Race 4 - Buddh!

Race 4 was the most tense we have seen yet.

The season underdogs  crushed the competition last race, and were looking to climb even higher in the standings.  This time, we are racing at Buddh in India.

Everyone starts the race off fairly quickly off the mark.  But the intensity of the competition has heated up, and the cars are too close.  Paint has been scratched on more than one occasion before all of the cars have even crossed the starting line.  Nicole Tickle and Rhodes Rashburne's cars seem a little worse for wear.

By the second turn of the race, Nicole Tickle starts to take a commanding lead.  Clearly pushing her engine to it's absolute extremes.  And everyone else starts to follow.

By the 4th turn, Nicole Tickle is WAY in front, followed by Chumbawamba and the Stig.  Rhodes Rashburne feels he has to make some kind of headway, and kamikazes into the 4th turn recklessly at top speed.  (did he forget there was a turn there?).  This sends him hurtling end over end beyond the turn - the blue car is out of the race for good!

Meanwhile, the engines of all the drivers are being pushed beyond their limits, and something finally gives.  Quickie's engine blows.  He's coasting for now, but it's going to be all over for this driver.

To give you an idea how well Nicole Tickle is doing, the green car is in the 6th turn already, with The Stig just barely making it through turn four.  In fact, the Stig hasn't even passed Quickie who has a blown engine!

Meandering quickly through the last few turns, the outcome of this race looks inevitable.  Can The Stig catch Chumbawamba though?  Not with Quickie's dead engine car blocking the way!

While the Stig is in turn 5, the race is already over.  Nicole Tickle takes the checkered flag.  As long as the drivers don't do anything rash, it's going to be Tickle in 1st, Chumbawamba in 2nd, and The Stig in 3rd.

Chumbawamba takes his final turns to approach the finish line for a steady 2nd place.  But the story doesn't end here.  The Stig, destined for a 3rd place showing decides to jam the pedal to the floor out of the last turn, and his Engine is blown!  We have our 2nd blown engine of the race!  But The Stig has enough momentum to cross the finish line.

What a show!

The Standings put Nicole Tickle in 1st place by a lead of 3 points going into the last race of the season.  The Stig and Chumbawamba are tied in points, and looking to take the lead.  It will all come down to the last race in Spain.

Race Three - Sochi!

We are in Sochi, Russia, observing the third Certified Insanity League season 1 race.

Rhodes Rashburne and Chumbawamba didn't finish in Race 2, so they will in pole position and 2nd position for this race (sporting shiny new cars, I might add!).  Rhodes has not yet finished a race - will this be his first?

The start of the race was exciting.  The two lead cars pulled away in a hurry.  Quickie and Nicole Tickle proceed next at a stately pace, but The Stig STALLS at the outset!  What a setback!

As the lead car hits the first corner, it looks as if this race is going to be all about Rashburne's blue car versus Chumbawamba's white.

Through the round circle curve and the following two turns, all of the drivers seem to be having trouble gauging the correct speeds, and QUICKIE takes advantage!!  By the third turn past the circle, Quickie has overtaken not only Chumbawamba, but also Rhodes!  His aggressive driving has paid off!

The turn is now packed with drivers.  Only The Stig is not in the thick of it.  The Stig hasn't recovered from that stall at the starting line, and the excellent drivers in this race aren't making any mistakes.

After the long straightaway, Rashburne is in the lead going into the hairpin, but Nicole Tickle makes a bold move!  Gearing UP instead of down into the hairpin!  Will Tickle's green car make it through?!  Somehow it does!  The tires and breaks are shot as Tickle's brakes screech and the green car spins out just past the turn.  Looks like an opportunity is presenting itself for The Stig to finally catch up to someone.

On the last turn, Quickie takes the lead, but somehow Rhodes pushes the blue car engine just enough to come out of the corner ahead by a hair!  he reclaims the lead!

With the lead secured, Rhodes Rashburne coasts to victory, with Quickie very close behind.

Chumbawamba easily overtakes the spunout car and sails by the checkered flag an uncontested third.

The real excitement is between the two last finishers - Nicole Tickle and The Stig.  Can The Stig take advantage of the green car's spinout?  Not QUITE!  Nicole Tickle has the lead (barely), but the green car is really feeling the strain.  I'm not sure there's much left for Nicole to push, and The Stig may have a few more tricks up his sleeve.

The Stig takes the lead out of the last corner, but it's slow going to get up to speed down the straight.

And somehow, someway, the impossible happens!  Nicole Tickle slides JUST in front of the Stig just before the finish line!  And then on through for 4th place!  The Stig's yellow car then takes 5th.

In my opinion, this has been the most exciting race in the series so far.  The contests between 1st and 2nd, as well as 4th and 5th were determined by mere milliseconds down the last straight!

The victory in this race gives Rhodes Rashburne a chance to get back into the race for the season championship.  Overall, the standings remain the same; but, the wide moat between The Stig and Nicole Tickle versus the other drivers has narrowed considerably!

It will all come down to how skillfully the drivers navigate the last two Races: Buddh and Valencia!

Race Two - New Jersey!

New Jersey is the site of the second official race in the premiere Certified Insanity League season.

