As Robert Burns famously said, "the best laid plans of mice and men often go astray" which pretty much sums up my attempt to go circuit racing last year! The small matter of getting made redundant put paid to my efforts in the 750 MC Sport Specials series, but I did manage to get the Sylva out one more time before winter set in. I couldn't resist taking the old beast along to Santa Pod for a RWYB and on a crisp Saturday last September I bolted on the eight and a half inch wide Avon slicks to see what it could do. It had been a few years since I last visited the Pod as a driver, and the (admittedly shonky) bootlace I had used as an arm restraint for dozens of passes over the years was finally questioned by the marshall, just as I was about to make my first pass of the day. They let me go this time, but I have since acquired some proper Sparco items thanks to Santa Claus so won't run the risk of being turned back again.
As I steered into the burnout box, I felt at home right away and was straight into the groove. A short burnout cleans the tyres, and then I moved into stage. Dial up 4,500 rpm, watch for the three yellows and go...0.17 second reaction time, and 1.85 second 60 foot. The car ripped crisply through the gears and amazingly, ran a 12.33s @ 109.64 mph, the best pass it's ever done, reaching 90 mph in under 8 seconds along the way. Surely an 11 is on the cards with a tenth or so off the 60 foot time? It is said that every tenth you save in the 60 foot translates to two tenths saved at the quarter mile mark. The best 60 foot I did in the Sylva was in the 1.7s, so not impossible.
I came around again about 20 minutes later for another pass. Not a bad launch, but at around half track I felt the throttle pedal stick, rather like what happened at Brands Hatch, so cautiously completed the rest of the pass, and still managed at 12.68s @ 105.77 mph. Subsequent investigation found that one of the two throttle cables had snapped, and remaining one on it's own wasn't returning to the stop properly when the throttle was released.
Such is the camaraderie of amateur motorsport, there is always a kind soul somewhere in the paddock willing to help out with a spare part...and sure enough, we managed to blag a grub screw and pull enough of the broken throttle cable through the linkage to make a temporary repair. Alas, on my next attempt as soon as I tried to get on the throttle properly the cable broke free again and I aborted the pass.
A shiny new pair of Weber DCOE throttle cables were duly ordered and are now on the car ready for it's next outing, likely to be on 7th March 2015 at Santa Pod for the RWYB Dial In day. Will it crack the 11s for the first time? I can't wait to find out.
As I steered into the burnout box, I felt at home right away and was straight into the groove. A short burnout cleans the tyres, and then I moved into stage. Dial up 4,500 rpm, watch for the three yellows and go...0.17 second reaction time, and 1.85 second 60 foot. The car ripped crisply through the gears and amazingly, ran a 12.33s @ 109.64 mph, the best pass it's ever done, reaching 90 mph in under 8 seconds along the way. Surely an 11 is on the cards with a tenth or so off the 60 foot time? It is said that every tenth you save in the 60 foot translates to two tenths saved at the quarter mile mark. The best 60 foot I did in the Sylva was in the 1.7s, so not impossible.
I came around again about 20 minutes later for another pass. Not a bad launch, but at around half track I felt the throttle pedal stick, rather like what happened at Brands Hatch, so cautiously completed the rest of the pass, and still managed at 12.68s @ 105.77 mph. Subsequent investigation found that one of the two throttle cables had snapped, and remaining one on it's own wasn't returning to the stop properly when the throttle was released.
Such is the camaraderie of amateur motorsport, there is always a kind soul somewhere in the paddock willing to help out with a spare part...and sure enough, we managed to blag a grub screw and pull enough of the broken throttle cable through the linkage to make a temporary repair. Alas, on my next attempt as soon as I tried to get on the throttle properly the cable broke free again and I aborted the pass.
A shiny new pair of Weber DCOE throttle cables were duly ordered and are now on the car ready for it's next outing, likely to be on 7th March 2015 at Santa Pod for the RWYB Dial In day. Will it crack the 11s for the first time? I can't wait to find out.
RSS Feed