Getting organised for the new season

Well it's certainly been a horribly long winter but with the start of the season just around the corner, I can actually say that for once I am quite well organised - although I still have a lot more still to sort out in a short space of time.

It is now March and since I last wrote for love:mini I have now confirmed that I am returning to my original team Minimax Motorsport to run with them for the season - you heard it here first! I also have two confirmed sponsors returning for another season with Hannah Chapman Racing and I have also managed to squeeze in a test day in the MINI too!

My two sponsors are RAM Tubulars and The NWH Group, and I can definitely say that without their support and loyalty I wouldn't have been able to get back on the grid this year which would've been a real shame just after I managed to get within the top 5. So I am hoping to do them and myself proud this year by getting straight back on the pace and hopefully achieving some even more impressive results.

As far as I am aware, I am the only girl competing in the Scottish Mini Cooper Cup this season and as much as it would be great to see some more female faces on the grid, I am also equally as happy to be the only one up against all the guys. I'm out there to be taken seriously as a fast overall driver and that it doesn't matter that inside the pretty pink MINI under the helmet is a girly girl with blonde hair, it doesn't make me any slower than the most macho man on the grid and I'm ready for the challenge of proving myself up against the best. Also, a lot of the quickest guys on the grid have been racing for years and probably won't get much quicker now they have reached their peak - whereas I am still relatively new to it so I have a whole lot more to learn and a lot more to give... so watch this space!

This season is a fresh start so alot has changed - as I mentioned previously I am with a different team, the car now has a completely new design and I can't wait for the big reveal (especially after spending the best part of a day de-stickering all the names that I had on the roof previously). I also now have ex-Mini Champion, Clio Cup and Ginetta racer, Vic Covey Jnr, as my driver coach, which is really good for me as he has known me since the day I first set foot in a go-kart when I was 14. He knows how I work as a driver and with all his years of experience he is able to pass on his knowledge to me and gives good pep-talks to get me in the right frame of mind before a race, which is a big thing for me.

The first round is now just three weeks away so I will be filling that time with lots more gym sessions, another test day at Knockhill, finishing off the final touches to the presentation of the car and the team workshop/hospitality areas and one more pre-season push to try and secure some more sponsors. I will also be doing my names on roof idea again where you can get your name on the roof of my lovely Lola the race MINI for a minimum donation of £20. Last year I raised around £800 from it and it really was the difference between me finishing and not finishing the season so every little helps! I also have a Commercial Partnership Brochure with further information on the available packages, anyone interested please get in touch - hannahchapman.racing@gmail.com.

Speak soon, H :-)