2006/12/02 - Dunn & Gates

Dunn & Gates take first podium at Brands Hatch.

Anthony Dunn and Barry Gates made good progress with their racing partnership this weekend at Brands Hatch.

Racing at the final round of the Britsports Winter series, the pair made a great start by running well in wet qualifying, with Dunn grabbing the front row of the grid, just one tenth of a second away from Pole position and ahead of much higher classed cars than their Radical SR3.

The first race was run in dry conditions and the more powerful cars soon blasted past although the pair put up a good battle in the 50 minute race to finish 6th.

In the second race, good pitstop work by the RPM racing team and some consistently quick driving put the pair in 3rd place overall.

"That was a great finish to the season & to get on the podium in only our second race together is fantastic" said Dunn after the race. "Barry progressed really well over the weekend and ran close to the pace of other drivers with much more experience. Personally speaking, I was pleased with my performance; it was gratifying to be faster than drivers of the calibre of (sportscar aces) Phil Bennett & Nigel Greensall in equal equipment".

Gates & Dunn plan a test programme over the winter in preparation to contesting the Radical Enduro Championship in 2007.

Although it’s not usually a problem during during ‘normal’ everyday driving, when you start driving fast G-Levels obviously increase and any objects in the car tend to move around - especially the driver! To counteract this, your muscles in your arms & legs form a brace, but obviously this can lead to two things happening: Greater fatigue and Reduction in feel. Driving fast demands a lot of concentration (most people sleep very well after a day on track!) and anything that can help reduce loss of energy in other areas will logically allow the driver to focus for longer levels of time. To get the most out of your car at speed, you need to be as subtle and relaxed as possible - if your muscles are BRACING, then they’re not FEELING!

I have found the CG-Lock very useful, particularly for so-called sports seats that in some cars look great, but really don’t do the job they’re designed for (including surprisingly many of the more expensive ones). And for leather seats, it’s an absolute godsend!