Now, you may read this headline and think “Jack Mitchell? But he races in Clios?” – Well, no. This isn’t about that one.
This is coming from the much less successful, low budget racing Jack Mitchell on my return to the Karting world after a few years sabbatical.
Having started Karting about eight years ago up at a small Essex track, I quickly found myself on the national stage racing in the Easykart Junior championship – A good few trophies and medals later and four years down the road, I had earned myself a sixth place championship finish in 2009.
At this stage, I was dreaming big, hoping we would stubble across those large pots of gold racers all look for, with eyes on progressing to the big boy car racing leagues. But this dream, while completely unrealistic, didn’t last long. Just a round in to the 2010 season, I finished that kart off (In the turn two wall at Ellough Park). With a knackered kart and the bank of Mum and Dad starting to run dry, it was time to pull the plug.
The following years saw me step away from any full time championship efforts with the odd hire kart appearance here and there with mixed results to say the least! These spare weekends found me spending a whole lot more time at Brands Hatch waving a camera at the race cars, which quickly led to exploring the world of Motorsport media. This soon culminating in me becoming a small part of the Kent Sport News Motorsport team over the last couple season, covering British GT and other high profile events that grace Brands Hatch and Lydden year to year.
While covering these events, the urge to get back to it just kept getting stronger but last year, I had managed to find security in the day job so it was time to look at ways to spend all that money I had saved on an effort to get back racing, so as of now, and thanks to Kent Sport News, I shall be posting on how this long awaited, low level motorsporting return is going hopefully give you a view from the bottom of the racing ladder!
I decided to start my year off with a challenge. Entering the British Rental Kart Championship – a single weekend long event, run on an indoor track up in Milton Keynes against 99 other racers, some of which travelled from across Europe, bring national and world championships worth of experience with them.
Having very little experience Karting indoors I knew I had my work cut out to the level of which become abundantly clear during Friday practice. About a second down on a thirty-five second lap was quite a shocker and with the field so tightly bunched, that near enough put me down the tail end of the time sheet (It didn’t make great viewing on the Friday night) – My problem being an outdoor racer growing up learning to hit those apex kerbs, I found myself hitting the ends of the tyre walls which made out the hairpins, so my practice laps just never got in to a good flow and with the flashy lid and all the gear, it was clear I had no idea.
A Friday night of analysing Gopro footage led to Saturday in which I had my first two heats. With the heats consisting of ten drivers, I claimed fifth and sixth in my first pair of races strongly confirming just how average I was at this indoor business.
Ending the first day of competition in fifty-second place overall (from the one hundred competing), I had to hope for some strong heats on the final day if I wanted the chance of clinching a semi-finals spot. The top thirty after the heats made it to the semi finals, which before the weekend I thought sounds fairly easy. Top thirty? Of a hundred drivers? Sure thing, I can do that!…
I was wrong.
Unfortunately, the finals hopes were dashed pretty early Sunday morning. After pulling the short straw on my third heat kart draw I couldn’t match the pace being set by the others so I had to try salvage what I could, but a clumpy attempt of a lunge for seventh and a slow pitstop later, I brought it home eighth – We won’t mention that that was last in that race. Inside the top ten sounds much nicer.
With one heat race left to go, I had to try finish on a weekend on a high. Thankfully, I was to pulled off just this. Having kept pace with the leaders and executed a smooth pitstop, I rounded off my indoor adventure with a fourth place finish – my best of the weekend. My four heat races put me in fifth-fourth place overall confirming I was really average at indoor Karting. Something to work on ahead of 2017’s edition of the BRKC!
With a couple weeks break, I then found chance to get racing in the vast open spaces of an outdoor track – the speed and lack of switch back hairpins was such a relief! The torrential rain and wind was not so much of a welcome sight though. It was the Whilton Mill 8 hours and with a last minute entry, I become part of the sell out twenty-five team strong grid.
Part of the the aptly named ‘Last Minute Legends’ we had high hopes for what lie ahead with my team mates having years of successful kart experience behind them, but the weather played the curve ball with what can only be described as an all-day monsoon.
With the four of us, we planned to do a couple solid two hour stints mixed in with a couple one hour stints to meet the minimum pitstop requirement but as with all plans in racing, they are impossible to stick to – a couple spins, mud covered visors and extra stops later, we made it through the eight hours in sixth. Having clocked some of the quickest times of my stints and with the team scoring the third fastest time overall it was a case of what could have been!
The following Sunday (Feb 14th) I found myself back up at Whilton Mill for the PLD charity race. Having spent a day in torrid conditions the weekend before, part of me hoped for similar conditions this time round so I could rely on what I had learnt prior but no, that eight hours of getting soaked was wasted as the day started and finished under clear skies.
