It was a very frustrating weekend at Snetterton, a circuit I was really looking forward to as I always go well there. A lack of straightline speed though saw me in the bottom two in all the speed traps, and watching my mirrors in all the races rather than going forward. We’re currently putting all efforts into diagnosing the problem and having it cured by Knockhill.
Saturday started well. No one in the SV team could believe I put the car second on the grid being so slow in the speed traps. Looking back at the onboard I really hooked up what I could in the twisty stuff and if we hadn’t been losing 3-4 mph per speed trap we should have been challenging Robertson for pole.
I messed up the start in the first race and bogged off the line dropping to third. I then spent the rest of the race trying to keep Breeze behind me, and then learned the hard way about using the pit exit at Snetterton and finished fourth.
Sunday showed that by swapping the motor there wasn’t any change in straight line speeds. So I managed to get quite a bit of coverage from ITV in the race as I was at the head of a four car train driving the widest Ginetta in the business! Again bought it home fourth.
Pittard’s Speed Problems Left Him Defending Hard In The Races – Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
We lucked out on the reverse grid again to draw pole position which, we hoped with the changes we made, we would be able to clear off at the beginning of the race as we were still posting competitive sector times with the lack of speed. However a wheel stud sheared on the grid meaning I had to be pushed off pole for the second time this year and that was the weekend over …
So even though we managed a pair of fourth places without the DNF, it was a very disappointing weekend as we feel we should have finished in higher positions, and the DNF… well that was just a kick in the… you know what!
Since the Snetterton meeting it again feels though I’ve been flat out! First I appeared on Downforce UK radio joined by Robb Holland and Josh Cook, to talk about my career and race weekend which was great as all the guests were armed with questions for us which was different!
I managed to make it down to the Base Performance Charity day in aid of Oxford Childrens Hospital to have a go on their fantastic facilities and talk about the prize I have donated to the raffle to raise money for the hospital. A short video summing up the day can be seen here:
Finally I then found myself sat in a Ginetta for four whole days which is unheard of for me! Firstly I made my first visit to Blyton Park for three days to help judge the finalists of the Want2Race competition to win a round in the Ginetta GT5 Challenge.
I was joined by BTCC drivers Adam Morgan and Jack Goff, Formula Ford racer Louise Richardson, fellow GT4 Supercup racer Max Coates and previous challenge racer Stuart Pearson. We saw 120 drivers over two days before whittling it down to a top 20, who myself and Max interviewed while Jack and Adam assessed them out on circuit. It was very close but James Taylor triumphed over all and will be racing at Donington in September!
Pittard Has Been Mixing It With ‘Celebs’ In The Time Off – Credit: David Pittard
Secondly I attended the Ginetta Summer Festival at Rockingham where I was in car with the Ginetta Junior scholarship entrants, with their ages ranging from 13-16. It was an experience I was wary of however I was seriously impressed about how quickly they adapted to the car and their attitude regarding getting better, resulting in another great day! I even bumped into a certain Spencer Mathews from Made in Chelsea!
I’m now looking forward to Knockhill this weekend. It’s somewhere that I’ve never seen before and it looks quite the rollercoaster! I’m looking forward to the challenge. The SV Racing team and Ginetta have both worked very hard to solve the straight line issue we’ve had at Snetterton, but only time will tell if it’s solved! I will be looking to carry on my good qualifying to put myself in contention for some more podiums as Snetterton was the only time I hadn’t visited it!
I would also like to welcome Rory Bryant to the Ginetta SV Racing side of the camp! A multiple Scottish champion, he’s the perfect guy to go to Knockhill with and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do in a second SV Racing prepped car!
Both #KaptureKX competition and the #KXQT events will be back for Knockhill so make sure you snap your favourite KX Akademy drivers at the circuit (See previous winners and details here: http://www.davidpittard.co.uk/kapture-kx-photo-competition/) and hear what they have to say on Saturday evening along with your other favourite BTCC drivers!
If you’re at Knockhill please come and say hi and grab a signed poster at the SV Racing awning!
Thanks for reading,
David “ready to bounce back” Pittard #30
