Video from Silverstone Race 2

Chris Valentine

As a sign of my improving confidence on the familiar local circuit, I qualified 0.6 seconds up on Saturday’s time. Again we were using the split grid so the Class B Boxsters started a couple of rows back from me, but two of them I knew were quicker and would therefore be passing me early in the second race of the weekend.

Guillaume’s Gruchet’s car in the Newbridge garages

Newbridge team-mate Guilaume Gruchet had a spin at Becketts, leaving him pointing the wrong way but stationary – you’ll see me pass him quite close (watch the video at higher quality in YouTube and you’ll just see him spin). Unfortunately he was then hit head-on by a 924 and could not re-join. The incident left debris on the track which the marshals were not able to completely remove before the race finished.

I managed to keep ahead of the single slower Class B Boxster, but for this race the lead two 924s were really flying and eventually the winner of their class, David Hornsey caught me and we exchanged places a few times. I was aware he was leading and despite wanting to finish ahead of him, at the same time I did not want to be responsible for wrecking his race.

My fastest lap ended around 1.3 seconds slower than qualifying, so in backing off I was lucky not to get lapped by more cars.

My sponsor logo on one of the other Newbridge Boxsters

So altogether a more interesting race but with the same result: last in class. A fabulous weekend’s racing at my local circuit and I was glad to see a few of my friends and work-mates, plus my sponsor Paul of RMK Media, making the effort to come out to see me race. I was also very pleased to chat to local racer and coach Calum Lockie after the race, in a reverse of the first time I met him, on the grid of the Britcar 24 hour race four years ago.

The next round of the Logson Group Championship is Rockingham in three weeks, but I’m currently undecided about whether to contest the round having never driven there before. I’d always planned to skip that round, as well as Croft, on financial grounds, meaning my next race could be the last of the season at Donington in October – can I really wait that long before I race again…?

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