From Snetterton To Silverstone - BRSCC Fiesta Juniors & Japfest

Welcome back to our next blog! We have had an absolutely manic weekend, attending both BRSCC Fiesta Juniors at Snetterton and Japfest at Silverstone. So, what happened? We’ll start with Fiesta Juniors.

Friday saw our youth development driver, Tom Simpson, having a day of testing and preparations for three races over the course of the weekend - two on Saturday, and one on Sunday. Saturday arrived, with perfect conditions for a great day of racing - pure sunshine, minimal wind and blue skies. The morning session was qualifying for the variety of classes racing that day, from our Fiestas to MX-5s to Citroen 2CVs. Tom’s qualifying session was clean, and he qualified 5th out of a grid of 32 cars, no small feat! 

Race 1 did not go as hoped, with Tom dropping down to 8th as a result of an overtake manoeuvre gamble that did not pay off, mixed with overly defensive driving. Race 2 was much of the same before being prematurely red-flagged from another car rolling several times - with the driver thankfully unhurt. Tom finished 7th. After a night of reflection, Tom was out with renewed vigor and found his stride on Sunday’s third and final race of the weekend - where he flew into 4th place and clocked fastest lap of the race. A much better result than the previous day and a strong indication of the season to come. 

Over at Silverstone, our show team had been hard at work, driving down from UK HQ in Yorkshire on Saturday morning and spending the afternoon setting up for a busy Japfest on Sunday. We brought three cars with us - our newly acquired Toyota Century, our GR Yaris and even our R33 Skyline V8 time attack car, which has been in hibernation for nearly a year. Our Century would sit on stand with us, whilst the Yaris and Skyline would be on display at Japfest’s own retail stand. 

We were up bright and early on Sunday, getting to the circuit in plenty of time to finish up with the setup and ensure everything was primed and ready for a great day. The weather was kind to us, with sunny skies all day, despite a slight windy chill. As predicted, it was an extremely busy day, meeting and chatting to thousands of people passing through the stand. Public track time was periodically broken up with spectacular drifting displays throughout the day. The Century was a hit and proved extremely popular with everyone who laid eyes on it. People were thrilled to have a look inside the car and chat with us about a seemingly never-ending list of interesting facts and quirks about these unique vehicles. It was fantastic to see so many cars on display sitting on BCs and even better to meet many customers who came to say hi. 

All in all, it was an extremely busy and enjoyable weekend for all involved. Next up for us is Japfest Ireland at Mondello Park this coming weekend - we’re looking forward to it! Will we see you there?