05 June 2006 - Testing and
Race Entry
Chequebook
at the ready, it's time to enter the first race. Our first event will
be a double-header at the BRSCC's Club Raceday at Snetterton. The entry
forms for the championship are available from the championship web site
in the same way as the championship registration forms were previously,
or can be obtained directly from the championship coordinator. The BRSCC
forms provided allow single-entry or a Race Entry Service form which
allows you to plan your season in advance, but I'm going for the single
entry in this instance. Form filled and posted, I phone Snetterton
direct to organise some testing.
The majority of circuits offer an open test day prior
to race events, in this case on Friday before racing on Saturday. Circuit
contact details are available from the venue's own web site or many
are listed within the Circuit Guides on
this site. The circuit will be able to tell you the dates, availability
and format of their test days and after handing over credit card details,
I'm book in to a half-day session. This will provide 2 x 50 minute sessions
for open-wheel cars to get to grips with the circuit layout and a first
chance to spend time on track with other cars.
As I haven't driven the Jedi before, and because it is
only just being completed, we also phone the Bruntingthorpe proving
ground in Leicestershire. This track can be booked by the hour, and
with a maximum of six cars at the venue at any time, provides and excellent
way to shakedown test and get to grips with a new car in relative isolation.
A couple of hours here before the Snetterton test will allow me to practice
standing starts, and get used to the basics of driving the car, using
the sequential gearbox and get a feel for the 'slicks and wings' experience.
Within a couple of days, confirmations from Snetterton
and the BRSCC arrive to let me know that everything has been processed
and all systems are go.
10 June 2006 - Final Fitting
The MSportUK Mk.4 Jedi is close to completion so another
trip down to the headquarters of Jedi Racing Cars in Wellingborough
is the task of the day. The car is almost entirely built with only the
drivechain and gear linkage to be fitted so we take the opportunity
to ensure that everything fits as it should. That way, when we get to
Brunty, we can be ready to roll.
First
on the agenda is fitting the belts. The foam seat which we formed on
the previous visit back in January has now
been 'upholstered' in tape and is a snug fit and I settle down into
the cockpit. The low-slung seating position in the Jedi necessitates
a six-point harness, the crotch straps ensuring I can't slip under the
other belts in the event of a collision. Getting into a comfortable
position, the belts are tightened and adjusted to hold me in place.
Some further adjustment of the foam backrest is needed and notches are
cut allowing the belts to sit lower onto my shoulders.
Once the belts are sorted, attention turns to the dash
where the steering wheel position is hiding the important rev counter
and temperature guages. After some playing around with positions, we
opt to reverse the flat-bottomed steering wheel to a flat-topped orientation
allowing a clearer view of the instruments. The Jedi team also check
positions of the pedals and ensure that everything is comfortable and
within reach.
With the final touches being made to the mechanicals of
the car, we turn our attention to the cosmetics. The paint that we had
chosen had arrived and the bodywork was being prepared for spraying.
The car will be what we have come to know as "purplish blue",
more accurately matched to 1993 Renault Azur Policia - a colour apprently
used on Spanish police cars, but also a fair match for MSportUK Purple.
The regulations
for Class A of the Formula Jedi Championship state that our race numbers
must be white digits on a red background so, in the interest of style,
we're adding a white crest to the nose and engine cowling onto which
the red square can sit. After some experimentation into sticker positions,
we're happy to hand the livery over to Jedi's in-house paint team to
work their magic.
Once the gear linkage is in-place, the remaining tasks
are to add the rear wing support, mount the completed bodywork and install
the wings and wheels before the first test, now only three days away.
