Well, after a leisurely start (actually setting off at 5am) we soon arrived at Cadwell Park ahead of scrutineering time of 0940, and practice time of 1040. Though forecasts had said rain showers, the sun was out and it was very hot...As well as Mike, Suz and Des - Dave & Angie soon arrived from the country retreat - somewhere near to Grimsby!
After no time at all, I was assembled in the forming up area ready for the off for practice session. Despite having been at Cadwell for a track day only a few days beforehand, it's amazing how the nerves get the better of you! Anyway out onto the track, and the car felt great. Very surefooted, and pulling very strongly. Given the distance we had travelled, the personal effort that the team had put into getting the car ready, the game plan was to get 3 steady laps in before starting to really push hard (you have to complete x3 laps to qualify for the race at all).
After my first lap, I got an oil pressure alarm, which I've not seen before and immediately panicked! Checking through the read-outs, I could see that the oil pressure was at around 25-30 psi round the bends, compared to our normal 60-70psi. However, based on experience 20+ psi should be ok. I kept an eye on it, and concluded that unless it got better I would need to come in after my 3 laps, as every corner where I went remotely quick the oil pressure dropped (due to surge) to this level. During one bend I saw 22psi and decided that was too low.....and on lap 5 pulled in to retire from my practice to sort the engine out.
The low oil pressure was due to........wait for it.........low oil level!! Despite having checked it in Wickford, then running the engine, then checking it again, then checking it at Cadwell (after 500miles of bouncing along on a trailer), somehow the oil had settled at min on the dipstick. So filled it up, and concluded that we had found the problem.
Completed a few cheeky checks, and went to watch some racing....in the build up to my race at 1630.
Given that I had only completed 4 laps, qualifying wasn't expected to be great and was ok. I had qualified 12th overall, and 6th in class C and would be starting on the outside of the grid.
Sat on the startline, with the 30sec board showing, the car in P9 (#71, Mark Alexander Williams) started waving his arms like a man possessed. Engine had obviously stalled and wouldn't re-start. The start line man was preparing to abort, when Mark got his engine going and gave the all clear signal. With that, and all of a sudden, the 5 sec board was up then the red lights on. I built up the revs and got them settled....The lights stayed on for an eternity, lots of cars creeping as they took up clutch, then back to a standstill, then the lights were out!
It was absolutely frantic.
In front of me, someone had got a cracking start, and was trying to weave in and out of the cars in front of me, there was some contact and loads of wheelspin from several cars...I had forgotten quite what the starts were like! Anyway everyone got away safely and the race was on. I had held back just a tiny bit, and as a result I think was down to 13th. I bedded in for the first lap, trying to keep a keen eye on where the cars in front and behind were faster and/or trying to overtake whilst defending my line. Our car was great on the brakes and in the bends but not as much power on the straights, though that's not surprising given that we are up against 2.0L engines and V8s!!
I managed an overtake on the Park straight, being able to benefit from a tow and then slingshot through on the approach to Park bend, getting up the inside. Got round another on Chris curve (the approach to Gooseneck). Then for a couple of laps, it was status quo, no real overtaking opportunity, but good fun & clean racing.
On the run to Coppice, I noticed I had the edge on the brakes and cornering speed. So, with that on the next lap, I set-up for overtake...Got a great run out of Barn, later braking and faster into Coppice. The guy in front, was out wide and me mid-track, so the overtake was on, but on the outside of Charlie's 1!! Quite a heart stopper....Anyway, I got through this ok, and got a great line for Charlie's 2 and bombed off down Park again....
My best position during the race was 8th, I think...
Then on lap 5, I was overtaken on the exit of the mountain, which is really in-excusable, but does happen! So down to 9th...Again, I noticed that I was later on the brakes and faster around Barn than the two guys in front, so went for an overtake on the next lap.
Braking went well, hit my apex well, and got the power down early, and was gaining on #75 (Matthew Lewis) in front of me, we were almost at the exit of the bend with me still gaining, both of us accelerating hard (3rd gear for us) when #75 suddenly stopped accelerating. I braked and steered inside, but caught the rear wheel arch of #75 and there was an almightly bang. My bonnet jumped up and Matthew span in front of me. My steering went very heavy and I brought the car to a standstill on the LHS of the circuit - neither of us were going to be continuing our race. I felt absolutely gutted.
We both got out of our cars, and to safety. The race was red-flagged -- our cars were right on the exit of a high speed and blind bend, so it was not at all safe to continue racing. Some minutes later, we were both checked over by the doctor, and the cars recovered to the pits. My car looked very sick, with a significant amount of damage to the bonnet, sidepod and front suspension components, and as we later found out a bent front LHS corner of the chassis. I am not sure on the condition of Matthew's car, but I hope it only has minor damage. Also, must apologise for the damage to his car, it was a genuine accident, but I can't help feeling guilty. Later on Matthew said that he had lost all power from his engine, which had caused him to stop accelerating suddenly.
So, Al's first raceday did not go at all to plan, only 4 laps of practice and a crash in the race itself, with some fairly hefty damage to the car to boot.
The team will now be beavering away in the hallowed MADRacingTC (Technical Centre) in an attempt to get the car back to it's former glory in time for Anglesey.....
