Dawn Boyd - Fuel and Inspirations

Thursday, 10 December 2009 12:32

Dawn Boyd may have come into the racing world a little later in her career than others but she has shown great perseverance and determination. I caught up with Dawn to discover what fuels her passion for motorsport racing.

At the age of 34 you entered the Formula Women competition, what made you enter?

I saw an advert in the local paper for women drivers - headline along the lines of "can women drive or similar!" - a red rag to a bull! Before that I had no special interest in motor racing except driving my car well and fast whenever possible. My only previous experience was a red letter day at Brands Hatch on my 23rd Birthday. No one in my family had any previous interest in racing so I was going it alone! Starting from scratch, so to speak!

How did you feel when you were selected for the Top 100 out of 4000 entrants?

I cried! I got the letter on email while I was at work and I was shaking as I opened it... it was like opening a Wonka bar and seeing a golden ticket! I was sat at my desk at work and yelled out YES!! With my arms in the air my friends instantly knew I was through. Finally I had some recognition that I really could drive well and someone was willing to offer me the chance to race.

What training did you do for the Formula Woman event?

I knew that we would have to do some running. I’m not built for running plus I have asthma, so I started to try and get fit by joining a gym etc. I took part in as many driving training days that I could afford. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. However, just around the time I entered Formula Woman my Father contracted pancreas cancer. So, to keep my mind busy and my fitness up, I decided to run the Race for Life for Cancer Research. As well as helping myself I raised about £1000 for the charity. Unfortunately dad didn’t make it but he was around long enough to know I was through to the finals. I remember visiting him after my advanced training day, turning up to the hospital in my Formula Woman shirt and racing boots! He died on 4th April 2005 and unfortunately never got to see me race. I just hope he approves of my new but expensive hobby!

What classes have you raced in since your racing career started in 2006, and which class did you feel the most improvement in and why?

I raced a couple of times with Formula Woman, including their record breaking event at Pembrey and their Novice Championship at Knockhill. I joined a fellow racer in Fiesta for a few races, then got invited to join the MINI Challenge with Advent Motorsport. I raced with them for 2 seasons. Although I enjoyed the racing and the team camaraderie I had limited successes. The second year in Mini was meant to be a progression but there were too many incidents and damage for me to improve. I moved to race in the Golf GTI’s for 2009, forming an independent team with my Mini mechanic, and owning my own car. I have felt the most comfortable in this car and have really enjoyed the close clean racing from people who know the value of the hard work put in to put the car on the circuit. Most drivers build and repair and even drive their own race cars to the circuit so they don’t have the win-at-all-costs mentality.

I have had the most progression and the most success this year. Highest Qualifying place of 3rd, best result 4th, finishing 4th in class and 8th overall out of 46, culminating in my winning the 750 MotorClub's Ann Clayton Cup for the highest placed female racer overall across 12 championships! I fully intend on improving on this result with the Golf for 2010.

What has been your scariest moment so far whilst racing?

Nothing has really 'scared' me, after all you are strapped up and cocooned within the roll cage, however, racing in the rain was my biggest hurdle to climb. Probably the scariest was driving the FW Caterham in the pouring rain at Knockhill. My biggest 'moment' was having brake-pad knock-off in the MINI after hitting the curbs hard at Pembrey and losing all braking at the old hairpin. I sailed off onto the grass after fighting with the steering, and at the bend I ended up in the tyre wall with a recorded impact speed of 50mph. That hurt a bit, but it helped reduce my fears of ‘getting it wrong' as I walked away from it.

So, are there any further plans for 2010, or anyone you’d like to thank?

I have booked for a second season in the Golf and fully intend on improving my results and bringing home some long awaited silverware.
I would like to thank Nicky Grist for his continued support,JMS Motorsport... my mechanic, Girlracer Magazine, Wave 105 and the Andover Advertiser for their press coverage.

By Becci Stubbs
for Girlracer Magazine www.girlracer.co.uk

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