HTCAV – 2017 Winton Festival of Speed report
Shivering in their sheds, JUST CARS Historic Touring competitors had dug out their wet weather rubber in anticipation of precipitation forecast to hit the long circuit for this year’s Winton Festival of Speed event, which took place on August 5 and 6.
Sure enough, qualifying was run in damp and chilly conditions, with Torana peddler Peter McNiven ending up on pole after a number of drivers were penalised grid positions following yellow flag infractions. Penrite Erebus Supercar star David Reynolds was among those naughty boys (welcome to Historics, David!), having taken the wheel of Joe Calleja's recently acquired '69 Mustang fastback. After a very successful Historic Winton back in May, veteran Tony Hubbard suffered issues in his Camaro this time around and was sadly out for the duration of the weekend.
Race 1, Saturday afternoon
The showers abated for the opening race, which saw Bowral-based Rotary racer Jason Humble boot his RX-2 off the second row to grab an early lead, as Les Walmsley (Charger) and Reynolds also jumped McNiven at the start. The Charger and Mustang had a great battle until the Ford squeezed past, just as the other Charger of Glenn Miles ran wide after getting past the rapid BMW 2002 of Gabriel Digenis during a hectic scrap.
Brent Trengrove slipped off into the soaking wet infield and covered almost every inch of his Mustang in mud, while Brent's dad Bill also came a cropper after breaking a throttle cable in his similar 1964 Group Nb-spec Mustang.
The later Nc spec '68 Mustang (wider wheels, bigger 302ci Windsor V8) of Darryl Hansen had an almighty stoush with the Torana of Andrew Williams, the two drivers putting on an amazing display of clean, hard racing.
Meanwhile, at the front, Reynolds was harrying Humble, who was hurling his Mazda at the kerbs to stave off the 2012 Bathurst 1000 runner-up and posting what turned out to be the fastest lap of the weekend in the process.
A few front brake lock ups in the unfamiliar car meant Reynolds lost a little ground within sight of the flag, which allowed Humble to take a deserved win. Walmsley was third, with Hansen just holding out Williams for fourth, followed by Harry Bargwanna (Mustang) and McNiven. Numerous observers declared the race as one of the best Historic Tourer events they’ve ever witnessed, with big battles right through the field and, happily, zero panel crunching.
Race 2, Sunday morning
Heavy rain overnight resulted in a sodden, cold track with wet weather rubber the only realistic choice for the meeting’s second outing.
Humble again hooked up nicely to lead the field away, while Williams fell off at turn two after nipping up into third. Unable to dig his way out of the swamp-like infield, the Safety Car was called to marshal the field while the recovery crew retrieved Williams and his stricken Torana.
After the restart, Digenis made a mockery of the conditions and stormed into fourth, with Richard Hill likewise revelling in the wet as he engaged in a ding-dong battle with fellow Mini driver Adrian Read.
A damp track also held no fear for Darren Smith, who punted his big XY Falcon up into third as Reynolds really closed up on the leading Humble on the penultimate lap.
Humble kept his cool - and the “Rice Burner” relatively straight - to hold out for another win from Reynolds and Smith, with Digenis fourth in front of Torana man Nathan Gordon, Walmsley and the brutish HQ Monaro of Marc Tessari.
Race 3, early Sunday afternoon
The headline event of the meeting, the JUST CARS Touring Car Cup over 17 laps and 50km, would round out HTCAV proceedings at Winton, with tyre choice literally a flip of the coin for the longest race the category faces all year.
A break in the showers and strong wind had created a dry line around almost the entire circuit, but a few dark clouds in the vicinity meant it was anyone's guess what to bolt under their steeds.
Reynolds would be a non-starter as the field lined up in their original qualifying positions from Saturday morning.
When the race got underway, McNiven's Torana made a great start, but Tessari made an even better one and soon had the big Monaro out front. It wasn’t to last though, as gear selection dramas cruelled his race, leaving McNiven and Williams in a Torana one-two at the front.
As Williams posted the race’s fastest lap on his dry tyres, the skies over the circuit suddenly darkened, then let loose with a heavy downpour verging on hail. Several cars had “interesting” moments as drivers struggled to keep it on the island, including Walmsley who suddenly disappeared from third place after his wet tyres turned to stone following a couple of heat cycles in the changing conditions.
As the heavy rain continued, Hansen came in with a front brake problem and Williams slowed with a broken axle: the LSD-equipped Holden still drivable - on one rear wheel - but a real handful. Eventually, he pitted after nine laps. Much to his frustration, the chequered flag came out just a lap later; the race called seven laps early as the conditions were deemed too dicey to continue.
That early call saw the JUST CARS Touring Car Cup, and a generous winner's cheque from fellow competitor Darryl Hansen's company Forpark Australia, go to McNiven, who was leading the field when the red flag came out. Humble was second and Torana driver Nathan Gordon a fine third, just in front of the '68 Trans Am Mustang of Chris Stern.
Gordon’s Win
The coveted Makulu Vehicle Services ‘Driver of the Meeting’ award went to Gordon for constant improvement across the weekend, including that podium in the main race.
Suburban Melbourne is the next stop for the JUST CARS Historic Touring Car circus, with the VHRR's Historic Sandown meeting taking place over the second weekend in November. With two huge fields expected, it's a date to put in your diary!
Words: Darren Knight
Photos: Phil Wisewould
