HSV Dealer Team - ready for the enduros
August 19th 2008 00:28
With the endurance races just around the corner, the V8 Supercar teams are readying themselves for this energy sapping and important part of the championship.
A vital part of the teams’ preparation is their choice of co-driver for each of the full-time drivers, and ensuring that these, sometimes rookie V8 Supercar ‘blow-ins’, are as ready as possible for the challenge the enduro races can bring.
Imagine: two drivers, a V8 Supercar and a six hour race around Mount Panorama at Bathurst. It’s a situation which has beaten even the best touring car drivers in the world; not quite the Sunday afternoon drive most of us occasionally indulge in.
One team taking the opportunity to perfect their preparation and ready their drivers is the HSV Dealer Team, with front men Paul Dumbrell and former V8 Supercar Champion Rick Kelly, who recently held a test day at Winton Raceway, which also included co-drivers Dave Reynolds and former V8 Supercar driver Paul Radisich.
A variety of weather conditions were also involved, typical of Victoria, and these were welcomed by the crew as being good preparation for the potentially unstable conditions expected during the upcoming races at the L & H 500, Phillip Island and Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.
Team Manager, Erik Pender was positive following the test day. “You always go testing with a plan and the weather changed that a little bit for us, but we were able to do a lot of dry running, and also a lot of wet running,” he said.
“The co-drivers for our team, Dave Reynolds and Paul Radisich, managed to get a lot of miles in.”
“Paul and Rick were happy to give their respective co-drivers a lot of time in the cars, even though it is one of only four test days we get during the year,” he said.
“Because of the changes in weather during the test day we have a lot of confidence going into the enduros. Certainly you would expect the conditions we had during the test would be similar to the weather at Phillip Island.”
The HSV Dealer Team, along with pretty much all the other teams, are now in ‘endurance mode’, according to Pender, although he admitted that the traditional endurance race has changed in recent years, becoming more of another sprint race. He is also confident that the brake problem which adversely affected the team at last year’s Bathurst would not be a factor this year and is expecting a competitive result.
“We don’t have to change much on the cars; they’re built to do the distance,” he said.
A vital part of the teams’ preparation is their choice of co-driver for each of the full-time drivers, and ensuring that these, sometimes rookie V8 Supercar ‘blow-ins’, are as ready as possible for the challenge the enduro races can bring.
Imagine: two drivers, a V8 Supercar and a six hour race around Mount Panorama at Bathurst. It’s a situation which has beaten even the best touring car drivers in the world; not quite the Sunday afternoon drive most of us occasionally indulge in.
One team taking the opportunity to perfect their preparation and ready their drivers is the HSV Dealer Team, with front men Paul Dumbrell and former V8 Supercar Champion Rick Kelly, who recently held a test day at Winton Raceway, which also included co-drivers Dave Reynolds and former V8 Supercar driver Paul Radisich.
A variety of weather conditions were also involved, typical of Victoria, and these were welcomed by the crew as being good preparation for the potentially unstable conditions expected during the upcoming races at the L & H 500, Phillip Island and Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.
Team Manager, Erik Pender was positive following the test day. “You always go testing with a plan and the weather changed that a little bit for us, but we were able to do a lot of dry running, and also a lot of wet running,” he said.
“The co-drivers for our team, Dave Reynolds and Paul Radisich, managed to get a lot of miles in.”
“Paul and Rick were happy to give their respective co-drivers a lot of time in the cars, even though it is one of only four test days we get during the year,” he said.
“Because of the changes in weather during the test day we have a lot of confidence going into the enduros. Certainly you would expect the conditions we had during the test would be similar to the weather at Phillip Island.”
The HSV Dealer Team, along with pretty much all the other teams, are now in ‘endurance mode’, according to Pender, although he admitted that the traditional endurance race has changed in recent years, becoming more of another sprint race. He is also confident that the brake problem which adversely affected the team at last year’s Bathurst would not be a factor this year and is expecting a competitive result.
“We don’t have to change much on the cars; they’re built to do the distance,” he said.
| 41 |
| Vote |
Shared on
Add To: 
Subscribe to this blog
