On Sunday 14 September, nine members of our Motor Racing Team travelled to the Dunsfold Aerodrome, the home of the Top Gear test track, to participate in the latest Greenpower heat.
Two teams were entered into each of the F24 (11-16) and F24+ (16 to 25) categories. Lots of work had been done on the cars to get them ready for the race, with one car having suffered a double puncture, and the other a bent wheel and rear axle at the previous heat in Predannack just before the summer break. Our pupils’ hard work paid off with both cars flying through scrutineering and then running smoothly in the practice session. This was important, as of the nine drivers that took part, four of them had not raced before and they needed some time to get used to the cars and the track.
The first of the two F24 heats started well, with both cars running at a reasonable pace. However, towards the last third of the 90 minutes, one of the cars started to slow compared to the other, and lost a couple of places. Post-race checks showed that one of the batteries had lost a significant amount of voltage, pointing towards a faulty cell.
The shorter F24+ race saw both cars constantly battle with each other to try and gain the upper hand. There were no race orders, so the two drivers were free to race each other, and fortunately they were both skilled enough and aware enough of each other to avoid colliding, despite some real wheel to wheel action. At the end of the race, they separated a little, finishing third and fifth in class. This, coupled with good positions in two previous heats should stand us in a good position to get into the final at Goodwood in October.
A buckled wheel, due to loose spokes and no fault of the driver, saw SPN0 leaving the pits late for the final F24 race of the day and having to start from the pit lane. Determined driving and quick pitstops saw it catching and then overtaking SPN4. Both cars ran steadily, and as other cars started to slow down, they both started to pick them off. SPN0 kept closing in on the leaders and finally finish fourth, with SPN4 coming in seventh. With both F24 races taken into account, final positions were fifth and tenth in class.
Tim Moggeridge, D&T Teacher, commented: “Dunsfold gave us our best results of the season, and with previous niggles ironed out, puts both cars in a good position for the International Final.”
