Do it your way, says Gordon
As a child, Gordon Shedden had a poster of a Ferrari F40 on his bedroom wall and a big passion for motorsports, but never in a million years did he think he would end up being one of Scotland’s top racing drivers, writes Caroline Brodie
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ONE of the big stars of the British Touring Car Championship today offers pearls of wisdom to the Press and Journal Young Driver of the Year finalists on their big day.
Gordon Shedden, who drives a Honda Civic S2000 for Team Halfords and is currently fourth in the BTCC standings, says the most important thing the contestants can do is to relax and drive true to themselves.
The 29-year-old racer, who is also business development manager at Knockhill Racing Circuit, in Fife, said: “It’s about relaxing and doing what you do naturally. There is not any 100% correct way to drive; everyone does it differently. So I would say just do it your own way.”
Gordon moved into motor-racing in the late-1990s after winning the Scottish Karting Championship in 1997 and has since become one of the country’s best known drivers.
He won the Ford Fiesta Championship in 2000 and made his BTCC debut the following year.
Since then, he has proved himself a star of the championship – which is the UK’s most popular domestic race series, drawing huge crowds and live TV coverage – with 68 races, nine wins, 21 podium finishes, six pole positions and 15 fastest laps.
Asked what appeals to him most about racing, he said: “It’s just a massive adrenaline rush. It’s also something that makes you think about many different aspects – it’s the team working together, the car being good, the engine being good. There are many links in the chain, I suppose, and it’s really challenging to get it all absolutely right.”
Gordon, from Dalgety Bay, in Fife, admits driving at this level was always his dream.
He said: “I went to Knockhill to watch the touring cars in the ’90s before I even started karting. It’s the biggest motorsport event that Scotland hosts, and if someone had said to me back then that I would be driving and winning in it, I wouldn’t have believed them.
“It’s like having two dream jobs, because I also love what I do at Knockhill.”
Gordon also believes racing has made him a more cautious driver on the roads.
He said: “I think it makes you very aware of not only what happens within your own control, but also of what other people might do. It teaches you to expect the unexpected.
“You learn to react in different conditions, be it wet or dry, and you appreciate exactly what goes on.”
He also said it was a good way to “let off steam”, but added: “Anyone can come to Knockhill and drive a car and get that buzz.
“The circuit is the place to do it. It’s controlled and everyone is going the same way. We encourage people to go fast on the track, but that’s where it should stay.”
Pushing a car to its limits round a track also gives drivers a good sense of just how vulnerable they are if things go wrong.
Gordon said: “It’s the ones you get away with, but only just, and you think later about what could have happened.
“In a race car, you’ve got a helmet, proper seatbelts, a race suit and it’s very safe, but on the roads you can be very exposed.”
Gordon’s advice to young drivers is to remember that passing their test is just the beginning of their driving career.
He said: “It is only really then that you do start to learn. I still learn every time I sit in a car. You have to have an open mind about the fact that you need to learn.”
He also gave the Press and Journal Young Driver of the Year campaign – which was launched to cut the terrible toll of deaths on our roads by highlighting the importance of improved driving skills – his full support and said anything which helped break down the barriers to advanced driving was vitally important.
He said: “Advanced driving can help you understand your driving and what you can do to make your car react better according to your input.
“At Knockhill, we are trying to break down the barriers to advanced driving, and we find that a lot of people like coming here to do our courses because we’ve got the race circuit and the skid pan. It’s learning, but it’s also fun.”
