Road to Bathurst

Well we have all returned from Bathurst with smiles on our faces, even for the unfortunate few who didn't get to compete in all events, they wouldn't have missed it for the world. All drivers and crews have a new found respect for what has been dubbed "GOD'S place of racing". The event was run relatively smooth with nearly every race on the agenda completed. Unfortunately the last IPRA event was cancelled due to time constraints but everyone was still smiling.
All members, competitors and crew from IPRA Vic association would like to thank FOSC for running a fantastic event.

4.35pm and John Zourkas & Kelvin Twist have finished their last run at Bathurst. Both guys were beaming and now packing up for the long haul home. John finished 16th with a 2:43.63 & Kelvin finished 21st with a 2:42.58. A great race by both guys and Kelvin was rapt with his best time of the weekend not to mention starting last and passing approx 20 cars.

Correction - Broken Rocker "Won't hurt the pocket as much"
Newman Out - Looks like the front running IPRA Vic car of Rick Newman's has dropped a valve.
A fantastic effort for Rick and his Crew to achieve the remarkable results this weekend.

Race 3 What No Mazda's.
No Mazda's ran in the IPRA race as they ran in the Mazda Magic. Everyone expected that Newman would have a dream run but an average start left him placed about 10th. Rick completed 1 lap then retired with mechanical problems. 1st - M Short (Datsun 1600) 2nd - S Hunter (Corolla AE82) & 3rd place - K Delhaas (Commodore). The First Vic Driver was placed 20th, Phil Dunkin who knocked 4 seconds off his best time for a 2:41.51 then Geoff Dunkin, then G Bowles & M Martin in their BMW 325i E30s. Fantastic racing .................and there's one to go.

Alas the little tough six has been put to bed, through no lack off effort Mr McKay has pulled the pin.
A thought ............ Does anyone know the fastest lap time ever done by an XU1???
Great effort to the McKay Crew (and Family)!!!

We have just witnessed "200 Killer Wasps" run at Bathurst. The Mazda Magic.
A 3 lap race consisting of mazda's only, the Vic lads held their heads up high as we all stood and watched them belt down Conrod straight and through the chase. Flemming winning with Ben Schoots hot on his tail doing a 2:30.26 , Zohn Zourkas RX7 looked fantastic but most impressive was Rolf Mamers RX4, the only one at the event looked quick and as expected Rolf was giving it his all. Full noise exiting the chase drifting off the apex, we could see the whites his eyes. It looked to be Kelvin Twist's fastest run of the weekend showing that laps make the difference....Well done boys it was great to watch.

Another fantastic race by the IPRA boys. After a change of Jocks and some driver tuning by Dean Lillie, Newman has stormed back to 1st position from 3rd with Flemming in 2nd and Schoots finishing in 3rd. Without a doubt a Lap record that will take some beating. Newman set the fastest IPRA lap time of 2:28.5924 and has achieved his personal goal of beating 2:30:00 for the weekend. The team at Greg Murphy Racing will be thrilled with the result. G Dunkin finished in 21st, Phil Dunkin 28th, Mamers 40th, Martin 43rd & Bell ended with a DNF.
McKay unable to compete as repairs were not finished but should be back for the final race.

In the Marquee Class John Zourkas has improved one position finishing 16th with a lap time of 2:41.39 & Kelvin Twist with a fantastic effort fought back to approx 20th position.
Unfortunately a last lap and corner spin sees Kelvin starting from last position only to do it all again.

Continuing on from yesterday everyone was ready and waiting. Cars started the race with Flemming being relegated to third on the grid due to a jump start yesterday. Lap One saw Newman in first, Flemming back to second after passing Schoots in turn two. The second lap a little more interesting with Rick "I think I just Shat myself" Newman spinning twice through Forrest Elbow missing everything there was to hit. Flemming squeezed through missing Newman and Schoots had to "Get off the gas" to avoid him. The race finished with Flemming 1st, Schoots 2nd & Newman 3rd. In addition Gary Mckays poor little 6 need some attention. As I type Gary has the head off doing head gasket. All being well he will be back on track for the next race. Mamers finished 41st, Geoff Dunkin 24th, Phil Dunkin 25th, Bell 38th , Martin 42nd and an unfortunate DNF for McKay.

