Round 6 of the Dutch Stock National was held on the September 20/21 weekend at the nice track from MAC de Baanbrekers. We started with practice on Saturday. I was not so happy when leaving because I felt my car was not as good as I expected. Overnight I thought about it and decided to change the droop a little bit. Other XRAY drivers were looking very fast, but their setups were very different to match their driving style; I couldnâ™t copy them.
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Sunday morning started with only 12°C and my car was looking good! I had 2nd position after the first series. I decided to skip series two because we had only three sets of tyres for six Nationals. In series three my battery wasnâ™t fully charged because I missed the right starting time of the series. Thought it was only 70% charged I still managed to get the same time as I did in my first qualifier, with the only change being the change to a PF Mazda Speed 6 shell instead of my normal PF Mazda shell. After the qualifiers we had six cars in the final: three T2, one T2â™007, and two T2â™008s.
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Starting from 6th in the final I knew I had a good chance for a podium finish because I had a fresh set of tyres which give a lot more corner speed.
In the first final I had a good start but a small accident ruined everything and I had to start all over from last. The car felt so good I started chasing the pack and within 3 minutes with a lot of action and some nice overtaking I was in 3rd place and ended the first 6-minute final in that position.
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In the second start I was unlucky again and lost 4 seconds at the start because I was hit by another car. I had nothing to lose so I started hitting the throttle as hard as I could. No more cautious driving, just go for it! I drove my six fastest laps of the day in a row and while the drivers in front of me were fighting for position, I managed to get back in the group at the 3-minute mark. Totally in trance I drove through the field and at the 5 minute mark I was in the lead and that was how we finished!! It was incredible for me getting back from last to first.
Final results:
1. Frans Heinsbroek XRAY T2â 008
2. Vasco Christiaanse
3. Michael Lepelaar 4. Erik Germeraad XRAY T2
5. Ronald Arts 6. Jitse Miedema XRAY T2â 007
7. Jetze Reitsma XRAY T2
8. Ron Lankreijer XRAY T2
9. Mario Taekema 10. Richard Oversloot XRAY T2â™008
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With my 3rd and 1st position finishes I won the last National in Stock class. With six cars in the final again like the 5th national, XRAY was looking good and very successful again.
A big thank you to XRAY and & RC Connect for the support.
