News - Modified Production Number 8
Learning Gympie.
It was a mixture of excitement and nervousness as we faced the Gympie track for the first time. Only having seen the track once before, and never having raced on it, I was looking forward to the challenge of this different shaped track. I was nervous about getting back into the car and how everything would go after such a big accident in it. I had checked everything thoroughly after the roll-over, but wasn't totally confident that there may have been something that I had missed.
Heat one I chose to start out of rear to see how the car was, and to get used to the track without being run-over by the locals who know it so well. I finished in 10th and had some changes to make to the car to try and find some drive out of the hairpin.
Heat two I was drawn to start rear and felt that the changes to the car had made some improvement, but I still had to get used to the track and finished 8th.
Heat three saw me start out of 4 and I finally felt confident to start in the grid. I had made good progress with the changes to the car and was able to maintain pace with the local cars and finished in forth.
I qualified to start the B-main out of 4. I got past 2 cars coming up out of the hairpin to be running a strong 2nd. Going in the hairpin the steering rack broke which must have been weakened in the rollover at Archerfield. The front right hand wheel tucked under the car and the car tried to roll over the wheel and ripped all the front suspension out of the car. It was a disappointing way to finish the night after running so strong in 2nd, but I'm very happy with the car and loved the Gympie track, and can't wait to get another chance to run there again.
Shane Macdonald flew the flag for the Toowoomba boys again, finishing 5th in the feature. Royce Ernst is getting used to his new car and finished a strong 5th in the B-main. Shane Langton had bad luck on his side getting his car jammed in reverse after getting spun in the B-main. Robert Trapp had another unlucky night blowing the diff in his car while running 4th in the B-main.