2012 Round 1 TCM

Our team line up for 2012 remains unchanged with the highly successful combination of Andrew Miedecke and Bernie Stack behind the wheels of the powerful Camaros.

In 2011 Andrew enjoyed multiple round wins, podium finishes, a track record and after having led the series, finished 3rd overall in the standings in his very fast and great handling No. 95 WesTrac 1969 Camaro. In 2012 Andrew has been classified a seeded driver along with John Bowe, Jim Richards and Glen Seton, which means he has been handicapped with a weight and revv penalty. This is in addition to revv penalties that apply to round placings.

For Bernie “Swampy” Stack, 2011 was his first year in the driver’s seat of the No. 85 Whiteline Transport 1970 Camaro after having won the Group B Championship in 2010 in a silver Porsche. Missing 2 of the rounds, combined with the research and development that took place, the last half of the season proved we were moving in the right direction with great results in the top 10 and at times the 95 and 85 Camaro’s raced together in the top 5 which was exciting.

Andrew’s view of the year ahead is best summed up by “Just because it’s a Masters series doesn’t mean we don’t have a red hot go every lap, every race ! I am enjoying my racing more than ever and I look forward to another great year of competition. Our WesTrac No. 95 Camaro led quite a bit of the season last year, just let down by an axle breakage at Surfers and a mistake by me at Sandown. This year I am aiming for a perfect reliability record and a mistake free year. Hard to achieve, but that is what will be needed to carry home the trophy !!

Bernie’s take on the year that lies ahead, “last year was a good time to get used to the big Camaro after the championship winning little Porsche. This year I intend to get on the podium, as I am now more confident in it’s capabilities and we’re improving it’s performance as we go”.

Pre-season Development :

In the break, Crew Chief Mark Peacock (Birdman) gutted the 95 Camaro of its engine, gearbox, diff and front end – “Harry……” pretty much was a shell. With Gregg Hayes Performance Engines building Andrew a strong and responsive motor, combined with the mechanical work done on everything else under the bonnet we believed we were well placed to start the season off in fine fashion with reliability our aim for the year.

3.22 kmRound 1 March 1-4, 2012

Two weeks out from commencement of the season, Paul Currie who also has the role of track crew chief, came to Adelaide from Moyhu his home town in Victoria to assist Mark in pre race preparation.

The job sheet on the 95 car included the engine rebuild and dyno, a gearbox rebuild and ratio change, modifications and repairs to the diff housing and rear suspension overhaul, inspection, repack and seal replacement of all wheel bearings, clutch and flywheel replacement, redistribution of ballast, new radiator, routine maintenance of the brakes, machining of the rotors, replacement of fluid and pads, exhaust repairs and recoating of extractors, front end rebuild including straightening and strengthening of the front wishbones, replacement of some steering components and fitment of new fire extinguisher to comply with new CAMS specs.

Like the stable mate, Mark completely stripped down the brilliant red Camaro with Gregg Hayes Performance Engines building a new engine which on dyno testing produced exciting results, this combined with work on all the other major components is shaping up to be great foundations for a successful season ahead.

Apart from the engine rebuild, there were repairs to the front leaf spring and restacking, clutch rebuild, fitment of new front splitter and window winder mechanism, exhaust repairs, fitting of new air cleaner assembly, body repairs from the final round at Homebush in the 2011 season, fitment of new fire extinguisher to meet new CAMS specs and new rear axles fitted.

A major launch took place for the Clipsal 500 event with anyone who’s anyone in Adelaide attending to promote the upcoming 2012 race. Whiteline Racing was invited to display and as such Bobby took in the Brilliant red Camaro driven by Bernie ‘Swampy’ Stack.

With bump in to the Adelaide track Wednesday, the cars were loaded up Tuesday night complete with spares, tools and all the gear we need to go racing !!

With much excitement and fanfare Round 1 of the racing calendar took place on the streets of Adelaide at the Clipsal 500, the home base of Whiteline Racing.

WHITELINE RACING NEWSLETTERPAGE 1

When racing comes to Adelaide, in the two weeks that lead up to the event, the TCM Category is very involved with activities run by Prince Alfred College. This year, the activity planned was not only educational but proved to be a great fund raiser for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. How ? you ask. With the assistance of the Clipsal 500 and Bunnings Warehouse, the Touring Car Masters challenged the boys in Year 7 to build billy Karts for the charity.