IPRA Race one complete with "Tricky" Rick Newman finishing First, Scott Flemming Second and Ben Schoots Third. The overall race was fantastic and without incident. Gary Mckay lost approx 5 positions off the start but fought back for a seventh place finish.
Both Dunkin Brother improved their positions with Geoff reducing his lap times by 15 seconds. Due to time restraints the second race for today has been postponed until tomorrow morning.

Fastest Lap by Ben Schoots - 2:31.5843 "is that a new lap record not for long" - Flemming - 2:29.2961 Then Newman 2:28.59

Race one in the Marquee Class saw John Zourkas & Kelvin Twist finish in 19th & 20th Position.

Running in the Marque & Production Sports Cars Class Kelvin Twist & John Zourkas have fared well with the following Qualifying results.
Pos .20 Kelvin Twist Lap time 2:49.61
Pos .31 John Zourkas Lap Time 2:52.00

Morning is here and the rain has gone, weather is still quite cloudy but seems to be holding off.
Both John Zourkas & Kelvin Twist have had their qualifying runs returning with pretty big smiles on their faces. While John didn't get the clean run he was after Kelvin had a reasonable run with his times improving by over 15 Seconds. Track familiarisation & a dry run contributing to this improvement.

A Drivers Perspective - "Kelvin Twist"

Well after a mostly wet day yesterday today has started off nice and dry, hopefully be like that for the rest of the day. After an unusual qual start, where the allocated grid spots for qualifying, very weird. But anyway, when we got going AWESOME, heaps of grip and very slightly less scary than yesterday. John myself and 20 other IP cars are running with Marque Sports, so racing very quick MX5's, Lotus Elise's and various other cars. I was having some good dices with the MX5's and went a fair bit faster than yesterday, still very scary down up and down the straights as the car gets very very light....The car is great, I am braking very early everywhere so look forward to going even faster over the weekend, I think I qualified 20 out of 50, so we will see how we go. Cheers, Kelvin...

Morning Session - The day started off a little on the slow side with the track not opening til around 10.30. All IPRA Vic Cars have completed one run of the circuit consisting of 2 - 3 laps behind AMG Mercedes. During the 2 sessions rain set in (The McKay Rain Dance working its wonders) making thinks a little interesting for all. Everyone circulated without incident & various comments regarding very large concrete barriers and wet patches have been discussed.
Afternoon Session - The day progressed with more of the same - "RAIN". Mr McKay has stated categorically that he has stopped dancing and would really like a dry run.
Due to weather conditions and some general organisation issues most competitors only got a second run, still behind pace cars.
Everyone is looking forward to tomorrow & qualifying for the races and with a little luck no more rain.

Teams arrived without incident, some staying overnight along the way and some driving straight through.
Just as we arrived at the circuit my phone rang earning Mr Rolf Mamers the "Good One" Award for the trip.

Awarded to Rolf Mamers for arriving early dropping off his car, leaving the circuit via the tunnel & running out of Fuel just outside the track. Yep My phone rang "Where are You" a sheepish Mr Mamers said, I replied "Just about at the track." "Do you think you could do me a really big favour"................"Good One Rolf "

While for some the preparation for Bathurst has gone along unhindered, others have not been so fortunate.
Rick Newman's preparation has been interesting with fuel tanks & wiring creating some grief. Gary McKay statement regarding leaving his car on the trailer "As it was ready for Bathurst" has come back to bite him. Comments about water disappearing, concrete & engine resonance were some of the things discussed over the last week. Geoff and Phil Dunkin have had some dramas with little things like diffs, gearboxes, brakes having to be rebuilt or just replaced after Sandown. Their Crew - me included will be sleeping at Bathurst!!! Looks like Rolf Mamers has been taping his sponsor on the shoulder here's a list of things done for his prep. "Car is prepared for the big one after a engine rebuild, new front discs, new front caliper kits, new rear pads, new harness, new airbox, shes all ready to rumble". Kelvin Twist & Ben Schoots preparation seems to have been relatively smooth with everything sorted by WPS Racing. Then again those Mazda guys seem to play things pretty close to their chest. That is with the exception of John Zourkas who has given a rundown of his teams pre-Bathurst preparation.
- See below (Thanks John).

