2013-12-09 09:17:19.2
With the news that Rich Higham broke his wrist after falling off his motorbike on a track day, Eddie competed in the penultimate round of the championship at Bayford Meadows as a one-man team.
After getting the kart tested in practice, Eddie qualified 5th. Although admitting to being slightly disappointed with his qualifying, he was pleased to be on the inside row, which is always important at the notorious Bayford Meadows circuit. Even more importantly, his two main rivals Glen Beard and James Taylor only qualified 10th and 11th respectively.
Eddie made a good start and was up to 4th by the end of the first lap. He then picked off his rivals one by one and was in the lead by lap 10. From there, Eddie continued to pull out a gap and, coupled with a quick pit stop, extended his lead to win comfortably by 30 seconds.
This win put him and Rich Higham in an unbeatable position at the top of the standings. Eddie was delighted after the race.
”This win came at the perfect time. It was so important we won here and with James and Glen finishing off the podium, we couldn’t have hoped for a better result. I spoke to Rich straight after the race and he is absolutely delighted.”
It wasn’t until the following morning that the outcome of the championship became known.
“After the race, the situation was we had to finish fourth to win the championship regardless of what James or Glen did. Of course the situation with dropped scores means that if we don’t score at Rye and James wins, we would tie on points and tie on number of wins so it would come down to second places. Because Rich and I have two seconds and James only has third places, we win regardless. It’s a complicated situation but no less satisfying. I’m just sorry Rich wasn’t here to see the win and celebrate the championship. He’s done a fantastic job this year and it’s a real shame he had his accident. Hats off to him because without him as a team mate, I don’t think I would have won this on my own.”
Eddie and Rich Higham become the first champions in this series.
