Saturday 23rd May 2015 proved to be a very successful day for CTK Racing, only in their second year taking part in the IET GreenPower Goblin Racing Challenge. With up to 30 teams taking part from all over Ireland, the team from Christ the King went into the event with hope that the long hours and effort put in over the last 6 months getting their two cars ready would pay off with success on the track.
In ideal conditions on a sunny day at Nutts Corner, the CTK Racing team held their own in the slalom race, with all drivers recording respectable times. In the sprint event, it was Kieran McDonagh who was leading the line for the ‘Red Racer’, with fearless driving to comfortably win the first heat. Kieran’s pace suggested that he would have no difficulty in the semi-final. However, it was a crowded track with 4 cars, rather than 3 taking part. Coming up to the first corner luck deserted Kieran when he was forced wide and, as he turned the car to get a better line, his rear wheel became entangled with another team’s front wheel. Kieran showed great determination and courage to eventually break free from the other car, but at this stage there was too much of a gap to make up. In the other heat, it fell to Sean Coleman to carry the hope of the ‘Green Machine’ and CTK Racing, to which he didn’t disappoint. As with Kieran, he won his heat comfortably. In the semi-final, Sean continued his good form by securing a place in the 3rd place run-off race. Despite being drawn in the promising inside-lane, Sean got off to a near-catastrophic start when his opponent forced him off the track and onto the grass! When most other drivers would have given up and conceded that there was to be no way back, Sean showed a steely determination to force his way back onto the track and hold the inside line. Coming around the final turn it was neck and neck but it was to be the Green Machine’s day thank to the courageous efforts of Sean, and he took the chequered flag for 3rd place overall in the Sprint event.
And so onto the drag race – a test of speed and nerve. The teams from CTK Racing set a confident pace from the start, with Daniel, Tiernan, Sean, Shannon and Aine all recording impressive times in the ‘Green Machine’. It was the lightweight ‘Red Racer’ however that caught the eye, with Kiernan, Mateusz, Austeja, Eva, Michael and Wiktoria recording blistering times. When the results came in, team CTK’s effort were duly rewarded with ‘Green Machine’ coming second overall and the ‘Red Racer’ claiming first prize.In three events, CTK Racing managed to collect an extraordinary 1st, 2nd and 3rd place trophies, and can look forward to building on this success next year!
