Pembrey preview and practice

First off, apologies for not blogging more in the last few weeks. I've been working so many hours that I'm looking forward to this race weekend for a rest. Pembrey in south west Wales is the venue for round two. It's a flat circuit and a short lap of around one minute. Although it looks like a Brands-esque cornerspeed-fest, you actually need a well-balanced set-up. The tight hairpin turn one is aproached at high speed and the braking zone is long and straight, meaning maximum braking force. Stability here will be crucial in order to make passes and defend against them. A series of sweeps leads to a tight corner at the back (the names escape me) which requires a lot of trail braking, a late apex and good drive for the fast section that follows. Practice today went well and using a worn tyre from Mallory I was able to lap close to my best from last year. Hopefully I'll be faster tomorrow on fresh tyres. Carl Marsden is going very well and will be a tough competitore. Andy Denyer is here too, with his home-made frame. Finally, a shout to Chris Matthew who is at home recovering from an unrelated back operation.The sunshine is forecast to continue, so it looks like being a great weekend.