O ff ici a l Pu blication of t h e B e n a l l a A u t o C l u b I n c .
pitstop March/April 2016
WINTON GEARS UP FOR 2016 V8 SUPERSPRINT
In this issue: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE 2016 V8 EVENT SUCCESSFUL RETURN FOR THE ASBK AT WAKEFIELD PARK ...AND MORE! AUTHORISED PRINT POST NUMBER PP100001045
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March/April 2016
Contents | BAC President’s Report................................................. 4 | BAC Group CEO’s Report.............................................. 5 | V8 Supercars Preview................................................... 6 | V8 Supports Preview..................................................... 8 | VMRC Round 1 Report.................................................. 10 | 24 Hours of Lemons Report......................................... 12 | ASBK Wakefield Park Report..................................... 14 | ASBK Wakefield Park Photos..................................... 16 | Wakefield Park Report.................................................. 18 | Obituary: Darrell Anderson......................................... 20 | Members at Play............................................................. 21 | What’s On at Wakefield Park and Winton............ 27 | AASA News Update....................................................... 24 | 2016 Winton Calendar................................................... 26 | 2016 Wakefield Park Calendar................................... 27
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
PITSTOP The Official publication of the Benalla Auto Club Inc. March/April 2016 Edition #605 BENALLA AUTO CLUB INC. 41 Fox Street Winton, 3673 Phone (03) 5760 7100 www.benallaautoclub.com.au Email: secretary@benallaautoclub.com.au Encompassing: Winton Motor Raceway 41 Fox Street Winton VIC 3673 Phone (03) 57607100 race@wintonraceway.com.au www.wintonraceway.com.au Wakefield Park Motorsport 4770 Braidwood Road Goulburn NSW 2580 Phone (02) 48222811 info@wakefieldpark.com.au www.wakefieldpark.com.au Australian Auto-Sport Alliance 79 Rowan Street Wangaratta VIC 3677 Phone (03) 5721 7800 info@aasa.com.au www.aasa.com.au COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT Acting President: Barry Stilo Secretary: Rex Monahan Treasurer: Geoff Calvert Neville Kettels, Bernie Mylon, Willie Van Wersch, Phil Wagner, Murray Edgar, Rob Hoskins, Daryl McHugh, John Morriss PITSTOP EDITOR Lachlan Mansell PHOTOGRAPHS
WINTON IS SEEKING VOLUNTEERS TO BE PARKING ATTENDANTS FOR THE V8 SUPERCARS SUPERSPRINT, 20-22 MAY. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE CONTACT THE WINTON OFFICE ON (03) 5760 7100
Judi McDonald, Rene Martens, Phil Wisewould, John Smith, Shannons Nationals Media, Touring Car Masters Media, Porsche Carrera Cup Media
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pitstop BARRY STILO Acting President, Benalla Auto Club Inc. Hello BAC Members, Our club continues its re-invigoration with the committee, management team, staff, officials and volunteers all working hard to make our club the best it can be. We have had plenty of track activity with everything from sprint days, race days and to 2 days of V8 Supercar testing with all reports from drivers that the track surface is excellent, offering plenty of grip and fast lap times. As a result of the long run of very hot days after the re-surface we did have issues at some turns – but our partners at Downer EDI have since effected the necessary repairs.
These are two of the biggest events we run at Winton and we may need your help – so if you see a call for volunteers – please put your hand up to help out wherever you can. The Committee continues to work with the management team on both short and long term initiatives that will see our club go from strength to strength in the future. As these plans are confirmed we will share them with you via Pitstop and our web page. I look forward to seeing you around the club – come up and say hi! Barry Stilo
The focus is now on Motorsport May with the V8 Supercar round and Winton Historics both to be held in the later part of the month.
Round 2 of the Winton Sprints was held on 10 April.
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CHRIS LEWIS-WILLIAMS CEO, Benalla Auto Club Group The BAC Committee, the management team start to develop ideas and plans that will increase usage and visitation to our facilities. and myself continue to debate, plan and develop a vast range of ideas and strategies to make the Benalla Auto Club, Winton Motor May is an incredibly busy month, particularly Raceway, Wakefield Park Raceway and the at Winton – with the only self-promoted round on the V8 Supercar calendar – the AASA the best they can be. The volume of email traffic between us is incredible – but it Woodstock Winton Supersprint on May 20thallows us to continually push our ideas and 22nd and then the 40th Historic Winton on constantly communicate. There are a huge the 28th and 29th of May. These are two of number of opportunities that are available the biggest events we hold at Winton each to the club and our businesses that must be year and are important for our financial assessed and see if they fit with the long term result. The Benalla Rural City and Benalla Business Network has got behind these two plan of what we want to be and where we events – marketing them as Motorsport want our club to go. May! The town should be a buzz with free I have had meetings with the local councils, tickets available to local shoppers and shops decorated to promote the events at Winton... relevant government bodies and our State and Federal Government members making so wear your BAC Member shirts proudly sure they know what the Benalla Auto Club throughout Motorsport May! is, and how important Winton is to Benalla Talk soon, and Wakefield is to Goulburn. Now these lines of communication are in place we can Chris
Signage with the new Wakefield Park logo has been installed at the venue, and was on display at the CAMS NSW State Championship round in March.
