Saturday 2 December 2017

2017 Caterham Motorsport Awards

This evening was the 2017 Caterham Motorsport Awards where all the podium finishers (of every championship) received their season trophies.

It was a great venue, the food was fantastic and there were hundreds of drivers all having a good time.  No doubt there were plenty of sore heads in the morning!

Here's a video Charlotte (my girlfriend) took of me collecting the winners trophy, and of course I had to give her a mention when I was on the top step ☺
 

Joining me on the podium was James Murphy (who finished p2) and Toby Clowes (who finished p3).

I'm already looking forward to xmas, then getting back onto the testing scene early next year, with the race season kicking off at Snetteron 300 on 14th April 2018.

Monday 16 October 2017

Silverstone International - Round Seven - 4th Place and Trophy Race - 2nd Place

Having finished in first place at Rockingham at the previous round, I was in a fortunate position which meant that utilising drop scores, I had already won the 'Green Group 2017 Caterham Academy Championship'. 

What I didn't realise is that the if I had an collision at Silverstone that was deemed my fault, I could be awarded a penalty and you cannot 'drop' a penalised round (you are allowed to drop one round out of the seven races), which could potentially mean I'd lose the Championship!  So with this in mind, I could either sit out of the race, or race (which I did); but I had to drive in a different manner and back out of situations I usually wouldn't.  To make matters worse there wasn't a last lap board, so didn't defend on the hangar straight handing second place to Neil Fraser, and then into Vale and Club - handing another place, and the final podium position to Toby Clowes - oh well, another lesson to learn.  I eventually finished fourth which was my worst circuit race result of the year. 

Video below:-

There was a paddock party hosted by Caterham on the Saturday night, and myself and Andy Morgan (who won the White Group) certainly 'enjoyed ourselves' with all the food and drinks that were on offer!  

The Caterham Academy Autumn Trophy Race
The Trophy Race had been over-subscribed which meant the grid was too large for everyone to race, so instead of qualifying in the morning and the race in the afternoon, the grids were based on all odd placed championship finishers in race one and all even placed championship winners in race two (in the afternoon!).  This meant Andy and I lined up at 10am on the front row of the grid, with hangovers from hell!

Was a great race, and I could race more like I normally would (without the thought of a penalty ruining my championship), so led for three (or so) laps, got mugged down the hangar straight due to the massive tow effect, slipped to around eight place, then clawed it all back, and nearly snatching the lead at Stowe corner on the final lap, but I went in a bit too deep, so had to settle for second place.

Video here:-


So that's it - the 2017 Caterham Academy Season is finished!  What an utterly fantastic thing to do - there were ups and downs (fortunately more ups for me, than downs) but wow - what a year.  If anyone is remotely considering entering, don't waste another minute - just sign up as it'll be well up there with one of the best things you'll ever do.

What's next?  
Well of course with something as addictive as racing cars, the only thing to do is another season - the 2018 Roadsport Championship!  So with that in mind, my car was booked in for the Roadsport upgrades and collected after Silverstone weekend.  More to follow.

Thursday 21 September 2017

Rockingham ISSC - Round Six - 1st Place and Championship Win!

Last weekend was 'potentially' the big one for me and Andy Morgan (who's leading the white group).  Andy and I have been friends for quite a few years, and we both signed up for the 2017 Caterham Academy together, but didn't want to race each other in the first year, so decided to do our thing in separate groups.

Qualifying:-
Qualifying was late in the afternoon Saturday (16th September 2017), with my race the next day on Sunday (17th September) at 14:50.  The heavens opened before qualifying which meant that it was in pretty much torrential rain conditions (which I'm a big fan of) and I managed to qualify on pole with a time of 2.09.256 which was 4.3 seconds faster than Matt Sheppard in 2nd place.

Having dried off, Sunday was a case of waiting around until the time came to race!
Waiting around in the paddock
Waiting around in the paddock
Unfortunately for Andy Morgan, some of the waiting around involved watching his race, where he went off at the first hairpin corner into the tyre barrier - ending his race.  This shook me up a bit, as I didn't want to do the same!

Onto the Race:-
Luckily I got a decent start and defended well into the first corner with no mistakes, but the pack was close!
Start of the race after the first hairpin - the pack was close
Start of the race after the first hairpin - the pack was close
I managed to build a bit of a gap over the first two laps, but with the tow being so strong (7mph down the straight).  James Murphy closed the gap, and we swapped places for the lead a few times - then half way through the race and during the battle, Graham Macdonald clipped my rear corner (7 minutes 40 secs in the video below) which caused an instant handling problem (massive over-steer into left handed corners and under-steer into right's)... I really struggled to keep up with James with the balance problem, but using the tow to my advantage, I managed to keep him close enough to have a shot at the win towards the end of the race.

