PCGB Race Meetings in 2009
- Thread starter paulf968
- Start date
paulf968
New member
Just in case anyone was coming to the July 18/19 meeting at Brands GP -- don't!
Although it was going to be our biggest event weekend the organisers have mucked PCGB about so much that they have reluctantly been forced to withdraw.
NB at this stage no plans to substitute another race somewhere
Although it was going to be our biggest event weekend the organisers have mucked PCGB about so much that they have reluctantly been forced to withdraw.
NB at this stage no plans to substitute another race somewhere
paulf968
New member
Brands -- 30th June -- Quick report
Had 2 thoroughly enjoyable races, finished them both BUT I am just not quick enough -- finished 16th & 15th in the 2 races (25 & 22 starters respectively).
Post Mortem: I am too slow off the start, tend to keep clear of trouble in the first lap but do lose some places and finally when behind someone a bit slower I struggle to get past. Plenty to work on there! Mind you I have only had about 10 races and these 2 provided the most close driving to date.
Car going well, needs very little work before next races at Oulton on 13th June. However the time has now come to shed some weight to help me along -- I weighed the car at the Brands weighbridge and it is at least 60kg overweight. Hope to have 20kg out by Oulton (heater matrix, some wiring, passenger window winder etc) and the rest by Thruxton in August (poss grp wings and PU's) -- the driver hoping to shed 5kg as well to help!
Had 2 thoroughly enjoyable races, finished them both BUT I am just not quick enough -- finished 16th & 15th in the 2 races (25 & 22 starters respectively).
Post Mortem: I am too slow off the start, tend to keep clear of trouble in the first lap but do lose some places and finally when behind someone a bit slower I struggle to get past. Plenty to work on there! Mind you I have only had about 10 races and these 2 provided the most close driving to date.
Car going well, needs very little work before next races at Oulton on 13th June. However the time has now come to shed some weight to help me along -- I weighed the car at the Brands weighbridge and it is at least 60kg overweight. Hope to have 20kg out by Oulton (heater matrix, some wiring, passenger window winder etc) and the rest by Thruxton in August (poss grp wings and PU's) -- the driver hoping to shed 5kg as well to help!
paulf968
New member
Oulton Park - 13th June - Race Report
I arrived on Friday and joined the afternoon testing session. Oulton is the type of circuit where practice really pays off, it is quite narrow so correct lines & late braking assume massive importance. On 2 occasions, other cars had dumped a bit of oil on the track but am pleased to say I recognised the problem and drove accordingly. Car ran well in testing with new front brakes (using PAGID RS14's) and I rewarded it with 2 new front tyres ready for quali on Sat morning.
NB We had some extra paddock support from Mike Gorton and his massive truck (he ran the pit on my 24hr drive) and he laid on a BBQ on Friday night -- see some photos on the following links.
http://www.stocksports.co.uk/news/index.html
http://www.stocksports.co.uk/photos/index.html
Went out in quali, track cool as it was 8:30am, felt confident, worked hard to keep my lines and was rewarded with 9th position -- into the 2' 01's. This may not sound good but I can tell you this is a massive step up for me and it was the first time I'd done anything on track into Top 10's ! On the down side I am still way off the front running cars, some of whom are 4 or even 5 secs a lap faster here.
RACE 1. Got off the line OK and had the apex at the first corner, then the run up to Cascades but did not assert myself at all well and got caught by some cars whilst forced to the outside line. Settled down into my rhythm after that, did out drag a couple of cars to gain places but spent a huge amount of time circulating on my own whilst trying to catch Tim Bates about 200m in front. Finished 12th but did have one instance of fuel surge near the end - more later.
RACE 2. Half decent start again and was a little more forceful through Cascades and actually overtook a car on the exit! This time right behind Tim Bates and started to breath all over him!! This is where I am short of racecraft and indeed courage, sat on his tale and watched his every move -- I think I could of outbraked him at Old Hall taking the inside line BUT was just not confident enough. Anyway after about 5 or 6 laps of this I think he missed a gear and I was easily past at a chicane -- that was helpful! (later found out he had a rather more serious car problem). Pushed on then as best I could, Adrian was chasing me down and the damn fuel surge got me again despite a little more overfuelling, so lost a place. Then with a lap to go spotted Marcus (The Goose) ahead, his car was not braking well and I started to reel him in -- into the last corner and I was 50m behind but he ran wide with 2 wheels on the grass this brought me right alongside -- 300m drag to the flag and I beat him by 0.12 of a sec !! great feeling and rescued 10th place.
