Honda Cadet event at Rye House - 2011
4th September:
We decided before the event that this would be Geri's final event in Honda Cadets, he is just too big and too heavy. We had to give him a good send off, Steve had dismantled the kart and reassembled after straightening so the kart should be in optimum state ready to race. We tested on the Saturday and although Geri got progressively faster from the first session to the last, times were still not encouraging. The fast pace of 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off was hectic and tiring. Geri fitted in around 10 sessions before we called it a day. We didn't believe we could gain any more from more testing time, and we didn't want Geri to get too tired before the Sunday race.
On the SUnday we arrived bright and early with the kart ready and waiting. The weather was good so we switched the kart back to slicks and dry settings before Geri went out for his practice laps. We found last month that we were running a 75 tooth sprocket for dry when we had thought it was 74, and only had a 76 for the wet. We thought about leaving the 76 in place to help with acceleration, but that would have over-revved the engine down the straight. We thought about switching to a 74 like most of the other drivers, but figured Geri needed all the help he could get coming out of corners.
Heat 1:
Geri started the first heat in 10th place, so would likely run into Stadium on the outside where he would be vulnerable to being run off the track. In the event, he managed to switch to the inside line through Stadium on the way down the straight. Disaster at the hairpin where he was hit and spun round cost Geri 6 places on that first lap alone. Geri gained a place back on the second lap before falling back to 17th as William Tregurtha came past after a bad first lap. Geri was trying hard to maintain station with the driver in front, but with 3 laps to go started slowly to lose ground finishing the race in 17th. Not the best of starts to the day.
Heat 1 – Honda Cadet – 04/09/11
| Position |
Kart No |
Driver Name |
Laps |
Race Time |
Time Behind |
Best Time |
Best Lap No |
| 1 |
51 |
Ben SCOTT |
10 |
07:06.87 |
|
0:42.20 |
8 |
| 2 |
24 |
Alfie HARALAMBOUS |
10 |
07:07.36 |
0:00.49 |
0:42.00 |
5 |
| 3 |
81 |
Dylan FROST |
10 |
07:07.75 |
0:00.88 |
0:42.14 |
9 |
| 4 |
54 |
Uzair MASTER |
10 |
07:08.09 |
0:01.22 |
0:42.01 |
10 |
| 5 |
56 |
Richard CRISP |
10 |
07:09.57 |
0:02.71 |
0:42.35 |
7 |
| 6 |
27 |
Rory SMITH |
10 |
07:12.50 |
0:05.63 |
0:42.02 |
8 |
| 7 |
35 |
Ben KASPERCZAK |
10 |
07:16.97 |
0:10.10 |
0:42.91 |
7 |
| 8 |
33 |
Thomas ROW |
10 |
07:18.14 |
0:11.27 |
0:42.49 |
6 |
| 9 |
99 |
James BECKWITH |
10 |
07:18.46 |
0:11.60 |
0:42.73 |
9 |
| 10 |
58 |
Matthew HAYDEN |
10 |
07:18.58 |
0:11.72 |
0:42.12 |
9 |
| 11 |
41 |
Jonathan CAMPBELL |
10 |
07:18.89 |
0:12.02 |
0:42.89 |
6 |
| 12 |
71 |
William TREGURTHA |
10 |
07:19.08 |
0:12.22 |
0:42.10 |
7 |
| 13 |
80 |
Axel LA FLAMME |
10 |
07:19.50 |
0:12.63 |
0:42.54 |
9 |
| 14 |
90 |
Ryan GILLESPIE |
10 |
07:20.06 |
0:13.19 |
0:42.16 |
9 |
| 15 |
88 |
Jack CHAPMAN |
10 |
07:21.89 |
0:15.02 |
0:43.07 |
7 |
| 16 |
50 |
Geri NICOSIA |
10 |
07:25.66 |
0:18.79 |
0:43.36 |
10 |
| 17 |
74 |
Nicholas FIGURADO |
10 |
07:27.37 |
0:20.50 |
0:42.97 |
3 |
| 18 |
34 |
Kall MILLER |
10 |
07:28.79 |
0:21.92 |
0:43.66 |
8 |
| 19 |
16 |
Lochlan BEARMAN |
10 |
07:35.48 |
0:28.61 |
0:42.37 |
6 |
| 20 |
53 |
Thomas PEGRAM |
10 |
