Race 4 + 5 – Cadwell Park

A WET RACE AT SUNNY CADWELL PARK!!

This race could have been very depressing had the atmosphere not been so good. I could tell you about it but you're probably getting bored of that by now so I'll let my local paper the Grimsby telegraph take over the story!...

"A Wet Race at Sunny Cadwell Park!!

 Eleven years ago when Victoria Pickles was invited to motor racing talent search at a local go karting Circuit she could never have anticipated the journey it would take her on.

A few months later she had full sponsorship and was travelling all over the UK racing in British Endurance Championships. Every spare moment, when not a school, was spent practicing at Teesside Autodrome.

Fast forward ten years and after a long break from racing due to a lack of funding she discovered a Championship for home built sports cars. Its name, the Locost Championship. A basic space frame chassis is built at home and then the running gear and engine from an old mark 2 escort is added. Make and add a nose cone and panels and the end result is a very light, pretty quick race car which looks like a Caterham! Because the cars are identical and relatively cheap to make or buy second hand the Championship is very competitive and sees 70 racing drivers battle it out of every month at circuits all across the UK.

Vicky’s first two seasons have in her words been tremendous fun and a very steep learning curve. Her starting point for running and maintaining a race car was the ten week car maintenance course at Grimsby College!

At the end of last season Vicky hit a very high point scooping two trophies at the British Women Racing Drivers Club Annual Awards based on her Locost results. The awards are open to all women racing in the UK in any category and Vicky won not only the trophy for best newcomer but also finished second in the overall Racing Championship.

For Vicky this season started at Snetterton in Norfolk followed by a very snowy round at Lydden Hill near Dover. The weather was so bad the marshals built a snow man by the side of the circuit between races!! Having finally thawed out the racers moved on to a circuit much closer to home for Vicky; Cadwell Park. 

It was a swelteringly hot weekend something which put a grin on the face of almost all the racers who are competing in open top cars and camping over night! Vicky had two new sponsors adorning the car; Mortgage Lincs limited who in association with Compass Estate Agents have just launched a new drop in mortgage clinic in Louth and the Gleaming Car Company.

 

John from the gleaming car company arrived early on Friday and the transformation of the race car and vehicles started. In the paddock everyone had their BBQ’s out and the atmosphere was amazing.

Sadly for Vicky that is where the problems began. Heading out for the first practice session of the day the cars temperature began climbing and nothing could stop it!

Over the three days the team tried everything, the whole cooling system was dismantled and flushed including the radiator which at one point ended up under a tap in the toilet block! The fan was checked, timing altered, compression tested and so on and so on. They were determined to find the problem. Eventually drastic action was taken and three large holes were cut in to the nose cone to improve air flow but nothing worked.

In the end Vicky somehow made it through the qualifying races and in to Sundays Final and found her self battling for points in a car which wouldn’t rev over five thousand revs, sounded like a tractor and had a water temperature of 130°C! Steam was rising from the bonnet and water was pouring out of both sides of the car on to the rear wheels and also straight on to Vicky’s feet. The car was sliding round the corners have created its own wet race on an otherwise beautiful sunny day. Deciding the engine was going to need a major overhaul anyway Vicky battled on and some how managed to secure 2 points for her efforts.

Talking today she said “the weekend had an amazing atmosphere, despite all the problems we encountered and I’m amazed that we took two points home from it all. My new sponsors were amazingly understanding and I’m hoping will return for another round. Its testament to the car and the team that we even qualified for the final never mind scored points.

Its going to be a tough couple of weeks stripping the engine and getting everything fixed for the next rounds at Anglesey and brands hatch in June but I’m confident we will do it!”

 Vicky’s next race is at Anglesey on the 8th of June, Her sponsors this year include the British Chinese Kickboxing Society who run Kickboxing and Kung Fu sessions at monks Dyke School in Louth on a Tuesday night. Mortgage Lincs Limited who find mortgages for business and individuals from all the products on the market and who can be contacted through Compass Estate Agents in Louth. The Gleaming Car company based at Donington on Bain who provide a professional mobile valet services for Individuals and businesses in the area and last but not least Lincolnshire Based Event Management Specialists VIP Adrenaline.

If you would like to join Vicky’s sponsors in helping to keep Vicky on track you can contact her on 07734 391299."

So there you go...a nice piece which kindly misses out the facy I had to pull off track on Saturday and sit by a steaming car whilst watching the race from one of the marshalls post. Not a bad weekend thoughdespite the problems.