It's all over now.

And so the final race of the 2010 season dawned upon me and I found myself somewhat exited, somewhat apprehensive all at the same time. The outcome no longer mattered after all, all I really wanted was to just enjoy the last race, finish both heats without any unnecessary damage and end the season on a positive note. As such then I feel I have reached such desires and was only too happy to have been a part of it all.

Friday morning I arrived at the track for the first practice session which was scheduled for 09h45 and was hoping that it would prove to be successful so that another session was not necessary. The Datti had been given another set of bearings as a result of the loss of oil pressure encountered during the last race as well as the rockers having been fixed and the oil feeds repaired. The engine sounded as per normal and oil pressure was excellent. I took to the track and did my normal warm up procedure for the first lap after which I increased the speed until I finally reached race pace. On the 3rd lap I noticed that it would jump out of 4th gear around 6000 RPM on the straights both back and front as well as between T3 and T4. I started going through T4 in 3rd to prevent using only 1 hand but eventually accepted it was not to be. I put a call through to 'Mr Datsun' and said I could not race it in such condition. Within 10 minutes the car was collected and taken back to the workshop where the gearbox was removed and replaced with another and was returned to the track by 11h30. I was to again test at the last afforded session being at 12h55. The test was successful and everything worked well, the only feeling being that the Datti was not at her most powerful and seemed to be off pace from her usual. Never the less I was happy that I could sill be in contention for a challenge at finishing the season on a good note.
The 140Z was all previously and meticulously prepared and only a top up of fuel and tyre pressure was needed for a test. Even although the track was not perfect and the wind had come up she was as crisp and ready as ever and awaited the challenges it was likely to face from good opposition in the likes of the ex Hennie vd Linde SABAT Skyline GTX and the late Tony Viana Winfield BMW 745i which were especially invited to end off the classic car season. Both these cars were serious contenders in the heyday and were still no slouches in the very capable hands of their current drivers.

Saturday and as per usual we at the track at sparrows as our qualifying was scheduled for 08h00. The morning was overcast and cool and by 07h15 a light drizzle had crept in and made sure that the track was entirely wet. We both decided that even although it was not raining heavily at all we would chance it and go out on slick tyres. The times were slow and I qualified the Datti at a 1:50.4 while the 140Z also only manged a 1:45.8 putting him 2nd on the grid. By 09h30 it had stopped drizzling and by 10h00 for our first race we had a dry line to at least race on.
Race 1 saw the Datti behind both front wheel drive cars who qualified by 0.5 seconds quicker than me and had the better grid position. At lights out I managed to get good drive and managed to easily pass them before going into T1. I found myself right behind the bumper of the the Scirocco who had by now already been passed by the much faster rear wheel drive cars. I hung on as best as possible but it was soon evident that I was not in any contention to challenge the much quicker Scirocco of Biccari. Everything else seemed to be working perfectly but I was eventually caught by the Zakspeed Escort Mk1 of Robbie Jeptha who was luckily still in class X but had more pace on the day. The 140Z simply stormed off into the distance along with the Mazda Rotary of Chris Carolin and there was never really any challenge from the only invited guest being Paolo Cavelieri in the BMW 745i. It was simply out classed in the race and put in an excellent 1:22.3 lap while that of Chris Carolin only 1 tenth of a second slower at 1:22.4.

Race 2 for the Datti turned out to be a rather lonely race which was also largely due to a huge oil spill that resulted in the race before ours. Large amounts of cement were as such laid down on the oil which soon turned into a dust storm from the cars up ahead. I tried as best to avoid as much of it as possible on the warm up lap but it was difficult to avoid all contact. Again I got away well but visibility was almost zero in some places and instead I chose to be on the cautious side as I new I was unable to be of any major threat to the Scirroco while the Zakspeed was of no threat to me at all as far as points were concerned. On each lap the cement dust became less but it had already taken its toll on those who chose to deliberately drive in or through it. I was as such slowly catching the Zakspeed Escort and eventually passed it where after it came to a halt with likely engine damage as are result of excessive cement dust in the engine. In the interim the guys up front were making a race of it and the lead up front often changed between the 140Z, the Mazda Rotary and even the BMW 745i at times thereby getting the spectators most excited at the possible outcome of the race. Who would be the victor at the finish line. In the end it was the 140Z followed by the BMW 745i, the Mazda Rotary and the Mk1 Escort of Louis Powell all within 1 second between them all. It may not have been the fastest race of the season but judging by the feedback from both spectators and fellow racers from around the track it was one of the most exciting and entertaining races dished up for the season.