07:41.52 |
0:34.66 |
0:43.58 |
10 |
| 21 |
21 |
Luke BARHAM |
10 |
07:45.26 |
0:38.39 |
0:45.04 |
8 |
| 22 |
98 |
Harrison HUGGAN |
0 |
0:00.79 |
-8:53.92 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| DNS |
46 |
Josh STEED |
0 |
0:01.54 |
-8:54.67 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| Download Heat 1 Race Results in PDF Format |
| Lap Times for Geri Nicosia |
| Lap |
Pos |
Lap Time |
Gap to Leader |
Gap to Next Pos |
| 1 |
16 |
50.81 seconds |
6.35 seconds |
0.09 seconds |
| 2 |
15 |
44.76 seconds |
8.13 seconds |
1.51 seconds |
| 3 |
16 |
44.07 seconds |
9.54 seconds |
0.63 seconds |
| 4 |
16 |
43.83 seconds |
10.90 seconds |
1.27 seconds |
| 5 |
16 |
44.08 seconds |
12.52 seconds |
1.39 seconds |
| 6 |
16 |
43.91 seconds |
14.27 seconds |
0.58 seconds |
| 7 |
16 |
43.44 seconds |
15.20 seconds |
1.79 seconds |
| 8 |
16 |
43.72 seconds |
16.73 seconds |
2.99 seconds |
| 9 |
16 |
43.69 seconds |
18.19 seconds |
3.64 seconds |
| 10 |
16 |
43.36 seconds |
18.79 seconds |
3.77 seconds |
Heat 2:
Geri drawn second on the grid alongside kart 88 in his first event since losing novice status. We told Geri the other kart would be nervous and this would be an excellent chance to lead a race. We even set him a target of being in the lead at the hairpin, we felt sure the faster karts would find a way past quickly enough.
We were right about the nerves, after 3 false starts because the pack was running too fast, the karts were stopped on track and given a warning. At the fourth attempt the start was deemed OK and Geri got the drop on 88 enough to cut across in front of him into Stadium and the lead of the race. He held out round Stadium and through the Esses, and into the hairpin he was still in front. Harrison Huggan in kart 98 was snapping at Geri's rear bumper but Geri was driving well and led through Pylon, and even into the final corner. Just when it looked like Geri would lead for the whole lap, Huggan got by just before the start-finish line to lead Geri by just 7/100ths. Meanwhile 88 had fallen back to 8th place by the end of lap 1.
A second kart (24) got by Geri on the second lap but he was still in third place with a whole group of karts right behind him as he went into Pylon. And there was where it all went wrong as Geri was hit off the circuit and unable to rejoin until almost everyone had gone by and he had fallen back to 20th. A great chance to show his true ability ruined by more poor dsriving - the driving standards at Rye House leave a lot to be desired, and if the standards were policed with a fraction of the zealousness by which the starts are policed, things would be very different. Twice in two heats that Geri was shoved off the circuit and 23 places lost - 23 places that woukd cost heavily in his grid position for the final.
Geri did move up to 19th on lap 4 passing kart 53 but lost the place on lap 6 when he tangled with another kart, losing another place two laps later.
Heat 2 – Honda Cadet – 04/09/11
| Position |
Kart No |
Driver Name |
Laps |
Race Time |
Time Behind |
Best Time |
Best Lap No |
| 1 |
98 |
Harrison HUGGAN |
10 |
07:04.06 |
|
0:41.79 |
7 |
| 2 |
24 |
Alfie HARALAMBOUS |
10 |
07:04.42 |
0:00.36 |
0:41.75 |
6 |
| 3 |
51 |
Ben SCOTT |
10 |
07:05.74 |
0:01.69 |
0:41.74 |
9 |
| 4 |
16 |
Lochlan BEARMAN |
10 |
07:05.98 |
0:01.92 |
0:41.83 |
4 |
| 5 |
71 |
William TREGURTHA |
10 |
07:06.09 |
0:02.04 |
0:41.69 |
6 |
| 6 |
33 |
Thomas ROW |
10 |
07:06.33 |
