I found myself in a battle for twelfth overall as day two came to a close. With a 6 second advantage over 13th placed driver and team boss, FanFan, I pushed hard through the final 15 kilometres - but maybe a bit too hard. At the half way point it was going okay and I had gained another 3 seconds. But unfortunately lost it again and more after I overshot an acute hairpin and was forced into a three-point turn to get back on track. Annoyingly I ended up losing my twelfth place by just over 1 second.
Despite this I was happy with the experience. It was a solid result and I have learnt so much from my first visit to China. I have learnt many important things about working in a large team and as usual I have picked up so many things from David, Ieuan and my co-driver Tim. The visit was made much easier by having such a warm welcome from everyone at the Wan Yu Rally team
A few days later it was the Rally Show at Chatsworth. It was fantastic fun and nice to catch up with people. It was just a shame I was not driving. It was really positive to see so many people coming to watch and I hope next year I will be behind the wheel.
With a bit of a break now and no testing planned for the Suzuki, I have turned my attention back to looking for much needed sponsors and partners for 2009. It's a difficult time for most and it makes finding budget hard for everyone. I imagine it will be a tough job but I will work hard and see what happens.
Nick.
To find out more about Nick visit his personal website:
http://www.nickrowland.co.uk/ or simply
CLICK HERE.
