The Events

VHRR Phillip Island Classic

We have been invited to compete in the Triumph TR5 at Phillip Island, in the annual Classic Festival run by the Victorian Historic Racing Register, this must be the biggest Historic Racing festival in the Southern Hemisphere, attracting more than 500 competing cars (more than 100 in Group S classes, with whom we will be racing) and around 50,000 spectators each year. 


This year the event runs from 18th - 20th March. Phillip Island is one of those circuits revered by drivers around the world, personally I've never been there, and most of the times I've seen it on tv it's been the likes of Rossi and Stoner rushing round it. I'm very excited about following in such famous wheeltracks. I've not seen a timetable yet, but if I understand correctly there will be two practice/qualifying sessions on Friday, then two races each day on Saturday and Sunday; I'm used to racing over 20-30 mins, but these will be a little shorter.

Targa Tasmania

One of the last proper "Road Races" in the World. 2,000kms round the beautiful island of Tasmania, with the stages on closed public roads run 'as fast as you dare'. Well over 300 cars have entered for this the 20th anniversary running, more than half in the Classic Divisions. The competitive elements of the event run over 6 days, but including pre-event scrutineering, etc., and the post event party (+ sobering up) we'll be 'involved' for about 10 days.

This is a major event, it is estimated that 200,000 spectators watch the event live, and there is significant tv coverage, which gets picked up by channels round the world, accessible to many millions of viewers. The local tourist board puts the event's value to Tasmania around AUD12m. At the front of the modern classes you should expect to see a pair of Lamborghini Gallardos duking it out, with some other serious, if slightly less exotic, machinery - where else other than Oz would you see that?!

We've not done this type of event before; the whole idea of driving fast with someone telling me what's coming up round the next bend or over the next crest is all a bit daunting - will I be able to assimilate the information fast enough, will Jason lose his place after I've scared him into closing his eyes, or will he drop the pace book into the footwell ...? No doubt like many blokes I've trained myself to 'turn a deaf ear' to anyone telling me how to drive (oops, sorry Love, did you think I was concentrating..?!); now with intercom his voice will be shouting inside my helmet. How will we get on ...? Well the honest answer is that we aren't going with any pretentions to win anything, we've never seen the roads before, and some of them are really quite challenging, so we will drive the road that we can see in front of us - as quickly as possible, of course! I'm led to believe that if we have a trouble-free run, then we ought to be able to achieve a 'Targa Trophy' for a penalty-free run - so if we had an ambition that would be it.

Trials and Tribulations

Seeing as it now appears that the ship carrying my car has successfully transitted the Suez Canal, and run the gauntlet of Somali pirates, it seems a good moment to run briefly through some of the issues that threatened to derail this plan at various times...!

Crashing the car at Castle Combe in June 2009 was obviously a major hiccup (I hit oil on the track, honest) ... at one stage it looked as though the only sensible decision would be to write-off the car completely ... but when did anyone addicted to the racing drug every worry about what is sensible? It got rebuilt, of course it did, not only that, despite the fact that I'd proven it could go fast enough to leave the track, it also got a rebuilt engine and just a few extra horsepower. Initially it was due to have been delivered back to me at the beginning of the 2010 season, but various delays meant that it was delivered to Silverstone the evening before the Silverstone Classic at the end of July. Sadly it didn't last long; the new engine failed about 4 laps into qualifying, and well before I'd even starting pushing on ... this wasn't good. Cue one of those fits of depression that this sport can pitch you into from time to time ... I did allude to it being like a drug didn't I?!

Seemed like that would curtail the Aussie plans ... But No...

The engine builder generously admitted that the engine failure wasn't down to my right foot, and agreed to build a new engine if I paid for the new block - deal done. I eventually picked the car up on a Saturday morning in late November, less than one month before the anticipated shipping date. I planned a nice long run home to run it in, all over the Peak District, down through the Cotswolds etc. Bad plan. It  doesn't matter what roads you pick on our overcrowded island - any Saturday is a frustrating time to drive 500 miles without using motorways, and the only time the road opens up in front of you you'll find a camera to spoil the fun.  I did eventually put 1000 miles on it just before it went into the container for shipping, and am reasonably confident that it is restored to full health.

In the remaining weeks I fitted an intercom so that I will be able to hear Jason screaming at me. Fitted passenger seats, belts, new tyres, moved fire extinguishers (again), fitted spare wheel retainer, accumulated and catalogued a huge box of useful spares (except the one thing that I'll end up needing, I suppose). And went through the entire car checking all nuts, bolts, pipes, cables, hoses etc., Then I cleaned it seriously to pass Aussie quarantine regs, then I got it professionally steam cleaned and valeted to finish off.

Perfect - but sure there's something I forgot ...