Here's the on-board race video:-

And I did it!  yyyyeeaaaahhhh!!! on the last lap, I forced James into an error and nipped up the inside at Yentwood corner.  James defended extremely well, and came back at me into Kirby, and we had a very small contact, but that was just good close racing.  The win means that I've secured the (green group) 2017 Caterham Academy Championship, with a race in hand, so I was naturally delighted!
Daniel French after winning the 2017 Caterham Academy Championship (green group)
Daniel French after winning the 2017 Caterham Academy Championship (green group)
After the race the top three finishers (on televised events) get interviewed, which is a bit nerve wracking making sure you say the right thing!  The race is televised on sky channel 447 Motors TV this Saturday (23rd September) at 20:00.
Getting interviewed for the TV coverage on Motors TV
Getting interviewed for the TV coverage on Motors TV
The podium - (l-r) Graham Macdonald (p3), yours truly (p1), and James Murphy (p2).
The podium - (l-r) Graham Macdonald (p3), yours truly (p1), and James Murphy (p2).
The podium - (l-r) Graham Macdonald (p3), yours truly (p1), and James Murphy (p2).
And then time to thank my girlfriend (Charlotte) and my family (all sporting Daniel caps I may add ☺) for coming and supporting me through my life-long dream of participating in motorsport.
Hugs and kisses to Charlotte and the family :-)
Hugs and kisses to Charlotte and the family :-)
Assessing the Damage:-
After the contact with Graham MacDonald (7 minutes 40 secs in the video), I could feel immediately there was an imbalance with the car... So after the race, I inspected the damage (broken rear wing), but couldn't really see anything else.  (the rear wing on the near-side of the car has some rubber on it too from James Murphy's 'love tap' on the last lap, but no real damage).  I'll get the wing patched up for the final race(s) of the season with some 'race tape', and then over to Dave at Daytona Coachworx to repair over the off-season, and I may add a yellow stripe to them too ☺
Cracked rear wing on my Caterham Academy Car
Cracked rear wing on my Caterham Academy Car
David and the guys at DPR Motorsport inspected the car, and found that the De-Dion tube was badly cracked, which is the cause of the handling issue I experienced and should've been replaced (at the time of writing). 
Cracked De-Dion Tube on my Caterham Academy Car
Cracked De-Dion Tube on my Caterham Academy Car
So all being well, the car will be back with me tomorrow, and I'll just need to count the days until the final race of the season at Silverstone on Saturday 14th October 2017.  I'll naturally be driving to the best of my ability, and will be going for another win, but with the championship pressure off - most importantly; I'll be enjoying it!

There's also the 'trophy race' at Silverstone on the Sunday (15th October 2017), where the Green and White group merge into one large grid and race each other for the first time (test sessions aside!).  That's a race I'm very much looking forward to!

Sunday 6 August 2017

Snetterton 300 - Round Five - 1st Place and Lap Record

All 'racing drivers' seem to have a good list of excuses, and I managed to find one for what happened at Donington - I'll leave it up to your discretion if you think it's an excuse or not... but, it turns out the gearbox had pretty much imploded on itself, so the car was collected after Donington engine removed, gearbox removed and with the gearbox being sent off for rebuild, car checked over andthen  returned back to me all (just!) in time for this weekend.  Thanks to David Rowe and all the boys at DPR Motorsport for getting this all sorted for me.

So with all mechanical excuses (hopefully) unavailable to me, it was time to get back on it and have a good weekend.  I had a good couple of track and test days before the event, and set a pretty respectable time on the Friday test session, so was feeling confident.

Qualifying was 'interesting' and fun too, as there is SUCH an advantage of getting a tow down the two long straights there was a fair amount of tactics involved, but I managed to qualify 2nd on the grid alongside Matt Sheppard.

I got a great start, and led into the first corner...
Round Five of the 2017 Caterham Academy championship at Snetterton - the start
Round Five of the 2017 Caterham Academy championship at Snetterton - the start
Matthew Creak had a superb start from sixth? on the grid, and made an attempt for the lead at Wilson's hairpin, which I held off and then he made a bit of a mistake at Palmer corner which enabled James Murphy to take second place.
On three wheels at Murrays corner at Snetterton 300 circuit
On three wheels at Murrays corner at Snetterton 300 circuit
In the meantime I'd managed to build a small gap, which I really needed to capitalise on (as with a tow off me, James would easily catch me as it's worth up to 1.5 seconds here!), but I put some mega laps in and broke the tow...

Here's the onboard video of the race:-

And WON!  yyyeeeaahhhh!!!!  I managed to win by over twelve seconds, (which I was told was unheard of here at Snetterton in the Caterham Academy) AND set a new lap record of 2:17.593 (without a tow!) on my way to victory.
Daniel French winning the Green Group of the Caterham Academy race at Snetterton 300 circuit in 2017
Daniel French winning the Green Group of the Caterham Academy race at Snetterton 300 circuit in 2017
Time for some bubbly - the podium celebrations!  Well done the James Murphy p2, and Neil Fraser p3!
Time for some bubbly - the podium celebrations!  Well done the James Murpy p2, and Neil Fraser p3!
Time for some bubbly - the podium celebrations!  Well done the James Murpy p2, and Neil Fraser p3!
Charlotte, my girlfriend / partner thought it'd be highly amusing to get some baseball caps embroidered with my name on (I used to have a cap just the same when I raced remote control cars as a child, many, MANY! years ago!)... They are pretty embarrassing, but I like them really! ☺
Team Daniel caps out in full force - definitely gave me a boost!
Team Daniel caps out in full force - definitely gave me a boost!
So I think (points adjusted) I've got a nine or ten point lead in the championship, which is really, really good at this stage, and Andy Morgan has a similar lead in his group too.  In true 'racer' style, I'm still not thinking about the championship, so will take the next two races as they come and try and do my best at those too.