The challenge saw the boys commit to finding sponsorship or taking on additional chores around their home and neighbourhood in order to each raise a minimum of $500. On successfully raising this amount the boys were given the opportunity to build a billy kart at Bunnings Mile End and race it along pit straight of the Clipsal 500 circuit during the event’s opening days.

Bernie and Bob the Builder took the 85 camaro to Bunnings Mile End the week before Clipsal and stayed on to assist the boys make their billy karts. This was a big effort, given on the day, Adelaide produced a 39 degree day !!! Andrew with son George pushing him competed in the billy kart challenge winning one of the races and coming third in another – the press releases and pics with further information are contained further into our newsletter.

Andrew flew in Wednesday with Thursday the start of our racing program. Andrew’s eldest son George was in Adelaide to debut in the V8 Development Series and to assist Dad in the Billy Kart Race !! Younger son Harry flew in Thursday.

The two weeks prior to the racing the temperatures in Adelaide had been in the high 30’s and low 40’s multiple days in a row and was hard on the boys preparing the cars – very draining, then on the day to set up the transporters and pits we were filled in with water from the torrential down pour !!

Wednesday night was a dinner at the EduCart Restaurant, a PAC initiative where all those involved in creating the billy kart challenge got together.

A pretty busy day lay ahead Thursday, 2 practice sessions and qualifying. Thankfully, our crew was enhanced by Brenton Matheson and with special thanks to Cavpower, 2 very keen and hard working apprentices, Caleb and Adam. Digby from PAC was on work experience and was kept busy and so too, Mark Peacock’s stepson Lachlan was great on tools for the weekend. Bernie’s long time mate Trevor came along to be Whiteline’s chef for Thursday and Friday and engine builder, Gregg Hayes was at the track keeping an eye on all things ‘engine’. As you will read, they had their work cut out for them !!

The first practice was held at 9.07. For Andrew in the 95 Camaro, 10 laps were completed with the quickest on the 7th with a 1.32.2332 placing him second quickest behind John Bowe in his mustang with a 1.310738. Both cars pitted in the session with the crew fiddling with set up and both had developed slight oil leaks, with the 95 car problem associated with a hose connection and the 85 car problem was undiagnosed. In fact, for Bernie the leak was causing a severe smoke issue inside the car and was forced to come in after only 4 laps so was back in 12th.

The second practice wasn’t until 1.40 so the team continued to chase the oil leak in the 85 car.

This practice session saw some of the other teams finding form and pace and Andrew in 95 found the handling ‘went off’, pitting to play with the set up. Meanwhile, Bernie was on the pace, pitted in the session for a shock absorber adjustment, but again the pesty oil leak was creating bad fumes and was forced to pull in, in fact was black flagged. Prior to coming in though, did manage to be fifth quickest on the 5th lap of nine with a 1.342003. Andrew also completed 9 laps, his fastest on the last lap and now saw him in fourth with a 1.322170.

On return to the pit the team were trying to isolate the oil leak which wasn’t from the motor, but was coming from a component or hose connecting the motor to the rest of the car and it would only present itself on track under pressure, not in the pits running which proved to be extremely frustrating.

The qualifying session was a late one, at 6.05 pm and was interrupted by an on track incident. Andrew completed 7 laps with the quickest on the 7th and saw him in 2nd place behind John Bowe with a 1.30441. Andrew was pretty steady throughout the session and took advantage of the red to pit to allow crew to go over the Camaro. Mind you, Andrew was quickest in sector 1 and 2 of all the competitors. For Bernie, he was on the pace and in fact at one point was in fourth position, but again the oil leak made it impossible for him to stay out on the track and whilst he pitted, three other cars picked up the pace and put Bernie back into 7th, with his quickest lap on the 3rd out of 4 laps completed with a 1.329128.

The oil leak issue was really baffling the team – so much so, they stayed back until dark removing every hose and component that joined the motor to all the other components in the hope Bernie could have a trouble free run in the three races that lay ahead.

Friday one race was scheduled an 8 lap event held at 4.50. The starting order was where they had qualified and found Andrew in his 95 WesTrac/Lubrimaxx Camaro out of 2 and Bernie in his 85 Whiteline Transport/Gawler Body Works Camaro out of 7.

