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Away we go again!
This year the Adelaide 500 celebrated its 20th year. In Australia Bathurst stands alone as our most famous event, but the Adelaide 500 has forged its own place as an iconic Supercar event, and this the 20th year was celebrated famously with a Sunday lockout and over 90,000 people in attendance. The atmosphere around the Adelaide Parklands Circuit was incredible and although I have been around a fair while I still can’t help but get excited.
Again, the so called off season provided all at GRM with some challenges. Thankfully, our decision on what to race was decided well before the end of last season and we chose to race the ZB Commodore. This decision did though provide some challenges with regards to our workforce since 888 invested their money to homologate the ZB and to recoup these costs retained the body panel IP and teams had to buy their body panels from them. At GRM we have an exceptional composites department and my concern was what work would they do if we had to buy all our body panels off 888? I expressed this concern to 888 and as time went by we negotiated an arrangement to make the front splitters for the cars.
As often happens with newly homologated cars not everything runs as smoothly as planned. Initially 888 were going to supply us the necessary tooling to produce this splitter prior to Christmas, but due to many reasons we were not provided what was required until late January. This required seven days per week and many, many hours of overtime to produce what was required to make it to Adelaide. I am extremely proud of what my Team have been able to achieve and pleased that we could attract work to keep many employed.
I am always enthusiastic, but this year my enthusiasm was spiked marginally because GRM were introducing a young first year driver, Bieber (James Golding). The last time we introduced a first-year driver was Scott McLaughlin in 2013 and as a Team we certainly enjoyed seeing Scott develop into one of our best drivers and although he is now a competitor I am always happy when he goes well and even happier when we beat him!!
Bieber began at GRM as a 17-year-old apprentice motor mechanic in 2013. On weekends he raced go-karts and then Formula Ford’s and was quite successful with his racing. But, more importantly he had a very good attitude and work ethic and grounded upbringing. I saw potential in him, and certainly look forward to seeing him progress throughout the season.
We certainly enjoy a great mix with Garth entering his 21st year in Supercars and he has taken it upon himself to share his experience with Bieber and has certainly been a very positive influence on Bieber as he enters his first full time Supercar season.
The format for the Adelaide 500 is 2x250km races, each with qualifying and Top 10 shootouts. Prior to the first qualifying session on the Friday afternoon, there are 2x40 minute practice sessions. Throughout these sessions the drivers and engineers work through many set up combinations with the obvious aim of finding the best car set up for qualifying and the race. Often the set up for qualifying is quite different as to what is determined the best for the race. T he engineers can afford to be more aggressive in qualifying as tyre wear over a one or two lap qualy lap really does not matter, but in a race, you cannot afford a car that wears the tyres out quickly. Following practice GT was 11th and Bieb’s 21st with last year’s title holder Whincup, and runner up McLaughlin the two fastest.
The tyre allocation for qualifying and racing was 6 sets of Dunlop soft tyres per car. Friday afternoon saw the first qualifying of the year a 20-minute session. The cars go out on worn tyres from the earlier practice sessions to warm the cars up and to get heat into the brakes. The braking system on a Supercar is not at all efficient when cold and requires a temperature of around 600 degrees for optimal braking efficiency. Following a lap or two of warming up and observing the track conditions the drivers enter pit lane to put the first set of green (new) tyres on for a qualifying run. It’s vital that on the out lap the driver spaces themselves from the cars in front and behind. Following this out lap they then perform one and sometimes two flying laps with the green tyres. The engineers watch the monitors closely and following the first lap they determine as early as possible into the second lap as to whether it is going to be better or worse than the first. If they determine that the lap is not going to be faster than the first they radio the driver to abort and re-enter pit lane for a new set of tyres. As much as it is important to get the very best out of the car in qualifying, it is also important to remember that the tyres used in qualifying are also the ones that will be raced on.
Unfortunately, qualifying didn’t quite go as planned and we were unfortunately on the wrong end of two red flag periods throughout the session. A red flag halts the session until debris on the track is cleaned up. The second red flag period triggered by Whincup crashing came with less than a minute of qualifying left. Both Garth and James were on PB laps and GT looked destined to be inside the Top10 as the red flags came out and the session ended prior to the #33 and #34 cars crossing the start/finish line.
It is disappointing not to have a car in the shootout, but the positive was we felt that our pace was better than the grid positions of GT (17th) and Bieb’s (25th). Van Gisbergen was quickest by a mere 1/1000th of a second from Scotty Mac. The shootout on Saturday again maintained that position on the front row.
Race 1 of the 2018 Virgin Supercar Championship and from 17th and 25th we had our work ahead of us to work further forward. In these situations, the engineer is constantly looking at the timing splits and conversing with the driver to determine whether they are being held up. It is often better to pit early if being held up and put the driver in a position where they are not racing in traffic. With clean racing they can often pick up time that sees them leap frog others that pit later. It is a fine line as the earlier that you pit, the longer you need to run on a set of tyres and if a misjudgement occurs early gains can turn in to late losses.
This season saw the biggest influx of new drivers into the series for many, many years with five first year drivers. All five had excellent resumes from Super 2 Champions, World Endurance GT drivers and International open wheel competitors. By lap 55 (176 kilometres) Bieb’s had raced his way to the front of this new breed. But, his momentum was soon halted as Blanchard (BJR) forced his way up the inside of Bieber at turn 4 with Stanaway (Tickford) and Hazelwood (MSR) pressuring. Bieb’s was forced wide and Stanaway took the advantage with Bieber fighting back as he came up the inside of Stanaway into turn 5 and they locked wheels causing steering damage to the #34 and in turn crashing in to Hazelwood. It was an unfortunate end to Bieber’s day, but he certainly showed he means business.
GT had made steady progress further forward and was 12th at this same stage and maintained this position over the final laps. Van Gisbergen won from pole with Courtney (Walkinshaw) continuing his consistent Adelaide form in second and Scotty Mac (DJR Penske) 3rd.
Of course, the result wasn’t what we were hoping for, but when you start down in the field it is very difficult to achieve much more. The positive was our car speed with Garth setting the 5th fastest time of the race and it is certainly important to not only analyse where you went wrong but find some positives that provide hope and energy for a better performance.
Saturday night, Barry and I spent some time with staff and customers from Volvo Trucks. I know that I have said it previously, but I certainly enjoy the stories of many of these people and this time was no different. From transport owners with 100’s of trucks who often started with one to 3rd generation rural people servicing our communities. I love their stories and I certainly enjoyed one or two cold beers!
Sunday didn’t start so well for me as I managed to twist myself up in the bed sheets and couldn’t unwrap myself when I woke. Thankfully Barry and I share a room and when he returned from a run he rescued me. I think I was dreaming about being an engineer and they love the term over rotation, I must have been rotating! I was determined that this very minor setback wasn’t going to ruin my day.
The day certainly did improve very quickly as our chef, Dom had prepared yummy toasted ham and cheese sandwiches and fresh fruit platter. Dom is without doubt the best chef in pit lane and I must be careful when I return home that I don’t start saying “Dom cooks this” and “Dom does it this way” and so on, otherwise I may have to move in with Dom!
Qualifying for Race2. There are many theories, tactics and realities during qualifying and although most teams think similarly we all can’t do the same thing. One of these “things” is the theory and maybe the reality that the last car on track in qualifying often has the fastest track surface to do a lap on. This is because as each car does a lap a little more rubber is left on the track surface which provides grip. Another fact is a race car is faster when there is cloud cover and the track temp drops a degree or two. During qualifying there was cloud cover and Krusty (Richard Hollway #33 Engineer) was strategizing so as GT was the last car to do a qualifying lap. This tactic is fraught with danger as if like the previous day a red flag period occurs late, time may run out in the session prior to crossing the start/finish line to start the lap or may occur during your final lap, hence the lap doesn’t count.
With less than 1min40sec left in the session GT left the pit bay with fresh rubber but had to hustle around to get back past the start/finish line prior to the clock showing 0.00, he made it by 3 seconds. The entire garage watched the screens closely that show the time splits. Each track is divided into 3 timing sectors and the time for each sector shows immediately the car passes. The time is illuminated green if it is a PB for that sector and as sectors 1 and2 went green and were less than 2/10ths off the quickest time set we all crowded in even closer staring as GT crossed the start finish line and green again. A cheer went up as Garth had come from 18th to 4th on that final lap. Unbelievable pressure, but with 20 years’ experience he certainly knew how to get the job done. Great stuff Garth!
Scotty McLaughlin reversed the tables on Van Gisbergen and was quickest with Whincup (888) 3rd. Following the shootout, it was the two 888 cars led by Van Gisbergen from McLaughlin in 3rd. GT did a solid job but couldn’t repeat his earlier heroics and was 8th.
Bieber had a mixed qualifying and was hampered by a damaged wheel nut that took several minutes to remove, costing him valuable qualifying time and the fact that he triggered the kerb sensor at the first chicane (turn 2) on his qualy lap on two occasions.
There is a kerb sensor that is triggered if a car doesn’t have at least two wheels outside the kerb and if triggered during qualifying the lap doesn’t count. As a result, #34 qualified in 23rd, but we were certainly confident that Bieber had better speed than what qualifying showed.
The race build up for the Sunday Adelaide race is always electrifying and with 90,000 plus people in attendance and officials having to close the gates there certainly was a buzz in the air. This buzz became a roar as the traditional fighter jet fly over nearly sent me to the deck as it flew past. The National Anthem was sung with gusto and we were all set to go.
