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Well I've just finished up two, three day weekends of motorsport...two car campaign last weekend with me pitcrewing under the watchful gaze of my 5-yo daughter, er, I mean crew chief....and racing this weekend.

Previous weekend was spent sorting two cars that had only just been put back together during the week before...I installed the gearbox on theCooper Formula 3 on the Wednesday night to make that one work, and the last bolts went into Lola 23 on the Thursday night, with frist practise on the Friday morning.

Cooper went OK on Friday but some shoddy work by the firm that overhauled the rear brakes on the Lola meant I spent the day on my back on the pit garage floor repairing them (over machined pistons and incorrect seals do not a happy brake, make).

But once I got the Lola going for the Saturday, the old man was on the button...such a nice wee car is our #23...until the top link bolt shears that is and the right rear goes wibble wobble...

But what's motorsport without a bit of getting your hands dirty?

Anyways, fast forward to this weekend (mainly because I've had like six hours sleep in the last three days and the words a blurry...), and we are a three car team for the weekend with me in my Lola (#5), Pop's in the F3 Cooper and the other FFord Lola #23....

...so out we go for practise on the Friday morning...my 'box swiftly begins to pack up on me, especially second gear, which is just not wanting to go in no matter what I do...blipping, double clutching, quick 1st, 2nd shift...so I'm trying to keep outta the way, and sitting just off the race line, and boom...clobbered up the jacksy by a Crossle from Ireland thinking that overtaking on the outside in a second gear hairpin is a good thing to do when there is three car widths to the right of me, and half a width to the left...passing side to the right...suicide to the left...

...we pick up the action with me heading towards the hairpin....

End of the day I ended up with the rear left castor knocked out of whack (he hit my left rear), and the gearbox in a worse state than what it started off in...hence it stalling when I drive past him and then having to hoof it out in third gear all lights (wheels) a-blazing, like.

The next day one of our races a four car pile up started by an Italian leaving the island and then jettisoning straight across the track, collecting three cars on the way...and today, the guy that hit me, ran off at turn one and straight into the tyre barrier, ripping off his front left corner....AND then, to top it off, one of the cars in the final race caught fire going down one of the short straights when it's carb came adrift, had a back fire, and then...whooooosh...about three guys stopped and jumped to assist, a la David Purley.

Once I get my pics down / uploaded, I'll post some up tongue.png Have some shots of a very rare McLaren...as in, it only got half off the drawing board...that is until some kiwis decided to finish it off...

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Lovely stuff.. If only we could see the video

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OK, so as promised...the mysterious McLaren M18

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Info I have dug up about this car so far is as follows:

The car was "born" in 1971...basically from spare McLaren parts, and followed an un-built McLaren design. It was used in Tasman Goldstar events, and also ran as an F5000. In 2003 the car was brought to NZ by one of the two men that own Hampton Downs racetrack and local race shop Race FX have restored it to the original M18 drawing board design....including ground effects skirts.

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Some random pics...that I hardly had time ot take since I spent most of the first weekend covered in oil and brake fluid...

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(Our 1974 Lola T340, the old man driving)

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The crew chief giving orders on setup for the Cooper

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Some of the cars I race against

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My car front and center, a 1973 Lola T340 (#5)

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BBQ'd T342...the result of the top half of a carb coming free and fuel getting on the distributor

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I find it so neat that these cars get to live on, and that people are brave enough to still drive them!

Excellent pictures, Handy. Must be fun to have three generations involved in it.

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Video works now. Thanks! Am glad that you didn't get injured being shunted that way, though that gearbox did not sound well at all.

Can only imagine what it would be like to not only be a part of racing heritage, but to also have your whole family participate in it. Though you did not include pics of you fixing that 'box or the stuff behind the scenes that we racing fans hardly ever get access to.. Y'know, the real hard work building and setting up, then disassembling and reassembling because of one small gasket.

Thanks for sharing

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Video works now. Thanks! Am glad that you didn't get injured being shunted that way, though that gearbox did not sound well at all.

Can only imagine what it would be like to not only be a part of racing heritage, but to also have your whole family participate in it. Though you did not include pics of you fixing that 'box or the stuff behind the scenes that we racing fans hardly ever get access to.. Y'know, the real hard work building and setting up, then disassembling and reassembling because of one small gasket.

Thanks for sharing

Actually there is one shot of me hard at work floating around on the internet:

http://clmintiepix.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/Festival-of-Motor-Racing-13/G00004.3RmyfcEoQ/I0000.zNQcJ8hRS4

The black Lola is my daughters car...or so she reckons. She knows that once she can touch the pedals she will be allowed to drive it....have been telling her that since she was about 3. So I tell her on the weekend that if she can touch the pedals AND see over the windscreen, then she can drive the car. Little smarty pants that she is, she slides forward in the c#ckpit so her chest is up against the steering wheel, head looking over the windscreen and feet on the pedals.....duh!

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Adrian Newey needs to employ you!!!!!

Nah..not since he jumped ship from Woking anyways....you not notice the colour of my car? Macca Orange dude!

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This is my mate Alan driving in a Lola T140...1968 (?) F5000...it's the oldest car in the field, and he is the youngest driver (21). He has raised a few eyebrows as this car should not be anywhere near the front, yet Al has taken a 3rd place at the Lady Wigram Trophy (big, long standing (since like the 60's) race here in NZ, with many famous winners over the years), and just recently took 2nd over in Australia.

This vid is a year old, and since the end of last season they have taken 40kg out of the car, 3kg of which was straight off the engine, and increased the horsepower from 490 max to 520'ish now. But they are still 50-60 horses less than the newer cars (Lola T332's, McRae GM1's etc)....and their budget is much much less too...Al uses one set of tyres for two events, whereas others are using one set of tyres for every two sessions on the track. At last years festival, F5000 qualifying was in the wet...everyone went out on wet tyres to set their times....Al went out on slicks, as that was all they had....and set 8th fastest time in a field of 22 or so.

I still don't think they have wets.....

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