Well, less than three months actually, but either way, what seemed like a distant fantasy is now rapidly bearing down on us. Thankfully, solid progress on our entry has been made in all aspects, so the inevitable onset of panic remains absent for the time being.
Since my last update way back in September last year, the majority of the effort has unsurprisingly gone in to the car build. Tucked away in a cold, dusty barn in deepest rural Herefordshire resides our race car, affectionately named “Sodpig”. Just about every Sunday since I care to remember, auto mechanic superstar Luke Eversham (assisted/hindered by yours truly) has beavered away on the little Mazda, transforming it from an innocent sports convertible into a bonafide racing thoroughbred!
Although the technical regulations of the Ma5da MX5 Championship are very restrictive (there’s not a great deal you can do on the engine nor aero), turning an eighteen-year-old road car into an MSA-compliant race car requires a thorough attention to detail on all components to ensure it’s race-worthy, safe and hopefully fairly reliable.
At the time of writing, the last “big” job on the to do list is overhauling the engine, although there’s still plenty of seemingly-small jobs that usually end up demanding more time than you estimate. If all goes to plan we’re probably on track to finish the build by the end of February, giving us just over a month to squeeze in a bit of testing.
Away from the car build, our race entry has recently been accepted by the organisers (fairly important I suppose) and the car will be adorning the number 9 this season. Logistics have been considered, with team owner Keith Ratcliffe purchasing a motorhome and Brian James shuttle trailer to ensure the team and car travel in style and comfort.
Last but not least, we have a new sponsor on board – Twenty Seventeen Ltd. Based in Hereford, 2017 offer a huge range of printing and marketing services and pride themselves on their customer service. 2017 will be providing the graphics work for the car and trailer, along with all the team racewear and will be present at most of the race meetings. Needless to say, we’re chuffed to have them on board.
Next steps? Finish off the car and get some track time under our belts. Stay tuned!
