iRace + Super Trucks Round 2 Oran park 15-16 May

[richie17]

I will be heading down to this round for two main reasons. one, to see trucks racing! and two, to see and say goodbye to one of Australia's greatest race tracks. (a third bonus reason for me is to go to Bathurst and climb the mountain for the first time.) A quick word on the last round (I was going to post this earlier but my computer died.) Morgan Park is a beautiful track, much better looking than Queensland raceway. It was good to see a big field of production cars with plenty of overtaking. If you missed it on TV you can watch part one here and part two here. If you look closely you can actually see me.

To Sam, we did see each other, I was the big giant with a beard and sunburn. I should have introduced myself but I wasn't sure if you were really you. I will see you at Oran park.

[richie17]

Sorry. Part one here and part two here.

[Silver 3]

What categories are running?

[SamDale]

Hi Richie,

Sorry to have missed you at Morgan Park - look forward to catching up at Oran Park. I believe I'll be in garage #1, so that's probably the best place to find me

And I have to say, I agree - Morgan Park is a beautiful track. Looking forward to heading back there in June.

Hi Silver, categories are:

Touring Car Challenge
Muscle Division
Production Racing Cars
RocketSports (including Future Racers)
Formula Tasman/LeMans Sports
SuperTrucks

[RotorFan]

Oh well, can't win em all. Worth going for the trucks though I wish they'd advertise this. If people knew its possibly the last time ever they will see the trucks race in New South Wales, I reckon it'd be packed like it used to!

I hope the various drivers and teams have settled their differences so we can see a good field.

And I hope they do a proper handicapped reverse grid 20 lap Superprix at the end of the day like they used to.

Followed by lots of burnouts!

[Jeff 8]

Originally Posted by RotorFan

Followed by lots of burnouts!

No! I'm racing there the week after at a bike meeting and don't want a dirty track.

Jeff

[RotorFan]

I'd have thought the more rubber the better

Though I remember walking the track after a truck meeting once and saw holes in the track where a truck (I think it was the Falk/Lusty SBR) had butted the front end up against the wall at the last turn and sat there burning rubber for a couple minutes

There were clumps of rubber the size of cricket balls. That was awesome

[Green Hornet]

Originally Posted by RotorFan

I wish they'd advertise this

Any true motor sport fan worth their salt would know this meeting was happening - even checking the various publications and websites etc would have given them a hint.

[alfacors]

I didn't notice anything about it in MNews or AA this week? Or did I miss the stories/adverts? Other than seeing the thread here, and on one other forum, I've not heard anything about it.

[Green Hornet]

Don't you do stuff for AA?

Seem to recall a story about Mirages running there just recently and before that a Truck story about tachograph changes and the fact it was their last OP appearance.

[alfacors]

I shoot, I don't write (other than a one-off report). Given the meeting is this weekend, I didn't see anything in this week's AA or MNews that I can recall.
I remember the Mirage article, but that was more of a Mal Rose and his fleet of cars rather than iRace....

[Green Hornet]

Well the heading says MIRAGES SEEN AT ORAN PARK and mentions iRace in the second paragraph which also says the Supertrucks will be having their last race there. It was last week's edition.

What more info would you need?

[RotorFan]

Maybe a whole page advertising it? Ads on 2WS, TV, billboards? That's what they used to do when the trucks were at their peak.

[alfacors]

Sorry, but the Shannons Nationals had a full page preview, along with a 1/3 page advertisement in AA this week for the Phillip Island round this weekend, that is far more promotion than I have ever seen for iRace.

[alfacors]

FWIW, I hope the trucks turn on a good show this weekend. It's a shame they decided to go it alone rather than with the Nationals program.

[RotorFan]

For sure. I'll be there flagging tomorrow, spectating on Saturday

[David Towe]

Got offered a drive today, rotten "economic downturn" upturned at just the wrong time!!! Can't be there but will be wishing I wasn't at work both days. Best of luck to all involved.

[SamDale]

Originally Posted by richie17

I will see you at Oran park.

Good to finally meet you at Oran Park Richie, hope you enjoyed your pilgrimage to Bathurst!

The race meeting saw plenty of great racing, and the usual camaraderie and atmosphere. It would have been nice to have a few more cars in my category, but great to see the very healthy Production Racing Cars field, and all the others continuing to grow.



Some VERY close racing between the RocketSports field too!



I managed to take some photos during the event: click here (not all the categories are covered in that lot though - I have to put the camera down and drive at some point!)

The Trucks had a fitting farewell to Oran Park - making smoke as the sun set on Saturday afternoon.



Round 3 at Morgan Park is just on 1 month away, and I'm looking forward to having another run at the great circuit.

[richie17]

Originally Posted by SamDale

hope you enjoyed your pilgrimage to Bathurst!

Did I enjoy my pilgrimage to Bathurst? After 25 years and travelling nearly 1400 kilometres I am greeted with this!!!!



Mother of all the days they have it close, it is when I visit the track!!!! Just my luck!!!!

I'm going to have a lie down now, I will post some pictures from the round and may be a video later.

[mtpanorama]

Originally Posted by richie17

Did I enjoy my pilgrimage to Bathurst? After 25 years and travelling nearly 1400 kilometres I am greeted with this!!!!



Mother of all the days they have it close, it is when I visit the track!!!! Just my luck!!!!

I'm going to have a lie down now, I will post some pictures from the round and may be a video later.

Sorry, I often have alittle chuckle when I am up at the track when the hill climb is on and I see the tourist coaches, and others turn up to find the track partly closed. I can drive around it any day I want.

[RotorFan]

What Sam Dale hasn't mentioned is that the Friday almost didn't happen!

Let me paint a picture for you... my brother and I turn up Friday morning 7:30. We are the first to sign on for Flags. I approach Garry Willmington to ask how many Flaggies we're expecting... his answer: "well, you two are flagging aren't you?"!

8:00, about the time we should be having the breifing. Still no Flag Marshals.

8:30, still no more Flaggies.

9:00, panic... call goes out to CofC "we have two flag marshals - which points do you want manned?" Answer comes back... 8, 11 and 12.4. Thats three - still only two Flaggies....

9:30, someone else steps in to flag 12.4. Where are they? We're waiting for them in a course car at pit exit... no show... Chief Flag Michelle takes my brother and I out onto the track. As we approach Turn 2, she turns around to us in the back seat: "This has to be the dodgiest breifing I've ever done..."

So they drop us off at the point, we get on the radios and wait for 12.4 to be manned. My brother and I had one event under our belts since getting our General Officials licence, and now, on our own, we're looking after 1/3 of the Oran Park track, with 6 tonne trucks zooming past.

Warmup for the Trucks finally starts, the commentary begins over the P.A. I look around the circuit from flag point 11 where I am, NO SPECTATORS! The commentator continues on but no one is there to hear it.

Warmup finished, time for Code 20. Better hurry, next session is starting and there's no one else on point. Race Control then informs me the toilets are still locked "unless you can find a tree or something", says Race Control....

At lunch time the bloke on 12.4 has had enough and asks to be relieved, finally a third flag marshal turns up to replace him.

It was quite an experience, but fun! The day didn't end that great, watching the lucky few that got taken out on Corporate Rides in the trucks. I couldn't help but think the most deserving were the two flag marshals that took a day off work and effectively made the day possible....

On Saturday there was a prize for one lucky official ... a set of Kumho tyres... nope, didn't win it

At least I got to smell some tyre smoke at the end of the day!

[racer69]

Originally Posted by RotorFan

It was quite an experience, but fun! The day didn't end that great, watching the lucky few that got taken out on Corporate Rides in the trucks. I couldn't help but think the most deserving were the two flag marshals that took a day off work and effectively made the day possible....

A close mate of mine was one of the lucky few to get a ride in one of the trucks (the orange #55), he'll have appreciated your work, especially when i tell him it almost mightn't have happened!

[RotorFan]

Cool. Yeah it would have been nice. I've been going to the truck races for more than 15 years, so it would have been a good way to see them off!

[Wozzathelad]

Better late than never I suppose!

Couple of shots from the Saturday:

[Crash Test]

Originally Posted by RotorFan

What Sam Dale hasn't mentioned is that the Friday almost didn't happen!

Let me paint a picture for you... my brother and I turn up Friday morning 7:30. We are the first to sign on for Flags. I approach Garry Willmington to ask how many Flaggies we're expecting... his answer: "well, you two are flagging aren't you?"!

8:00, about the time we should be having the breifing. Still no Flag Marshals.

8:30, still no more Flaggies.

9:00, panic... call goes out to CofC "we have two flag marshals - which points do you want manned?" Answer comes back... 8, 11 and 12.4. Thats three - still only two Flaggies....

9:30, someone else steps in to flag 12.4. Where are they? We're waiting for them in a course car at pit exit... no show... Chief Flag Michelle takes my brother and I out onto the track. As we approach Turn 2, she turns around to us in the back seat: "This has to be the dodgiest breifing I've ever done..."

So they drop us off at the point, we get on the radios and wait for 12.4 to be manned. My brother and I had one event under our belts since getting our General Officials licence, and now, on our own, we're looking after 1/3 of the Oran Park track, with 6 tonne trucks zooming past.

Warmup for the Trucks finally starts, the commentary begins over the P.A. I look around the circuit from flag point 11 where I am, NO SPECTATORS! The commentator continues on but no one is there to hear it.

Warmup finished, time for Code 20. Better hurry, next session is starting and there's no one else on point. Race Control then informs me the toilets are still locked "unless you can find a tree or something", says Race Control....

At lunch time the bloke on 12.4 has had enough and asks to be relieved, finally a third flag marshal turns up to replace him.

It was quite an experience, but fun! The day didn't end that great, watching the lucky few that got taken out on Corporate Rides in the trucks. I couldn't help but think the most deserving were the two flag marshals that took a day off work and effectively made the day possible....

On Saturday there was a prize for one lucky official ... a set of Kumho tyres... nope, didn't win it

At least I got to smell some tyre smoke at the end of the day!

Ummm, don't take this as a shot at iRace, but just a general observation on race meetings that are massively understaffed by officials.

What I was always told that when you are flagging, there has to be an absolute minimum of 2 people per flag point. One person with the green and blue flags, and the other with the yellow, facing each other. The first flaggy with the blue and green is watching upcoming traffic, not only for possibilities to wave the flag, but primarily to watch the back of the yellow flag flaggy. The yellow flag flaggy meanwhile is there to protect the drivers from what is beyond the flag point.

So what does the flaggy who is standing there by themselves do? Do they watch the oncoming traffic to protect themselves, or do they have their back to traffic protecting the drivers? What happens when a car stops upside on fire just after the flag point on the dog leg?

The other things that scare me are that the flag marshals are relatively inexperienced, that they have to cover a whole third of the circuit (as well as the bit leading up to them), and that it involves truck racing- if you want your back covered for any class, it would be trucks.

At the end of the day, all of the above makes it massively unsafe for competitors as well as officials. Kudos for turning up, but when it comes to safety, is it worth doing a half arsed job?