 It had all come down to this, another exciting season of Touring Car Racing in Australia had arrived at the famed racetrack of Mount Panorama for a champion to be crowned. Reigning champion Josh Buchan would arrive at Bathurst on 640 points, as Zac Soutar trailed on 604 points.   Garry Rogers Motorsport would race two more of the brand new Peugeot 308 P51s for the Valvoline pair of Aaron Cameron and Ryan Casha, after Jordan Cox and Ben Bargwanna debuted the new models at the previous round in Sydney.   99 Motorsport would return during the final round of the championship, this time with New Zealand Formula Ford champion Blake Knowles behind the wheel. Although this would also be his debut in the category, he is no stranger to TCR, as the 18-year old already has multiple wins in both Audi and Hyundai TCR cars back home.    Josh Buchan threw the first punch in the first practice session going fastest with a 2:17.092, as Zac Soutar would be seven tenths (2:17.881) down the road in second, with Aaron Cameron in third (2:18.095).    The second practice session would be faster and much closer, with the top three being separated by less than a tenth of a second. Brad Harris, who had been fast all season long topped the timesheets (2:16.101), Dylan O’Keefe second (2:16.155), and fellow Wall Racing teammate and brother Will Harris in third (2:16.177).    Zac Soutar would do everything in his power to grab the championship, and he would begin my nabbing pole position with a blistering 2:12.813. Will Harris would line up alongside on the front row after setting a 2:13.657, and Josh Buchan would start third with a 2:13.755 lap.  Before Race 1 could begin, Aaron Cameron suffered a power steering failure, and unfortunately that would spell the end of his weekend altogether.    Brad Harris started outside his grid slot when the lights went out, which resulted in five-seconds being added to his race time, dropping him from fourth to fifth. Zac Soutar however, would go mistake free to lead every lap on his way to victory, followed by Dylan O’Keefe and championship rival Josh Buchan.  Race 2 would be a reverse grid race, with Blake Knowles on pole and Will Harris alongside. However, both front row starters would have poor starts, with Will Harris stalling on the grid, and Brad Harris running into Ryan Casha, who then hit Blake Knowles. Knowles would spin out and have to retire due to the sustained damage on his Audi RS3. It seemed that nobody was near their original starting positions as they arrived at Griffins Bend.    Will Harris would remarkably climb back through the field to a second-place finish, after Ben Bargwanna would pull over due to an oil pressure warning in his Peugeot 308. Jordan Cox took the victory, with Tom Oliphant rounding out the podium.     All the anticipation would build up for Race 3, particularly thanks to the grid walk before the race, open to all spectators, with Supercheap Auto pulling out all the stops, as the naming sponsor for both TCR and the Bathurst International.    Zac Soutar would start from pole position once again, however, through Griffin’s Bend, on the outside of O’Keefe, he would run wide almost smacking the concrete and losing multiple positions. Jordan Cox’s engine would die, then get going again, as Soutar fought through the field.    Dylan O’Keefe would grab the Race 3 victory and the round win, followed by Tom Oliphant in second. Zac Soutar would climb back up to third, but it wouldn’t be enough.      Josh Buchan had become back-to-back TCR Australia champion. He becomes the first driver to win multiple TCR Australia championships, as HMO Customer Racing and Hyundai nab their third championship since the category’s inception in 2019.   With this being the final round of the Shannon’s Nationals/Speed Series, fans await the announcement for the championship’s plans in 2025.
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 Mount Panorama would play host to the final round of the GT World Challenge Australia 2024 season, and the last ever Speed Series round before the SRO takes over both GT3 and GT4 categories. Both the Pro-Am and Am class champions would be decided here at Bathurst, after the two 1-hour endurance races had been completed.   Although there were five driver pairings that could mathematically win the Pro-Am championship, with Arise Racing GT’s Chaz Mostert and Liam Talbot in the lead, and Audi’s Brad Schumacher and Will Brown still in with a chance, unless both pairings suffered horrendous bad luck.   For Michael Sheargold and Garth Walden from RAM Motorsport to claim the Am championship, all they needed to do was finish ahead of James and Theo Koundouris' Supabarn/Tigani Motorsport Mercedes AMG GT3 Evo in Race 1.   Acclaimed German team Car Collection Motorsport would debut in Australia at the Bathurst International with their Porsche 911 GT3 R, being piloted by Greek Alex Fontana and American Hash Patel.     Arise Racing and the Ferrari 296 GT3’s would top the timesheets in Practice 1, with Jaxons Evans and Elliot Schrute fastest with a 2:02.943 as their teammates Mostert and Talbot set a 2:03.083. Brendon Leitch and Tim Miles would set the third fastest time with a 2:03.423 whilst Valmont Racing’s Sergio Pires was the quickest in the Am class with a 2:06.351.     Realta/Tigani Motorsports Jayden O’Jeda and Paul Lucchitti topped the afternoon practice session with a 2:03.457 lap around the mountain. The two Audi’s of Brendon Leitch/Tim Miles (2:03.592) and Alex Peroni/Mark Rosser (2:03.606) followed, displaying how tight the competition truly was. Am class leaders Garth Walden and Michael Sheargold set the quickest time in the AM class with a 2:06.417, as the KMB Motorsport Aston Martin V12 Vantage failed to make it out, after stopping on track at the end of Practice 1.    Qualifying would be split into two sessions, one for each driver, setting the grid for each race. Session 1 would set the grid for Race 2 and pole position would be taken by Brendan Leitch with a 2:01.831 with Jaxon Evans (2:02.017) and Alex Peroni (2:02.261) rounding out the top three. Chaz Mostert and Arise Racing’s #1 Ferrari would be disqualified after a blistering 2:00.986 after the car was deemed to have had too much turbo boost.      With the drivers swapping over, Liam Talbot would secure the pole position in Session 2 for the previously disqualified Ferrari, followed closely by Paul Stokell and Brad Schumacher. Garth Walden was the fastest Am driver in Session 1, as Sergio Pires qualified fourth overall in the Am class Valmont Audi R8 in Session 2.   The start of Race 1 would be delayed thanks to timing issues, but when the green flag dropped, Paul Stockell made sure to hound the back of Liam Talbot all the way to pitlane for the driver swaps.   