CCKC ‘22 - The final round

And just like that, it’s already November!

Thankfully my anti-rain dance worked at the weekend and I managed to avoid getting absolutely soaked at the final round of Castle Combe’s 2022 Karting Championship, although the track was still very greasy for most of the afternoon, and ironically I actually performed better when the circuit wasn’t almost dry ..

Around 60 drivers entered the final round, with drivers in the top 50% of the championship standings racing in the afternoon -

I’d just scraped in being ranked 27th overall before the final round, and consequently avoided the heavy showers that hit the area earlier in the day.

As usual, the event would be made up of a practice session, several heat races and a ‘final’ for all drivers. The staff had good fun scaring people into thinking they had arrived late due to the clocks going back the night before, and overall I think everyone really enjoyed the day!

Practice went ok, and after picking up some useful tips from the encyclopaedic Oliver Bayani, I lined up 2nd on the grid for my first race -

The wider, wet line around the outside of turn one was going to be in use for most of the afternoon, and I made a cracking start to the race, going around the outside of pole man Seb Miller into the first right-hander. Seb, on the inside and subsequently on the greasy tarmac, slid sideways into me on the exit of the corner, but I survived while he had further contact and half spun. In the end I won the heat by a few seconds, much to my surprise!

My second heat saw me start 4th and finish 3rd, as I made a move around the outside of Shane Lucas through turns 7 and 8 -

So far, so good (again, against expectations).

Things started to go downhill in my 3rd race when, starting 4th but having another fantastic launch (I think I was up to 2nd after turn one), I then spun after turn 2, dropping to 5th (i.e. last) place. My pace however was good and by the end of the heat I had caught and passed Mark O’Grady, who was in with a shout of finishing in the overall top 3 for the ‘Masters’ category this weekend.

For my 4th and final heat, I again lined up 

2nd on the grid, made (another) good start but then got squeezed into the wall and dropped to 3rd. I was able to stick with the driver in 2nd but then rather than settling for third and taking the points available I made one of my worst errors in recent memory:

I made a much better exit out of turn 2 than the driver ahead, and pulled ahead of him as we approached the top hair bit, but on the outside. Rather than staying on the racing line however and taking the wider wet line (as I had in my previous races), I wrongly decided to ‘shut the door’ as soon as I was ahead, moving to the inside of the track. As soon as I hit the brakes I knew I’d been over ambitious.. The kart slid uncontrollably, feeling like it was accelerating rather than slowing down. I awkwardly bumped into Seb, who was leading, and in all honesty was lucky not to receive a black and white warning flag. I got again, now 5th, and crossed the line on rear bumper of the driver in 4th. 

The results from my final two heats undid the good points scored in the first two, which meant I found myself lining up 7th on the grid for the ‘B’ final, where the top 2 would then progress on to the back of the ‘A’ final grid. By that point in the day I was beating myself up a bit for the silly errors I’d made, and in all honesty my heart wasn’t really in it. I lost two positions on the opening lap, getting squeezed towards the inside wall on the approach to turn one, and from then on I just generally lacked the confidence to ‘send it’ at any point, given what had happened in my 4th heat (despite the fact the track was now dry in most places). I eventually finished in 8th position, well clear of 9th and on the back of a train of three or four other karts, but I was glad when the chequered flag was shown. Sometimes, I guess that’s just how things go ..

Still, the drivers in the ‘A’ final put on a good race (I was particularly pleased for Jamie Higgins, who had driven well all day and was right in the thick of it) and it was fun witnessing the end-of-season trophy presentations once the final points had been added up. A big congratulations go to all of the winners, and a big thanks to all the Castle Combe staff, who ran yet another slick event and kept a tight ship -

I’ll look forward to seeing everyone again when the 2023 season gets under way!

Next up for me is the annual British Rental Kart Championship event in January, taking place at the excellent Formula Fast circuit in Milton Keynes. Hopefully the ‘23 version won’t be postponed like this year’s was, but what will be, will be!

Until then, take care -

And have fun :D

Ben

British Rental Kart Championship

So, BRKC 2022.. An event of two halves for me in every sense of the word!

First up was practice on Friday, and this more or less went to plan just getting familiar with the karts, circuit and pit stop procedure. I drove karts 10 and 13 and both felt ok, and so was able to more or less set competitive, consistent lap times.