From the start Bieber certainly showed the speed we knew he had and was immediately making his way forward. GT was well away and settled in 7th. There are many strategies in these races and depending upon where you are placed influences the decisions the engineers make when to pit. The race requires each car to stop at least twice and during these stops take on a minimum 140 litres of fuel. Fuel usage at Adelaide is approx. 2.7 litres per lap and with a 109-litre capacity a car can do 40-41 laps on a full tank. The Adelaide Parklands Circuit is 3.22 k’s in length and the race is 78 laps. This allows a car to stop from as early as lap 1 and again around laps 38-40 and race to the finish. Obviously, this strategy results in the first set of tyres doing very little work and the driver needs to manage their tyres smartly. Both Courtney (Walkinshaw) and Davison (23 Red) did just this and stopped on lap1. The reason they did this was they had both qualified back in the pack after both qualifying in the 10 the previous day. By stopping early, they could race at the back of the pack in clear air and hopefully produce a driving stint of laps quicker than those they would have been racing around and the other cars stopped they would pass them. This worked quite well and by the time the field had all taken their first stops both Courtney and Davison were inside the top 10, but of course now starting to battle cars on fresh tyres while they were on 20 plus lap old tyres. Bieb’s took his first stop on lap 14 and GT lap 17.
As the race settled it was Whincup leading from Van Gisbergen and McLaughlin with GT in 7th behind the slowing Davison and the #34 crew and Bieber had made plenty of ground to be in 12th. On lap 26 things began to change up front with Scotty Mac suffering a puncture and on lap 31 Whincup had a driveline failure. After sitting behind Davison for 5 laps, on lap 31 GT passed him and moved into 5th with Reynolds (Erebus) in his sights as he was being held up by Courtney. The second stops occurred between laps 40 and 46. Bieber continued to impress but as McLaughlin fought his way back through the field Bieb’s went a little wide at turn 14 (final turn) and with two tyres on the grass he had spin sending him back to 18th. With 20 laps remaining it was Van Gisbergen leading from Reynolds and Tander. Reynolds pressured the back of the 888 car and GT sat back waiting for a mistake by either or both driver, but nothing was coming. Van Gisbergen continued out front and managed to build a gap of a little over a second to Reynolds and GT was a similar margin back in 3rd and this is how they finished.
Congratulations to 888 and Shane Van Gisbergen with weekend clean sweep. Two poles and two wins. Also, to Betty and the Erebus team led by Dave Reynolds very well done. To the GRM Team and sponsors thank you. Of course, we race to win but for GT to qualify in the manner he did, the strategy of the engineering group to position him where needed and the sheer racing ability of GT was fantastic. To Bieber the result I am sure wasn’t exactly what you would have hoped, but you can certainly hold your head high and have the confidence to know that you can go toe to toe with the Supercar field.
This weekend was also a Super2 round and both Chris Pither and The Barbarian (Mason Barbarian) raced. We were really pleased to announce Chris as one of our Endurance drivers this season and to also race in Super2. Over the weekend Chris qualified and raced well although probably not quite finding the sweet spot with the car set up. Chris had a 6th and two 7ths over the weekend. It is great to have Mason back for a second Super2 season and he has immediately shown significant development from last season. After a DNF in the first race and having to start down back The Barbarian drove smartly to 11th in race 2 and finished in the 10 on Sunday. Great job Mase!
I can’t wait until the GP!
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT - GT’s Sunday qualifying effort.
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT - Being trapped in my sheets on Sunday morning.
Garry
As previously announced the Wilson Group will continue as the team’s official naming rights partner for a fourth consecutive season.
GRM will again field two cars in both the Virgin Australia Supercar championship and in the 2018 Dunlop Super2 series, with James “Bieber” Golding stepping up to join Garth Tander in the main series and Mason Barbera returns to the team for a second season in the Super2 Series and will be joined by Chris Pither. Richard Muscat continues with the team as an Endurance driver in 2018
After the many years that I have spent in Motorsport I certainly get a buzz when I see new cars roll out at the beginning of a new season. As I get a “little” older I tend to reminisce a little more and seeing our shiny new race cars makes me think back to the old days when the car cover is pulled off the race car, hopefully a few new stickers were added for sponsors and after a hose off and chamois away we went!” Team Owner Garry Rogers said
“I am very fortunate to have a very loyal and enthusiastic group of sponsors who are very energetic when it comes to the livery design on our race cars. Since 2014 we have incorporated blue in to our livery and as much as I had become quite fond of the blue, we all thought it was time for a change. For 2018 our #33 and #34 Virgin Australia Supercar Championship cars along with our #99 Super2 race car will be red, black and white and the Super2 #44 of Kiwi Chris Pither will keep a little blue in the team with his distinctive New Zealand themed and First Security sponsored car.”
“It is important that as a Team that we have pride in our presentation and I am sure that when we see our 2018 cars on track all of the girls and boys at GRM and all of the staff at Wilson, Valvoline, PAYCE and Paynter and Dixon will be thrilled with the way they are being represented. Looks are certainly one thing, but performance is what really matters, and I have enormous faith in all my staff. I can’t wait for the season to start!”
The new ZB Commodores will be on track at Winton on Wednesday for a shakedown prior to the Sydney Motorsport Park test on Friday.
Wilson Security Racing GRM is looking forward to the return of Chris to the GRM team for the 2018 Pirtek Endurance Cup.
Chris drove with GRM back in 2015 partnering with David Wall for the endurance races.
His initially entry to team came about when David Wall suffered burns to his foot in Adelaide and we looked for a suitable person to fill the spot at the Australian Grand Prix as David’s foot would not be healed by then.
“2015 was the year that the Volvo’s were plagued with the Polestar engine issues limited our testing and circuit time, in fact Chris did not even do lap at Bathurst after an engine failure on lap 15 with David Wall at the wheel. However, during his time with us I was happy with the way he fitted in and with his driving ability.” said Garry Rogers
“After Chris drove with in 2015 he returned to a full time drive with Super Black Racing in 2016.”
“After a very solid endurance campaign this year I am pleased to welcome him back to the team.”
Chris Pither on his return to GRM.
“I had great time with GRM in 2015 it was very enjoyable, so I’m excited to be re-joining the team for the 2018 Pirtek Enduro Cup.”
“I have a lot of confidence in the team and I am looking forward to the testing and racing to begin.”
“It’s great to announce this today, start working with the team and be even more prepared heading into the new year.”
Another year of Supercars is done and for all my girls and guys I am so thankful that we even made the start line at the beginning of the season, let alone compete at a very respectable level on most occasions. I am extremely appreciative of the continued support of our sponsor group led by the Wilson Group (Security, Parking and Storage), PAYCE and of course Valvoline the world’s best oil! It was a very big call for our sponsors to trust that we would make the 2017 start line and not only make up the numbers but be competitive. Thank you!
The final event of the year was the inaugural event in Newcastle and what a fabulous location. The Newcastle Street Circuit is a 2.6-kilometre race track that weaves its way around 12 corners in the streets of Newcastle and has significant elevation changes while enjoying some of the best coastal views Australia has to offer. I’ve been in this business a long time and I have never been more impressed with a Supercar event. There is no doubt that the Adelaide Street Race set the bar for city street races that Gold Coast, Townsville and now Newcastle have followed and in this instance, I believe Newcastle have raised the bar to a new level. Events like this don’t just happen and the input of Supercar management led by James and Kurt Sakzewski spending the past 12 months in Newcastle managing the works required to complete the circuit along with other civil improvements to the city is certainly appreciated. But, none of this would ever have got off the ground if it wasn’t for the Lord Mayor of Newcastle, Nuatali Neimes. Her vision and determination were certainly a driving factor behind this event. Well done.
Joey left GRM last Monday lunchtime and arrived in Newcastle Tuesday before spending Wednesday washing and polishing the Volvo Globetrotter FH16 700, it’s the last road trip of 2017. As I have often stated in previous reports this truck means the world to Joe and even after 45 plus years of travelling the highways, driving prime movers to race meetings Joey will be itching to pack the truck and head to Adelaide come 2018. Thank you, Joey, for getting our precious cargo to each race meeting safely and on time, and as importantly treating the equipment with the upmost respect and always presenting our truck and trailer in a manner that we are all proud of.
I had never been to Newcastle prior to arriving Wednesday and immediately felt the excitement and anticipation of the weekend ahead. The taxi driver that took Barry and I into town was the most excitable, talkative and informative fellow who was certainly doing his best to welcome the influx of people to Newcastle. If you ever make it Newcastle which I would highly recommend try and find “Mac” the taxi driver, you will be “pumping” by the time you travel from the airport to the city. This same attitude was prevalent throughout Newcastle and there was certainly an air of excitement as the weekend drew closer.
Thursday afternoon and I thought that I would join the drivers and engineers on the track walk. At each race meeting a walk of the track is completed, but in this instance with it being the first time we race here I thought my expertise would have been appreciated. How wrong I can be!
Thursday night and Sally, the drivers, Barry and I attended a Valvoline function on the boardwalk and again the excitement of the people in attendance was motivational for all of us. I like to think that I never forget that what we do is very special, but there are times that you do probably take for granted how fortunate we are to travel the country racing Supercars, but when you see people so excited and asking questions with smiles all over their faces you soon realise the happiness that Supercars brings to so many. After a few beers and everybody taking a guess at the best lap time for Friday practice we headed off to bed.
Friday and with 2x40 minute practice sessions it would be vital to not waste any time and Stiffy (Stefan Millard - Team Mgr) had the boys primed for quick, efficient changes when the drivers and engineers wanted change. At the completion of practice, we certainly didn’t feel like we had the set up required and the boys were 8th (GT) and 18th (Moff) with Scotty McLaughlin setting the quickest time and 6/10ths faster than Garth and more than a second ahead of Moff.
Friday night and Krusty (Richard Hollway) and Manuel debriefed with GT and Moff and the consensus was the cars were understeering on entry to a corner which in laymen terms is wanting to go straight ahead and on exit they were prone to oversteer, that is the back wanting to step out. They also focused on what changes may help the entry to turn 11 (hairpin) as the approach to the corner is high speed 200kmh+ and there is quite a big bump in the braking zone that tends to send the car to the right of the track.
