A busy MSVT day at Brands Hatch Indy yesterday. Brands is still my ‘local’ track but at 1.5 hours away, it’s still means an early morning! I had been round the track in damp conditions the previous year in the Elise, but today was dry and at around 8 degrees in the sun, a great day for tracking!

Ben Clucas was along for the ride for a full day of instructing. I’ve known Ben a long time and knew his input was going to be invaluable. The track was a little damp out to begin with but it only took 45 minutes or so to dry itself out. Then it was into the learning!

Ben showing me the lines and talking me around the lap, then me trying to replicate – to mixed success. This repeated for a while, swapping seats once more to start to ramp up the pace a bit. I had brain fade just before lunch and started over driving (and going slower because of it) but after lunch and a data review, I was extremely happy with progress.

Druids and Paddock were losing me time and to that’s what we concentrated on for most of the rest of the day. Paddock eventually came to me, but Druid took all day to get right.

Towards the back end of the day, Ben set a data lap for me and I went out to see how close I could get. Pretty close was the answer – and hopefully a competitive pace for the year ahead.

Again, the Cheesemobile coped well with a very busy day. It understeers like a barge with two people on-board, but seems capable of setting good times – which is great to know. It’s off to DPR Motorsport this week to have its initial setup done, then she’s due a well deserved break until March 10th. (That’s the plan at least!).

I came away from brands FULLY hyped up for the year ahead. It’s been a dream for a long time now, and I’m certainly living it!