Blog A Day: Day 13 - Fantastic Friday!

Thursday 12th December, 2024 Good evening! Welcome to today’s Blog a day! I’ve started writing this one at 11:52pm - you think I’ll make it for today?!??!

Haha, absolutely not. That’s why I’m going to make the most of the two “cancelled” races tomorrow (both at Thruxton) - meaning I have an hour’s extra sleep. Nice.

I’ll combine today’s and tomorrow’s into a megablog. Night.

~ Thursday

Thursday's theme was "Three Races - Three Continents", the day seeing racing activity in North America, Asia and Europe

North America: Charlotte Motor Speedway, USA

Symkhana (Rallycross with road cars) returned to the states after nipping over to Hell for the previous day.

All in all, it was a bittersweet race. I started 2nd/4th, and finished 4th after side-by-side contact left me facing the wall. With so much time loss - and no way to make up the time lost with my rallycross skill-level, it was very much done and dusted on the opening lap.

Asia: Suzuka, Japan

Starting off at Suzuka for my first race in this season's Week 13 GT3 Challenge, I qualified 7th.

On the run into turn 2, I had a car on my inside, whom proceeded to tag/spin me - I'd spin out and fall to the back of the field.

The rest of the race was a recovery mission back up to 7th.

Due to an update, my settings reset including "ask to save replay on quit" - as it didn't ask, I didn't remember to save the replay.

~ Europe: Monza, Italy Next up, I flew to Monza, Italy, for the 13th Week Ridiculousness Series, which ran an incredibly unique layout of Monza - starting off by utilising the abandoned oval, before looping around to start a lap of modern Monza - a lap-time almost reaching 3 minutes.

After qualifying 14th, I didn't much like the prospect of 28 cars barrelling down into the Monza oval - not least because it was multiclass.

Not helping matters were a pair of BMW M2's (slower than TCR's) starting in 11th and 12th - had I started the race, I would have been directly behind these two.

I started from the pits and my fears played out exactly as I imagined - 9 cars getting wiped out from the race on the first lap alone - the two M2's causing anarchy (and a pile-up) off the line - followed by the predicted pile-up on the Monza oval caused by...you guessed it - some Supercars trying to pass the M2's but the lot of them all getting tangled up with one another.

Due to the amount of smoke and debris, my frame-rate was suffering BADLY (lower Frames Per Second/FPS/"lots of lag") - and as I arrived on the scene, there was nothing I could do but try my best to avoid the car-park on the oval. I only just got away with a small bump - not ideal at a aero-essential track like Monza, but there was nothing else I could do.

By Lap 2, just 17 remained -

28th - Washenko - DNS

27th - Sychikov - DNS

26th - Johnson - DNS

25th - Gorowski - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-up) - Banking

24th - Flatters - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-Up) - Banking

23rd - Joseph - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-Up) - Banking

22nd - Tian - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-Up) - Banking

21st - Salada - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-Up) - Banking

20th - Durant - DNF (Lap 1 Pile-Up) - Turn 1 (Rettifillo)

19th - McNelis - DNF (Lap 1 - Parabolica - Damage from T1 incident)

18th - Mahone - DNF (Lap 1 - Parabolica - Crash With P1)

With many having to pit for repairs, by the end of Lap 2, I was now in 12th position, thanks partially due to an overtake on the driver ahead.

(17th - Miles - DNF - Lap 2) (18th - Zandberg - DNF - Lap 3)

(16th - Nguyen - DNF - Lap 3 - No Crash)

(15th - Dosdall - DNF - Lap 4 - Wiped out of lead)

By Lap 5, I entered the Top 10, another on-track overtake and the leader being wiped out helped this progress.

My final position would come on lap 7 as P7 would suffer a mechanical failure (hardware failure/screen-freeze) which would put him into the wall. I'd finish the race 9th after starting 25th. A very good day out, and very chaotic race

Series	Track	Result
(W13) GT3 Challenge	Suzuka	7th --> 7th
13th Wk. Ridiculousness	Monza	DNR
Funny Weather Series	Nurb. Nords	1st --> 2nd
Symkhana	Daytona	2nd --> 4th

Europe (2): Nurburgring Nordschliefe (Funny Weather)

Funny Weather and an absolutely BONKERS race - so bonkers in fact, that I crashed out on the opening lap, and by the end of the race, I finished 2nd in class AND overall.

