Caterham Academy 2007
End of Season Newsletter - November 2007
 Team Bacon Buttie Racing eventually finished ninth in the Circuit Driver Caterham Academy Championship ? a result that I am thoroughly proud of. Even better, the car finished in one piece. The series was won by Jonny Walker who is not only a great driver but a fantastic bloke too.
It has been an absolutely amazing experience and one that I would recommend to anyone who wants to try racing. Kim Denning of Caterham Motorsport who organises the series is wonderful and helps so many novices find their feet in motorsport. The guys from Caterham Midlands who provide the mechanical support at events are priceless. I have made loads of friends during the year, many of whom I hope that I will keep in touch with for many years to come.
I have a huge number of people to thank, Helen and Hayden in particular, who have been dragged from circuit to circuit throughout the year. Hayden has been a huge help in putting together the videos, taking pictures and assisting in the car mechanical preparation. Helen ? thanks for putting up with it all! I also couldn?t have completed the series without the support of my work colleagues whose flexibility in allowing me to take holidays at inconvenient times in order to practice or race was greatly appreciated. The support at events was a hoot and really helped ? especially the regular 'groupies': Ian, Matthew, Mark, Cheryl, Miles, Laura, Andy, Claire, Issy and Georgia. The biggest thanks, however, must go to the sponsors who have raised such a fantastic sum for Hollybank www.hollybanktrust.com
Hollybank will hopefully be auctioning some hot passenger laps in the car at their annual dinner in a couple of weeks time which should help add to this amount. To remind everyone of the sponsors:
- Ring Automotive (part of the Volvox group of companies);
- Addleshaw Goddard (Sally ? no-one will ever forget the photo shoot!)
- PayStream ? it makes perfect sense
- Fellside Holiday Cottages (thanks Mrs Ball!)
- LDC; and
- my colleagues ? Team LDC
Looking back on the season, the highlight of the season for me was the first race at Donington Park back in June. The event was part of a very large meeting so the crowds were big, loads of friends had turned up to support, we were all very nervous, it was on telly, it didn't rain and we had our own little 12 man party in the motorhome afterwards! It is a weekend that I'll never forget. The most amusing part of the season was meeting up with Sid, Chris and Paul (fellow competitors) for the first time the night before our race licence test. The resulting hangover was huge. Not the best preparation for being driven around a race circuit at speed!
What next? Well I've definitely got the bug. I have decided to try racing a Porsche in the Apex Porsche Club Championship. I'm not going to compete at all of the rounds due to the time commitment but will pick and chose the best circuits to race at. The car is a 1993 Porsche 968 Club Sport and will be race prepared over the winter. So, if anyone wants to buy a low mileage, cherished Caterham let me know!
Thanks for reading and for all of the support during the year.
Team Bacon Buttie Racing
Raising funds for www.hollybanktrust.com
Cheers - Andy Ball
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