Qualifying and the changes made certainly brought Moff and Garth closer to the lead car time wise, but unfortunately this did not show in the starting position. Moff was 3/10ths off the pole time of McLaughlin and GT 4/10ths, but they were in 13th and 16th on the grid. The competitiveness of Supercars was certainly evident with 22 of the 26-car field covered by less than 7/10ths of one second. As a comparison 10 seconds covered the top 8 cars in World Touring Car Qualifying last weekend!
Race 25 and of course much of the talk was the Championship battle between Scotty and Whincup, but we had things to fight for with GT inside the Top 10 and with a good weekend an opportunity to work his way to 6th and GRM sat fourth in the Teams Championship behind DJR Penske, 888 and Prodrive and we needed to defend that position. Of course, many asked me my thoughts on who the Champion would be, and the expected response was Scotty, but I have the utmost respect for what Jamie Whincup has done this season. To be honest at the end of 2016 with Van Gisbergen taking the Championship it felt like a changing of the guard, but Jamie has responded like a true champion does and you cannot help but admire that. But, of course Scotty holds a very special place with me and the GRM Team.
The Newcastle 500 event is 2x250km races. Each car had 3 sets of tyres per race and the fuel requirement was that a minimum of 140 litres of fuel must be put in the cars during the race. With the restrictors on the fuel inlet allowing 4 litres/per sec. to flow the total standing time over two stops to put the 140 litres in is 35 seconds.
Race 25 of the Supercar Championship and off pole Scotty showed a clean set of heels to lead from Reynolds (Erebus) and Van Gisbergen (888). The Safety Car was immediately deployed as Wood (Erebus), Douglas (LDM) and Bright (Prodrive) were in the tyre barrier at turn 8 as they encountered Whincup (888) limping around after making contact with Caruso (Nissan) causing what appeared to be steering damage. This was a significant moment for the Championship. The entire field pitted except for Tim Slade (BJR) and Lowndes (888).
On the restart Slade led from Whincup with Van Gisbergen 3rd and McLaughlin 4th. Moff was 11th and GT 19th after having to stack behind Moff at the stop. Lap 34 and again the SC was called upon as Aaren Russell (LDM) went into the wall at turn 7, yet again the field swarmed in to pit lane. Moff re-joined 9th and GT again was held up and was back in 19th. Still with 61 laps remaining a further stop would be required as the cars use 2.2l per/lap and with a capacity of 109 litres the maximum range is 50 laps. Slade led from Van Gisbergen and McLaughlin.
The final stops began at around lap 48 and when the race settled for the run home it was McLaughlin leading from Reynolds until he unfortunately locked a brake and ran wide, Coulthard had done extremely well throughout the pit stop periods and was progressing through the field, also doing extremely well was Simona De Silvestro who performed more passing moves than anybody. As she looked destined for a top 5 finish and with Sladey hot on her tail, Simona went wide at turn 1 and contacted the wall ending what would have been a tremendous result. Coulthard continued his charge and finished behind McLaughlin with Slade in 4th. Moff was inside the 10 when on lap 53 he got out of shape going down the staircase (turns 7-9) contacting the wall causing steering damage. Moff came straight in and the boys did a great job to change steering and lower control arms and get him back out in time to register what would have been a result except he was taken out by Winterbottom (Prodrive) a couple of laps later. GT pressed on as good as he could finishing 12th. A very disappointing day for us and again it began with qualifying. In retrospect you can look back and analyse things that you would/could do differently. The fact is our strategy was the same as the field and when you qualify poorly you sometimes need to go in a different direction and this is what BJR did with Slade. They kept him out during the first SC period, but he was fortunate to benefit with the second SC period occurring the exact time that he needed to stop, this event led to a podium.
Saturday was a very big day for DJR Penske winning the Teams Championship and Scotty cashing in on Whincup’s mistake turning a 30-point Championship deficit into a lead.
Sunday and the final race of the year. Qualifying was first followed by a Top10 shootout. Again, Moff led the way for GRM but was 4/10ths back and in 14th and GT 19th. Following the shootout, it was Scotty again grabbing the pole from Van Gisbergen with Whincup back in 5th. The math for the Championship was simple. If Whincup managed to win, Scotty would need to finish 11th or better to be crowned Champion. This appeared imminent as he had dominated the weekend so far and again led off the line. We decided to pit GT early (lap 1 to open the strategy for the #33. Stopping so early under green would mean that GT would have to manage his tyres well as the plan was to run him to at least lap 45 and then to home (lap 95). As there were no SC periods in the first part of the race the pit stops occurred sporadically between lap 1 and lap 34. By the time the first stops had occurred Moff was 10th and GT 11th.
Unfortunately for Scotty Mac, he incurred a pit lane entrance speeding infringement while entering pit lane for his stop with Van Gisbergen hot on his tail. This sent him from the lead to position 23. Further forward Whincup was making his move and by lap 34 was third with Scotty 14th and looking good to finish inside the top 11. But, again there was a twist as Scotty tried to make a move on Simona (Nissan) for 11th, but in his attempt turned her around and incurred a 15 second time penalty to be taken at his next stop. I could hardly watch!
Moff and GT were pressing on well, but still lacked speed with GT managing his tyres over the long stints that he was doing. The final stops took place between laps 45 and 54, and we set for the final 40 or so laps to the finish. Whincup had inherited the lead from his teammate Van Gisbergen who sat shotgun behind him and Reynolds had driven superbly to be in 3rd. Moff and GT were still hovering just outside the 10, and GT with all his experience was managing his tyres well and was pressuring his teammate to get past. Scotty was cutting his way back through the pack after serving his 15 second penalty and was in 13th behind the two GRM cars with 28 laps to go.
Lap after lap passed and Moff, GT, McLaughlin and Pye (Walkinshaw) raced amongst each other as Whincup led the way out front. As the laps ticked away and McLaughlin desperately tried to find his way to 11th Bright (Prodrive) launched himself into turn 1 from behind Pye contacting McLaughlin’s left- hand rear causing damage. For the next few laps smoke billowed off the tyre but still the #17 kept pressing. By now Lowndes (888) who had taken on fresh tyres on lap 70 was on the back of McLaughlin. Lap 90 and GT had a poor run out of turn 1 and Scotty squeezed up the inside at turn 2 bringing Lowndes with him. Moff was still 11th and McLaughlin was soon hot on his tail and with 3 laps to go he had to make the pass to win the Championship. As they came down the staircase on the penultimate lap Scotty saw an opportunity into turn 11 and dived inside Moff and again Lowndes followed. One lap to go and into turn 1 McLaughlin touched the outside wall and this gave Lowndes a chance to come up alongside as they went up the hill to turn 2, Scotty moved over, Lowndes hit the wall, but Scotty was 11th good enough to be Champion. Behind this GT and Moff battled home in 12th and 13th. Whincup won from Van Gisbergen and Reynolds. Then the penalty, for a third time in the one race Scotty copped a penalty which demoted him to 18th and Whincup was Champion. Unbelievable!
What a place, what a day and what a race. Nobody could have scripted the events that took place and my heart goes out for Scotty, but I cannot help but admire the determination and sheer ability of Jamie Whincup and the 888 Team. The win was a true team effort with Van Gisbergen applying the early heat on Scotty. This may or may not have caused the pit entry speeding as Van Gisbergen in your mirrors can be intimidating entering pit lane (ask Tim Slade), then Van Gisbergen taking the lead and handing it to Whincup, while still protecting from behind and finally having Lowndes come through from the rear on fresh tyres to force the final battle. Well done!
Thanks to all of you, many who are GRM Team Members who I value greatly, enjoy your 2017 GRM Year Book when it arrives early next year and a safe and happy Christmas, I can’t wait for Season 2018!
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT – Sunday’s race
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT – Leaving beautiful Newcastle
Garry
Heading to New Zealand is always exciting and certainly over the past four seasons with Scotty McLaughlin the excitement and interest was enhanced. This year we head there with GT and Moff. I would like to acknowledge and congratulate Moff on reaching 100 Supercar round starts this weekend, a great effort. The Pukekohe circuit is an exciting and fast 2.9km race track with eleven corners and many opportunities to pass and has traditionally provided some entertaining racing.
The trip to New Zealand begins the weekend before the racing as the cars are delivered to Avalon airport (Melbourne) and air freighted to Auckland. What’s a race report without referring to Joey (Joe Sullivan Transporter Driver). As mentioned in previous reports Joe’s three least favourite meets are Sandown, Phillip Island and Pukekohe and the reason is he gets to spend very little time behind the wheel of our Volvo Globetrotter FH16 700hp prime mover. But, this year was even worse as Joe had travelled to Sydney for the Muscle Car Masters and wasn’t present to drive the Globetrotter to Avalon. As an old truckie I thought I might drive the transporter to Avalon. Yes! I do have my truck licence and back in 1980’s I was head transporter driver, number 1 mechanic, team manager, marketing manager and chef. Gee I was good, we now travel with 25! As quick as I suggested I drive the truck to the airport the boys reminded me I have trouble parking my little hatchback and Gypsy (Jeff Marshall) kindly offered to take time out on his weekend with his family to get the cars to Avalon. Gypsy, is our Chief Engine man and he has been with GRM since 1999. Gypsy was a qualified mechanic and specialised in engine building, yet we employed him as our transporter driver and he did other odd jobs in within the team. Gypsy soon weaved his way out of the truck and into the engine room and was a big part of the Monaro 24hr successes in 2002 and 2003 and is an extremely well regarded and respected member of GRM and Supercars. Anyway, thanks for driving the truck to Avalon Gyps!
At most race meetings it is Barry and I travelling together but on this occasion, we were joined by Kaye (my wife) and my granddaughter, Gracie. Following the race weekend Kaye and I are heading south to Wanaka (South Island) for a fundraiser known as “The Old Geezers Night” which is a charity night that raises money for the local hospital and Barry is taking his daughter to Auckland to the jump off the Sky Tower for her 16th birthday.
