THE PIT STOP issue 2
q u a r t e r l y
m o t o r s p o r t
m a g a z i n e
DAYTONA’S PLUCKY WINNER DONCASTER RACING DEFIED THE ODDS IN 2004 TO WIN THE 24 HOURS OF DAYTONA BY AN INCREDIBLE MARGIN.
WORDS BY NIGEL CHIU IMAGES BY BRIAN SMITH
MORE OR LESS A MASERATI WORDS & IMAGES BY DANIEL H. LACKEY
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Praga
Equally, I’m proud of who I am and it’s not something that I hide. I do a lot of media interactions throughout the year, celebrating pride or Trans Visibility, and it involves me being open about who I am, and so I just want to know that’s not going to be a problem for you or for anyone in the team. If anyone does have a problem with that, you will act swiftly to tell them not to be an idiot or whatever else.” So there still are situations where Charlie has to have to have those conversations and tackle the subject. It’s an interesting position for Charlie to be in.
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Having transitioned halfway through her career she has seen the difficulties that racing drivers face climbing up the career ladder from the viewpoint of both genders. The financial challenges that male divers can experience and the ability and equality issues that female drivers experience. “I think that’s certainly echoed by the experiences that I’ve had, and I think on a wider sense, this is very much the case in society.”. With transgender friends who, like Charlie, work in a very technical field, it’s a common thread that they have all experienced. “As a guy it’s
kind of accepted that oh, you work in engineering, oh, you know about engineering, oh you race cars, you’re a quick driver. Whereas as a woman, the assumption is that you don’t know. It’s really strange, but it just is that kind of way.” Charlie is the great-granddaughter of Percy Martin a Sussex born engineer and automobile manufacturer who had senior positions at the Daimler Company and she has a good understanding of engineering herself. “I used to work in engineering, in a family business, in sales. When I started there, I didn’t know
anything. When I picked up the phone and people started talking to me about stuff as a man, they just assume that you know what they’re talking about.” Four years later and in transition, the reactions are quite different. “I pick up the phone and get ‘good morning, all right, love, can I speak to one of the lads in sales?’ I reply, ‘I work in sales. Can I help you?’ Some people, you can feel their eyes roll in the back of their head.” Charlie still feels that as a woman in motorsport, you’re battling stereotypes all the time. “How you
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really being fast going round in circles. “But for me anyway the main goal really is to get to the finish, and then build on that. OMG [Racing] have put a lot of faith in me and it’s an amazing opportunity so I want to personally get to the finish line and then see where we go from there.” With preparation already planned for the majority of 2021, Hillier will be hoping that his schedule is not disrupted too much due to the COVID-19 pandemic, especially after a lot of racing, such as the Isle of Man
TT and North West 200, has been cancelled. And the OMG Racing rider says that preparation during such unprecedented times has the ability to take its toll, as he is unable to do what he would usually be doing at the beginning of the year. “It’s very hard to do any sort of training, I do some fitness here at home and a bit of cycling, but it’s even harder to get motivated sometimes,” he said on how he prepares. “Especially with the TT off and no real road racing,
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DIN0
206SP
AND THE STORY OF CHASSIS 026
WORDS BY ROB HANSFORD IMAGES BY BRIAN SMITH / JIM HAYES / KLEMANTASKI COLLECTION
THE FERRARI DINO 206SP WASN’T THE MOST SUCCESSFUL RACING CAR FERRARI HAS EVER BUILT. BUT DESPITE ITS RACING SHORTCOMINGS, IT HAS GONE ON TO BECOME A POIGNANT CAR IN THE TEAM’S HISTORY. AND, THANKS TO DROGO’S CRAFTSMANSHIP, IT LEAVES US WITH ONE OF THE BEST LOOKING RACE CARS FROM THE PERIOD.
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ENZO FERRARI CAPTIVATING HIS AUDIENCE DURING AN INTERVIEW WITH ITALIAN JOURNALIST, EZIO ZERMIANI IN 1985.