Our preparation is almost complete but there is still a few days of work on the car. Round 1 at Sandown saw us running in and finely tuning the new motor, but oil leaks from tired oil coolers need replacing. So, it is an opportunity to redo the entire front cooling system for Bathurst. More time would be nice, but such is motor racing and a lot of running around has been necessary. Hopefully, the new front will work better at Mt Panorama which has a tradition of punishing cars with cooling problems. Front spoiler needs repair and a paint. Trailer has new tyres but needs some attention for the big trip. Tow vehicle needs a service. Everything on the Mazda has been questioned, inspected, replaced, adjusted, greased, oiled. Spares bin re-stocked. (Expensive exercise, this going to "The Mountain"). Hopefully, we will get to do everything we need to do before we leave.

We leave early Thursday for a 4pm arrival on the Mountain. Accommodation at the Knickebocker Hotel in central Bathurst. Camping (traditional) was ruled out because of the amount of gear we need to take and the task of getting there in the first place. The boys are all looking forward to the experience. Me? Dreaming every corner at night instead of sleeping. Reading corner by corner advice from the experts. I have driven the track but not under full noise. I will be running with the Marque Sports not IP unfortunately, but chasing the GT3's, Ferrari's and Lambo's will be a challenge in itself. I could upgrade the restrictor to 40mm just for the thrill but would like to know how my time compare with the IP cars in the 36mm (not to mention shortage of time to get one made up, dino'd and turbo adjusted). It will be interesting to see how the 13B Turbo in an RX7 go's against the V8's up the hill. I think it will be competitive but the power advantage on Conrod should see the V8's edge ahead, never mind, it is going to be a religious experience anyway.

Position 1	Rick Newman	Lap Time 2:31.51
Position 3	Ben Schoots	Lap Time 2:37.94
Position 6	Gary "Who Needs Rain Anyway" McKay	Lap Time 2.40.90
Position 25	Phil Dunkin	Lap Time 2:47.37
Position 40	Graham Bell	Lap Time 2:54.78
Position 43	Matt Martin	Lap Time 2:57.20
Position 46	Rolf "Good One" Mamers	Lap Time 2:57.67
Position 39	Geoff Dunkin	Lap Time 2:58.01

Driver	Vehicle	Sponsors	Web Sites
Rick Newman	Ford TE 50	HM Headers Boral Australia Denard Homes	www.hmheaders.com.au www.boral.com.au www.applaster.com
Ben Schoots	Mazda RX7	WPS Racing Products Galaxy Office Papers NKG Spark Plugs VTA Race Mufflers
John Zourkas	Mazda RX7 III	STZ Construction WJM Rotaries Thalassa by the Pier	www.stz.net.au
Geoff Dunkin	VH Commodore	Jet Couriers Tru-Line Kitchens Valid Technologies Top Form Creditline Australia	www.jetcouriers.com.au www.tru-line.net.au www.valid.com.au www.creditline.com.au
Phil Dunkin	VH Commodore	Jet Couriers Tru-Line Kitchens Valid Technologies Top Form Creditline Australia	www.jetcouriers.com.au www.tru-line.net.au www.valid.com.au www.creditline.com.au
Kelvin Twist	Mazda RX7	WPS Racing Kereru Consulting Bill Thompson Auto Rubber Punkt Design	www.autorubbers.com.au
Gary McKay	Torana LJ XU1	GP Automotive Stylerod Panels Bill Thompson Auto Rubber Punkt Design	www.autorubbers.com.au
Rolf Mamers	Mazda RX4	Medic OnCall	http://www.mediconcall.com.au
Graham Bell	BMW 325i E30	Castrol Bell Motorsport Peninsula BM Berri	www.castrol.com.au www.bellmotorsport.com.au www.peninsulabm.com.au
Matt Martin	BMW 325i E30	Bell Motorsport nabCapital	www.bellmotorsport.com.au www.nabcapital.com
Geoff Bowles	BMW 325i E30	DWS Advanced Business Solution Northern BM	www.dws.com.au www.northernbm.com.au