To the surprise of the Supabarn/Tigani Motorsport, the #47 Mercedes would come back into the pits for a second time, and stop at the entry, and after being pushed into the garage the driver-side exhaust billowed smoke. The car would be retired for the rest of the weekend, destroying the Koundouris brothers’ chance at the Am title, handing championship victory to RAM Motorsport’s Michael Sheargold and Garth Warden in a puff of smoke.    Paul Stockell would hand over the car and the lead to Renee Gracie after the pit stops, but both Will Brown and Chaz Mostert made quick work, overtaking her as they travelled up the mountain. Will Brown and Brad Schumacher would take the win and keep their championship hopes alive, as Mostert and Talbot finished second and Leitch and Miles grabbed third.    Sergio Pires grabbed the Am win, as Garth Walden and Michael Sheargold secured the Am championship in addition to second place, as Ben Schoots and Shane Woodman of Black Wolf Motorsport clinched third.    There were only two teams competing in the Trophy class, and when Stephen Coe in the Ferrari 458 GT3 lost control at The Chase and glanced the wall, all Valentino Astuti and Liam Dunn had to do in the Aston Martin V12 Vantage was finish. And that is what they did, a worthy reward after a difficult Friday.   Brendon Leitch would lead from pole position at the start of Race 2, as battles throughout the pack intensified and Chaz Mostert climbed through the field. Ash Samadi would spin but save it at Griffins Bend, but unfortunately would smack the wall at Reid Park, bringing out the Safety Car.    The KMB Motorsports Aston Martin would suffer more unreliability as it came into pitlane, unable to leave due to overheating issues, giving the Trophy class victory to Stephen Coe. More drama would occur in pitlane, as leaders Leitch and Miles were handed a drive through penalty after their pitstop was deemed too short, ending their chance at what would have a been a brilliant victory.    Instead, Alex Peroni and Mark Rosser would grab the win ahead of Declan Fraser and Peter Hackett, and Chaz Mostert and Liam Talbot who would fight through from last place to third, securing the GT World Challenge Australia championship.    The Am class top three would be the same as Race 1, with Sergio Pires claiming victory, Am champions Sheargold and Walden in second, and Ben Shoots and Shane Woodman in third.     With the stalwart pairing of Chaz Mostert and Liam Talbot, Arise Racing and the Ferrari 296 GT3 would impressively win the championship on debut, triumphing at the last Shannon’s Nationals/Speed Series event, at the track where kings are crowned.
 The sixth round of the 2024 Trico Trans Am season would be a special one. The penultimate round would be held at Mt Panorama, during the last ever Bathurst International, and would also be the start of the ‘Mountain to the City’ double-header.     A blockbuster field of 22 cars included race winner Tim Brook, who would return to the category after a year absent. A handful of drivers would again come from the AASA’s TA2 Muscle Car Series, including Sprintcar drive Domain Ramsay, Mark Crutcher, Jason Pryde and Des Collier.    After two race victories at The Bend and three at Queensland Raceway, Todd Hazelwood has leap frogged the GRM pair to lead the championship with 660 points. Reigning champion James Moffat follows on 628 points, as Jordan Boys has climbed past James Golding for third with 613 points.   With the final round of the championship just around the corner, and only two days of running available for the Trans Am crews, every point would be crucial before the final round in Adelaide.    After dropping to fourth in the championship, James Golding started strong, setting the fastest lap during the only practice session of the weekend with a 2:11.763. Tim Brook would show his speed finishing the second with a 2:13.028, as Todd Hazelwood slotted into third with a 2:13.059 lap. Unfortunately, Elliot Barbour would fail to turn a lap, with the car stopping at The Cutting on his outlap.    James Golding showed no signs of slowing down, qualifying on the pole (2:10.672), but not by much ahead of Todd Hazelwood (2:10.693) lining up alongside, and Nathan Herne in third (2:10.811).  Golding would hold the lead into Hell Corner for Race 1 and never look back, as James Moffat gained two places with a daring move up the inside, moving up to third from seventh at the end of Mountain Straight. Both Todd Hazelwood and Tim Brook would be hung out wide on the exit, kicking up gravel and losing a position each.    The Safety Car would come out as John Hollinger had a massive shunt at McPhillamy Park smacking both the outside and inside concrete walls. Hollinger would be okay, but his Trans Am Camaro would not see any more action. No one could catch James Golding, even on the restart as he pulled away to take a dominant victory. Nathan Herne would finish second as James Moffat held off championship leader Hazelwood for third.    In the Pro-Am class of Trans Am, Joshua Thomas would lead the way, finishing the first race in twelfth, with Mark Bailey finishing four-seconds adrift, and Mark Crutcher holding off Brett Niall for third on the Pro-Am podium.    At the start of Race 2, Nathan Herne would drop to fourth from second as the field entered Griffins Bend and Nash Morris sustained front right damage and a cut tyre. The Supercheap Auto Racing team would fix Morris’ Ford Mustang to finish the race, two laps down. Edan Thornburrow and Mark Crutcher also made trips to pitlane, with Crutcher going back out and Thornburrow retiring with a drive belt issue.   Up front, no one could match James Golding, who would clean sweep the weekend, from practice to the final race. Reigning champion James Moffat would hold off Todd Hazelwood again who would finish second and third respectively. A special mention goes to Elliot Barbour, who won the MPI ‘Up on the Wheel’ award for gaining the most positions throughout the two races.  Joshua Thomas again would be the leading Pro-Am driver at the end of Race 2, finishing tenth, with Mark Bailey and Brett Niall line astern.     The Trans Am teams would use Sunday to prepare and setup their cars for the streets of Adelaide and the final round of the 2024 championship, which would be held the following week at the VAILO Adelaide 500. Todd Hazelwood still leads with 716 points, however, Moffat has closed in now on 694 points. Jordan Boys still sits in third with 659 points, but only just as James Golding has reeled him in, only 13 points behind. The first part of the ‘Mountain to the City’ has been complete, now to finish it all off in the city of Adelaide.
