Silverstone 29/30th May 2004

Nik was on duty in Seattle (see his report) whilst I thought I had better have an outing in a Duratec Van Diemen, before I forget how to drive!.

Scott and Richard helped with the hard work at the circuit while I tried to remember to do all the other things. I drove the blue and yellow four- speed car, which was set up the same as when Dennis Pavlina drove it at Brands.

My first impression was of a transformed car to my previous outing over a year since. The impression I gained originally was of a very stiff car with not much feel. This time the whole experience was much more friendly and the car was comfortable and easy to drive. I qualified seventh with a respectable time and in the race finished fifth? second in class, after a couple of dropouts. My exhaust had fallen off half way through otherwise it was a steady run, only marred by having two cars spin in front of me which kept my concentration from wandering too far. I was slow into Copse and out of racing practice, but still managed a respectable finish.

The car is a real joy to drive now it has the wider suspension fitted, the new front splitter and revised spring rates we are able to run are a big bonus. The rocker system on the suspension means we can reduce spring rates and run an effective roll bar. Further improvements on the aero package and new motion ratios for both front and rear are being made.

The car is better than last year, so we hope these improvements to the drivability will show through when others drivers are in the car. This has been a problem to date, and we have had to address it to make the car more saleable to the average driver.

Les Johnson