Warm day kart racing

I covered the third round of Ian Lawson's exellent corporate series at Warden Law last weekend, where I was also providing support to my son James who was taking part.

James had a good day finishing 2nd in one of his heats, carving his way through the pack, after starting from the back row of the grid, before eventually lining up on grid 5 for the main final. The problem with racing events though is that some of the reports 'marshals' send to race control tend to have little bearing on what happened.

In James' case he was given a points penalty for allegedly driving into another competitor. The truth was that the "other competitor" was recovering from an 'off', and was driving slowly down the middle of the track. James went for the inside, which is what I would have done, only for the 'snail' to take the racing line, which is a definite 'no-no' in such circumstances, only to bleat about it afterwards. Things go wrong though when a marshal witnesses only half the scene and arrives at the wrong conclusion. I rest my case.

Nevertheless the series is a good one to be associated with, and now forms part of the prestigious Sodi World Series, which gives the 2009 championship some added prestige. Ian also had the new RX250 on display, which he would have let me drive, but my arm injury is not yet ready to be put to the test - wise discretion won over valour!

April mid-month update

It was my first major race meeting of the year on Sunday, where the second round of the Mobil 1 Super 1 National Kart Championship was held for the TKM and Honda Cadet classes. There were the usual pedantic protests from some people, but it was pleasing to find the three main Super 1 Clerks of Course, Phil Cox, Alan Bryant, and Rod Taylor were laying down strong markers for how competitors should behave in 2009.

Following an abortive kart test some years ago, this was actually my first visit to the Glan-Y-Gors track in North Wales, and quite an impressive place it was too. Naturally it was helped by the fact it was sunny and warm (for April..!), with arguably the best scenery (picturesque mountains) at any British race-track.

So who emerged as one worth watching? Howard Lucas' driver in TKM 4-Stroke, Steven Welsh, was certainly one to keep a note of - every race I have seen Steve take part in he has been at the front. Billy Monger in Honda Cadet looked quite useful too, coming through from a less than ideal grid slot to take the final podium step in 3rd place.

Mid-week I had the privilege of taking photographs for Stephanie Rudd's 21st birthday in Sheffield. Her parents, Peter and Bridgette, liked what they saw at a wedding I covered recently, so made sure I was drafted for the big 2-1. The best part of being a photographer is having a 'model' who is a natural in front of a camera, and where Stephanie was concerned getting her to smile was no hardship at all (see above)..! The funny part though was watching her mum trying to copy her poses... Stephanie's best friend Kat also had very photogenic eyes that sparkled. The session went well and I think the results speak for themselves.

Warden Law just off the A1 motorway near Durham is next on the agenda this coming Sunday, where Ian Lawson's excellent Thunderkart series (round 3) is due to take place. Now had I not fractured my left elbow and arm in January, I would have been leading that Series by now...