133 replies to this topic

[Jerry Entin]

2013/14 MSC New Zealand F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series
Calendar
Rnd 1: Nov 8-10 2013 'The Sound' MG Classic Manfeild Feilding
Rnd 2: Jan 17-19 2014 NZFMR Ferrari Festival - 1 Hampton Downs Nth Waikato
Rnd 3: Jan 24-16 2014 NZFMR Ferrari Festival - 2 Hampton Downs Nth Waikato
Rnd 4: Feb 01-02 2014 Skope Classic Powerbuilt Tools Raceway @ Ruapuna Park Christchurch

2013/14 Formula 5000 Australia Cup Series (invitational rounds)
Rnd 1: Aug 31-Sept 01 2013 Muscle Car Masters meeting Sydney Motorsport Park Sydney
Rnd 2: Sept 13-15 2013 Sandown 500 meeting (V8 Supercars) Sandown Melbourne
Rnd 3: Nov 08-10 2013 Sandown Historics meeting Sandown Melbourne
Rnd 4: March 07-09 2014 Phillip Island Classic meeting Phillip Island Melbourne
Rnd 5: (provisional yet to be confirmed) March 14-16 2014 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix meeting Albert Park Melbourne

Prepared by FAST COMPANY of behalf of the New Zealand Formula 5000 Association www.F5000.co.nz For more information about the 2013/14 MSC New Zealand F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series contact Ross MacKay on 021 677 919 or via e-mail on ross@fastcompany.co.nz

[Lee Nicolle]

A clash there with both Manfield and Sandown Historics the same weekend in November.

And one would have expected some cars to want to compete at both meetings and both series.

I guess for competitors they have a choice of the Oz or NZ series unless they are very rich to ship cars back and forth.

And both series look inviting.

[Jerry Entin]

FOUR-STRONG KIWI TEAM FOR AUSSIE F5000 SERIES OPENER

A four-strong Kiwi team headed by ageless veteran Ken Smith (Lola T332) crosses the Tasman next week to contest the opening round of the Formula 5000 Australia Cup Series in Sydney over the August 31/September 01 weekend.

The round - at Australia's big Muscle Car Masters meeting at Sydney Motorsport Park (nee Eastern Creek) - is the first of four (and possibly five) rounds of this season's Australian series which members of New Zealand's Formula 5000 Association have been invited to comepte at.

As such they complement the four rounds of the successful, this season strictly New Zealand-based, MSC F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series.

Joining three-time MSC F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series champion Smith in the New Zealand squad are Clark Proctor (March 73A) and Andrew Higgins (Lola T400), both from Auckland, and Tim Rush (McLaren M22) from Feilding.

The four will join 10 local drivers in the field led by last year's Muscle Car Masters meeting standout Bryan Sala (Matich A50) and including - amongst others - category stalwart Aaron Lewis (Matich A50), the father of V8 Supercar brothers Alex and Will, Richard Davison (Lola T332), and young gun Tom Tweedie in the ex Peter Gethin Team VDS Chevron B24.

The four Kiwis will leave their cars in Australia and return to contest the second round of the 2013/14 Australian series in Melbourne in mid-September before shipping them back for the opening round of the four-round 2013/14 MSC F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series at Manfeild over the November 9-10 weekend.

[Jerry Entin]

_______________________________________

Young rookie star Tom Tweedie in his F5000 debut in his Chevron B24
Engine by Wayne Smith and crewed by his dad Bob Tweedie and 1 mechanic
Saturday August 31, 2013

Sydney youngster Tom Tweedie has got his Formula 5000 career off to a blazing start, by defeating the cream of NZ F5000 stars on the opening day of the 2013/14 F5000 Australia Cup, being run at the Muscle Car Masters, at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Poleman Tweedie was beaten away from the start by Auckland gun Clark 'Metalman' Proctor, with NZ legend Ken Smith in close attendance.

For lap after lap, Tweedie's red Chevron B24 poked and prodded either side of Proctor's familiar yellow March, only for the door to be firmly shut.

It looked as though Proctor had all the answers until, with just over a lap to go, Tweedie squeezed through, to take a stunning F5000 series debut win. In his attempts to keep the youngster at bay, Proctor set the race's fastest lap - at 1m27.8312s. Smith (Lola T332) kept a watching brief throughout for a strong third, ahead of Aucklander Andrew Higgins (Lola T400), Melbourne Matich A50-mounted Bryan Sala, and Aaron Lewis' similar car.
The series debut of Richard Davison - father of V8 Supercar stars Will and Alex - got off to a tough start with what appeared to be an electronic failure early in the race, in the former Teddy Yip/Alan Jones Lola.

Tweedie, who has come via Australian F3 and Porsche Carrera Cup, before today's debut in F5000, was thrilled: "I certainly didn't expect to win like that, first up," he grinned. "Racing a car like that against some of the regular pace-setters in F5000 is a huge buzz itself. Clark got a great start and it was pretty late in the race before the opportunity came to get past. It was tremendous, hard, but clean racing. Fantastic." The field will contest a second qualifying heat on Sunday morning before the afternoon's feature race.