First, we were looking to show some serious improvement in our racing from the previous round. The Pukekohe event is 2x200 km races each with a qualifying prior. Friday consists of 2x45 minute practice sessions and these sessions were quite important to assess the re-surfacing works that had taken place in recent works. The circuit had re-surfacing at turn 1 which was to eliminate the “bump” as you approached this turn. I’m not sure if many of you remember but the circuit was known for the “big bump” as a driver approached turn 1 and it was a skill to not only enter the corner correctly but have the car set up to accommodate this bump. Other resurfacing works were completed along the back straight and between turns 9 and 10 after the hairpin.
Following practice, we were reasonably satisfied where we were positioned within the field although our position on the charts may not have shown that with the cars in 16th and 19th and a 5+/10ths off the quickest car of Cam waters (Prodrive). The reason we were “happier” than the times showed was because we knew from our sector splits of individual laps that we were closer to 2-3/10ths off the pace not 5/10ths. During practice it is important to try different set ups with the car with the aim of working to the ideal set up with time to put together a simulated qualifying run at the end of the session. The tyre allocation for New Zealand is different to Australia. In Australia we can use as many pre-marked tyres that we choose in practice and these can often be new/green tyres that have been saved from previous race meetings when rain or a crash has meant that you haven’t used all the slick tyres allocated. In NZ we are given 8 sets of tyres per car on Friday that are for the entire weekend and can be used as we like. During practice on our simulated qualifying runs, or “chest beaters” as Krusty (Richard Hollway) likes to refer to them as both boys made little mistakes costing at least a couple of tenths. If we wanted to beat our chests Stiffy (Stefan Millard – Team Mgr) could instruct he crews to bolt on new tyres and go again, but it is pointless using up tyres when you know that you are in a reasonable speed window.
Unfortunately, Saturday was the first time in recent history when qualifying had to be cancelled due to the track conditions. It was a combination of things that led to the cancellation of practice after only a few minutes and only half of the field had completed flying laps. The weather had deteriorated, and the rain combined with the newly asphalted surface, particularly along the rear straight was causing the cars to aquaplane. It appeared the surface on the rear straight was quite different to that at turn 1 and between turns 9&10. The rear straight was very smooth, not dissimilar to polished concrete and oil leaching from the surface combined with the wet surface made the track extremely dangerous. With the cancellation of qualifying and the fact that not every car was able to complete a qualifying lap the race stewards made a decision to award qualifying positions as per Friday practice order. Of course, we were disappointed with this, but understood that the positions had to decided based on something.
As the time drew closer to the race start and the rain was continuing there were doubts as to whether the race would take place. It was decided that if by 3.20pm the conditions had not improved then the race would be postponed until Sunday. Thankfully the drizzle eased, and a slight breeze came in. As the cars exited pit lane at 3.45pm all were on wet weather tyres, but the track continued to dry and by race start the entire field were on slick tyres. This seemed unimaginable 20 minutes earlier, who said “if you don’t like Melbourne weather then wait 30 minutes”, wow you can change that to 20 minutes and Pukekohe!
We certainly had confidence that our speed was better than where were starting and that showed from the start and by the end of the first round of pit stops GT was 9th (from 16th) and Moff was also on the move in 16th. Whincup (888) led from McLaughlin (DJR Penske) and Van Gisbergen (888). The 200 klm race required a minimum fuel drop of 120 litres which would take a combined time of 30 seconds over two pitstops.
The second and likely final stop for the cars occurred on lap 33 when Courtney (Walkinshaw) went in to tyre wall at turn 3. Garth pitted first and Moff was able to get around the circuit uninhibited by the Safety Car to pit the following lap without the necessity to queue behind the #33. On the restart GT was 8th and Moff 15th. Van Gisbergen and his crew had done a great job to get him to the front so too had the Prodrive team to have Winterbottom 2nd and McLaughlin had passed Whincup to be third. These changes in position all occurred during the pit stops under the Safety Car period and were a combination of great teamwork throughout the pitstops, the amount of fuel needed and the ability of the driver to do a quick in lap while others are in the pit. All of this added together can be equate to tenths and sometimes seconds that enable a car to exit the pit ahead of those that were earlier in front of them. The race continued on in that order until lap 55 when Coulthard (DJR Penske) was on his roof as he tried to take advantage of Mostert slowing after taking Reynolds (Erebus) off the track at the hairpin (turn 8). This again triggered the Safety Car and the race was shortened by 4 laps. Van Gisbergan won from Winterbottom and McLaughlin. GT came home a very worthy 7th and Moff after starting 19th was 13th. As an old “hoon” I did enjoy seeing the smoke, smelling the rubber and hearing the noise of Van Gisbergan’s celebrations, but I’m glad I wasn’t the one having scrape the rubber from under the car or replace the melted ¼ panels! A well-deserved win.
Saturday and rather than battle our way out of the muddy carpark we walked into “Pukey” and luckily straight in to the Edinburgh Hotel for two beautiful beers! The crew had dinner at the track, tidied the cars up and left the set up until Sunday morning. On returning to the Motel the guys (and Sally – PR person) were playing cricket with the headlights of the rental cars providing light. I tried to join in but couldn’t see a thing, yet I really enjoy seeing the Team having a laugh and being able to relax together after a days racing. Following the cricket game and as it was Guy Fawkes weekend the guys let a few fireworks off, again a lot of fun and laughter and more importantly no injuries!
Sunday, and luckily Barry and Grace had run to the track and collected the car and came back to pick me up from the Motel. Today was a very special day, not just for the racing but it was Krusty’s birthday and we had got him his favourite strawberry cheesecake. Happy 52nd Krusty!
Qualifying and thankfully clear skies and a little warmth in the air. The session was 20 minutes and each car had three green sets of tyres. Following the second green run Moff and Garth were both in the Top 10, and with the cars all exiting pit lane for the final run as the clock counted down, the sun came out. When the sun is out rather than having cloud cover the track becomes a little slower. As the cars went around on their flying laps nobody was improving until the 11th placed Van Gisbergen jumped 4 spots to 7th pushing GT back to 11thand Moff 9th. Whincup pipped McLaughlin for pole. Our speed was about where we had earlier thought and both Moff and Garth were 3+/10ths off pole.
After qualifying I took a walk across the paddock to the Formula 5000 pits to look at the open wheelers that ran back in the 1970’s. I was always fascinated by these cars and admired their noise and speed and saw their drivers as heroes. One of those drivers was Kenny Smith who I thought was “old” in the mid ‘70’s yet he is still roaring around in a 5000 today at the age of 75. Wait a minute he is only 3 years older than me, gee I’m looking good!
Race time and as much as I and all of our Team would like to see the cars further up, it was a positive to see the cars in 9th and 11th and I believed that through some clever driving and solid teamwork that we could have both finish further up. That is exactly what happened, and GT came home 6th and Moff 9th. The race was won by Whincup from McLaughlinand Cam Waters (Prodrive) was third. Sorry for the rush on this paragraph, but I need to board my plane!
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT: reaching the pub in Pukey for the two beers!
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT: realising I’m only 3 years younger than Kenny Smith.
I can’t wait to get to Newcastle!!
Garry
Supercars is no different to life, you must move on. Enough has been said about Bathurst, yet the work at GRM to prepare for the Gold Coast 600 has been all-out since returning from the Mountain to have the cars ready. Joey got away from Dandenong South mid-afternoon on Monday, arriving on the Gold Coast early Wednesday.
The Gold Coast event certainly has a buzz around it and the street circuit location adjacent to the Pacific Ocean makes for a fabulous setting. The circuit is 3 kilometres (2984 metres) in length with fifteen corners and plenty of concrete. Circuits like this can result in considerable damage to cars if they contact with the concrete barriers, but from a purist’s point of view a driver should be penalised if they make a mistake. Many modern-day race circuits, as much as they are tremendously safe don’t tend to penalise driver errors. Street circuits are unforgiving, and mistakes can be costly.
Unfortunately, Friday practice saw us witness this first hand as Moff made slight contact with the left-hand side concrete barrier as he approached turn 11 sending him head on into the tyre barrier at turn 11. This resulted in considerable front end damage, particularly to the right-hand corner. Without going into all the detail, I can only say how proud and appreciative I am of all the GRM Team who without hesitation began stripping the damaged bodywork and associated components to assess their ability to have the car repaired. It’s very easy for me, because I am of absolutely no help to the guys these days and I’m better off getting out of their way. All the guys did their bit and it is moments like this where true teamwork is required as crews from both sides of the garage galvanise as one to get the job done. I really don’t like individualising people as it is a team effort to get a badly damaged car up for the next day, but I would like to acknowledge the skills of Squiddy (Mitch Feeney) who is a fabricator back at the workshop and looks after tyres at the race circuit. Squiddy’s fabrication skills were vital if there was any chance of getting the #34 repaired.
On returning to the track at 7.00am the next morning and winding the awning up to the temporary pit facility we have on the Gold Coast, it was like the “magic fairies” had been and there sat the #34 car looking like “new”. I discovered later as the boys started rolling in that the job wasn’t completed until 5.50am and I struggle to verbalise my exact appreciation for their effort. The endeavours of all Teams that race in our Championship are often overlooked or taken for granted, but I can assure you that as Australian’s we should all be so proud of the ability and work ethic of our people.
The Gold Coast 600 is 2x300km races. The co-drivers must do a minimum 34 of the 102 laps and a minimum of two pit stops is required to take on the required fuel to complete the race. The weather on Friday was sunny, but the forecast looked gloomy for Saturday. The repairs required to the #34 was a setback on Friday, but so to our lack of speed throughout the three Friday practice sessions finishing in 19thand 20th. Unfortunately, this set the tone for our weekend. Qualifying Saturday and the weather had turned grey and the track was wet. As much as we were still off the pace Garth managed 15th and Moff like Friday was 19th. Mostert (Prodrive) was quickest from Whincup (888) and Slade (BJR) third. Race time and it was like a repeat of Bathurst with the track wet, yet the rain was more a mist than a downpour. As usual everyone becomes a meteorologist and with no paddocks in the vicinity for me to look at the horses I was unable to give my expert advice as to what the weather was going to do. The amount of rain predicted does impact what the tyre pressures are set at. In simple terms the wetter the track the higher the pressure in the tyres as this assists the tyre in gaining heat and therefore grip, but if it’s anticipated that the track will be wet, but drying the engineers keep the pressures a little lower so as the tyres do not inflate too quickly as the track dries. The effect of tyre pressures is a major variable in the driveability of a race car and miscalculations are costly.
