2014
Sydney Retro Speedfest
3-4 May 2014
Background
The inaugural Sydney Retro Speedfest was held
on the weekend of 3-4 May 2014.with the HSRCA (Historic Sports &
Racing Car Association of NSW) looking to promote a larger mid-Autumn
meeting in lieu of a formally staged bi-annual Tasman Revival meeting
(later in 2014) negotiations with the promoters of the Sydney Motorsport
Park, the ARDC (Australian Racing Drivers Club) conduced in agreement
to co-stage a new historic race meeting for Australia, the Sydney
Retro Speedfest.
Entries were opened to 7 historic categories,
the categories focusing from the late 1950s through to the early 1990s.
Touring cars, sports cars & open wheel racing cars took part,
collectively with more than 250 entries received for the meeting.
Report
Large numbers participated in the Friday private
practice sessions, making modifications, but for some encountering
problems that would see one or two pack up with terminal issues. For
the most part, things looked good.
One car of particular note that tested during
Friday was the 1967 Brabham BT23C. This car is the most recent departee
from the Brabham collection of Brian Wilson, who has passed it on
to Chad Parrish. The car was originally built for Sir Jack to take
part in that year’s European F2 Championship, and with its 1.6
litre FVA engine proved a genuine contender for the Championship.
It was later owned by Frank Williams (with Piers Courage behind the
steering wheel). Parrish, a former Formula Ford driver in recent times
has shown his speed in Historic Production Sports Car racing in his
Shelby GT350. This purchase will no doubt see him mix it amongst the
top runners in the very competitive 1960s racing car fields at historic
events to come across Australia.
Overnight Friday, Sydney saw quite inclement
weather conditions, with the forecast for Saturday being doubtful.
This transpired Saturday morning with cold and windy conditions, but
fortunately no rain ensued as the day progressed.
Both Saturday and Sunday saw two races for
each category, run under a timed race format – not a set number
of laps. This seemed to work well in most circumstances, but in other,
not so. The ‘others’ was predominantly where an unfortunate
incident in either the warm-up, first or second lap resulted in reduced
two-lap dash races, or a cancellation altogether. In all, the plunge
seemed to work out.
Damon Hancock continued his dominate performances
in the Groups M & O field for 1960s racing cars in recent times
with two wins on Saturday in his Brabham BT23C. This was not without
some tries from others with a good qualifying performance from Victorian
Keith Simpson (Brabham BT16) and local Richard Carter (Elfin Mono).
Sunday morning, however, saw fortunes change for Hancock who on the
opening lap of the third race developed a fuel leak. Though it’s
not known at this stage what caused the leak, it resulted in a cockpit
fire as he entered the main straight. The fire took on throughout
the vehicle, but for Hancock it was the cockpit where the issue was
the most. Struggling to get his belts undone he appeared to have suffered
burns to his hands when standing well back from the car watching the
small fire. He found a small bit of water (probably in soggy ground
from recent rains in the area) until the circuit Ambulance and medical
team arrived. It is understood that the burns have taken to both hands
and his right arm, and it is believed that skin grafts to his hands
will be required.
Hancock was not the only one to experience
dramas in this field, with Victorian Jeff Brown’s Brabham BT28
causing a delayed start to Saturday’s afternoon race. During
the warm up lap, Brown’s Brabham speared into the wall causing
significant damage to the left rear corner of the open-wheeler. The
cause expected to be a broken universal-joint on the right rear of
the car that forced Brown to lose control at the low-speed warm-up
lap pace.
Carter ended up taking a race win in the final,
Dawson-Damer Trophy race from Steve Weller (Elfin 600) and Simpson
in third.
The Regularity field saw some interesting cars
this time with a few Shelby GT350s. One of particular note was that
of Rick Marks. This car has ome great competition history in period,
originally run in drag racing in the US from 1966-1969, then circuit
raced. In 2008, HRAs Charles Rogers visited Marks’ garage in
NSW en route to that year’s Festival of Speed on Tweed –
at the time the car had just 23,000 genuine miles on the clock. It
was good to see the experienced historic racer Marks out there giving
the car a run as part of the Shelby Boys 98 Racing Team.
