Last lap incident costs Sam at Kimbolton
With a strong qualifying position in 3rd, Sam’s recent run of form continued as he challenged the front runners on a big grid this weekend. Despite slipping a couple of places in the final, Sam’s tyres came on towards the end of the race and he worked his way back towards the front then it all went wrong and that little bit of luck deserted us.
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Sam gets the better of Letts and Partridge through turn 1 - unfortunately only on Saturday
It was a particularly strong Kimbolton grid of 30 runners this weekend at the October Hunts Kart Race Club meeting. Yet again the weather was kind to us and Saturdays testing gave us ideal conditions to collect more meaningful dry test data. Sam went well in testing mixing it with the S1 boys. If Saturday was remembered for consistent weather, Sunday was just glorious clear skies and bright sunshine with temperatures reach 25 degrees – in October!
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Coming under pressure from Jamie Tyler in heat 1
Sam was drawn in P3 for heat 1 and started well getting out of the first corner in 2nd behind front runner Stephen Letts. However it soon became apparent our pace was not quite enough and Sam lost touch with Letts, only to be swallowed up by first Jack Partridge and then Liam Murray. Towards the end of the race Jamie Tyler demoted Sam a further place and we were grateful to see the flag come out for Sam to finish 5th. We had a theory about our lack of pace – which later in the day proved to be correct [but we’re not going to explain it here! ].
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Sam and Liam Murray raced closely together all day
In race 2 Sam started in P22 and had a race plan that worked a treat. From the start Sam made up 8 places at the first corner, only to be thwarted by a red flag for an incident ahead of him in the bus-stop. At the restart, the technique worked even better and Sam came into the bus-stop in 10th, having made up 12 places through the first couple of corners. Our pace had improved from heat 1 and steady progress was then made through the field, the only resistance really put up by Scott Fowler. One place was lost to the fast Stephen Letts who Sam then followed through to another 5th place finish. One more lap and it would have certainly been 4th.
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Sam’s race pace improved further in heat 3 finishing P8 from a P16 start keeping the fast charging S1 Sam Sanders behind him throughout the duration of the heat.
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Final
Start of the final, Letts holds back leaves Sam tucked up in 2nd
With 3 solid heats under his belt Sam qualified in 3rd on the grid for the final behind pole sitter Jack Partridge with Stephen Letts leading the outside line in 2nd place. At the green light Letts must have bogged down and held up the whole right hand side of the grid. Sam got a clear run through the first corner and emerged in 2nd place tucked up behind Partridge. Such was his pace though, Sam was unable to stay with Jack and it soon became apparent that the two front runners of Letts and Partridge this weekend were in a class of their own. Sam led the charge for 3rd spot.
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As his tyres come on Sam closes in on the race for 3rd
Through the initial laps of the final Sam looked a little under attack and Woolmer then Murray came through, but as the race wore on so did Sam’s tyres and he mounted his attack in the final third of the event.
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“I got down the inside of Liam Murray on the start/finish straight and took him under braking into turn one and started to chase down Richard. I saw the last lap board and knew I had to make my move. I got the run on him coming out of the Willow and got alongside him into the bus-stop. I had the corner won. 3rd place was mine.”
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Unlucky last lap
So despite cleanly swapping places with some of the best TKM drivers in the country all weekend, our day sadly ends with a needless coming together on the last lap. As always seems the case, Sam came off worse and no action was taken by the officials.
“We’ve had a good run recently so I guess my luck had to change eventually. I was alongside when he just turned in anyway as if I wasn’t there. We ended up tangled together and I lost too much time”.
Sam limped home in 8th.
Full results click here.
Next race weekend Rissington November 6/7.
Sam Randon Racing 