With the field away Bowe took advantage of his pole position immediately taking the lead with Gavin Bullas getting away quicker off the grid than Andrew, but during the 2nd lap, Andrew took advantage when Gavin Bullas got a little sideways when cornering and managed to regain his second spot and in fact the top 5 positions remained unchanged for the entire race.

Mark & Bob all eyes on the screen - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

CAVPOWER apprentices, Adam and Caleb ( left to right ) - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Adam & Caleb from CAVPOWER with Digby from PAC - Pics courtesy of Brenton MathesonAccepting 2nd trophy for the round - Pics courtesy of Brenton MathesonA pretty relaxed Andrew & Bernie - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

PIC ROB LANG


On the final lap, final corner, we all held our breath when Andrew made a move on Gavin Bullas when he went wide into the corner creating an opportunity which Andrew took. For Andrew he survived the challenge, however when they made contact Gavin, the No 16 entry was relegated down the field, with the final order John Bowe 1st, Andrew 2nd and Jim Richards 3rd in his new AMC Javelin.

Bernie’s race was a beauty also, starting out of 13 by completion of the 2rd lap had already got up into 9th, losing a spot when a quick Albenica came through, but by the final lap worked his way up to 9th again and due to a time penalty imposed on the 56 entry which was ahead of Bernie moved another position through the field to finish 8th. A minor oil leak had just started to present itself, but not enough to cause the smoke issues that had been present earlier in the weekend.

Andrew finished 2nd overall for the weekend and Bernie finished in 10th.

Our next round is Phillip Island May 25 – 27.

Work is underway to prepare the Camaros for the next round – they both have some body damage to be dealt with and Mark will get busy under the bonnet.

Look forward to touching base with you all following the 2nd round.

Kind regards

Shaz

Andrew was again quickest in on sector 2 and JB was quickest on sector 1 and 3. The other notable stat is the fact that Bowe, Miedecke, Bullas and Richards all drove in race conditions in record times. Meanwhile for Bernie, it was not good news, the oil leak was again with him and was forced to retire, completing only 3 laps and was now also dealing with a vibration that had shown its head.

Fortunately, the 95 Camaro was travelling pretty well, so the crew focussed on the 85 Camaro.

Yet again, the team removed hoses and components to the engine. In addition they removed the tail shaft and thanks to Jim at Adelaide Tailshaft Service repairs were done overnight. It was found to have a failed universal which was replaced, but just in case the tail shaft was not the cause for the vibration, the team also decided to remove the gear box as our race on Saturday was a morning event and there wouldn’t be sufficient time to do such a big job. The gear box that was fitted had a taller 1st gear, so this would be harder for Bernie to get off the line quick and out of corners, but it would prove competitive in the straights.

Friday night the team attended the ‘welcome’ night at Wine Underground which was welcomed R & R after such a hard day in the pits !!!

Saturday was an early start, with Brent on the doorstep of Adelaide Tail Shaft Service to collect our tail shaft. Once at the track, the crew got busy to prep the 85 machine in time for the 11.08 race, which again was an 8 lapper. This was a reverse grid race with Andrew starting out of 9 and poor Bernie, due to the dnf Friday was forced to start at the rear of the field.

With the warm up lap done, the green light was shown and the field was away, but not Andrew, what a disaster and he was very lucky that the rest of the field avoided contact when he stalled. The task ahead was huge, but as he has shown in the past, his ability to recover and make his way through the field is quite amazing.

By the completion of lap 2 was 9th, laps 3 and 4 had made it into 5th and from laps 5 – 8 was now third behind Bullas and Bowe who were 1 and 2 after they had made their way through the haram scaram of a reverse grid start !!

Andrew put in the quickest lap of the entire field on the final lap with a 1.303896 and was quickest in sectors 1 and 2 of the circuit.

As for Bernie ‘Swampy’ Stack he was doing some hard charging and driving himself, forced to start rear of the field, on completion of lap 1 was 17th and then would continue to peg off the field and finished in 7th. More importantly, the crew had managed to contain the oil leak issue that had plagued the 85 Camaro all weekend !!! The team were unsure exactly what it was that rectified the problem, as so many components were changed, but at this point no one cared, we were all just happy Bernie had got a full race in and was able to show what he is made of !!

