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2005 was the last time the Aussie’s took on the kiwi’s in the Trans Tasman Championship and with thanks to Karen and the team at the Canterbury Car Club, ourselves, Skitzo and Son Racing and Gerry Bajeema Racing headed to the land of the great white cloud to take up the first round of the challenge. For this series as the Freightliner is the CAT Dealer truck we would be flying the flag for the New Zealand Cat Dealer GOUGH. We designed a custom made cover for the Freightliner, as we discovered in 2005 the crossing by sea takes it’s toll on nuts and bolts with many replaced due to rust not to mention the sea salt thickly plastered over the body. The cover completely encased the SuperTruck. Other than that, our three truck Aussie team would have to share the b-trailer container of spares, given we were restricted on the items we could send. The shipping by sea is extremely costly measured by precious millimetres.
The ship landed in Littleton Wharf in Christchurch, where the wonderful team at Hilton Haulage collected the precious cargo and delivered it to D.B. Brewery into the very safe and capable hands of Ivan where it was stored until the team started to arrive on the Wednesday of race week. When it came time for the trucks and the container to go to the track Hilton’s collected the container and delivered it with their amazing equipment with heavy cranes and get this, the SuperTrucks were driven to the track, Brett from Daniel’s team drove the No. 2 Kenworth, Skitzo in the 81 Kenworth and Terry buzzy bee in the No. 1 Cat Freightliner. They probably wouldn’t handle or ride like a highway truck !! The journey for our team members in New Zealand is huge. They are all based on the North Island. With special thanks to David, Lauren and Jeffrey Kernohan, they supplied the crew/catering bus and service vehicle. Terry had the Wednesday off and drove from Auckland to Turangi (approx 3hrs) and Daniel from Gough’s flew into Turangi. So Lauren, Jeff, Terry and Daniel headed to Palmeston where they collected Big Al, then continued onto Wellington to catch the ferry. David was left in Turangi to man the fort of KCL Contractors which allowed Jeff and Lauren to get away. The ferry departure time was 3.00 a.m. with a 6.30 a.m. arrival into Picton on the South Island.
Boarding onto the ferry did not go that smoothly, due to the fact new regulations implemented Jan 1, 2008 meant that service vehicles 2.5 ton or more are required to have certified tie down brackets, in addition oxy bottles that Jeff had put on board for use at the track had to be left behind at Wellington and would need to be collected on their return passage. With the team satisfying the officials boarding the vessel the team made the crossing. The drive from Picton to Christchurch is some five hours. They collected from the airport, Skitzo, Trevor Page, Daniel Bajeema and team members, in addition a vehicle arranged through sponsorship by the Canterbury Car Club was sent up to Christchurch to assist with ferrying down all the Aussie contingent. Stan Seton the President of Antro and his son Michael the Secretary made the journey to support the aussie teams but to also take in how the kiwi’s run their events. Also there to fly the Aussie flag were Charlie and Helen Zammit and Annette and John Moneith which was really great. Bob the Builder flew in late Wednesday and was picked up by Karen from Canterbury Car Club where that night they had tea with committee members prior to the event.
Thursday morning the SuperTrucks were scrutineered at Timaru Motors and then later that day, under police escort participated in a street parade through the main drag of Timaru. Jeff drove Skitzo’s kenworth and Bob the Builder drove the CAT Freightliner with a very excited young lad who had won a competition for a ride. His picture appears on the front cover of the newspaper with Bob. On the Thursday night, Ivan and the team at D.B. Brewery put on their night for sponsors and competitors. Part of the tradition of this event is that the visiting Aussie’s go behind the bar 11pm ish and try their hand at pulling beers. Needless to say our team coped extremely well with the challenge and a great and late night was had by all. In the early hours of Friday morning the team limped home to Baywatch – our accommodation for our time in Timaru. The Baywatch has the most cutest ambassador named “Teddy” he is a gorgeous little Maltese who rides on the service trolley, visits guests and generally is in charge of public relations I’m sure. Needless to say I fell in love with him. What Nugget doesn’t know won’t hurt !!!!! Friday was a designated practice day, we would however, miss the first session due to unloading and setting up the pit. Canterbury Car Club arranged a couple of excellent marquees for us and Lauren and the KCL team had their bus there as part of their sponsorship of the event which was to cater and take care of the Aussie’s which was ‘A-One’ all weekend. Whilst taking to the track for a ‘shakedown’ in the second practice, we would only get four laps in before the Malcolm Little Cummins entry would blow an engine causing the track to be closed due to oil on the circuit making for perilous conditions.