Race 21 of the Championship and the approach by all the teams was to start with the co-drivers in the cars with the objective being for them to complete the compulsory 34 laps before pitting and handing over to the primary driver for the remaining 68 laps. Bieber (James Golding) started very well and by the time he pitted on lap 34 the #33 was in 10th. Lap 34 saw half the field stop with the other half stopping in the following few laps. The most impressive performance of this first stint was Heimgartner (BJR) who mastered the wet conditions and he handed over to Tim Slade with a very handy lead. Lap 58 and the Safety Car was deployed as Lee Holdsworth (Team 18) made heavy contact with a tyre stack at the Beach chicane sending it on to the race line. Teams took this opportunity to pit to fuel up and change tyres for the run home. Following the stop the #33 was 15th and #34 21st. The Safety Car also saw the lead change with Waters and Mostert (Prodrive) both benefiting and passing Slade while the pit stops took place. As the race restarted Moff and Garth both did their best in cars that were no reacting in a manner that gave them confidence and came home in 14th (#33) and 19th(#34) respectively. Mostert passed Waters shortly after the SC restart and went on to win with Slade a very good third.
Saturday night and following any street race and particularly when you are racing in the mid pack there is always work to be done regarding the presentation of the cars as they scuffed and dented as a result of the intense hustle and bustle. Thankfully we did not have any major component or structural damage and the guys were able to get away from the track by 10.00pm.
Sunday and the weather was back to what you expect on the Gold Coast. I was so enthused by the sunshine that I bounced out of bed, put the running gear on and hobbled out on to the streets and headed to the beach for a run. The sand was being manicured by the tractor and the outlook out to the water with the neatly breaking waves made me forget about racing for a moment, until I saw this “man mountain” appear through the white froth of a wave, heading towards the shore as he navigated his way surfing the wave like an experienced ironman. And yes, this man is our ironman, Gypsy (Jeffrey Marshall) our Chief Engine Man who rain, hail or shine takes any opportunity to get his Speedo’s on and have a swim. I continued to make my way along the beach in a walk/run/shuffle but wasn’t as tough as Gypsy and didn’t venture in to the water. The truth is I’m not “too soft”, but I’m worried that if I fell over I wouldn’t be able to get back up and would be washed out into the never never!
The conditions today were the complete opposite to Saturday. Joey and Squiddy (tyre techs.) hustled our wheels down to the Dunlop tent to have the wet tyres removed and slicks fitted. The information gained yesterday was of little significance considering the complete opposite conditions of today. Unfortunately, this did not assist our performance and following qualifying we were in 18th (#33) and 21st (#34) positions. Pole was VanGisbergen (888) followed by his teammate, Whincup.
The Sunday race was a copy of Saturday’s and the co-drivers started in the cars. Off the start it was Dumbrell in the 888 car he shares with Whincup that was best off the start. Both Bieber and Muscat had tough starts. Muscat was hampered by a pre-race two spot penalty after a qualifying indiscretion by Moff, and Bieber was turned around and went to the back of the field. Without going in to a blow, by blow description our day did not improve from here and it is certainly a weekend of racing that I want to forget, yet we all need to learn from. McLaughlin and Premat (DJR Penske) did an outstanding job to win after starting 13th, with Whincup/Dumbrell and VanGisbergen/Campbell completing the podium. Tander/Golding finished 17th and Moffat/Muscat 19th.
As I write this Joey is heading down the highway home. In typical Joey style, who is always thinking ahead and what is required for the team he recruited a driver so as he could “two up” all the way home. Following the Friday crash and the “at race meeting repairs” there is a necessity to complete further repairs to the #34 chassis prior to New Zealand. In normal circumstances Joe wouldn’t arrive back until Wednesday, but “two upping” allows him to get back late tonight and gives the crew an extra 1 ½ days to work on the cars. This was vital as the cars are air freighted to New Zealand this weekend. I would like to thank Donald “Wogga” Wheadon from Colac (Vic) who Joey found on his yearly holiday with a group of his mates. “Wogga” forgave some of the festivities of his annual break so as he would be in the condition required to take control of the Volvo FH16 700hp b-double to help us. Thank you very much “Wogga”, it’s meeting people like you and your kindness that makes me continue doing what I do!
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT: seeing that man mountain, Gypsy navigate the surf.
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT: our performance, but we will be back!
I can’t wait to get to Pukekohe!
Garry
Heading to The Mountain is certainly the mecca in our sport. I’ve been coming up here for over 40 years and the place is place is like a giant magnet that just pulls you to it. Over the years we have experienced the ultimate joy, but unfortunately the return has been much greater on the “disappointment” side, yet my Team and I cannot wait to return!
2017, and we return with what seems like a lifetime ago the memory of the closing laps of 2016 with the #33 (Scotty McLaughlin) leading with only 10 laps to go before the infamous incident between himself, Whincup and Tander that ended any chance of a victory for all three as they headed down Conrod. As a Team you wonder whether such an opportunity to win will again present, but in 2017 we certainly arrive at The Mountain knowing our form is good and that both the #33 and #34 cars have shown that the longer a race goes the stronger and more competitive they become. There is no longer race than Bathurst.
Over the past three years we have travelled as a Team in a coach to Bathurst, previously we would have taken several cars but have found that travelling together and having a few laughs on the trip up has been an enjoyable thing to do. We left our Dandenong South headquarters on Tuesday morning at 6.00am with the first stop at Albury for morning tea.
We are very fortunate to have a group of people in Albury who support our Team, headed by Jenny Tanner (Stephen Tanner Automotive Services) who arranges morning tea for us at Australia Park on the shores of the Murray River at Wodonga. We arrived there at 10.00am with Garth and his family close behind us with their caravan in tow. Following this stop it’s off to Gundagai, the hometown of Squiddy (Mitch Feeney – Fabricator/Tyre Technician) for lunch, afternoon tea at the Commercial Hotel in Young and Bathurst by 6.00pm. As we approach Bathurst all eyes are looking toward the right-hand side of the bus for the first site of Mount Panorama and it ceases to amaze me the goose bumps that immediately appear when you see The Mountain. We’ve arrived for The Great Race!
The Bathurst week is a long week. It is a Motor Race, but it has become a pilgrimage for many, many people over the years. There are so many that have been coming for 20 plus years, there are those full of excitement arriving for the first time pointing in amazement at the size of The Mountain and asking themselves “how does a race driver drive up there over the top and back to the start in 2 minutes? That is amazing!”. There are also those real experienced campaigners who have been heading to The Mountain for 40 plus years, originally coming with their mates, but now bringing their children and grandchildren as the “Bathurst baton” gets handed from one generation to another.
Over the years I have become friends with many of these people, and from young men who were quite “wild” in their day have become doting grandparents who love to relive the adventures of the “good old days”, but certainly accept the competition of today’s racing is so much tougher than that of past eras. I am both amused and amazed at the ingenuity of those camping on The Mountain. It is an absolute must to take the bus to the top of Mount Panorama, to not only see the heroics of the drivers “flying” across The Mountain more than 200km/h, but to see the way camp sites have evolved through the generations.
The Bathurst track schedule sees 6 x 1hour practice sessions, plus a 20-minute Sunday morning warm up prior to the race. The practice sessions are allocated between main and co-driver sessions. James “Bieber” Golding will again join forces with GT, and Richard “Meercat” Muscat with Moff.
For guys like GT and Moff who have driven literally thousands of laps around The Mountain it’s important they reacquaint themselves with the grip level of the circuit and look for any changes that may have taken place since the previous year, such as surface or kerb changes. But, for Bieb’s and Meercat doing laps and noting the “danger” areas is vital. Bathurst is one of the very few tracks in the world where if you go off line your race is probably over. Of the 23 corners that make up Mt.Panorama there are probably only three (The Chase, Murray’s Corner/last turn and Hell Corner/turn 1) that a driver is likely to recover from. If there is a misjudgement that sees the car leave the track at the other 20 corners the likelihood is the race will be over. During practice Meercat had one of these moments as he constantly pushed that little ore to find the limits of the car. It was Thursday in the co-driver session when he got a little off-line as he approached The Dipper and contacted the left-hand side of the car with the concrete barrier. As much as this damage required the car to be put on the tray truck and brought back to the pit garage, the boys could get straight to work on removing the damaged parts and had the car back on track for the final session of the day a few hours later. Incidents like this occur when a driver gets off the racing line, which is the area of “clean” track formed by the cars running around lap after lap. “Marbles” (balls of old rubber off the tyres) build up outside this line and when a car ventures on to this line there is no grip and the car slides on the balls of rubber.
Following the Thursday and Friday practice sessions we felt we were well placed for a good showing in qualifying. Moff had produced his quickest ever lap on The Mountain was 8th, and GT was 4/10ths further back but throughout practice was consistently inside the 10, yet didn’t complete an uninterrupted lap in the closing stages of practice so we felt comfortable there was more to come from the #33.
The evenings at Bathurst are usually quite busy with functions and this began with an early evening meet and greet on Wednesday at Bathurst Mazda. We were fortunate enough during our time racing Volvo’s that we met John Davis and his family who own motor vehicle franchises in Orange (incl. Volvo) and who recently acquired Bathurst Mazda. John kindly lends the team several cars during the Bathurst week.
On Wednesday evening Barry and I headed off to our other favourite form of horsepower, the trots. As guests of the Bathurst Harness Racing Club we had a very pleasant evening watching the form of the horses and the good part was I picked a couple of winners!