And so the Datsuns will now be parked for quite some time until the next season starts sometime in 2011. It was undoubtedly a difficult season both mechanically and emotionally as well as financially at times. Perhaps in hind sight the emotions were allowed to get in the way of racing and as such took the edge off at times and thereby blurred our mental visions. On a more positive note, at least for now we have a stable set of rules which should remain unchanged for 3 years and in turn allow the fields to once again increase knowing that it won't change in the next year.

Above all I have to say a big thank you to my 'boet' for whom without I would only be a spectator. Throughout the entire season he meticulously prepared, rebuilt, modified and made changes which saw the Datti go from a class C car at the beginning of the season to finishing 2nd in class B for 2011. I cannot think of any other car with an engine capacity so small ever achieving such results in class B, a remarkable and commendable achievement.

To all the regular followers of the Datsun's, 2011 will be even better to watch. To all my fellow competitors, best you enjoy the off season.

Thanks 'Boet'.

Frustrations & Attitudes

To say this last weekends racing was frustrating is putting it mildly. All weather station predictions were that rain was on the cards for Friday and for whatever reason it never once even looked like rain at all. To some degree even that was frustrating as one now wondered if the predicted clear for Saturday would perhaps now have rain. Anyway at least that was something of which we had no control of and never would either.

As a precaution the rings on the Datti were replaced after the last race and needed bedding in and as such my first session was purely a test session. Everything seemed OK, oil pressures and water temps all fine the only exception being a lack of braking ability. I kept it under 6000 RPM and on my last test lap I stomped on the 'loud peddle' between T3 and T4. Coming out of T4 I noticed no oil pressure and pulled to the right hand side of the track. In hind sight it was not a good idea and I should have stopped completely even though there was no sign of engine noise or any laboring of the engine. Seeing the oil gauge on zero pressure dropped my spirits and emotions and increased my frustrations even more and I sort of resigned myself to the fact that my weekends racing had already come to an end as I would not consider redoing an engine this late in the day. I cruised at idle speed all the way back to my pit not realizing what had actually gone wrong. Upon my return we discovered that the oil cooler adapter had come off from the engine block (with the piping and oil filter still neatly intact and secured) due to the thread having been stripped which essentially meant I was now also guilty of dumping my sump all down the back straight. I duly went to the marshals offices out of my own accord and guilt, owned up and apologized for the mishap. We removed the oil cooler and the adapter and just screwed the filter straight on and bypassed any cooling. I expected the worst and even wondered if filling up with oil was even worth it but without doing so we would not know for sure the extent of any damage. We started up and to everyone's dismay and belief the oil pressure was up at 5 bar pressure and no sign of any engine or bearing failure. I did the last session for the day at 15h15 and everything was perfect other than I still battled to stop. Upon my return to my pit and a debriefing ceremony I again reiterated that the brakes were not up to scratch as per the norm. I was duly informed that oil would take a while to burn off and was likely the cause. In the interim a thorough check was again done and the tappets sounded a little noisy. The tappet cover was removed upon which we discovered a rocker shaft pedestal bolt had stripped in the head. So off to the workshop I went to get heli-coils and whatever else was required to repair the job. In the interim while waiting, the front brakes were checked only to discover there were no brakes left and that being after only 2 races. That was duly replaced with a new set of pads while waiting for me to return to the track. After having then fixed the head gear everything was now ready for qualifying the next morning with a set of brake pads that still needed bedding in. A couple of laps around the pit complex was as best as we could do that evening and I parked the car and went for supper a much happier person for now but still very frustrated at my short sightedness in hindsight.

