Round 3 - Silverstone
Arrived at the circuit around 5pm on Saturday to meet Dunc and his family.
We weren't allowed in the circuit to watch the track day unless we paid, so just stopped in the car park and chatted to a few other TA competitors and entourage.
Met Stu from big power at last and a few more but can't remember names :oops:
After unloading my car and stashing it in the garages it was off with famille Graham to the Jap restaurant for a meal with the Zen lot and a few off 22b.
This was the 1st meal I'd had since Monday night as I'd not been well (one way of weight loss I suppose). Meal was great, had a few beers then back to hotel for a swift 1/2 then to bed.
Up early and Ren (22b) was already there to pick up his tickets, and was helping out during the day.
Down to the track and swapped my wheels over as I envisaged a dry-ish day, and it was.
Hundreds of pics here....
http://www.timeattack.co.uk/gallery/TA% ... D3339.html
Out for warm up and there was alight drizzle, couldn't get the heat in the tyres and so pressures were low when we checked them afterwards.
Car was running OK but really bad understeer out of the complex, a really slow corner. Think this may have been a combination of, suspension, damp track, and tyre temp/pressure.
I posted a 1:13, 4th out of 17 in group B session, but knew I'd have to improve. My aim was a 1.08 for the day, this was based on my previous best of 1:12 in my car as standard (apart from springs, ARB, and DL's in Round 4 2006) and I reckoned a 1:06 to be the cut for the finals. I knew the top club cars would be pushing a minute though.
I spoke to John Felstead about my settings and he offered some advice, on what I could tell him. Suspension was altered, and out for practice.
This time car felt better, less understeer, but still slow through the complex. I got a 1:09.060, 5th out of 20 in this session, but the group A times were hitting 1:01, with several around the 1:03-1:05 times.
After checking tyres again, and altering suspension again I went out for qualifying. I managed to get to the front to get in some clean laps, trying to get some heat in the tyres on the out lap. I did a few laps and posted a 1:09.074, no lap timer in car so I didn't know what I'd been lapping. Then understeer from no where at Maggots, and some on the complex, next time around it appeared that the evo in front of me was leaking fluid, it later transpires that it wasn't but another evo had. There was fluid on the racing line on 2 of the corners meaning that my remaining laps were around 1 second slower.
My best splits (ie ideal lap) would have been a 1:08.500, so better still, but still not quick enough to qualify for finals
Overall that was 31st/39. There were 26 cars within 4 seconds of each other. With out the NA cars that put me 27th/30 in FI class.
I was pleased the car ran without issue again, but there is definitely more time to come from suspension set-up. Its very easy to get it wrong and can cost valuable seconds.
Thank you to Ren for helping out and all the Sox lot for coming down to watch too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMlR-811BGY
Big thanks also to those that have sponsored and helped me out.
Road and Stage Performance
Opie Oils
3-cam.com
Roelands Race Rally
also
Carl Davey - cooling solutions
Dubstar
Japspeed
Cobra
TA Round 3 write up
Good performance Dill, shame that the time wasnt in it in the end but I think if you can get the suspension set up knowledge you may be able to improve your times.
Not sure it will quite be enough though with everyone moving onwards and upwards in the power stakes to try and close the gap on the leaders/qualifiers.
Not sure it will quite be enough though with everyone moving onwards and upwards in the power stakes to try and close the gap on the leaders/qualifiers.