The crew got away from the circuit at a respectable time and enabled us to freshen up for dinner with Pete Calligaro from WesTrac in Perth and his guests that had made the journey from the west to enjoy the weekend of racing. Needless to say, a great night was had at Enzo’s, but with an all important third race Sunday morning we were sure to be home at a respectable hour.

The final race for the event was at 9.40 a.m. and again over 8 laps. Starting positions were determined by results from qualifying and the previous races and saw Andrew out of 3 on the 2nd row behind Bowe and Bullas off 1 and 2. Bernie would start out of 13.

Warm up lap complete the field was away and I am pleased to report Andrew got away well and so too Bernie. Laps 1 -7 remain unchanged with the top three, Bowe, Bullas and Andrew developing a good lead. A major mechanical malfunction to the Doug Westwood Ford Falcon entry saw the safety car out for 2 laps, making the final lap a sprint to the end.

For further information :

Sharon Middleton

0418826272

[email protected]

www.wline.com.au

She’s heavy - Pics courtesy of Brenton MathesonRace time - Pics courtesy of Brenton MathesonPaul & Adam totally focused! - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Crew busy on the tools - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

All eyes on the big screen - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

PIC ROB LANG

Supporting the teams that support usSponsor Pitstop Broadcasting


BroadcastingTouring Car Masters 2012 TV update

This year, the Touring Car Masters will see additional coverage of the series, further to the 7 Network race coverage on race days across the season.

On top of the inclusion of five races on 7’s Raceday Xtra (seen on race day Sunday, not directly live), the Touring Car Masters will feature on SBS as part of ‘The Nationals’ 1 hour wrap show from the Shannons Nationals events, as well as coverage as part of the Muscle Car Masters 1 hour feature on Channel 7 in September, and SPEED TV will repeat Touring Car Masters races in the weeks following each event. Please check your local guides as the networks confirm exact dates and times.

We hope you enjoy the 2012 Touring Car Masters season!

7 Network Clipsal 500 – Race 3 Hidden Valley, Darwin x 1 race Sandown 500 x 1 race Bathurst (50th Anniversary) x 2 races Muscle Car Masters, Eastern Creek – 1 hour event special (highlights of TCM Races 2 & 3)

SBS Phillip Island (Shannons Nationals) highlights as part of ‘The Nationals’, 1 hour Sandown (Shannons Nationals) highlights as part of ‘The Nationals’, 1 hour

SPEED TV Will re-broadcast TCM races (V8SC events, Muscle Car Masters and ‘The Nationals’ shows) – programming schedule to be provided by network

YOUTUBE Don’t forget you can also see all of the Touring Car Masters races on the official TCM youtube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/TouringCarMastersAus


Richards and Miedecke racing royalty to take on billy kart challenge for charity at the Clipsal 500

Richards and stars of TCM with Prince Alfred College students George & Andrew Miedecke

As Australian motor sport gears up for the opening round of the 2012 season, renowned racing father and son duos Jim and Steven Richards, and Andrew and George Miedecke, have added their support to the ‘Clipsal 500 Touring Car Masters Billy Kart Challenge’, a unique experience to share with the students from Adelaide boy’s school Prince Alfred College, all in order to raise funds for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Over the past four years, the Touring Car Masters have worked closely with the College on the ‘Clipsal is MY classroom’ program that extends the boys’ learning to include paddock visits and classroom discussions with drivers, staff and team members of the popular classic series.

In the past few months Prince Alfred College and the Touring Car Masters have engineered an additional program to balance curriculum with community service. With the assistance of the Clipsal 500 and Bunnings Warehouse, the Touring Car Masters have challenged the boys in Year 7 to build billy karts for charity. The aim – to raise over $10,000 to help the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

The challenge sees the boys commit to finding sponsorship in order to each raise a minimum of $500, their reward, to support the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation as well as take the opportunity to build a billy kart at a Bunnings DIY Centre, theme it as their favourite Touring Car Masters vehicle, then race it along Pit Straight of the Clipsal 500 circuit during the event’s opening days.

