Garth Tander ... the man to beat
August 3rd 2007 11:24
Originally posted on 20 July 2007 on www.orble.com/v8-supercars
As a serious contender for the 2007 V8 Supercar crown, Western Australian Garth Tander, known affectionately around the paddock as GT, is a valuable member of the Toll HSV team along with current title holder Rick Kelly.
Garth was introduced into the world of motorsport at a very young age. His father, Dirk, was a keen motorsport follower and as soon as little Garth was old enough he was presented with his first Kart and went on to win his first Karting race against a much more experienced field.
Okay, so there was only one other competitor who had a grand total of 2 race meetings under his belt but it was a start, a good start, to young Garth’s racing career.
After nearly 11 years as an integral part of the karting world, seventeen year old Garth had won seven Western Australian State Karting titles, one National title and a number of regional titles. He’d found an itch that needed to be scratched and was ready to move on to bigger and better things.
Garth took the plunge and became a student in the Fastlane Racing Driver School based in Perth, one of the best Formula Ford schools in Australia. He set a school lap record on his first day in the car, showing the promise that would eventually set him up as one of the foremost motor racing drivers in Australia.
His talent as a driver was recognised soon after when he won his first race after competing in only four Formula Ford races and a contract was entered into between the young Tander and Fastlane racing, enabling him to set his sights on the Western Australian title. This was 1996 and the WA title that year came to lie safely in Garth Tander’s hands.
In 1997 Garth set his sights higher, competing in the Australian Formula Ford championship. Money was tight and now that he was racing full-time, Garth needed to find a major sponsor … and fast. Minor sponsors were found to tide Garth over and see him through the first few rounds of the 1997 series in which he won 7 of the first 8 races. But as the money dried up, things were looking grim for the talented young star until, almost at the last moment, he secured a lucrative sponsorship deal with Bunnings Hardware.
This meant that Garth could relax and compete for the 1997 Australian Formula Ford title, winning it in grand style and becoming the first Western Australian driver to win the national championship.
But once more, the money dried up. Motor racing is a very expensive sport and even though Garth’s potential was recognised by both Dick Johnson Racing and the Holden Young Lions V8 Supercar racing teams, finding the money to continue to compete in motorsport proved too difficult and the 1997 Australian Formula Ford champion was unfortunately without wheels.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Garry Rogers Motorsport came to the party, offering Garth a full-time paid drive with their Melbourne based V8 team. Tander jumped at the chance and signed immediately, finishing the 1998 season with one of V8 Supercar’s most respected teams.
Although it took Garth the remainder of the 1998 season to reconcile the differences between driving Formula Ford open-wheelers and the power and grunt of a V8 Supercar, he was re-signed by Garry Rogers the following year where it wasn’t long before the bright young star began to shine.
1999 saw a first round podium and a number of top five results, setting the young Western Australian up for a battle for the championship, a series that wasn’t resolved until the final race at Bathurst. An unfortunate accident during the mountain race saw Garth wave goodbye to the championship but he was determined to come back bigger and better the following year.
In 2000 Garth came out ready for a fight winning the first and third rounds and scoring a podium finish in round two. Again, the championship came down to the final round at Bathurst where his youth and exuberance came up against the experience of Mark Skaife.
An experience that proved too great for Tander to quash as Skaife took the points and the championship.
The next few years saw a plague of unfinished races, mechanical problems and mixed results, dampening Garth’s competitiveness and limiting his chances for a top ten finish. Finally, in 2005, Garth left Garry Rogers Motorsport behind taking up an offer from the HSV Dealer Team. The team showed speed and potential but a number of problems placed the championship beyond Garth’s reach.
2006 again saw inconsistencies until the final rounds of the championship where Tander suddenly began to shine once again. After a strong finish to the series last year, Tander’s name was being put forward by his peers as the driver to beat when the 2007 season began.
With 6 rounds of the 2007 series completed, Tander is in a commanding position on the points table, second only to his team mate Rick Kelly. And at only thirty years of age, there are many more years of competitive and professional racing to come.