pitstop
A SENSE OF UNPREDIC
Tipping a winner at this year’s Winton Supersprint is ha The Winton V8 Supercar event has a history of throwing up surprise results. Who can forget Jason Bargwanna’s round win (from eighth on the grid) in 2000? Or Cameron McConville’s dramatic, last-lap pass on Rick Kelly for victory in the single 300km race of 2004? Winton has also been the scene for a couple of manufacturers to break long-standing victory droughts; James Moffat scored a memorable win for Nissan in 2013, and Lee Holdsworth scored Erebus AMG’s first race victory in 2014. All the signs are that the 2016 installment of the V8 event will be equally epic. At the time Pitstop went to print, there had been six different winners from the first seven races (the two Barbagallo races were yet to be run) with Volvo Polestar driver Scott McLaughlin the only repeat winner. The other winners have been Jamie Whincup, James Courtney, Nick Percat, Shane Van Gisbergen and Will Davison The points situation is extremely tight as well, with just 36 points separating the top four drivers and
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interestingly, a couple of drivers who are yet to stand on the top step of the podium, Mark Winterbottom and Craig Lowndes, are right near the top of the standings by virtue of consistency. Neither reigning Champion Winterbottom nor his rapid team-mate Chaz Mostert have been victorious so far, but both have shown qualifying speed, each scoring pole positions, and both drivers won races at Winton last year. Out of the current drivers, Lowndes, Winterbottom, Garth Tander and Jason Bright are the most successful at the nation’s action track with four race wins each - they are only one behind Glenn Seton and John Bowe, each with five. Winterbottom is the qualifying king at Winton with four pole positions, the most of any driver, while Mostert took a clean sweep of poles last year. The Prodrive Racing Australia Ford squad has been particularly strong in recent events, winning the last four races in a row at the venue; last year, Mostert
March/April 2016
CTABILITY
arder than ever.
won the first race and Winterbottom was victorious in the other two, after Mostert’s now infamous crash in the Sunday race. The new Winton surface will add an extra unknown factor into the equation. In the past, the Victorianbased teams have not had a significant advantage despite testing at the venue, because the track conditions and amount of rubber on the circuit are typically very different at a race meeting compared to a test day. However, this year could prove to be an exception, because knowledge of the new surface characteristics, degradation levels and re-profiled corners could indeed aid the local teams. The re-profiled turns 10 and 12 will increase overtaking opportunities, with drivers now able to carry a lot more speed through turn 12, leading to a higher top speed on the main straight and a faster approach into turn 1. Resurfaced tracks also have a history of producing exciting racing because of the increased grip levels and variation in racing lines that tend to be created.
For example, the 2014 Bathurst 1000 and 2015 Hidden Valley V8 rounds were both conducted on freshly-resurfaced tracks, and both produced excitement in abundance. This year’s V8 event will be conducted entirely on the soft-compound tyres. The degradation factor has already lended itself to a variety of strategies this year, especially in the Saturday Symmons Plains race where the Brad Jones Racing Commodores of Jason Bright and Tim Slade charged their way through the field after pitting late in the race for fresh rubber. The Winton event will feature exactly the same format as Symmons Plains, with a 120km race on Saturday with a compulsory pit stop to change four tyres, and a 200km race on Sunday with a minimun 120 Litre fuel drop necessitating at least two pit stops. The V8 Supercars will get plenty of track time, with a 30-minute, endurance co-driver only session on Friday and two one-hour practice sessions for the regular drivers.
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pitstop
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE - V8
Touring Car Masters Having appeared on the Winton V8 program for the last couple of seasons, the Touring Car Masters category returns in 2016. Touring Car Masters features iconic muscle cars of the 1960s and 70s, including Ford XY Falcon GT, XA and XB Coupe, Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Holden Torana and Monaro and others. While the series initially attracted enthusiastic amateur racers, in recent times it has become home to a number of high-profile retired professionals, and drivers you can expect to see on the grid at Winton include John Bowe (who leads
the series), Jim Richards, Glenn Seton, Steven Johnson and Andrew Miedecke. Another outright contender will be Greg Ritter, who slots into the Chevy Monza owned by BAC member Tony Hunter. The amount of passion in the Touring Car Masters paddock is as high as any series in the country, and the owners of the cars are usually more than happy to talk to enthusiastic fans, so make sure you wander down to the TCM paddock and have a chat to them!