Next up, Rockingham ISSC on 16th and 17th September, and without seeing the timetable, I guess the qualifying is on the Saturday with the race on the Sunday.  

Feel free to come and say hi if you're around on that weekend, but you may have to wear a 'certain' baseball cap!

Monday 10 July 2017

Donington Park GP - Round Four - 2nd Place

Round four of this years' Caterham Academy championship was at Donington Park GP circuit, which is certainly one of my favourites...

...I arrived on Wednesday night, setup 'camp' for the next few days and got ready for two days testing, and then 'a bit' of hanging around.  Testing was great (especially the Thursday), having set some good times which I was very happy with.  Friday was a bit more 'red flaggy' so I couldn't really get into a good rhythm in any of the sessions.
Shoulda, woulda, coulda
Shoulda, woulda, coulda
Qualifying was on Saturday evening (18:30!) so there was a fair bit of hanging around from Friday afternoon, but I again found myself at the back of the pack, so tried my best which (again) was only good enough for 4th place on the grid, as the advantage from a tow is quite large here (which I didn't get).

With qualifying over - Caterham hosted a paddock party, with a band, free booze and food, (as it was their 60th anniversary) and that was a really good night - I was 'careful' not to get too wasted, but still had a great time.

Onto the race... I got a great start, and before I knew it I was into first place...  I held onto the lead from an eager Toby Clowes practically the entire race... I tried to gap him, but with a tow he could keep reeling me back in on the straights.  The final lap board came out, and there was a bit of a margin, and although I thought I had enough in the bag, I managed to get my only 'tank slapper' (of the whole weekend) into the Esses, lost some momentum and Toby got a decent drive out and then defending my position into the Melbourne Loop I outbraked myself and Toby got through!  arrrgghhh what a c0ck up, and then to make matters worse I shifted from second into first (rather than third) so that was that.  

Here's the onboard video (sorry about the default VBOX scene as there is a problem with my custom scene since I upgraded the firmware on the VBOX):-

Second is good for the Championship (which I'm still leading at present) and I won't make a mistake like that again - I'll come back with that lesson learnt and will come back fighting (as always) at Snetterton in four weeks time.

The race and qualifying are likely to be on the Saturday morning (5th August), but the timetable is still 'TBC' at this stage.

Tuesday 6 June 2017

Brands Hatch Indy - Round Three - First Place!

Having been bitterly dissapointed with my result at Curborough a couple of weeks ago,it was certainly time to have a good result this weekend at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit.

I arrived on Wednesday night as had booked two test days (for the Thursday and the Friday) and then some marshalling for the Saturday, with quali and the race on Sunday.   Unlike quite a few others, I came out of the two test days with my car intact.  Marshalling on the Saturday was a bit drawn out, but really gives you an appreciation for them as they are all volunteers and without them we could not race (the same goes vice-versa, but even so!).

Onto quali... I headed up to the holding area and luckily got the first slot out so could have a few clean laps to get some decent times in - well that was the plan; until the session was immediately red flagged by someone ending up in the gravel after Paddock Hill bend, which somehow meant I lined up last with 27 cars ahead of me!  Battling through the traffic I managed a time which was enough to get me 4th on the grid, which I wasn't overly happy with, but still would give me a chance for a podium finish.

Anyway, onto the race, here's the video:-

yyyeeaaahhhhhh - I won! ☺ What a rush!  One of the most incredible feelings of emotion in my whole life, and a moment I will relish for a long time to come.  Well done to Graham Macdonald (p2) and James Murphy (p3).
Top step of the podium was an absolutely perfect result to my first race
Top step of the podium was an absolutely perfect result to my first race
With some interviews out of the way, it was time to spray the champagne (well Prosecco)
Podium celebrations were fun
Podium celebrations were fun
I think I'm now leading the championship again, and with four races to go it's very close indeed!  The race highlights will be on TV this weekend - Saturday 10th June 2017 at 15:45, on Motorsport.tv (Sky Channel 447).

I'm going to take a bit of a break from the car for a bit and get some of my life back for a bit, so I think the next time I'll go out will be for the next event at Donington Park for the 60th Anniversary of the Seven festival over the weekend of 8th and 9th July.

Tuesday 30 May 2017

Three Years Later - My R500 is SOLD!