On the third practice Bob the Builder found an oversteer issue however, on the whole all was good. A slight vibration under brakes was also apparent. 4pm on the Friday we would take part in media rides, with Blane of Hemisphere Freight obviously thrilled with the experience. Whilst taking part in the rides, Bob the Builder was still bugged by a vibration under brakes and on completion of the rides and return to pits, found a front right cracked rotor. That night, at the track, the kiwi’s headed by Christine and Scratch with a hand from Stan Seton put on a BBQ for the Aussie supporters and spectators. Christine and Scrach also have a very cute four legged companion Stanley – he and I made friends straight away. Late Friday I arrived in Christchurch from Adelaide and waited at the airport for Beau Hewat the other half and driver of Skitzo and Son racing to arrive. Like I said to Skitz, I’m happy to drive Beau to Timaru, but there is no way he is driving the rental down – I really wanted to get there with my nerves in tact !! When we arrived Friday night (about 2 x hours drive from airport to track) most of the gang were dead from their big night at D.B. Brewery together with the hot conditions at the track all day. Needless to say it wasn’t a late night with us all keen to feel good for the important part of the weekend !! When I left Adelaide I thought one of the things amongst others I was looking forward to was cooler conditions in Timaru. Hmmm, this was not to be. Saturday was hot and windy – in fact by the end of the day we all felt zapped and like wounded soldiers. Daniel and I set up merchandise, Lauren was busy with catering and Jeff, Terry and Al were busy gearing up the SuperTruck.
Saturday would be a practice session, qualifying and one race. Practice was at 10.15 and Bobby found the CAT Freightliner SuperTruck doing all kinds of understeer and oversteer – handling was nowhere near as good as yesterday, but then again the conditions were hotter and early morning grease on the track can all take it’s toll, especially on tyre pressures. The team decided to change the tyres and alter the sway bar. As is the case here in Aus where Beaurepaires supply fitters and a service vehicle the same took place at Timaru. With thanks to Ross McDonald, Manager of Beaurepaires Timaru. With the changes in place, qualifying took place at 1.15 pm. With only a couple of laps into the session mayhem ensued when Bob the Builder snapped off the gear lever. With mad dashes back to the pit, Jeff and the team were able to make repairs seeing Bobby re-enter the track. Whilst the Freightliner was still taily, he had managed to still pull off the fastest time and qualified in pole. Our Aussie mates battled, with Bajeema unable to take part in qualifying due to a fuel pump issue and Beau was relegated rear of field due to a speeding infringement on the track. Race 1 was held at 3.45 and was to be decided over 6 laps. This race was part of the New Zealand Championship as opposed to counting for the Trans Tasman. Conditions were extreme with the heat taking it’s toll on many competitors in other categories – there were drivers who had collapsed. Daniel Bajeema was unable to take part as his team were working on the fuel pump issue, Beau was at the rear of the grid and the Builder off pole.