V8 Utes The crowd-favourite V8 Utes return to the Winton support card for the first time since 2012 and David Sieders heads into the weekend as the man to beat, leading the points after taking overall victories in two of the first three rounds. Sieders holds a 25 point advantage over fellow Holden driver (and BAC member) Nathan Pretty. 2014 Champion Kris Walton is best of the Ford drivers in third place, just ahead of Ryan Hansford who took overall honours in the second round of the series at Symmons Plains.
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The Ute Racing Series has always been popular amongst fans due to its cut-and-thrust style of racing, which includes a reverse-grid race in which the faster drivers have to fight their way through the field. The Ute Series is a category very familiar to Winton’s operations manager Wayne Williams, who formerly ran as many as nine entries in the category. Management has also changed in 2016, the series now being run by V8 Supercars.
March/April 2016
8 SUPPORT CATEGORY PREVIEW
Kumho V8 Touring Cars For the first time, the Kumho V8 Touring Car Series joins the Winton V8 support lineup in 2016. The Kumho Series is essentially the third level of V8 Supercar racing, slotting in underneath the main game and Dunlop Development Series. The eligibility list for the Kumho Series has been expanded this year, with competitors now permitted to race any V8 Supercar prior to the New Generation-spec cars introduced in 2013. This has resulted in some newer cars coming into the series and a number of young guns are using the series as a stepping stone from karts or
open-wheelers, including Tyler Greenbury (Image Racing Falcon) and Josh Smith (Brad Jones Racing Commodore), who have joined experienced racers such as Jim Pollicina, Steve Briffa and Chris Smerdon on the grid. Another one to keep an eye out for is Emily Duggan, who has stepped into the ex-Kelly Racing R-Sport VE Commodore after competing in the NSW Excel Racing Series. Duggan is looking to follow in the footsteps of fellow female V8 racers Renee Gracie and Chelsea Angelo, and forge a professional motorsport career.
Toyota 86 Series The brand-new Toyota 86 Series, which features factory backing from Toyota and has attracted more than 30 entries for its inaugural round, will hold its very first event at Winton. Being a one-make series in which all the cars are identical, the aim of the 86 Series is for race results to be determined by driver ability rather than who has the best car. The 86 Series is set to attract a high-quality driver roster, including last year’s national Formula Ford Champion Cameron Hill, multiple Formula Vee
Champion Tim Brook, former Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge competitor Jon McCorkindale and Bathurst 12 Hour winner Garry Holt, while some invited professional drivers will also compete in the meeting. The Toyota 86 Series is managed by Neil Crompton’s business, Airtime Autosport, with Phil Harrison taking on a category management role with the series. Three races will be held over Winton weekend, using a standard progressive grid format.
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pitstop
VMRC Round 1 Report
MISURACA BEATS THE
Vince Misuraca held out BAC CEO Chris Lewis-Williams Vince Misuraca dominated the opening round of the Porsche 944 Challenge, held as part of the Victorian Motor Racing Championship at Winton on 5-6 March. Misuraca qualified on pole position and won all three races, while BAC CEO Chris LewisWilliams and Cameron Beller squabbled over second and third position. A large field of 23 cars participated in the first round of the Victorian Hyundai Excel Series; reigning Champion Jarrod Tonks looked set
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to dominate the weekend with victories in Races 1 and 2, but non-finishes in Races 3 and 4 allowed former HQ Holden racer Adam Bywater to take the round win ahead of the consistent Kaide Lehman and Brendan Avard, who finished on the podium by virtue of their top six finishes in all four races. The Combined Tin Top races included a mixture of cars from different categories; Ryan Woods took the overall win in his Toyota Corolla with victories in three of the four races while Anton Bergman (BMW E30) was second
March/April 2016
E BOSS
s to win the opening Porsche 944 Challenge round overall ahead of the consistent Lee Nuttall (Nissan Pulsar). Andrew Williams (Datsun 120Y) won the first race but chalked up DNFs in the other three. Geoff Bowles started his 2016 BMW Drivers Cup campaign in perfect fashion by winning all four races in his BMW E30 race car; brothers Chris and Sean Bell completed the podium. Ford prevailed in the Vic V8 contest, with Victor Argento (XB Falcon Coupe) taking the
overall win ahead of Damien Gambold (XD Falcon). Blake Delaney (HSV Clubsport R8) was the best of the Holden entries while Mark Kakouri won the first three races but suffered a DNF in the final, causing him to finish just off the overall podium. Stuart Shirvington took the PRB Clubman round win ahead of James Dick and Joshua Versluis.
