Race Day, 23 Nov

This was the race that I thought I could do Okay...
oh well, I did only OK, which is slightly disappointing as I
wanted to equal my previous race finishing position or better.

To be better I may have to rely a lot on luck which I think we
all had after we had to wait for more than 2 hours before Ken's
brake been fixed to start the Heat 2 under huge cloud But no
rain at all. Phew! Collective luck but not for individual

Qualifying is not too good. As per normal, I start almost from the
back. sigh
Before Heat 1, and after my qualifying, one of the mechanics, Ah
Seng, took my kart out for a spin or two. He confirm my feel of the
Rok engine. It is that there's no low end torque, which is quite
particular important in this track when the several hairpins that
go uphill upon the exit. Without the torque, I lose out in the
hill climb. I literally see the rest of the field pull away from
me almost after exit. It's a depressing sight.

He recommended a change in sprocket and I decided to roll with
his idea.

Come Heat 1, I realised it was still just not good enough too.
I was just following James very closely, but unable to find a nice
place to overtake him. I was holding my position, waiting for my time.
Our race was for a start grid of 6 or 7. It was quite fun.
Somehow on Lap 10, I got a bit impatient and try to take him in the
slippery hairpin behind the pit building. Bad idea... I ran so wide that
I went into the grass! After that, I tried to mount a chase again but
seemingly impossible. I lost 4 seconds in my trip to the grasslands
Looking at the back, there seems to be no one near so I just decided to
lax my throttle and drive for the next few laps.

Heat 2 started under huge clouds hanging in the sky. It is no doubt
threatening to rain, but it went on dry for the full race.

After a lap of rolling start lap, I was ready to go. Seeing the green flag
early I throttle on earlier and got side by side to James at the hairpin
and I throttle harder for the straight that is to come... I should be sixth
already and then the very unexpected came about, I felt slow!
I was feeling even slower than a tortoise when James, Graeme, Kelvin,
and Ken all overtook me in like a flash!! WTH !!!
Forget about position then, I was just going to try to get it all back.
It wasn't easy at all. I only managed to finish 7th at the end.
At the end, I was thinking if there's 2 more laps I should be able to
get closer to Graeme and try to take 6th. Well, on a hindsight lah.

Am I happy about the race? NOPE. Mainly because I need to address
the lack of low end torque of the engine, and try to see how to fix it or
at least improve it. Come on Rok, up your pace for me!

till 7 Dec.

Another Layout for 23 Nov Race

Fits like A Gloves

Quite an interesting video for one of the most important
gear for karting.

And to be honest, a pair of gloves is the first serious stuff
I purchased when I started karting.



Go Kart Racing Gloves

Track Configurations

Because of the variations Plentong track can have for different races,
we do not always race in the same track layout.

The last race was done in this configuration as seen by the
red dots :
The challenge of this particular layout is the long long straight.
How do one set up the kart for that?
For the majority, we do it by using a smaller sprocket so that
it's not too damaging to the engine and able to have a higher top
end speed.

I wasn't too keen at all to have a engine failure. All I wanted
is to able to finish the race. In any case, to finish either 1st, 2nd
or 3rd etc... firstly I have to cross the finishing line.

Personally, after the race I wasn't particularly tired nor do I
have any ache the very next day.
However that night, upon finishing my dinner I was knackered
by about 9 plus, 10pm ! Newborn baby don't fall asleep or sleep
this well!

12, 7, Sixth on 9 Nov

9 Nov, 2008

Will we have a wet kart race when I awake to a wet wet pouring
Sunday early morning? And the sky do not look to be clear any time.

However, on I went to JB for my '1st' race this year.

This is a race I did not expect much from myself and I put two
targets for myself to aim for in my previous entry..

<My aim for this race is to finish among the 1st eight and
get a point.
So, my another aim is not to be lap by the front leaders and
to be consistent in my own pace.>

And a pat on myself that both targets were met!!

Firstly, I had to go on my qualifying very late as they seemingly
had some difficulties putting new tyres for me!
However that has some good in it, as the track was drying up nicely
enough however I wasn't too keen to push too hard as some sections
are still wet.
Also, I suspected the 1st hairpin for the race start will be a bit of chaos,
thus I'm more than happy to qualify 12th after more of others went out
after me to get a better time.

No worries though, for my aim is really to keep my nose clean and
see out Heat 1 and look at what unfolds in Heat 2.

