garybee Posted June 17, 2012 Share Posted June 17, 2012 So what's the news then Mark, how was Anglesey? Nothing on the Graduates' site yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted June 17, 2012 Author Share Posted June 17, 2012 I'll leave Mark to comment in detail but the results can be found here Ignore Saturday as the car let him down in quali and the race due to water in the electrics ☹️ Edited by - Matthew Willoughby on 17 Jun 2012 21:59:06 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Englishmaninwales Posted June 17, 2012 Share Posted June 17, 2012 As Matthew says, leaving the detail for Mark, it was an extremely impressive qualy and race today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted June 17, 2012 Author Share Posted June 17, 2012 Race 2 video here. Sorry about the quality; I have to turn the resolution right down to get it to a sensible size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Gibson Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 Thanks Matthew and the Hickey Family for all your support this weekend, this was really appreciated. As Matthew said, the car picked up water inside the plug for the crank sensor which meant I qualified 20 seconds slower than pole on Saturday (i.e. last!). We thought we had sorted the problem for the race with a change of plugs and carb balance and I was confident of making up some places during the race but the same problem hit again on the formation lap so needless to say I finished last by 2 laps Fortunately, Dave Pearson and James Russell correctly diagnosed the problem and the water was removed from the plug on Saturday night and I qualified 8th on Sunday morning with my first dry competitive run of the weekend (only 1.4s slower than the previous lap record). The video of the race is only worth seeing for the first lap and the last 5mins because I spent most of the race trying to stay with the battle for 6th place. I managed to move up to 7th with an opportunistic move into Rocket 3 laps from the end but lost the place on the last lap to finish a very close 8th. I am happy with how it went as I had 2 main goals before the weekend. The first goal was to break clear of the group of cars I was battling with at Brands Hatch (who finished 40 seconds behind me yesterday) and the second goal was to keep pace with the front runners (which I sort of managed until the fight for 6th place meant that we split off from the lead group). There is still lots more to learn and more speed to come as I get to grips with the handling of the car but I am really enjoying it. Even Suzanne is becoming more relaxed watching the races. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Beezer Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 Well done Mark! Pleased the problem was sorted so it didn't spoil your whole weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Willoughby Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 Great job, Mark - well done! You're clearly picking up the racecraft very quickly 😶🌫️. It must be disconcerting having to go into corners you know well from sprints while taking a very different defensive line! See you at Combe - somewhere else you seem to do quite well at too, as I remember . Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Gibson Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Thanks Andrew. You are right about the lines. When I got passed on the last lap, i very nearly crashed into Trevor because I have never had to brake for Rocket on the left hand side of the track before and very nearly locked up. Your son is much more savvy to this than me and I think he practises "off-line" techniques during testing. I do really like the fast circuits and I am really looking forward to Combe - I just hope the conditions allow a "fast" lap rather than the dampish conditions we had last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted June 19, 2012 Author Share Posted June 19, 2012 I'm definately not more savvy, hence why I went off at Rockingham trying to pass James. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted July 29, 2012 Author Share Posted July 29, 2012 We had another mostly successful day for Mark at Thruxton. Race 2 was more of a success than race 1 as a combination of Mark's driving (see here) and, mostly, my inability to put enough fuel in conspired to give a disappointing result for all concerned. Race 2 was much, much better and video of that will follow later this morning. I've only watched 1 lap of it so far but promise it will be worth watching I'll leave it to Mark to give a more detailed account of events. Sorry, about the fuel Mark *redface* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted July 29, 2012 Author Share Posted July 29, 2012 Race 2 here. As usual the quality has had to be turned down to get the file to a manageable size I'm afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Gibson Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Thanks for posting the spin Matthew - just as well the Graduates don't have a Yellow Trowel. And probably more crucially, just as well my Thruxton antics don't mean I will have the trowel at Curborough 😳 is the footage from the rear facing camera - I was just relieved that