So, can we have weather like just enjoyed at Donny for the rest of the season please?
With confidence boosted by the fact that the SLR’s new engine survived qualifying without issues, we had high hopes for a good run and a finish in the GTSCC 2hr race. The regs require two driver changes, with the owner driving at least half the race, so we usually swap at 40 & 90 minutes, but if there is a SC between 20 and 40, we swap early and adjust later stop. Guess what, at 25 minutes said SC boards popped up, and amazingly I was already suited up. That gained us a lap on some of the competition who had pitted just before. (Sometimes you gain, more often you lose
) 2 more SC periods during my stint were of no benefit to us, as if we swapped early again the last one would be over the max of 50 minutes.... (Sometimes a good grasp of mental arithmetic is required
) I managed our best lap time just before coming in to hand over, car still going strong, and confidence increasing also. Simon sets off, but couple of laps later limps into the pit lane with a sick sounding engine. Arghhhh! Quick listen suggests we’re out, so the ever helpful marshals push it down the hill (OK, not that strenuous
) and into the paddock. Just out of curiousity (and it’s easy to do), I removed the rocker cover, and.... discover one rocker with the end missing. fortunately the broken piece was still in the vicinity and not in the sump!
So here we go again. Car back to the engine builder asap. New rockers and a general health check, methinks......