Heat 1 went quite ok for me. It was a bit boring but Okay.
And true enough, at the 1st hairpin, Tony went off at the start.
No brakes, he was saying.
As Graeme was steady in his pace in front of me and I don't seems to
be able to get any closer to him after I got past Allan.
While Mary Ann, was drifting further behind me.
Towards to end I was just cruising a bit.
In Heat 1, Raymond, Noel, and Allan DNF due to several reasons.
Jason did not managed to get his kart sorted out in time for this heat.
So I was to start in 7th position in Heat 2 to determine the final finishing
position for the overall race.


During the 1 hour odd break, we had a simple lunch & relax.

Heat 2, started slightly after 3 pm.

We had 4 rolling start laps as some karts at the back cannot keep the
group close and tight enough. It was particularly bad, just imagine
all the fumes we had to breathe in. The fumes are the worst when
our engine go in slow speed.
Furthermore, Raymond, because of his DNF in Heat 1, starting from the
back was jump starting the middle pack to the front. He even crashed
in to Kenneth back on one of the rolling lap!! Thank Goodness,
that he did not crashed in to me though. Raymond had to race without
his front bumper.
Then when it's finally going to start he accelerate past me and Graeme
before the start finish line.
Although, this is not a sanctioned race I reckon he should just be a
bit more gentlemanly in his approach.
After the race, Noel did 'confront' him on it. Well, that's that, I guess.

For me, my start was not good. I just held on to my position after I was
overtaken by Jason and Raymond. Then at lap 2, after the 1st hairpin,
Tony out accelerate me and took me on the straight, and he also took
Graeme after that.

Soon after a lap, I managed to out pace Graeme and took his place too
on the straight. But boy oh boy, after that we swap places a couple of
occasions before I held it all together. Still I had to constantly check for
his presence, which I believed why I couldn't put in a really good lap time.
But then it was all very Fun!! Graeme and me shared some
good laugh after the race too.

During Heat 2, Louis, Leo, Tony & Mary-Ann DNF due to several reasons.

And upon completing the 15 laps of Heat 2, I finished the race 6th which
is higher than my target finish, also I was not been lapped by the front
runners. Nice!

Till the next race!

How do you start a race

On 9 Nov, Sunday, I will participate in a race once again
after a long long absence.
Quite delighted that I can race again in my kart.
However, I will be going into this race doing my best but
expecting nothing. The reason being I need to get into the
flow of things once again. It's tough to just get in and race.

My aim for this race is to finish among the 1st eight and
get a point. It was will difficult, because this race will have
most of the very good seasoned kart racers in it.
So, my another aim is not to be lap by the front leaders and
to be consistent in my own pace.

Wish me "God Speed"
---------

The key to getting a good start is confidence and self-assurance. The biggest problem for drivers at the start of a race is that they get a sensory overload. There is just way too much going on around them to be able to make the right move at the right time.

Normally to get over being overloaded I would suggest get out and practice, but there is a limited supply of race starts….you don’t get to practice starts enough. So use the next best thing. Visualization.

Sounds like psychological rubbish I know, but frankly it works wonders with my drivers and will make your starts go much better if you take it seriously. Here’s what you need to do.

1. Take time out before your race and sit down somewhere relatively quiet. Take a look at where you are starting, who is beside you and who is in front.

2. Now make a plan of exactly how you want your start to go. Lets imagine you are starting in 8th place with a grid of 20. You need to make a plan about how your perfect start will go. Imagine that you are going to fly across the line. Pass the guy inside you going over the line and then stuff it up the inside of the 6th place kart into the first corner.

3. You need to make this plan seem real! So say to yourself exactly what’s going to happen. Make decisions about every move you are going to make.

4. Then sit there and imagine exactly how the whole of the first lap will go. And you have to imagine the best first lap ever. Passing a kart every opportunity.

Ok, so now you have a mental plan of the start, if you take it seriously you will feel a sense of confidence and power on your way to the grid.

Here’s the next step.

Sit in your kart on the dummy grid. Go through the plan you made earlier and visualize that perfect first lap again. Now, the next thing is to prepare yourself to take control of the other drivers around you. Chances are they are not nearly as prepared as you are right now. So you have the advantage over them and you are the most confident driver there!

The rolling lap. This is the time to really think over how your planned start is going to happen. Focus on the kart ahead of you and stick to the rear of that kart like glue. Don’t worry if you give it a few bumps here and there…you really need to stay close.

