• Capel St Mary teenager Shaun Arnold scores second national victory.• Scottish weekend to forget for twin brother Matthew.
Capel St Mary based kart racer Shaun Arnold celebrated his 16th birthday in style with his second victory in the Formula One Management backed Formula Kart Stars Junior Rotax Championship, giving him a share of the points lead at the half way mark of the 2012 season.
Shaun and twin brother Matthew, who both compete in the 70mph Junior Rotax class in the same championship that helped launch the careers of current Formula One superstars Lewis Hamilton and Paul Di Resta, took time out of their GCSE studies to travel to the Larkhall circuit in Scotland for the fifth and sixth rounds of the twelve round campaign.
While Shaun kept himself in the thick of the title hunt with another victory Matthew endured a weekend to forget when a snapped chain stranded him within sight of the chequered flag.
Both East Bergholt High School students had to overcome their share of difficulties over the course of the double-header weekend with a mix of dry and wet conditions keeping the twins’ entire Danny Cruttenden Motorsport Durapipe UK Ltd sponsored team on their toes.
Shaun overcame a penalty in Saturday’s second heat to finish a strong second in the first final of the weekend and then fought back from a heartbreaking mechanical failure whilst leading Sunday’s second heat race to charge from 15th on the grid to the lead in a soaking wet final.
“Danny [Cruttenden] said that I had the pace to win so I thought to myself ‘lets have a good go,’” recalled Shaun, who gained nine places on the opening lap and then set about catching the leaders. “I had to concentrate on picking the other drivers off one by one as the spray was so bad you couldn’t see where you were going when you got right up behind someone.”
Taking the lead on lap 11 of 20 Shaun enjoyed a spectacular battle with Bobby Thompson for top spot during the second half of the race and initially believed he had finished second, only to subsequently be promoted to first when Thompson was excluded for contact with another driver.
“I was still pretty pleased with the result then I heard that Bobby had some problems so I just sat and waited,” continued Shaun. “We definitely needed another win as the second half of the year is going to be really tough. I’m on the weight limit now and if I grow any more between now and the end of the year it’ll get really difficult but I’m in a tie for the championship lead and I’ve got a real shot at the title.”
While Shaun may have been able to enjoy his birthday celebrations on the long drive back from Scotland, for elder brother (by half an hour) Matthew it was time to reflect on a weekend where his abundant speed yet again went unrewarded.
After getting sideswiped into the gravel trap on the last lap of Saturday’s opening heat Matthew salvaged a top ten finish in the first final but his chances of joining Shaun on the podium on Sunday were dealt a blow when his chain snapped during the second heat whilst running in fourth place resulting in another lowly starting position for the final.
Like Shaun, Matthew made excellent progress in Sunday’s final but his day ended in the cruellest possible fashion when he lost another chain just two corners from home with his kart finally coming to rest less than 20 metres from the finish line.
“I came out of the hairpin and heard the engine note change,” rued Matthew, who slipped to13th in the championship table. “I just rolled it down the hill and tried to get it across the line but it stopped. I felt sick as we were virtually always in the top five when something bad happened.”
