CIRCUIT RACING: SUMMERBELL – BULLIED AND BEATEN! PART 2

TA 1 when it breached Dover’s levee and flooded the 1.6 miles when it first appeared eons ago, was revving and existing in rarefied air! Its dominance allowed the ‘King’ to reclaim that which was under threat.

His royal hand distributed forceful, firm and swift blows. Like the Jabberwocky (Alice in Wonderland), TA 1 sowed seeds of eternal fear into the combustion chambers of many machines!

What a difference time makes! TA1 has been a victim of all the maladies that affect the elderly and with ultra-modern, exotic, aerodynamic-efficient and downforce harlots now in attendance at Dover, TA was trapped in a battle to remain relevant !

But, gutless submission is absent in TA 1′s dna. The 2016 season began in an auspicious manner for TA1. Change is a prerequisite for a successful existence and few were made within TSR and the machine.

April was the team’s first real test. Thorough preparation manufactured a favorable outcome. The machine, in April dispatched a dictator’s modus operandi – ruthless, inconsiderate violence was evenly distributed!

TA 1 sung a murderous song. It wailed joyously before it assaulted the container-chicane. TA 1 made its case for its contract to be extended indefinitely! It represented well in April . Would it remain the same in August? On Saturday I decided to watch keenly as the King put the machine through familiar paces.

IAN WEBB

I saw and spoke to Ian Webb during practice. Cannot recall the year. But Jeffery Panton’s Ford Focus WRC was being prepared for competition. I spoke to Jeffery and told him what I had in mind. He agreed. I was informed about where the machine was and how to gain access. I went to the location

Usually when a race-car is being prepared for an event, a team of individuals is tasked with different responsibilities and a little bee hive is visible . On this day, at that location, Jeffery’s machine was being readied and there was only one individual present. I spoke to him, took some pictures and observed as he methodically, meticulously and rather slowly, but with a purposeful poise, went about preparing the machine for Jeffery’s callous right foot!

On that day when I visited Jeffery’s machine, there was only one individual preparing the machine. His name is Ian Webb.

During practice on Saturday, I saw Ian Webb. He was leaning on the grill/gate at Bull Thompson’s pit-bay. He had a disposable cup in his hand with half of its liquid content still intact. I identified myself and informed him that I had a couple questions – some on the record and a few off the record. He understood.

The essence of line of questions revealed what I already knew. He repeated a quote which he adopts somewhat like a motto –  to finish first, you have to first finish. We agreed and cliche it might be, but it is evident that he brought that approach to TSR, not just in words, but in race-completing substance.

Before the conversation ended I informed him that many were of the view that the team and the car are performing at a higher level since he became a member . He did the expected humility weave and dance, but I interjected before he could utter politically correct platitudes. I stated that I shared the same view. He chose silence. Humble acceptance of my position! And if you saw TA 1 in April you would have an informed vantage point.

TA 1

When the King began his practice run,on Saturday, Stephen Gunter appeared in the main observation area, next to the start-finish straight. Stop-watch in hand, he assumed Rolex duties. The King completed possibly two warm up laps and then the machine like a pompous violin began to elicit provocative expressions with chilling permutations!

TA 1, as if by design, had no distraction. No other heavy-hitter was on track. This was not a choir rehearsal. It was a solo which struck notes which refused to remain latent. The message was devoid of opaque traits. Instead Ta 1′s demeanor was Y.S. Falls clear.

Hints were not being distributed. Along the straights, entering the corners, exiting the corners, TA 1 was lodged in evolution mode. The docile, domesticated creature transitioned. It was feral, roaring from deep within its AMS fortified heart.

The King, on Saturday, had a defined plan. A plan which was possibly conceived by Stephen Gunter. To the hopeful, tucked away in their pit-bay, the message tolled its ominous content. TA1 ran enough laps to complete a race – at race pace. An infant’s reasoning ability could unearth what was on display.

Reliability issues, like Columbus, were sealed in the past – history! On Saturday, August 6th when I saw TA 1 on the track, the only logical conclusion to be arrived at read – TA 1 was primed and ready to unleash a deadly cocktail of highly volatile speed which would be supported by superior race-craft and highly accomplished driver capability.

I saw Doug Gore when he was leaving in his chalk-white Audi. When he saw me, he said “Tomorrow”. I did not see his machine on track. Was he concerned after seeing and hearing TA 1?

As I walked towards my tireless Mitsubishi, I was overwhelmed with what Sunday promised. My only concern in the late afternoon, with dusk greeting the horizon, was the lingering question – where are the other race cars?

Cecil Munroe Gleaner On-Line Writer