Thruxton
Writing this on Monday morning I must admit to a degree of fatigue from overdriving, not as you may think from on track action but the amount of travelling I did over the weekend due to the awful weather.

My original plan of travelling down to Thruxton on Friday night with the motorhome was scuppered when I didn't arrive home until 11pm due to the flooding and traffic chaos between Droitwich, my office and Bromyard, my home. After a scant 4 hours asleep I left very early knowing I was in for a challenge. With Bromyard isolated by water taking the 30 foot motorhome was out of the question as it was going to be a question of back lanes and diversions as I navigated around the flood waters. After travelling 65 miles I reached the motorway, its usually 24...I then was forced to go via Oxford and the total journey of 185 miles that usually is only 100, however we were there and racing could commence.

Fastest in free practice was again was nice, its seems so easy when there is no pressure and onto qualifying which was marred by rain after just one lap, I had headed Toby out of the pit lane and he saw me get out of shape as we went through the chicane and thus managed to control his slide better than mine as we ended up one and two on the grid for race one. I then set another lap time as the rain intensified before pitting and sitting it out as I believed, wrongly as it happened, that the track would only get slower. In the dieing moments of the session the track dried marginally and my second best lap time was suddenly only good for seventh on the grid, my mistake.

Race one was on Saturday afternoon and it was raining, again. I made an average getaway and jinked it out with Toby through the complex side by side but he had the line at Seagrave and I had to let him have the lead as we headed out into the countryside for the first time. I had the pace but I didn't have the visibility, the spray was unbelievable and my anti fog visor was, well, foggy. Every time I closed Toby down I couldn't see my turn in points and I had to settle for second, we were however 14 seconds clear of the field, a very thorough demonstration of Xero Competitions preparation and set up.

Next on the agenda was more driving as I set off for home, arriving a mere two hours later at 8.30pm after a few more flood dramas. After a good nights sleep I returned to the track for the second race which was mercifully held in dry conditions. Starting seventh I was up to fourth by the end of the complex and felt good about getting to the front of the field, however this confidence was misplaced as I tangled with Rob Wheldon at the complex. I had out braked him going into Cambell and he was retaliating around the outside of the right handed corner and as he lined up for the left hander he moved across and just caught my front wheel - yanking the steering wheel to the right and sending me off into the infield. Now at the back of the pack I put in some good laps to get back to the front and was having an absolute ball, I felt I could do anything with the car which wasn't exactly true - what I couldn't do was brake impossibly late for the final chicane whilst overtaking two other cars around the outside and change down and turn in. Result? A spin and the undoing of all my good work, so back to some fast lappery and I made it back to sixth before the flag fell with fastest lap for both races.

My second race antics had achieved something, the crowd voted me as driver of the day so I had something to smile about, furthermore when I looked at the points after the Thruxton results I am now leading the championship by 15 points. There is a long way to go yet however so I need to keep the consistency with not so many dramas.

23 July 2007