 

Racers Rhodes Rashburne and Quickie did not finish the last race, and will start this race in the first two positions.  Will they be more cautious this time around?  Chumbawamba has a lot MORE to prove – placing first in both qualifying AND the first official race.  Steady and consistent Nicole Tickle has been taking 2^nd place consistently since the early going, and The Stig seems to improve more and more with each race – perhaps getting used to a car with a gearbox installed in the correct orientation.

 

The start of the race was as exciting as always.  By the second turn, every single racer was in close contact with one another.  So close, in fact, that contact had been made between the cars three times!  Quickie was barely in the lead, while Rhodes Rashburne was struggling to escape last place with Chumbawamba.

 

 

 

The race stayed close until the 2^nd chicane, when Rhodes Rashburne pushed his car at blazing speed, using up most of his tires in the process.  That kept him well ahead of the pack for some time.

 

But it was not to last forever.  The Stig caught up quickly leading into the hairpin before the long straight.  The next group was Nicole Tickle and Chumbawamba, trying to outmaneuver each other for a chance at third place.  Everyone had been driving recklessly to this point except for the dead last Quickie – who was driving cautiously, perhaps waiting for the right moment to push it.

 

 

As we approach the final corner before the finish line, Chumbawamba makes a miraculous recovery, but moving into the corner far too quickly – just behind the two leading cars, making this a 3 way race between Chumbawamba, Rhodes Rashburne, and The Stig.

 

 

 

The pressure forces Rhodes Rashburne to push the car just a bit too far, and it crashes just in front of the finish line.  The Stig slows to a cautious pace, while Chumbawamba zooms by, unable to control the speed through the remainder of the turn.  Another blazing crash.  Chumbawamba’s car is a fiery wreck, right alongside Rhodes’.  This is making for a terrible obstacle for the finishing drivers.  (Stay tuned while we check to see if these two drivers are OK!)

 

Coming behind quickly are Nicole Tickle, and Quickie.  But it is too late to catch the Stig, who maneuvers through the wrecks and claims the checkered flag!  Nicole Tickle outmaneuvers Quickie for second place.  Quickie, realizing that all there is left is third spot, slows to a failsafe speed and crosses the finish line for a well deserved 3^rd place.  Here are the current standings:

 

 

 

Each of our races have led to two driver crashes.  Will all of the races in our series prove to be as dangerous?  Tune in and see for yourself!

 

First Race of the Season! Singapore!

The first official race of the Certified Insanity season took place at Singapore’s Marina Bay track today.

Team White’s Chumbawumba had a lot to prove today, having stolen the pole position during qualification with his steady, controlled style.

The start of the race was as exciting as ever – Chumbawamba and Nicole Tickle were jockeying for position almost immediately.  Team Yellow’s last placed Stig had an amazing start and vaulted forward, gaining valuable ground on Quickie and Rhodes Rashburne.  Just prior to passing through the start line, there was contact between the Blue car and the Red car, leaving part of the Rhodes Rashburne’s Blue car still on the track!  Wow.  Maybe the damage wasn’t as bad as we thought, as he decided to continue the race!

The race was led primarily by Green’s Nicole Tickle with Chumbawamba ever close behind.  The Stig advanced from last to 3^rd, with Quickie and Rhodes Rashburne taking up the rear.

Then, out of nowhere, Rhodes Rashburne made a daring maneuver through the Concert Hall double chicane, and through Fullerton Road to take 2^nd place.  After the next turn, however, disaster struck.  Rhodes made contact yet again, this time with The Stig, sending him crashing into the wall at the Crossroads.  Thankfully, Rhodes was okay.

The end of the race was all about the meaneuvering between Green’s Nicole Tickle and White’s Chumbawamba.  It was decided at the Carlton Millenia, as Nicole Tickle took the corner far too slowly, allowing Chumbawamba a tremendous lead.  And with that, Chumbawamba took the checkered flag!  Nicole Tickle coasted through an easy second place, with The Stig taking Third.

4^th place Quickie was not so lucky.  With an easy 4^th, Quickie’s eyes lit up, and he announced over the radio “I gotta get there FASTER – I’ve got a doctor’s appointment to keep!!!”  In the most challenging series of turns on the course, he launched his car into 4^th gear, and lost control in the corner, crashing.

2 did not finish results out of 5 cars.  It is apparent that all of the drivers are pushing their cars to the limits!

The next race will be at the New Jersey circuit.  The current standings are as follows:

		Singapore (Qualifying)	Singapore (Singapore)	New Jersey (USA)	Sochi (Russia)	Buddh (India)	TBD
TEAM	DRIVER	Seas Qual	Race 01	Race 02	Race 03	Race 04	Race 05	Driver Points	Driver Rank	Team Points	Team Rank
White	Chumbawamba	1st	1st					6	1	6	1
Green	Nicole Tickle	2nd	2nd					4	2	4	2
Yellow	The Stig	5th	3rd					3	3	3	3
Red	Quickie	4th	DNF					0	4	0	4
Blue	Rhodes Rashburne	3rd	DNF					0	5	0	5
	Debris Counts		4
	Start Time		12:00
	End Time		13:29
	Race Duration		1:29
Race 1 Notes:	DNF1:	Rhodes Rashburne (Collision)
	DNF2:	Quickie (Crash in Corner)

 

 

Starting positions for the next race will be as follows:

Position	Driver
1	Rhodes Rashburne
2	Quickie
3	The Stig
4	Nicole Tickle
5	Chumbawamba