 There are two common ways that tracks go about creating an itinerary for a race night. Either a number of smaller categories supporting a larger form of speedway racing, or two big categories. Additionally, quite a few country speedways will have their own classes that compete every night throughout the tracks season.   If a track gets Winged Sprintcars on their agenda, a larger than average crowd is guaranteed, and the same could be said when holding an Australian or even state title of any class.
 Regardless, the organiser's aim is to have a high enough nomination count that will guarantee a large enough spectator turnout to make enough money to cover the expenses needed to hold a race. Whether that be with six small categories, or simply two headliners   Additionally, the larger the field of winged Sprintcars, the smaller the support category needs to be. However, the pair of categories would be pretty even for Avalon's opening night of the season: 29 Winged and 20 Wingless.   In Australia, 410 Winged Sprintcars are the most popular dirt racing category without a doubt, whilst the Wingless, despite being two cylinders short have grown quickly in the past few years thanks to them being a cheaper form of full-size open wheel dirt racing.    Of course, it wasn't always like that. Before the addition of wings to racing cars, there was no major difference that split this style of racecar in two. Wings began to be added to Sprintcars in the 1970's, which lead what we have now, not only in Sprintcars, but midgets, F500's and Speedcars alike. A chance to pick your poison: Winged or Wingless?   With the added wings comes more grip in the form of downforce and thus, more adjustments that can be made to suit the track as it evolves. Without the wings, it's really just the driver, the horsepower and the track, a more raw and traditional form of Sprintcar. Unfortunately, in Australia our Wingless Sprintcars barely compete with the 410-Winged Sprintcars due to being powered by the Ecotec V6, rather than a screaming V8. Which is a bit of a shame, because the Wingless category produces some great racing, and were more exciting than their winged brethren on Avalon's opening night.   Instead of an invite only format, this year's Jackpot would revert to standard time trials, which would set the grids for each of the single heat races. The heat races would determine the top 18 that would go through to the A-Main, as the rest would fight for two spots in the B-Main.    Grant Anderson looked to be the force to be reconned with after setting quicktime and grabbing his heat race win. Jamie Veal would do the same as Sprintcar Classic winner Cory McCullagh would also win his heat race, in his return to the Sprintcar saddle.   Only 20 Wingless drivers would be accepted for Avalon's first Wingless round of the year, including some of the country's best. Christopher Temby would win the first heat race as the new surface was ripped apart. Travis Millar would lead the field to the green for Heat 2 and wouldn't look back.   Northern Territory Wingless Title champion Blake Walsh would show what he was capable of, running away from the field in Heat 3. Ebony Hobson would survive a slide job late in Heat 4 from Angus Hollis to take victory, as the top four became congested through the final corner of the race, with Thomas McDonald holding of Christopher Temby at the line.   To make up the top six for the A-Main, the top two from each heat would compete in a pole shuffle. This is where the Jackpot comes into play, as each driver would pick out of hat their starting position in the shuffle. Luck would serve Grant Anderson a bad hand, placing him sixth and the task of fighting his way through the duels. He would beat Daniel Pestka and Glen Sutherland in their two lap duels to make up two places, starting fourth as Jamie Veal and Lachie McHugh lined up on the front row.   Bobby Daly and Josh Buckingham would make the transfer from B to A-main, being the final pieces to the Sprintcar Jackpot feature grid.   Jamie Veal and Lockie McHugh would lead the field to the green flag, but Brett Milburn would spin at Turn 2, causing a restart. On said restart, the mid pack bunched together through Turn 1 & 2, meaning Peter Doukas ran into Dane Court, causing Jock Goodyer to run into Doukas, giving the Tasmanian race ending damage.  Brett Milburn would also be involved in the third incident of the night, but this time, he'd end up on his lid, after rear-tyre contact with Dennis Jones on the backstraight, sending the V68 into a somersault.     Lockie McHugh would spin but keep his foot in it whilst hunting down Jamie Veal. The reigning Aussie champion would fall to fifth but would make quick work of Daniel Pestka, then Glen Sutherland and two laps later would fly past Corey McCullagh. No one, however, was catching Jamie Veal, claiming victory and the $10,000 prize as McHugh and Glen Sutherland rounded out the podium, a long way behind.   Now it was time for the Wingless to show what they were capable of with their 30-lap feature. Luke Weel would take the lead at the wave of the green, as Christopher Temby and Travis Millar fought over second place. Behind, Blake Walsh was making moves through the field, improving from his eighth row starting slot, as his team owner Ray Wallis stopped at Turn 2, bringing out the first yellow.   Christopher Temby took the lead, but Blake Walsh had moved up to second and was closing in. Unfortunately, with six laps to go, Walsh hit a hole on the cushion of the track, puncturing his tyre and his unbelievable run through the field, as Matthew Symmons suffered the same fate at the same moment.    The race would restart, and Luke Weel would hound Temby, overtaking him with three laps to go. As the overtake was complete, the yellow would come out for Matt Tuckett who had spun, meaning the positions would revert back to the previous lap. Temby would use this lifeline to hold on to victory, as Travis Millar nabbed second off of Luke Weel at the line for a photo finish. 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                  North Carolina, a southeastern state in the U.S.A, is home to a population of ten million people and also where most of the NASCAR teams are based. Although NASCAR drivers come from all across the United States, a large portion over the years have come from the southeast, and so too have most of their fans, and in 2024, the series will visit 27 tracks, with a cluster in and around Carolina. There's no doubt that the southeastern quadrant of USA is NASCAR country, with North Carolina at its centre.   