Friday afternoon and 40 minutes of qualifying. Qualifying at Bathurst is very important from a commercial perspective as there is significant value for your sponsor group to receive the 3-4 minutes of total exposure in the Top 10 shootout held on the Saturday afternoon. Yet, from the ability to win the race, qualifying at Bathurst really has very little significance. In some ways the pole winner is cursed in recent years at Bathurst with only three pole starters winning in the past 20 years!
During the 40-minute session four sets of tyres were allocated to be used which are then put aside to be used during the race. The sequence is an out lap, followed by a flying/qualifying lap and then an in lap. The driver builds up during this process, that is the first flyer is little more conservative that the next and so on. This allows for a good/ok lap to be in the “bank” if a mistake occurs on the final “red hot” go. Unfortunately for Moff who had done a tremendous job to be in Top 10 with less than 2 minutes left in the session, he ran wide as he traversed The Mountain hitting the right-side wall as he exited Skyline and approached The Dipper which lunged the car in to the left-hand wall (similar to where Muscat hit) causing considerable damage and ending the session. This incident cost the #34 its quickest lap and dropped it from 8th to 22nd. The only positive was it saw GT (#33) leap into the 10, yet if the session had not been stopped we looked set to have both cars in the Top 10 as GT was one of the few on track with splits that were better than the previous runs.
Yet again the #34 arrived back at the garage on the back of the flat tray with the damage assessed as a little more significant than that of the previous day. Without hesitation and with a bounce in their step our boys got straight to it. Dismantling the car and removing the bent suspension components, body panels and transaxle. Following this process, the lasers are set up to re-align the chassis of the car, before it is again re-assembled. I appreciate that this is all a part of our sport and there are often others who experience something worse than yourself, but I am always so proud of the attitude of my Team when these accidents happen and their willingness to get in and get the job done. In this instance they arrived home just before 3.00am, but were again up and about ready to go at 6.00am.
Saturday morning and for the first time all week there was a chill in the air and the thought of rain crossed my mind. The weather gurus (the horses!) assured me it wasn’t going to rain today as I observed them facing in all directions in the paddocks as I travelled to the circuit.
The Saturday afternoon Top 10 is one of the most anticipated qualifying sessions in world Motorsport and it really is something worth traveling to Bathurst to see. One car, one driver with their chance all alone on our most famous race circuit to show what they can do. GT was first away having qualified in 10th and at Bathurst this is the toughest position to be in as the cars haven’t been on the circuit since the morning practice session and in the time since there has been many support races, including a 250km Super2 race.
The circuit changes markedly because of racing and track temperature. First out and as much as there is little pressure as the worst case you stay 10th, a driver always wants in this opportunity to show his capability and put their best foot forward. GT has more experience around Bathurst than most, and of course this can be an advantage but it can also hinder your progress as you are aware of what can go wrong if you misjudge the amount of potential grip. Internally we spoke as GT was on his outlap and the thought was an early 2.05 would be a competitive time, he did exactly that a 2.05.3. The teams to follow observe closely each lap and give feedback to their driver where they believe time can be made up, the #33 picked up one position as the Walkinshaw car of Courtney went slower.
Up front it was heading to an exciting finale as Dave Reynolds (Erebus) grabbed provisional pole as the second last man out with what seemed a nearly unbeatable 2.04.2, with Scotty Mac (DJR Penske) to come. Obviously, Scotty has been the “King of Qualifying” this season with 14 poles from 19 races and to make 15 he would need to go better than anybody ever has in a Supercar around Mt.Panorama. He did exactly that and drove like a man possessed completing his lap in 2.03.8, a lap that will be long remembered. Well done Scotty!
Saturday night and the calm before the storm. After all these years you do get nervous before the Bathurst 1000 and my nerves are more centred around my Team. It’s a difficult thing to verbalise, but as much as I want to win, I’m more interested and hopeful for all our workers and sponsors, I want to see their excitement and feel their pleasure with a good result, I feel so bad for all of them when things do not go as good as possible. Tomorrow as good as possible maybe winning, but it may also be coming 10th but I am confident that if everybody performs their job to the best of their ability that we will be in amongst the frontrunners.
Sunday morning and the horses are a worry! They are all facing away from the prevailing clouds with their behinds firmly covered by their tails, there is rain coming! On arriving at the track, I immediately pass this information on to the Engineers who of course enter www.bom into their laptops and have all sorts of scientific discussions. I don’t know how many times I need to tell them that when it comes to weather look for a paddock NOT a computer!
The build up to The Great Race is like no other. This year Delta Goodrem was inspiring with her rendition of Advance Australia Fair, helicopters, jets and planes hovered and blasted past, thousands surrounded the cars on the grid, there was glitz and colour everywhere and as race time drew ever closer so did the feeling of rain. As the five-minute signal warned and the hordes of people left the grid, mechanics and engineers were making last minute decisions and the sound of rattle guns began to be heard as the sky became eerily grey and light mist began to fall, the noise got more intense as car after car was jacked up and the slick tyres were removed and replaced with wet weather (grooved) tyres. There wasn’t much rain, but enough for all to be a little more conservative and take the safe approach in such a long race. The thought of the engineers was this will only be a short-wet period (but the horses knew better!). It is important to have a reasonable idea of how long you anticipate wet conditions because it dictates many things. If you believe it will be wet all day the car is set up very soft so as it can float and sit “deep” on the track rather than “bounce” across the surface and during a stint the tyre pressures are set in accordance with the amount of “wetness” and the anticipated laps required to be run on the tyres. Much of this becomes a “punt” unless you know the horses as well as myself, the problem is the engineers think I’m a little “nutty”, but I’m sure none of you do!
The cars completed their warm up lap and that famous image of the grid front on was on the screens as the lights went out and McLaughlin led to turn 1. All eyes were on our two cars and they were both away without incident and as expected Moff was straight to work getting the #34 forward in the pack. In fact, by lap 15 when the first stops began he had moved to 10th and GT was 8th.
Our stops began on lap 16 when GT came in and Bieber got in to begin his stint which was planned as a double (approx. 40 laps), Moff did the same on lap 25 and Muscat was now behind the wheel of the #34. Out front it was the Prodrive Ford of Waters/Stanaway that was handling the conditions best.
The race continued and the weather did not improve as a cloud hung over the mountain and light mist fell hour upon hour. The temperature was so cool and there was no breeze, so as much as it was only mist, the track stayed wet. Incredibly the drivers all stayed on the circuit in the vital areas avoiding a Safety Car period for more than 3 hours and it wasn’t until lap 75 when the McLaughlin/Premat car succumbed to an engine failure and was stranded on the circuit that the Safety Car was deployed. GT had stopped 3 laps earlier and again Bieb’s was behind the wheel, but Moff took the advantage of this SC period as did most of the field that hadn’t stopped in recent times and pit lane was abuzz as cars entered and driver changes occurred while wheels were changed and fuel added. Following Moff’s stint and the order was re-established following the SC the #34 and the #33 were inside the Top 10, with the Mostert/Owen and Waters/Stanaway cars out front.
The restart and stint ahead was going to be vital to the outcome of the race. Although we were just approaching half race distance the deployment of the safety car bunched the field up and with most of the drivers in the cars being co-drivers and the track still wet the chance of further Safety cars was great.
To the credit of all co-drivers they raced clean and it was a kangaroo on the circuit that triggered the safety car next on lap 88. Again, pit lane was a hive of activity as many teams took the opportunity to take on fuel which would open the strategy window of racing home on a minimum of two further stops. Meercat’s stint was completed when he stopped on lap 111 and by that stage had raced without incident and had done an exceptional job to have the #34 well placed in 7th. Bieber stayed in the #33 until lap 114 when again the safety car was called as rock had fallen on the track (lucky Dick is retired!) when he handed over to GT for the run home in what was also a very mature and well executed drive in 5th position. By lap 123 those that didn’t stop at the previous SC had now done so and the running order was re-established. Moff and GT were well placed with Moff sitting 2nd (behind Mostert) and GT 6th.
By lap 134 the mist had stopped and the track was finally beginning to show a dry racing line. Some further back in the field had taken the opportunity to change to slick tyres and our engineers washed closely their lap times and when it is they are faster than the wet tyre times and strategy allows you to stop a decision is made to go to slicks. This happened as Rick Kelly (Nissan) overshot The Chase and was bogged in the sand-trap. The #34 and #33 came in and slicks went on. This is always a risky time but slicks are much quicker on a dry line that wet/grooved tyres yet if you go even marginally offline chances are you will be in the wall or sand.
On the restart Moff was well placed in 3rd behind Mostert and Van Gisbergen, yet the dreaded happened on lap 139 when he ventured off line through McPhillmay Park (turn 10) damaging the rear of the car and 4 laps later he hit the wall incredibly hard at The Grate destroying the #34 car. In the garage there are faces of worry, anguish, sadness and disappointment and I am sure the very same expressions under Moff’s visor. It’s a relief to hear Moff on the radio and know that he is ok, the race goes on.
The Safety Car is out again to scrape the #34 off the wall and through this mayhem it is now GT who has found incredible speed on the drying circuit and sits behind Van Gisbergen in 2nd.
Light drizzle again begins to fall, but the circulating cars keep a dry line. Lap 144, 17 to home and no more stops required and Van Gisbergen powers into the final turn on the re-start and with the circuit a little slippery doesn’t pull up in time and GT follows him deep. Van Gisbergen is off the circuit but GT manages to retain some control and rejoins 6th or 7th as they head into Hell Corner (turn 1) and unfortunately hell it is as he encounters Mostert and is spun around. GT regathers the car but is now mid pack and with work to do. He radios in and has some concerns with the rear of the car, but soon settles back into a groove and begins reeling the field back to him. On lap 148 GT hit the wall at The Cutting causing damage to the right-hand side of the car which ended any chance of a successful finish. GT managed to nurse the car back to the garage and the guys replaced front and rear steering and suspension components and managed to the get the #33 out to finish 19th.
