There's no point shilly shallying around the result of Saturday's race; I finished last. Final runner out of a 20-car field, lowly, lonely and last. Expletives were shouted, roll cage padding was punched and a strop was had. I wasn't happy, I'm still not happy, especially as there's no other person to blame but myself. Buffoon.
Wet qualifying actually went well. Really
The image above should indicate where the problems started. So preoccupied with giving the cars inside enough space into the first corner I didn't give myself enough room. I saw the kerb, the green netting and then the grass. Wet, slippery grass. How there wasn't contact as the car spun through 360 degrees I'll never know.
A safety car stint following poor Joe Draper's off into Cascades meant there were a few laps left (the race was 15 minutes long) to try and work up the field. But through a lot of angry missed gearchanges and probably a fair amount of fear about cocking up again, I didn't make a place gain stick. A podium to last in one event!
The next car behind is in first. Balls
The Oulton weekend had actually begun very well. No, really. In a very wet qualifying session where I didn't think a decent lap had been recorded I was eighth, only half a second off fifth place. For my first laps of Oulton I was quite chuffed. I may have even suggested it augured well for the race.
Waiting for a start was the most nervous experience of my life. You sit in a holding area waiting for what appears an eternity (in reality 20 minutes), looking round at your fellow competitors, deciding on launch revs and desperately in need of a wee. It was horrible.
The actual start wasn't too bad which makes the first corner fiasco all the more frustrating. Next up is Rockingham on July 12. Where the aim for Oulton was to finish (ha!), now the ambition for Rockingham is simply to make it through the first corner. The second-gear hairpin that's approached after a flat-out start around the banking. Oh Lordy.
[Pics: SnappyRacers.com. There's no video as the GoPro died on the green flag lap. Honestly. It had two bars of battery when it was turned on...]