For the Richards and Miedecke entries, it’s going to be a different way to experience the main straight of the Adelaide Parklands circuit where their normal race mode of transport sees them topping 200kmph. The challenge to pilot a simply billy kart and win against the dedicated racers of tomorrow from the College will no doubt see some great racing, and even some battle scars from the weekend to fondly remember, and there’s no question the seasoned racers are keen to get on track, Jim Richards explaining,

“It’s going to be a different view of the straight than we’re used to, no doubt, but getting back to the age of driving billy karts is a childhood experience that will be great to share with the students and their families.

“The Touring Car Masters series has been working alongside the College for many years now, and we’ve seen so much interest and passion from the students to now mean that as drivers, we also look forward to their paddock visits at each Clipsal.

“It will be another new experience on track at the season opener, so Steve and I will give it our all then it’s back to full speed with the debut of the Javelin and Steve back to the challenge in his Porsche.”

Having returned to Australia to take on the Dunlop V8 Supercars Series after a successful year in NASCAR where he secured the UARA Rookie of the Year accolade, George Miedecke is looking forward to another new experience come the Clipsal 500 weekend, saying,

“What better way to start off the new season than pairing up with Dad (Andrew), jumping in a billy kart and using physical power, and maybe some race tactics, to take on a group of students who keep proving how enthusiastic they are about motor sport.

“Taking away all the technology brings racing back to where it began, people power, teamwork and a dedication to taking the chequered flag first.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what Dad has in the tanks, maybe we’ll both get another win under the belt, but either way, this is going to be a whole lot of fun and it’s all happening for a very worthy cause.”

The ‘Clipsal 500 Touring Car Masters Billy Kart Challenge’ will be held on Pit Straight, at 7.00am on Thursday 1 March (standard grid) and again at 7.00am on Friday 2 March (reverse grid).

We invite members of the Community to support this cause by donating via the website: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/the_clipsal_500_touring_car_masters_billy_kart_challenge

Engine developer Gregg Hayes overseeing all things under the bonnet - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Deb and Gregg Hayes - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Bernie all smiles despite the niggly oil leak issue - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Andrew and Harry engrossed - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

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PIC ROB LANG

Shaz and Big Pete (aka Peter Calligaro) from WesTrac at Enzo’s for the customer night.


Mustang madness as Bowe opens 2012 with an impressive victory

Bowe takes the opening win

Reigning Touring Car Masters series title holder John Bowe has started the season in the way he was remembered from the last, taking a convincing first win of the new year in a refurbished Mustang ‘Sally’, with an extra special team member now on board, an image of great mate, the late Jason Richards, adorning the roof.

Having been more than a second faster than the field through the practice sessions, and going on to carry the speed, Bowe secured his third successive pole on the streets of Adelaide. Challengers and fellow seeded drivers Miedecke, Bullas and Richards in his new Javelin, were all looking to tame the #18 Mustang and bring on a big weekend, and they would start from the front rows.

Bowe launched as the lights went green while Richards was slow off the line, Youlden going wide to avoid the accelerating Javelin. King took to Senna Chicane taking air over the curbs and Walmsley, now in the XA GT Falcon campaigned by King last season, also took to the inside through the dirt to keep clean in the trail of muscle. Abelnica didn’t make the grid, his XB Coupe experiencing an intermittent fuel delivery issue and slowing on the warm up lap to see the #48 entry park in the pits, while efforts to fix damaged Wilson’s Charger hadn’t been enough, he too went straight to the lane.

Miedecke and Bullas started their race long battle in the opening turns, going side by side through turn one as Bullas moved to second, making it a Mustang one, two. The top four began to pull away from the 25 strong field and it was clear the lap times were going to tumble, Bullas pushing hard and sliding through turn six as Miedecke regained second place.

The pack was pouncing, Stack locking the brakes on the rear of Youlden’s, bringing Pye closer to the action as Westwood GTHO took it to Keene’s fighting Porsche to take ninth. More incredible hard luck for Edwards as the SL/R 5000 headed to pit lane yet again here at the Adelaide Parklands circuit, this time with front end damage, possibly with the hydraulics, having either broken a piston or rod, and likely marking the start and end of his season.

Stack moved into eighth with Pye making the pass as the #85 Camaro once again began to billow smoke, the oil leak that has plagued the weekend seeing the Whiteline Camaro’s first DNF of the season. Pye was pressing on, moving under Youlden as he went wide into turn 14, the pair hunting the HQ of King ahead in fifth. Kassulke began closing on Keene, as Walmsley closed in and went through on Stillwell, Hunter’s HQ looking to join the action.

