Targa Event Reports

Event reports courtesy of the Targa Tasmania Website www.targa.com.au

Day 5 – Siddens takes Narrow Early Classic Targa Tasmania Victory

Hobart , Sunday April 20:The Queensland crew of Jon Siddens and Wayne Ferguson in their 1970 Datsun 240Z took a narrow victory in the 2008 Shannons Early Classic (handicap) competition of Targa Tasmania after their key rival struck mechanical problems just three stages from the Hobart finish.

After a stirring drive yesterday down Tasmania’s West Coast, the Picton NSW father and son team of Mike and Paul Batten leapfrogged the Queenslanders and lead by 10 seconds as the cars left Strahan this morning for the event’s final six closed-road stages.

However the Batten’s 1961 Volvo PV544 sedan began handling weirdly when its rear Panhard rod broke away from the differential mounting point early on the fast 47.24km Mt.Arrowsmith stage and they rapidly lost pace.

“We dropped about 70 seconds struggling to the end of the stage,” said Mike Batten, who built the car back in 1988. “We thought our Targa was over, but fortunately our service crew were able to re-attach the bar by drilling another mounting hole.”

By that stage they had fallen 31 seconds behind the Datsun, but with only two serious timed stages to go, there was little they could do and they eventually finished 26 seconds behind in second place.

Third, after a strong drive during the event’s final three days, was Victorian Steve Coad, whose wife Rachael and 21 year-old daughter Kaila shared navigating duties in the 1971 Monaro GTS throughout the event.

“We had no communication this morning, as our intercom just went dead,” said Coad. “Fortunately I’ve done enough of these events to have a fair idea of where the road goes and it was enough for us to hang onto our position.”

Fourth in early Classic was the 1971 Datsun 240Z of Victorians Rob and Peter Lowe, with the Barossa Valley’s Tim Lynas and Alan Letcher fifth in their 1965 Mustang GT350 and Chas and Luke Latter of New South Wales sixth in their 1967 Datsun HS10 SSS.

Day 4 – Batten Snatches Early Classic Targa Lead

The Picton, NSW father and son team of Mike and Paul Batten in their distinctive red 1961 Volvo PV544 sedan have leap-frogged into the lead of the Shannons Early Classic handicap competition of Targa Tasmania at the end of Day 4 after a storming run down Tasmania’s West Coast.

The Battens, with Paul at the wheel and his father reading he notes, began the day with a mission.

Although marginally slower on the opening Mole Creek stage than the 1970 Datsun 240Z of previous Early Classic leaders John Siddens and Wayne Ferguson of Queensland, the Battens covered the 37.48km Cethana stage fully 25 seconds faster and remained quicker than their rivals on every following stage of the day.

As a result, they picked up 87 seconds and now sit 10 seconds clear in the lead of the category with 10min 35sec lost compared with the Queensland crew’s 10:45.

The retirement on Hellyer Gorge of the previously second-placed NSW crew of Peter and Max Ulrich in their 1963 Jensen CV8 with mechanical problems removed another obstacle in the Batten’s path, but the fast final day stages on the run to the Hobart finish is likely to favour the more powerful Datsun 240Z.

The other big mover of the day in early Classic was Victoria’s Steve Coad, who muscled his 1971 Monaro GTS into third place in Early Classic after a similar storming drive over the day’s seven stages.

Coad, a Melbourne IT manager who has his wife Rachael and 21 year-old daughter Kaila sharing navigating duties, is now a comfortable four minutes clear of the fourth-placed 1971 Datsun 240Z of Robin and Peter Lowe.

Fellow Victorians Philip Edersbee and Dirk Wheaton in their 1974 Alfa Romeo GTV 2000 are fifth, with the Barossa Valley’s Tim Lynas and Alan Letcher moving up to sixth in their 1965 Ford Mustang GT350.

Day 3 – Siddens Extends Early Classic Lead

Gold Coast motor mechanic Jon Siddens and his Brisbane-based navigator Darren Ferguson in their 1970 Datsun 240Z have extended their lead in the Shannons Early Classic handicap competition of Targa Tasmania.

