With the extra customs, and laborious additional paperwork now required following Brexit the advanced party left the yard in Kent Wednesday lunchtime and headed to the “inland customs facility” and waited – full of enthusiasm and totally clue-less about what to do next ! A man in the office took our paperwork away and said he’d text us. We waited, all three trucks, the “JH Haulage” Unit and John with no 41 on our trailer, the “Povey Transport” Unit and Martin, with no 40 on our trailer, and the 7.5 tonne support truck with Colin and Toby along with three other team members Sam, Archie and Guy – waiting! A text, at last, after almost 2 hours, but what now ? We were free !… and off to Dover, to queue for the ferry – we “brits” do love a good queue! Safely over the channel and into France (yes, they did let us in, surprising I know, even Guy!) and to French customs for another “queuing” opportunity, in the rain, we proudly presented our precious documents. The documents were stamped (again) and thrust back into our soggy mitts with a wild gesture and the single word “go” – we needed no other instruction! We left the compound, along with John Powells team (who were on the same ferry crossing), after barely 10 minutes and in “convoy” headed southwest to Le Mans, 3 race trucks, 2 teams, ….for 7 hours of driving.
Best not to mention Rouen, save to say if you were there “you know” and if you’ve even been to Rouen then you probably still know ! |It’s a little like Dr Who’s Tardis, it looks simple enough looking at it from the outside, but once you’re in, you’re in, and getting out requires more “double sixes” than we had to hand!
With the statutory break needed by the professional drivers, we pulled up into the Le Mans circuit shortly after 7 am on the Thursday morning….and went to sleep. For those that know the team well our 7.5 tonne support truck has 5 beds in the back, and the two tractor units that we borrow from our sponsors (THANK YOU JH Haulage and Povey Transport) have beds too.
We had barely one hours sleep before being woken up – apparently, we’d parked in the wrong place – really? It’s what our map said, oh right the map was wrong – and that’s somehow “our“ fault. So, wake up, put our stuff away and start driving … again. This time right in through the front gates of Le Mans circuit, and straight into the paddock – which had opened at 9 in any case, and so day 2 began…or really the second half of day one!
On the Thursday we set up “camp” for the event, prior to the remaining team members arriving on the Thursday afternoon ahead of testing on the Friday.
Testing was productive, with a few minor issues being ironed out on both trucks, and some “experimentation” with suspension settings undertaken to improve the handling. No 41 “Frankie” was looking strong, with both trucks being deemed race-ready by their respective drivers – Archie and Simon.
The format of the meeting was a little different, as the British championship was taking on the European “schedule” for the weekend with a warmup, then qualifying, race 1, (reverse grid) race 2 and then rinse and repeat for Sunday. An all Truck weekend, the FIA European Truck Racing Championship (ETRC), the British Truck Racing Championship (BTRC) and the French national Truck racing championship too, plus a huge “show and shine” event and truck and accessory exhibition – 50 to 60 top notch race trucks heading onto the infamous Le Mans track – including a night race in the French series followed by fireworks.
Qualifying on Saturday went as we’d expected, with 41 turning in some excellent lap times against a slightly increased field of Division 2 competitors, and the ageing no 40 giving the opportunity for Archie to get in some valuable track time on this iconic circuit.
As to the races, both trucks performed admirably, with “Frankie” our Iveco handling better than ever before, following a year of “nip and tuck” development work, and Simon bringing her home for a 3rd and a 2nd place finish on Saturday and getting to stand on the infamous Le Mans podium – what a result! Archie had so much fun entertaining the highly appreciative crowd in the uncompetitive Volvo, his sideways style generating rounds of applause at every corner, as his lap times tumbled down relentlessly over the course of the day.
Personally, having had about 14 hours sleep in 4 days, it was all a bit of a blur, with the true significance of the occasion only really “sinking in” when watching the “live stream” on repeat a week later from a comfy armchair at home!!! (I can legitimately blame “the French” for my lack of sleep in part – having had a few beers with the French no 42 truck team on the Friday night – great lads!)
A few adjustments were made here and there with suspension settings, water pressures and tyre pressures between the Saturday and Sunday, with a few sets of tyres being used up on the front along with a new set of brake discs and pads.
Sunday started at dawn with the warmup and a further qualifying, then 2 more races on the iconic track. The slightly increased field of division 2 drivers pushed Simon off the podium on the Sunday with two 4th places and two 5th places for Archie, however as these drivers were not competing in the championship, even though they took the trophies, they didn’t take the championship points. So, while 4th and 5th on the day, the championship points recorded were those for 2nd and 3rd places. So, Cole Truck Sport (CTS) left Le Mans, with one meeting left, as 2nd and 3rd in Division 2 of the BTRC…. And of course, the silverware from Saturday with Simons 2nd and 3rd place trophies.
Then the journey home began, and another missed night’s sleep … but what a weekend. Thank you to all the knowledgeable spectators who came to see the racing and who came to meet us in the paddock,
An excellent result for the team, with no significant damage or mechanical defects to either truck. While we were at the track, the very friendly and knowledgeable FIA ETRC teams shared some of their vast experiences and engineering tips with us (THANK YOU Stephanie Halm and Norbert Kiss) and we hope to have a significantly improved “Frankie” at the next meeting and season finale at Brands Hatch… so watch this space….
Numerically we can’t lose 2nd in the championship … but we could win it still ……. and Archie could come 3rd in his debut season….EVERYTHING still to fight for…
See you at Brands Hatch for the fireworks and “Think Pink” ; November 2nd and 3rd – we suggest you buy your tickets ASAP – it’s the only event on the Brands Hatch calendar that sells out….
THANK YOU to ALL our wonderful sponsors; to the businesses who help us out in kind, or with cash (although we accept cheques too of course!), we could NOT do this without you ALL – no matter how big or small your help – this team of family and friends could not do this without YOU. YOU made it possible for Simon, and now Archie, and put father and son on the track as much as the rest of this family and friends based team. THANK YOU. (but we always need more help of course).
Come and see us all, cheer on Archie and Simon and “THINK PINK” at the Circuit if you can – we are always happy to chat and show you our race trucks – unless we are repairing them of course, in which case best to give us some space to work safely.
If you cannot visit the track, then remember to check out the “BARC” live feed on YouTube – or of course on “catch up” later.
CTS#41 and CTS#40; Simon, Archie, John, Conner, John, Colin, Sam, Toby, Martin & Guy
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