ACE Racing, Benenden’s student karting team, proudly represented the School at the STEM on Track National Finals held at Whilton Mill Karting Circuit in Northamptonshire, competing against 100 school teams.
Out on the track, ACE Racing delivered an outstanding performance, losing just a single point out of a possible 100. Despite narrowly missing out on the top spot, this achievement placed them firmly among the strongest teams in the country and reflects the dedication and technical expertise of the engineering group.
The afternoon brought the endurance race – 45 minutes of track time with three changes of driver mandated to all teams. We were drawn to start from the back of the grid, but Ula made a great start, overtaking several teams before arriving at the first corner. She drove a confident and controlled set of laps in our first stint and moved the team up to 13th out of the 22 starters in our heat.
Leah took over for the second stint, demonstrating composure under pressure. She managed to handle a few spins on the track in a calm and controlled manner that demonstrated her excellent driving skills. Martha continued the charge in the third stint, pushing our lap time down further and demonstrating her own driving skills. As she went into the pits to hand over, the team had climbed up to 11th place.
In the final stint, Ariana delivered an exceptional performance, pushing the kart to its limits and setting the team’s fastest lap of the race with a 1:14.233. Her efforts saw ACE Racing finish in a remarkable 7th place – an outstanding result given the strength of the competition and the team’s starting position. Overall, the team managed to complete 29 laps in 45 minutes.
Our success on the day was not just down to the drivers, the entire ACE Racing team – including engineers, graphic designers, marketing and media members – played a vital role in preparing for the event and supporting on the day. Their teamwork, creativity and resilience are a credit to all of them. As a first experience at the national level, this competition has been a huge success and provides a strong foundation for the future of ACE Racing.
We would like to extend a big thanks to our sponsors who helped ensure that the team could compete at the finals: Ashford Fibre, Buckmore Park Karting Circuit, Jarvis Home and Steve Hart Racing. We look forward to competing in the 2026-27 season of STEM on Track and building on our experiences this year.