The Queenslanders now hold a 37 second advantage over the NSW crew of Peter and Max Ulrich in their 1963 Jensen CV8 – up from 23 seconds at the end of Day 3.

Meanwhile the Ulrichs are starting to come under pressure from the third-placed Picton, NSW father and son team of Mike and Paul Batten in their 1961 Volvo PV544 sedan, who have closed the gap to the Jensen from 65 seconds to 30 seconds.

“So far so good,” said Siddens, who built the Datsun expressly for this year’s event after owning it, unused for 15 years. “We’re fine tuning it as we go, but everything is going to plan so far.”

Comfortably now in fourth place in Early Classic are the Coads – Steve, with either his wife Rachael or 21 year-old daughter Kaila as navigator on alternate days in their 1971 orange Monaro.

They in turn have a comfortable buffer of nearly two minutes over the equal-fifth placed crews of fellow Victorians Robin and Peter Lowe in their 1971 Datsun 240Z and Philip Edersbee and Dirk Wheaton in their 1974 Alfa Romeo GTV 2000.

Day 2 – Siddens Holds Sway in Early Classic

Gold Coast motor mechanic and serial Targa Tasmania podium finisher John Siddens has his sights on another Handicap victory in this year’s event after taking the lead in the Early Classic competition at the end of Day 2.

Navigating for fellow Queenslander Graham Copeland in a series of Datsuns, he took victory in the category in 2003, placed second in 2005 and finished third in 2002 and 2004.

However this time he’s facing a few more challenges. For a start, he’s behind the steering wheel with friend Darren Ferguson calling the pace nots and their 1970 Datsun 240Z only turned a wheel for he first time in 15 years a matter of weeks ago, after being built up by Siddins from a bare shell since Christmas.

“We’re just giving the car its first test run,” said Siddins. “The brakes are not too good and there a few other improvements we will make, but overall the package isn’t too bad out of the box.”

Siddens and Ferguson currently hold a 13 second lead in Early Classic over the NSW crew of Peter and his brother Max Ulrich in their potent 1963 Jensen CV8, with the Picton, NSW father and son team of Mike and Paul Batten in their 1961 Volvo PV544 sedan third, a further 1min. O5sec. back.

Peter Ulrich was to have his wife Sari navigating, but she fell off a horse five weeks ago and broke five ribs, so his brother Max stepped into the left-hand seat at short notice.

Their Jensen – believed to be the only CV8 in the world in tarmac rally trim – has also had a power cut for 2008, with its Chrysler V8 reduced in capacity from 451-cid to 421-cid to comply with the new C2 Classic regulations.

“It’s lost a little top end power, but as it still has about 430HP at the wheels and weighs only 1400kg, it goes pretty well!”

The Battens from Picton, New South Wales, sit 39 seconds behind the Jensen in their distinctive red Volvo, hoping for better luck than in 2007, when a blown differential put an end to their Classic campaign.

“We’ve gone over everything and decompressed the motor slightly, but with these old cars you can never be 100 per cent sure,” said Mike Batten, who is driving the Volvo in its 10th successive Targa Tasmania.

Unusually amongst front-running competitors, father and son are swapping driving and navigating duties on a regular basis, with Paul driving the Volvo in Tuesday’s Prologue, Mike driving today and Paul due to take his turn again for tomorrow’s Day 3.

Queensland Targa ‘rookie’ Wayne Park and his Brisbane navigator Graham Copeland, have muscled their 1967 Chevrolet-V8 engined Bizzarrini GT America coupe into fourth place in Early Classic, 11 seconds behind the Battens, on a day generally suited to smaller and more nimble cars.

Park paid tribute to the big Italian Grand Touring car’s speed, but not its brakes or its ability to handle the tighter stages.  “But it really goes” he said. “It’s not far short of a Lamborghini Gallardo in acceleration and laps Queensland Raceway in about the same time as a Porsche GT3.”

Steve Coad and his daughter Kaila came in fifth today in Early Classic another 25 seconds later, with fellow Victorians Philip Edersbee and Dirk Wheaton sixth in their 1974 Alfa Romeo GTV 2000, 30 seconds further adrift.