The first race of the Formula Atlantic Race meeting was the 12 lap sprint race. This counts for 1/3 of the points available and is followed by a 35 lap event which includes a pit stop.
At the start Rouke made a clean get away and the top three finished the lap as they started. Behind Juane Carlos Huarte, however, had an incedent in the hairpin and retired at the end of the lap. Nigel Metcalf inhereted the place.
David Pym made a lightning start, slotting into 5th ahead of Ralph Maiph and Neill Johnson who also made a lightning start. I made a poor start dropping to 12th but while the top 6 settled down quickly places changed behind.
Neill Johnson and Ray both making mistakes in Lap 2 to drop several places. On Lap 4 Gary and David both made mistakes into the hairpin, David overshot and harshly got a stop and go penalty. Gary destroyed the marker cones and continued in sixth place.
Neill was on a charge, however, and was back up to 8th by lap four. During the same lap Thomas spun in the double apex corner hitting the tyres fairly firmly. He retired two laps later with suspension damage.
On Lap 8 Nigel Metcalf binned it at the same corner and dropped to 10th. Up front the other Metcalf was continuing to pressure Rouke with Paul not far behind in third and Ralph and few seconds further back.
By now I was up to pace and chasing 8th placed, Martin Cooper, down. The gap narrowing lap by lap as he struggled, especially in the hairpin, to keep up my improving pace.
By Lap 11 my pink car was breathing right down his neck. Into the hairpin I took my chance and we went round side by side. Cooper got the better run out of the corner and through Knickerbrook he managed to pull a bit of a gap. (picture above for the hairpin)
I tracked him through the first part of the last lap and took the hairpin better than him. I was right with him up towards knickerbrook. I spotted the yellows as Gary had spun there so didn't look to pass but stick with the blue and white car ahead. Entering the corner Cooper seemed to turn a touch too sharply.. his car slid a bit then as it took the jump slid, he caught the slide but it snapped the other way across my path. I spun after contact with him and was fortunate to be able to continue after contact with the tyres up the hill.
Cooper rejoined minus his front wing and with a skewed rear wing while I wasn't sure what damage I had. In the event I think I'd got away with no appreciable damage but still took the last few corners easilly.
A good win for Rouke under pressure from Bret and Paul Langford. I was pleased with eighth in my first FA outing and Neill did very well to recover from poor qualifying to take 5th.
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