Carnage

If you've ever watched a round of the British National Karting Championship, you'll have seen the carnage at the start of each race. Thirty-odd karts flying into the first turn, determined to make a good start. Of course, one or two karts into a turn is possible, but thirty-odd is never going to happen.

And that's what it was like at yesterday's Bayford BM Plate race. Okay, the grid was smaller. Just 23 karts, but all of them determined to win. And it was the biggest Senior Rotax grid that Kate Broadbent's ever been in. And it was carnage. Absolute carnage. The organisers moved the Senior Rotax races up the running order so more people could watch. No wonder! One kart never made it to the first turn, spinning into the tyre wall - race over. One kart span after the third turn, ending the wrong way on the track, and another kart went straight into it. The front of the chassis snapped clean off - not just race over, but day over. The head-on collision happened right in front of Kate. She swerved round it, and I found myself willing her just to finish with kart and limbs intact.

That was the first heat. When the heat was over, there were karts littered all over the place, and parc ferme was a sorry sight with bent bumpers and broken panels. Kate's kart was covered in grass and mud (although she assures me she never came off the track). And of course Kate had an absolute hoot, and pulled in a new PB despite only finishing P17.

The next heat was in another league. Rain was imminent, but we all opted for slicks, which was the wrong decision because the rain came down after the first lap. The one and only plucky karter who'd opted for wet tyres was 10 seconds a lap faster than everyone. Again there were collisions and spins everywhere. The speed though, was a lot slower. Kate finished P16. Some karts didn't finish, and some karts didn't start.

Then it was the final, and storm Eowyn was making herself known. The track was literally like a swimming pool. When the leading karts hit the second turn, water flew everywhere, and I had no idea how the drivers could see anything. Kate told me later that they couldn't. Even with brand new wet tyres Kate had zero grip, and having never driven Bayford in such dreadful weather she was slow. Three karts were broken and couldn't start. Two more span off and were out of the race, and someone was disqualified. So, Kate came P16 overall, and gets a huge pat on the back for just finishing, safe. And despite the carnage, she learnt an awful lot. And as the mechanic, I learnt an awful lot too!