Kyalami. Even if you aren’t a motoring enthusiast you know what that name refers to. It is South Africa’s best known race circuit and, arguably, the country’s most famous piece of asphalt. This circuit has played host to Formula One Grands Prix, World Super Bike and Moto GP events, not to mention countless national championship, regional and club races. If there is one track in SA that boasts worldwide recognition it is this particular 4,2 km stretch lying on the Gauteng’s Midrand.
This hallowed piece of petrolhead territory played host to the final round of the 2012 Wesbank Super Series. It also happened to be the very last time that the financial house lent its name to the national circuit racing championship as it has subsequently pulled its sponsorship.
As you may already know I have been part of the racing roadshow this year as a competitor in the Engen VW Cup series. This was a work assignment that was both extremely fun and scary all at the same time. I have competed in all eight rounds of the season with mixed results (you can find links to previous race reports at the bottom of this page).
Kyalami was scheduled to host two rounds of the season, but for various reasons the earlier event was cancelled and therefore this was our first visit to the only anti-clockwise track in SA. It was also my very first visit there as a race driver. I have attended a few new vehicle launches at Kyalami but nothing compares to a pukka racecar.
Free practice
Even before arriving at the circuit for Friday’s practice I knew that would be facing an uphill task. Many of the competitors from the Polo Cup series (and most other series) are based in Gauteng and have raced or practiced here before. Thanks to various work obligations, I was unable to practice at the circuit prior to the race weekend. I know quite a few people across the various formulas and all had warned me that Kyalami is extremely technical and daunting to drive… Something I was to find out as the weekend developed.
I went out in free practice one with little expectation of challenging the time sheets, and thank goodness I did. As I tried to find my way around the 13-turn track following other cars when I had the chance, I realised that I had lots to learn. When FP1 ended I was second last of the 29 runners, and worse still a woeful 11 seconds off the pack; an age in terms of lap times.
Through FP2 and 3 I didn’t fare much better. It was taking me too long to learn the circuit and especially to commit to the high-speed turns. I was losing large chunks of time at T1 (flat in 5th gear for most), Sunset and the left-hander at the bottom of the Mineshaft (also flat in 5th). By the time the day ended I was only one second closer to the field.
Multiple saloon car champion, racecar preparation expert, and my driving mentor this year, Graeme Nathan was pragmatic about my performance, or lack thereof. He tried to comfort me by explaining that Kyalami is the sort of track that was never going to be perfected in a day. Despite his words I left the track dejected.
Qualifying
After a quiet evening spent with friends and family I drove to the track on Saturday and decided to put the disappointment of the previous day behind me. With fresh rubber on the CAR magazine Polo Vivo and a light fuel load, I went out to qualify. I had one thought in my head: “Have fun”. It was the last race of the season, and probably my Polo Cup racing career and I was intent on enjoying the last moments of it.
I guess that removing the pressure from myself really helped. I drove as fast as I dared within my own limits and chose not to follow other cars around. I wanted the circuit all to myself. When the flag fell I had managed a lap time that was FOUR seconds faster than I had managed the day before. Perhaps I could have gone quicker in someone else’s slipstream but it didn’t matter, I had SO much fun.
My regular rival Francois van Tonder and Adrian Wood didn’t manage flying laps in the session and would start race one behind me in 29th and 30th places. Another competitor didn’t manage two flying laps in in qualifying, which put me in 27th for the start of race two.
Race one
I have been decent off the start line and I got a good launch in race one, which managed to get me ahead of a few of the guys that out-qualified me. I knew that the opening stages of the race were my best chance to duke it out as my lack of pace meant that the field would eventually run away from me. I held off a few guys through the opening sequence of the lap. As they fought each other for position I drove it as neat as I could. I knew that it wouldn’t last and when the eventual overtaking moves were made I didn’t put up too much resistance.
I circulated at a less than ideal pace through the middle part of the race as I knew I could not catch the guys ahead. Van Tonder was some way behind me, having spun off twice. Two laps from the end, Andrea Bate was bumped off at the tight right-hander known as The Bowl. I passed her as she tried to recover from the sand trap. In the closing stages she chased me hard and I knew that she was quicker, but with the laps running out she didn’t have enough time to catch up. When the flag dropped I was in 28th place of 30 finishers.
Race two
Race two was held just a few hours later and was also an eight lap affair. Tensions were running high and many predicted that there would be a serious incident. Again I managed a good start and pulled up to the field ahead. I was running up about five positions ahead of my qualifying slot as we jostled through turns 1 and 2. And that’s when the carnage started…
I am not sure who initiated it all, but by the time I had arrived at the scene there were cars going in every direction. With every split second another car was being tagged sending debris flying through the air. I hit a flying side-mirror and narrowly avoided a bumper. I knew that the chances of being collected by an out-of-control car was high and as several cars were bouncing off the wall on the left-hand side I aimed right.
I drove around the outside of the ensuing chaos taking to the kerbs and then the outfield to avoid others trying to evade the large accident. I must have gained several positions in the melee as some drivers were extremely cautious. Only a few corners later the red flags were waved frantically by the marshalls. We all slowed and headed back to the grid.
After a prolonged wait for the wrecked cars and debris to be removed, as well as some quick repair work to the tyre wall and Armco barriers, the start-line marshalls gave us the signal for a restart. Eight cars were removed from proceedings and from the diminished grid we all got away cleanly.
There was the usual opening-lap bumping and barging, but not to any serious end. Again I found myself ahead of a few cars in the opening stages, but that didn’t last long. Faster drivers made their way by and I was running in second-last place ahead of Van Tonder.
In the closing laps the drivetrain in my car started to feel a little rough and I backed off the pace significantly. Van Tonder overtook but egged me on, waving his arm out of the driver’s window for me to keep up. The engine felt very flat and I just wanted the car to last to the checquered flag. The sporting gent that he is, Van Tonder, also in his rookie season and not making a return in 2013, slowed to let me catch him as we approached the finish line. As we had done many times this year we finished in close proximity crossing the line side-by-side 0,3 of a second apart.
My final finishing position for the year was 20 of 21. Thanks to the large rate of attrition for the day my overall classification was 19 of the 30 entries.
An emotional moment
I have to admit that I was a little emotional as I drove the cool-down lap. I waved to all the marshalls – they always applaud every single competitor in every race, regardless of position and I really appreciate that – and the few fans that were dotted in the grandstands.
Racing in a high-level, competitive series was really a dream come true for me. The year was trying for many reasons, there were great races and some real low points, but I survived my very first full season of racing and most importantly I had fun doing it.
I managed to score points on a few occasions and in the final points log I placed 11th out of 15 in the Masters Class (for driver’s over 27) and 31 of the 42–driver Polo Cup entry list for 2012. Not too shabby, even if I do say so myself…
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