In 1988, NASCAR would venture across the Pacific Ocean for their first race outside of North America, to the newly built 1.19-mile Calder Park Thunderdome in Melbourne, a track based off the Charlotte Motor Speedway, in North Carolina.   A week before the 1988 Goodyear NASCAR 500, AUSCAR would be born and hold the first race on the Thunderdome, a battle between Commodores and Falcons, anticlockwise on the 1.19-mile oval. The only other paved oval in Australia would be at Adelaide International Raceway in built in 1972, known as the Super Bowl, an 805-metre oval with 7 degrees of banking first seeing AUSCAR competition in 1990.   With Calder Park holding the only American NASCAR round in Australia, birthing the AUSCAR category, which also sanctioned an Australian NASCAR series, Melbourne is no doubt the spiritual home of Stock Car racing in Australia. Welcome to AUSCAR Country.    There was one sentence that was repeatedly spoken at last year's racing return to Calder and as Stock Cars completed laps once more on the Thunderdome: 'We'll be back'. The team at Stock Cars Australia had made sure that last year's event wasn't a one off, with the category competing on the National Circuit for Round 4 of their 2024 season, under the VMRC (Vic Motor Racing Championships) banner.    Of course, both spectators and drivers were most excited to see these NASCAR's and AUSCAR's perform exhibition laps around the Thunderdome, and they'd get the chance at noon on both Saturday and Sunday. Even a handful of Hyundai Excel's had a go!   Someone who's familiar with racing full throttle on the Thunderdome in its heyday is Jamie Hollier, who took a handful of lucky fans on passenger laps around the track in the ex-Rodney Jane EF Falcon AUSCAR, which has also raced extensively on Calder Park's high banks. [The EF Falcon has] done most of its racing on the Thunderdome. When the Thunderdome stopped it went up to Wakefield Park and Winton as a ride car, so it's done a gazillion laps around those tracks." - James Hollier   The entire car is original apart from the engine, now a Ford Cleveland V8 sits in the engine bay rather than the original Windsor. It was Troy Perichon, the owner of the Jim Richards Falcon above, who worked on the Rodney Jane EF Falcon, and brought both to last year's circuit racing return. Jamie showed interest in the EF Falcon and bought the car off Troy twelve months ago.   Jamie Hollier raced both the Sportsman class and AUSCAR's on the Thunderdome until 1996 and now, behind the wheel of the EF Falcon, he has made his return to racing this year. As Jamie competes in his third race meeting with the car, he tells me there's still a little bit of work here and there to be done, including adding a front sway bar, upgrading the rear brakes as well as battling oil temperature issues in the engine. The car is still faster than what I am, so I just want to work on my skills before we start playing with the car too much and make it quicker. But we're getting faster and faster every time we go out." - Jamie Hollier   The #2 Wayne Menkin AUSCAR similarly has recently returned to the track, with the round at Calder being its second outing with Col Matton behind the wheel. The car was last used in the early 2000’s by Wayne’s son Darren on some Thunderdome practice laps, before it was put into storage. Col located the car in a Moorabbin warehouse and was able to strike a deal six months ago on the VP Commodore in the same condition it was in when it last completed a lap in anger. The car was in amazing condition for its age. We’ve really just gone and done perishables like belts and hoses, fuel lines, fuel pumps, a new set of rubber under it. We had to draw up the geometry in the front end just because it was a Thunderdome spec car.” - Col Matton   The entire driveline including the M21 4-speed gearbox hasn't been touched, which is a credit to how well Wayne Menkin has built this car. A Holden 308 spec engine still sits up front, with a Quadrajet carburetor on top, all up making just under 400hp.    Straight off the bat too, the car has been quite competitive, with Col being the best finishing of the three AUSCAR's during the Calder Park round. The only issue that Col has faced are the brake pads, as he went through multiple sets throughout the weekend. Regardless, of worn-out pads, it looked right at home on both the National Circuit and the Thunderdome. My Uncle was a keen motorsport fan. He used to bring us out here almost every race weekend, he had an old XF ute… me and my brother… we used to sit in the back of his ute with our deck chairs. Loved it, absolutely loved it.” - Col Martin   Although it's certainly the AUSCAR family that has grown in the past year, there are still a number of American stock car brethren to join the action. Daniel Stubbs would pilot the 2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, which competed in the United States in the ASA series. Although not a NASCAR, it is labelled as a GTA car (no relation to Grand Theft Auto), which are earlier versions of the cars used in the now popular Trans Am/TA2 category. This example was brought over from the USA and raced up the front in Stock Cars Australia, before being put up for sale circa 2019.    One thing that separates these cars from the 'lightning in a bottle' era of NASCAR's is the engine, as ASA instead required fuel injection, hence the LS1 under the bonnet, whilst NASCAR only permitted carburetors at that time. The Stubbs family now races the car with Daniel Stubbs behind the wheel, as his father Jeff Stubbs also raced a Dodge Challenger Trans Am. Although the Monte Carlo was already in racing condition, competing regularly in the Stock Cars Australia, they’ve refreshed the quick-change differential as well as the gearbox. It’s unreal, I love it. It’s quicker than anything I’ve ever been in.” - Daniel Stubbs   Scott Nind is known for dominating in his Xfinity Ford Mustang, but this year he had a new pony in his stable. The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Ford Mustang driven by Michael McDowell for Front Row Motorsports turned heads on its Australian debut at Sydney earlier this year and garnered a crowd at Calder too.   Because Scott didn’t qualify with the car, he would start at the back for Race 3 and would come through the Stock Car and Super TT field to clinch third. It was awesome to watch! The most surprising part of this Gen 6 Cup car is how light the carbon fibre bonnet is, it feels like you’ll snap it by simply touching it.    Thanks to passionate people behind Stock Cars Australia, the teams and drivers across Australia keeping these cars alive, media websites like Aussie Stock Car News who continue to spread the word and unearth AUSCAR history, more cars and enthusiasts are seeking a return to AUSCAR country.                 