This weekend was a positive step for me, still a long way to go to challenge for a podium as the car deserves, but going in the right direction. More courage and assertiveness is required - particularly with harder and later braking.
Fuel Surge: Went home emptied the tank and found the lid of the swirl pot half off. After much head scratching, my 16 year old was able to get his hand in to remove the lid, we modded it, put it back and he was able to re-fix it into place with 3 nylon cable ties. Hopefully, that problem will not return and I can then run the car 15 or 20 ltrs lighter on fuel.
Next race now not until 15/16th Aug at Thruxton in Hants (trackdays at Silverstone on 14th July & Castle Coombe 23rd July are my next times out)
Some photos here as well:
![[FONT=verdana,geneva"]](/forum/styles/default/pcgb/space.gif ". [FONT=verdana,geneva\"]")
http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Brands%20Hatch%2030-5-2009/id/339/image/18622 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Brands%20Hatch%2030-5-2009/id/340/image/18682 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18739 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18766 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18813 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/343/image/18957 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/343/image/18983
I arrived on Friday and joined the afternoon testing session. Oulton is the type of circuit where practice really pays off, it is quite narrow so correct lines & late braking assume massive importance. On 2 occasions, other cars had dumped a bit of oil on the track but am pleased to say I recognised the problem and drove accordingly. Car ran well in testing with new front brakes (using PAGID RS14's) and I rewarded it with 2 new front tyres ready for quali on Sat morning.
NB We had some extra paddock support from Mike Gorton and his massive truck (he ran the pit on my 24hr drive) and he laid on a BBQ on Friday night -- see some photos on the following links.
http://www.stocksports.co.uk/news/index.html
http://www.stocksports.co.uk/photos/index.html
Went out in quali, track cool as it was 8:30am, felt confident, worked hard to keep my lines and was rewarded with 9th position -- into the 2' 01's. This may not sound good but I can tell you this is a massive step up for me and it was the first time I'd done anything on track into Top 10's ! On the down side I am still way off the front running cars, some of whom are 4 or even 5 secs a lap faster here.
RACE 1. Got off the line OK and had the apex at the first corner, then the run up to Cascades but did not assert myself at all well and got caught by some cars whilst forced to the outside line. Settled down into my rhythm after that, did out drag a couple of cars to gain places but spent a huge amount of time circulating on my own whilst trying to catch Tim Bates about 200m in front. Finished 12th but did have one instance of fuel surge near the end - more later.
RACE 2. Half decent start again and was a little more forceful through Cascades and actually overtook a car on the exit! This time right behind Tim Bates and started to breath all over him!! This is where I am short of racecraft and indeed courage, sat on his tale and watched his every move -- I think I could of outbraked him at Old Hall taking the inside line BUT was just not confident enough. Anyway after about 5 or 6 laps of this I think he missed a gear and I was easily past at a chicane -- that was helpful! (later found out he had a rather more serious car problem). Pushed on then as best I could, Adrian was chasing me down and the damn fuel surge got me again despite a little more overfuelling, so lost a place. Then with a lap to go spotted Marcus (The Goose) ahead, his car was not braking well and I started to reel him in -- into the last corner and I was 50m behind but he ran wide with 2 wheels on the grass this brought me right alongside -- 300m drag to the flag and I beat him by 0.12 of a sec !! great feeling and rescued 10th place.
This weekend was a positive step for me, still a long way to go to challenge for a podium as the car deserves, but going in the right direction. More courage and assertiveness is required - particularly with harder and later braking.
Fuel Surge: Went home emptied the tank and found the lid of the swirl pot half off. After much head scratching, my 16 year old was able to get his hand in to remove the lid, we modded it, put it back and he was able to re-fix it into place with 3 nylon cable ties. Hopefully, that problem will not return and I can then run the car 15 or 20 ltrs lighter on fuel.
