My space to talk about events I have done, how I went and how I feel about it.

Kempy's Bitza Mitsy's Rallysprint 2007
Date: September 23rd 2007
Venue: Kemp Rd, Awhitu
Run By: Pukekohe Car Club
Result: 26th/34 Overall, 7th/7 in 1301-1600cc Class

My first Rallysprint, and one I had been looking forward to competing in ever since I got the CRX. It's a great little piece of road, about 2.5km long, tight and twisty with a few tricky corners.

I took it really easy on my first run, and had to lift into one corner with a car stopped on the line into it, resulting in a slow time of 2:27. I pushed harder with each subsequent run, getting 2:20, 2:18 and then 2:16.9 on a slightly damp surface, after a light shower had been through. I ended up last in Class and near the bottom in Overall results.

My placings weren't flash, but I was happy with the consistent improvement throughtout the day, and I know that there's still a bit more to get out of the car (and out of myself!), so I'm looking forward to a better result next year. I also learned that 20PSI front and 16PSI rear are the best pressures for my tyres in all conditions, so I will run that from the first run at next event.

Quickfire Dual / Multi-car Sprints
Date: July 22th 2007
Venue: Pukekohe Park Raceway
Run By: Pukekohe Car Club/Cortina & Small Fords Club

Run a little different to the last track day I did, we had 2x 4-lap Dual Sprints (8 cars on track, let go 2 at a time) in the morning, and then in the afternoon we had 2x 4-lap Multi-Car Sprints (6 cars on track, all let go together). It was raining right up to just before we started, so the track started off rather wet. I figured that the tyres wouldn't warm up as much in the wet, so I pushed the tyre pressures up a bit (24 front, 20 rear... bad idea!) There was already a dry line forming by the time I got my first run, but that didn't stop me having a big moment coming onto Ford Mountain at 100km/h+! The rear stepped out and I found myself facing the inside barrier! I turned hard left and gave it a bit of throttle, which pulled the nose away from the inside wall but I slightly over corrected and was now heading towards the outside wall! Hard right and a bit more throttle pulled it around and into a big sideways drift to the right, keeping on the track and off the wall, coming to rest in the middle of the track facing the inside barrier! (Phew!)

I dropped the tyre pressures (22 front, 18 rear) searching for more grip on the 2nd run. It had dried up a lot by the time I got out the 2nd time, but after the 'fun' in the first run, I was a little over-cautious and my times weren't too flash.

I still wasn't happy with the grip from my tyres, so I dropped the tyre pressures again (20 front, 16 rear!) and then set out for the first of my Multi-Car Sprints. The track had pretty much dried up by this time, except for a puddle on the apex of Turn 1. I started at the back left of the 6-car grid and was 5th going through the sweeper. I was about a second per lap quicker than the other cars in that race and ended the 4 laps in 2nd place.

I started on the left front of the grid for my 4th run, which was the last run of the day. This time I was up against 3 much faster cars, so I knew I would struggle to keep up. I got a bad start off the line, and was 3rd car through the sweeper. I was swallowed up by the car behind down the back straight. I pushed hard to try and keep up - a couple of 1:16 laps, then finished with a 1:15.76 (my fastest of the day) - crossing the line 3-seconds behind my nearest rival.

That fastest lap put me 25th out of all 70 competitors, and 5th fastest out of 20 in the 1301-1600cc 2WD class. After the 'excitement' in the morning, I was just happy to have been able to complete the day and to have been only 0.3 seconds off my best time last time out on the track.

Dual Sprints
Date: June 17th 2007
Venue: Pukekohe Park Raceway
Run By: Escort Car Club
Result: 2nd/8 in Speed Group 4/6

My first timed full laps of the track in my CRX. I had taken it to a test day not long after I bought the car, so I had some knowledge of the track and a basic idea of how the car would behave, but no idea what to expect timewise.

It was an icy cold day, but thankfully it stayed dry. We started with 2x 2-lap practice runs. The times from the practices were used to split the field into 6 groups of 8-10. We then got 3x 5-lap races. I started on pole of my group, paired with a 1600 Escort that was doing identical lap times to me. Also in our group were an HSV 5.7L VR V8, a Commodore (VT?) with the same 5.7L V8, a Nissan 260Z with a 2.8L engine, and an Isuzu Piazza with a 3.8L V6 Commodore engine.

My best time on my first practice run was 1m20s. By the end of the day, my best was 1m15.48. I am very pleased with that time and really enjoyed the day.

Auckland Domain Hillclimb 2007
Date: May 6th 2007
Venue: Lower Domain Drive, Auckland
Run By: Historic Racing Club
Result: 29th/78 Overall, 5th/13 in "Clubman 4 Seater" Class

An awesome event to be a part of. A wide variety of cars, a fun little piece of road, weather was good and I was happy with my performance.

