The XRAY team headed off to take part in the Cotswolds 6 hour endurance race. Kevin Taylor, Fred Singleton, Adam Catchpole and Michael Ball were the drivers for the six hour race.
On Sunday morning we each had a go of the car to make sure that we were all happy with the set up and that everything was working correctly. We also discussed the best strategy for the full term of the race.
Initially we decided to that each driver should drive for 30 minutes. We also decided to change tyres every hour to minimise the time lost in the pits.
The race was to be started by Adam, then followed by Michael and Kevin, Fred, after testing the car in the morning decided not to drive but to be in charge of making the pit stops as smooth as possible and to keep to the strategy which played a big part in the win.
After the first hour of racing the Xray team was in 3rd place 12 laps off the lead, but as the other teams started to have further problems the XRAY team started to unlap themselves.
(click to enlarge)
During the following hours all of the Xray drivers had strong 60 minutes drives which meant that by 4 hours into the race we had a 24 lap advantage. We continued to increase this lead to over a 30 lap lead by the 5 hour mark. For the remaining 60 minutes we decided to try and keep the car in one piece and stay out of trouble. With ten minutes to go we did have some problems but with quick thinking from all of the team members we were able to get the car repaired quickly and comfortably win the race.
Well done to all of the drivers who took part and Kevin Taylor for preparing the car as well as Fred Singleton for working out the winning strategy
The car performed perfectly for the entire race with good consistent handling.
The Team Orion engine also performed very well with no problems over the 6 hour race without even stopping.
The Team Used
XRAY NT1
Tornado 16% fuel
Team Orion CRF
Team Orion 2647 pipe and manifold
GRP Tyres
