Squizz

Oooh dear, almost a year since we posted last time...

Karen's racing her own #14 car again and was having fun(??) in the wet at Castle Combe for the first time back out in it for a while.

That's me in the tyre wall, with Karen gliding by during qualifying:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5818968942/
Start of Race 1:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5816079836/
Unfortunately, Karen was shunted off at Quarry in Race 1 and same again in Race 2. The driver responsible in Race 1 never even came over to apologise to her after ward. The driver in Race 2 certainly did... It was me! Long story, bad ending.

Anyway...

The shunts at Combe caused some chassis damage and it was decided the only safe course of action was to re-shell...

Stripping down the old car for the running gear, all the wiring loom, rollcage, dash, etc.:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946795874/
Peapring the new shell:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946812040/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946817438/
Rolling!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5873274522/
Ready to Race at Snetterton (300 configuration):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5873208800/
Armco damage. The first time in her racing career that Karen had suffered damage that wasn't inflicted by others. She suffered understeer coming out of the Agostini hairpin got on the grass and then aquaplaned into the armco:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5873236976/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5872669911/
Full repairs in progress:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946770470/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946217355/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/5946767836/
As ever, we are very grateful to Martin, Mike & Haz at TenguDo Motorsport for continuing to sponsor Karen's racing and for doing such a fantastic job of the re-shell and now repairs to get it back to looking amazing and running so well.



This is my in-car footage from Snetterton. Very strange lining up next to Karen in Race 1. I had a pretty good Race 2, coming 3rd overall thanks to the two leaders managing to take each other out! I ended up with a 2nd in class and a 1st in class too. (Subaru Cup)



Karen and I will both be back out for Rockingham, Mallory and Donington later this year.

Squizz

Recent pictures of car & driver in action:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/6481619599/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsenter/6640102967/
Not long after the 2nd picture was taken, No.3 Cylinder destroyed a piston ring and that was that for the 2011 season.

A CDB engine was sourced, but that was found to have a crack in No. 1 Cylinder! So that we re-linered and the guys at TenguDo Motorsport rebuilt it with lots of nice Cosworth bits. (Bearings, Head Gaskets, Timing Belt, Sump Baffle Plate). It's only had 50 miles of running mostly under 4000rpm. Engine is feeling great.

Other changes have seen the fitting of a DCCD Gearbox, matching rear Diff, Driveshafts and Hubs. Thanks to the Hub change we went to 2-pot rear Calipers too. The DCCD has been wired up to a simple 12V feed via a switch on the dash. Diffs are locked for race starts and then switched off before the 1st corner... Hopefully!!

Thanks to all this Karen missed the first evening of 2012, but the next race meeting is at Pembrey on Sunday 15th April. We're planning to get a day of practice first. Three races on the Sunday and hopes are high.

A big thank you to Karen's sponsors at TenguDo Motorsport. You can find them on FaceTube, etc.