               
           There are plenty of crazy motorsport categories, the more maniacal the better and Sidecar racing is certainly one of those. I've photographed Sidecars before on dirt, but as soon as I found out Australia has their own circuit racing championship for Sidecars, it went straight onto my to do list. Their fourth and final round of the 2024 season would be at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, tagging along with the Victorian Road Racing Championships.   Most known as being a part of the Isle of Man TT motorcycle competition, Sidecars race on circuits across the world, from Kyalami in South Africa to Spa Franchorchamps in Belgium.    A 600cc four stroke engine sends power the rear wheel, propelling these machines to maximum speeds of 250km/hr. The wide and flat slick tyres provide a much larger contact patch then a normal curved motorcycle tyre, providing more grip and better braking performance. However, because of that third wheel, a sidecar is not symmetrical, which means left and right-hand turns are approached differently.   This is where teamwork comes in as both driver and passenger are crucial to the balance of the sidecar. The driver controls the steering of the front wheel, as well as the throttle and brakes via the small handlebars, trusting their passenger who controls the balance of the sidecar as they move across the rear of the vehicle.   Because of the sidecar's asymmetry, it will take right hand corners slower than left hand ones. The passenger will move to the right behind the driver, shifting weight to that side and in the left corners, hang over the left-hand side. Even with the passenger's weight hanging over the side, the sidecar still wants to naturally tip over with its wheel in the air.   It's not just the corners where the passengers are moving, they duck down in the straights to reduce drag and pop up in the braking zones to act as an air brake. There's massive trust involved, as the driver has to trust that the passenger will be in the right place at the right time, whilst the passenger has to trust that the driver will position the sidecar in the right place at the right time. It's also interesting to see how each passenger both sits and positions their body differently to one another to get the job done. These guys and girls need to be seriously fit and agile to handle the g-forces and quickly move around the sidecar lap after lap.    Sidecar riders have no fear and have to have complete trust in each other as the race in pairs, on purpose-built racetracks, through the mountains of the Isle of Man, in quarter mile dirt speedways or even midair on motocross tracks! Bonus Gallery                           Each year, the UK's Goodwood Festival of Speed garners international attention as one of the biggest celebrations of both the auto industry and motorsport world. In Victoria, the VHRR hold multiple historic meetings including, of sorts, Australia's own Festival of Speed. You won't find the newest hypercars, or race winning Formula 1 legends, but rather plenty of Aussie raced touring cars, unique machines and side by side racing.   Teams, owners and their families would trailer their historic racecars - sometimes interstate - on the Friday, into country Victoria, arriving at Winton Motor Raceway. Early arrivals would get the chance to practice on the 3km track before qualifying and racing began.   Friday also gave those fans who were present a sneak peek at most of the competitors for this year's installment of country Victoria's take on the Festival of Speed, including a few that would only hit the track for practice. I knew there was something not quite right underneath this mad Datsun 1600, and I was correct, with a turbocharged SR20 up front.   Graeme Stevenson's XD Falcon Tribute to the 1983 Bathurst entry of John English and Paul Gulson also caught my eye during practice. A Ford Falcon with a blue and white livery makes for a perfect combination. Graeme purchased a road going XD Falcon five years ago, planning to move beyond the Regularity class that he was currently in, driving his Allan Moffat 1979 Hardtop Replica. Whilst in the building process, a new Tribute class would be formed, influencing Graeme's build. The car is closest to a Group C car, however underneath, it's a bit more advanced.   The underpinnings of Graeme's XD are the 351ci Cleveland engine and four-speed gearbox, sending all the power to the nine-inch differential. Covid-19 made the building process of the car difficult, luckily, Graeme had the car at home, giving him more time to work on all the fabrication and building of the engine. Still, the car was only finished two days before the Festival of Speed began, and still needs some more work. As he came off track, the oil pressure dropped, leaving Graeme to park the car for the weekend. It needs a lot of setting up still yet. But we've had issues with the oiling system, the oil pressure dropped away as I came off the track, and it started to shed bearings. So rather than destroy the motor, I parked it for the weekend, and I'll pull it down and see what's going on inside the motor." - Graeme Stevenson   Speaking of Group C cars, I was able to get a closer look at the Berklee Exhaust Mazda RX7 that I've photographed before at the Phillip Island Classic. It competed in the 1983 and 1984 ATCC seasons being driven by Ron Grose, David Grose and Chris Clearihan. After the '84 season, the car was sold to Stephen Swain in Tasmania, and in the nineties, Wayne Smith purchased the RX-7 and used it to compete in Improved Production.   The rotary touring car would be sold again in the 2000's to John Douglas who restored the car back to its Group C specifications and in this car, Douglas won the 2014 Group C Heritage Touring Car Championship. Phillip Verwoert bought the car a year later before it was sold to current owner-driver Don Dimitradis in 2021.   Another Japanese Group C car was also both at the Phillip Island Classic and Winton Festival of Speed. Before seeing it earlier this year, I had no idea that Nissan had made a Touring Car version of their small Pulsar Exa model. Built by Nissan in 1983, it too competed in the 1983-84 ATCC seasons including the Sydney based AMSCAR championship, with Christine Gibson behind the wheel. At the 1983 Bathurst 1000, Gibson was paired with Bob Miur and would only make it 14 laps before retiring. She would be joined by Glenn Seton the following year but would unfortunately retire on lap 76. After the 1984 season, the Exa was used in Sports Sedans and eventually, Fred Gibson bought the car back for his museum. It was really made for a promotional exercise to bring on the turbo technology along with the Bluebirds." - Justin Nilsson   Terry Ashwood bought the Gibson collection that included the Pulsar Exa, racing them and displaying them in his own museum near Bathurst until circa 2009, when the Exa was sold to current owner Justin Nilsson. The car came in an "as raced" condition, with Justin deciding to put back the 1984 striped livery onto the Pulsar, as well as working on the 1.5 litre turbocharged engine. Early on in Justin's ownership, the car has suffered gearbox issues, so Justin plans on getting a new one from Hollinger, who made the gearboxes during the Pulsar's time in ATCC, as it currently runs a standard gearbox. It's something different... Front wheel drive, locked diff, big slicks, it's kind of hard [to drive], trying to get rid of the torque steer which [Nissan] did a good job at. It's a different mindset to the bigger capacity cars." - Justin Nilsson    One touring car I knew I had to take a closer look at was the bold yellow Alfa Romeo GTV 6 now owned by Monza Motorsports. Originally built by Luigi Racing in Belgium for Auto Delta (Alfa Romeo's racing department), it was victorious in its division in the 1983 European Touring Car Championship. Alfa Romeo Australia would buy the GTV 6 for Colin Bond Racing to use in the 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship with Alan Jones driving the car before returning to Formula 1 mid-season, with Colin Bond taking the wheel. Alan Jones' skill made sure the Alfa Romeo was fighting among the heavyweights, including starting on the front row at Winton, and fourth on the power-hungry circuit of Sandown. Enrico Zanrini who was the chief of Alfa Romeo in Australia, he said to Jones 'you get in that car, and you drive it, we don't care, drive as hard as you can'. And he did, every time he come back in get a new gearbox or get a new tailshaft, he drove it hard, so he did very well in the car." - Hugh Harrison    With Gregg Hansford as co-driver, the pair drove the Alfa to 8th outright in the 1985 Bathurst 1000, victorious in their class. 1986 would be the second and final season for this GTV 6 in Australian Touring Car competition as new Group A rules made Colin Bond replace the GTV 6's with the Alfa Romeo 75 the following year. In 1988, Hugh Harrison purchased the car and used it to compete in Sports Sedans until 1992 when he painted it back to its original racing warpaint.   In between the Alfa Romeo Australia ownership and Hugh Harrison's acquisition of the car, Frank Porter from Alfa City owned the car and changed the panels to fiberglass and the windows to plastic. During the Alfa's time in Sports Sedans, a 3.3 litre V6 ran up front but now, the original 2.5 litre V6 is back where it belongs along with the steel panels and glass. Most recently, Valtteri Bottas drove the car at last year's Adelaide Festival of Motorsport, meaning two F1 race winners have now driven this Alfa Romeo GTV 6. Oh, and it's a surprisingly quick little thing too! It's awesome, a piece of Alfa History, or you know Group A racing history. It's a lovely car to drive, being European they drive exceptionally well anyway, and you watch it around [Winton] the car qualified 10th out of 32 cars here today." - Hugh Harrison   Trevor Sheumack's BMW 318i Supertourer wasn't the only European touring car that had garnered attention prior to the event. Another sedan spotted at the Phillip Island Classic, Sheumack purchased the Supertourer from New Zealand earlier this year. Originally raced by Johnny Cecotto at Monza during the 1993 FIA World Touring Car Cup it was shipped to Australia a year later. Paul Morris used it in the two-litre series at the time as Craig Baird and Brett Riley drove it 11th in the 1994 Bathurst 1000.   Kiwi's Dennis and Debbie Chapam were next to acquire the car, racing the BMW in the 1999 Bathurst 500 and 2002 Bathurst 24 Hours and had been situated in New Zealand until this year. 
 Like seemingly all historic motorsport weekends in Victoria, touring cars and other assorted tin tops were joined by a full grid of classic Formula Fords and Vees as well as a handful of unique open wheel and open cockpit racecars.    The March 74S was a prototype racer for Group 5 sports car competition made of a fiberglass body and an aluminium monocoque. This example raced in Europe in 1976 and 1977, before heading over to the USA with Virtusio Racing. The chassis is a March 73S that includes a BMW M12/7 four cylinder making all the power, with the body and aerodynamics being made in 1974, dubbed 74S.   One of the most exciting races each year at Winton's Festival of Speed are those dished out by Group N. You might have watched YouTube videos of Mini Coopers battling horsepower hungry muscle cars, and that's exactly what you get in Group N. The twisty corners of Winton are perfect for low power yet nimble cars such as Minis and Cortinas, who put up a fair fight against Camaros and Mustangs who will have the upper hand coming down Winton's long straights.    However, the category that caught the attention of most, was the striking grid of Historic Sports Sedans. Beginning in the mid 1960's, the class became a mixture of modified production and Group C touring cars, and space frame rocket ships, making for some crazy racecars.    Those of note, a 13B Rotary swapped Ford Anglia - which was also the first car ever sponsored by Supercheap Auto - and a rear engined, highly modified VW Fastback. Oh yeah, and about engine placement, open the bonnet to almost all of these Sports Sedans and you won't find one. That's because in most, it's positioned right next to the driver, surrounded by a firewall.    Even among the vibrant and diverse field of Sports Sedans, Nick Crocitti's 1957 Chevrolet Coupe stood out in a good way, looking more suited to a drag strip rather than a twisty circuit track. Better yet, it's pretty much brand new, with Nick purchasing the shell approximately 14 months ago, and the Festival of Speed being the car's maiden outing. Nick's original plan after cutting up the shell and keeping the bits he needed was to turn it into an American Stock Car, but after speaking to the crew at the Historic Sports Sedans, the build would head in a different direction.    With a new goal for the project, the 327ci Chevrolet engine had to be moved back and the driving configuration also had to be changed. Even though the car is only a year old, Nick has done everything he can to make it accurate for the 70s/80s Sports Sedan period with a live rear axle and a conventional 4 speed gearbox. And boy does it look the part, both in the pits and on the racetrack.    However, it would be rude of me to talk about Sports Sedans and not mention the Mercedes 450 SLC, built by Peter Fowler in 1979 with support from the community in Shepparton. John Bowe was the first to drive the wide Benz before handing over driving duties to Brad Jones after a single season. After then withdrawing the car from competition for a few years, Bryan Thompson purchased the car and upgraded the engine to a D-Stroke Chevrolet with twin turbochargers. With the new engine package, Thompson went on to win the 1985 Australian GT Championship.    Now, a six-litre Chevrolet V8 with LUCAS fuel injection sits next to the driver, with a LG600 5-speed transaxle sending power to the rear. Current owner Simon Pfizner bought the car approximately seven years ago and has tidied up the bodywork and running gear since then, making sure the Mercedes is as reliable as possible.  I love [Historic Sports Sedans], just great to see old race cars from the 70's early 80's, lots of shapes, colours with different engines, different schemes, different shapes." - Simon Pfizner I want to finish with the quote above from Simon, because he sums up perfectly why historic racing as a whole is popular. You get a taste of the many ways people approached competition, and is something that motorsport categories of today, should take into consideration. Bonus Gallery    
