Andys Snetterton Report - May 2009
Snetterton has always been good to me, I got my first win here in a DD taster of 2006, putting the 583 on the front row besides Domski and Kyle.
We decided to do the Sunday races to familiarise myself with the track and scrub some new tyres. I wobbled round in qualifying and tried a lower gearing for race 1. It was wrong and I didn’t have the speed down the straights. Meanwhile, Will Charters had found his mojo and was battling like a good-en. He came by on the back straight and we swapped places a few times. I wasn’t quite prepared for the battles so intense on the day prior to having it out with Tim?? He then had a lunge exiting Corum going into Russells, we both were on the limit going into the chicaine and collided. Unfortunately Will went down and I had to straight-line over the bend to stay on. I then settled and started learning my lines and braking markers for the rest of the race. Will came over after the race and we chatted about the battles. His lid was damaged but I’d brought a spare which he used for the rest of the weekend. For the second race we put the higher gear back on. I got a minger of a wheely off the line which slowed me into the first corner. Again, me & Will battled for the whole race but I managed a little gap for the win. New Era had, once again, put on a great presentation & provided trophies for the races which made them more worthwhile. I‘ll be able to look back on thses racing days with joy. Giving the pace of Will, I knew tomorrow was going to be more than just a battle with Tim. The pressure was on….
Qualifying came round and I set off ahead, just me & the lap timer. The new tyres were working really well & we managed a pole, closely followed by none-other than Will Charters…
Race 1. Tim was on a mission and headed the warm-up lap. This was his statement of intent from previous experience. I got the holeshot on the start and put my head down for 3-4 laps taking some serious risks. Will & Tim were battling which gave me the space. I saw Cobby signal that we had a good lead and settled down as the tyres got hotter. I could see Will catching fast but managed to sift through the traffic sometimes good, sometimes held up in the slow corners. We ended with a small margin but most importantly the WIN!!!
Race 2. Once again, I got an excellent start but Will went with me. I had a small gap but he was catching me. We starting lapping and I got caught up a few times. On the last lap we headed down the back straight and Will pulled along-side on the inside, we were catching traffic and I held the throttle a moment longer to get round the outside of Dean Russell at the Esses, Will went for the inside which was closed down on him. I then tore through the bomb hole besides Phil Wilcock and into Russells, this time protecting my line. I crossed the line just in front of Will for the second win!!! Wohoo…. What a race! I was expecting a hard time and got just that with Will riding brilliantly and raising his game, he’s hungry for a win..
We now go away from Snetterton with the lead in the championship but its still early days and lots more races are ahead of us. This brings back fond memories of 2007, battling for the Class B title.
Massive thanks to my family for coming along and supporting me. It was great to see Tracey jumping up & down on the pit wall each lap!!! Thanks to the Valentino fan club for coming all the way to support me and to the Cornerspeed bunch for the Sunday support too.
Well done to Will for upping his game and Andy Pike for getting up with us after only a few races. Well done to Harriet for three wins and to Dom for turning-up and winning with so little practice at this very demanding track. Anyone who thinks this place is easy to learn is in for a shock! Chin-up to Tim, bogey meet for you fella, but I know you’ll be back and stronger so don’t anyone relax just yet….
Mallory next, see you there Andy