It's a week away from three years, since I took delivery of my beautiful Caterham R500 Duratec... And now its become Cliff and Alli Malone's beautiful Caterham R500 Duratec.
Handing over the keys of my Caterham R500 Duratec to Cliff Malone, the new owner.
Handing over the keys of my Caterham R500 Duratec to Cliff Malone, the new owner.
I've had a great time with the car; with a few ups and downs along the way (downs mostly  throughout the build phase) and plenty of fun/expensive upgrades - which was all part and parcel of the 'Caterham experience' which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Cliff and Alli were a genuine delight to deal with, and although I've asked for 'first refusal' if they ever decide to sell it, I can see them both having many years of pleasure out of the car.

Here's a video of Cliff leaving in 'the beast':-
I trust they had a safe journey home, and will hopefully see them on a track-day or any other event in the near future.

I'm pleased I've sold the car, as the Academy season is more of a commitment than I initially thought it would be and the additional space in the garage will make general 'maintenance' more straight forward.  It's a shame as I utterly loved the R500, and now I'm left with a 125bhp Academy car in my garage, and an empty space where the R500 was - how did that happen?!?  Again, all part of the 'Caterham experience'!  ☺

Next up, Brands Hatch this weekend....  My race is at 4pm on the Sunday, so hopefully see some of you there ☺

Sunday 21 May 2017

Curborough Sprint - 5th Place

WARNING - MOTORSPORT CAN BE CRUEL!

Having been to Curborough a couple of times in my R500, I was feeling confident about the day ahead.   The only thing that was going to get in my way of a win (and hopefully a new lap record) was the weather which looked like it could be a bit of a lottery.

Onto the day...  There were two practice runs, followed by three timed runs...  The practice runs were dry, then there was a shower and the first timed run was wet; we stopped for lunch, the track dried out, the first seven runners in my group had a dry run and then a monsoon hit flooding the circuit,  leaving no-one else the opportunity of a comparative time which was highly frustrating.

Here's my times for the day:-
  • Practice 1 - 68.05 (fastest overall - dry)
  • Practice 2 - 67.28 (fastest overall - drizzle)
  • Timed Run 1 - 77.44 (fastest overall - wet)
  • Timed Run 2 - 79.15 (weather effected - dry/wet)
  • Timed Run 3 - 74.44 (fastest overall - wet)
And the full times are here:-
Timed runs for the 2017 Caterham Academy Green Group at Curborough Figure 8 sprint course - wet/dry/wet/dry
Timed runs for the 2017 Caterham Academy Green Group at Curborough Figure 8 sprint course - wet/dry/wet/dry
It's safe to say I was very unlucky with the weather, and I feel pretty down right now, but that is the harsh reality of motorsport - in particular sprint racing, where a 15 minute downpour in the middle of a session can win or lose you a weekend.

Here's two of my notable onboard videos from the day
74.44 Lap in Timed run three which was 2.5 secs faster than anyone else in like for like conditions:-

67.28 Lap with a bit of drizzle was the fastest time of the day - shame it was in practice 2:-


Having calculated the points I think I'm still 2nd in the Championship after this event, but I feel somewhat robbed, but I will dig deep and will be even more determined for a podium finish at Brands Hatch which is the first 'proper' race of the season two weeks today (4th June) - hopefully see you there!

Saturday 22 April 2017

Aintree Sprint - 1st Place!

So today was the first day of the 2017 Caterham Academy Championship season...

...The first event was at Aintree Sprint circuit, which for us was a fair drive on a Friday evening... We camped out overnight, and after an interrupted nights sleep (too excited!) We got ready for the event, by initial sign on, helmet checks, scrutineering, a track walk and then it was onto our practice runs.

The sprint circuit is part of the old F1 circuit, and is now not much more than three corners and four straights...  Here's a diagram of the circuit:-
Aintree Sprint Circuit
Aintree Sprint Circuit
How hard can it be?  Well, quite tough actually - sprinting isn't really my thing, but there's a lot of pressure as you don't get many runs...  You've just got to go out there and be 'on it' straight away...  I definitely prefer circuit driving, and getting into a decent rhythm and then chipping away at corners and so on...  Anyway, here's my best run:-

To be completely frank, I didn't get a good run in all day... The 1st practice run was 'ok', 2nd practice run I had a huge lock-up at the first corner, then four timed runs all of which I wasn't happy with, but luckily my time was good enough for the win!

Not wanting to knock any of the competitors, but I definitely could've gone quicker had I strung all three corners together in one lap!  Nevertheless, my friend Andy Morgan in the white group (we both entered the Academy together, but requested to be in different groups) set the new category lap record time of 52.91 after withstanding some serious pressure from Dan Halstead - so nice one sun!
I picked up 1st place at Aintree Sprint, along with Graham Macdonald (Caterham CEO) and James Murphy
I picked up 1st place at Aintree Sprint, along with Graham Macdonald (Caterham CEO) and James Murphy
My hopes for this season were to have one podium and to finish in the top ten...  I'm utterly thrilled to bits at winning the first event, but having achieved a podium already, is it wrong I want more?!?  I guess that's racing in one sentence - never happy!

