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

BIKC Regional Final

That’s more like it!! After a slightly underwhelming start to 2021, I’m pleased to announce that having finished 3rd overall in the heavyweight class of the British Indoor Karting Championship’s delayed regional final, I have now qualified for the national final which is scheduled to take place on Saturday 5th of June at Teamsport Karting’s Warrington venue!

A field of 16 drivers took to an unfamiliar track to battle it out for a chance to qualify for the national final, and after a series of heat races where I managed to finish 1st, 6th and 3rd respectively, I qualified in third position for the ‘A’ final, where I was able to maintain position whilst pushing the 2nd-placed driver for the entire race (unfortunately without getting any real opportunities to make a clean pass). As nice as it would have been to have finished one step higher on the podium, it wouldn’t have made a world of difference to me with the top four going through to the final, but it was still nice to come away satisfied with my own performance- Particularly the heat one win on a track I’d only driven a handful of practice laps of previously. 

That's all I have for you this week. I'll be sure to post another update after the final - Until then, take it easy!

Ben

2021 is Go, Go, Go !!

Hello! Been a while, hasn’t it?! As the UK’s current lockdown restrictions gradually loosen and with summer fast approaching, I thought it was about time I dusted off the ol’ race suit and helmet and got back out on track! 

After almost six months without karting, the first round of Castle Combe’s Adult Championship seemed like the best place to kick off my racing year, in the hope that the still-to-be rescheduled 2020 BIKC ‘regional’ final would soon be announced also. A full capacity of 48 drivers descended on the small Wiltshire circuit on April 25th, for what was sure to be an afternoon of action-packed motorsport.

After a short practice session, drivers were put into a series of heat races to determine which final they would qualify for. For my first heat I lined up 6th on the grid and gained two positions in the race to finish 4th, but felt a top three finish was on the cards but for some robust defending. However, given how difficult it is to pass cleanly on this particular track I wasn’t too disheartened at this stage.

For my second heat I started from 1st position, got a clean start and lead from the opening lap through to the chequered flag under quite a bit of pressure from the driver behind. It’s always important to convert poles into wins when you are handed the opportunity to start at the front, and I was more than pleased with this result.

In my third race I was 5th on the grid, and this one pretty much summed up my afternoon: I lost out on the opening lap to fall to 6th (and last) position, only to then hang on to the train of karts battling for 3rd, 4th and 5th. With a lap and a half to go I made a move around the outside of the top hairpin to claw back the place I’d lost on lap one, and hung on in there until the chequered flag was shown. One to forget about.

My final heat saw me start from 2nd position and this was far and away my strongest race of the day. I got a great start to draw alongside the pole man as we approached turn one, then went all the way around the outside of him to take the lead. I ended up winning comfortably as those behind me fought one another. If only they were all this easy ..

The results from the heat races were then fed into Castle Combe’s state of the art computer system* which produced grids for the ‘finals’, with the highest scoring drivers qualifying for the ‘A’ final, the next group the ‘B’ final, etc. The top two from each final before the ‘A’ race would progress on to the back of the grid for the next final, so all is not completely lost if a driver hasn’t scored particularly well in his or her heat races. I would start from 4th place in the ‘B’ final..

Unfortunately this last race was a bit of a non-event for me, as I gained and then lost a position on the opening lap to cross the finish line a distant fourth, but well ahead of four other drivers in a kind of karting no man’s land .. It was a slightly disappointing way to finish the day and I was a bit gutted to miss out on a place in the ‘A’ final, but will happily admit that the earlier heat race results were of my own making, and that I had struggled a bit in my final with a slightly ‘slidey’ kart and therefore didn’t really have the pace to be in the top eight. Still, to be 12th out of 48 drivers..

Positives? Well, in terms of finishing position vs starting position I didn’t actually lose out at all, moving forward in two of my five races. I also found that in visualising how I wanted my race starts to go (once I knew my starting positions)  helped a great deal in terms of calming any pre-race nerves, positioning my kart in turn one etc, so that’s something I’ll definitely be looking to do more of in the future. Overall the event was just a great way to blow out the cobwebs after not karting for so long, and as usual I’d like to thank the organisers for keeping things running smoothly all day.

Next up, it was back to Herefordshire Raceway in, er, Herefordshire for round one of Rapikart’s 2021 championship, which took place on May 8th. Similar in format to Castle Combe’s championship (with drivers competing in several heat races before progressing to a final), the main difference with RapiKart is that the field is also split up into weight categories, which makes things a little fairer for those on the slightly heavier side in that they don’t have to compete directly with drivers weighing less than 75-80kg..

I can hand on heart say that this event turned out to be one of the most miserable experiences I’ve had in a kart for a long time. Awful weather, below-par kart parity, some questionable driving standards and couldn’t-give-a-damn marshalling added up to a morning where I’d have rather been anywhere else, I’m sad to say..

Average heat results led to an average finishing position in the average ‘B’ final, in which I was overtaken under yellows without any penalty applied to the driver that did so, which pretty much summed up my day, so the less said, the better. Still, thanks go to RapiKart for organising the event, and if you’re planning on attending round two at Mansell Raceway I’m sure I’ll see you there. I just hope the weather is a little better ..

Anyway, that’s all the news I have for the time being. As stated above, hopefully there will soon be some confirmation as to when / where the rescheduled BIKC regional final will take place, but until then..

Thanks for reading!

Ben

* Computer system may not in fact be state of the art.. :P