HANS Solo

If you're a Star Wars fan, you'll know that Han Solo made the Kessel Run in just 12 parsecs. If you're wondering what a parsec is, it's the distance at which 1 Astronomical Unit subtends an angle of 1/3600 of a degree. None the wiser? Just think fast, very fast.

I don't think I'll ever be able to measure Kate's racing speed in light years, but I am hoping she'll be fast, very fast. We're due at Brands Hatch on Monday for some testing, and it'll be an opportunity for her to try out her new car racing gear. Everything is fireproof, which means it's thicker and heavier than what Kate's used to. Not quite stormtrooper thickness, but it definitely shows that everything is up a level in terms of speed and safety.

We spent two hours at MSAR with Malcolm and Justine, making sure everything fitted perfectly (including the fireproof socks), and that Kate was proficient in attaching and detaching her HANS. Nothing to do with Star Wars and Hans [sic] Solo. Although Kate did look quite space age and deep sea diver in her gear, the HANS device (an acronym for Head And Neck Support) is there to limit fatal neck stress by limiting forward head movement. Hopefully there won't be any instances where Kate tests its effectiveness.

So, it's testing at Brands Hatch on Monday, and the Buckmore Park 24 hour team endurance on the Saturday and Sunday before that.

It's definitely not going to be parsecs in Buckmore's Sodi RT10s (although they are new), but it will be a tough race that runs through the night, and then Kate needs to travel at light speed back up to London for a nap in her VW Polo (not Millennium Falcon), and then back down to Brands the following morning. Han and Chewbacca would be proud of her.