With the luck of the (heats) draw, I found myself with two races on the Saturday, and two on the Sunday, which I was thankful for ..

In my first race (driving kart 15, I think) I qualified 3rd which I was pleasantly surprised with, and subsequently crossed the line in 3rd when the chequered flag fell twenty minutes later -

Now, if someone had offered me that the day before I’d have bitten their hand off, but in reality I should have finished in 2nd place and therefore I was a little disappointed, although I only had myself to blame ..

In the race the leader, the guy in 2nd and I broke away from the others fairly quickly and I was able to comfortably stay with the second-placed driver as we came up to lap back-markers (a rare phenomenon in BRKC..). Sensing an opportunity to try an under-cut, I pitted but failed to notice one of the new / slower competitors in the pits ahead of me. Consequently, I ended up having a terribly slow stop and lost a chunk of time and with it my opportunity to gain 2nd place. By the time he’d pitted a few laps later I was several corners behind, and only just ahead of the driver in 4th, and that’s how things stayed until the end. So 3rd was a bitter sweet result but at least I was off to a good start ..

The 2nd and 3rd races were due to take place on an alternate track layout, which historically has never been kind to me, so again I was as surprised as anyone to qualify and finish 4th in my next race (driving kart 14), which turned out to be fairly uneventful, although I’ll admit I was being caught towards the end

My results from day one may well have led to a false sense of confidence, but none the less I felt I’d prepared well and therefore it was a bit of a reality check on Sunday when in my 3rd race (again on the alternate layout, which no one had driven prior to the weekend) I qualified stone-last in kart 10..

Yes, the same kart I’d felt so comfortable with on Friday. 

I didn’t feel like I did anything particularly wrong in the race but did think that the kart lacked a bit of acceleration. I only managed to gain one place by over-cutting the driver in 9th, but that was of little consolation. Turning my attention to the results of the following races, it appeared that both karts 10 and 13 were struggling a bit, so it was just my luck to draw kart 13 for my final race -

What are the chances? 

(No, seriously- Of the whole fleet, on my second day of racing I randomly draw the two karts I’d already driven on Friday?!)

I opted to re-draw a kart from the spares allocation and ended up with kart 8, which seemingly hadn’t been used all day. It was a risk but one that I felt was worth taking, especially considering my last race would be on the regular circuit layout..

As it turns out, I could only qualify in 6th place and finished 7th after being overtaken at the start of the race (by someone that had clearly under-performed in quali) and that, as they say, was that!

So, as stated, very much an event of two halves for me -

Whether I over-performed on day one or was flattered by less competitive drivers, or got unlucky with kart selection on day two I’ll never know, but I still had an awesome time and it was great sharing the track again with so many talented people from around the world (we even had drivers from as far away as Georgia, USA competing!)

Sadly, I missed out on my goal of finishing in the top 50, but there’s always next year ..

As always, a huge thanks goes to the team at Formula Fast and Brad Philpot for putting on such an incredible event, James Auld and the crew at Scruffy Bear Media, and a huge congratulations to the top 3 drivers: Sean Michael, Ruben Boutens and Lewis Manley - All unstoppable in their own way. A big well done to all of the other South West and Wales drivers too! We did the region proud :D

Catch you later

Ben

Formula Fast & Castle Combe

As previously mentioned, these last couple of weekends have seen me travel to Milton Keynes in order to practice for the upcoming BRKC event, and competing in the 2nd round of Castle Combe’s Adult Karting Championship-

The idea behind both of which was to re-acclimatise (as far as Formula Fast’s karts and circuit are concerned) and to sharpen my race craft (Castle Combe) ahead of getting out on track with some of Europe’s best indoor kart racers in a week or so’s time ..

Up first was Formula Fast, and unlike previous years I actually went into these practice sessions with a game plan(!), in that I didn’t just want to drive round and round in circles without any clear objectives, and I have to say I really feel like it paid off.. Only time will tell though I suppose !

The following weekend I joined a large number of local-ish drivers at Castle Combe’s outdoor kart circuit for what was sure to be a day of close, well-organised (as always) racing.