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pitstop
Winton Angels Shine in 24 Hours of Lemons
The all-female Winton Angels team of Yvette Campbell, Sarah Ackerly, Bec Owens, Michelle King and Sharon Laurie finished seventh overall in the 24 Hours of Lemons endurance event for cars up to $1,000 at Winton on 12-13 March, completing 339 laps oer the two days, or 1,017km. The Angels’ Ford EL Falcon, with expert team management from Wayne Williams, ran faultlessly all weekend, Campbell recording a 2:01.6 lap time during one of her stints on Sunday. Apart from having an absolute blast, the girls also raised a significant amount of money for charity. “This has been an awesome weekend, an excellent team bonding exercise and just amazing to think we could get a car worth less than $1,000 to go so far,” Ackerly said. “We went further than the Bathurst 1000 this weekend, which is just incredible for this car!”
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The winning team was the Expendables in the Hyundai Excel - the drivers Larry Merrifield, Mark Cravino, Harley Phelan, Peter Phelan, John Theodoru and Ken Hastings completed a total of 416 laps (1,248km) over the two days. They won by five laps from the Merconroids team (Mercedes Benz) with Rusty Pug Racing (Peugeot 305) coming in third. The Merconroids team had been battling with the Expendables for most of Saturday, the two teams completing the same number of laps by the end of the day, but a lost wheel and subsequent penalty cost Merconroids valuable time at the start of Sunday’s proceedings. The Minions Madness team, which included prominent V8 Supercar livery designer Tim Pattinson, looked strong early, leading the first few hours on Saturday in their Mazda 626, but a clutch failure put them out of contention. They won the “best themed team” award as consolation for their efforts.
March/April 2016
The Expendables took outright victory in their Hyundai Excel.
Merconroids finished second outright.
Minions Madness were strong early, before a clutch failure ended their hopes.
Pit stop action.
The entire Winton Angels team after the finish.
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pitstop
ASBK Round 2 Report
HERFOSS DELIVERS ON HOME SOIL It was a fairy tale ending for Crankt Protein Honda Racing Team’s Troy Herfoss at Round 2 of the Yamaha Motor Finance Australian Superbike Championship at Wakefield Park on the Easter long weekend, collecting the round win in front of family and friends. However, it was a hard fought battle to the overall Yamaha Motorcycle Insurance Superbike podium, with plenty of thrill and spills across the two races at Wakefield Park today. Despite Herfoss starting on pole, the lightening fast Yamaha machine of Glenn Allerton managed to make his way to the race lead, followed by Crankt Protein Honda Racing fill in rider Anthony West who found his way in to second. After only two laps, the Superbikes were forced to return to the grid - the opening race being red flagged when three riders went down in lap ten. And thankfully for Honda mounted Herfoss who got to a terrible start initially, a complete race restart was ordered, with the race reduced to 14 laps.
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When bikes took off for the second time, Herfoss took full advantage of the restart, taking the early lead through turn one, followed by Allerton, and teammate Maxwell who were locked in to a head to head battle for second position. Just as racing got underway again, there was an unbelievable repeat of events, with the race red flagged for a second time – two riders going down in turn ten, forcing the Superbike race to restarted for a second time. With the Superbike race reduced to 12 laps, when riders got to a frustrating third start, Herfoss launched off the grid first yet again, but before riders had gotten the opportunity to get one lap in the books, the race was once again red flagged, with DesmoSport Ducati’s Mike Jones, West and Halliday caught up in a crash at turn one. As a result, the further restart of race one was rescheduled to after lunch. When the Superbike race one finally got underway