The 2013/14 Formula 5000 Australia Cup is supported by Gibson Freight and Mediterranean Shipping Company.
Photo: John Morris/Mpix
For further information:
Chris Lambden - F5000 Australia - +61 418 580 700
Report sent site: David Abbott

Edited by Jerry Entin, 04 September 2013 - 09:48.

[gtsmunro]

Saw F5000 for the first time today at the Muscle Car Masters. Words can't describe how good this category is/was. The sound and speed was brilliant.

[Jerry Entin]

Clark 'Metalman' Proctor leading the field
Sydney youngster Tom Tweedie (2) was all over kiwi Clark Proctor (57) before getting past with a lap to go. F5000 legend Kenny Smith (11) watched on in third

photo: John Morris/Mpix

Edited by Jerry Entin, 31 August 2013 - 11:32.

[timbo]

Not a huge field for the season opener, but good racing on the Saturday.

I initially thought Aaron Lewis was a non-starter, but he has reliveried his car, and it looks great too.

 

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[Catalina Park]

It does look great! 

[Jerry Entin]

Tom Tweedie after first round win


photo: John Morris/Mpix

Edited by Jerry Entin, 01 September 2013 - 10:42.

[Lee Nicolle]

Looking at Natsoft a disappointing field, but I suspect the pace at the front was pretty frantic as Ken Smith did not win a race.. Nor did Clark Procter. Both very experienced blokes. So young Mr Tweedie has done very well to win, though he too is far from a rookie!
And Aaron Lewis's car does look very good,, except for the radiator pipe! Was it like that in period, probably but I bet it was painted orange and not partly obscuring the numbers too. Did the scruts get all upset about that?

[Catalina Park]

And Aaron Lewis's car does look very good,, except for the radiator pipe! Was it like that in period, probably but I bet it was painted orange and not partly obscuring the numbers too. Did the scruts get all upset about that?

The pipe was just like that in period. It looks perfect.

[xj13v12]

Thanks to Bryan and Gavin Sala for the great work on my car, definitely better than black. The pace at the front has lifted significantly. Tom qualified 4 seconds under the lap record!!! 4 drivers raced under the old record. Tom's time of 1:25 was sensational. That was the fastest I have run after more then 10 years in F5000s, consistently doing 1:30 in the last race. That would have put me on the podium against any large field 3 years ago. Seeing younger fast guys like Tom, Bryan and Andy Higgins is great for the category. Should be a larger grid at the Sandown 500.

[Jerry Entin]

Tom Tweedie heads Ken Smith, Andrew Higgins and Bryan Sala into Turn 2.

Tweedie completes Formula 5000 debut grand slam
Sunday September 1

Sydney debutant Tom Tweedie has completed a clean sweep of the opening round of the 203/14 F5000 Australia Cup, backing up his two heat wins with a third victory, in the F5000 feature event at the Muscle Car Masters, at Sydney Motorsport Park.

With kiwi Clark Proctor side-lined after blowing his engine in the morning heat, it was left to ageless kiwi star Ken Smith (Lola T332) to take it to the young man over 40 years his junior.

Ken Smith (71) was a champion in the original Formula 5000 era, continued to race open wheelers without a break since, and returned to the category when it re-emerged as a historic formula. He has since won three NZ MSC Formula 5000 championships - illustrating perfectly that experience is the perfect counter to age!

However, it was 25 year-old series debutant Tweedie (Chevron B24) who prevailed. After an early career in Australian F3 and Carrera Cup, his transition to the 550hp 5-litre V8-powered Australian Grand Prix cars of the 70s has been seamless.

Third in the race went to the Matich A50 driven by Melbournian Bryan Sala, who found extra pace after the morning qualifying heat, to edge out Aucklander Andrew Higgins (Lola T400).


Aaron Lewis (Matich A50) completed the top five. First 'Class A' (pre 1970) car home, in a best-ever sixth, was the Lola T140 of Adelaide veteran John Bryant.

The next round of the series will support the V8 Supercar Sandown 500, on September 13-15, in Melbourne.

The F5000 Australia Cup is supported by Gibson Freight and the Mediterranean Shipping Company.

Formula 5000 Australia Cup points after the opening round: Tweedie 55, Smith 44, Sala 37, Higgins 37, Lewis 31, Bryant 26, Proctor 12, Rush 12.

report sent site: David Abbott
photo: John Morris/Mpix

Edited by Jerry Entin, 01 September 2013 - 13:33.

[RogerGraham]

In general, what parts of cars like these are the same as was raced in period?  Presumably things like suspension components, fuel cells, clutches, brakes, wheels are replaced (and maybe engines, gearboxes and bodies)?  

 

Is the main thing that the chassis is original?

[Allen Brown]

The chassis isn't always original either.  I don't think it's easy to say what "the main thing" is on a well-used historic racing car.  I regard the car's continuous footprint through time as being the most important thing.  Without that provenance, trying to claim history through one of more components, even if one component is as important as the monocoque, is much trickier.

