Raring to Go at Snetterton - Porsche Carrera Cup GB- Snetterton Circuit Rounds 11/12
by Rory Butcher
Snetterton Circuit in Norfolk is playing host to rounds 11/12 of the Porsche Carrera Cup GB this coming weekend.
The summer break is over, the batteries have been recharged and I am ready to rumble once again!
The big crash at the last round caused catastrophic damage to our Porsche racer, leaving everyone in Celtic Speed on a downer, but Jamie Cleland, Alan Keith and the boys have done a terrific job putting things right. They have spent countless hours stripping down the old car of all the usable parts and then swapped them over to the new chassis which was delivered from the Porsche factory in Stuttgart just a few weeks ago. The new stickers and decals were fitted last week by John Young Signs so it is back to its former glory and ready to race.
The second half of the season is like a new start for me. We have learned and moved on from the first half of the year and I can't wait to get racing again!
I'm also extremely happy to announce that LBSI has come onboard as a sponsor for the remainder of the 2013 season. LBSi Ltd is an all trades building contractor specializing in Domestic/Commercial/Industrial & Agricultural Insurance repairs throughout Scotland and Northern England. They predominately deal with Fire – Flood – Impact Damage – Escapes of Water – Accidental Damage & Subsidence Insurance claims although they're expertise takes into private domestic works which include Extensions/Renovations/New Builds and the like.
LBSi Managing Director, David Brown, is excited to become part of the squad. He feels that " 2013 thus far has been an exceptional year for LBSi and as such we take great delight in supporting Rory Butcher and his team at Celtic Speed Porsche and wish them every success going forward."
The break in the season has come at just the right time allowing the team and myself to regroup. I have made use of the break to focus on my fitness with early morning runs and circuit training at The Mind And Body Studio in Kirkcaldy. My fitness trainer Keith Battle has developed exercises in high temperatures which increase my heart rate and isolate the muscles used when driving the Porsche at high speed.
Snetterton has a real mixture of long fast corners and a tight infield section, and this mixture in layout always proves a challenge when finding the optimum car setting. Setting a car up for only slow speed bends will most definitely make the handling unstable in the quicker sections so a balance must be found. The Norfolk track is one of only two circuits in the calender where we will reach sixth gear. On both the Start/Finish and Bentley straights the Porsche will surpass the 165mph barrier.
The last couple of times I have been there I felt we were in a good place by the end of the weekend, but it took a while to get to our best set-up. Now we have that data – both on my driving and the car – so that will be our base starting point.
I am not setting targets but it would be nice to finish the weekend with a bottle of champagne!
ITV 4 will be providing a full replay of my first race on Sunday during it's extensive coverage of the British Touring Car event so it is worth while setting the Sky box for record.
TSL Timing will be providing lap times and results as they happen. Click the link below and scroll to the bottom of the screen where you will find the live timing feature;
Friday Free Practice
http://www.tsl-timing.com/?loc=major&season=2013&series=BTCC&event=testing&source=ed_TOCA&eventid=133141
Qualifying and Races
http://www.tsl-timing.com/?loc=major&season=2013&series=BTCC&event=races&source=ed_TOCA&eventid=133103
Weekend Timetable
Friday
Free Practice 1 10.40 – 11.25
Free Practice 2 15.20 – 16.05
Saturday
Qualifying 14.15 – 14.45
Sunday
Race 1 10.20 (14 Laps)
Race 2 17.45 (14 Laps)
Once again, I’d like to say a big thank you to Celtic Speeds Team PrincipalTommy Dreelan and the following companies for their continued and loyal support;
- Advantec Aberdeen Ltd
- Agrii
- Angel Wax
- Caledonia Print
- Dalkeith Transport
- Harley Hepburn Accountants
- 21 Hospitality Group
- Houseman Drylining
- Intrafusion Website Design and Development
- John Young Signs
- J Gilmour Painter and Decorators Kirkcaldy
- Knockhill Racing Circuit
- LBSi
- McDonald Engineers
- Mind And Body Studio
- Production Glassfibre
- Scotcars
- Short Term Finance
- William Waugh Ltd
- William Johnston and Company
© Celtic Speed 2026