In one of the race’s best battles, Sparks and Nelson has been hard at it, right on each other from the first turns, side by side as the laps fell away, the battle ended on the final lap with contact between the pair seeing Sparks into the wall at turn six with heavy front end damage, but it had been smooth sailing for Bowe, taking the race win with a four second buffer to Miedecke in second.

John Bowe

“The race was good and I got a really good start. The car’s been good at each of the Clipsal 500 events – this is my third here with Mustang ‘Sally’ and she really suits the circuit.

“The car wasn’t exactly behaving the way I wanted it to earlier on, but with the V8 Supercars rubber down on track, it’s changed the surface quite a lot and changed the way the cars behave.

“Being a reigning champions and all that stuff, it doesn’t matter so much, this is all about racing as best you can, and with the win, well I can’t be anymore pleased than that!”

Amanda Sparks

“We’ve got quite substantial damage and couldn’t drive the car away from the wall.

“I don’t know if it’s broken a steering arm or something at the front – it was all jammed up.

“I went to overtake (Nelson) because he went wide on the corner, we’d been jostling all race and unfortunately this is how we’ve come out of it.”

Lachlan, Digby, Mark, Paul, Caleb & Adam - What a team! - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Hmm, got something on your mind Paul ? - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Bobby lending a hand - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Bobby and Andrew - Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

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PIC ROB LANG


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The crew loaded the 85 Camaro into the transport to make working on the gearbox and tailshaft easier- Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Bullas claims hard fought reverse grid win as the Masters shine

Bullas took a deserved win on his series return

The first reverse grid of the new year for the Touring Car Masters was always sure to bring action packed racing, and it was the Porsche of Keene to launch from pole, with a mountain of muscle cars bearing down, many entries showing their battle scars from a weekend in the concrete canyon.

With the big muscles looking to make their way through the traffic from the onset, Walmsley and Westwood took a wide line into the chicane, both making contact with the tyre bundles and both heading to pit lane with front end damage.

Back on the racing line, Bullas moved under the Kassulke HQ, with Bowe taking the around option, seeing the Mustangs move toward the front. Pye was looking for the gap on Keene in the lead, the battle for the race one leaders to push through was certainly on, and it was an Aussie HQ sandwich of King, Youlden, Hunter and Benson surrounding the lone blue oval machine of Stillwell on the verge of the top ten.

As Pye made the move on the leading Porsche, Bullas and Bowe found their way under through turn six to secure second and third behind the Camaro. Richards was pushing in the Javelin as he pulled away from his challengers along the back straight

Stack went sliding through the final corner, with Bullas taking the lead while Bowe made contact with Pye trying to find the room to get ahead. King pulled into the lane with a loose plug lead, passing the stranded XB of Abelnica who didn’t make the grid after engine gremlins struck again, the engine having been replaced overnight but to no avail.

Stack charged under Hunter with Stillwell ready to pounce, while Wilson was all over the rear of the Almond Porsche. After having started the race with great pace and holding his own against the muscle cars, Keene’s race would end in the pits after contact on the rear broke a valve stem and caused a rear tyre deflation.

As the winners crossed the line, it would be Bullas securing a deserved win on his return to the series.

Gavin Bullas “It feels fantastic and the car’s just great on the streets of Adelaide, it’s a great track. Given we’ve been out for so long with engine issues, it was nice to break through and get another win.

“I think the last one we had was Homebush back in 2010 and to beat JB (Bowe) knowing he has a really quick car, it took effort. It was full on trying to fend off Bowe, and I nearly tagged the wall on the last lap so it was a case of just closing my eyes and hoping I wasn’t going to lose it.

“We will see if we can do something for the last race but it will certainly be interesting.”

“JB’s a good driver, and everyone knows his car is exceptionally quick right now, so he’s (Bowe) the man to beat and if you can beat him at anytime its always good, so you do what you can to get up there and get a win, and when you get it you know you earnt it.”

PIC ROB LANG


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Tony Hunter “It’s been a long time out of the car, Sandown 2010, so I had to get back in the car.