 

Remember that even a chassis is not an indivisible component.  In a typical production monocoque of this era, many of the skins might have been replaced by now so it might only be the bulkheads that are original.  Whole "original" racing cars have been built from a few discarded monocoque skins!

[Duncan Fox]

I like Allen also see the continuous history as the most important thing .Followed then by the "hole in the atmosphere" and there can only be one.

 

In a series such as this the equipment is subjected to the rigors of hard racing  and if it cant be refurbished it is replaced, A good example here is Kennys 332 After the nasty Manfield crash the chassis was totally rebuilt using the roll hoop bulkhead and one or two other salvagable parts. This  is just another chapter in a racing cars history.But it is still the car . However in our neck of the woods those cast of pieces can never become a "car". Our regulators just wont have a bar of it , so theres no incentive to build it other than as a replica and then it cannot run .

Theres an interesting point to be made here also .As most of our tracks are licenced FIA cat 2 or less, historic single seaters in order to be allowed to run under that track licence must adhere strictly to schedule K rules . Any spec outside of that  cannot .

Fortunately with this group duplications are rare and usually are the result of a two tub program in period.

 

Certainly there are no outright fakes as has happened with the CanAm  cars 

[ellrosso]

Thought your car looked great Aaron - big improvement on the black. Tom Tweedie has certainly upped the ante, he drove very well and seems to have settled down a bit. Rusty French went well in the Pantera and whoever was driving the Spridget in around 4th place in Group S was terrific!

[Lee Nicolle]

Thought your car looked great Aaron - big improvement on the black. Tom Tweedie has certainly upped the ante, he drove very well and seems to have settled down a bit. Rusty French went well in the Pantera and whoever was driving the Spridget in around 4th place in Group S was terrific!

That's what I like to see, a Bathurst winner tieing his own car on the trailer. A pity about the Jag driving race suit however!

[NZALPA]

Hi Aaron

 

Are they period silencers on the Matich?  I cant quite tell.  Looks period.

 

The car looks brilliant.  Well done to all concened with the refurbishment.

[xj13v12]

I ran open exhausts, not megaphones but no silencer at all.

[Duncan Fox]

Quote

"Sydney youngster Tom Tweedie has got his Formula 5000 career off to a blazing start, by defeating the cream of NZ F5000 stars on the opening day of the 2013/14 F5000 Australia Cup, being run at the Muscle Car Masters, at Sydney Motorsport Park."
 

 

Aaron. Who writes the Aussie press releases? Since when has an historic group helped launch motorsport careers?This is exactly the sort of thing we dont need while the groups both sides of the Tasman are trying to reduce the perception of high costs. Reading between the lines this will probably be a big bucks effort  and for what? so he can show he can beat a bunch of old f.....rs trying to enjoy their cars.  

You say its great for the category , you surprise me, toss in a couple more fast drivers and cars like that and your fields will be halved overnight, The speed differentials will be too great. I hate to say it but F5000 cannot go both ways and I am sure it will split if this sort of promotion continues ,there are now clearly two groups here in NZ.Theyre just hanging in there ,sort of like a couple staying together for the kids sake, but not happy. For cars to be doing the times they are they have to be outside Schedule K or at the very least the spirit of it.

 

BTW Your car looks great , thats the best thing youve done to it

[xj13v12]

I think Chris Lambden wrote it?? I am pleased that the guys I sold the car to did such a good job. I put most of the differential down to the driver as always. Yes he is quicker than an old fart like me which doesn't bother me. Is the front of the field too fast or being over competitive? I don't know I am not there. It is the front running Kiwis who moved the goal posts. Ruapuna times have dropped 5 seconds a lap since I started there. Now Eastern Creek has 4 guys under the old record. That doesn't mean they are all cheating just coming to grips with how to make the cars work better. More miles in the seat, more knowledge of set-up.

I do agree completely with your assertion that no on ever makes a name in historics and I told Bob Tweedie exactly that. He doesn't speak to me anymore and I don't speak to him. I would rather see a talented open wheel driver in a fast car than someone who has never raced a fast car, or raced much at all and then buys a F5000. Things have been heading this way for a long time. We have rev limiters and a tyre limit. How do you limit talent or spending ability?

[NZALPA]

I think Chris Lambden wrote it?? I am pleased that the guys I sold the car to did such a good job. I put most of the differential down to the driver as always. Yes he is quicker than an old fart like me which doesn't bother me. Is the front of the field too fast or being over competitive? I don't know I am not there. It is the front running Kiwis who moved the goal posts. Ruapuna times have dropped 5 seconds a lap since I started there. Now Eastern Creek has 4 guys under the old record. That doesn't mean they are all cheating just coming to grips with how to make the cars work better. More miles in the seat, more knowledge of set-up.