March/April 2016 at 2:00pm, Herfoss got the started he’d hoped for, but despite leading for a lap, Allerton executed an outstanding pass on lap two, moving in to the race lead with time on his hands. After two laps, the running order saw Allerton out in front, followed by the Honda pair, Herfoss and West who were locked into a battle for second. It was the five lap freight train of Allerton, Herfoss, West, Halliday and Maxwell that kept fans on the edge of their seats, Allerton even setting a new lap record with a 57:860, proving he was the man to beat. However, with the Superbike race one shortened to 12 laps, riders had limited time to get their battles for top positions sorted out, and as the race reached the half way point, Allerton and Herfoss began to pull a gap on Maxwell and West who were in a head to head battle for third. On turn five on lap seven however, it all went pair shaped for Yamaha’s Allerton who ran wide and hit the dirt, handing the race lead to Troy Herfoss ahead of Maxwell and West – Herfoss also managing to set a new lap record with a 57:540. But there was further disaster in store for the Yamaha stars, Maxwell also crashing out in the exact same turn on the following lap, allowing Crankt Protein Honda’s West to move in to second position, behind his new team mate Herfoss. With the Yamaha front runners both out of race win contention, when the last lap board was shown, it was Herfoss with the lead on home soil, ahead of West, Halliday, JD Racing’s Daniel Falzon and Ben Burke rounded out the top five. And by the time the chequered flag flew, no one could match the flawless performance of Goulburn local Herfoss, taking the race one win from West and Halliday who finished in second and third places respectively. The final top positions saw Burke in fifth, while 2015 Supersport Champion Brayden Elliot wrapped up race one in sixth. New Zealander Sloan Frost finished seventh, Ryan Hampton in eighth, while Adam Senior and Nathan Spiteri finished in ninth and tenth places respectively. When the Superbikes lined up for Race 2 this afternoon, there was a sense of excitement in the air, with the likes of Yamaha Racing Team’s Maxwell and Allerton eager to redeem themselves, while Herfoss attempted to remain undefeated. When the Superbikes screamed away for the final time today, Herfoss looked as if he had the jump that was required, however it was the Yamaha machine of
Maxwell who got to the early race lead. And there was carnage again in turn one, with Halliday and Falzon going down, both unable to resume the race. With two laps in the books, the focus then shifted to the front of the pack, and with Maxwell pulling a comfortable gap on the field, by lap three it was the fight for second between Allerton and West that had the crowd on their feet. By lap five, the running order saw Maxwell in front with a three second lead on second position which was held by West, followed by Allerton in third and Herfoss in fourth. Herfoss, who was determined to put on a performance in front of family and friends, then began his charge to the front, and by the time riders headed in to lap eight, the local had made the pass on Yamaha’s Allerton and began to eye off the rear tyre of his Honda teammate. In a huge upset for Jones this afternoon, the defending ASBK champ was forced to return to the pits after only nine laps with a mechanical issue. For Herfoss though, a pass on West during lap ten provided a clear track ahead for the local to chase down Maxwell. And chase down he did, the local taking advantage of Maxwell heading in to lapped traffic - managing to marginally close the gap. However, Herfoss’s charge to the front was put to a stop at turn ten on lap 13, with the local running his Honda machine wide, forcing him to drop two positions back in to fourth. With one lap remaining, Maxwell was completely untouchable, while Honda fill in rider West maintained an impressive second position, followed by Allerton in third, and Herfoss in fourth. When the chequered flag flew, there was no change in race order, Maxwell taking an unchallenged race two win, ahead of West and Yamaha teammate Allerton who crossed the line in third. Herfoss, and privateer Burke (Kawasaki) concluded the final race of the day in fourth and fifth places respectively. It was Elliot who held on for sixth in the final race of the day, followed by Sloan Frost, Ryan Hampton, Adam Senior, and Joel Beard rounding out the top ten. Despite a fourth place in race two, Honda mounted Herfoss did all that was required to take the Round two win on home soil, ahead of his team mate West who collected second in his first ASBK appearance since 1998, while the surprise performance came from Kawasaki mounted Bourke who secured third position on the Yamaha Motorcycle Insurance Superbike Podium.
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pitstop
ASBK ROUND 2 PH
A large field of motorcycles was in attendance for the ASBK’s return to Wakefield Park.
Reigning Champion Mike Jones had a tough weekend, his Ducati failing to finish the weekend’s opening race.
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March/April 2016
HOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Brian Houghton took a clean sweep in the Moto 3 races
Sam Clarke was the overall round winner in Supersport
Wayne Maxwell (Yamaha) and Sloan Frost (Suzuki) in the Superbikes.