Next race now not until 15/16th Aug at Thruxton in Hants (trackdays at Silverstone on 14th July & Castle Coombe 23rd July are my next times out)
Some photos here as well:
http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Brands%20Hatch%2030-5-2009/id/339/image/18622 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Brands%20Hatch%2030-5-2009/id/340/image/18682 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18739 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18766 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20One%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/341/image/18813 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/343/image/18957 http://newworldmotorsport.co.uk/index.cfm/page/galleries/listid/6/title/Club%20Race%20Two%20Oulton%20Park%2013/id/343/image/18983
Steve Brookes
Moderator
Nice to meet and chat to you on Saturday Paul. The only think I can add to your report is that the race commentators on the PA kept using the phrase "followed by the tango 968" [
].
Here's a few relevent snaps I took on the day:
].Here's a few relevent snaps I took on the day:
paulf968
New member
not far off now until Thruxton 15/16th Aug and Coombe on 31st, anyone dropping in?
I have teamed up with Adrian Stock for this season in the paddock and he has a good little website going about what happens to us, see: www.stocksports.co.uk
car has had some work on it to cure weight and handling issues, see details in this extract from the site:
-----------------------------------------------------
Paul Needs To Get A Grip And Go On A Diet!!
29th July 2009
To translate, the handling of the car was just not good enough and the car was also too heavy by about 60kg. Urgent action was required.
On the weight saving front: door bars, some window winding gear, power steering pump, various unused bracketry and a lot of redundant wiring were removed. That saved about 20kg, then I fixed a problem inside the fuel tank which will enable me to run with less fuel load, this gave another 15kg saving. Finally a nice shiny stainless steel exhaust was installed saving almost 15kg more and might also unlock some power. That should help me along nicely, so am now off the diet!
Good news is that I have had a step change in the handling since the last race and now had a very good trackday at Castle Combe learning the 'new' car and the track ready for the race there on 31st Aug. For the first time it feels chuckable and gives me a lot more confidence on the limit -- a good result especially when that circuit is such a bumpy track.
So the changes: Harder springs 800lb front & 550lb rear, with about 4 degrees camber front and 2 degrees rear. Then softer shock and ARB settings. Corner weights were a net of 110kg out ie the sum of the extra weight on front left, compared with the extra weight figure on rear right. All of it cannot be dialled out but just over half was. Final mod now is the need for a lightened flywheel -- just found out I have a standard dual mass one!! This must have been holding me back and I now want the extra acceleration to help me stay with the top guys. That is on a plane now and should be in the car by Thruxton on 15/16th August.
NOTE: Ben Demetriou, currently winning Class 1, was coaching me at Castle Combe and also drove the car and now says it is almost there ahead of the new flywheel. So I am quietly hopeful of a better 2nd half to my season -- could this be an F1 McLaren moment!
I have teamed up with Adrian Stock for this season in the paddock and he has a good little website going about what happens to us, see: www.stocksports.co.uk
car has had some work on it to cure weight and handling issues, see details in this extract from the site:
-----------------------------------------------------
Paul Needs To Get A Grip And Go On A Diet!!
29th July 2009
To translate, the handling of the car was just not good enough and the car was also too heavy by about 60kg. Urgent action was required.
On the weight saving front: door bars, some window winding gear, power steering pump, various unused bracketry and a lot of redundant wiring were removed. That saved about 20kg, then I fixed a problem inside the fuel tank which will enable me to run with less fuel load, this gave another 15kg saving. Finally a nice shiny stainless steel exhaust was installed saving almost 15kg more and might also unlock some power. That should help me along nicely, so am now off the diet!
Good news is that I have had a step change in the handling since the last race and now had a very good trackday at Castle Combe learning the 'new' car and the track ready for the race there on 31st Aug. For the first time it feels chuckable and gives me a lot more confidence on the limit -- a good result especially when that circuit is such a bumpy track.
So the changes: Harder springs 800lb front & 550lb rear, with about 4 degrees camber front and 2 degrees rear. Then softer shock and ARB settings. Corner weights were a net of 110kg out ie the sum of the extra weight on front left, compared with the extra weight figure on rear right. All of it cannot be dialled out but just over half was. Final mod now is the need for a lightened flywheel -- just found out I have a standard dual mass one!! This must have been holding me back and I now want the extra acceleration to help me stay with the top guys. That is on a plane now and should be in the car by Thruxton on 15/16th August.
