Logan Lauder 9BSN

Well done to Logan who competed in the Manchester Gold Cup last weekend – a three-day go-karting event.

He did exceptionally well and we are very proud of him.

Thank you to Logan for sharing his experience below.

Mrs Hill

“Last weekend I raced at the Three Sisters circuit in Wigan. The circuit hasn’t been used for kart racing for a few years so I was looking forward to take part in the new Manchester Gold Cup. The event was over 3 days and lots goes on. I’ve just moved up to the junior class which is for drivers aged 13-16, it was only my second race and its a lot tougher. The speeds are faster too, this weekend I was going 78mph down the main straight.

There was 46 taking part in my class, the weekend was split into testing, qualifying, heats and a final. The practice was all day Friday and you try and find the right setup. There’s lots to think about and the team rely on me to feedback and work with my mechanics to set the kart up right. You have to be good at maths and science. When it came to qualifying I managed to come 1^st out of 46 and I was really happy to get pole position. The result in qualifying meant I was to start first in the heats. I was a bit nervous with all the other drivers behind all wanting to overtake me, especially when most of them are 2 years older than me. The racing is supposed to be no contact but it can get very tough.

In the heats I did my best and managed to come 7^th after a few on track incidents and crashes caused the racing to stop and then start again. On the Sunday the final was cancelled due to bad light after a lot of drivers got reported to the stewards in the lunchtime heat and they couldn’t complete all the investigations in time – lots of telling off’s and detentions got handed out but I wasn’t one of them!

I was a shame the final couldn’t happen but it’s now the off season for karting so I’ll be doing lots of testing and gym work before the season kicks off next March. I’ve already signed up to the biggest competition in the UK and am also looking to complete some racing in Europe. I also post updates on my tiktok and instagram when I’m away racing if anyone wants to see more.”