Images and information courtesy of www.garthtander.com
A thoughtful Garth Tander
As a serious contender for the 2007 V8 Supercar crown, Western Australian Garth Tander, known affectionately around the paddock as GT, is a valuable member of the Toll HSV team along with current title holder Rick Kelly.
Garth was introduced into the world of motorsport at a very young age. His father, Dirk, was a keen motorsport follower and as soon as little Garth was old enough he was presented with his first Kart and went on to win his first Karting race against a much more experienced field.
Okay, so there was only one other competitor who had a grand total of 2 race meetings under his belt but it was a start, a good start, to young Garth’s racing career.
After nearly 11 years as an integral part of the karting world, seventeen year old Garth had won seven Western Australian State Karting titles, one National title and a number of regional titles. He’d found an itch that needed to be scratched and was ready to move on to bigger and better things.
Garth took the plunge and became a student in the Fastlane Racing Driver School based in Perth, one of the best Formula Ford schools in Australia. He set a school lap record on his first day in the car, showing the promise that would eventually set him up as one of the foremost motor racing drivers in Australia.
His talent as a driver was recognised soon after when he won his first race after competing in only four Formula Ford races and a contract was entered into between the young Tander and Fastlane racing, enabling him to set his sights on the Western Australian title. This was 1996 and the WA title that year came to lie safely in Garth Tander’s hands.
In 1997 Garth set his sights higher, competing in the Australian Formula Ford championship. Money was tight and now that he was racing full-time, Garth needed to find a major sponsor … and fast. Minor sponsors were found to tide Garth over and see him through the first few rounds of the 1997 series in which he won 7 of the first 8 races. But as the money dried up, things were looking grim for the talented young star until, almost at the last moment, he secured a lucrative sponsorship deal with Bunnings Hardware.
This meant that Garth could relax and compete for the 1997 Australian Formula Ford title, winning it in grand style and becoming the first Western Australian driver to win the national championship.
Garth looking particularly smiley
But once more, the money dried up. Motor racing is a very expensive sport and even though Garth’s potential was recognised by both Dick Johnson Racing and the Holden Young Lions V8 Supercar racing teams, finding the money to continue to compete in motorsport proved too difficult and the 1997 Australian Formula Ford champion was unfortunately without wheels.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Garry Rogers Motorsport came to the party, offering Garth a full-time paid drive with their Melbourne based V8 team. Tander jumped at the chance and signed immediately, finishing the 1998 season with one of V8 Supercar’s most respected teams.
Although it took Garth the remainder of the 1998 season to reconcile the differences between driving Formula Ford open-wheelers and the power and grunt of a V8 Supercar, he was re-signed by Garry Rogers the following year where it wasn’t long before the bright young star began to shine.
1999 saw a first round podium and a number of top five results, setting the young Western Australian up for a battle for the championship, a series that wasn’t resolved until the final race at Bathurst. An unfortunate accident during the mountain race saw Garth wave goodbye to the championship but he was determined to come back bigger and better the following year.
In 2000 Garth came out ready for a fight winning the first and third rounds and scoring a podium finish in round two. Again, the championship came down to the final round at Bathurst where his youth and exuberance came up against the experience of Mark Skaife.
An experience that proved too great for Tander to quash as Skaife took the points and the championship.
The next few years saw a plague of unfinished races, mechanical problems and mixed results, dampening Garth’s competitiveness and limiting his chances for a top ten finish. Finally, in 2005, Garth left Garry Rogers Motorsport behind taking up an offer from the HSV Dealer Team. The team showed speed and potential but a number of problems placed the championship beyond Garth’s reach.
2006 again saw inconsistencies until the final rounds of the championship where Tander suddenly began to shine once again. After a strong finish to the series last year, Tander’s name was being put forward by his peers as the driver to beat when the 2007 season began.
With 6 rounds of the 2007 series completed, Tander is in a commanding position on the points table, second only to his team mate Rick Kelly. And at only thirty years of age, there are many more years of competitive and professional racing to come.
GT flying around a corner
Images and information courtesy of www.garthtander.com
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