We’ve been following Philosophy and Psychology student Sophie Wright in the 2022 Mini Challenge. Sophie was one of only two women on the Grid in this season’s ‘Trophy Class’. As the competition intensifies, Sophie tells us about her two most recent race weekends. Read more in Sophies first blog Sophie and the 2022 Mini Challenge
Thruxton
After a long summer hiatus, we were back at the track at the end of August – this time, at Thruxton.
Race 1 went great and I moved up from last to 22nd place. Hoping to push further in tomorrow’s races which will be on ITV4 in the afternoon and evening.
Race 2 Unfortunately, race 2 only lasted one lap as someone in the front caused an accident and went off the track. They weren’t injured luckily! But the race was red-flagged and we all had to come back to the pits.
Race 3 was great until another driver drove me off the track! It wasn’t a fair incident however these things happen. I managed to handle the shunt well (which got a lot of good media coverage from the itv4 commentators!) and kept it on track. I babied it back to the pits, got checked over, and went back out to finish the race! Although I wasn’t racing against others at that moment, I was determined to finish the race, nonetheless because you still get 15 points for completing a race! Also, it’s essential to finish a race after a shunt (when you’re not injured) so that your mind stays strong! I ended up finishing P25 out of 30 because other drivers ended up crashing or receiving penalties.
All in all a great weekend.
Snetterton
Snetterton was an interesting weekend; I was really struggling to get my head in the game and push as hard as I knew I could. It was a tough weekend mentally as I felt like I wasn’t making much progress. However, towards the end of the last race I started to come through the fog in my head and get back to my usual self. Nevertheless, I didn’t finish last in any of the races, although I had a crummy qualifying as someone’s mirror got stuck under the front of my car and I had to sit in the pits for 2/3rds of it !
Looking ahead
The next race is Donnington… As the weather is getting worse, and the competition is getting fiercer as the season draws to a close, it’s shaping up to be another intense weekend at the end of October. I’m hoping to use this month to get my head back in the game along with keeping fit at the gym.
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