0:02.27 |
0:41.84 |
6 |
| 7 |
27 |
Rory SMITH |
10 |
07:09.53 |
0:05.47 |
0:41.77 |
8 |
| 8 |
56 |
Richard CRISP |
10 |
07:10.06 |
0:06.01 |
0:42.16 |
8 |
| 9 |
81 |
Dylan FROST |
10 |
07:10.46 |
0:06.40 |
0:42.13 |
7 |
| 10 |
54 |
Uzair MASTER |
10 |
07:10.88 |
0:06.83 |
0:41.62 |
5 |
| 11 |
90 |
Ryan GILLESPIE |
10 |
07:10.96 |
0:06.91 |
0:41.70 |
9 |
| 12 |
58 |
Matthew HAYDEN |
10 |
07:11.04 |
0:06.98 |
0:42.00 |
9 |
| 13 |
74 |
Nicholas FIGURADO |
10 |
07:11.71 |
0:07.65 |
0:41.89 |
8 |
| 14 |
99 |
James BECKWITH |
10 |
07:12.12 |
0:08.06 |
0:42.18 |
7 |
| 15 |
35 |
Ben KASPERCZAK |
10 |
07:14.22 |
0:10.16 |
0:42.45 |
6 |
| 16 |
88 |
Jack CHAPMAN |
10 |
07:14.58 |
0:10.53 |
0:42.36 |
8 |
| 17 |
41 |
Jonathan CAMPBELL |
10 |
07:17.28 |
0:13.22 |
0:42.84 |
7 |
| 18 |
53 |
Thomas PEGRAM |
10 |
07:22.75 |
0:18.69 |
0:43.04 |
4 |
| 19 |
34 |
Kall MILLER |
10 |
07:23.72 |
0:19.66 |
0:43.32 |
10 |
| 20 |
80 |
Axel LA FLAMME |
10 |
07:24.55 |
0:20.49 |
0:42.41 |
9 |
| 21 |
50 |
Geri NICOSIA |
10 |
07:28.00 |
0:23.95 |
0:43.43 |
10 |
| 22 |
21 |
Luke BARHAM |
10 |
07:36.22 |
0:32.16 |
0:44.50 |
8 |
| DNS |
46 |
Josh STEED |
0 |
0:00.42 |
-8:56.36 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| Download Heat 2 Race Results in PDF Format |
| Lap Times for Geri Nicosia |
| Lap |
Pos |
Lap Time |
Gap to Leader |
Gap to Next Pos |
| 1 |
2 |
44.69 seconds |
0.07 seconds |
0.07 seconds |
| 2 |
20 |
49.73 seconds |
7.01 seconds |
1.10 seconds |
| 3 |
20 |
43.66 seconds |
8.43 seconds |
1.01 seconds |
| 4 |
19 |
43.43 seconds |
9.43 seconds |
0.77 seconds |
| 5 |
19 |
43.90 seconds |
11.39 seconds |
0.80 seconds |
| 6 |
20 |
48.00 seconds |
17.44 seconds |
3.97 seconds |
| 7 |
20 |
43.82 seconds |
19.45 seconds |
4.43 seconds |
| 8 |
21 |
43.72 seconds |
21.09 seconds |
1.25 seconds |
| 9 |
21 |
43.61 seconds |
22.85 seconds |
2.46 seconds |
| 10 |
21 |
43.43 seconds |
23.95 seconds |
3.46 seconds |
Heat 3:
For the third month running when Geri has competed, the weather changed. At first the rain was very light and while the wets were on standby, it looked like we might not need them. And then the heavens opened monsoon style and there was no doubt that wets were required, if not an ark! So we swapped back to the wet set-up in time for Geri to line up 20th on the grid. At least this time he couldn't be knocked back too much further!
We underestimated Geri even though he seems to go better in the wet than in the dry, maybe because the weight disadvantage is less, maybe because it gives him a chance to show off his kart control. In any event, Geri got a flying start and moved up 8 places to 12th on lap 1. Normally when this happens, there has been a mighty melee which Geri has avoided, and then the race is red flagged. But this time only one or two karts went off coming out at Stadium and both were able to rejoin themselves - so the race continued.
Geri gained another place on lap 2 and was looking very strong. Track conditions were appalling with standing water nearly all the way round the circuit, and he was revelling in these conditions. Geri lost a place on lap 3 but regained 11th place on lap 4. Thomas Row and William Tregurtha had both started up near the front and fallen way back, they both past Geri on lap 5. Kart 74 passed Geri on lap 9 but Geri regained the place on the final lap as 74 spun out and dropped 5 places. Geri had made an overall gain of 7 places in this wettest of wet races.