“We had a great thing with Jason (Richards) last year, and I must say that one of his memories of the car is that we haven’t changed the setup in any way whatsoever, it’s the way he left it. He had said ‘whatever you do, don’t touch this – I’ve got it the best it’s going to get. You wouldn’t know what I’ve done so just go and drive it.’ So I’ve done exactly that.

“It’s very enjoyable being back racing in this series, a new season, a good field and we’re looking forward to running the whole season this year as TCM is going a long way.”

Chris Stillwell “It’s great to have another result, especially to start the year in the strongest of fields.

“The racing is going to be really tight this season, and with the new penalty system this year that is accumulative, by round three, I would say the gentlemen’s racing class will be really tight.”

Trevor - Whiteline’s resident chef for Thursday and Friday- Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Staff and guests have a birds eye view from the WesTrac facility- Pics courtesy of Brenton Matheson

Mustang ‘Sally’ takes the silverware for Round 1

Bowe captured the outright victory

The final race of the weekend, the first weekend of the season, and it would be Bowe and Bullas launching off the line, the all Mustang line up dominating at the front of the field in what has been an action packed, high and low round one of the Touring Car Masters.

As the lights went green, Bowe charged from P1, Bullas right on the #18 as Nelson shot his Porsche to the inside and Pye headed towards the pit wall to make a move around the traffic. Through the chicane, the field was nose to tail, Benson in a freight train of muscle, skipping across the curbs while Richards and Pye went side by side through turns nine and ten.

Pushing hard to catch Bowe, the #16 Mustang of Bullas had a moment through turn eight in a repeat of yesterday’s near miss, while Abelnica had seemingly overcome the engine concerns that had plagued his weekend, charging through the pack from 24th to 15th.

There was a battle of the Australian muscle cars on between Kassulke and Youlden inside the top seven, and Miedecke too was feeling the pinch, a tank slapper slide into turn fourteen almost put the Camaro into the side of Bullas as they came around to start lap three.

Richards was the fastest on track, O’Brien was busy looking for the gap to send his HQ past the Nelson Porsche and on to the challenges ahead, with Walmsley almost tied up in the battle but settling back into position. Having arrived in Adelaide with a new engine, Westwood would suffer the fieriest of exits as his engine exploded along Pit Straight in a display of smoke and fire, leaving the GTHO burnt and stranded at turn one.

Hunting Bowe, Bullas went wide and over the curbing on the run to the back straight, while an outstanding performance from Abelnica now saw the XB Coupe into fifth, having gained 19 positions in the space of some five racing laps. With Bowe heading for his second win of the new season, Miedecke and Bullas came into the final turn still fighting for second, Miedecke looking to the inside of the Bullas Mustang, contact was made and Bullas was left to wait for the field to pass. As Richards and Pye approached to gain position, Pye was out on the grass to avoid, while Miedecke moved around the Mustang ahead to storm along the straight and secure second place.

The final race to close round one of eight for the showcase of muscle car classics that is the Touring Car Masters ended with Bowe’s continuing dominant form, taking two race wins and the outright round win, Miedecke and Richards also on the Class A podium, while in the revised Class B, Hunter stood tall to secure the win, with Stillwell and Benson closing the top three.

John Bowe “When you win the round it’s a good thing to achieve. The car has always been good here, it suits the circuit. It’s been great all weekend, hasn’t missed a beat, and the only hiccup was the damage to the bonnet. We were surprised when we had a supporter lend me the bonnet of his ’69 Mustang off his road car which is just amazing to have that support.

“This series just keeps getting better with all the cars and drivers lifting the game, and already it’s showing with the competition getting tighter and each race more of a workout.”

Andrew Miedecke “We’re strong but we need to pick up some pace.

“Contact is the last thing you want to do, but there was an opportunity ahead so I went and had a try, but then positions on the road changed and I couldn’t slow down on the curb so it happens.”

“I’d rather not have had to come through the field in race two, but we found an issue that while it wasn’t costing horsepower, it was costing driveability, especially when you drop the clutch. I’ve done practice starts, and after putting yourself in a bad position, you just want to make amends which I think the rear to third achieved.”