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pitstop MATT BARAGWANATH Operations Manager, Wakefield Park Motorsport Hello Members,
interest, then as previously mentioned when BMW came to town, they took full We are now well into Q2 of our busy year, with advantage of the area for their ‘make up’ one of our largest events for the year – the pre-filming preparations before filming their Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) media stunt. taking place over the Easter weekend at the end of March. Unfortunately we have to say goodbye to two staff members this month, Craig The travelling Superbikes series saw some big from our admin team and Sarah from our names return to the venue after a long absence accounts team, we wish them both well with which in turn brought a great crowd and great their future endeavours. spectacle. Although the main superbike race was riddled with red flags and re-starts, we Finally, as we go to print for the Pitstop did finally get a nail biting race with a number mag, Wakefield will see the return of the of lead changes which kept the crowd on the Super Truck Series as the main draw card edge of their seats. for this weekend’s AASA State round. Super Trucks always brings a good crowd to WP With myself and our CEO overseeing the and for a first, we have arranged for a truck venue for the weekend, we had very positive to be parked in the middle of town over feedback as to the venue presentation and lunchtime on Friday as a promotion for the continual improvements that are being event which will be interesting for the public noticed throughout the property which to see! is always pleasing to hear. Through our continued goodwill with local key stakeholders That’s it for now and remember, BAC such as police and council, we were assisted members are welcome at Wakefield Park significantly with PR activations in town prior any time, either as a competitor, spectator, to the event as well as fantastic assistance with official or volunteer! traffic management through the weekend from police which was very helpful in securing Regards, the safe passage of our spectators leaving the venue. Matt Recently, we conducted a very interesting film shoot with BMW where we had some star players from the Australian Wallabies Rugby team handballing footballs into their respective BMW range as they drove past! I am pleased to advise that out new pit-lane fronted corporate facility has been used several times with very positive feedback being provided by our clients as to its success. Adjoining this report is some pics from a recent Lexus day showing the set up for member’s
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March/April 2016
LEXUS CORPORATE DAY PHOTOS
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pitstop
Vale: BAC member Darrell Anderson Darrell Anderson was born on 11/02/1947 in Urana, NSW. At an early age, he had built home made go karts, and Morris Minors, just to name a few, which he raced at a man-made dirt track, against his friends and other people who thought they were any good at steering a car. In these times Dad would modify the engines with a lumpy am and lightened flywheel. When he had enough of Urana, he packed the family (his wife and two young daughters) and shifted to Girgarre, Victoria. This is the time I was born, in 1975. Dad had built numerous go karts and I can fondly remember sitting on his lap while speeding around the paddock, gasping for air. I can remember going to the Numurkah Kart Track. This is where he made life-long friends with Graeme Feldtmann. His karting career spanned from 1975 to 1990, including becoming a Life Member of the Numurkah Go Kart Club. His passion for racing was reignited when my sister had married a local boy in the early 90’s, who competed at Winton in the Sprint Series. Dad and I had gone with him on a few occasions. By the late 90’s, Dad and I had ventured to Melbourne on the odd occasion to look at Lotus 7s and after many months of searching for a Clubman, dad decided to build a Westfield Clubman. I remember commuting to Melbourne on several occasions, purchasing engines, gearboxes and diffs, to assist his project. Once he had finished the car he had it road registered and used it in the Winton Sprint Series. He also ventured to Melbourne and Phillip Island to compete in other road racing events. He once said to me that he wanted to go FASTER, so after the sale of his first Westfield Clubman, he wanted to build another Westfield Clubman. While on a trip to Oran Park, Sydney, to watch some racing,
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he had come across two brothers racing a Suzuki Hayabussa 1300-powered Clubman and decided that’s what he wanted. So it was back to the drawing board and after another couple of years he finished it. It sported a Suzuki Hayabusa 1300, with an inline reverse gearbox, and Escort diff to suit. He competed at Winton, Sandown, Phillip Island and Calder Park. Dad had a major accident at Winton, which wrote off his Hayabusa-powered Clubman. With the help of Graeme and Scott Feldtmann, he started rebuilding another chassis and after 6 months, the new car was built, in a shed in the Dookie Hills. Dad had been very unwell for 12 months after his accident, while the new car had been built, and dad had insisted that Scott Feldtmann run the car in the Winton Sprint Series. Dad had retired from racing at this stage, and the car was up for sale and sold to another fellow member of the BAC. When Dad was racing, I had helped him at the track; after he had retired, he helped other BAC members running in the Clubman/Open Wheeler Class. I had eyed off another member’s car at this stage and acquired the Shell Aussie Legends Car, from Paul Smith, which is where my racing career had started after dad had retired. Once I had helped dad with his racing, it was time for him to return the favour. At times dad had shared my car, and this had reignited yet another come back to his racing career. In January 2014, dad purchased a Formula Ford from Brisbane, which he raced in the Sprint Series up until he passed away recently. - Jason Anderson
March/April 2016
Members at Play by Lachlan Mansell
The Members at Play section returns to Pitstop this month, highlighting some of the most notable performances from BAC members competing in high-profile motorsport events around Australia.
a mixture of Sports Sedans, ex-V8 Supercars, production cars and everything in between. He improved to 11th in Race 1, before finishing 13th in Race 2 and 11th again in Race 3.
A number of members have done their club very proud at major race meetings so far in 2016, let’s hope that trend continues for the rest of the season.
Valvoline Wakefield 300 - Wakefield Park, 20-21 February Three BAC members competed in the 2016 edition of the classic Wakefield 300 endurance race. After 137 laps around the nation’s action track, it was Chris Belling who took away the honour of best BAC member, finishing 26th outright alongside his son Rhys. While their HQ Holden may not have been the fastest car in the field, it was reliable and consistent, with the Bellings also finishing third in Division 7.
Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour - Mount Panorama, 5-7 February Bruce Henley was the sole BAC representative competing at the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2016. Unlike last year, Henley did not contest the main race but he was still present on the grid in the Combined Sedans support category, aboard his Mazda RX8 GT ex-Grand Am car. Henley qualified 19th in a field that included
Terry Denovan teamed up with Geoff Stockley in his Holden VH Commodore and the pair had a troubled run, a couple of mechanical Bruce Henley, Bathurst 12 Hour Combined Sedan race.
