Oulton Park 30/10.
The second outing of my torturous fortnight for the Clio. Up at 4am to make the 4 hour journey across to Cheshire, the closer I got, the wetter it got and I had another sense on impending doom. New to me, bumpy, unforgiving track in the wet? Oh no...
I arrived to meet a couple friends from one of the many Facebook groups out there, thankfully Chris was also trying to run the MRFs in the wet so I felt a bit better about running those. Sighting laps done and the car felt good, ended up softening the car by around 6 clicks front and 4 rear, this helped with the understeer a lot! As much as you can on semi slicks in the wet anyway.
Got out on track and gingerly tiptoed around, got to Island Bend and the red flags were out. "Oh no!" I cried to myself while swearing a lot. A Mk2 Golf had run out of grip, talent, brakes and track on the first corner, battered the recticel barrier and punted a tyre stack a fair way. A lengthy recovery and repair was in order. This was the first of 3 red flags.
Tannoy call came over - "Track re-opens in 1 minute!". Scuttle off to my car, got strapped in, got lined up and away we go again! 3rd corner... Red flags. "FishFinger Sandwiches!" I hollered. Someone had fallen off the track through Knickerbrook and belted the barrier, kicking mud all over the track. They'd limped the car back to the pits but a tidy up and repair was required, so we retired to the pits once more.
3rd time's a charm! By this point the sun had come out and a dry line was appearing, the MRFs soon started working well, REALLY well. I'd stiffened the rear up at this point after Chris and Dave both mentioned it would help rotate the car on turn in. It worked! Once again the Clio did what it does best, endless laps with no issues.
After about 15 laps I'd gotten more comfortable with the car and the track so I started pushing on a bit harder. I'd finally felt more confidence in the brakes to lean on them a bit harder, the PBS ProRace pads were working well but still lack overall feel. I'd actually say they perform close to the DS Uno I nabbed from Ben but for half the price.
Got another session in by the time lunch rolled around, I decided to eat early this time. Wandered to the restaurant with the intention of a light snack, maybe a baguette or a jacket spud. Of course not. I was full to the brim and ready to vomit in my helmet. We had a walk down to watch the action when it resumed, we decided to stand at Dentons to watch people fly into Cascades. It didn't take long before a yellow flag was shown for a Leon Cupra who'd somehow managed to do a 180 spin in the air across wet grass and keep it out of the barrier! He ended up in the gravel. Red Flag 3 we all thought. Somehow he'd got going again from the kitty litter and seemed to stay off line back to the pits with his tail firmly between his legs. Probably swallowed by his bumhole!
Out in the car again, more and more laps done, getting quicker and braver every time. Some of the corners I was taking in 3rd with part throttle (Cascades, Druids and Lodge) at the start of the day were taken flat in 3rd/4th as required. I'd also stopped myself from lifting on the approach to Cascades, 4th gear seemed to keep the car settled and felt faster all day.
Came in around 3.40ish. Sweating my tits off at this point as I'd been working hard and the temperature was up to a heady 13 degrees, blue skies and sunshine! As the day was drawing to a close we all went out for a final session, I pulled in early as I nearly wet myself through Deer Leap, apparently the compression is enough to challenge a full bladder! Everyone else (bar 1) came back in as it was silly season. I'd got back in the car to burn off the remaining 1/4 tank of fuel, got the the pitlane marshal and he held me there. Another red flag. One of our lot had caused it! I didn't realise at the time until I saw him being towed back into the pits. His freshly imported Impreza Spec C had thrown a bearing and uncle Rodney had come to visit. An expensive lap for him!
I was first out so I got some heat into the MRFs fairly quick and pressed on. I'd been chased by a quick young lady in a race prepped MGZR, I had the legs on her though and managed to stay ahead. Has a few moments trying to push a little too hard and decided to call it quits for the day. Loaded up ready for the 4 hour journey home.
All in all, Oulton Park is a phenomenal track, one I'd got the hang of it I loved it! It's gunna be an expensive time next year as I'd really like to go a couple more times!
Pictures and video to follow. I'm absolutely knackered now, up at 4am, 8 hours of driving to and from the track and a mostly full day on track!