I didn't come to rest in the middle of the track as I was fearing I would end up getting hit. The weekend was fairly mixed but on the whole very positive. I was happy with my best qualifying position of 8th (being ahead of 7 cars for the first time) but as always I dropped places in the opening laps by being "out-raced" by more experienced racers. I have no idea why I turned into Goodwood so early to cause the "off" but it effectively ruined my chance to catch up with the lead group so the fact we ran out of fuel didn't really make any difference to the outcome. I knew the second race was going to be my last of 2012 so was determined to make it a good one. I managed to hang onto the lead group but we soon separated out into a group of 4 (James R, James C and Trevor) and fought so hard that inevitably our group lost ground to the leaders. I did pass some or all of them a few times through the race (including all 3 in one move thanks to a good tow) but never managed to stay in front mainly because the front car of the group loses the tow. I learnt an awful lot about slipstreaming and pack racing and you certainly don't want to be the lead car of the group on the last lap. I had planned to slip past the 3 of them into the final corner but I only managed to outbrake Trevor into the final chicane to finish 11th. My 3 race weekends have been brilliant fun and I think I have made forward progress at each weekend (despite a few hiccups). I am also pleased to have finished 6 races without putting a scratch on the car and also to no longer be considered a novice driver. The Grads are a friendly bunch with plenty of banter (especially after running out of fuel on Saturday 😬) and I hope to do some more races with them in 2013. I would like to sincerely thank Matthew for allowing me to have this opportunity to scratch my racing itch by trusting me with his car and more importantly for the massive support he has provided by being there at every event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James_Russell Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 A brilliant drive Mark. It's good you can peel off that novice cross now because you are way past that! I found it easy to trust your driving in close quarters, even at Thruxton speeds. I recall even leaving a bit of room for you should you wish to go up the inside at Church (100mph+ full throttle bumpy right-hander for the uninitiated!) Although I was disappointed with my results from a championship perspective (although I still cling on to 3rd... for now!) I had great fun in race 2, it was exactly as classics should be. It was as if we were battling for podiums rather than 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th! Quoting Mark Gibson: the front car of the group loses the tow Indeed. This was my problem- I was quick through the two chicanes and Seagrave, so I could pass in the first half of the lap. but I think my lines through Goodwood could've been better, so by the time we all got down to club, we were 3 abreast ready to do it all again! I did consider letting everybody past on penultimate lap so I could benefit from the tow, but I chickened out and just tried to stay in front- Luckily only James C was able to get past (and he's a lap-record holding driver in a lap-record holding car) Anyway, congratulations Mark and although you aren't racing again this year, I look forward to driving against Matthew for the rest of the season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted September 9, 2012 Author Share Posted September 9, 2012 We had a really good day at Cadwell yesterday. I qualified 6th out of 18 for both races which I was incredibly pleased with. Race 1 was ok but I finished a slightly disappointed 8th having been far too cautious at the start and lost a shed load of places by the end of lap 1 I'm determined to get my head in gear a bit more before the off for today's race. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Willoughby Posted September 9, 2012 Share Posted September 9, 2012 Another beautiful day at Cadwell today. Despite struggling a bit for grip, Matthew managed another 8th place. He'll fill you in with more detail (and footage) when he gets home, but he had some excellent midfield battles and some really good overtakes. Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted September 10, 2012 Author Share Posted September 10, 2012 Well yesterday proved to be another very enjoyable day's sport. I felt that the car lacked a bit of grip on Saturday (those tyres had been outside all of last summer and all winter) so I decided to give my brand new set a try. They had full tread (i.e. too much) and, it turns out, even less grip. I couldn't get within 1.5 seconds of my qualifying time. As a result I spent the first 3 laps going backwards again following a good start at which I held position. The 2nd half of the race was brilliant fun as I caught one of the cars ahead and we swapped positions several times, sometimes in interesting places. I was particularly proud of the one down the inside into the Gooseneck. Our scrapping slowed us down quite a bit, you can see me taking some very defensive lines in the video, and we were caught by another driver who got past us both. You'll have