After a brief practice session, I scored the following results in my ‘heat’ races:

3rd, 3rd, 2nd, 2nd (From starting positions 4, 5, 2 and 1) which in turn led to me lining up in 4th place in the ‘B’ final, where I duly finished after briefly climbing to 3rd. Not a great result by any means but with zero heat race wins and some very fast (and light) drivers finishing ahead of me I wasn’t too disappointed -

As a means of getting ‘race sharp’ ahead of BRKC in a fortnight’s time it was the ideal preparation, and that event is what I’ll be fully focused on for the next two weeks ..

I’ll be sure to provide an update post-BRKC so do please check back in sometime after the 10th of April !!

Cheers

Ben

BRKC ‘22 Inbound !!

I know, I know- Things have been rather quiet here lately, but that’s all about to change! 

We are only one month away from the British Rental Kart Championship 2022 event, which is being held at Formula Fast in Milton Keynes, and I for one cannot wait to get back out on track there after the 2021 edition was cancelled due to COVID. 

It’s been over 24 months since I’ve driven at Formula Fast, so I figured it would be a good idea to make the journey over to MK for a bit of pre-event practice, which I’ll be doing on Sunday 20th March. Following on from that I intend to enter round 2 of Castle Combe’s Adult Karting Championship, scheduled to take place the following weekend -

I’ll be sure to post updates in the coming weeks, followed by a full BRKC write up!

Stay tuned, or whatever the relevant internet term is !!

Ciao 

Ben

Autumn / Winter ‘21

Have just realised I’ve not posted on here in a while - How have you all been? 

Thought I’d just put up a quick update as to plans for the coming weeks and months ..

On 21st of November I’ll be heading to Teamsport’s Coventry venue for the BIKC 2021 Regional final, having qualified along with five other drivers from the local (Bristol) final last month. Due to a weight disadvantage (I’m now one of the heavier drivers in the ‘middleweight’ category, rather than being a light ‘heavyweight’) and lack of familiarity with the circuit my expectations in terms of results is fairly low, and I’m using the event as more of a learning exercise than anything else, but who knows.. I had low expectations for the 2020 event too, then went and win my first heat race!! Whatever happens, I’m sure it’ll be a fun and well run event

Once Christmas is done and dusted, my attention will then turn to the British Rental Kart Championship event, scheduled to take place at Formula Fast, Milton Keynes on 21st-23rd January 2022. The event was cancelled in 2021 for obvious reasons, so this event is already hotly anticipated! 

More info on the event can be found here:

https://brkc.co.uk/about/

If you’re thinking of entering though then sorry, you’re already too late!!

Until next time

Ben

Sum’ 21

(That’s Summer, 2021!)

Race Reports

What: Summer Championship Round 1

Where: Teamsport Bristol

When: 15th July 2021

Format: ‘GP1’ (Practice, F1-style qualifying, Two 20 minute races). Several weight classes competing on track at the same time

Summary: After getting knocked out in the equivalent of Q1 (not good!) I made an ok start to Race 1 but was then the victim of a dive-bomb at the hairpin at the bottom of the up ramp, which put me dead last. From there I was able to fight my way back past all of the other ‘heavyweight’ drivers and therefore finish 1st in class, but only something like 14th ‘on the road’..

The grid for the second race was determined by best lap times from race one, and therefore I found myself starting ahead of the drivers I’d had to battle with previously, but did put me in a kind of no man’s land between the lighter, faster drivers and those I’d started ahead of. I was able to mix it up with some of the drivers who started in front, but other than a brief yellow flag period the race was fairly uneventful from my point of view. Regardless, I was happy to take maximum points in my weight class and will be looking forward to round two of the Summer Championship!

What: Castle Combe Karting Championship

Where: Castle Combe

When: 25th July 2021

Format: Practice, Heat Races, Finals for all drivers (determined by points scored during the heats). No separate weight categories 

Summary: Awesome day! Scored my best-ever result at Castle Combe with 7th overall (out of 41 drivers). Won two of my heats after an inconspicuous start (4th, from 4th on the grid in heat 1) which, together with a 3rd place from my third heat, automatically put me in the ‘A’ final where I gained a further position from where I started, so overall a really satisfying performance. As usual the event ran smoothly and was only interrupted by a couple of red flag incidents which were brought on by some.. ambitious moves, none of which were in any of my races thankfully! 

After the disappointing performance I put in at the BIKC final I definitely feel that a more ‘back to basics’ approach might be working for me, and I hope to continue with some momentum into my next couple of events ..