Saturday mornings qualifying was moved to 07h45 for whatever reason and we were already at the track by 06h15 to do our necessary preparation on both Datsuns. The 140Z was operating like a clock and all that was required was a quick radiator flush and a wipe down of the body. In his qualifying session he posted a brilliant 1:21.9 which gave the 140Z pole position for race 1. The datti on the other hand eventually got down to a qualifying time of 1:28.9 with the brakes still not having been fully bedded as yet but was good enough for the race. I was placed second of the class B cars but with a class C Alfa posting a quicker time than me and thus found myself down in 9th place in the grid out of 27. I had a reasonable start and managed to get ahead of the class C Alfa of Dave Alhadeff from the rolling start but was short of HP on the Scirocco that of Biccari. There was not much pressure on me from behind but that soon changed after lap 6 when I felt I was going slower and slower until I eventually pulled off after lap 7 with a suspected rocker failure. Not wanting to further test fate I duly pulled off onto the Oval between T1 and T2 and secured whatever points I could get having only completed 7 of the 8 laps. In the interim the 140Z ran away from the field and posted his fastest ever time of 1:21.3 and thereby affording him the race win by the proverbial mile. Eventually I was towed to the scrutineers only after the next race upon which it seemed rather odd and soon learned that some very irritated scrutineers were hounding all the clubman cars who had just finished their first race, over the scrutineering bay and were obviously checking each one for any oil leaks. A scrutineer eventually came up to me while I was still parked at the entrance of parc ferme and asked to lift the hood. I duly complied and a small amount of oil was seen on the chassis rail. My issued scrutineered sticker was duly removed and I was told in no uncertain terms 'you can also load your car and go home'. Short and sweet. No option to even repair it for the 2nd heat.

Now even more frustrated I merely complied with such unprofessionalism and neither of the Datsuns along with a few others took any further part (the 140Z also being found guilty of two drops of oil hanging from under the gearbox) of the race event in principal of shoddy attitudes displayed by the scrutineers and on apparent instruction of the C.O.C. of the day.

In the interim I'll consider my further involvement with the club after I have had a good think about who actually pays who to race. (As one clubman competitor said, "in 15 years I've never had to sit out on a race, this is the first time".)

Thanks 'boet' for desperately trying to keep me on the track. In the meantime, PHUKEMALL.

It takes 2 to Tango!!

The itch was just too much, the in between waiting had become too long, the want almost a must. Besides, I was not sure which way the rules would go for 2011 especially the 'replica' rules and decided to look at another Datti in the interim, this time a 4-door 'boxie' all while the dust settled. The car was a HRCR 3rd overall championship car for 2008 and I always had one eye on the track and the other on this car and eventually took the plunge to buy it at the beginning of August. Everyone including myself wants to have a personal or unique looking car and I started stripping the bodywork of decals and the interior to suit my taste. It took me almost a month with my 2 left hands to do so but patience and perseverance finally paid off and I eventually transformed it to something I liked all while still retaining the exact mechanicals as originally bought.


And so it went from this........................................................to this.










Permission was sought and granted to participate in the last 2 races of the HRCR season of which my first was on 18th September at Kyalami. Not having had the chance to previously test the car I had no idea of its capability although its potential was always a given knowing its previous history. As such 'Mr Datsun Guru' of the fairest Cape duly was to attend the race meeting and came up on the Thursday night. He quickly noticed a few key areas and was soon removing unwanted or unnecessary parts from the suspension and also made some changes in other areas he found somewhat wanting. Mechanically he changed the jetting to something that made a bit more sense, adjusted tappet clearances and set the timing to his specification needs. The Friday morning we were off to the track and our testing commenced. Our first stint was not of the greatest but hey, this is a new race toy and a learning curve was to be expected. Again we made further changes to the jetting and by late afternoon I manged to get her down to a 2:12.5. As certain internal carburetor parts were suspected to be incorrect, we were left with no alternative but to make do with what we had to out disposal. Further changes were again made but as no further testing was possible on the day, it was now left to the qualifying session on the Saturday morning. A brilliant day with cool morning air did the trick and I posted a 2:10.9 for qualifying. During race 1 I again bettered my time and clocked a personal best of 2:09.8. Race 2 saw the mercury a little hotter and also therefore times slightly slower but hey a fantastic achievement for the weekend and for our first time out. We finished 16th overall out of a total of 56 competitors with a 7th overall in class.

