Lydden Hill 28th May 2007
The race weekend.
Before we start, we would both like to say a really big thank you to 2 people.
Firstly, to Iain Swan (Swan Motorsport Developments) for all the time and effort he has put into re-engineering and developing the Clio.
On the day, even though he was busy on Andrew Jordan's supercar he still had time to offer his advice and support throughout the day.
Secondly, we would like to thank our very own superhero, Dek. Our mechanic, who was on his own this weekend.
He worked on the car, soaking wet, all day and never grumbled once. Without him, we wouldn't have survived the meeting.
We can't thank him enough.
Sunday. We both woke and had the debate of wether or not we should bother after seeing the weather forecast for the upcoming couple of days.
What would we gain from a developement point of view?
Also the financial aspect raised its ugly head.
Anyway by 10.30 we were on our way to Swan Motorsport Developments to pick the car up from Iain on our way to the circuit.
Even then we were still unsure as to wether this was the 'right' thing to do.
We arrived at the circuit and managed to get most of our gear set up in a break in the weather. Thank goodness.
Monday. Woke up to a beatiful blue sky. We thought the weather reports may have been wrong, but OH NO!
The fist two heats took place in the damp!
First heat Simon was caught up behind Bill Harbour and could not find a way past. However, this was a fast heat and we were 3rd fastest overall.
2nd heat, Simon did a dog on fourth gear, coming off the loose at Chesson's. Finished 2nd behind Turpin. Put us up to 2nd fastest overall though.
3rd heat, by now the heavens had opened. Dodgy gearbox and a change to cut slicks on the rear. Finished 2nd behind Ben Power. Held on to 2nd overall for the final.
The supercar A final was ran before us and stopped after Dermot demolished the tyre wall at the hairpin at the top of the hill. This took a long time to repair so the water had chance to accumulate.
The supermod A final was to run before the re-run of the supercars.
The final from Simon's prospective. "The lights went out and I got a good start and was in the lead coming onto Chesson's. David Binks appeared from nowhere and got in front of me..... then it all went black! Due to the lake we had just driven through. I couldn't see out of any window in the car and had to pull over to the left hand side of the circuit while waiting for the impact from behind, which thankful never came. Once I could see I continued in 4th but then noticed the red flags and drove back to the start. Can't say I was disapointed to see the red flags, as the situation in my opinion was too dangerous."
The final from Norma's prspective. "I was soaked to the skin watching as the lights came on one by one, thinking that this was not a good idea! I was watching from the dummy grid, so could see that Simon had the lead as they reappeared from the slight dip just before the turn onto Chesson's. The next thing was the cars all disappeared into the 'puddle'. Our Clio went in green and came out black, luckily enough the spoiler is pink and wasn't submerged with the rest of the car. When he pulled over the outside of the circuit my initail thought was that the engine was flooded, but he continued, all be it what felt like in slow motion. I saw the red flags and sighed with relief, until the thought of a re-start came to mind, and having to do it all again."
The decision was eventually made by Coc to abondon the meeting and the points were awarded on qualifying positions.
We have decided not to attend the next meeting at Pembrey. Not only due to finances but also to concentrate on testing and development with the help of Iain Swan at Swan Motorsport Developments. Our next outing will be at Knockhil on 5th August, as we both love the circuit.
Our main aim now is to get ready for the 2008 season.
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