Still, having many, many dry Whilton laps under my belt from years gone by, I knew I could challenge for a strong result – Of which become clear in my first heat race. Starting from tenth on the grid (pre-drawn grids) I quickly raced through to third but was to run out of time to catch the leading pair which had run a clean race to break clear of the rest of us. With the confidence level on high, I was out again for my second heat, in which I had the grid draw of twenty-first and last place.
My sights were set for a top ten but from the get go, I found myself well and truly stuck in the pack with no where to go, and with the short nature of these sprint races, I could only salvage sixteen which I knew would effect my A-final chances. My third race would have to be a good’n! With the back-middle-front grid draws now working in my favour, I lined up second on the grid for my final heat.
Managing to nail the start and get away out front I found myself leading the majority of the race, but my nice clear view out front was cut short as with just a couple laps left to run, I was well and truly dumped out of the top three in one fair swoop. Crossing the line fourth, my three race results would see me just make it in to the back-end of the A-final grid.
This was were the meeting got tough, having relied on the random draw grids and mixed abilities in the heat races, I now found myself at the back of the fastest group of racers there, with all of which in front of me. It was time to reach in to the bag of talent and get my head down – Having reached deep, I found my self knocking on the door of the top ten by the end of lap one, only to bundled out of the pack before I could take in how well it had been going. Rejoined, I found myself back where I started.
It was time to catch up and see what I could reclaim of my first lap efforts. Thankfully, with the pack tripping over each other it only took a couple laps to find myself back in it. Thirteen laps of rubbing, lunging and kerbing later, I could only get to sixteen – Once again, another case of what could have been at Whilton. The place owes me something, I’m sure of it! One day, I will leave their gates with some silverware!
With the one off, season warm up races out the way, it was time to get down to business with my main championship focus. With our season long entry confirmed for the Club 100 Intermediate Endurance championship, JAM Racing (consisting of Maidstone-based, Liam Cochrane and myself) were feeling confident ahead of round one – of which was run at the end of February at our local track, Chatham’s Buckmore Park. With hundreds of laps turned at the track over the last few years, we knew we could run well. With the race day upon us, practice/qualifying confirmed just how competitive we could be scoring a top five starting spot.
With five stops to make through the two hour enduro, we planned to split the race in to three stints, with Liam taking the middle one with each have a fuel stop in the middle. Using this first fuel stop to our advantage, I took the chance to stop at the end of the second lap, peeling out of fourth place to put us in to clear air. With me in clear air and out of sequence to the rest of the pack, it was time to get my head down and focus on turning consistent laps. Running a solid forty-five minute stint from there until the end of the second pit window, I stopped for the driver change – Handing over to Liam, he shot off on his way.
Once the stop was complete, I learnt I had managed to make it all the way to the lead with most of a lap advantage in hand (aided by the late pit stop) so the job from here was to make sure we run a clean race, no silly mistakes and make sure we try and cover the chasing teams. With the driver change completed, Liam rejoined just a handful of seconds up the road to the second and third placed teams. Another forty-five minutes worked through, Liam pitted from the most slender of leads to hand back to myself with the task in hand of bringing it home for a potential podium – with the top step as strong possibility.
After a quick stop, I left the pits with what seemed like clear track. I tried to work out who around me was a threat for position but from what it looked, I couldn’t see team 39 (the team that has keep us on our toes all race) – Had we cleared them by enough?
As I fought through the final half hour stint of the race, I started to wonder if we had this. But with just minutes to go, while struggling to hold a firm grip on the heavy Club 100 steering it became clear that we were not leading – we had somehow lost north of ten seconds to team 39 which is a real mystery to the both of us. With no fluffed pitstops or no major mistakes on track, we had managed to be under cut and cleared in the pit stop window by a huge margin (Something we still can’t currently work out!?) – but this was all over looked. Passing the flag after a tense couple hours we had earnt ourself some silverware and started our championship campaign with a fantastic result. A welcome confidence boost following a tough start to my return, but hopefully something we can continue throughout the season!
Having to miss round two of this endurance championship (due to media commitments), JAM Racing is back at it at the end of April and back at one, Whilton Mill. Here’s me just hoping that what ever Whilton owes me, comes around sooner rather than later…
Of course, with this little feature Kent Sports News is letting me run, I shall report back on just how Whilton goes plus any other outings I find myself part of.
If you have read this far and are interested in what I’m up to, get in touch with me through Facebook, Twitter etc (Make sure you add the correct racing Jack Mitchell! – @JAMmsp is the handle) – It would be great to hear from readers plus if anyone is looking for a team mate for anything, I (like to think I) am your guy!