My second race meeting was to be on the 16th October at Zwartkops and would also be my last as the northern region season had come to an end. In the interim I painstakingly removed the carburetors and inlet manifold and gave this to a friend of mine who offered to help with the stripping and setup. I ordered the correct parts as instructed and such were fitted along with new bolts, spring washers and the like. After having collected the carburetors I once again painstakingly put them back into roughly the same place I removed them from and tightened all the bolts and fittings. No matter how hard I tried I could not get the Datti to start. After battling for about 30 minutes I eventually got it fired up but man it was rough and sounded terrible. No matter which screws I adjusted on the carbs, nothing changed and I duly killed the engine, covered her up and reported to Cape Town HQ.
Again on the Thursday night before the race, 'Mr Datsun Guru' appeared from nowhere and went about setting the carbs which was supposed to be a 2 minute job apparently. My my, no matter what was adjusted the problem remained and it was decided to strip the and remove the carburetors again so as to better ascertain the problem. Now for those who may think I have a state of the art workshop to accomplish all of this work, well let's just say it is very unique indeed. Pictured below is how we have to make do when you don't have the luxury of an equiped garage at the race track like I have access to in Cape Town.
To top it all, after we had removed the carbs we had a Gauteng thunder storm of note resulting that we could not finish that night (the car stands outside on its trailer) and had to wait for morning. By 06h30 the carbs were reassembled, adjusted and were back on the car and fired up by 07h30. A whole range of screws were adjusted (it almost looked like a grand piano tuner) and within 2 minutes she was idling smoothly and revving beautifully once again. We duly packed the car with all our tools and race fuel, hitched the trailer and off we were to Zwartkops arriving there by 09h30 on Friday morning.

My first stint again was not anywhere near my expectation but I was at least here to have some fun and intended to do just that. I was then posting around the 1:19 - 1:20 lap time. I had set myself a personal goal for the weekend of reaching a 1:17 lap time and would be most satisfied with that for 2 reasons, one, I was not used to the track and two had I ever raced this car here. 'Mr Datsun' did a spark plug analysis reading and again decided to change the jetting. Again I went out and tested and not before long I was down to 1:17.5. Very chuffed with myself I was still 0.5 seconds away from my goal but would now have to wait for tomorrow as our allotted testing was over for the day. We duly packed up and enjoyed a few hard earned frosties with the boys down at the track bar. Saturday morning we were again up early and got to the track (40Km's later) by 07h00. We fueled the car, set the tyre pressures to suit the crisp cold morning air and then just stood around with a great bunch of racers making idle chatter, everyone a touch nervous for our qualifying session. I was super motivated this being a new track, a new car (well almost) and at the back of my mind a bunch of guys who could seriously peddle fast around Zwarties. I did not want to disappoint, not myself or anyone else for that matter. I sat in parc ferme deep in concentration going over my race lines and trying to remember my areas of weakness as was pointed out by those a lot more observant and experienced. In the interim, 'Mr Datsun Guru' made some final tyre pressure adjustments.

I took to the track and warmed the tyres and brakes on the first out lap after which I nailed her good and solid. This was my best chance with the cold morning air (9 degrees) to get my goal lap time I had set myself. The car felt good, very responsive, handled well and did everything almost perfectly. I had only put in 4 laps and felt it was the best I could do, at least for now. Almost unbelievably upon returning to the pits, my boet open the door, stuck out his hand and congratulated me, I had just posted a 1:16.2. PGA - Personal Goal Achieved!!