Heat 3 – Honda Cadet – 04/09/11
| Position |
Kart No |
Driver Name |
Laps |
Race Time |
Time Behind |
Best Time |
Best Lap No |
| 1 |
27 |
Rory SMITH |
8 |
06:55.36 |
|
0:51.50 |
3 |
| 2 |
16 |
Lochlan BEARMAN |
8 |
06:56.03 |
0:00.67 |
0:51.54 |
6 |
| 3 |
90 |
Ryan GILLESPIE |
8 |
06:56.88 |
0:01.52 |
0:51.49 |
6 |
| 4 |
24 |
Alfie HARALAMBOUS |
8 |
07:01.08 |
0:05.72 |
0:51.24 |
7 |
| 5 |
35 |
Ben KASPERCZAK |
8 |
07:02.67 |
0:07.31 |
0:51.90 |
7 |
| 6 |
98 |
Harrison HUGGAN |
8 |
07:03.98 |
0:08.62 |
0:51.79 |
8 |
| 7 |
58 |
Matthew HAYDEN |
8 |
07:10.48 |
0:15.12 |
0:52.69 |
8 |
| 8 |
51 |
Ben SCOTT |
8 |
07:10.66 |
0:15.29 |
0:52.66 |
7 |
| 9 |
56 |
Richard CRISP |
8 |
07:15.72 |
0:20.36 |
0:53.02 |
7 |
| 10 |
41 |
Jonathan CAMPBELL |
8 |
07:20.70 |
0:25.34 |
0:53.16 |
4 |
| 11 |
71 |
William TREGURTHA |
8 |
07:23.20 |
0:27.84 |
0:52.58 |
8 |
| 12 |
33 |
Thomas ROW |
8 |
07:26.62 |
0:31.26 |
0:53.18 |
7 |
| 13 |
50 |
Geri NICOSIA |
8 |
07:28.24 |
0:32.88 |
0:54.12 |
6 |
| 14 |
81 |
Dylan FROST |
8 |
07:28.32 |
0:32.96 |
0:53.74 |
6 |
| 15 |
99 |
James BECKWITH |
8 |
07:32.80 |
0:37.43 |
0:54.87 |
8 |
| 16 |
88 |
Jack CHAPMAN |
8 |
07:33.18 |
0:37.82 |
0:54.62 |
6 |
| 17 |
34 |
Kall MILLER |
8 |
07:36.06 |
0:40.70 |
0:54.63 |
2 |
| 18 |
74 |
Nicholas FIGURADO |
8 |
07:38.54 |
0:43.18 |
0:54.61 |
6 |
| 19 |
80 |
Axel LA FLAMME |
8 |
07:41.62 |
0:46.26 |
0:53.74 |
7 |
| 20 |
53 |
Thomas PEGRAM |
8 |
07:42.63 |
0:47.27 |
0:53.73 |
2 |
| 21 |
21 |
Luke BARHAM |
7 |
07:43.87 |
0:48.51 |
0:58.33 |
4 |
| 22 |
54 |
Uzair MASTER |
0 |
0:01.31 |
-7:05.94 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| DNS |
46 |
Josh STEED |
0 |
07:38.60 |
0:43.23 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| Download Heat 3 Race Results in PDF Format |
| Lap Times for Geri Nicosia |
| Lap |
Pos |
Lap Time |
Gap to Leader |
Gap to Next Pos |
| 1 |
12 |
59.02 seconds |
6.89 seconds |
0.44 seconds |
| 2 |
11 |
54.25 seconds |
9.54 seconds |
0.61 seconds |
| 3 |
12 |
54.93 seconds |
12.97 seconds |
0.12 seconds |
| 4 |
11 |
54.22 seconds |
15.06 seconds |
0.84 seconds |
| 5 |
13 |
58.55 seconds |
21.21 seconds |
4.55 seconds |
| 6 |
13 |
54.12 seconds |
23.53 seconds |
1.11 seconds |
| 7 |
14 |
58.50 seconds |
30.24 seconds |
0.29 seconds |
| 8 |
13 |
54.66 seconds |
32.88 seconds |
1.62 seconds |
Final:
The good result in heat three did little to negate the bad results in the first two heats, Geri had a start position in the final back in 18th place. The rain had stopped but the track was still wet, but with a dryer (less wet) line appearing. The levels of standing water had reduced.
Geri still gained one place from the start, and two more on lap 2. But already it was obvious Geri was fighting a battle with his kart round Stadium while other karts were just driving round. The conditions just didn't suit Geri so well now it was less wet. Geri got outdragged from the final corner on lap 3 and was passed just before the line, but on lap 4 Geri went off backwards, the first of a number of spins he would suffer in the final. He fell back to 19th but was well clear of the kart back in 20th so rejoined just in front of him and pulled away quickly again. Geri would have more spins but actually gained a place as another kart retired. On the final lap Geri went off backwards out of Stadium and went backwards hard into the tyre wall. His neck snapped back, his neck brace did its stuff and although Geri held his neck fleetingly, he got straight back out on track and up to full speed. Alas, it allowed the leader to pass and lap Geri just before the end of Geri's final race as a Honda Cadet.