I do agree completely with your assertion that no on ever makes a name in historics and I told Bob Tweedie exactly that. He doesn't speak to me anymore and I don't speak to him. I would rather see a talented open wheel driver in a fast car than someone who has never raced a fast car, or raced much at all and then buys a F5000. Things have been heading this way for a long time. We have rev limiters and a tyre limit. How do you limit talent or spending ability?

Good points Aaron

 

What Duncan Fox is wrongly asserting is that someone is cheating. 

 

Not so.

 

Historic racing is surely and rightly about the cars but if you don’t want these cars to be raced and accept that someone goes quicker than the other guy, reduce it to regularity and start them all 30 seconds apart. 

 

Someone will still go 5 seconds a lap faster than another guy even in regularity. 

 

 If you don’t want to recreate racing as per the era then forget about lap times, race starts and results and yes, anything to do with racing except that its done on a race track by race drivers (old farts) in race cars.

 

The above points take the extremist view to prove the point that there will always be historic racing and you will have some who are fast and some who are not.  Really it doesn’t matter to the cars.

 

Put Mark Webber in a good F5000 car and who knows what lap times would be done.  I bet he would like it however.

 

Remember Greg Murphy getting in one of these things recently and he was amazingly on the pace in just a few laps and raving about the experience to boot.  He had not been in a single seater for more than a decade .

 

But if you want to see these cars in a race scenario and have support for them to do it (from the promoters who make a lot of money from fans paying to watch them), keep the numbers of cars up and keep reporting what happens.  This keeps the interest up and everyone will get a look, and a drive and see a bit of yester year being recreated.

 

Other wise go and look at them all in a museum gathering dust……….

[Duncan Fox]

NZALPA both you and Aaron have made very good points .

 

Now having reread my post I dont see the word cheat anywhere.

 

What I was alluding to was how we are, in the pursuit of racing appearing to be moving away from the period specification part of schedule K. The most obviously  affected area is engines and engine development. A 5 litre engine with 630 hp is not unusual now  whereas in period 530hp would have been about the norm. This has come about through the use of aftermarket alloy cylinder heads used because iron units just were not available 15 years ago, this immediately allowed valve stem lengths to go outside schd K which then allowed larger lifts and better springs. Thats fine ,that was the tradeoff at the time but now introduce Ti valves ,rods flywheels ,5inch button clutches , sneak in a billit Rootes oil pump to vacuum scavange the oil ,and whatever else a good engine builder insists on (and therein lies the problem) and that north of 600 hp figure becomes easily achievable. Where do we stop? Do we allow  seperate oiling cavities (ie sealed rocker areas ,valley and pan as  per NasCar ?

 

The effect this is having has been noticable in NZ with grids numbers down , many are concerned  about chqbook racing , We need to find a compromise a balance, to retain our numbers .

Aaron was right it started over here  but its happening over there also.

 

I do not want to see this spectecle diminished but unless we come up with some solutions we will see cars not parked up ,but running outside the main group. Should schedule K be overhauled? Do we allow the application of modern technology . This is the quandry here ,all say they want to run under sch K but then dont want the restrictions that go with it.

Edited by Duncan Fox, 04 September 2013 - 21:11.

[xj13v12]

My engines have always given an honest 520 hp. I don't know the real output of the top engines I just know I have seen an awful lot of input shaft, CW&P, gears, half shafts etc broken which is usually a sign that power is more than the hardware can stand. I have rarely had those problems so I speculate that power is at the heart of it.

I know that Bryan Sala is a hell of a long way short of 600 hp and I don't think Tweedie is up there either. That's why I put a good portion of their speed down to their driving and set-up.

I don't know what the answer is Duncan. It doesn't bother me that there is a group way out front, there always is. The alloy heads is part of the issue but that genie is out of the bottle. Control cams perhaps? My cam is 100 thou more than the Repco flat tappet cam run in the day but it has wider torque band so I can keep the revs down and hopefully extend engine life. That's my approach. The lower the rev limit the more competitive I will be because I just don't work the engine that hard. I don't know enough to comment on valve stem lengths etc. I just bought alloy heads, had them ported and bolted them on. Some people were changing valve angles and altering inlet manifolds etc which I disagree with. I am still sceptical about this 600+ hp given the limitations of the mechanic injection system and inlet manifolds but I guess if you are willing to spin the engine hard enough and build it that way it is possible. Misses the point of our racing in my view but I choose to ignore that aspect and race for fun. We have been putting on a good show for quite a while now and it would be a pity for people to park their cars now due to the pursuit of power at the front.

[Lee Nicolle]

I have mentioned this before. Chris Milton says there is another 100hp in the engines they did not have in period. That is just with modern cams, lighter cranks, rods, pistons. Yet alone far better heads. These are HISTORIC cars and should be using period correct parts. eg, if the car raced with flat tappet cams they should now.And maybe a period limit on lift and duration. Meaning sealed engines.
Period heads, or at the very least a control head, primarily for Chevs. Are the Holdens using alloy heads too? If they are they make plenty more power than a Repco head. I do know that the difference between a 292 head, or an early Brownfield to modern stuff is a 100hp alone. Or at least on a 350. Modern aftermarket street heads outflow those considerably.And those are the heads that should be used if not the original only. Group N tintops do it.