Out front it was Dave Reynolds/Youlden who had inherited the lead after an excellent weekend of qualifying and racing and very deservedly went on to win from Pye/Luff and Coulthard/D’Alberto.
A very, very big and heartfelt congratulations to Betty and her Erebus Team you deserve this and I was very happy to see a driver who had to handle some very negative press, get everything together over the past year or so and let his incredible driving ability do the talking.
To my Team and sponsor group. I am very sorry we didn’t climb The Mountain, yet again an absolute heart-breaking result. The emotions that this place mange to bring out in you is amazing. The Mountain depicts life, ups and downs and don’t think because you are up, you are going to stay up, you must keep working, but if you do fall pick yourself up and start climbing again. I love this!
I can’t wait for Bathurst 2018!!!
Garry
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT: the buzz with just over 20 laps to go when we looked very good!
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT: one lap later!
As I have mentioned in previous years heading to Sandown always brings back memories of my early racing years and I am extremely proud to still be involved today.
I know that this report is about the race of 2017, but on Thursday when we got the crew together for a quick chat Barry asked a question of the team “what is the best result GRM have achieved at the Sandown Endurance event?”, Moff was the man that knew the answer, 2nd. Barry went on to explain to the Team that back in those days there was no computerised race timing and the race order was kept in check by each team providing a person to stand in the grand stand in the starting grid order and then swap positions as the cars did on track. Barry was 11 at the time and I sent him up there and during one of the pit stops when I passed Allan Grice he had to convince the person representing Grice that I had passed him! How things have changed.
Fast forward to 2017 and instead of the pole position car being a second quicker than the car in P2, this type of gap now separates over 20 cars. Many like to reminisce and sure there were some fantastic times, people love to recall the starting fields of 40 plus cars yet fail to recall that often less than half would finish and there were often 10 or more laps separating first and tenth. In my opinion, the racing and competitiveness of today’s era of Motorsport is much superior to that of the past. What we do miss are some characters in our sport and as much as I try and do my bit, I’m getting a little too old!
I’m sure most of you reading this would love a 10-minute commute to work every day, well that’s what makes us different to Joey (Joe Sullivan – Transporter Driver), Sandown is his least favourite round as the Volvo Globetrotter FH16 700hp doesn’t even get in to top gear on the trip from Dandenong South to Sandown. But, Joey is so committed that he leaves the workshop at midnight on Wednesday, drives to the truck stop 2.5k’s from our workshop, snuggles up in his bunk, sets his alarm for 6.00am, has his “truckie’s breakfast” and heads to the track. Well done Joey, we love you.
We certainly have been looking forward to the Endurance Races as it has been quite evident throughout the SuperSprint rounds that we have lacked a little regarding straight out qualifying speed, yet our engineers and drivers have certainly developed a car set-up that has maintained tyre life better than most and our race speed has consistently been in the top few all season.
As our cars rolled out of the truck on Thursday I was very proud in how they were presented. GT’s car was in a livery based on his very first car with GRM (VS Commodore) and Moff’s was based on a VL Commodore that his Dad (Allan) raced at Spa (Belgium) 30 years ago. I was particularly pleased to see Moff race with a livery that his Dad did, I think that was special for both my Team but also the Moffat family.
Friday, and it’s the co-drivers that have the first opportunity in the 30-minute session. The session began dry but rain threatened and ten minutes into the session the showers began. The remainder of the day was wet and there was no opportunity to run the cars with slick tyres during either of the remaining two practice sessions. From a Team’s perspective, this limits the ability to find the car set-up that works best considering the forecast for the weekend was fine. Normally during practice, the Engineers like to perform a race simulation run which is normally 10-15 laps at race pace and from this the tyre technicians can measure tyre wear and calculate the tyre wear over the race to ascertain optimum times for pit stops. The car also is set up quite differently for a wet track than a dry track and simply the suspension of the car is “softer” for wet track. As the forecast was fine for the race weekend Stiffy (Team Manager- Stefan Millard), Krusty (#33 Eng. Richard Hollway) and Lewis (#34 Eng. Manuel Sanchez) directed that the window for the set-up be kept like we anticipate would be required on the dry circuit. Following Friday practice the #23 Nissan of Caruso/Fiore was quickest with Tander/Golding 12th and Moffat/Muscat 21st.
With one final 20-minute practice on Saturday morning it was going to be particularly important as it was the only chance for Moff and GT to run on slick tyres prior to qualifying. As much as this session was run on slick tyres, the track still had areas that were wet. Turn 4 heading on to the back straight is in the shade and the sun had not dried that water at that corner. The result was that the drivers could not attack that circuit in the same manner as they would have to in the upcoming qualifying session.
Qualifying for the Wilson Security Sandown 500 is a three-part session. The first session is a traditional 20-minute qualifying session with the primary drivers in the car. This is followed by a 20-lap co-drivers race starting in the position that the primary driver qualified the car, then the primary driver also competes in a 20-lap race starting where the co-driver finished. The starting grid for the Wilson Security Sandown 500 is where the primary driver finishes in the final 20-lap race.
Following the initial qualifying it was Dave Reynolds (Erebus) who was on provisional pole. This was a tremendous effort and I was very happy for Dave and it was a wonderful reward for Betty and her team. GT did a very good job to be only 2/10ths back (8th) and Moff was a further 5/10ths back and in 21st.
Both Bieber (James Golding) and Meerkat (Richard Muscat) did excellent jobs in the co-driver race. Meerkat was in a position where often a lot can happen and he did an exceptional job to keep out of trouble yet also managed to work his way up 3 places to 18th. Bieb’s also raced cleanly and finished where he started after racing door to door with the experienced Dumbrell (888) for much of the race. Unfortunately, the race came to a premature end on lap 18 when Todd Hazelwood (Cooldrive Racing) was sent crashing and rolling at high speed as he braked at the end of the back straight doing 260km/h.
Over the years I have unfortunately witnessed many “bad”crashes and even worse have been involved in a few. When you see major destruction it really is heart breaking. Initially, you do not consider the equipment it is only the driver that you worry about and seeing young Hazelwood step out was certainly very positive. Of course, then you feel for the team involved and the work, financial cost and strain involved in rebuilding the car.
Unfortunately, the damage caused was not an overnight fix and Tim Blanchard/Todd Hazelwood would not make the start of the 500. Luke Youlden (Erebus) led from start to finish to maintain pole position for the #9.
The main driver race was won off the line by Cameron Waters (Prodrive) who jumped to the front from the second row and he led from McLaughlin (Penske) and Reynolds (Erebus). GT settled 8th and maintained that position throughout while Moff again moved the #34 forward a couple of positions to 16th.
Saturday evening and the general feel within our Team was good and we all looked forward to what Sunday may bring. The Engineers and drivers spent quite a bit of time in the truck working through potential scenarios that may occur during the race.
There are some components of potential race strategies that are “fixed” or non-negotiable and you attempt to engineer the race around those in a manner that works to your strengths. The aspects that are fixed are that the co-driver must complete a minimum of 54 laps throughout the race, the car uses 2.5l/lap of fuel under racing conditions, there is a minimum of 3 pit stops required and a driver change takes a minimum of 16 seconds. There is no minimum fuel drop throughout the race or compulsory brake pad change.
With this in mind it is best to start with the co-driver and get their 54 laps completed leaving the primary driver to complete the remainder of the race. 888 decided on a different approach with Van Gisbergen and Lowndes starting in their respective cars. The reason they punted on this strategy was they had finished the qualifying near the rear of the field. The issue in doing this is as the race unfolds and with the potential of Safety Car periods it may mean a driver change is needed when only 10 or so seconds of fuel is being put in the car and hence any track advantage gained can be lost as the car sits stationary waiting for the driver change and it may also result in the co-driver finding himself in the car in the final dash to the finish against the more seasoned campaigners. Certainly, such a strategy is a consideration as it is possible than Van Gisbergen with his experience could work his way to the front early, then hand over to Matt Campbell who could complete his laps in the middle stages handing back to Van Gisbergen to finish. This would require Campbell to race against the primary drivers in the mid stages of the race and so long as he didn’t lose too much time the strategy could result in a better position than otherwise would have been achieved.
Race time and it only took one lap for the Safety Car to come out with Taz Douglas going off in to the tyre barrier at turn 6. The race was red flagged (stopped) as the crash caused the tyres in the barrier to separate and the barrier had to be reconstructed. In total, the race was halted for 1 hour, resulting in in being reduced from 161 laps to 125. This did not affect the number of laps required by the each driver and that stayed at 54
Both Bieb’s and Meerkat began well and by lap 18 #34 driven by Muscat (Meercat) had worked forward and was in 11th position, #33 was 9th.
The first round of stops was completed during this period (lap 18-23). As much as I take it for credit I must acknowledge the ability of our pit crew. They regularly practice at work and at every race meeting arrive early each morning and complete pit stop practice while recreating all potential scenarios. This practice is vital so as the job becomes second nature, but it is only practice and the reality when the car comes screaming in to the pit bay with brakes at 800 degrees and the driver overshoots the markers by a foot and there is dust flying everywhere and other cars are coming and going around you the put crew do require a cool head to get the job done smoothly.
Stiffy has the crew extremely well drilled and I am very thankful of the excellent job that they do.
The next stop planned was lap 54 when Golding and Muscat would complete their stint. By lap 53 Richard Muscat had continued his excellent stint and was in 6th followed by James Golding. Within a two-car team it is the lead car on track that has priority to pit first. As they begun lap 54 Meercat went a little deep into turn 1 and lost a little momentum through turns 2 and 3, Bieber saw an opening and managed to squeeze down the inside of the #34 on the exit of turn 4 meaning he would stop first. Garth jumped in as the car was refuelled and wheels changed, the following lap Muscat pitted and Moff began his stint. Up front it was Richie Stanaway who had been doing a superb job off pole leading from Premat and D’Alberto (DJR Penske).
