Savannah, Georgia

October 19-21, 2003

The Formula Renault has a 2 litre, 4 cylinder engine that puts out 186 horsepower.  With a top speed of around 270 km/h these cars will accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 4 seconds.

With humid weather hanging in the air, Richert was off to the Roebling Road Raceway to get fitted into the Team Gelles Racing car.  First, a large garbage bag was put into the cockpit of the car and then a liquid is poured into the bag.  Once the driver sits on this bag, in the liquid hardens around him and a customized seat is formed.  The bag is removed and the foam is taped up and the seat is cut down to the drivers specification.

Monday was test day and the team headed off the track first thing in the morning.  After making several laps in a rental car, Richert took to the track for his very first laps in a Formula Renault race car.  By midday my times were dropping and my confidence was growing but the rain started to fall and the times rose.  It was difficult to trust the car in the rain when you were still learning in the dry.  After all was said and done, 75 laps were put in by 1:00pm and David decided to call it a day because of the rain.

Tuesday was spent sitting around the garage and observing other test drivers driving the track.  But unfortunately it started to rain harder as the day went on, so by 11:00am everyone was off the track for the day.  It was an awesome experience for Richert as he hopes to get more test days and hopefully race cars next summer.  The winter will be spent searching for sponsors who wish to create a partnership with David Richert.