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Greg “Reggie” Wood, Pulsar Challenge, Winton.
er, Matt Thewlis, Future Rac
Wakefield 300.
problems causing them to stop on the circuit on two separate occasions, causing Safety Cars each time. At least they finished the race, which was more than could be said for Matt Thewlis, who retired after a tailshaft failure in the Future Racer he was sharing with Chris Clearihan. Nevertheless, Thewlis had worked his way inside the top 20 before the mechanical dramas struck, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience of driving a different type of car. Festival of Sporting Cars - Sydney Motorsport Park, 21 February The FoSC meeting featured the opening round of the NSW Pulsar Challenge, and Greg “Reggie” Wood was on the grid as the BAC representative. Wood qualified 14th, before finishing 13th in Race 1 and improving to ninth in Race 2...
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Phil Deane, Supe
r TT, Winton.
Champion of Winton Winton Motor Raceway, 28 February ...and then travelled to Winton a week later to compete in Round 1 of the Victorian Pulsar Challenge. He finished second in Race 1, fourth in Race 2, chalked up a DNF in Race 3 and recovered to fourth in Race 4.
Matt Thewlis also competed in the Pulsar round, driving Ross Wilson’s car, and recording fourth-place finishes in Races 1 and 3. The CoW meeting also saw three BAC members competing in the Super TT support races. The best of them was Ross Wilson, who finished second overall, while Phil Deane was fourth and Stephen Harrison was fifth. Clipsal 500 - Adelaide Street Circuit, 3-6 March BAC members were well represented in categories at this year’s Clipsal 500. Driving a VE Commodore for the South
March/April 2016
Steven Richards, Carrera Cup, Clipsal 500.
Australian-based THR Racing Developments outfit, Taz Douglas enjoyed a consistent weekend in the Dunlop Series, capitalising on dramas for a number of other competitors in the field. Douglas qualified 18th for Race 1 but was able to move up to 10th, and in Race 2 he qualified 12th and finished seventh, ending up seventh overall for the weekend. Nathan Pretty was behind the wheel of his Burbank Racing Commodore for the opening round of the Australian V8 Ute Racing Series. Pretty qualified sixth and improved to fifth in Race 1, before taking second in the reversegrid Race 2 and fourth in Race 3 for fourth overall. Steven Richards had a busy weekend, running in both the Carrera Cup and also his new BMW M6 GT3 in the Australian GT Championship. After qualifying sixth in Carrera Cup, Richards finished eighth in Race 1 and improved to fourth in Race 2. He rocketed off the line in Race 3 and was running in second position before an incident ended his day prematurely. In the GT Championship it was very much a development exercise for Richards in the new BMW, which he shared with Max Twigg and finished 18th, 19th and 16th in the three races.
14-year-old Zak Best made his debut in the Aussie Racing Cars, qualifying 23rd in his first race meeting and recording finishes of 21st, 17th, 19th and 17th in the four races for an overall result of 17th. It was an impressive debut for the youngster in his very first round in the category, driving on the Adelaide street circuit for the first time. BAC member Tony Hunter elected not to drive in the Touring Car Masters races, instead handing his Chevy Monza over to Greg Ritter, who won two of the three races. Victorian Motor Racing Championships Winton Raceway, 5-6 March BAC CEO Chris Lewis-Williams got his 2016 Porsche 944 campaign off to a solid start, scoring a third and two second place finishes from the three races to take home second overall behind Vince Misuraca. In the opening round of the Victorian Excel Racing Series, Ellexandra Best, the older sister of Zak, made a solid start finishing 14th and 12th in the first two races, before suffering a DNF in Race 3. Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Street Circuit, 17-20 March Steven Richards was back in action for the second round of both the Carrera Cup and
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pitstop the Australian GT Championship, supporting the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park.
The V8 Utes were back in action at Symmons Plains, Nathan Pretty returning to the wheel of his VE Commodore.
Richards qualified fifth, but fell back to eighth in Race 1. However, a blinder start enabled him to move up to second in Race 2 behind Alex Davison, a position he held for the next three races to take third overall for the round.
Pretty was the best of the Holden drivers in Race 1, finishing third behind Kris Walton and Ryan Hansford.
