Junior Grand Prix at Rogue Racing - 2008
5th January:
New year, new season and the end of one era, the start of another.
The end of the little green alien - Geri got a new Sparco race suit for Christmas, and Sparco don't do green! So no more little green alien, now it's Geri the kart racer, resplendent in red.
Continuing on from the revised format introduced in December 2007, this format was planned to remain in place for 2008. A 20 driver strong entry list meant 10 heats overall, 3 heats of 10 laps apiece (and 6 drivers per race), a semi-final place (12 laps) for the top 12 drivers and a 14 lap final for the top 6. Just like in December, Geri did not fare well with the draw - three heats from positions 2, 4 and 5, and to make things worse, in Geri's race from 2nd place, 2007 series winner Jack Macauley was to start from pole with James Baldwin further back. A poor understanding of how the draw would work meant that Geri could have had a better draw if his father had signed him in on the other sheet - a lesson learned for Dad!
Geri didn't go out on track until heat 5, this one was started from 4th place on the grid. An early yellow incident saw the leader not slow down (nor be slowed down!) and he pulled out a massive gap. By the time Geri had pulled through the pack up into second place the leader was far too far ahead to catch. This didn't stop Geri from trying, he gained 4 seconds in the last three laps also setting fastest time of the day so far (27.00) but really needed another lap to take the win. The staff at Rogue Racing must have noticed what had happened because in later races they bunched up the leaders under yellow light conditions, unfortunately too late for Geri - this surely cost him a race win and would have repercussions later.
Geri's second heat was heat 7, this time starting from 2nd with Jack Macaulay on pole, James Baldwin back in 4th. From the start Geri tucked in behind Jack to protect 2nd place and he and Jack stayed out front. James got by into 3rd place quickly and the front three bunched up at the first yellow. Geri was trying to pass Jack, James was trying to pass Geri and all three looked faster than the other two over different sections of the track. James almost got alongside Geri coming over the finish line but Geri slammed the door. With a lap to go Geri made a move on the inside leading onto the upper straight. Jack tried to squeeze Geri but ended up spinning round himself as Geri finished with a race win. 15 points from 2 races but a look at the leader point would soon show Luke Doig with 24 points, 3 wins from his heats!
Heat 9, Jack and Geri both had 15 points, Jack was out in heat 9, Geri in 10, so he would know what was needed to secure pole position in the 2nd semi-final. Jack had a tough race, but with two drivers penalised in the sin-bin, Jack was able to get back up into 3rd. James set a new FTD at 26.92 seconds taking over from Geri.
Final heat, Geri starting from 5th on the grid and needed at least 3rd place to match Jack, but second place to get the semi-final pole position. The problem looked to be Guy Grigsby, 4th on the grid. Geri had to beat him but was just not able to pass him. Geri made a bold move going across the line at the end of the race but failed to beat Guy by inches and had to settle for 3rd place and 21 points after the heats.
22 would have given Geri 2nd place to Luke and that vital pole position - remember the first heat? So Geri started the second semi-final from 2nd on the grid and chased Guy Grigsby round for 12 laps, unable to find a way through. With starting places for the final being decided on lap times in the semi, Guy's slower pace meant Geri would start 4th in the final with Luke on pole, Guy 2nd, Jack 3rd and James Baldwin back in 5th on the grid.
This was probably time for the do-or-die bold move, but mindful of what happened last time Geri tried to go round the outside of Jack in a final, he chose to tuck in behind Jack to protect his place from James. The race looked to be a procession as the front five went round the track in close company, no-one looking like they could get past anyone else. Geri finally made the break coming down from the raised section and passed Jack for 3rd place. It looked like his podium position was safe, but a couple of laps later a tap from Jack at the end of the upper straight regained his place and that was how the positions remained.
The new format is a lot more difficult and with only 3 heats there is no room for any problem. Luke deservedly won the final having won all 5 of his races all day, but the fact remains that Geri still set the second fastest lap of the day (to James) in the only race where he had any clear track. Geri is normally a demon overtaker but today seemed strangely out-of-sorts. Maybe the test at Rye House the evening before had affected him, maybe he was just too tired after three consecutive days of karting. After round one, Geri is already 7 points behind Luke - but with 11 rounds to go (and the two lowest rounds to be dropped), its a little early to panic. There is plenty of time to catch up, and over the year we would expect some easier draws in the heats which Geri can hopefully take advantage of.