NOTE: Ben Demetriou, currently winning Class 1, was coaching me at Castle Combe and also drove the car and now says it is almost there ahead of the new flywheel. So I am quietly hopeful of a better 2nd half to my season -- could this be an F1 McLaren moment!
Neil Haughey
New member
Paul are you sure you can make this mod? My understanding was that all engine driven pumps had to be in place, just don't have to be driven.
paulf968
New member
Neil - thx for your post.
Yes I have now been looking very closely at clause 5.7.1 of the regs !!! I have found 3 things which relate:
1) ... ancillaries must be std as stock (I interpret that fitment of ancillaries is not manadatory -- just if they are fitted they must be std)
2) ... drive belts of engine driven pumps can be disconnected (OK)
3) ... the overall minimium weights must be adhered to (OK)
You raise a good point though and I will speak to the PCGB scrutineer at Thruxton on Saturday to ensure their approval.
Yes I have now been looking very closely at clause 5.7.1 of the regs !!! I have found 3 things which relate:
1) ... ancillaries must be std as stock (I interpret that fitment of ancillaries is not manadatory -- just if they are fitted they must be std)
2) ... drive belts of engine driven pumps can be disconnected (OK)
3) ... the overall minimium weights must be adhered to (OK)
You raise a good point though and I will speak to the PCGB scrutineer at Thruxton on Saturday to ensure their approval.
paulf968
New member
So enjoyed Thruxton -- car went well with the various mods -- qualified 8th which is a new high for me. Finished 1st race 9th and 2nd race 8th so find myself established firmly in the middle of the field. I am well pleased and enjoying the climb up my learning curve.
Full results here:
http://www.tsl-timing.com/barc/2009/93321.pdf
Found out my tyre gauge was under reading by 10% after the first race!! so had overheated tyres. Second race so much better with 30 rather than 34 psi in the tyres.
Special hi to Paul H & James D who dropped in on Saturday
Must not forget to mention Andy of NineX whose refinements to my car in the last month have been a revelation -- there was me thinking that there was no more to come from the car and it was all down to me from now on!!
Full results here:
http://www.tsl-timing.com/barc/2009/93321.pdf
Found out my tyre gauge was under reading by 10% after the first race!! so had overheated tyres. Second race so much better with 30 rather than 34 psi in the tyres.
Special hi to Paul H & James D who dropped in on Saturday
Must not forget to mention Andy of NineX whose refinements to my car in the last month have been a revelation -- there was me thinking that there was no more to come from the car and it was all down to me from now on!!
Steve Brookes
Moderator
Thanks for the update Paul....you're much more reliable than the club's motorsport website []
]Neil Haughey
New member
Don't know about booking but I would be surprised if any of them are free. We went to the Donny round earlier in the year, that was a MG club event and was ISTR about £15 a head. Next week we are going to the Super car shootout round at Castle Coombe, that should be a great event and is similar money.
paulf968
New member
The Silverstone event pivots around the Britcar 500 (6hr) and is a full 3 day event from Oct 2nd to 4th. PCGB races will probably be Fri pm and the 2nd one on Sat morning. The Britcar 500 will start about 4 on the Saturday, with a full timetable of other races on the Sunday.
Weekend tickets from the circuit are quite pricey BUT as a competitor I might be able to organise a batch at a significant discount - watch this space.
NB Would be good if we could generate a nice big crowd that weekend as it might help Britcar to bring back the 24 hr race in 2010. Also it is the last PCGB meet of the year.
Weekend tickets from the circuit are quite pricey BUT as a competitor I might be able to organise a batch at a significant discount - watch this space.
NB Would be good if we could generate a nice big crowd that weekend as it might help Britcar to bring back the 24 hr race in 2010. Also it is the last PCGB meet of the year.
In case anyone is interested in that particular weekend, a PDF of the timetable for 2nd-4th October is available from the Britcar website.
To summarise: the Porsche Club races are Friday at 15:30 and Saturday at 11:45, with the Britcar 500 6-hour endurance race to start at 16:00 on the Saturday. There is no Porsche racing on the Sunday.
To summarise: the Porsche Club races are Friday at 15:30 and Saturday at 11:45, with the Britcar 500 6-hour endurance race to start at 16:00 on the Saturday. There is no Porsche racing on the Sunday.
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