In the GT Championship, Richards and Max Twigg continued the development program with the BMW M6; they did not finish the first race, but worked their way through to 20th in Race 2, 17th in Race 3 and 13th in Race 4. Shannons Nationals - Sandown Raceway, 2-3 April After his Dunlop Series appearance in Adelaide, Taz Douglas elected to contest the opening round of the Kumho V8 Touring Car Series at Sandown. After qualifying second, Douglas’ experience came to the fore once it was race time, and he came home first in all three races to take the overall round win and the points lead heading to Round 2 at Winton. V8 Supercars Tyrepower Tasmania Supersprint - Symmons Plains, 1-3 April
Race 2 featured a full reverse-grid format, and Pretty charged his way through the field, setting the fastest lap of the race en route to a second-place finish behind Craig Dontas. Another third place finish in Race 3, this time behind David Sieders and Hansford, enabled Pretty to finish second for the round. V8 Supercars WD40 Phillip Island Supersprint - Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, 15-17 May The Phillip Island V8 event saw BAC members represented in three different categories. Taz Douglas made the switch to the Eggleston Motorsport team for the second Dunlop Series round, and after qualifying 13th, he improved to ninth in Race 1 after an intense battle with Josh Kean. In Race 2, Douglas diced with team-mate
Taz Douglas, Kumho V8TC, Sandown.
Nathan Pretty, V8 Utes, Phillip Islan d.
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March/April 2016
Zak Best, Aussie Racing Cars, Phillip Island.
Liam McAdam before eventually finishing 10th. In Race 3, the Eggleston Motorsport team found some speed and Douglas was able to improve to fifth position, taking seventh overall for the round and moving up to fifth in the points standings. Phillip Island also marked Round 3 of the V8 Ute Racing Series and Nathan Pretty continued his consistent start to the year, qualifying sixth and finishing third in Races 1 and 2, and second in Race 3. The results enabled Pretty to finish second for the round, and he also moved up to second in points behind David Sieders. However, the star of the BAC runners at Phillip Island was undoubtedly Zak Best. Driving in just his second Aussie Racing Car meeting, Best started the weekend solidly
with 19th in qualifying, 18th in Race 1 and 14th in Race 2. Race 3 featured a full reverse-grid format and Best charged his way to the lead before the Safety Car was deployed for a multi-car pileup at Turn 4. The race finished under Safety Car and an ecstatic Best was declared the winner. “My goal for this weekend was to finish in the top 15 overall, so to already take a race win was very exciting,” Best said. “While it was a reverse-grid race, I still had to overtake a lot of cars and keep fast cars behind me, so I was stoked.” Best finished 13th in Race 4 and 10th for the weekend.
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pitstop
V8 SUPERCAR driver APPEARANCE FREE D TO ATTEN
V8 SUPERCAR AND SUPPORT CATEGORY DRIVERS
Thursday 19 May, 2016 5pm - 6.30pm BOTTLE-O COURTYARD, BRIDGE STREET, BENALLA MOTOR SPORT MAY BUY LOCAL AND WIN! Spend $20 in participating Benalla businesses to go in the draw for weekend passes to the V8 Supercars. Visit www.benallabusinessnetwork.com.au for details. Winners drawn at the V8 Driver Appearance. For further information, contact Benalla Rural City Council on 5760 2600 or visit www.enjoybenalla.com.au
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RACING AT WINTON MOTOR RACEWAY 20-22 MAY, 2016
March/April 2016
WHAT’S ON
at Wakefield Park and Winton PARK RACEWAY
Winton Events 1 May 6 May 8 May 12 May 13 May 20-22 May 26 May 27-29 May 3 June 4 June 7 June 9 June 10-12 June 17 June 24 June 1 July 2-3 July 8 July 15 July 22 July 29 July 2 August 4 August 6-7 August 12 August 17 August 19 August
Wakefield Park Events Coolcars Autotech Charity Day Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Fun Day Performance Test Day - sedans Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers V8 Supercars Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Austin 7 Historic Winton Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Winton Sprints Round 4 Performance Test Day - sedans Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Shannons Nationals Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Test & Tune - cars-openwheelers Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers VMRC Round 2 Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Performance Test Day - sedans Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Festival of Speed Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers Performance Test Day - sedans Test & Tune - cars/openwheelers
1 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7-8 May 12 May 14 May 15 May 18 May 19 May 20 May 21 May 22 May 23 May 25 May 26 May 27 May 28 May 29 May 30 May 2 June 3 June 4-5 June 8 June 9 June 10 June 11-12 June
Thornleigh Car Club Test & Tune - race cars only WPM Ride Day Test & Tune - race cars only AASA State Championships Speed off the Streets - street cars Independent Race Series Nissan Sporting Car Club Trackschool Private Hire Test & Tune - race cars only WPM Ride Day MRA Round 2 Private Hire Private Hire Speed off the Streets - street cars PR Tech Porsche Club Track Day Club Private Hire Test & Tune - race cars only BMW Club WRX Nationals Private Hire Speed off the Streets - street cars Private Hire 6 Hour Regularity Relay
The Super Trucks return to Wakefield Park at the AASA state round, 7-8 May.
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