Next weekend I'm off to Abbeville (France) for a track day weekend, and then the next Academy event is at Curborough Sprint course on Saturday 20th May.  Looking forward to it already ☺

Saturday 1 April 2017

Castle Combe Test Day

So yesterday was the first 'on track' official Caterham Academy event of 2017.   

Without wanting to go into too much of the 'boring' details, we arrived the day before, camped out overnight, signed on at 8am, had the briefing around 8:45 and were split into four groups with each group getting a fifteen minute on track session.

We all had to have our decals fitted, along with our sprint race numbers (which are different to our race numbers) and had to line up in sprint number order before heading out onto the track.  I was in the pink group, with our first session at 9:15
Lining up in sprint number order - waiting for lights to go green
Lining up in sprint number order - waiting for lights to go green
Just before 9:15 the silver group came in, the track was clear and the pink group were out... Time to get on track and start pushing...  Jon from snappyracers.com is the official photographer for the season, and he managed to get this pic whilst I was on three wheels!
On Three Wheels at Castle Combe Test Day
On Three Wheels at Castle Combe Test Day
Here's an onboard video of one of my fast(er) laps...  However, I was a little 'cheeky' with the track limits at Bobbies corner...

There was another lap where I wasn't as cheeky with the track limits, and was up on the above time, but got held up at camp corner and had to lift, so lost the overall lap time.

It was all in all, a thoroughly enjoyable day for a number of reasons:-

  • Great to see (and meet some of) the other competitors 
  • Superb to get on track with all Academy cars and drivers
  • Great weather
  • Hospitality and organisation great too
I've been pushing it for some time in terms of my 'Academy commitments' so will hit the gym for a few weeks and give the car a spanner check etc etc.  

Next up, is will be a track day at Snetterton on Good Friday - the 14th April - hope to see some of you there ☺

Wednesday 29 March 2017

2017 Academy Sponsorship Decals

With the first 'real' on track event coming up this Friday at Castle Combe circuit, the Caterham team have been pretty specific that unless the cars are 100% race ready, we will not be able to go out on track.  

As the race decals are part of the requirement, they have to be fitted for Friday otherwise I won't be able to partake... So time to get a move on, and get the decals applied.

First things first - clean the car (after Spa it was a little grubby) to remove any grit / dirt, tyre debris etc etc.  I found autoglym intensive tar remover to work the best at removing tyre rubber.
Car washed prior to decal fitment
Car washed prior to decal fitment
All the decals were supplied at the handling day and in the decal pack there was a full schematic with positions, sizes and so on...

I mixed up a bit of fairy liquid, and water into a spray bottle, got the decals out and worked out where everything would go before getting stuck in... I decided to start with the front of the car, and found that putting plenty of lubrication on the bodywork and the decal would give plenty of slip, giving more than enough time to line everything up.  With the decals positioned correctly I squeezed out all of the water, and then used a heat gun on a low setting to dry the decals and make the adhesive go off.
2017 Caterham Academy Car nose cone with sponsors decals fitted
2017 Caterham Academy Car nose cone with sponsors decals fitted
Naturally, me being me, I wasn't happy to use the supplied side decals (in white) and wanted them in a similar colour to the yellow the car stripes and cage are painted in...  I had a bit of a 'wobble' a few weeks ago when deciding on the final yellow, as the options were not 100% right, but I decided on the MacTac MacCal 9807-00 Pro Semi Luminescent.
Three different yellows, all not 100% right, but the 9807-00 Pro SL was what I decided on.
Three different yellows, all not 100% right, but the 9807-00 Pro SL was what I decided on.
The side sponsor decals and Caterham logo were cut by SignsUK and here's a picture of them fitted, and I'm pleased with the colour I went with as on the car it's an excellent match, and I think it looks superb:-
Side Decals Fitted
Side Decals Fitted
I also decided to get the rear decal in the blue of the car, and the colour I found was pretty much spot on, so fitted all of the wing decals and then the centre decal too.  I may splice in the smaller parts of the rear centre decal with yellow bits, but I'm still undecided if this is too fussy or not.

And today I took this picture of the car finished and 'race ready':-
My 2017 Caterham Academy Car with Sponsorship Decals fitted and Sprint Race Number
My 2017 Caterham Academy Car with Sponsorship Decals fitted and Sprint Race Number
Next up - Castle Combe test day ☺

Tuesday 28 March 2017

Spa Francorchamps - Track Day Weekend

Charlotte was extremely generous for my 40th birthday, and bought me a Book-a-Track Platinum membership for this year... So rather than waste a 'free' opportunity to go to Spa Francorchamps for two days, I jumped at the chance.

The BaT Platinum membership (whilst very expensive) is very good too, guaranteed free access to every one of their track days for the year, free garage reservations, and pics too!