to watch the video to see what happened next...... The video is currently uploading and I'll post a link ASAP. It was particularly good to have 4 generations of the family come along to watch. I don't think I scared them too much. Anyway, the most important thing is that Mark and I have completed 6 races each with no car/car or car/scenery damage, the only victim being the number plate I smashed at Donington. The novice cross is forever banished. I can apply for my National A licence and pack my bags for Spa in 5 weeks time. Happy days 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted September 11, 2012 Author Share Posted September 11, 2012 Race 2 video here. It is a bit boring around laps 3, 4 and 5 but it does improve, I promise. The highlights are the start and the battle that starts around 9 mins 30 secs in. There is a bit of a coming together at 20 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted October 9, 2012 Author Share Posted October 9, 2012 Right, Spa here we come The 7 is on the trailer and the car is pretty much packed. We're off down towards Dover this afternoon and catching the ferry to Dunkirk in the morning. We've then got a drive across to our little gite that we are staying in for a week. We have free practice sessions last thing on Friday and on Saturday morning, qualifying Saturday lunch time and races late Saturday afternoon and 11.30 on Sunday. 65 Sevens on one grid, starting at the same time heading into La Source; should be fun.......... I'm really excited and can't wait to get on track. Hopefully I'll be able to get onto blatchat while we're over there so that I can keep you updated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Englishmaninwales Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Good luck and have fun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Willoughby Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 Things are looking pretty good at Spa so far - Matthew's just phoned to say he's qualified 5th in both races. Apparently the gap to the next car is 2 secs, so it's going to be question of keeping in the tow. First race is about 5.00 this afternoon. Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Willoughby Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 Great result - finished 7th in a very wet race after getting up to third at the start. I think driving that fast, that close in heavy spray was quite an education! Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted October 18, 2012 Author Share Posted October 18, 2012 We are now back from our week in Belgium. We had a great holiday and an absolutely fabulous weekend at Spa. I will get around to writing a proper report shortly but for now I'll keep it very brief. Qualifying went well and, as Dad said I was 5th Classic (and 58th overall!) on the grid on both days. Race 1 was horrendously wet but great fun. Everybody around me was very sensible but several people aquaplaned into the wall, even on the straights. It was the wettest race that even the most experienced racers present had ever competed in and my first non-dry race. Some people understandably opted to withdraw. My video of the first lap of race 1 is here. A couple of photos of the start can be seen here and here. It's fair to say we couldn't see much! The video makes visibility look better than it was through the windscreen. Race 2 was dry but 3 cars came together at Blanchimont on the first lap and had a big accident, fortunately without injury other than bruising. A video of the accident can be seen here. Mum, don't watch! After the re-start I had a fabulous scrap for 3 laps (which is nearly 10 minutes around Spa) before going wide at Pouhon and losing the group. I caught back up again towards the end and got past a couple of them before the finish. I nearly got wiped out on the last lap when another car ran wide at Pouhon and tried to hold his line over the wet astro-turf rather than let the car go straight over it. As he spun back onto the track he almost took me with him. I was just waiting for a bang that fortunately never came. The video camera had stopped by then though so I haven't got footage. My video of the first 3 re-start laps is currently uploading so although I won't be able to post a link to it for a couple of days, as we're going away again, you will probably be able to find it by searching my videos. Those 3 laps were the most fun racing I've had all year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmar Posted October 18, 2012 Share Posted October 18, 2012 how wet 😳 the others crash ☹️ rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Willoughby Posted October 18, 2012 Author Share Posted October 18, 2012 I think the race 2 video will be here when it has finished uploading. Rob, yes it was a tad damp 😳 It hadn't started raining properly until we were about to go out so I wasn't on my wet set of tyres with full tread depth. I regretted that slightly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishy Dave Posted October 18, 2012 Share Posted October 18, 2012 Great stuff, enjoyed watching that, particularly the three laps in the second race Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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