SYMMONS PLAINS RACE REPORT - Written by Barry Oliver
04/06/2009

The Pilatus Invitationals for Targa class cars proved to be an outstanding success as a support category at the V8 Supercar races at Symmons Plains with some great racing in both class A and B to keep the huge crowd entertained.

A total of 28 drivers entered for the meeting which was a great result for Qmediagroup boss and instigator of the concept Glenn Ridge who was delighted with the wide range of cars that included everything from a Lamborghini to a V8 Commodore ute and covered eight different manufacturers.

Class A honours went to former Targa Tasmania winner Jason White in his Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera with local photographer Ross Marsden coming out on top in Class B in his Nissan Skyline GTST R32.

White scored three wins and a second in the four 15 lap races but it was no walk in the park with Ray Hislop in his Improved Production BF Falcon maintaining the pressure all weekend to finish second on points.

The grid for race three saw the top eight cars from race two reversed and with Hislop and White starting from row four the race soon developed into a great scrap with the two cars often side by side at 240 kph through the sweeper. White made a last minute lunge on the approach to the finish line but Hislop was able to hold on by just one tenth of a second to score a well deserved win.

Despite running on the same treaded road tyres he used in the recent Targa Tasmania White recorded the fastest lap time for the weekend at 56.7 which was most impressive considering the V8s were only four seconds faster despite having more horsepower and slick race tyres.

Launceston Greg Garwood couldn’t quite match the pace of the leaders in his superb Porsche 911 GT3 RS but was a model of consistency scoring four third places for third overall. Tony Warren in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 and Laurie Williams in his triple rotor Mazda RX7 20B battled all weekend and it was fitting that they were tied on points at the end of four tough races.

In Class B birthday boy Mathew Burns looked to be the man to beat after winning the first two races in his VY Commodore Clubsport but then engine problems in the third race ended his weekend. This left the door open for the consistent Marsden to pick up the pieces scoring three seconds and a fourth to finish in front of Leigh Finlayson in the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6.5 MAKINEN and Peter Nunn in Nissan Skyline GTST R32.

Nunn featured in a great battle with Mazda RX7 driver Robbie Maher in three of the four races and at the end of the weekend they were only separated by just one point.

For their part the drivers were delighted to be given the opportunity to compete on the V8 program as it’s many years since a local category was given that chance.

Clearly the spectators enjoyed the racing as evidenced by the applause given to the drivers at the end of each race. Hopefully the success of this event will open the door for future Invitational opportunities.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

INVITATIONALS IN THE MEDIA
04/06/2009

The Invitationals has certainly peaked the interest of the motorsport community, receiving coverage in two of the countries' most popular and well respected motorsport publications; Auto Action and Motorsport News.

Click the thumbnails below to view the articles in their entirety.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

VB & SERENGETI JUMP ON BOARD
27/05/2009

The team would like to welcome our two latest sponsors, VB and Serengeti Eyewear to the Invitationals family. We thank them both for their support in making the Symmons Plains Invitationals a cracker weekend for all involved.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PILATUS SECURED AS NAMING RIGHTS SPONSOR
21/05/2009

We are pleased to announce that PILATUS have come on board as the official major sponsor of The Symmons Plains Invitationals.

Established in 1939, PILATUS is the worlds' leading manufacturer of single engine turboprop aircraft, as well as providing aircraft and aviation services worldwide for the general aviation, commercial, training, utility and special mission markets.

We would like to thank Pilatus for their support and formally welcome them as our official naming rights sponsor.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


RACING DOCUMENTATION AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD
07/05/2009

All the relevant documents needed for The Symmons Plains Targa Class Invitationals are now available for download from the Documentation page on the invitationals.com.au website. You will need to download and complete any forms required for participation in this event by 10th May 2009. It is also a good idea for all competitors to read all the relevant CAMS information.

Click here to visit the Documentation page.