360 Sprintcars were using a control iron head and even now use only 23 deg alloy heads. And reputedly good ones have around 600.On an engine 60ci bigger. And no Titanium valves either. Plain quality stainless. And they do turn 8000rpm. All titanium should be banned, everywhere, for budget considerations and long term reliability. Ti has to be lifed very carefully.

Blocks, I have heard all the hooha but a 4 bolt 70s block is still not hard to find and they seldom cause trouble with proper machining and studs top and bottom. Holdens are a harder as Repco supposedly used 'trick' blocks though having seen them they really are not. But not all Holdens were ever Repcos so 308 blocks are still not hard to find. Though the rust consideration does make it harder whereas US scrap metal for Chev blocks seldom seem to be rusty.
The better rods, pistons etc are a given. Commonsense dictates their use and power gain is a bonus with the reliability they offer.

I have mentioned before the 'ugly' modern rocker covers being used. Not period at all. Use period covers, that alone limits valve lift and length.And looks period correct.

Modern ignitions too are a reliability item that also makes power. Some Repcos still used points! A reliable ignition will help the engine stay together as it will be far smoother at high RPM,,,, and create less emissions too!

[xj13v12]

Don't confuse alloy Holden heads used being VN type. They remain the earlier pattern and therefore no way on earth they can get 600 hp. Mine has 520 as I said but good mid range torque and max of 7500 rpm. So now you want to seal engines, go back to flat tappet (there goes your reliability) and ask us to spend a motza reinventing the wheel again. Luckily it's not your money.

All the F5000 experts should buy one and see how they go. Oh well we got a good number onto the track for while and the usual complaints started. Interested onlookers always know better never mind that I have owned 3 F5000s and been on track over 350 times in them.

 

Matich sold, I don't care if it runs in the future or not. See it at Sandown this weekend.

[Lee Nicolle]

Don't confuse alloy Holden heads used being VN type. They remain the earlier pattern and therefore no way on earth they can get 600 hp. Mine has 520 as I said but good mid range torque and max of 7500 rpm. So now you want to seal engines, go back to flat tappet (there goes your reliability) and ask us to spend a motza reinventing the wheel again. Luckily it's not your money.
All the F5000 experts should buy one and see how they go. Oh well we got a good number onto the track for while and the usual complaints started. Interested onlookers always know better never mind that I have owned 3 F5000s and been on track over 350 times in them.
 
Matich sold, I don't care if it runs in the future or not. See it at Sandown this weekend.

The Perfectune alloy heads for early configuration Holdens make 50hp+ over a very well ported factory head. And they do not have a headgasket issue either. And that was in the late 90s on a Sports Sedan with a single 4bbl on a Performer manifold!

[xj13v12]

Not according to my flow bench results directly comparing genuine Repco heads. That's high port devcon filled Repco work and Nathan Higgins from bare heads v the end result after perfectune heads had been worked by Bernie at Rams. Whatever I am certainly way behind nearly every Chev out there which doesn't bother me because these cars never had 560+ horsepower let alone over 600. It will show this weekend at Sandown which has 2 long drag strips. We might have 15 cars if lucky. Maybe all the experts can come along and buy one.

[RogerGraham]

Would it make any sense at all to set an upper limit for horsepower, and test the leading cars (and/or random cars) as they pull off the track after a race (or whenever makes sense)?

 

If so, could the rules be relaxed enough to allow some of the newer tech to be used to help increase engine life / reduce running costs, rather than increase power (not that I understand much about that side of things).

[275 GTB-4]

Thought your car looked great Aaron - big improvement on the black. Tom Tweedie has certainly upped the ante, he drove very well and seems to have settled down a bit. Rusty French went well in the Pantera and whoever was driving the Spridget in around 4th place in Group S was terrific!

 

If is was the BRG # 75 - then it was Brian Weston...reliably fast   

[timbo]

After seeing photo's ot Tom Tweedie's low and sleek Chevron, Clark Proctor's March is somewhat more businesslike.

 

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Edited by timbo, 06 September 2013 - 11:24.

[timf5000]

After seeing photo's ot Tom Tweedie's low and sleek Chevron, Clark Proctor's March is somewhat more businesslike.

 

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Love the Morand rocker covers! Exactly the same as on my F5000 Trojan T102; although that has Morand covers and an ORIGINAL, last one made, Alan Smith injection system sold to me by the man himself 25 years ago as bare castings! So two original period parts on a completely original car, giving about 510bhp!

[ellrosso]

I got a bit of a shock when I saw the March - its so short! Looks like it should be a couple of feet longer.......  Very quick though, he and Tom Tweedie seemed very even till the March blew. 275-GTB4, the Spridget was a light metallic blue and going like a rocket! 

