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TouringCarTimes joins BKR for pitstop challenge

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You can’t do a great deal in 1.92 seconds, unless you happen to be the Williams pit crew – in which case you can change four wheels and send a Formula 1 car back on its way.

Without doubt, the boys of F1 are the masters when it comes to the perfect pitstop but the ability to change a tyre is just as important in other forms of motorsport, such as the BTCC.

While in race pit-stops are now pretty much a thing of the past, pit crews still get plenty of practice over the course of the season as drivers cross tyres in qualifying, with the potential time lost with a slow change being crucial when it comes to securing track position.

It’s not uncommon to see teams practicing tyre changes over the course of a race weekend, with newcomers BKR in particular regularly seen trying to trim some time from their personal best on a Sunday morning.

And at Croft, they found a few new members…

A challenge set by series tyre supplier Dunlop saw two members of the TouringCarTimes team going up against the pros in what was originally scheduled to be a ‘Journo vs Driver’ challenge, although it would prove to be a case of best laid plans not quite coming to fruition…

Instead, it became a 2 versus 1 challenge, with editor Neil Hudson teaming up with Aron Smith and feature editor Matt Salisbury partnering BKR grid girl Chantal Rozard to take on mechanics Alex Steele and Nick Chantler – the latter having arrived on loan from AmDTuning.com for the purposes of the challenge.

Some hints from the ever popular Carl Lloyd, known throughout the paddock simply as ‘Big Carl’, on how to position the new wheel should have made things easier but in reality, the combined efforts of the amateur foursome left a lot to be desired.

Whilst two journalists and one grid girl were happy to concede defeat, racing drivers are competitive beasts, so with Charlie Reardon taking over a wheel we’d been happy to abandon, it became three mechanics against one racing driver.

The end result, as can be seen below, was wholly predictable.

Oh, and as for what can you do in 1.92 seconds. We just about managed to pick up the wheel…

(With thanks to BKR and Mark Howard for allowing us use of a car, and Maundrell Media for putting the video together)