The road is barely 1km, and runs last only about 20 to 30 seconds, depending on the car. There was a bit of waiting between each run, but most of the 78 competitors managed to get in 6 runs, which made up for it. A good run consisted of a good start, flat to the hairpin right, flat from the exit through the left-right-left, a little dab at the brake before turning into the tighter right corner, riding a hump created by the adjoining road, feeding the throttle in through the following left corner, then holding it flat through the sweeping right to the finish.

Not having to remember too many corners, and getting plenty of goes at it, meant I could really have a go and try some different things. My first proper run was a 25.73. I didn't make much progress over the next 2 runs, but I gained enough confidence to push harder on my last 2 runs and my final run was my best, at a 25.043. I had set myself a target earlier in the day of 25-flat, so I was very pleased to run so close to that.

Clubsport Championship 2007
Date: April 6-8th 2007
Venue: Auckland
Run By: Auckland Car Club
Result: 35th Overall, 27th in Hillclimb

The Motorkhana was a disaster for me, the Autocross wasn't much better, and the Hillclimb was OK but would have been better if my semi-slicks got through scrutineering like some others did.

I knew I was going to struggle in the Motorkhana, as I had in the PCC Motorkhanas leading up to it, but circumstances on the day didn't help. Negotiating pegs rather than cones was a new experience.

I had higher hopes for the Autocross, which was a fun course at a great venue. Unfortunately, I was first car on the course and did my first 3 laps of the day on fresh green grass. I then ran down a bunch of cones on my 2nd run. And then I tried completing the whole of my 3rd and final run in 1st gear, when I really should have been in 2nd for at least half of the lap, so my only usable time was rather slow.

The Hillclimb was always going to be the event that best suited my car, and I went into it confident of salvaging some pride... until the recce run through the course. Only about 2km long, it had several blind crests leading into corners that dropped away, with some big drops on either side of the road. I just didn't have the confidence on that kind of road on my road tyres to push very hard. I still got my best result of the three events, and as scary as it was, it was quite exhilarating, so I finished up the weekend on a reasonably high note. I wouldn't mind giving that Hillclimb another go on my semi-slicks, to see how much of a difference they make.

Ngutunui Hillclimb 2007
Date: February 25th 2007
Venue: Pekanui Rd, Ngutunui (near Otorohanga)
Run By: Hamilton Car Club
Result: 29th/42 Overall, 8th/16 in Class

WOW! What an awesome piece of road! 9km of twisty flowing tarmac, that is just the kind of road that I love to drive. A very well run and very enjoyable event.

My first run was a 6m:00s, second run was a 5m:48s, and third and final run was a 5m:40s. I'm pleased with the 20sec overall improvement, but I will definitely back next year, aiming to break the 5m 30s mark.

MetalMan BentSprint Series 2006-2007
Date: 4 Rounds over Dec-Feb
Venue: Pukekohe Park Raceway
Run By: Pukekohe Car Club
Series Result: 16th=/57 Overall, 3rd/15 in Class

I was eager to do give this series a good go, after the disappointment of Bright Rd. I competed in this series a couple years earlier, in a little FWD Starlet, so it wasn't completely new to me and I had the confidence to push a little bit. I was very pleased to be consistently 3rd in Class and 14th Overall for the first 3 rounds, amongst a strong field of competitors. At the 4th and final round, I ran with some shiny new semi-slick tyres, but struggled on the virgin rubber. However, I managed to just do enough to secure 3rd in Class for the Series.

All in all, it was a satisfying result and a real confidence boost. I'm looking forward to the next series. By then, I should have the confidence to really push hard, and see what we (the car and I) are really capable of.

Bright Road Hillclimb 2006
Date: November 25th 2006
Venue: Bright Rd, Waiuku
Run By: Pukekohe Car Club
Result: 40th/47 Overall, 12th/13 in Class

My first event in my new car, so I took the first run very easy. It was a reasonable time, but I knew I could do a lot better on the next run. Most other competitors had a dry road for Run 2, but by the time I got my second go, it had started to shower with rain and the road was pretty greasy. I tried to push harder anyway, but after a small moment at the infamous first corner, I backed off the rest of the way. The sun came out as we were getting ready for Run 3, and it looked like I would get the advantage of a drier road on this important run. Unfortunately, the first car on the (still greasy) road had a moment at the first corner, ending up nose first into a powerpole, which subsequently collapsed, bringing the event to a premature end.

I left the event a little disappointed, knowing I hadn't had a chance to really see what I was capable of in my new car.

EVENT DIARY