bolt check and get Alex into the car ready to go out.
In the meantime, our Team Manager, Mark, had jumped into his car and driven to Euro Car Parts in Northampton to grab some more brake pads for the BMW. We didn't have any spares at the track so this was our only choice. We had already fitted our backup set the day before in testing but was caught out but how quickly road pads wore out compared to race pads.
On his way back from Euros, his Peugeot decided it didn't need oil pressure and broke down on the A43.
A failing BMW on the track waiting to come in, a Mazda MX5 loaded with a driver who'd never driven the car before, and our parts delivery stuck on a dual-carriageway slip road. Oh, and it had started to rain again
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
I stood on the pitwall and coached Alex as he lapped the circuit each time. Can you imagine driving an unfamiliar car, at race speeds, in the wet around the Grand Prix circuit? He's a bloody hero and just kept going faster and faster. He found another mk1 MX5 and stayed with him, figured that if he could do that, he'd be doing OK.
The rest of the team set to work replacing the BMW's brake pads and turning it around ready to go out. When they gave me the signal that it was ready, I called Alex in (he did 35-40 minutes in the end) and Nick went out. It had stopped raining at the point so he put on his dry tyres and the plan was to do an hour.
At around the 50-minute mark it started to rain heavily. Nick's lap times started to tumble as a result so I jumped into the MX5, fitted my wet tyres and setup and then went out for a 45-min stint.
I ended up in the front in the end
After my 45-mins I came into the pit and Jonathan went out in the BMW for the final 30 minutes of the race. Lap safely, bring her home, job done.
He did just that.
120 laps in 6 hours with all of the problems that we had is just amazing. The Birkett Relay is a great way to end the racing season. Every year for me thanks.
Except...I'm off to Donington Park in November for the final Roadsports race. And maybe the Plum Pudding on Boxing Day.
Oh, and Mark got his car home eventually.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
A standard Roadsports affair although there's a record Class D entry of 13 cars which hopefully should make for some close racing.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Final session was drying so opted for semi-slicks and had a good ten minutes of fun before an exhaust bolt came loose and curtailed my session.
Back to the garage, fixed the exhaust, changed the diff oil and also the front brake pads ready for race day.
It was still raining in the assembly area, still raining on the grid, and still raining as we embarked on the green flag lap. The cars around me at semi-slicks on, so I was looking good.
As we neared the start/finish line for race start, the rain stopped.
Nothing much else to report after that, it was tricky and quite honestly, it was the first time I wanted a race to be over. Finished P10 in class and P31 overall.
I guess I need a set of intermediate tyres for conditions like that?
Anyway, 2nd season of racing is over and the car is still in one piece.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
This year, I'll be entering races in both 750MC Roadsports and BRSCC Clubsport Trophy. The race format across both is the same although the class structure is slightly different.
24th April
Silverstone National
Roadsports
29th May
Croft
Roadsports
12th June
Brands Indy
Roadsports
20th June
Silverstone National
Clubsport
17th July
Snetterton 300
Roadsports
7th August
Silverstone International
Roadsports
26th September
Donington GP
Clubsport
10th October
Snetterton 300
Clubsport
23rd October
Silverstone GP
Birkett Relay
This car is 60kgs heavier than a cup car, so can't compete on that front. However, in the series that I race it doesn't need to be the same spec as one, so why am I trying to make it so? In fact, Roadsports and Clubsport are pretty much DO WHAT YOU LIKE.
Gearbox
1st and 2nd are very short, yet 3rd and 4th are quite long. Great for spirited B-Road blasts, but awkward for racing as on slow hairpins neither gear is perfect. The answer is to fit the 6-speed box from the mk2.5 MX5, which is a direct fit.
With the change, 4th and 5th become 5th and 6th with identical ratios, and 2nd and 3rd are split equally between the new 2nd, 3rd, and 4th gears. Shorter gearing means the engine will be in the power band more often, which is faster.
Engine
Remember the brand new rebuild that we spun a bearing in last year? Well since I re-rebuilt that it's been sitting in my workshop gathering dust waiting to go into the car, now's a perfect time.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Our Team Dynamics are ET38, so are 8-12mm more inboard each side that than normal. No wonder it looks odd!
I found these Style 51s from 7Twenty which are a 5 spoke 15x8 with a ET20 offset. They have both the look and stance that I'm after, with the bonus that I can run a wider, gripper tyre!
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Finally, I took the car back to BBR for a tweak of the tune with the new engine. It made 5.6bhp more on average across the rev range, but made 1.8bhp less at peak power. I guess that's a good thing but we'll take it back after a few race weekends for a dyno run to see if it's just a break-in thing.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk