Select to view full size 2006 DLRA Lake Gairdner Speed Week

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Rod Ramblings

It was with a heavy heart that I pulled out of our camp on Saturday with a badly damaged race car, knowing that I had probably made my last pass down that stretch of graded salt that I love, yet hate!, but on the other hand I was glad to be able to say thanks to the fire crew, the emergency response guys, the many people there to help and all those who showed so much concern. A big thanks also to those who got their extinguishers to the fire thus saving a total loss of the car.

There was no sign of any trouble on the run, we pushed the car to around 50 mph, running up to around 125 in first, knowing how wet the track was I went straight to 2nd gear trying to avoid wheel spin and shifted into 3rd just on 200 mph and hitting the first timers at 225mph, I made a quick check on the fuel pressure and pressed the NOS button which immediately cut the motor completely, so released it and pressed it again, the same thing happened, so as to not waste the run altogether just wound it to the 6 mile and a 240mph run, I was getting off the power slowly and knowing there was wet salt ahead I pulled the chute, but nothing happened, so started down shifting to around 100 before touching the brake, it was then things started to go wrong. I noticed smoke coming between the bonnet and the front screen, then smelt oil, I then killed the ignition, turning to get well off the track and jamming on the brakes before hitting the extinguishers, which was when things really got serious. I was instantly blinded and gasping for air. I hit the electric window switches before realising they don´t work without the ignition being on. It was then I thought I had better do things in order, I got the wheel off, got my belt off, reaching forward along the net I found the door handle and got that open, then I started on the net having real trouble getting the strength to get the pin out, I finally got it out and started to get out, but remembered my head not following my body because the fan lead was still connected to my helmet, but the net was the main trouble, it was not down and that is all I remember until someone was saying something about ´move your legs´, then realising the emergency guy was wetting me down and Norm Hardinge was there along with my brother Mark and Debra Dawson all having worried looks on their faces. Thanks guys.

It was a close call and things would have been really serious if the fire crew wasn´t there. What it appears has happened, sometime after leaving the line the pressure line from the dry sump pump had split, spraying oil onto the left hand header, setting fire to it, burning through the main battery power lead which then dropped onto the steel extinguisher line, completely cutting it in half and when I hit the extinguishers nothing came out of the nozzle on the left side, the fire had burnt through one of the two fuel lines from the tank setting fire to the tank which blew up instantly heating the NOS bottle so quick the relief valve hadn´t gone off and it consequently exploded completely destroying the front of the car, buckling the chassis, wishbone, firewall and body, all fuel pumps, regulator, front tyres, wiring etc. Nothing is impossible to fix but I can´t justify the cost involved, every bit of $150.0.00 would be needed. The motor appears to be o.k. and the computer appears to have done its job as it was programmed not to allow the NOS to come in under any one of four conditions: low fuel pressure, low oil pressure (which is what we must have been getting), excessive temperature or excessive RPM.

There are many lessons to be learned from this ride: All drivers must be timed to see how long it takes them to get out of their vehicle fully suited, electric windows must be wired to be live when the ignition is off, extinguishers charged with contents that don´t overcome the driver (which is now available but wasn´t when we built our car), engine bays must be completely separate from the interior, it is no good having extinguishers going off where there is no fire and possibly the biggest lesson of all is that the fire crew couldn´t get to the fire because of the completely sealed front. All these problems could be easily overcome and I have written to the new Chief Steward with these and other suggestions.

This year´s event was by far our biggest entry list and losing two days with the water blowing in really put us in an almost impossible position. Many people didn´t even get a run, anyone who paid and didn´t get a run please let us know and we can make sure it carries over for next year´s event. I ask people who were affected not to get too upset as it is all a learning curve and streamlining will be introduced as we learn. Remember we are all volunteering our time.

On a happier note the Ranger was happy as were Len and Joy Newton, our auction was a very successful event and the U.S. team went away with praise for our efforts even though the water ruined any chance they had to get the record they wanted, under normal conditions 90% of the previous meetings would have seen them get it. I feel really bad as I talked them into coming at the last Bonneville meet. I talked to Mike Akatiff at length on the Friday night when they decided to pull the pin on it and he was very disappointed but said he had learned valuable lessons in many areas. When they pulled out they left the club some oil, 5 popup shade covers, a ground sheet and 6 drums of fuel which I bought home and have given to Bob Fisher Superchargers to sell for us, they also left us the money given to us for expenses which they well covered and I will write to them with a thank you from the club. I will also be sending thanks to the Fire crew and Firejack Pty. Ltd. who Peter Noy works for, as they fuelled our extinguishers at no expense.

