Racing in the Caterham 310R Championship
During a race weekend the test days are often more fun than the race itself as everyone works out what we can get away with on track.
Far too many great battles and near misses to sort through but here are a few of the more ‘interesting’ moments.
I think we had a record few red flags this weekend so we must all be getting better at avoiding walls and each other.
Had a departure from motor racing and did what normal people that build kit cars do and went on a nice blat in the countryside. Just a happy coincidence the route included a few days in Europe via the Nordschleife 
🙂
Now I have to confess I nearly didn’t take the Caterham as I was thinking 3 day of driving hundreds of miles on a foam seat in the baking sun at high speed on motorways would be hell. Why not take the faster car which had a stereo and aircon right? Besides the ring is a long track and the Caterham would be too underpowered. After some last minute convincing over a pint (thanks John) I relented and took the Caterham.
Within 2 corners I knew I had made the right choice. Turns out that on a track with 154 corners the Caterham was awesome. Even on those ditch finder academy tyres I think a 9min lap is more than possible.
The other thing that I found surprising is how relaxing it was to drive around the ring. Considering all the horror stories online and the fact the track was closed several times due to accidents the day we were there. I guess I’m now so used to being on tracks that I understand the dynamics of the car without actually having to think about any of it. Compared to trying to match a lap time on a track i’m racing it was so nice just to chill out and drive.
It’s been 2 months since my first day on track and on Friday I was back where I started at Snetterton. Last time here was a big leap into the unknown and I felt like a moving chicane on a very wet track. Now I’m back here with a properly setup car and 12 track days under my belt I’m a much faster driver.
Being a bank holiday there was a real mix of ‘normal’ cars on track compared to track days earlier in the season which are mainly racing cars testing. Had some great moments on track with fellow Academy drivers and chasing down faster cars.
Snetterton looks a really simple track on a map but some of the corners are difficult on the limit. The long straights means the effect of drafting other cars is huge in a Caterham. When we race there in August there is going to be a lot of overtaking!
I always like going to Brands Hatch as its a short drive from home and the circuit is easy to learn and difficult to master. On Wednesday I had Callum again for the day teaching me how it’s done. However Brands is a short track and traffic is a real problem. At times it was a bit like driving on the M25 where everyone sits on the outside waiting to get past.
Getting a clean lap became the biggest challenge of the day. At least with the vbox you can break the track into sectors. That means that even if the lap as a whole wasn’t your best you can get a theoretical best time. Eventually a few people started to go home and later on in the day there was less traffic. In the end my lap times were pretty competitive and i’m really looking forward to the race in June.
On track there was a real mix of cars but the highlight was a 1970 Porsche 917K Lemans car! At least 6 other Academy racers were there and it was great to catch up with everyone to see how they are all getting on. The more time we spend on track together the more competitive it gets and i’m really starting to get used to tailgating at 100mph.
Spa Francorchamps what a place. Of all the tracks in the world I can see why drivers love it. Watching it on TV or playing it on racing simulators you really don’t get any perspective on the gradients or how committed you have to be in the corners. Eau Rouge, Raidillon, Blanchimont are all flat out in the Academy spec Caterham once you have the guts to go for it.
A few of the Caterham crowd were there including Dan a fellow Academy driver and we had some great fun out on track perfecting our drafting and getting used to driving on the limit nose to tail. The nature of the track with massive long straights meant that faster production cars would fly by on the straights while in the corners the plucky little 1.6 Caterham with van tyres would be all over them and past them in the corners.
Going to take a while to sort out a video from the 5hrs of footage. Watching a lap of Spa is likely to be boring so going to do a shorter compilation of all the close call moments. With motorsport the drifts and the off track moments are always better viewing.
Next stop Castle Combe on Friday for our first official test day with all the Academy group.
2021 Caterham 310R Racer 