Grats to Ken and commiserations to Hristo ( if being tired counts as an excuse ?)
I cobbled together a setup derived from the default and what little I could remember from my Honda base setup for this race and arrived at what at first seemed quite a good result.
A few gear tweaks in Quallifying, making sure that there was no redlining in 5th at the end of that gloooriiioouuusss straight and eventually managed a mid grid time.
Ken and Hristo were light years ahead ....just where the heck are they finding 10 secs?
?? I need some serious practice at Solitude and might even resort to the Loynes' School of Telemetry Studies to see where I am going wrong!!!
The start was a little tentative as T1 got a little congested from my viewpoint, but exiting T2 I was quicker than Bernie who had audaciously slipped up my inside at T1 ( this man has no respect for age or beauty!!). I saw the opportunity to return the favour into the tight uphill right hander T3 but I closed too quickly on Bernie and was upon his tail pies before he made his anticipated move to the left of the track. I took abort/evasive action and I'm not sure if it was warp or a slight nudge on Bernie's rear that sent me onto the grass whilst the whole field streamed through.
I thought that would be the end of my race and almost quit there and then but thought that I should at least see if there was any damage to the whale. But these Japanese tanks are made of very high grade tinfoil and we were good to go.
It took a couple of laps to close down on the three way battle between Jack, Phil and Bernie but at Solitude there are not that many passing places when you have a large anvil attached to the rear end of your car acting like a pendulum. That and the constant swapping of line and position of the three cars in front!!! Quite entertaining though..
Eventually got the run on JO onto the straight and closed up on Phil and Bernie through the twisty section where Will and Samb were laying an ambush. It seemed that the Fezzo magnetic ray atractor worked well on European machinery but left Japanese tinfoil unaffected as Bernie and Phil tried to join in the fun whilst I was allowed free passage?
?
Stormy was next on my Prib list but was quite a long way in front until I came upon him in the woods ( not sure what he was doing but we'll gloss over that!)
It was getting near the time for my SnG stop and I wanted to be in front of stormy before then if I could. I knew I was faster and needed to get past and build enough cushion to see me through the stop. Once again the majestic power of the Honda V12 came to my aid down the straight and I breezed past.
At that moment the phone rang in my cockpit!! and I was forced to perform heroic car control, stuck in 4th gear, through the twisty bits whilst Stormy closed and threatened to regain his place and hold a sensible conversation at the same time .
It was a very short conversation!!!
Stormy took his pitstop and I went for a quick lap to build a safety margin, turns out I need not have risked that as Stormy's engine through in the towel.
It was only then that I reralised that Hristo had vanished and there was only Ken in front ( a looooong way in front!!) So I settled for engine preservation mode to the flag. Not always a good idea to change your rhythm half way through a race as 2 or 3 graceful pirouettes at less than racing speed proved!!! Fortunately I had a large margin over any following cars and was able to steer the car through the spin and keep it on the tarmac ( mostly!!)
The last lap came not a moment too soon as I was beginning to lose concentration. Second spot was very satisfying given the poor 1st lap and a new setup.
Grats to JO and Phil for finishing and to Bernie for some spectacular mud slinging through the twisty bits.