With 70 laps to the end following these stops the number that the Engineers were focussing on was lap 82 or thereabouts. This lap was important as from this point on the cars can make it to the finish on a full tank of fuel. The concern would be the ability of the tyres to last a stint of 40 plus laps, but following an inspection of the tyres removed from the previous stints by Joey and Squiddy (Mitch Feeney – Tyre Technician) we were confident that we could successfully complete and extended stint if necessary. The option to do this did not eventuate as the race ran green to the end. But, Krusty did see an opportunity to potentially move GT further forward if we stopped him early and opened the opportunity of an “undercut”.
An undercut is when you pit before those in front of you and when re-joining the circuit, the driver puts together a sequence of laps that are faster than the cars that are in front and when they eventually stop the gap between you and them has been lessened or potentially you may have passed them. Krusty called the #33 in on lap 85 while in 6th position. Moff was in 7th and Manuel called him to pit on lap 91. The advantage for Moff was he would have fresher tyres towards the end of the race which would be an advantage in the case of a late Safety Car, but that didn’t happen and Moffat/Muscat finished a very good 7th.
GT drove the wheels of the #33 and was closing rapidly on Coulthard (DJR Penske) and with a lap to go swooped down the inside as they approached turn 1 and moved to 4th. Waters (Prodrive) led from McLaughlin who was catching rapidly, but also getting caught behind slower cars and Mostert (Prodrive) was in 3rd. That is how they finished.
Sure, to have two cars in the Top 10 is a pleasing result, but it is not what we race for. Like everybody we want to win and Cameron Waters and Richie Stanaway both drove exceptionally well and are very worthy winners of the Wilson Security Sandown 500. I felt as though our cars got stronger and stronger as the race went on and that is indicative of how we have raced this season, let’s hope the Bathurst 1000 goes 1000km, because we are going there with some confidence and purpose. We can win!
I would like to acknowledge our drivers over the weekend. Mason Barbera (Super 2) finished in the Top10 on Sunday and in his first season has experienced many ups and downs, yet has always been very positive and is certainly learning. Richard Muscat and James Golding did not put a foot wrong all weekend, they drove smartly, took their opportunities and most importantly handed the car to their team mates in excellent order. Moff and GT well done and GT always the racer to the end that last lap pass on Coulthard symbolises your approach to racing.
I can’t wait to get to The Mountain!
Garry
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT: Bieber’s Mullet
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT: Bieber’s Moustache
As usual plenty happens throughout the year, but my goodness time flies! It only feels like a couple of months ago that we arrived at Eastern Creek and unloaded the two new VF Holden’s for the pre-season test. Since then we have attended eight race meetings and travelled to the far extremes of our great country. Joey (Joe Sullivan-Transport driver) doesn’t mind the drive up the Hume as it is a place where he gets to see a lot of trucks and he enjoys his rest stops every few hours and the opportunity to talk about the Volvo FH16 700hp prime mover, the only problem is everybody he talks to are more interested in what is inside the trailers!
This round is our last Sprint round prior to the Endurance Cup part of our season which incorporates the Sandown 500, Bathurst 1000 and Gold Coast 600.
The Eastern Creek circuit is 3.9 kilometres in length with 11 corners. The top speed reached is 270kph and the fuel usage is 3.3 litres per lap. The race format is a 120km (31 laps) Saturday race and a 200km (52 laps) Sunday race with the requirement of a minimum of two pit stops where 120 litres of fuel must be put in the car.
I travelled to Sydney on Wednesday and along with Moff and Garth we joined one of our sponsors JBL which I found very informative. I had no idea about the technology these days regarding speakers and electronic equipment in general as I still have an AM transistor.
On Thursday, again I was bewildered with the advancement in technology as I spent some time with Valvoline. The advancement in automotive lubricants is amazing over the past few years and Valvoline lead the way with much of this technology and Motorsport is certainly the ideal environment to test the performance of these products. The viscosity (oil thickness) of oil today compared to what it was like even 10 years ago is amazing. The best analogy I can give is if you had a tea spoon of our current Valvoline race oil and tipped the spoon on its side the oil would run off not too much different to how water would run off, but oil of 10 or so years ago would run off the spoon more like honey. This type of oil development assists in fuel consumption and power.
Friday and time for practice. As usual for the sprint rounds there are 2 x 45 minute practice sessions Friday and 1 x 45 minute session on Saturday morning. Following practice, we found ourselves in a similar position as to where we have been for much of the year. During the early and mid-stages of practice we are competitive lap time wise, but our inability to find the speed that normally comes with a new tyre has certainly been something that has hampered our progress. There is no simple solution or so called “magic bullet” to this problem and if there was we would implement whatever was necessary. Krusty (Richard Hollway) and the engineering group are continually trying all sorts of things and with a test day in a couple of weeks they have put together many things they want to try on the car. Many of these changes are very, very minimal but together create a change to the handling and performance of the car. Of course, there are changes that a computer may say will be advantageous but in many instances, this may not be the case.
Probably as expected following practice the qualifying results were very similar. McLaughlin (DJR Penske) continued his absolute domination again earning pole from Winterbottom (Prodrive) and Van Gisbergen (888). GT and Moff were 18th and 20th.
As much as qualifying has been disappointing, the Team’s ability and the ability of both GT and Moff to work their way into a race and vary rarely lose positions has certainly been a very big positive. Garth did a tremendous job to yet again race his way forward and the longer the race went the more positions he picked up. By race end GT was 10th and Moff was 17th. Moff also raced very well but was unfortunate to drop from 16th to 23rd during the pit stops that took place on laps 15 and 16 during the Safety Car period resulting from Todd Kelly (Nissan) blowing a tyre.
Upfront the race was certainly exciting with Winterbottom leading Van Gisbergen off the line as Scotty slipped to third. Following the SC and on the restart Van Gisbergen took the initiative and slipped up the inside of McLaughlin who was now leading and took the lead, but only until turn 2 when Scotty made contact to the rear of the 888 Holden sending Van Gisbergen off the track. As the race unfolded, McLaughlin was handed a 15-second penalty (later increased to 33 seconds) and Coulthard (DJR Penske) won from Mostert and Whincup (888).
Of course, this report is about our race weekend but I must give credit to Jamie Whincup for a brilliant drive. Whincup collided heavily with the rear of Reynolds (Erebus) on the restart and caused significant damage to the front of his car. The bonnet was bent so badly I don’t know how he saw his way around the track for the final 11 laps and with his right hand front tyre smoking as it contacted the damaged work it’s incredible it didn’t blow. With all of this and his calmness to keep his head down and bum up and press on without coming in to the pits I think was one of the drives of the year so far. Well done!
Saturday night and Barry and I walked to the Hidden Valley Tavern for a nice cold pot. After a day that was “ok” we were about to get lucky. From the early 1960’s through to 2013 we had motor vehicle dealerships, and from 1985 until 2003 I employed a cleaner/handyman/car washer/jack of all trades fellow named Ernie Walker. Ernie was a very committed and reliable worker and most importantly a lovely “old” man. Ernie passed away a few years following his retirement and as Barry and I sipped on our pot we spotted a greyhound about to run named “Ernie’s Legacy”, with only $5.00 left in his pocket Barry put the bet on. Guess what? Good old Ernie rewarded us with two more pots as our five dollars returned $22.00, thanks Ern you never let me down!
Sunday and for the third straight day the normally mild Sydney weather was freezing. Of course, the locals blamed us southerners for the burst of cold air!
Qualifying and it was a repeat of the previous day for us. With both Moff and GT qualifying next to each other, but well back. McLaughlin did it yet again with pole position by 13 tenths and over half a second quicker than his teammate (Coulthard). There is no doubt that his confidence is so high that he approaches these sessions knowing and truly believing that he will be the quickest and he is doing a great job to stay on this wave.
Race time and yet again both GT and Moff picked their way through the field and by lap 11 when Rick Kelly blew a tyre causing a Safety Car period they were 15th and 16th. Unfortunately, Moff had to queue behind GT and upon the restart had dropped to 21st, yet GT had worked his way to 11th. Whincup led from Mostert and McLaughlin.
The second round of pit stops took place between laps 27 and 34. Those that stopped earlier in this window can “undercut” those that stay out longer. What this means is if you stop prior to somebody that you are racing behind and then put together a sequence of “quick” laps following your stop then you can “pass” them while they are pitting. The risk is if you stop too early then your tyres may not last until the end of the race and the final laps may allow others to pass you. The timing of all of this is very dependent on what the engineers ascertain is the probable tyre life. Of the frontrunners, it was McLaughlin and Van Gisbergen (4th) that stopped first, followed by Whincup two laps later and Mostert and Coulthard who were now 1-2 stopped five laps after Whincup.
Having stopped first Van Gisbergen was hot on Whincup’s tale as he re-joined the circuit following his stop and on cold tyres Whincup locked a brake into turn 2 and Van Gisbergen went to the front. As the race entered the final few laps the hard charging by Van Gisbergen in his effort to undercut Whincup was showing as Whincup pressured from behind and with the two DJR Penske cars catching quickly, Van Gisbergen did the sensible thing and let the faster Whincup past and did his best to hold off McLaughlin and Coulthard. With only two laps to go and having passed McLaughlin, Coulthard on fresher tyres moved into second and Van Gisbergen did a tremendous job to defend and finish 3rd.
Moff drove very solidly in his final stint and after been positioned well back in the pack because of the earlier stacking in pit lane he came home 14th. Similarly, GT who was 11th mid race, but shuffled back to 14th following the second pit stops battled hard in the final twenty or so laps to finish 11th.
We are certainly looking forward to the Wilson Security Sandown 500 and believe that Moff/Muscat and Tander/Bieber (Golding) will both be very competitive combinations in what should be a tremendous race.
I can’t wait!
Regards
Garry
MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT: Ernie’s Legacy
MOMENT OF DISAPPOINTMENT: The Adelaide Crows succumbing to the Swans
