Time Attack 2021 Round 3 – Brands Hatch

Sunday came and we got no rain. Overcast, but dry. So i decided to set myself a Goal which was to get a Sub 1 Minute Lap. We went out in the first sessions and set a 1.00.95. that magical figure i was chasing. However at the end of Warmup, disaster struck as the gearstick snapped as i drove over the finish line to the chequered flag, Unable to engage any gears i rolled down paddock hill and came to a stop at Druids and got a Tow back to the pits.

We didn’t bring any spare gearstick’s or linkage as it just isn’t something i anticipated. Its worth noting the gear stick is one i had modified to suit my seating position better as i found reaching for 1st and 3rd a bit of a stretch.

Luckily… Andrew French to the rescue. We had offered to come Pit Crew for the weekend as i had a spare ticket and as luck would have it, he came in his Micra. So like a ferret he dived under his car, ripped off the linkage, dived under the Mighty Micra and swapped the linkages over and we were good to go for the final 2 sessions.

It transpires now…(Which i didn’t know) We had a Pre-Face linkage fitted to the Facelift box I had fitted with the LSD – Apparently this moves the gearstick forward when you mix-match. The temp linkage felt miles better to shift with so we will be fitting the correct linkage in the coming weeks.

So, Quali Came and we managed a 1.00.90! I pumped the air with joy – but we still had work to do. My Solo 2 at one point showed a predictive Sub 1 Minute briefly. So i knew it was there but i just couldn’t string together that perfect lap whilst watching all mirrors like a hawk for the faster cars/ Traffic so I can try and be out the way.

I was getting to know the circuit better and better, I dreaded Paddock Hill the most, but it became my favourite corner, I had also been getting confident going through Surtees nearly flat and got slightly better in and out of Clarks. But i was still struggling with Grahams and no matter what line i took, we just understeered over the rumble strip.

I’m not sure if my line was crap or the issue with the camber/ tracking from earlier was causing the issue. In the final session i could feel it, the lap was there, i had found a slightly better line through Grahams and was now going fully flat through Surtees and now staying in 3rd gear for