Well what can I say Rnd 1 of Drift Challenge Australia at Raleigh International Raceway is done and dusted. The final battle between Stewy Bryant and Nakamura was something out of Option DVD just amazing. I cannot put into words how proud I am of my wifey, Catherine May. Each time she drives at another track she just gets to another level. Her tandem practice with Team Sweet Spot team mate Warwick Fitzgerald is paying off. The course layout asked for something very demanding from Cat and took her out of her comfort zone. A very Japanese style flick over the hill into a tight right hairpin and into left meant she was on the foot brake hard. The RB was bouncing off limiter in 2nd and was breathing a little but nothing too alarming. Day 1 was practice and qualifying, she got the course spot on after practice and threw in a hard qualifying lap. Day 2 was tense, we had to wait till the 3rd qual session to find out if Cat was one of the 32 drivers selected for the Top 32 shoot out. She was amazed to find out she was 13th with a score of 75 equal with veteran Nick Coulson and Jordan Graham. In the top 32 shoot out a chase and lead lane was setup with witches hats middle of a corner which Cat was using to get up speed to the judged corner which threw her off slightly. Still she powered through and Qualified 19th out of a very respectable field. Battle time came along and was paired up against Jay Duca. Jay led first lap and Cat was close on entry and had good speed and line through the first corner but straightened slightly into the 2nd corner. Second lap Cat led and her entry into the first corner was epic, full front wheel lock up and good speed through the second turn. Jay was certainly worried but sadly her straighten in her chase gave Jay the advantage. Its a shame she didnt go through but how she progressed over the weekend is amazing. Her driving style and aggression is really starting to come through. It was awesome to have Nakamura comment on how cool the car looked and loved the BN style. Cat was lucky enough to have Miki sign her dash and ask to tandem with her. Well done to Luke Fink and his crew at DCA, a great first event and with a few minor tweaks Rnd 2 will be even better. I think its certainly a step in the right direction and will help grow this sport and can easily work in conjunction with Australian Drifting Grand Prix. Where one breeds a competitive and aggressive driver with the freestyle event while ADGP can help provide a platform for those that want to take the next step in competition with a wider mainstream audience in a more formal structure. Im certainly excited for the future of drift in Australia and if everyone can forget about their past indifferences and move forward working together one can only dream how far this gets. Big thanks to Pinky and Choonga for coming up for the road trip and for being such awesome pit crew and cheer squad for Cat.
Posted on: Sun, 29 Jun 2014 09:37:50 +0000
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