Race 1 was hard, very competitive and I was dueling with 3 much bigger engine cars as well as another Datsun like mine but with plenty Zwartkops track experience. Equally then we were most probably all over-driving our cars with hardly a cars length between us at times, some accidentally running into others, others a little too sideways in corners with some eventually suffering terminal engine failure. I finished 5th in my class. Race 2 was as good but with somewhat less competition due to some DNS's and I somewhat had a much lonelier race. In the end I finished 3rd in my class and for the day I achieved a 3rd place overall which was most unexpected.

I guess one can have the very best guitar and have the talent to play it well but if you don't know how to tune it, it pretty much sounds awful. Yes I drove my heart out and gave it my best shot on a not too familiar track but without 'Mr Datsun Guru' I would still be stuck on the trailer at home unable to have got my car started at all.


Thanks 'Boet'

Also a big thank you to the HRCR for allowing me to participate in their last 2 race meeting of 2010.

Dats (un) how you do it.

This weekend was like the break of a long drought for me in particular having last completed a full race since the beginning of June. Once again a lot of hard work was done by my boet to get the Datti back up to competition level. The 140Z had a full spanner check since the PE race and a general check in all critical departments as per usual. Not having the chance to do a previous run of the engine since the rebuild I arrived early the Friday morning to do as many tests as possible and ensure nothing was left to chance. My first stint was a very satisfactory test but tyres we of concern. For the later stint I replaced the rear tyres with previously used tyres which by appearance seemed a little better than the ones I currently had on. Again the test run was positive but the front was still under steering especially in turns 2 & 5. I called for the new set to be brought down to the track which required that I do a third test stint to at least get a heat cycle in before the Saturday qualifying session. Everything was to my satisfaction and the Datti was finally parked for the day. By late afternoon the 140Z had also had a shake down and was ready to do battle with the class S fellow competitors.

Saturday morning was yet again up early as I wanted to bleed the brakes as a final adjustment before qualifying. Final prep on both cars was done as per our ritual and we were out at 08h20. The early morning air was cool and should have its advantages as per usual. On my flying lap I was unexpectedly caught up behind the Capri of Trevor Momebrg who had experienced engine problems resulting that I had to change my race line going into turn 1. With a determined effort to break 29's I only managed to post a qualifying 29.6 with which I was satisfied with given the slight change on race line. The 140Z had a cracker run with no traffic and posted a very impressive 22.2 putting the 'Red Devil' on pole ahead of the flying Can-Am of Anton Rolino was posted a blistering 22.5 during qualifying.

Race 1 was off at 10h50 and the rolling start was of a medium pace. At lights out I was perfectly on the cam and managed to get ahead of the Scirocco of Sandro Bicarri by turn 1 while the 140Z got the better of the Can-Am up front. I soon found myself in for some serious competition as I had both the 'Twinspark' Gotech Alfa and the 2.0L Scirroco right on my tail for the first 2 laps. On lap 3 I allowed the Alfa GTAm of Ferdi v Niekerk Jnr through into turn 1 for technical reasons but by turn 2 the Alfa slowed and pulled off with throttle linkage failure. I now still had the Scirrocco to contend with but luck was finally going my way and not long after the Scirocco pulled off with terminal gearbox failure. With the pressure now off it was a lonely race to the flag. In the interim the 140z was comfortably in the lead up front but lady luck was not to be in his favour. On reaching the final lap a miscalculation of liquid propellant resulted in that the 140Z was prevented from taking victory and was accordingly relegated to eighth position with the Can-Am after a long lay off taking the chequered flag.

A proper check of fuel levels was done on the 140Z while the Datti only required a recheck of tyre pressures and also a fuel fill up. Race 2 was off at 14h50 and this time the 'Red Devil' had to start from 8th on the grid while the little Datti had a first time ever 3rd place start and found myself this time behind the monster Can-Am of Anton Rolino who was this time to dictate the rolling starts pace. This time behind me I had the Alfa Giulia of Jonathan Bernstein to contend with while Ferdi Jnr who hounded me in race 1 had to start from the back of the grid. At lights out I hung on for dear life to the back of the Can-Am but as the saying goes, there's no replacement for displacement.