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MASTERS OF THE HILL WORDS & IMAGES BY BRIAN SMITH
IN SHORT
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Image credit: Jack Goff
KARTING; FROM AFFORDABLE TO AFFLUENT? BY ASH MILLER
‘Karting - Affordable Motorsport’, I hear in my head for the thousandth time as eyes glance across the faded sticker on the back of the similarly faded teal box trailer. Ready to head off for another weekend of kart racing at the end of Summer 2005, it’s 5.30am in suburban Brisbane, and my Dad and I prepare ourselves to set out towards Ipswich Kart Circuit for the first round of the championship. The previous year was successful at attracting the attention of some local sponsors, and with fuel, tyres and entry feels taken care of for the upcoming season, 2005 would cost my family next to nothing. Similarly, most of the grid were made up of drivers with whom it was a family affair. Even that year’s National Championships were littered with drivers sitting shoulder-toshoulder with their Dads, some of whom had the manufacturer expert floating around providing advice, but whose grimy and oily karts would return to the family trailer at the end of the day. Some of those kids went on to become V8 Supercar drivers and Champions, and some even went all the way to Formula 1. That dream in the paddock, though rare, seemed genuinely within reach for everyone. Fast forward to the present day; walking through the paddock at Kimbolton Kart Circuit in the UK, the scene is awash with spotless artic lorries and manufacturer awnings with automated doors. Young hopefuls are tucked inside, their minds absorbed by engineer debriefs and laptops with simulation data. The front runners have a plethora of chassis to choose from, helmets painted by the very same artists giving F1 stars their identity, and not a single sun-faded sticker. Every driver currently gracing the top echelons of global motorsport cut their teeth in kart racing; razor sharp reactions and finitely competitive racing, coupled with mechanical simplicity and the physically demanding challenges of the sport perfectly prime the next generation of stars for combat at the highest level. The legendary Brazilian Ayrton Senna himself recounted his days in kart racing as “pure driving…pure racing”, even as he was storming to his third F1 title. The skills that karting indelibly instils in the cream of motorsport talent, however, has become profoundly recognised over the course of a generation. With the popularity of the sport quickly skyrocketing its’ status as being the official birthplace of motor
racing stardom, the costs have become unfathomable to those without access to disposable income akin to that of buying a sizeable country house every racing season. Further endorsement from former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who touted the British Super One Series as the ‘official’ start on the road to F1, ensured that the once-humble beginnings to a racing career were crafted into lucrative businesses. One of the current top tier drivers in British circles is Jack Goff; a British Touring Car star who came from a modest background. “When I was karting, I was lucky enough to be given some space in an awning, while we ran from my Dad’s van,” he mused. “Our budget was around £10,000 pounds for the last season we raced in karts. These days, though, you’re looking at nearly a quarter of a million pounds to just be competitive at the level that’s needed to gain traction in going onwards.” It’s not just British circles either; the average F1 hopeful will not find comfort in Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff’s words: “If somebody is very talented, you probably need to spend a million euros in karting through junior, senior and international races. “After that, there’s spending millions in Formula Renault, Formula Three and Formula Two. (Even if) you are on the verge of getting into Formula 1 but you are not in there, you need another 2-3 million euros to get the drive. So you are talking about 7-8m euros.” By comparison, grass-roots club car racing, which has long been seen as the ‘next step’ beyond karting, is quickly taking over the mantle of affordable racing - a season in the wildly popular Mazda MX5 Cup will set a front runner back around £15,00020,000, while further up the career pecking order, the support categories for the British Touring Car Championship are roughly £120,000. To the average person, still eye-wateringly pricey, but to the motorsport career aspirant, a much cheaper option than the traditional first step. As I pace the Super One paddock, I allow vivid memories to break forth; of second hand trailers, a team of just two people, and a grid of young hopefuls who had the chance to find stardom among the modesty. In the quest for F1 success, the tipping point between talent, and wallet, looks certain to have arrived today.
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