Aaron - I hope we are not losing you from the F5000 ranks now the Matich has been sold? Just for my 2 cents worth, I've always thought you have done a great job with your various cars, always immaculate and well driven - 1.30's at E Creek is quick in anyone's language. At the end of the day historic racing is about the cars and like anything, you will have drivers come in who are a bit quicker than others - its actually not that different to when they were raced in period. From the front of the grid to the back there would often be up to 10 secs difference on some circuits for different reasons  (mostly money, but also varying levels of ability, experience etc,etc). It is great to see so many of the cars I remember racing back in the 70's still racing today and the standard of preparation is amazing. I hope it continues.

Be interesting to see a young Ken Smith go head to head with Tom Tweedie in the same cars from the E Creek meeting...... 

Edited by ellrosso, 06 September 2013 - 21:29.

[Bondy]

Off topic but the MG Midget is driven by the very quick Damien Meyer.  

[275 GTB-4]

I ran open exhausts, not megaphones but no silencer at all.

 

Sounds much appreciated Aaron

 

 

 

[xj13v12]

Thanks, that shot taken after one pipe fell off, broke the weld again.

[timbo]

One question Aaron, for the next time you are online, the version of the Matich A50 at the bottom of the information board outside your pits is so much different than the other two photo's.

When did it run in that spec, and by who? Its hard to recognise it as a Matich A50. The only other time I've seem F5000's so different than the original was during the short lived Arcographite series when there was a deliberate attempt to modernise the look of F5000 cars, by removing the big airboxes etc.

[NZALPA]

Aaron - I hope we are not losing you from the F5000 ranks now the Matich has been sold? Just for my 2 cents worth, I've always thought you have done a great job with your various cars, always immaculate and well driven - 1.30's at E Creek is quick in anyone's language. At the end of the day historic racing is about the cars and like anything, you will have drivers come in who are a bit quicker than others - its actually not that different to when they were raced in period. From the front of the grid to the back there would often be up to 10 secs difference on some circuits for different reasons  (mostly money, but also varying levels of ability, experience etc,etc). It is great to see so many of the cars I remember racing back in the 70's still racing today and the standard of preparation is amazing. I hope it continues.

Be interesting to see a young Ken Smith go head to head with Tom Tweedie in the same cars from the E Creek meeting...... 

 

Aaron

 

I quite agree with the quote above.

 

You have been a brilliant supporter of the class on both sides of the Tasman if not the back bone of it in Australia for years and Im sure will still enjoy it for years to come.  I know many of your fellow historic F5000 drivers enjoy your company very much but you still have a bit to learn.  Tire grooving comes to mind but you have the rest of it kicked to bits.  Well done.

 

Keep up the good work.

 

- from an admirer.

[timbo]

With regards to Aaron, its probably a game of "Guess whats in Aarons shed".

When I first came across his name, it was with the Elfin MS7 sports car, restoring the Graduate M8F sports car and his father Jack's Jaguar E-Type modsports car .

He then went on to F5000 cars with an Elfin MR8 which was converted back from a Can-Am car, Eagle Indy cars, the Matich, the Chevron, and just when you think that Aaron is all historic racing, he turns up at a round of the Shannons National Series (modern stuff) in a Radical sports car.

I'm sure I've missed many cars he's been involved with, but I'd love to know whats still in his shed. He turned up at Phillip Island Historics with a Lola T163 Can-Am car, and who knows what is lurking behind closed doors, or is on the water from O.S.

Don't tell us Aaron, just surprise us when you turn up at a race meeting in something different.

[Tappets]

FIRSTLY I would like to sincerely thank everyone who commented very nicely on Tom's performance at Eastern Creek last weekend in the Chevron even including Aaron who had one of his better weekends thanks to some good preparation etc ... and the beaut photo's John Morris.

For the record Tom has actually lapped faster at ECreek in an F3 car so this was not quite as larger issue for him and thanks to a great Wayne Smith steel motor and some good set up sorting both on Friday and a month ago the car was 98% on the target.

At the expense of raising a matter or two however we are off to Sandown weekend 13-15 Sept and don't expect it to be so easy as we have a magneto rev limit restriction of 7800 RPM verses 8000 RPM on all the MSD ignition cars so when you hear Tom popping and banging three quarters up the back straight as he hits the limiter and gets passed you will understand our frustration.

I/we have attempted to talk commonsense with the instigators but at this stage nothing has been resolved so at this time we have even had thoughts about giving this meeting a miss as a matter of principle. I must add these little "restrictions" have not been tabled by CAMS Historic Commission so cannot be inforced and are just the wishes voted for by the F5000 Association (not us) but they have threatened exclusion from Championship points if we don't conform and will be unpopular no doubt so what do we do in a real world ... bite the bullet.

Notwithstanding all this F5000 needs all the support it can get and I/we are not in favour of bailing out regardess how we feel the chips are stacked against us so you will probably see us at Sandown and as usual and the "team" will be trying it's hardest to overcome the tiny obstacle ... maybe we should pull a plug lead off to solve the problem?

