T Sport Racing have had a very positive first day in Zolder. The day started with a timed Qualifying session. Terry surprised everyone, qualifying in 11th overall and 2nd in the Grammer Truck Cup competitors, beating fellow Brit, Oly Janes, by 0.001 of a second. A fantastic result considering his experience at the Zolder circuit was limited to a small number of laps in Fridays practice sessions!
During the first race Terry held his place well and managed to climb up the order during the race, finishing on the top step of the podium in the Grammer Truck Cup and 8th overall. With the top 8 finishers being reversed to form the grid, Terry would start from pole position in race 2, for only the second time in his career. An exceptional start to the weekend for the T Sport Racing team at this unfamiliar circuit.
Unfortunately before the 2nd race, the team discovered a problem with the trucks battery, and without a spare (we discovered today that we are the only team that runs a special race battery), the truck could only be started with a jump start. This was not a problem for the start of the race, however, the pressure was then on for Terry. If for any reason on the start or during the race the engine stopped or stalled, Terry would not be able to restart it. Unfortunately for the team, Lady Luck had left our side. Terry started well but the race was red flagged twice after only 2 laps meaning the trucks had to form up on the grid under parc ferme conditions, meaning the mechanics are not allowed to work on the truck. This meant Terry had to leave the engine running whilst waiting for the race to restart. Due to the engine ticking over on the grid for over 20 minutes the engine went into an automatic limp mode when the race restarted the second time. Terry therefore had to return to the pits to stop the engine and restart it with a jump pack to reset the fault, losing his place at the front of the pack. He then continued the race and set some excellent lap times on a clear track behind the main pack, giving the team a lot of confidence going into tomorrow morning’s qualifying session.
The team are now hard at work servicing the truck and adapting the battery holder to allow us to fit different batteries that we have been given by another team for tomorrow! #onetruckfamily!