Lunchtime break on both days was devoted to
a Historic Formula 1 demonstration. Sydney Retro Speedfest patrons
were the first to see the 1989 Arrows of George Nakas on Saturday.
The car was run in that year’s F1 season by Eddie Chever. Brian
Wilson dusted off his 1967 Brabham BT24-1, the car in which Sir Jack
piloted to second place in that year’s F1 World Championship.
While Chad Parrish continued to get to grips with the ex. Wilson 1967
Brabham BT23C FVA. Chad, a very competent driver in his Shelby GT350
will no doubt keep this Brabham at the front of the field at meetings
to come.
Those betting on the quadrella in the Groups
Q ^ R Sports-Racing & Racing car field’s races chose well
to pick young gun Tom Tweedie who faultlessly steered his Chevron
B24/28 F5000 to four very convincing wins. It was not so lucky for
his father Bob, who failed to continue through the weekend after terminal
issues during Saturday’s qualifying session put his Elfin MS7
sports car out of the event.
Tom Twwedie’s dominance wasn’t
complete though with Victorian George Nakas posting fastest time in
qualifying to take pole position in his Dutton Garage prepared Porsche
962. Fellow Victorian Peter Larner rounded out the top 10 in the Elfin
700 in which he won the 1977 Australian Formula 2 Championship. Son
Jamie’s weekend was cut short, however, in the RALT RT2 sports-car
with engine bracket problems.
Youngster Daniel Kennedy put the challenge
to the more mature competitors in the Group N races in his Ford Falcon
GT finishing 3rd in the first race, then following a DNF in the second,
crawled his way back up the field during Sunday’s two races
taking third in the third, then a well-deserved victory in the fourth
and final race over two of the earlier victors, John Wright (Holden
Torana XU1) and John Harrison in his new Ford Mustang.
Laurie Sellers debuted his newly-finished Shelby
GT350 in the Group S races, finishing mid-pack all weekend. Geoff
Morgan continued his dominance of the category across the country
winning all three scratch races, the fourth race for this category
being a handicap – won by the Austin Healey Sprite of Ric Forster.
While the final race was mared with a late-race
accident when Wes Dayton’s Triumph TR3A engine blew along the
main straight, Dayton coming to rest off the track near turn one-two.
Fellow long-time and experienced competitor, Daniel Gatto was the
unfortunate victim finding the oil on the track shortly after Dayton
had got out of the car and spearing into it causing significant dame
to both the Triumph and his Alfetta GTV.
A good field of 30 Heritage Touring Cars took
to the track across the weekend. Heritage Touring Cars representing
the ATCC Groups C & A period – the genuine cars. David Towe
led the pace on Saturday in the JPS BMW M3 taking out the first two
race wins. A DNF followed in Sunday morning;s race three, putting
Towe out for the weekend. A gallant effort for the long-time M3 driver.
This paved the way for others to take the top places, but it would
be Corey McMahon (who had dramas early in the weekend) in his Gibson
Motorsport prepared Nissan Skyline GTS-R took the final two race wins.
They were not without a fight from Bill Pye in the ex. Dick Johnson
/ Larry Perkins Greens-Tuf Ford Mustang and Victorian Bill Cutler
and his Wersteiner BMW M3.
1966 Bathurst winner, Bob Holden, now 81 had
four of his old cars on track in the Group C component of the grid
with himself in a Toyota Corolla finishing 13th in the final race
following a DNF in the 3rd, and also finishing in front of the other
three Bob Holden Motors cars of Justin Matthews (DNF – Ford
Escort MkII), David Paterson (14th – Toyota Corolla) and Russell
Keam (17th - Ford Escort RS20).
A reasonable crowd (for Sydney standards) attended
this inaugural race meeting, which was well run by the HSRCA and ARDC.
Historic
Racing Australia