Following the pace truck around for the warm up, the green light was given and they were racing. Initially off to a good start, due to the position of the Builder’s mirrors he lost sight of the McGintey No 92 entry being driven by Kayne Scott and nearly lost his lead position into turn 1, however, thankfully got it together in quick fashion to continue leading. The lead would remain unchanged with the front runners from start to finish with Bobby the Builder 1st, 92 Scott 2nd and No. 5 Ash Hey in third. Beau would finish in 6th. Apart from winning the race, Bobby lapped the fastest time of all with a 1.22.453. On return to the pit, we would find another broken rotor, this time the front left, which the team would replace in preparation for Sunday race day. Totally exhausted from the heat the team headed back to Baywatch for showers and a rest prior to dinner in the city. Sunday was predicted to be as hot as Saturday and as a result, the trucks were given one minute pit warnings, so the drivers were not sitting in the trucks cooking prior to their starts. As per Saturday, Daniel and I set up merchandise, Lauren catered and the boys geared up for the scrub session to be held at 9.30. In the session Bob the Builder completed some 6 laps where he found the tyre pressure changes had made a huge difference. At this stage however, conditions were still much cooler so gauging if this would be the solution and whether the freightliner would go off when it hotted up would remain to be seen. Prior to race 1, the National Anthems of both countries were performed, yours truly with the Aussie one and locals Noel and Cheryl performed the 2 kiwi anthems.
Race 1 was commenced at 10.45. Starting position for the builder, reverse grid and handicapped – the slower qualifying trucks were given a 20 second start advantage out front. When the green flag dropped, chaos ensued when the No. 12 entry running in fourth position went off in turn 1, this resulted in our main competition Kayne Scott in the No. 92 entry which started alongside the builder getting a hole shot and definite advantage through the pack whilst the field settled down. Scott had managed to get into fourth by the second lap with Bobby still looking for a way around traffic at the back of the field. Lap four was eventful when Scott made a move on Bajeema who was running 3rd – the move was a nudge which saw Daniel back into fourth, with Moko and Thompson one and two respectively, Bobby was still battling at the back of the field. Laps 5 & 6 saw the Thomson entry who was coming second in the group succumb to pressure heading infield, with lots of argy bargy and chaos taking place, which would see the builder climb up into fourth, behind Moko, Scott, Beau who had made good ground then Bob. Also, on lap 6 the ABS stopped working on the Cat SuperTruck causing the brakes to lock up and a bad vibration under brakes had developed, with no traction on the rears. Bajeema was forced to pit due to a flat right rear from the hit sustained from Scott in lap 4 and was unable to re-enter. Still despite this, Bobby kept circulating making up another spot into third behind Scott and fellow Aussie Beau. On return to the pit the vibration and braking issue would be investigated where we discovered a serious problem with the front right – the wheel bearing had collapsed destroying all components. The team had to use an oxy to get the parts off as they had melted in the heat. Apart from getting the parts off the hunt was on for new parts. A check around the pit was negative with a helicopter on stand by in Christchurch to fly down parts if we could not source them locally on a Sunday morning in down town Timaru. With much appreciation, David Struthers of Temuka Transport ran a rescue mission to their depot, where they proceeded to disassemble one of their own vehicles to steal the parts required. What an effort !! We unfortunately missed the second race at 1pm – there simply was not enough time, however, the good news would be we would be able to race in the next 3 x 2 lap Trans Tasman sprints. Race 2 had good news in that fellow Aussie Beau would take the win from Moko, Rowe, Scott, Hey with Daniel in 4th. The Trans Tasman Sprints which are 3 x 2 laps see competitors start off in different positions for each sprint.
