For all those interested in having a bit of a look/see at a bit of motorsport. Round 5 of the NSW Hillclimb Championship is being run this Sunday 28.05.06 at Dapto by the WSCC.
So who is running or thinking of going down to watch because Ill see you there.
White Knuckle Racing Team [/i] "Drive it like dirt"
Good luck. I drove up the track just for a sticky-beak last Friday. It's pretty steep and you sure as hell wouldn't need a navigator. Anyone with mild dementure should be able to remember the layout. It doesn't seem that tricky at 40kmph but at 3 times that speed with the undulations I bet it gets very interesting.
Greg's car sounded amazing on the video that I saw of last year's event. I heard he went over the finish line backwards a couple of years ago.
I'd love to come along but I'll be waving yokohama flags at Wakefield Park.
It's not a very interesting drive up there. 1st, 2nd, 3rd. left, right, left, right. it all comes down to who got the most power. Rob Roy a bit the same down in VIC. well at lest in a low powered car anyway!
Craig Torrens6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion
Yes and No, I have run slower times at that track when I had more HP than previous events. It is certainly like an uphill dyno, but there are a few tricks to the track which can give you at least a 1 sec advantage if you know what they are................I'm still trying to work them out !! Hopefully this Sunday I can get it all together, although the trees that are about a foot off the track sometimes bite at at 130kph............... its a lot easier when you are driving on a wide race track with nothing to hit!
I ran a 42 or 45 when I was there last Sunday in my 1500cc rally car. Did so many events in the last 4 weeks (on the Ampol rerun) can't really remember! Will have to go look it up. What do you normally run and what class do you run in?
Craig Torrens6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion
It would make it a lot more interesting arriving at the corners in half the time. On the rerun I got to have a got at a few tracks around the place, my favourite would have to be Colengrove SA (spelling), Mt Cotton QLD and Morewell VIC. All interesting hill climbs. Is there a under 1600 Improved production?
Craig Torrens6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion
Directions:From north (on the freeway)
Take 2nd Dapto exit,right off exit ramp,at end of fowlers rd turn left onto Princess Hwy,approx 800m up the hill turn right at after the takeaway shop (Avondale rd), follow to the bottom of the mountain or listen for the sounds of high revs!
A good day was had by everyone. All the VW's performed well with no hiccups. I went over half a second quicker then last year, Craig set a new record (Imp Pro 3J 1601-2000cc), Peter GUMLEY won and the FVee's went well also.
[ Edited on 29/5/2006 by bat69 ]
White Knuckle Racing Team [/i] "Drive it like dirt"
Despite being 100% biased I am the first to admit that Huntley is no Bathurst and it is priced accordingly. It still irks me (though I am sure no offence is meant, and no long term offence is taken) that people think its an easy track. There's always at least 1 car that goes home on a flatbed after utilising that kind of mindset.
Anything over 40 seconds is indeed very boring. I wasnt at the Ampol re run due to family commitments but I understand it was all slow. I did 44 seconds in my stock fastback one day and gave it away after 2 runs. In 1953 at the first Huntley hillclimb, an MG TC won it with a time of 53 seconds on 3 inch crossplies when the track was dirt. So you can see that these times are slow. Those that ran over a minute must have stopped for a drink at the fork.
I ran 34-35's in my n/a kombi and it was a blast. I ran a best of 29.05 in my turbo kombi and that was insane. Then 27's in my turbo fastback, and a 24 in Jeff unwins subaru notch with a rolling start. When you have enough grunt, you actually have to 'drive' around the first corner. I have actually missed the apex of the fork, and been unable to recover in time for the esses and had a big slide. For every second you take off in ET the track seems to get a foot narrower and the dips and humps grow 10%. Its definitely not easy as.
My method of a fast time is to start from the extreme right and stay there until well around the first left hander using the middle of the road as the apex. The inside of the corner is steeper in my view. Cut the fork as close to the edge as you can from the far left of the straight. No backing off despite how daunting that is. That allows you to go as straight as you can through the left kink over the hump.
From here madness sets into my method. I late brake and turn in harshly but not attempting to make the apex as it dips away and unsettles the car. Most accidents exiting the esses start here IMO. Hopefully I've lost a little rear end grip and started pointing right when the corner goes left. This is the mad part because I've lost speed to pull up to the finish line which is one of the steepest sections if not the steepest. If you listen to the person who holds the record up there and has won more titles than anyone, you should sacrifice speed into the right hander to make a faster exit on the left. It just doesnt work for me. Mind you... we dont have his 450hp.
Anyway, in Donna Pell style I always say I wont do it again but one year down the track dulls the pain and I do it all again. Will be the 3rd Sunday in May, whatever that is.
Despite being 100% biased I am the first to admit that Huntley is no Bathurst and it is priced accordingly. It still irks me (though I am sure no offence is meant, and no long term offence is taken) that people think its an easy track. There's always at least 1 car that goes home on a flatbed after utilising that kind of mindset.
[ Edited on 30-5-2006 by amazeer ]
It's certainly more interesting than Bathurst, at Huntley the sides of the track have teeth, willing to bite at any time !!
Craig,
You made the local WIN News on Tuesday night, looked good!!
FAHRVERGNUGEN;
Description of a pleasurable sensation,
Experienced when a car and it's driver are in mutual harmony, A unique driving experience, Pleasure, Satisfaction,
A feeling experienced by Volkswagen Drivers.
Craig Torrens6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion
Dont get too excited, it was car #53. They shot from the start line only, and only 30 seconds worth. Lucky to get that because of the little drama early in the day. The camera couldnt hang around. I think there was only a glimpse of the Abbot beetle, the Curran Torana and Bobs fluoro mini.
The one run they film of the beetle (dad driving) and the coil $hits itself on the start line and it was running like a bag of....Oh well.
At least a VW made the news. Ill be seeing dad on the w/e so if you want Craig I can arrange an autograph for you. I might be able to put you onto his agent..lol
BTW. Thanks Chris for an excellent event. I had a ball driving flat out up that hill. How is the young chap in the escort?
[ Edited on 1/6/2006 by bat69 ]
White Knuckle Racing Team [/i] "Drive it like dirt"
Craig Torrens6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion
The 'young' chap is OK. He was put in an induced coma on sunday night and brought out of it on tuesday night. Still in hospital but sitting up talking. Doesnt remember anything about what happened, perhaps not surprising. Dont think we will see him racing for a while but he will most likely be OK.
He is a lucky guy, if it happened on Saturday or Monday he would probably not be with us anymore. When the gods of speed came knocking on his door, he happened to be 2 metres away from an ambulance.