With only 20 meters to go to turn 1 already the bright lights of the 'Red Devil' were bearing down on me and without argument I kept out of his way. By halfway through the exit of turn 1 the 140Z was a car length ahead of me with the rasping rotary of Chris Carolin on the full outside and the Can-Am of Rolino just ahead of him. In the blink of an eye, the Rotary and the Can-Am touched resulting in the Can-Am being turned sideways to the infield and Carolin now in full avoidance mode in the meanwhile collecting the flying 140Z who was already in the passing. Both the Can-Am and the Rotary came to a halt in the midfield and the 140Z was once again out in front with (what he thought) no further competition. (hehe!!!) I now found myself in second place and before long found myself clear of the rest of the field who were taking the necessary avoidance's further behind me. Going down the back straight for the first time I soon caught up to the 140Z who had suffered steering damaged as a result of the turn 1 incident and for the first time since I've started racing I now found myself out in front. Although the 'Red Devil' was slightly injured he managed to come to terms with the now very skew steering wheel and thought what the hell, let's make something of this and pursued to give chase to the Datti. Boy was I now loving this. I was still pushing as hard as I could and the 140Z pushed me as if he was determined to give me a driving lesson. Nobody ever has been that close to my 'ass' going through turn 4 with not any place for a newspaper to fit between us. Down the back straight I would pull a slight gap (now in full knowledge) and by turn 5 he was back all over me like a rash. It was brilliant as I felt I was still in a serious dice and I was determined to give it my all still driving my lines and not letting the pressure get go me. At the end of the race it was Datsuns 1st & 2nd across the line while the 3rd placed car some 9 odd seconds further behind.

Now I do believe it was still possible for the 'Red Devil' to have simply disappeared into the distance but sanity prevailed and we made a spectacle of it, proof yet again that it takes a gentleman driver to sacrifice a most certain overall win and rather have the spectator at heart than his own personal interests. I will treasure this overall win for many years to come as it's unlikely to repeat itself. But hey, I'll take it which ever way it comes.

A brilliant prepared car and all thanks go to you boet.

Thanks 'boet'

Gone with the Wind.

The long and much awaited 'Ford & Friends Festival' eventually arrived and many made the journey up to to the 'friendly city' by car and in convoy. We departed in the early hours of Thursday morning and duly arrived just after lunchtime. By late that afternoon we had off-loaded both our cars and unpacked the cars finally covering them for the night where after we settled into a festive mood at the track. We had both set our personal goals and targets for the weekend and finally hit the sack by around pumpkin time.

Friday morning we were up early and headed for the track by 7.30am and duly preformed our ritual in preparation. Sadly and very disappointingly, history repeated itself again and once again prevented me from racing the Datti as it so also did in 2007. On my out and warm up lap with oil pressure at a good 4.5 - 5 bar on leaving the pit, by the time I had got to Chevy Sweep it was down to 1.5 bar and by Goodyear, 150m further ahead, it was down to less than 1 bar. I simply pulled back into the pit and there it remained for the weekend under cover. This meant I would now concentrate my efforts in helping where I possibly could in reaching the personal goals set by my 'boet' for the weekend. It was no doubt a tall order (no pain no gain I guess), but through careful calculations taken from previous visits to the track with similar machinery, we had a good idea of what we felt as doable. New tyres for a start were not available and he started off with a used set of 8 x 13" slicks. The morning session eventually produced times of around 1:12. With nothing having to be adjusted on the engine, it was down to getting saddle time and finding the limits of the tyres given the track and surface conditions. He again attempted a session after lunch with a few new ideas in mind as to where time could likely be made up. We re-corrected tyre pressures and took to the track once again. Although a further improvement was achieved that with posting 1:11's it was eventually accepted that the maximum had now been extracted from 8" rubber. Wanting to call it a day, I made the suggestion to put on the 10" rubber and get another heat cycle before Saturday mornings qualifying. He agreed and we made the change. Again we made the due tyre pressure corrections taking current track and air temps in consideration. Out he went again and after 3 laps he achieved his first personal goal, that of breaking the 1:10 barrier. In fact, unofficially the clock stood on 1:09.7 and whatever happened here after suddenly all became irrelevant. We called it a day with everyone congratulating the maestro in his achievement.

