After missing Round 4 of the Hooton Park IRK Club Man because of my Duke of Edinburgh, we were ready for the 5th Round on the 18th of June 2023.
As always, the format was the same, a 7-minute practice, Qualifying, two heats, and the Final.
Again, only doing the Sunday race day and missing the practice achieving 7th from the back of the grid was a great achievement. Read on for more...
Results can be found here: Alpha - Hooton Junior Rotax Results
Weather report
The last few weeks had been very hot, so to our surprise, the first sign of rain was this race day. Still hot, we were not expecting any rain until after the event which was forecast for 17:00 so we were prepared for a good dry day racing. Or so we thought...
Not much was done to the Kart before the race. After a clean of the Carbs and a quick wipe down it was still ready to go from the last session. The gearing was a 12 tooth on the clutch and a 76 on the rear.
Sunday
Practice Session
Setting on with 11psi due to the warm weather and track I did OK. A 37.215 second lap is not a record breaker but there were no drams.
It was just good to be back in the kart - it's such a rush.
Results here: Hooton IKR Round 3 - Practice.
Qualifying
Position Achieved: P16
What a disaster!! Just after practice the heavens opened and there was a quick downpour. Dad raced to Modus for a set of wets and we worked hard and swapped the tires from the slicks to the wets. normally people carry two sets of rims, one for the dry and one for the wet - not us, we only have one set so it's a complete tire change.
The problem was, by the time we had the tires changed it was time to go for the qualifying but the track had dried out and the rain had stopped. There was nothing we could do, we had to go out on a wet setup - and it showed with miserable times and a very bad position.
Heat 1
Once again, after qualifying Dad put the slicks back on - bear in mind, these are now 2 races old and we are up against lads with new rubber, so we are already on the back foot. Another example of money wins races. However, I managed to gain 6 places putting me in 10th at the end of the heat.
Kudos to Arthur Freye in Kart 13, we had a great battle and it made some fantastic racing.
Lap times are competitive, being only 0.8s off the fastest lap, there is not much I can do driving as I was losing grip with under-steering. This was due to the front wheels being as narrow as they can. They need to be widened for heat 2.
Heat 2
On the out lap, as I turned into the first corner the kart gripped and I spun losing the grid position. I could get back into position for the start so ended up way further back. however, I managed to get into 10th by the end of the first lap, I then dropped a few positions mid-race but managed to claw them back ending in 10th as I started. The grip was better but the tires were overheating and causing issues. Good clean heat with no dramas.
Final
Dropping the tire pressure to 9psi in the hope to stop them from overheating the final was going to be a tough one. Gaining one place on the first lap I found I was on my own with Kart 77 - Alfie Barron-Oxberry closing in behind.
Managing to fend off Alfie, he passed me on corner 3 but by the next lap, I managed to get my position back.
I ended up in 7th Position overall, which I was pleased with considering where I was after qualifying.
Karting costs
Consumables:
Chain Lube: £8
Brake Cleaner; £8
Kart Spares on/day or before the session:
Bead Screws: £15
Komet Wets: £185
Other Costs:
Breakfast: £20.90
Lunch Sun: £19.50
Drinks and snacks: £10
RaceDay: £60
Total: £326.40
Thanks
This weekend wouldn't have been successful without the help and support of quite a few people so I just want to thank:
Mum - for Absolutely everything, from lunches to support!
Dad - for making it all happen.
Grandad - for the financial and emotional support.
Wightman Stewart for the sponsorship.
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