Rheinard’s gamble pays off
Having sat out the first qualifier Marc Rheinard got the result he had hoped for as he took TQ honours for the second round of heats. The German ran a time of 19 laps in 5:04.16 to claim the round from Martin Hofer who is looking very strong at the controls of his Yokomo BD5. Rheinard appeared a little disappointed with the run, which was slower than his Tamiya/Speed Passion team-mate Jilles Groskamp’s Round 1 TQ time, describing it as only ‘OK’. The World Champion said he had to drive easy to ensure he made the full run time. Hofer was delighted with second run saying ‘doubt I ‘ll be using that second set of tyres before the Mains’. Hofer is full of praise for his new car and has it dialled in well for running on used tyres and needs just one more solid run to secure his place in the A Mains in which will be a strong candiate for a podium finish.
TOP driver John Bruins had a fantastic round taking third having opted to run his second set of permitted tyres. The Dutch driver also ran a harder rear spring and softer front shock oil which he said made his new Photon chassis more aggressive allowing him to knock 4 seconds off his opening run time. Fellow Corally driver Marc Fischer once again ran out of steam on the final lap and had to settle for fourth. The factory driver is unsure why he is having problems with run time but says he may have to adjust his driving style next time out. Factory Kyosho pairing Christopher Kraap and Steen Graversen completed the top 6 once again, this time the younger Kraap getting the better of his team-mate.
‘A stupid mistake’ was how Jilles Groskamp described his early exit from Round 2. Having TQ’d the opening round the Dutch ace put his Tamiya on the grass and was clearly annoyed with himself for the error. Andy Moore also had a non-finish for the round after he pulled up 4 minutes into the run after picking up a mysterious vibration in the steering.
In Pro Stock local driver Rob Janssen put his extensive Apeldoorn track knowledge to good use by TQ’ing the second round. The Corally driver benefited from fresh rubber having completed only a single lap in Round 1 to scrub in the tyres. Defending Champion Alexander Stocker who also had new tyres claimed P2, over 5 seconds adrift, but the German said he was pleased with the result given Janssen’s experience here. Vasco Christiaanse took third a result he was disappointed with. The Hot Bodies driver said his car felt good but lacked power. The Dutch driver is hoping that fitting a second cooling fan to his motor will help. Currently it is 24 degrees here with a track temperature of 46.
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