There were many people who worked hard to make this event happen, but from my observations the ones that need special thanking were: Gary Brennan, who worked tirelessly from an early arrival to a late leave along with conducting a raffle that raised around $300.00 after expenses. Mark Hadfield and Debra Dawson who didn´t see any of the event as they manned the Merchandising tent from the start to the finish. Animal and his team right through to the cleanup worked to make it happen. Trevor Beck and Kevin Saville were always ready when something had to be done, Garry Baker in his role as bike scrutineer was flat out but undoubtedly Bob Ellis needs a special thank you, Bob stepped in to work as car scrutineer helping Len Souter who was under a lot of pressure when our replacement scrutineer we had organised couldn´t make it. Bob was still helping out on Thursday when he has supposed to be running, a big thanks Bob. Andy the Camp Commander was also flat out keeping the toilets, showers and the camp sites organised, thanks Andy. Tom Carroll and Stan did whatever had to be done to help Rob and all the Stan´s again at the cleanup showed their expertise.
John and Paul Broughan gave much needed help when required but as I said, many made it happen, so thanks to everyone.

What about the American lady who said to Mark that she was running a little short of cash and asked was there an ATM in the area!!!!

The total number of entries this year was 112 and the total number of runs made was 268, which is not too bad considering the circumstances.

If you have any ideas that could help in any area or if you can help with the running of the meeting please send a letter to DLRA, P.O. Box 349, Castlemaine. Vic 3450 or an email to:carol@castlemaine.net.

 

Stewards Report

GREETINGS ALL
Well another meeting has been completed. I believe it was a successful meeting even if we did have few problems like a very wet course, some people not following start line procedures, a couple of motorcycle accidents and a fire . It´s enough to give the chief steward grey hair. I guess I´m lucky mine is already grey. At least we ran some new records. I am currently reviewing the incidents and the rule book to try and stop anything happening in the future. Gary Baker (the motor cycle steward ) has sent me his review of the motor cycle rules and I intend to go with what he has recommended. There will also be some changes to the car rules to do with positioning of fuel tanks & nitrous bottles, welded steering components & possibly fire systems. New race cars and motorcycles that are either under construction or on the drawing board will need to fit into an existing class as I don´t want to create any more classes or modify any classes to suit peoples ideas. If anybody has any enquiries or wants to have a talk about any issues please feel free to call me on 0419134683 In finishing I would like to thank all the people that volunteered their time and effort to run the event . without these people there wouldn´t be an event.

Now to the race car.
I´m pretty happy with the speed that we achieved with the old coupe ( another 1 mile an hour would have been nice ) but it just means we will have to bring it back for another try next year. I believe the old Cleveland has got 200mph in it with some better traction. Wheelspin and going sideways at 160+mph was some fun. I intend to get the engine on the dyno during the year and try some bigger carbies to see if we can find a few more horsepower to help us along the way.

Best regards

Brian Nicholson member 131

 

Lake Gairdner Scenic Tour.

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RESULTS Report  Results  Photos 

official Results of DLRA Speed Trials, March 6th - 10th 2006 - Peter Noy, Chief Timer.
Any application for amendments to these results must be made on the Results and Records Amendment Form.

119 drivers/riders entered, 268 total runs completed.

Records shown are either Open or a Record prior to this meeting.
Speeds shown in RED are records set for this year