Sprint 1, would see us off the front line with Scott, Bajeema off the second line with Rowe and Beau off the 3rd line with Hey. Truck 111 Moko, was the emergency in case either team lost a competitor. With a rolling start the green light dropped and Bobby the Builder was leading into turn one. Coming around to commence lap 2, the builder had increased his lead, however, would see Beau pit due to a broken brake chamber. Bajeema was in 4th. On the second lap the number 5 entry for the kiwi’s would spin due to a broken stay rod on the diff, thus the 111 would become the substitute. The end result on the chequered flag for lap 2 would see, Bob the Builder, Scott, Rowe, Bajeema, Moko and Hewat – positions 1, 4 and 6th for the Aussies. Sprint 2, would see Bajeema on the front row with Rowe, second row, Bob the Builder and Scott the 92 entry and third row, Hewat and 111 entry of Moko. Green flag dropped and coming out of turn 1 Aussie Bajeema was leading the pack with the rest of the field in pursuit in their starting positions. This would all change when coming into the straight Bajeema would go wide on the infield losing his lead with No. 12 Rowe ready to take over. Lap 2 would see positions remain unchanged with Rowe, Bajeema, Scott, Bob the Builder followed by Hewat – resulting in 2/4/5 to the Aussies. The third and final sprint for the day would see 111 Moko on the front line with 81 Hewat, alongside, Bobby and Scott on the second line and Bajeema and Rowe on the third line. The green flagged dropped and Beau took the lead into turn one, Scott jumped the start in the 92 McGinty’s truck moving into second with Bobby third, Rowe 4th followed by 111 Moko who had been relegated to the back of the field with Bajeema on the tail. By the first corner of lap 2, Scott got around Beau with Bobby following his lead. This would result in 92 Scott first, Bob the Builder 2nd, Beau in third, 12 Rowe 4th, Bajeema in 2 5th and Moko in 111 at the rear, resulting in 2/3/5th. Whilst we could have lodged a protest regarding the jumped start we decided against it – the process is arduous and not guaranteed of a result. The kiwi’s did lodge a protest against Beau Hewat, however, this was dismissed and as a result see’s the Aussie team leading by 2 points going into the second round in April.
Overall, even though missing one race due to the wheel bearing, Bobby still managed to get 2nd in the N.Z. Championship standings going into the 2nd round in April. His pole on Saturday and win in race 1 certainly helping is cause. The presentation was conducted at Sails then on conclusion the teams moved to Speight’s for tea and further celebrations of what had been a very successful weekend. Hilton Haulage transported the trucks and parts back to D.B. Brewery where Terry and Jeff proceeded to remove the CAT engine from the Aust 1 Freightliner. The engine is going back to Gough’s in Auckland for freshening up prior to the second round, in addition once the SuperTruck arrives back in Aus it will land in Sydney with only just over a week remaining prior to round 1 of the Aussie series. Timaru motors are scheduled to work on the front end of the SuperTruck, with particular emphasis on the front right wheel bearings. In all the seasons we have run we have never done a wheel bearing and given the limit on spares and equipment we can take to N.Z. did not include this amongst our goodies. All the other trucks run completely different front ends, most drum brakes as opposed to ABS. So with the weekend done, after breakfast in Timaru we all went our separate ways, basically the reverse of coming in catching planes, the ferry and covering many miles. There is no doubting race weekend takes some getting over but apart from the competition at stake is very social and very enjoyable. The response from the kiwi’s when we Aussie’s cross the Tasman is amazing and there is no question that they truly love their motorsport. We are all looking forward to returning in April and hope that we can extend our leads both on the Trans Tasman and New Zealand Titles. We will be back in touch following the final round. Yours
in racing and regards,
The Trans Tasman Series dates are : The Australian Series is scheduled as follows and will kick off in Sydney:
Footnote:
Photos courtesy Euan Cameron, Daniel Jones, Lauren Kernohan
Previous Editions of Latest News November 07 Round 5: Oran Park – Australian Championship October 07 Round 4: Mallala – Australian Championship August 07 Round 3: Barbagallo – Australian Championship June-July 07 Round 2: Mallala – Australian Championship
November 06 Round 4: Oran Park – Australian Championship October 06 Round 3: Barbagallo – Australian Championship July 06 Round 2: Mallala – Australian Championship May 06 Round 1: Oran Park – Australian Championship
Sept 05 Round 6: Oran Park – Australian Championship May 05 Round 5: Barbagallo – Australian Championship May 05 Round 4: Mallala – Australian Championship May 05 Round 3: Winton – Australian Championship April 05 Round 2: Manfield – New Zealand Championship March 05 Round 1: Timaru – New Zealand Championship
Aug 04 Round 3: Barbagallo – Australian Championship May 04 Round 1: Mallala – Australian Championship Feb 04 Round 3: Pukekohe – New Zealand Championship Jan 04 Round 2: Manfield – New Zealand Championship Jan 04 Round 1: Timaru - New Zealand Championship
December 03 : New truck finshed with only weeks to spare before Timaru race!
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