Kart City, Santry , 21st October 2009
Event Report:
Event number 2 of the year saw us head to Santry for the first time this year. Another Championship event, most notable as Championship Leader Willie Coyne could not show up, it allowed others to capitalise on this, none more so than likely championship contender and DCU KartSoc Treasurer Kevin Martin who having missed out on the first event in Kylemore and had catching up to do. Also making her first appearance of the season was Maria Kehoe, again, an experienced karter who did not attend the first trip and herself had some catching up to do in the Ladies Championship.
Given the heavy rain that fell in the morning, as we arrived at the track in the afternoon it was safe to say that it was SODDEN! But in true KartSoc style, we carried on regardless. Just cos the water was streaming over the track isn't going to put us off. In fact, it is on a wet track that you really discover who your best drivers are! Within seconds on the track it became apparent how wet it actually was. Drivers came out of the karts after a few practice laps and were soaking...unless they were wearing a DCU KartSoc Jacket that is! :D Despite this the day was still fantastic fun and it's fair to say the rain helped add to the craic.
On the track, it was business as usual, with many rookie drivers fighting to cope with the lack of grip on the corners and even the change of racing lines requied to get the most out of the lap. As expected in the heats, it was the experienced heads of reigning Champion Mark Egan and Treasurer Kevin Martin (both of whom work on this track) who were performing strongest. Kev was however forced to settle for 2nd place in one of his early heats as, starting from the back of the grid, he battled through the pack to 2nd, only to find that Maria Kehoe's lead was too much to contend with.
The final saw a return to last season's form with Mark Egan and Kevin Martin battle it out for 1st place with Kev taking it in the end. V-go! placed 3rd for the 2nd time in a row to prove that he has come a long way over the last few years and that his experience and gym training are really helping his track form. 1st year Eoin Mooney, surprised many to finish 4th on a wet track, amongst a final of experienced karters to take home a valuable 8 points for not only the DCU Drivers Championship but also for the 1st Year Championship.
A surprise performance from Secretary Tom Darcy saw him qualify for the final and finish well in 5th place in what would turn out to be the beginning of some solid form for him this season. Maria Kehoe finished 6th overall to earn 5 points for the main championship and also take a share of the lead in the Ladies Championship on 15 points. The remaining places in the final were rounded off by James King, Jeff Dalton and Jimy Ryan with P.R.O. Declan Clarke failing to finish after a kart failure early in the race left him with too much to do by the time he reached it back to the pits. He still earned 1 point for his efforts and rounded off the drivers who made the final.
So despite the wet, which meant everyone went home quite wet, it was a fantastic trip and the drivers got to warm themselves up after the race with some hot food from the restaurant in Kart City afterwards. The events of the day must really have built up an appetite with all of the drivers as not a spec of food was left behind and with every bowl sent out from the kitchen, it lasted a manner of mere seconds. After this event, we cannot wait to go back to Santry for another race...hopefully in the dry!
Event Results:
Pos. |
Name |
Pts. |
1st |
Kevin Martin |
15 |
2nd |
Mark Egan |
12 |
3rd |
V-Go! |
10 |
4th |
Eoin Mooney (1st Yr) |
8 |
5th |
Tom Darcy |
6 |
6th |
Maria Kehoe |
5 |
7th |
James King |
4 |
8th |
Jeff Dalton |
3 |
9th |
Jimmy Ryan |
2 |
10th |
Declan Clarke |
1 |
Ladies Championship |
||
1st |
Maria Kehoe |
15 |
2nd |
Ioanna Skopetou |
10 |
2nd |
Ovsanna Petrosyan |
10 |
2nd |
Eva Nikol |
10 |
*Ranking for Ladies Championship places beyond 1st place could not be determined. Points awarded based on average of points available for remaining ladies drivers. {i.e. (12+10+8)/3 = 10 pts}
**No fastest lap was recorded by the track, so, in accordance with the rules, no points will be awarded for fastest lap.