What: Summer Championship Round 2

Where: Teamsport Bristol

When: 29th July 2021

Format: ‘Hot Pursuit’ (5 minute practice, 60 minute race with slowest drivers ‘eliminated’ as the clock runs down). Several weight classes competing on track at the same time

Summary: In what was certainly a unique event as far as the format was concerned, I managed to recover from another awful qualifying position and claw my way back to head of the heavyweight field to take maximum points in this second Summer Series round.

Driving a kart that didn’t particularly enjoy turning right (always useful on a clockwise circuit!) I avoided the inevitable first lap hairpin dive bomb by the Red Bull-suited driver and was able to gradually move forward through each ‘stage’ of the race (I’d try and explain the format in more detail but if I’m being honest I didn’t really understand completely what was going on..), finally becoming the lead heavyweight driver with only a handful of laps remaining.

Anyway, that’s two (class) wins from two in Teamsport Bristol’s ‘Summer Series’, and I’m already looking forward to the next round which is due to take place in a couple of weeks time

What: Summer Championship Round 3

Where: Teamsport Bristol

When: 12th August 2021

Format: ‘Chase the Ace’ (Single lap qualifying, 45 minute race with mandatory pit stops). Several weight classes competing on track at the same time

Summary: Another night at Teamsport Bristol, another (heavyweight class) win, this time racing using the tried and tested ‘Chase the Ace’ format -  a straightforward 45 minute race with mandatory pit stops. Drivers can choose to either pit once, twice or three times during the race (the less stops you do, the longer the time spent ‘held’ in the pit lane) which adds a nice strategic element to the event.

As per previous form my qualifying result was average at best, leaving me to start in the middle of the pack, but I was able to get away fairly cleanly and attack a couple of the drivers ahead of me in the opening part of the race. We weren’t able to pit in the opening or closing five minutes of the race, but it wasn’t long before drivers started heading in. I’d decided quote early on (knowing I probably didn’t have the outright pace to ‘undercut’ many of the drivers ahead) that I would stop once, as later in the race as possible. This strategy actually saw me leading race outright for a significant period of time, and I believe I was one of the last drivers to pit around ten minutes from the chequered flag. As the clock ticked down I was able to set a new personal best lap time of 37.2 secs, and secured myself a heavyweight class win, crossing the line right on the back of a group of lighter/generally faster drivers. 

What was most satisfying about the race for me was that I don’t think I was actually passed on track at any stage, and the overtakes I made (of which there were a good handful) were clean and decisive, so all in all a good night was had!

BIKC National Final

So, this was it. The big one. Some 18 months in the making. The very first British Indoor Karting Championship national final. No pressure then..

Full disclosure. I sucked at this event. It was hot, the circuit (at Teamsport’s Warrington venue) was insanely grippy and long, but above all else the level of competition was just incredible. After all, those invited from all over the country were the best of the best, as our event host reminded us in the pre-race briefing, and how right he was. That, combined with a small handful of drivers who one might consider ‘desperate’ (in that they’d just as soon put you in the wall fighting for 10th place then actually try and focus on catching the drivers ahead) made for a difficult but admittedly well-run event. I was knackered after the first practice session, so I knew things weren’t going to get any easier as the day went on..

Turns out I was right. Other than a 4th or 5th place finish (I can’t remember exactly) in my second heat there was nothing else to shout about in all honesty. I constantly seemed to find myself bottled up behind the same driver I’m every race, either directly behind him or in a train of karts which always seemed to allow the drivers at the front to break away, which was frustrating but it is what it is. I knew I was struggling before I had even driven a competitive lap and therefore maintaining position became my priority rather than moving forward, and even that didn’t always work out..

However, other than the questionable decision to again use rolling starts (as per the regional final) rather than standing starts, I couldn’t really complain- I was after all in the company of the very best indoor kart racers that the UK has to offer, and to represent the Bristol circuit in my weight category of definitely something to be proud of, even if the overall result was nothing to shout about. A huge congratulations goes to Sam Slater for winning the Lightweight category outright, and to Zac Venn for finishing on the podium in the Super Lightweight category - Both drove incredibly well all day and did a great job of representing indoor karting in the South West.

Anyway, enough from me! I’ll be sure to see you at a circuit in the near future

Ciao

Ben