I headed off on Saturday around 10:30am and some 350 miles later arrived about 7pm at Spa.
Circuit De Spa Francorchamps Paddock Entry Sign
Circuit De Spa Francorchamps Paddock Entry Sign
The first thing (after parking the van up) was to go and check out Eau-Rouge... Wow - for those of you that haven't been there before, it's soooo steep and the TV / video footage simply doesn't do itjustice...  A couple of beers were consumed looking at Eau-Rouge and then it was time to go to sleep.
My first sight of Eau Rouge - much steeper than I thought it would be, oooohhhh exciting!
My first sight of Eau Rouge - much steeper than I thought it would be, oooohhhh exciting!
Naturally; all excited - I woke up pretty early on the Sunday morning☺ got to the paddock, parked up and got the car into the garage.  We were given numbers for the front (and back of our cars) - mine was 31 which lined up pretty well with the new rear boot stripes
Number 31 - lined up nicely with the new boot stripes :-)
Number 31 - lined up nicely with the new boot stripes :-)
I went out for a few laps, and instantly I could tell the bead seat I made recently wasn't quite right... In actual fact it was miles too big, and gave me real bad cramp...  The only option was to take a good 5cm off the back of it, and without a hack-saw in sight - I found a team (Matt Blyth Motorsport) with a saw, and cut two inches off the back of it!  A fellow 'racer' took great pleasure in capturing the moment in it's gruesome reality.  
'Modifying' my bead seat
'Modifying' my bead seat
Matt showed me what a 'professionally finished' beat seat looked like, and I don't think I'll ever be able to achieve something like that... What I will take from this, is... When it comes to making a bead seat - don't try and do it yourself, it's a waste of time and money - end of.

Bead seat "adjusted", I managed to get a reasonably comfortable position, put the visor down and went about trying to get a decent lap time in.
Time for business
Time for business
With Spa being such a long circuit, it took some time to get used to the track, braking points and the massive elevation changes too, but towards the end of the first day I managed to get in a 3.01.27 which I 'think' is pretty respectable...

I met up with another couple 'Chris and Andy'... Chris is racing in this years Supersport championship AND has a camper van, so we had a few beers in the evening talking campers, cars, racing and everything and anything else... It was a good night, and I'm sure we'll be seeing each other more over the course of this year as our race weekends begin to join one another.

Monday morning was a bit of a struggle to get out of bed, but I 'forced' myself ☺and was back in the paddock for 8am.  The day consisted of more of the same, but I intended to leave around 3pm to get home at a reasonable hour, so didn't manage to go any quicker than I did on the Sunday... There were a few laps where I may well have gone quicker, but were ruined due to traffic, but there you go...

I did manage to keep a 620R honest (in the braking / corners) but it was a 'fair bit' quicker down the straights!

Over the weekend there was some amazing machinery at the circuit, from two Caterham Academy cars ☺, all the way up to (what I think was the most expensive there) a Ferrari 458 Speciale... Which although most of which were passing me at pretty high speed, they were very nice to see.
How good is Spa?  Definitely as many thumbs up as possible - it's probably the greatest race track of all
How good is Spa?  Definitely as many thumbs up as possible - it's probably the greatest race track of all
So with a good couple of hundreds of pounds worth of petrol obliterated into the atmosphere, and a massive grin on my face it was sadly time to pack up and head home.
All packed up and ready for the long trip home
All packed up and ready for the long trip home
The weekend was without doubt one of the best of my life... Spa Francorchamps is an utterly amazing circuit to drive, the other drivers were a great bunch, the weather was fabulous and the venue was just awesome... It's just a shame it's such a trek away!  

Next to do is to fit the Academy Sponsorship Decals (which I should be able to fit tonight) as it all needs to be ready for the first 'test day' at Castle Combe this coming Friday...  This year is definitely going to be jam packed full of action and adventure, and I cannot wait...  

Thoughts on the Caterham Academy so far - superb... And we haven't even started 'racing' yet.

Friday 24 March 2017

Painted Rear Triple Stripe

I guess this is a 'go faster stripes' blog post ☺!?

Well... Having seen some R300 race cars (and the R600 test car images on the net) having an enormous triple stripe on the rear of the car - I really wanted to add this to my car as I think it looks awesome!  I was going to do this when I initially had the car painted, but wasn't sure what the regulations would say regarding the rear decal and so on, so waited until I knew 100%... The decals and fitting schematics have now been handed out, so I've ordered some yellow and blue decals match (obviously)!