TAPPETS

[xj13v12]

Ho, ho. Yes the tyre groover incident. For the uninitiated I was grooving a set of decent tyres as wets in NZ. A job I have done quite a few times by the way. On this occasion the tyres were a little more worn than I thought. Suddenly all of a sudden BANG!. I swore for a long time without repeating myself. The effin' Kiwis (my good mates) have never let me forget it.

 

Thankyou for some kind words by a few. I am just an enthusiasts who has on several occasions borrowed against the house to buy a car I don't really need. Life is not a rehearsal.

 

As for the strange white Matich it is the rear engine A53 copy that Davo did but couldn't get to work. The Southern Comfort rear radiator Matich overheated and probably shows the superior testing regime of Frank compared to others trying to achieve the same results. It is the same car and also ran white with front radiator. In the long hindsight of ten years I now wonder why I didn't go to Walker orange to start with. When he and Frank lined up 1-2 and finished in that order it was quite a moment for the design credentials of Australian cars.

 

Bob, Tom can handle himself more than adequately. Use the right gearing and let him race using his superior skill. Get the engine puff tested and stop wanking about the 8,000 limit. It is no limit to him being able to win, which I why I sold you the car. Please back off and let Tom show his stuff. PLEASE!

[275 GTB-4]

Peanuts! Popcorn! getcha Peanuts! Popcorn!

 

Programs! Programs!

 

Choc Ice, Choc Ice...get em here!

 

[everybody! get comfortable, Rudd and Abbott have nothing on this entertainment  ]

[timbo]

 We have rev limiters and a tyre limit. How do you limit talent or spending ability?

 

You can't. I remember when the HQ Holden series first started. It was fun, but then there was televised races from Amaroo Park and people started spending crazy money on the cars just to get television exposure, despite that at the end of the day, it was only an HQ Holden series.

The result of increased spending to get on TV was that the series died for years,as people couldn't justify the amount of money to be spent to be competitive, but has picked up as a state series contested by people who race for the fun of it.  I can see the similarities with the current Touring Car Master series, as people hire professional drivers to set the car up for them, so they can then compete closer to the front of the grid, and then get their sponsors on TV.

For open wheeler fans in Australia, we probably only have to look back to Formula Atlantic as an historic series. it was all the rage for a few years, with over 30 cars on the grid for support races to the A1 GP series at Eastern Creek  , but probably only 5 years later, we struggle to get a grid of any number at events at the likes of Wakefield Park or Winton historics.  I have only talked to a couple of drivers about this, and its the old story of people spending whatever it takes to get a win on TV, and if it means having to rebuild a motor at the end of the weekend so be it. Others, probably similar to Aaron Lewis,and the majority of competitors, would  probably happy to finish higher than their qualfying position, and set a personal best lap time.

Thats my take on things, only as an enthusiastic spectator who is just happy to see as many cars oput on the track as possible, regardless of lap times.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[NZALPA]

The rev limiter thing wont make a jot of difference to Toms performance.  Aaron is bang on.  The only thing that will change I recon is that the engine will last longer.

 

As Aaron says, put a longer gear into 5th and he'll go even quicker.  Ken Smith has always said about F5000's 'change earlier and take a higher gear and you will go faster'    ......... and who did he get that from..........  Warwick Brown.  Read it in the Titans of the Track F5000.

 

The rev limit thing does address the perception of the quick guys going quicker and quicker especially if a very few spend more and more and more which cannot be stopped.  More the fool, them.

 

The rev limit for the F1 circus in the UK (10,000 for the DVF - I think) did a huge amount to hold things together at least in the Masters Series.  Guys like Frank Lyons have been advocating an F5000 limit in AUST/NZL for a long time based on his experience with the F1 scene.  

 

It still wont stop the quick guys going quick, in my opinion.  And how many times has Tom been around Sandown............?  He should be quick at his age with his talent and a good car.

 

Sorry about singling you out Tom,  but I hear you are a fine young man and a great asset to the historic class so keep up the entertainment.

 

It could well be better than the (other) V8’s and after all, the F5000s are real race cars and who cares if the majority are driven by old farts. 

 

Some quite quick old farts of course…

Edited by NZALPA, 07 September 2013 - 11:57.

[timbo]

Peanuts! Popcorn! getcha Peanuts! Popcorn!

 

Programs! Programs!

 

Choc Ice, Choc Ice...get em here!

 

[everybody! get comfortable, Rudd and Abbott have nothing on this entertainment

 

 

Abbott and, what was his name, oh yeah, Rudd, have nothing to do with entertainment. They even make Tony Cochrane look respectable.

Dick Willis for PM, I say.

[Jerry Entin]

Defending Formula 5000 Australia Cup Series title holder Andrew Robson (Lola T332) will be back on the grid at the second round of the 2013/14 series at Melbourne's Sandown circuit this weekend.