PIC ROB LANG

PIC ROB LANG


George here with a bit of a review from the weekend. As some of you may know, I've been lucky enough to be able to compete this year in the Dunlop Series (formerly known as the Fujitsu Series), the main support for the V8 Supercars here in Australia. Thanks especially to Sitech, Bob Jane T-Marts

A week ago we had our first round, on the street circuit in Adelaide. While I've been there before and won, it's always a difficult track to make your debut on as the surface changes so much throughout the weekend, as well as the concrete barriers right beside the track. I've made friends with them before and in race two they decided to permanently borrow both of my side mirrors!

Other News

But back to the weekend - through practice and qualifying I was really just getting a feel for the car, learning how much I was able to push it as the track changed and all the dirt and oil from the road cars was cleaned off. I finished 10th and 8th in the two practice sessions before running 6th in qualifying, a result I was really happy with! All of the cars in front were guys with good experience in 'Main Series' teams, and I felt that I had done a good job first time out.

Race one, and one of the things that I was really nervous about was the starts. I've never done one and our practice starts were no good - but it seems I needn't have worried as I got a great start and

G'day Guys,

What about George!


moved straight into 5th. We had an early safety car, but not long after the restarts the engine sounded rough, and immediately I noticed a drop in power as the engine broke a rocker and we were running on 7 cylinders. I drove as hard as I could for the next ten or so laps, trying to keep momentum up and as a result we finished 10th. I was really happy that we had managed to salvage a result after the engine problems!

Now race two I wasn't so happy with. Starting from 10th, I got an even better start and probably would have passed the entire row in front if I hadn't been blocked, and I quite quickly settled into a rhythm. I'm not sure if I didn't read the conditions right or if I just drove the car too hard, but I really started to struggle with tyre grip and I guess learning

to manage them will come with experience. After that and a drive through penalty for kerb hopping, I really wish I had been able to do a better job.

But I'll learn, and at Barbagallo in May I'll come out stronger. We'll also have a new engine to go in before the next round, which should be a noticeable increase in power which will be nice!

Attached is a photo of the car, again thanks to Sitech, Bob Jane T-Marts and iSeek for their support. And check out the video, too! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5QFdQ_Fo0E&list=UUhzzI2QMPg3gezwl5Mak5XQ&feature=plcp

George MiedeckeWHITELINE RACING NEWSLETTER

PAGE 11

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Dropped Round

Thursday, 15th March 2012

22001122 | 2011 | 2010

2012 Series Standings

OOVVEERRAALLLL SSTTAANNDDIINNGGSS | CLIPSAL 500 | PHILLIP ISLAND | HIDDEN VALLEY| QLD RACEWAY | EASTERN CREEK | SANDOWN | BATHURST | SANDOWN

Class A 'Outright'

Position Driver RND 1 RND 2 RND 3 RND4 RND 5 RND 6 RND 7 RND 8 Dropped Round TOTAL

1 John Bowe 176 176

2 Andrew Miedecke 164 164

3 Jim Richards 148 148

4 Bill Pye 135 135

5 Gavin Bullas 133 133

6 Mark King 114 114

7 Keith Kassulke 111 111

8 Brett Youlden 105 105

9 George Nittis 81 81

10 Bernie Stack 75 75

11 Les Walmsley 73 73

12 Tony Karanfilovski 68 68

13 Doug Westwood 57 57

14 Eddie Abelnica 45 45

15 Tony Edwards 0 0

16

17

18

18

20

Class B 'Pro-Sportsman'

Position Driver RND 1 RND 2 RND 3 RND4 RND 5 RND 6 RND 7 RND 8 Dropped Round TOTAL

1 Tony Hunter 168 168

2 Chris Stillwell 164 164

3 Nigel Benson 160 160

4 John Nelson 138 138

5 Gary O'Brien 135 135

6 Rory O'Neill 114 114

7 Ross Almond 105 105

8 Greg Keene 102 102

9 Mick Wilson 78 78

10 Amanda Sparks 66 66

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2012 Series Points

Round Event Dates

1 Clipsal 500 Adelaide March 1 – 4

2 Phillip Island (Shannons Nationals) May 25 – 27

3 Hidden Valley, Darwin June 15 – 17

4 Queensland Raceway August 3 – 5

5 Muscle Car Masters, Eastern Creek September 1 & 2

6 Sandown 500 September 14 – 16

7 Bathurst October 4 – 7

8 Sandown (Shannons Nationals) November 23 – 25

2012 Calendar

Documents

2012 Round 1 TCM