Saturday morning was again up early as qualifying was now to be done and we had prep to do beforehand. We duly went about making all the necessary checks and adjustments and made compensation for the early morning track and air temp conditions. Knowing how close the opposition was to our times, it was going to take a concerted effort to repeat the times we set our goals to. Lo and behold the 'magician' put his head down and on lap 4 put in a blistering official 1:09.956 and claimed pole position for race 1. I don't ever recall a 4-cylinder engine single overhead cam posting such official times around Aldo and a new benchmark had in all probability been set.

Race one saw the 140Z on pole with the 700HP 'Wesbank' late Owen Ashley built Capri Perana in 2nd position. By all counts the V8 should have had the legs on the straight to out run the 140Z going into turn 1, but at lights out for the start the 'giant killer' lead the Capri into T1 and opened up a gap through the tight back section of Aldo. By turn 8 (Goodyear) the 140Z had opened up a 200m lead only to have it closed to within a few meters at the end of the main straight going into T1 again. So the race went on with the 140Z consistently opening a gap sufficient enough to breath safely, or so we thought. By lap 5 they started catching the back markers and traffic was heavy, not everyone watching their mirrors closely enough as the express train approached with blazing headlights. This allowed the gap to be narrowed and on the last lap both the 140Z and the Capri Perana were side by side coming out of Toyota corner with the Capri on the inside race line and the 140Z on the outside. With neither driver prepared to relinquish their track space, the Capri touched the left back-end of the 140Z resulting that both went off in Chevy Sweep. It was now a case of who kept a cool head and got going again. The 'maestro' hooked second gear and rooster tailed it out towards Goodyear and came out sideways into the main straight. By now Robbie Smith (SMURF) had also got the Capri back on track and the express train was once again at full bore chasing the 140Z to the finish line. The 140Z took the finish by a mere 0.767 seconds ahead of the Capri and making it a very closely contested and well deserved race.

Minor suspension damage was endured in the coming together between the two and we duly borrowed the calibration tools and made the necessary wheel alignment adjustments as required. In the interim we had acquired 2 brand new 10 x 13" tyres from a local Ford supporter and decided now was the best time to put such weaponry to use. So we had them fitted at the track and duly sported a new set of front boots, ready for race 2.

Race 2 was to be very much of the same as race 1 or so we anticipated. At lights out though, things changed very quickly with the Capri getting ahead of the 140Z and Rose in the Porsche RSR now also alongside the 140Z heading into turn 1. No way would a 'hammer' out corner the 140Z and the Porsche duly slotted into 3rd place with the 140Z tucked right up on the Capri's back bumper. Turn 1 is a long right hander and the moment that Robbie looked up into his rear view mirror he had made the fatal mistake and locked up the front going into the esses and ran very wide. This allowed the 140Z through and this time there was to be no second chance. 'Mr Datsun' put his head down and peddled that 140Z as if there was no tomorrow and again opened up a substantial gap that put paid to anyone catching him unless through some mechanical failure or mistake. Such was not to be either and try as he may the 'Wesbank' V8 Capri Perana was given a thourough driving lesson on the tight 2.48Km track of Aldo Scribante.

Veni vidi vici.

Due to my unfortunate DNS my 'boet' offered me the chance to drive the 140Z in the 1 hour race. Not being one to want to race another mans race car (not even my own brothers) I humbly accepted with the provision that I would NOT attempt to finish the full 60 minutes nor attempt any heroics at lap times. This is one car I cannot afford to pay and have fixed. Well, all that is left to say is that it was absolutely and utmostly enjoyed even although by now the back tyres were finished and the tail was quite happy to hang out at any given opportunity. In total I managed to finish 16 laps on a 18 liter fuel tank and my best time posted was 1:15.7 during the race. After 16 laps I pulled in satisfied that it takes a better driver than me to make that red rocket fly in the 1:09 bracket.

Thanks again 'Boet' for all the efforts made in getting us to PE.