Driver No. Vehicle Class MPH Record
Rod Hadfield #003 96 VS Commodore AA/FALT 240.0 259.067
John Lynch #092 Belly Tank A/BFL 253.860 301.729
Darryl Hunt #093 Commodore E/PRO 154.745 160.007
Ray Charlton #096 32 Ford Roadster C/STR 175.618 189.294
Brian Nicholson #131 1973 XA Ford Coupe C/PRO 183.879 193.579
Vic O'Neill #132 32 Ford Coupe B/FCC 120.292 Open
Vic O'Neill #132 32 Ford Coupe B/GCC 125.918 Open
Steve Charlton #151 EF Falcon C/PRO 184.614 193.579
Steve Charlton #151 EF Falcon C/STR 170.672 189.294
Bob Bowman #194 27 Ford T Roadster D/GMR 165.812 171.159
Norm Hardinge #201 34 Ford Roadster B/GR 195.577 190.003
Bob Ellis #202 65 XP Ford Falcon Coupe C/GCC 181.983 202.520
Mathew Saunders #207 Fiat Topolino E/GCC 170.228 126.404
Steven Stamp #214 28 Ford A Roadster C/GMR 181.910 180.704
Wayne Belot #247 34 Ford Roadster B/GR 195.397 190.003
Graham Cain #249 72 LJ Holden Torana D/GC 129.701 178.651
Norm Golgerth #250 72 LJ Holden Torana D/GC 159.101 178.651
John Dent #253 68 Ford Mustang A/GC 189.823 202.440
Lionel West #272 96 VS Commodore AA/FALT 224.536 259.067
Nicholas Bown #274 86 VL Holden Commodore C/PRO 193.850 193.579
Roy Brand #277 XF Falcon Ute A/M-Ute 124.584 Open
Don Noble #281 Nissan Sklyline F/GC 141.187 137.988
Dennis Boundy #283 54 FJ Holden XO/PRO 113.075 111.124
Phil Stelling #285 68 HK Holden Monaro C/PRO 188.758 193.579
Mark Bryan #292 69 XW Ford Falcon C/PRO 175.168 193.579
Norm Bradshaw #295 68 Ford Mustang A/GC 168.082 202.440
Aulis Soderblom #296 28 Ford A Roadster C/GMR 185.013 180.704
Robert Murdock #299 EL Falcon E/PRO 152.892 160.007
Gary Brown #259 XF Falcon Ute A/M-Ute 119.724 Open
Des Jewis #311 Lakester D/GL 118.312 125.505
Bruce Fisher #321 1973 XA Ford Coupe C/PRO 186.518 193.579
Greg White #322 1973 XA Ford Coupe C/PRO 199.225 193.579
Daniel MacDonald #328 XB Falcon Coupe C/PRO 169.379 193.579
Derrick Borgas #335 80 XD Falcon AA/GALT 216.467 Open
Graeme De Courcy Cann #336 2005 Lakester H/GL 68.609 57.182
Adrian Hunt #342 Commodore E/PRO 144.126 160.007
Steven Vorwerk #343 50 International Truck NA/DT 111.707 Open
Graeme Turner #346 80 XD Falcon AA/GALT 211.764 Open
Michael Bowden #360 72 HQ Holden Statesman B/PRO 177.909 175.781
Chris Matherson #380 97 Ford Thunderbird C/GALT 196.461 218.512
Bill Cannon #381 Nissan Bluebird G/BGCC 100.747 Open
Daryl Chalmers #390 EF Falcon C/PRO 187.724 193.579
Dean Soderblom #395 28 Ford A Roadster C/GMR 182.116 180.704
Wayne Pickles #397 68 HK Holden Monaro C/PRO 187.090 193.579
Gavin Manning #414 Ford U/DT 125.125 133.769
Don Hudson #417 HQ Holden Monaro A/GC 151.674 202.440
Alan Fountain #423 Lakester A/FL 168.452 211.50
Stewart Pennycook #430 EF Falcon C/PRO 157.659 193.579
Ryan Culpitt #438 Nissan Bluebird G/BGCC 75.2722 Open
Rebeka Tucker #445 Suzuki Swift H/PRO 125.226 123.416
Justin Clarke #453 HQ Holden Monaro A/GC 151.006 202.440
Adam Rosenberg #456 EL Falcon E/PRO 159.419 160.007
Adam Pickles #466 68 HK Holden Monaro C/PRO 181.296 193.579
Doug Elsworthy #469 Lakester D/GL 127.136 125.505
Jan Grocke #499 Cortina E/PRO 123.685 160.007
Darren Visser #506 Chamberlain Tractor /Tractor 55.878 Open
Steven White #507 Ford T Roadster E/GMR 84.352 126.11
Max Ellery #510 Commodore E/PRO 119.236 160.007
Kyle West #521 Nissan Bluebird G/BGCC 122.440 Open
C Pettigrew #529 UC Holden Torana E/GC 108.169 Open
Neal Coglin #537 HQ Holden Monaro A/GC 146.353 202.440
Alan Jacups #217 HQ Holden Monaro A/GC 124.193 202.440
Neil Davis #549 34 Ford Roadster B/GR 126.662 190.003
David Lowe #369 Lakester D/GL 154.526 125.505