DEFENDING CHAMP ROBSON BACK FOR SANDOWN F5000 ROUND

Having missed the opening round of the 2013/14 series a fortnight ago, defending Formula 5000 Australia Cup holder Andrew Robson will join the field at this weekend’s Formula 5000 supporting races at the Sandown 500, following a full recovery from a recent shoulder operation.

Robson’s familiar red Lola T332 (an ex Ken Smith car) has been fully rebuilt and will line up with other leading Australian contenders Tom Tweedie (Chevron B24), Bryan Sala (Matich A50), Aaron Lewis (Matich A50), D’arcy Russell (Lola T330) and V8 Supercar ‘Dad’ Richard Davison (ex-Teddy Yip/Alan Jones Lola T332), to take on some of New Zealand’s best.

Kiwi F5000 legend Ken Smith (Lola T332) and Auckland’s Andrew Higgins (Lola T400) are expected to be front-runners as Formula 5000 joins the V8 Supercar show for the first time, supporting the opening round of the 2014 Pirtek Endurance Cup.

One Kiwi who, unfortunately, will be missing from the grid this weekend is 2012/13 MSC New Zealand F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series race winner Clark Proctor.

Proctor joined eventual round winner Tom Tweedie on the front row of the grid and took the battle to the young Australian in the first race at the opening round of the Australian series in Sydney a fortnight ago only to be forced out of the longer second one when his March 73A's engine went off-song.

"We've had an issue with aerating the oil and though I switched it off before it did any major damage I think I've probably run a bearing," Proctor said this morning. "We did look at shipping another engine over between the two rounds but it was going to be too much of rush. The car will be at the track, but only on display this time."

Sandown is one of the traditional homes of Australian Formula 5000 and this weekend’s event will recreate the halcyon days when the 500+ horsepower V8s dominated the Australian motorsport scene.

The F5000s will contest two qualifying heats on Saturday at Sandown, with a feature F5000 race on Sunday morning, just prior to the V8 Supercar warm-up.

Fans hoping to experience the earth-moving sight and sound of Australia’s golden-era Australian GP category will need to get to Sandown early – the Sunday feature is scheduled for a 10.15am start.

After the opening round in Sydney earlier this month series debutant Tom Tweedie (55) heads the series points table, from Smith (44), Sala and Higgins (both 37).

Formula 5000 Australia is supported by Gibson Freight and MSC. And the The MSC F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series is organised and run with the support of sponsors MSC, NZ Express Transport, Bonney's Specialized Bulk Transport, Mobil Lubricants, Pacifica, Avon Tyres, Webdesign and Exide.





2013/14 MSC New Zealand F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series
Calendar
Rnd 1: Nov 8-10 2013 'The Sound' MG Classic Manfeild Feilding
Rnd 2: Jan 17-19 2014 NZFMR Ferrari Festival - 1 Hampton Downs Nth Waikato
Rnd 3: Jan 24-16 2014 NZFMR Ferrari Festival - 2 Hampton Downs Nth Waikato
Rnd 4: Feb 01-02 2014 Skope Classic Powerbuilt Tools Raceway @ Ruapuna Park Christchurch

2013/14 Formula 5000 Australia Cup Series (invitational rounds)
Rnd 1: Aug 31-Sept 01 2013 Muscle Car Masters meeting Sydney Motorsport Park Sydney
Rnd 2: Sept 13-15 2013 Sandown 500 meeting (V8 Supercars) Sandown Melbourne
Rnd 3: Nov 08-10 2013 Sandown Historics meeting Sandown Melbourne
Rnd 4: March 07-09 2014 Phillip Island Classic meeting Phillip Island Melbourne
Rnd 5: (provisional yet to be confirmed) March 14-16 2014 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix meeting Albert Park Melbourne

Prepared by FAST COMPANY of behalf of the New Zealand Formula 5000 Association www.F5000.co.nz For more information about the 2013/14 MSC New Zealand F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series contact Ross MacKay on 021 677 919 or via e-mail on ross@fastcompany.co.nz

photo: Fast Company/Alex Mitchell

Edited by Jerry Entin, 11 September 2013 - 01:56.

[Duncan Fox]

I will be very interested to see if the official outright lap record  of  1.08.33 set by Roger Williams in 2003 is toppled this weekend, I suspect that it will be and by some margin .I know Andrew Robson has been close in the past and Rogers GM1 was schd K compliant with around 560hp. Darren Hossack in the Audi sports sedan has been tantilisingly close on many occasions also.(1.08.56)

[Lee Nicolle]

I just hope Melbourne does not get Adelaides weather. It has no stopped raining here since lunch time and Melbourne usually gets it 12-24 hours later. Our forecast is rain until at least next Monday.
And Sandown would not be my favourite place in the rain in any open wheel car, it is not great in a tin top.

[timbo]

With a lap time of 1.06.98, Richard Davison is looking the goods after qualifying. Not far away is Andrew Higgins, 1.08.09, and Tom Tweedie with 1.08.23.

As for the lap record, yes, it does depend on the weather, but also how much the other support classes such as the V8 Utes trash the circuit during their race.