On this day, I started 3rd/4th - my worst start-position of Week 13 thus far

It seemed like it was the race nobody wanted to win, as many had a shot at the win - but none could take it.

It was a nightmare start for me as I tried to overtake 3rd around the outside at Hatzenbach, but he aqua-planed and tapped me into a meeting with Barry R. (barrier).

I'd limp around with no bumper until Foxhole, before crashing out - I aqua-planed in a puddle at the bottom of Foxhole and from there was just a passenger.

It was strange though as I lost it in an almost straight line (small stream running across track)

The Race Nobody Wanted To Win...

Sharing the grid with myself and my 3 GT4 compatriots were 8 GT3's.

They were absolutely the favourites to win - but somehow, come the end of the race, the podium would be made up of two GT4's and a BMW M2.

Starting from pole was Kessel in his Acura (Honda) NSX. He'd lead until Hatzenbach before getting a little greedy on the throttle, overcorrecting and finding the barrier, grass and his third-place opponent.

Silberzahn was looking for a good race and result after qualifying 3rd - but he would collect the spinning/crashing Kessel. He'd continue, but the damage was already done - Emilia down in 5th would also get involved in this incident.

Now in the lead was Julius - he had a perfect opportunity for a clean sweep - he had the lead, Kessel had created a roadblock behind - Julius had a gap - and needed to use it...

Sadly for Julius - today wasn't his day - Lambert behind would touch a puddle under braking into Arembourg, and would come flying down the inside - launching over the kerb, across the grass and back on the track. Julius would take avoiding action, but in doing so, lost two positions - to Kessel (smart choice) and Abbotts - who started the race in 8th! Abbotts behind would take full advantage of the conundrum unfolding and steam through the middle of the pair of two ahead.

Question: Which of the following do you NOT touch in wet weather?

A) Kerbs

B) Puddles C) White Lines D) All Of The Above

If you answered D, you're not Abbotts, who's 5 minutes of fame, lasted a mere 15 seconds on the run down Foxhole - all it took was one kerb, one puddle and one white line and Abbott's race was run and done.

Despite his best efforts to save it, drifting at 126mph through Foxhole in the pouring rain was only going to end one way - and sadly for Abbotts it wasn't a win.

Julius behind did an absolutely phenomenal job to avoid kerbs, walls, lines, puddles and the swerving and sliding Abbotts up ahead - swiftly taking the lead once Abbotts was done.

As the saying goes "life giveth, and life taketh away" - and the same is true with iRacing as a much more confident Ang took the lead off Abbotts - Ang starting from 7th on the grid.

Julius wasn't going to take that and a few corners later attempted to go up the inside of Kallenhard - a move here is tricky enough in the dry, but in the wet - it was only bound to end one way.

Julius got a wheel in a puddle under braking and understeered into the new leader, losing his bumper in the process - Ang being spun at a blind corner, Julius continuing, before pulling over at the side of the track at Bergwerk and returning to the pits.

Unbeknownst to him at the time, Agersi had just inherited the overall lead of the race - even more astonishing was Honegger - in the BMW M2 - he had just inherited 2ND overall - with GT3's and GT4's aplenty - that was remarkable.

But it wasn't meant to be for the plucky M2 - blinded by the spray, he'd drift wide at Pflanzgarten I (approaching the first jump), bounce over the kerb and was then fired into the barrier. Ang had the same luck at the second Pflanzgarten (jump), getting on standing water on the flat kerb and being fired into a barrier later on in the lap.

Ang would attempt to continue with the damage he had, but it just proved to be too much to handle - the car needed a BIG re-build.

With a 1-minute gap to P2, all Agersi needed to do now was bring her home - finishing his remaining lap plus one more...

But the racing gods said no.

Agersi took the dry line upon exiting Foxhole, through a puddle and half-span - devastatingly getting stuck in the barrier, and having to return to the pits.

Teshima, in the BMW M2 was now leading the Funny Weather race - what an incredible turn of events.

For 29 short, beautiful seconds Teshima led* the race in his M2 - starting from 15th and last - he was beating all expectations - a proper last - to - first story...

