21 September 2003

THE SEASON'S FINALE

The final meeting of the year and although on one hand it seems a long time since we lined up at Snetterton, the season has flashed past and, like all good things, leaves you wanting more...

The pre-race test went very well for us and we were on the pace all day, even topping the times overall in the third session. The set-up we carried over from Donington was working well at Oulton and it was just a case of dialling into the circuit's characteristics and general fine tuning.

Come qualifying on Saturday and it was a different story, light rain starting to fall prior to qualifying. A decision had to be made on which tyres to go out on: slicks or wets. The majority of the field chose the latter and within two laps I knew we were in trouble. The Michelin wet is definitely only for a very wet track and it was simply not wet enough to make the tyre work; the result is that the tyre quickly overheats and all grip ceases. I pushed too hard, too early and after six laps the rain came down heavier still and the times then became even slower. My 11th place on the grid was disappointing and left me with an uphill battle for the race.

With the sun back out for the single race on Sunday I knew we could mix it with anyone in the field and from the off, where for once I got the car off the line well, the battle raged. My pace was being held up and I was having to brake earlier and corner more slowly due to a four and five car battle directly ahead of me. They were taking up all the track space, and more, and there was simply nowhere to put the car to overtake them.

All I could do was to wait for any opportunities to arise and take them, whilst fending off the attentions of Ed Pead behind. One by one I managed to move up the field and at Knickerbrook I was trying to keep momentum and pass two cars who had slowed each other up when Ed slipped through and put me on the grass.

I was immediately on his tail and, as we crested the rise over Deer Leap three abreast with Murray, I made a strong pass going into Old Hall. After that I put my head down to catch Ian Curley for fourth and then realised next time around was the final lap. We had been racing so hard I had lost track of time and subsequently ended up just half a second behind Ian at the flag in fifth place.

My last lap was also my fastest and only three one hundredth behind my team-mate and race winner Jonathon Fildes. We were the only cars that got into the 1m 35s and proved the pace I could run at given the space. If qualifying had been different perhaps I could have given him a run for his money. No matter, Jonathon is an incredibly deserving champion and I have learnt so much from him this year and the team have been awesome in the preparation and set-up of the car.

The results at Donington and Oulton have buoyed my confidence and I have committed to the winter series in an attempt to get into the top three and win a free/discounted entry for next season.