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Rider No. Vehicle Class MPH Record
Phil Cvirn #135 '63 Harley Davison MPS/PF 1650 147.947 Open
Phil Cvirn #135 '63 Harley Davidson MPS/PG 1650 144.906 Open
Trevor Clare #139 Special Construction APS/BG 4400 88.945 141.978
Nigel Begg #177 Yamaha 77 P/G 500 110.846 Open
Chris Fraser #120 Special Construction APS/BG 4400 143.626 141.978
Ron Stayt #178 Kawasaki MPS/G 1350 204.0 204.603
Bob Prior #205 Suzuki GSX MPS/BF 1350 173.226 159.602
Terry Prince #280 '56 Vincent Sidecar SC/MVG 1350 113.293 Open
Gary Baker #282 Special Construction APS/F 1000 131.950 202.065
Laszlo Molnar #347 Harley Davidson P/PG 1650 122.925 Open
Trent Clare #365 Honda CBR MPS/G 250 106.521 Open
Grant Schlein #371 Suzuki GSX MPS/G 1350 195.514 204.603
Greg Watters #379 2001 Suzuki Hayabusa MPS/BG 1350 196.699 223.325
Alex Musson #387 Ducati M/F 900 102.322 Open
Ben James #389 Kawasaki MPS/G 1000 135.108 170.261
Steven Barnett #391 Suzuki GT MPS/G 750 143.972 155.925
Paul Bushell #392 Honda P/PG 125 68.006 Open
Paul Bushell #392 Honda M/PG 125 77.666 Open
Gary Peterson #394 Suzuki GSX MPS/G 1350 197.541 204.603
Bill Brice #411 42 Harley Davidson M/VG 500 106.002 63.073
Bill Brice #411 42 Harley Davidson M/VG 175 63.649 Open
Robert Bishop #422 Special Construction APS/BG 3000 144.848 Open
Andrew Rogers #431 80 Suzuki M BG 1000 137.242 114.434
Martin Hicks #439 Suzuki M/BG 1000 136.147 114.434
Evelyne Scholz #443 Yamaha TZ MPS/G 1000 151.789 170.261
Dave McLachlan #444 Yamaha TZ MPS/G 1000 177.988 170.261
Jeffery Lemon #454 Kawasaki MPS/G 1350 166.097 204.603
Peter Dean #474A Ducati MPS/G 900 136.033 Open
Peter Dean #474B MPS/P 900   Open
Bob Lambert #484 Honda CT M/F 175 71.574 Open
Trevor Neilson #490 Honda M/BG 1350 125.278 126.778
Kim Krebs #495 Hayabusa MPS/BF 1350 166.666 159.602
Paul Tucker #498 Harley Davidson P/PG 1650 118.347 Open
Steve Sharpe #501; Yamaha MPS/G 1000 162.491 170.261
David Hager #502 Suzuki GSX MPS/G 1350 155.012 204.603
Malcom Storrock #504 Triumph P/PG 1000 153.485 181.241
Brett DeStoop #509 Suzuki GT MPS/F 1000 164.024 Open
Richard Assen #519 Hayabusa MPS/BG 1350 186.075 223.325
Blake Clare #522 Honda MPS/G 250 97.423 Open
Blake Clare #522 Honda MPS/F 250 109.117 Open
David Argent #524 Suzuki GSR MPS/G 750 136.306 155.925
Wayne Macdonald #527 Hayabusa P/PG 1350 173.858 121.424
Wayne Macdonald #527 Suzuki GSX MPS/G 1350 198.565 204.603
Joe Amo #534   P/PG 1350 198.259 121.424
Joe Amo #534 Kawasaki MPS/BF 1000 174.536 Open
John Noonan #535 Hayabusa MPS/BF 1350 235.740 159.602
Sam Wheeler #545 Streamliner XS/BG 249.014 Open
Richard Suter #539 Honda P/PG 1000 156.236 181.241
David Russell #540 Hayabusa P/PG 1350 125.909 121.424

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PHOTOS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Report  Results  Photos 

Photos courtesy of "Wacka", Phil Stelling, Don Hudson, Justin Clarke, Alex, Don Noble, Max Ellery and Terry Prince.
Got any photos? Send 'em to me

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PHOTOS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Report  Results  Photos 

 

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