...So on Tuesday this week it was the cars first drive on the roads - to Daytona Coachworx - my 'favourite' bodyshop!  I just hope the car won't be in there too much throughout this year ☺

Dave and his team removed the rear wheels, wings, rivets, and the rear lights.
Dave and his team removed the rear wheels, wings, rivets, and the rear lights
Dave and his team removed the rear wheels, wings, rivets, and the rear lights.
The car was then fully masked and the blue paint prepped for the stripes to be masked.
The car was then fully masked and the blue paint prepped for the stripes to be masked
The car was then fully masked and the blue paint prepped for the stripes to be masked
These were the initial stripe masking lines Dave laid up, but he wasn't happy with them so asked me to pop down.  
Initial stripes had to be slightly adjusted
Initial stripes had to be slightly adjusted
We ended up deciding on the main centre stripe going to the inside edge of the rear roll cage bars, a blue stripe on both sides of 25mm, then a 50mm yellow stripe, again on both sides.
RAL 1016 sulfur yellow paint on rear of 2017 Caterham Academy Car
RAL 1016 sulfur yellow paint on rear of 2017 Caterham Academy Car
Inital de-mask showing the huge rear triple stripe.
Inital de-mask showing the huge rear triple stripe
Inital de-mask showing the huge rear triple stripe
Car de-masked and the blue lines are perfectly aligned to the roll cage rear bars...  The right stripe looks wonky, but this is just the angle the photo was taken at.
Car de-masked and the blue lines are perfectly aligned to the roll cage rear bars
Car de-masked and the blue lines are perfectly aligned to the roll cage rear bars
The rear was lacquered, flatted and polished... The wings and wheels were re-fitted and then it was ready for collection.
My 2017 Caterham Academy Car with Rear Triple Stripe Painted in RAL 1016
My 2017 Caterham Academy Car with Rear Triple Stripe Painted in RAL 1016
Next stop - Spa Francorchamps this weekend☺and then race decal fitting next week ☺

Wednesday 22 March 2017

Real Essentials DIY Bead Seat

Whilst seats are technically 'free' from a regulation perspective there is a safety regulation in that the top of the crash helmet should be at least 5cm lower than the top of the roll cage... 

There are basically three options for seating yourself in an Academy race car - ensuring you are perfectly positioned, securely seated and below the 5cm regulation are the ultimate goals... Here are the options:-
  1. Use the supplied Tillet seats (filling void behind seat with foam)
  2. Make a two part expanding foam seat - which can be made at home for around £50 / £60 (also known as a bag seat)
  3. Or... Invest in an bead seat (professionally made 'start' at £900!)
As I'm used to the standard Tillet seats from driving in the R500 over the last few years I feel they are an 'ok' fit for me, but I still move around in them a little... Having measured up I'm just under the 5cm height below the top of the roll cage, so I could use the Tillets, but I wanted a more snug fit.... The bag seats (although extremely cheap) are prone to shrinkage, so like a magpie to shiny things - I've decided to go down the bead seat route.

A professionally made bead seat 'starts' from £900 (plus finishing!) but I found that you can buy a Real Essentials DIY bead seat kit for around £300 from Demon Tweeks - you'll also need to buy the £45 hand pump and to spend another £100 for an Engel hot wire foam cutter, but I'm sure a decent hacksaw would suffice if you don't want to buy the cutter...  At the above costs, I worked out I can c0ck it up at least once and still be quids in, but without buying the hot knife cutter (albeit expensive) you technically could c0ck it up twice...

Onto my attempt at making my own bead seat
If using this blog post as a 'guide'... A bit of a disclaimer - it's worth reading everything in this post before you 'have a go' yourself.

Demon Tweeks advised a 90 litre kit would be the right size for a Caterham, as it's always worth having more material than less, so I went with their advice.  (I'm 6ft and around 11 stone 10 - so you can get an idea of my size)... I personally think I could've got away with a 70 litre kit, but have read reports of some 'larger gents' only needing a 50 litre kit...

