DescriptionA championship for controlled-spec Caterhams, so you are guaranteed close, fast and affordable racing! And racing at Spa! Equally suitable for novices and veterans. Specializes in friendly club racing – professional team support is actively discouraged. This club is run by its members, for its members. It features free tech support at all rounds and an active Driving Standards team who strive to improve safety and thus control costs!
2008 races:
1 Sat 29th March Oulton Park (Int!)
2 Sun 20th April Rockingham
3 Mon 5th May Castle Combe
4 Sat/Sun 24th/25th May Snetterton
5 Sat/Sun 24th/25th May Snetterton
6 Sat/Sun 7th/8th June Brands Hatch (Indy)
7 Sat 21st June Silverstone (nat)
8 Sat 21st June Silverstone (nat)
9 Sun 20th July Mallory Park
10 Sat/Sun 2nd/3rd August Anglesey
11 Sat/Sun 2nd/3rd August Anglesey
12 Sun 14th Sept Cadwell
13 Fri/Sat/Sun 3rd/4th/5th Oct Spa-Francorchamps
14 Fri/Sat/Sun 3rd/4th/5th Oct Spa-Francorchamps
The BookaTrack.com Caterham Graduates series was started in 1998 by competitors from the 1997 Caterham Scholarship.
Each class generally races on a separate grid, the exception this year being Spa-Francorchamps, where all classes will start together on a 65-car grid!
The cars in the series are genuinely road-going, although Mega-Graduates spec is moving away from this with the deletion of lights, and indeed a few are driven to (and hopefully) from races. Many are used by drivers mid-week for transport to work and for shopping, needing no more than the covering up of competition numbers to make them road-legal. No changes from the standard specification are allowed, putting the emphasis firmly on driving ability rather than car development and set-up. Along with low consumables costs, this keeps the costs of running a car very much under control, making it one of the most cost-effective ways to go racing. The large grid sizes are a testament to this low-cost formula, with over 100 drivers registered for the championship across the three classes. Part of the championship's popularity is due to the technical support which is available to all the drivers FOC at every round - parts and expertise are provided by McMillan Motorsport.
The champiomship is one of the largest in the country, if not the largest, with over 100 registered competitors. The competitors come from a variety of backgrounds. A large number have "graduated" from the novice Caterham Scholarship and Academy series, whilst many others have made it their first foray into motorsport. Past champions include 2001 Super-Graduate champion Nelson Rowe who went on to win Caterham Roadsports A in 2002, and 2002 Super-Graduate runner-up, and 19 yr old Jon Barnes who won 2004 Caterham Eurocup series.
In each of the classes points are awarded to all finishers and even a driver who fails to finish will still earn one point! At the end of the season, drivers drop their worst three scores, allow for missing a race or two, or a DNF. In addition, drivers can earn 10 championship points by completing a day's marshalling.
All classes run on Yokohama tyres. Classic Graduates race on list 1A A539s, whilst Supers and Megas use the stickier list 1B A048R. George Polley Motorsport provide tyre service at selected rounds.
In 2007, the championship enjoyed sponsorship from BookaTrack.com, Yokohama tyres, George Polley Motorsport, Brian James trailers, ACES shift lights, ID:UK websites (Jamie Ellwood), Teng Tools and McMillan Motorsport and others.
There are usually cars advertised for sale on the Graduates' web-site.
Classic Graduates
The cars in the Classic Graduate class are Caterham Seven Classics with live-rear axles and 1600cc 8-valve engines, producing around 100 bhp - cars which originally came from the Caterham Academy between 1995 and 2000.
Engines are either from Ford (95 > 97) or Vauxhall (98 > 2000). The engines are well-matched with the Fords having perhaps a little more top speed, and the Vauxhalls having better low-down torque. (The two types of engine can be differentiated from the exhaust system, with the Fords' exiting to the rear and the Vauxhalls' to the side). The Classics run on class 1A Yokohama A539s, ensuring a good balance of power-to-grip. Cars cost from £7k to £10k.
Super-Graduates
The Super-Graduate class is for cars to the 2001-on Caterham Academy specification. The only changes are a swap to stickier Yokohama A048R tyres and an optional rear anti-roll bar. The cars have more modern DeDion rear suspension and 1600cc Rover K-series engines, producing 120bhp. Cars cost from £9k to £15k.
Mega-Graduates
Mega-Gradudates is an up-grade of the Super-Graduate car, with about 150bhp thanks to some controlled engine modifications and an un-catalysed exhaust. The cars are also allowed wide-track front suspension for better handling. Perhaps the most obvious changes are an aeroscreen instead of a full windscreen and the deletion of headlights and rea
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