But again, the tables turned once more - Teshima braking on the white line heading into Schwedenkreuz, losing the back-end and ending up sliding along the barrier. He too would retire.

This meant the provisional win would go to Rochstad-Lim - a driver so quiet, I've only first mentioned him now.

Sure, he was the one who spun me on the opening lap, but from starting on GT4-pole, he had a very quiet race.

"Where's Robin?" I hear you ask - great question.

On the lead lap.

Lim had just gone through Foxhole - Truswell had just finished his repairs. Lim hadn't even started his final lap.

From 12th and last on the opening lap, Truswell completes one single solitary lap and is rocketed up into 3rd.

Just Rochstad-Lim, Honegger (M2) and Truswell remain as Lim starts the final lap - he's the first driver to start the final lap....all race.

But the race wasn't done - with a significant pace advantage over Lim's Porsche, Honegger TOOK THE LEAD on the final lap at Hohe acht and was on course to win in the slowest corner - right up until the very end...

I honestly cannot imagine how Honegger was feeling as he understeered off at the end of the Döttinger Höhe - after all the hard work, after everything - after passing the GT4 leader, it all coming to nothing - he must have been absolutely devastated - beside himself.

But - as the old saying goes - the show must truly go on and indeed it did as Rochstad-Lim took a well-earnt victory - and a hard-fought one at that.

Truswell, after sitting in the pits for one and a half laps, took second - and as the last car remaining, Honegger took third - just hundreds of yards from a historical win.

As they always say - it's not over until the pretty lady sings.

Friday 13th December, 2024

I slowly roll out of bed - feeling refreshed after a good night's sleep ready for another day of racing.

I can't lie, week 13 this year has been absolutely BRUTAL - usually I pick on series and stick to it, but there was just so much good offerings - I couldn't turn them all down.

The real issue is timing. I've got to cram everything in before 11:30am - at 11:30, I make dinner for myself (to eat at work), before then making lunch.

With so many races, it can lead to some pretty early starts.

So I do the races, then at 11:30 I make dinner - sometimes this gets pushed back to 12:30 or later, and then at 1:30pm/2pm, I head off to work until about 10pm/midnight.

Which leaves negative 2 hours to write a blog/blog a day, which is why scheduling has been a little bit funky - but it's about somehow finding the time - creating time out of thin air to write and publish the blog.

I've just about survived 5 days, and I've only got three days until Season 1, 2025 - when the schedule, my sleep-schedule and everything along with it will reset to normal - and I'll have 2 days to write a blog (before the weekend's endurance races) - meaning more time for everything else.

It does mean that everything else (cleaning room etc.) is now on standby - just whilst I get my head, blogs and racing sorted. Priorities? I didn't think so.

Alas...

In terms of Week 13 - today could have gone better, but I'm not going to complain.

Race 1: Symkhana @ Charlotte (Clio VS GR86 - Rallycross Tracks) I'll be brutally honest, the race was one to forget - I had no pace and struggled badly with grip and pace.

From 2nd, I fell to 3rd and stayed there the entire race until the final lap where I picked up 2nd off P2 who crashed on the penultimate lap.

Race 2: Funny Weather @ Nurburgring Nordschliefe

Just like yesterday - started P3, but opted for the pit-strategy as I had a fair few cars behind.

I'd start 21st overall.

On just the opening lap, I'd pass 8/9 of the BMW M2's and quickly gain on the GT4 ahead.

On Lap 2, the former GT4 leader crashed out, gifting me 3rd/a podium.

More interestingly, I was right on the tail of the leading M2.

Purely for bragging rights - and not wanting to be beaten by a slower class car (and be behind the other two GT4's), I made it my mission to try and beat the car ahead.

One "small calamity" from him at Pflanzgarten and I was past.

That's four from four in the Funny Weather Series

Series	Track	Result
(W13) GT3 Challenge	Thruxton	DNR
13th Wk. Ridiculousness	Thruxton	DNR
Funny Weather Series	Nurb. Nords	3rd -->3rd
Symkhana	Charlotte RX	2nd --> 3rd

And with that you're up to date, and I'm off to work!

Tomorrow, 13th Week Ridiculousness returns for some Spa action and Symkhana is at Brands Hatch (RX)!