The start. Here is the most important practical piece of advice I can give you. Whatever happens you have to go first. You have to accelerate before the driver ahead of you. Now, you might say that it’s too risky to do that because you will hit him…..But, you won’t hit him if you stick to his bumper so close that there is never any space between you! So if you push him gently over the line that’s fine, at least he didn’t get away. So, if you are always so close to the driver in front that you are touching, then you will be able to hit the gas before him without the worry that you will whack him up the arse and crash!

And once you get over the line you are into your plan.

Make the moves, make that perfect first lap happen.

from http://www.karting1.co.uk/starts-karting.htm

Seb Loeb does it again!

If you follow WRC, Loeb is like the M.Schumacher of F1.
His driving is always close to perfect, neat without any mistakes
and very fast! Congrats to Seb!

With him winning another title, Red Bull, the main sponsor of Citroen,
he will get to test a RBR F1 car soon.
------
Sebastien Loeb won his fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship title from only six full seasons of WRC competition. He done it by coming in 3rd in Rally Japan over the weekends.

This score takes Loeb and his co-driver Daniel Elena clear of the record they previously shared with Juha Kankkunen and, more especially, Tommi Makinen, who was the only driver before them to rack up four consecutive championship wins (1996 to 1999).

After a jubilant return to the Citroen service area in Sapporo this afternoon Loeb reflected on his achievement. "It's a fantastic feeling," beamed Sebastien. "Along with Daniel and everyone in the team, the objective we set ourselves for this year was to win another world crown, and it's tremendously satisfying to have met that target today. I really wanted to wrap up the title here in Japan to enable us to go into Wales Rally GB with a totally free mind. That made the weekend very long and very frustrating, and I have to say that it wasn't much fun. Our C4 and our Pirelli tyres worked very well together on this event, though, and we did what we could to keep any thoughts about the championship out of our minds, but it wasn't easy. The title just seemed to loom larger after every stage, and it was well worth the wait in the end!"

"I cannot say whether this year's title is any finer than the others," continued Seb. "I will always have special memories of our first crown and I don't want to give the impression that winning is something you get accustomed to; it's just that each title feels different. One thing that has been the same each time is the thrill of being able to share our joy with everyone in the team. They have always given us a car with the potential to challenge for victory, and this is their title, too. That includes Dani Sordo and Marc Marti whose own results contributed to our success. Our thoughts now turn to Cardiff where we will try to make it a championship double for Citroen..."

"It's been a long year, but winning the title is such a great feeling," agreed Daniel Elena. "This is our fifth world crown together, and each one has given me tremendous pleasure. I'm not interested in the statistics, though; what counts the most is enjoying the stages, profiting from the terrific atmosphere within the team and working with Seb."

After the podium ceremony, team boss Olivier Quesnel was clearly moved by his first title as the new boss of Citroen Sport: "It's very, very satisfying," he said. "The fact that Sebastien and Daniel have sewn up the Drivers' title means we have now achieved half the target we set ourselves before the start of the season. We will take time to celebrate today's result with all the Citroen Sport staff back at our base in Satory, but we will then immediately re-focus with a view to wrapping up the Manufacturers' crown in Wales.”

from wrc.com

Lewis Hamilton is World Champion!

After 18 races around the globe, Lewis Hamilton is now World Champion
by a single point from Massa!
I guess I don't have to say much of frantic last 30 seconds of the race.
If you have not watched it 'live', watch the repeat !
Never in my wildest dream I would think such drama will be played
on a F1 race!

Well done, & congrats Lewis

Slow is Faster

1 Nov, 2008

Went to the track in the morning when it is still raining
very much cats and dogs. I am seriously thinking of
sleeping in instead of karting....

But I'm glad I went in. Because while my friend is awaiting
for his kart to be ready, he tried out my kart.
Seriously, before he tried, I had serious doubt abut my kart
overall. I felt it was slow. I felt it has no low end torque, which
mean I loses out at almost every corner exit.

However, my friend love my kart after he tried it out and
bring it to a fast time around the track.
WOW!! Then I realised something when he talk me through
his laps with my kart and when we 'race' together later on.

I realised that my kart is indeed faster at some points of the
track, which is why I loses out. I carried too much speed into
the corners and hence exited too slowly. With my brake all
good now, I should discard my resident fear of brake failures
and utilized it properly. I must control my speed into the corners
for a slower entry speed, which will give me a smooth faster speed
exit into the next section of the track.

The next race will be on 9 Nov, I'm looking forward to it.
It should be interesting.

PS. and thanks to my friend who shown me that my kart isn't
too crap after all! i do think i need a instructor!

PSS. hope the kid who crashed his race kart into the fun kart
and overturn with him flying out of the kart is of no serious
condition.