                                             As the clock towards World Time Attack Challenge ticks down, teams are busy preparing their cars, finalising new modifications and making trips to the dyno. In Victoria, the calm before the storm begins at Winton Raceway for the annual Aus Time Attack event. Not all who compete here will head to Sydney with the motorsport world watching, as there are five classes: Pro, Open, Clubsprint, Poduction Sprint and Supercar, with the latter two not part of the WTAC contest.    Many teams would arrive at Winton on the Friday, with some getting laps under their belts during the track’s weekly Friday Test and Tune. Giving teams a head start on car setup and extra practice laps to get used to the tight and unforgiving Winton circuit.    Clouds would roll in on Saturday, the first day of competition, and with rain on the radar, everyone would head out early to set a lap time. The Harrop Performance Toyota 86 would suffer engine troubles, with Heath Moore at the wheel, ending their weekend early. The front splitter on Tristian Cherry’s Hyundai i30N would come loose, and Grant Hill would have a big off at Turn 1 in his 180SX.   Rain would begin to fall during the third round of sessions and would continue for hours, soaking the track. Only a handful of drivers would venture back out, either to practice the track layout, or continue to gather data.    The Winefuelled GTR made plenty of passes and could be heard coming as Brian Bugh continually tapped the throttle in the sketchy conditions. The sounds of these cars are unlike anything else, their pops and bangs ricocheting off any wall or nearby buildings.    After a day essentially cut short by weather, Brad Sheils and the GT Evolution Mitsubishi Evo 7 was at the top of the Open Class and overall standings with a 1.22:128 lap. Reigning Aus Time Attack champions Got it Rex and Aleck Kazakovski were at the front of the Pro standings and second overall after a time of 1:22.817. Trent Grubel driving the DC Jap Subaru WRX STi had set a lap time of 1:24.124 placing him fifth overall and at the top of the Clubsprint class. After Day 1, Zi Ling Wang in a BMW M4 was at the top of Prodsprint class with a time of 1:29.136.    The sun was back out for the final day of Aus Time Attack action, giving everyone a proper full day of dry track conditions.   Not everyone would have a smooth day, as Zachery Yates in the Skevas Racing S13 would stop on track during the first Open class session of the day, dropping oil and ending the team's day before it really began. Simultaneously, Steve Sharp would stop on the front straight as the front brakes locked up on the Sharp Motorsport RX7. Thankfully, he would get the car going and continue on.    Laine Brandis would find the limit on a hot lap, dipping the left rear of the Autopro R32 Skyline into the gravel, spinning the car onto the wet grass, using the front diffuser as a shovel, that being his second big off of the weekend. In the final session of the day, Benny Tran’s Honda Integra would suffer engine issues with smoke billowing out from the rear, causing him to stop on track.   Despite ending the day up in smoke, Benny Tran took the top spot in the Open Class, with a 1:21.038 lap time. The GT Evolution Evo VII was driven to second and third in the class by Brad Shiels (1:22.128) and Darren Bishop (1:22.563) respectively.    Kiet Nguyen would be the fastest out of the three wide Supercar battle with a 1:32.682 in his Cayman GT4 RS. Zi Ling Wang’s 1:29.136 lap time would stand from Saturday as the quickest lap in the Prodsprint class. Jie Ren would grab second in the Max Euro GR Supra (1:29.491) as Josh Muggleton was two seconds behind in third (1:31.378) driving the V-Sport GR Yaris.    Michael Garland in one of the many GotitRex Subaru WRX’s would pip (1:24.041) Trent Grubel and DC Jap Automotive (1:24.124) in the final session to take the victory in the Clubsprint class. One second behind was Alex Michalsky in the Plazmaman Evo VI (1:25.147).    The reigning champs would win again as Aleck Kazakovski broke the event lap record with a 1:20.789 in the GotitRex WRX Sti. For context, the V8 Supercar lap record is a 1:19.706. Richard Perini in the Ginetta G55 took second in the Pro class (1:22.246) as Nunzio Gulino took third in the highly modified Evo X RS (1:24.317).    For most teams, it’s time to pack up and head home, and wait for the next track day, while others now hunker down once more for two more months of preparation for the biggest time attack event of the year, World Time Attack Challenge. Bonus Gallery                 
          I've mentioned before how Speedhunters is one of my main inspirations for pursuing motorsport and car culture photojournalism. One of the many articles that still remains with me is Paddy McGrath’s Tokyo Auto Salon coverage, where he stuck to a focal length of 50mm. That article was posted back in 2018 and since then I’ve been wanting to try the same.   Every time I go to an event however, even when I’m not shooting for a client, I take the day very seriously, trying my best to create the finest pictures to represent the motorsport meeting using the multiple lenses I have at my disposal. Sorting out my calendar this year, travelling to a multitude of new tracks, I knew that I would get the chance to challenge myself with this idea.   The lens I’ve picked is my Nikon 105mm Micro f/2.8. Although I don’t use this lens often, it’s a treat when I do, with macro capabilities and a wide aperture for a shallow depth of field or use in low light situations (yes, f/2.8 is wide ok!).   A focal length of 105mm might be a bit tight in the pits, but I was hoping it would come into its own when the cars got on track.    As it turned out, 105mm wasn’t ideal for shooting from the outside, and the cars would appear small when shooting infield. But, because I’m a Nikon photographer, I had plenty of gadgets in my many pockets.    Before I get into that, I think it's time to introduce Wahgunyah Speedway. The story of Wahgunyah Speedway began in 1951 with the formation of the Corowa Motor Sports Club. The very active club was involved in many forms of motorsport at the time, and in 1958 would make Wahgunyah Recreational Reserve home to their racetrack.    The Wahgunyah Hot Rod Track was opened on Easter Sunday 1958, a five corner circuit with the length of 5/8’s of a mile. After taking multiple forms, the current sand and clay banked speedway would emerge. With a length of 630 metres, Wahgunyah Speedway is one of the longest dirt speedways in Australia.