A-Final – Honda Cadet – 04/09/11
| Position |
Kart No |
Driver Name |
Laps |
Race Time |
Time Behind |
Best Time |
Best Lap No |
| 1 |
27 |
Rory SMITH |
11 |
09:19.06 |
|
0:50.22 |
3 |
| 2 |
24 |
Alfie HARALAMBOUS |
11 |
09:20.63 |
0:01.57 |
0:50.01 |
9 |
| 3 |
16 |
Lochlan BEARMAN |
11 |
09:23.88 |
0:04.81 |
0:50.77 |
5 |
| 4 |
51 |
Ben SCOTT |
11 |
09:28.08 |
0:09.02 |
0:51.07 |
3 |
| 5 |
35 |
Ben KASPERCZAK |
11 |
09:28.23 |
0:09.17 |
0:50.98 |
3 |
| 6 |
33 |
Thomas ROW |
11 |
09:28.54 |
0:09.48 |
0:50.92 |
10 |
| 7 |
71 |
William TREGURTHA |
11 |
09:30.14 |
0:11.08 |
0:50.25 |
11 |
| 8 |
90 |
Ryan GILLESPIE |
11 |
09:32.26 |
0:13.19 |
0:51.01 |
6 |
| 9 |
58 |
Matthew HAYDEN |
11 |
09:32.42 |
0:13.36 |
0:51.08 |
6 |
| 10 |
81 |
Dylan FROST |
11 |
09:35.33 |
0:16.27 |
0:50.69 |
11 |
| 11 |
74 |
Nicholas FIGURADO |
11 |
09:39.79 |
0:20.73 |
0:51.83 |
5 |
| 12 |
41 |
Jonathan CAMPBELL |
11 |
09:39.84 |
0:20.78 |
0:51.48 |
10 |
| 13 |
56 |
Richard CRISP |
11 |
09:42.42 |
0:23.36 |
0:51.41 |
9 |
| 14 |
53 |
Thomas PEGRAM |
11 |
09:58.49 |
0:39.42 |
0:52.66 |
7 |
| 15 |
80 |
Axel LA FLAMME |
11 |
10:03.00 |
0:43.94 |
0:51.51 |
9 |
| 16 |
34 |
Kall MILLER |
11 |
09:58.25 |
0:39.18 |
0:52.52 |
6 |
| 17 |
88 |
Jack CHAPMAN |
11 |
10:03.01 |
0:43.95 |
0:52.50 |
3 |
| 18 |
50 |
Geri NICOSIA |
10 |
09:20.24 |
0:01.18 |
0:51.99 |
9 |
| 19 |
21 |
Luke BARHAM |
10 |
09:50.25 |
0:31.19 |
0:54.65 |
7 |
| 20 |
54 |
Uzair MASTER |
5 |
04:25.49 |
-5:06.42 |
0:51.42 |
3 |
| 21 |
99 |
James BECKWITH |
2 |
02:07.43 |
-8:48.37 |
0:59.36 |
2 |
| 22 |
98 |
Harrison HUGGAN |
1 |
0:56.03 |
-9:36.97 |
0:56.03 |
1 |
| DNS |
46 |
Josh STEED |
0 |
07:38.60 |
-2:19.53 |
0:00.00 |
0 |
| Download A-Final Race Results in PDF Format |
| Lap Times for Geri Nicosia |
| Lap |
Pos |
Lap Time |
Gap to Leader |
Gap to Next Pos |
| 1 |
17 |
60.25 seconds |
7.04 seconds |
0.18 seconds |
| 2 |
15 |
54.54 seconds |
10.60 seconds |
1.93 seconds |
| 3 |
16 |
53.21 seconds |
13.12 seconds |
0.04 seconds |
| 4 |
19 |
62.49 seconds |
24.79 seconds |
6.29 seconds |
| 5 |
19 |
57.87 seconds |
31.99 seconds |
11.69 seconds |
| 6 |
18 |
56.56 seconds |
38.12 seconds |
15.47 seconds |
| 7 |
18 |
52.71 seconds |
40.20 seconds |
12.14 seconds |
| 8 |
18 |
53.22 seconds |
42.93 seconds |
3.51 seconds |
| 9 |
18 |
51.99 seconds |
44.63 seconds |
3.99 seconds |
| 10 |
18 |
57.39 seconds |
51.73 seconds |
9.35 seconds |
We now have to sit back and see what happens next. The cost of moving up to MiniMax appears to be quite high, we have asked Steve to keep us informed as he investigates MiniMax for a number of his drivers. In the meantime, Geri's Honda Cadet Zip Storm is up for sale. Regardless of what happens next, this was Geri's last race event for 2011 - we hope to get him in a MiniMax sooner rather than later so we can hit the track running at the start of next season.
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