Big thanks to all my supporters on the day, it was a horrible feeling having crashed the car, caused the red flag and damaging someone elses car. The supporters were very kind, and waited until at least 5 minutes after the incident before they started the ridicule.....
Al
After no time at all, I was assembled in the forming up area ready for the off for practice session. Despite having been at Cadwell for a track day only a few days beforehand, it's amazing how the nerves get the better of you! Anyway out onto the track, and the car felt great. Very surefooted, and pulling very strongly. Given the distance we had travelled, the personal effort that the team had put into getting the car ready, the game plan was to get 3 steady laps in before starting to really push hard (you have to complete x3 laps to qualify for the race at all).
After my first lap, I got an oil pressure alarm, which I've not seen before and immediately panicked! Checking through the read-outs, I could see that the oil pressure was at around 25-30 psi round the bends, compared to our normal 60-70psi. However, based on experience 20+ psi should be ok. I kept an eye on it, and concluded that unless it got better I would need to come in after my 3 laps, as every corner where I went remotely quick the oil pressure dropped (due to surge) to this level. During one bend I saw 22psi and decided that was too low.....and on lap 5 pulled in to retire from my practice to sort the engine out.
The low oil pressure was due to........wait for it.........low oil level!! Despite having checked it in Wickford, then running the engine, then checking it again, then checking it at Cadwell (after 500miles of bouncing along on a trailer), somehow the oil had settled at min on the dipstick. So filled it up, and concluded that we had found the problem.
Completed a few cheeky checks, and went to watch some racing....in the build up to my race at 1630.
Given that I had only completed 4 laps, qualifying wasn't expected to be great and was ok. I had qualified 12th overall, and 6th in class C and would be starting on the outside of the grid.
Sat on the startline, with the 30sec board showing, the car in P9 (#71, Mark Alexander Williams) started waving his arms like a man possessed. Engine had obviously stalled and wouldn't re-start. The start line man was preparing to abort, when Mark got his engine going and gave the all clear signal. With that, and all of a sudden, the 5 sec board was up then the red lights on. I built up the revs and got them settled....The lights stayed on for an eternity, lots of cars creeping as they took up clutch, then back to a standstill, then the lights were out!
It was absolutely frantic.
In front of me, someone had got a cracking start, and was trying to weave in and out of the cars in front of me, there was some contact and loads of wheelspin from several cars...I had forgotten quite what the starts were like! Anyway everyone got away safely and the race was on. I had held back just a tiny bit, and as a result I think was down to 13th. I bedded in for the first lap, trying to keep a keen eye on where the cars in front and behind were faster and/or trying to overtake whilst defending my line. Our car was great on the brakes and in the bends but not as much power on the straights, though that's not surprising given that we are up against 2.0L engines and V8s!!
I managed an overtake on the Park straight, being able to benefit from a tow and then slingshot through on the approach to Park bend, getting up the inside. Got round another on Chris curve (the approach to Gooseneck). Then for a couple of laps, it was status quo, no real overtaking opportunity, but good fun & clean racing.
On the run to Coppice, I noticed I had the edge on the brakes and cornering speed. So, with that on the next lap, I set-up for overtake...Got a great run out of Barn, later braking and faster into Coppice. The guy in front, was out wide and me mid-track, so the overtake was on, but on the outside of Charlie's 1!! Quite a heart stopper....Anyway, I got through this ok, and got a great line for Charlie's 2 and bombed off down Park again....
My best position during the race was 8th, I think...
Then on lap 5, I was overtaken on the exit of the mountain, which is really in-excusable, but does happen! So down to 9th...Again, I noticed that I was later on the brakes and faster around Barn than the two guys in front, so went for an overtake on the next lap.
Braking went well, hit my apex well, and got the power down early, and was gaining on #75 (Matthew Lewis) in front of me, we were almost at the exit of the bend with me still gaining, both of us accelerating hard (3rd gear for us) when #75 suddenly stopped accelerating. I braked and steered inside, but caught the rear wheel arch of #75 and there was an almightly bang. My bonnet jumped up and Matthew span in front of me. My steering went very heavy and I brought the car to a standstill on the LHS of the circuit - neither of us were going to be continuing our race. I felt absolutely gutted.
We both got out of our cars, and to safety. The race was red-flagged -- our cars were right on the exit of a high speed and blind bend, so it was not at all safe to continue racing. Some minutes later, we were both checked over by the doctor, and the cars recovered to the pits. My car looked very sick, with a significant amount of damage to the bonnet, sidepod and front suspension components, and as we later found out a bent front LHS corner of the chassis. I am not sure on the condition of Matthew's car, but I hope it only has minor damage. Also, must apologise for the damage to his car, it was a genuine accident, but I can't help feeling guilty. Later on Matthew said that he had lost all power from his engine, which had caused him to stop accelerating suddenly.
So, Al's first raceday did not go at all to plan, only 4 laps of practice and a crash in the race itself, with some fairly hefty damage to the car to boot.
The team will now be beavering away in the hallowed MADRacingTC (Technical Centre) in an attempt to get the car back to it's former glory in time for Anglesey.....
Big thanks to all my supporters on the day, it was a horrible feeling having crashed the car, caused the red flag and damaging someone elses car. The supporters were very kind, and waited until at least 5 minutes after the incident before they started the ridicule.....
Al