This is what is supplied in the kit...
  • A 90 litre 'bead bag' with a vacuum attachment
  • Sufficient containers of unmixed resin and hardener - 4 are supplied with the 90 litre kit
  • Two decent sized sheets of covering material (enough to cover the whole seat)
  • Spray adhesive for covering 
  • Instructions ☺
The hand pump (pictured) to vacuum out the air from the bag is sold separately, but required.  Also required is an assistant - Charlotte 'kinda' volunteered for the job in return for a bottle of wine!
90 litre Real Essentials DIY Bead Seat Kit
90 litre Real Essentials DIY Bead Seat Kit
First job is to remove the drivers seat - I got the shoulder belts out of the way, but was undecided about removing the lap and crotch straps, so thinking the fit would be more 'snug' if the seat was moulded around them - I left them in.
Drivers Seat Removed
Drivers Seat Removed
Next step is to prepare the 'bead bag' for a dry fit and to do so you need to lay it out on the floor, ensure the beads are evenly distributed and then using the hand pump vacuum out the air until there is an orange peel effect.
Bead Bag Laid out and Flattened
Bead Bag Laid out and Flattened
Here's a picture of the hand pump attached to the bead bag.  The clear tubing needs a little bit of heating with a heat gun so that it goes around the valve nozzle on the bead bag, but then this gives it a really good fit.  Also when you start to pump the air out the top button on the bag valve needs to be depressed.
Hand pump used to vacuum air out of bead bag prior to dry fitting
Hand pump used to vacuum air out of bead bag prior to dry fitting
With the bead bag removed of it's air, carefully insert the bag into the car ensuring the bag is pushed into all the corners.
Dry fit bead seat inserted into car
Dry fit bead seat inserted into car
Then carefully get into the car - I thought it best to do so with all the gear on for a prefect fit.  Wiggle around until you get your driving position correct and get your 'assistant' to pack the beads behind you properly and to measure that the top of your helmet is lower than 5cm below the top of the roll cage.
Bead Seat dry fit - wearing all the gear...
Bead Seat dry fit - wearing all the gear...
Once you've got your dry fit position correct, you need to (roughly) remember this and carefully remove the bead bag from the car, so that you can add the resin.  As the resin containers looked unusual it was time to get the instructions out - but the instructions are very clear which means the containers are straight forward to use to mix the resin and hardener.
Bead bag removed, time to read the instructions... Again!
Bead bag removed, time to read the instructions... Again!
It's recommended to give each container fifty clockwise pumps to fully mix the resin with the hardener.  It's fairly thick stuff, so you'll probably get a sweat on - I certainly did!
Mixing the four bottles of supplied resin and hardener
Mixing the four bottles of supplied resin and hardener
With all the resin mixed, you remove the valve from the bead bag, and then using the plunger with the resin container squeeze the mixture on top of the beads in the bag - trying not to get any on the edges of the bag or the valve neck.  With all four bottles of resin now in the bead bag, you'll need your 'assistant' to help you knead the bag for around ten to fifteen minutes to thoroughly mix everything.
Kneading the resin mixture and beads takes around ten to fifteen minutes
Kneading the resin mixture and beads takes around ten to fifteen minutes
As the resin mixture is black and the beads are white you'll see when the resin has thoroughly covered all the beads as the bag takes on a grey colour as per the picture below.
Beads and resin now well mixed and vacuumed ready for final fitting
Beads and resin now well mixed and vacuumed ready for final fitting
Now vacuum out the air to give the bag the orange peel effect and then carefully put the bag into the car, again pushing the bag into all the corners.
Now it's time for the final moulding / fitting and the bead bag goes into the car
Now it's time for the final moulding / fitting and the bead bag goes into the car
I thought it best to put all the gear on again (but in hindsight, had the bag ripped and covered my suit this would've been an expensive mistake, so maybe not recommended)  I got my driving position right, Charlotte put plenty of material behind me and packed the lower spine area out which helped get a super snug and very well supported position.  Happy with the driving position, I used the hand pump to ensure there was a good vacuum.
All the gear (again!) and using the hand pump to vaccum out the air
All the gear (again!) and using the hand pump to vaccum out the air
One of the benefits of a DIY bead seat is a beer (light of course - I'm a racing driver! ☺) while you wait half an hour for the resin to go off... 
The benefits of a DIY bead seat - a (light) beer (of course) while you wait half an hour for the resin to go off
The benefits of a DIY bead seat - a (light) beer (of course) while you wait half an hour for the resin to go off
After the required half an hour elapsed, I could feel that the seat was much firmer, but still very carefully removed myself from the car trying not to dislodge any of the beads.  The seat was then left to fully cure overnight.
Half an hour later you can get out and leave it to completely cure overnight
Half an hour later you can get out and leave it to completely cure overnight
Before I left for work the next morning, I had to give the bag a prod - it had definitely cured that's for sure...  When I got home it was time to try and get the seat out...  Using the hot wire foam cutter (which is extremely satisfying to use) I started to cut the excess material off the seat - trying to not cut too much off, then got back in the car, checked how much more I can cut off and so on - this took around three hours.
Trimming the excess off the seat using an Engel Hot Knife
Trimming the excess off the seat using an Engel Hot Knife
Charlotte and I thought enough material was cut off, so tried to get the seat out - but managed to get it wedged, which tool some effort to get back in to the car.
Bead seat got wedged in one of the removal attempts - need to remove more material!
Bead seat got wedged in one of the removal attempts - need to remove more material!
We carried on trimming the edges off the seat, made the holes for the lap and crotch straps and eventually it looked something (half) decent... The main things to consider when cutting the seat are the area behind your shoulders, the front edge (ahead of the chassis cross member) and also if I done it again it'd be worth putting some cardboard (or other stiff material) next to the transmission tunnel to flatten off the 'lip' the tunnel cover makes, but on this occasion I'll just trim off some of the seat material instead.
With a bit more trimming and the belt holes opened up it's beginning to look half decent
With a bit more trimming and the belt holes opened up it's beginning to look half decent
I'm extremely fortunate to be able to go to Spa this weekend for back-to-back track days with Book-a-Track, so I'll use the seat in it's current state and will take some 'adjustment tools' with me (a rubber mallet) and will adjust the seat if any areas are uncomfortable or need modifying.

Granted this isn't a 100% professional job, and there are some things I'd do differently next time given the experience I have now.  It took around six hours in total to get to this stage - three hours for the seat fitting and another three hours for the cutting / trimming, so for the £900 it'd cost to get a 'professional' job it's probably not a bad deal - time is money and all that!

Once I return from Spa and as long as I'm happy with the seat I'll then fit the covering material and the seat will be finished.