 In 2022, the Murray River peaked at 8.1 metres of water, flooding surrounding areas including causing substantial damage to Wahgunyah Speedway. After a mammoth effort from volunteers and the speedway’s team, racing would return to Wahgunyah in November 2023. The passion for speedway in the north of Victoria is immeasurable and clearly evident when you visit both Wahgunyah and Wangaratta.  Another example of this is how they share the speedway experience with the young next generation of fans. Kids would be given gift bags and be walked around the pits, meeting drivers, collecting stickers. A few kids would also be chosen to hand the chequered flag to the winners of the feature races which I though was a really cool idea.      For Wahgunyah Speedway's final event of the 2023-24 season, Production Sedans would join the AMCA State Challenge, Standard Saloons, Sports Sedans and Humpy Holdens. There would also be three Vintage Sprintcars that would join in.   Alright, back to the photography, because I had a few ideas including filters to try out. The first filter I had never used before, and it gave a frosty look to a third of the photo. The effect looked good for still pit photos, but it didn't really do anything for me when panning with it on track.     Not to worry, because I had a multi-prism filter that I would end up using quite a bit to repeat the subject across the frame. At first, it's quite tricky to use because the filter skews your vision, making it difficult to actually find what you were looking to take photos of. However, on track the original subject was actually clearer, probably because I was shooting from a further distance.   The last filter I would use gave a bold rainbow effect to any bright highlights from lights or the sun. This filter also has no name, and no thread, so it's quite mysterious, also meaning I'd have to hold it up to the lens and pan. By the end of the night, I was experimenting with having multiple lens filters on at the same time for some bonkers results.   When you take lots of photos with the same focal length, you learn to know where to place yourself in order to get the framing you want, without having to look through the viewfinder. By the end of the night at Wahgunyah, I was starting to know where to place myself when shooting at 105mm, meaning my night had been a success.   When you set yourself a challenge like this, it's so you get to take photos that you would have never visualised, whilst also allowing you to do some research and development for future photoshoots. And I've definitely got some ideas thanks to my time at Wahgunyah Speedway. Bonus Gallery   
  
         Welcome to Timmis Speedway, Mildura’s home for dirt racing. The speedway was first opened in September of 1964, and its wide and tall banking allows for some fantastic side by side racing. However, today there would be no racing, instead a demonstration of vintage and classic speedway racers, as they started their engines one more time.    This isn’t the first time I’ve planned to photograph a vintage speedway event. The event at Western Speedway last year was rained out as I was en route, and the meeting at Swan Hill was cancelled. Each year though, Timmis Speedway holds the final Victorian vintage meeting of the year, dubbed ‘Wind Back the Clock’, featuring all classes from midgets, sedans, heavy rods, Ace of Spades and Sprintcars.   Both previous events I had planned to go to had been Vintage Sprintcar only gatherings, meaning I made a beeline for anything with big tyres and even bigger wings.   First up was David Moore's beautiful Mopar flavoured 1979 Sprintcar powered by a 400hp Chrysler 318ci V8. During the car’s competitive career, it had journeyed to every speedway in South Australia, including a few in Victoria.
David picked up the car twelve years ago in a wrecked state of bits and pieces, along with three engines. Over the course of twelve months restored it to its current state and now each year, he travels at least five meetings in South Australia and a few additional vintage demonstrations interstate. I cut all the welds out and re-weld the whole chassis, and all the fiberglass panels, I’ve reskinned all them. Basically, what you see, I’ve renewed all of that. Some of it’s new material, some of it’s old material, done up.” - David Moore   Underneath, a new crown wheel and pinion has been given to the Winters quick change differential, and the bell housing has been made to fit a starter motor so they can drive away without need for a push. David drove the car for approximately seven years before handing over driving duties to George, who also owns a winged beast.   Historic race meetings are a good way to discover racing categories that you didn’t know existed. With a Holden 202 engine, this makes George Stell’s QLD 11 car a Limited Sprinter. George has had this 1982 Gearhart chassis for eight years now, after bringing the car down from Brisbane, and in that time has rebuilt the motor, the 3-speed synchromesh transmission and the Volvo differential. The car now also has a new front end after an incident at Murray Bridge.   When George hops into David's Sprintcar, his son Josh takes the reigns of the quick Limited Sprinter.    Let's talk about the rain, because before cars could take to the track, we got the first of three showers throughout the day. As I found shelter under some Sprintcar wings, officials and drivers waited for the rain to pass before letting the midgets and F500's on track. When the Sprintcars were let loose, the rain came down again and it was clear that the track had become too wet.    The track would be graded and when the rain stopped, Sprintcars and Super Modifieds with their big tyres would be let loose again to try and create a racing line. Jason Wilson and others would impressively slide down the embankment into the river that had formed at the bottom. The track was deemed too slick as more rain hit Mildura. A few of us tried to walk back up the slick banking, providing just as much entertainment as the Sprintcars. 
For the cars, it was mud rather than water that would be a problem, Mark Kuypers however didn't seem phased at all. His 1974 Supermodified (no relation to the Super Modifieds of Oswego Speedway) had been polished to perfection before the event, but now was the dirtiest racecar I've ever seen.   Mind you, Mark was sending the car that had been originally built in a shed back in Winchelsea, more sideways than anyone else dared, on the limit of grip.    Another car that was so clean you could eat off it was Michael Millers 1984 SA1 Pontiac Trans Am, built by Stevie Stewart and driven to multiple state title victories. Under the bonnet is a 350ci Chevrolet V8 making all the right noises.     After changing hands twice, former Super Sedan racer Peter Drew found the car and completely restored it back to its glory days. Peter Drew sadly passed away last year, but Michael Miller will continue the car's legacy. After the second dousing of rain, he was sent onto the track and I think we all lost count of how many laps he did, as he tried to create a racing groove in the thick mud.    As the Vintage and Classic Sedans hit the track, the third significant rain shower came down, and the event was deemed cancelled. The track had become too wet, everyone had grown a couple inches as mud gathered underneath our shoes, and with the cold temperatures, there was no way the track would dry out. The team at Timmis Speedway certainly gave it a cracking shot, but the rain was just too overwhelming.    Not even half the cars made it on track, and there were a few I was looking forward to seeing take on Timmis Speedway. The Ford Heavy Rod, Holden Speedcar and Noel Sharrock's Limited Sportsman were all cars that especially caught my eye. Still, it certainly wasn't a wasted trip to Mildura, as I got to witness track conditions that are very rare when it comes to speedway racing and got to gaze over some amazing vintage metal. I will certainly be back at a Vintage meeting when the 2024-25 season gets underway. Bonus Gallery    
 
  
  
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AuthorMy name is Noah Thorley. I'm a motorsport and car culture photojournalist based in Melbourne Australia. I document and tell visual stories for the current and next generation of car enthusiasts. 
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