CPRacing Post Perth Update

After another solid round for Ice Break Racing at Barbagallo – Perth, things have been pretty hectic.  I feel like I have travelled completely around Australia in the past two weeks!

I’m now sitting on a plane heading for NZ so thought I’d take the chance to fill you in with what’s been happening.

Round two of the championship at Perth went pretty well.  The ‘Real Coffee – Ice Cold – Ice Break’ Racing Team made some positive steps forward.  IBR has been putting in a big effort lately and every time we take the Ute out it seems to be getting faster!  Perth was a good event for us.  It was a new track for me which I was excited about.  After we had our pit bay set up and Ute 100% the team did a track walk on Thursday afternoon as the sun set – it was quite romantic really.  It looked like a pretty sweet track with some fast but technical sections.  It gave us some direction with set up for practice one some idea of the track layout for me to do a few laps in my head before bed time.

We were strong out the gate in each practice session and it was pleasing to put IBR Holden on the front row qualifying on a new circuit.  Although, I was a little gutted I missed out on pole by .05sec! So close to $1000 for pole yet so far away!

Race one saw myself on the front row alone, after Cam McConville broke a timing chain late in qualifying and didn’t make the grid.  I took full advantage of this and the awesome speed the Ute had to pull a comfy 3second lead then manage it through to the chequered flag.  It was a pretty good feeling for the team to get our first race win of the 2011 season under the belt.  This meant I was the lucky guy to draw the number out of the barrel for the reverse grid heat.  Numbers 18-26 were in and I pulled 22.  We moved forward through the field to 11 by the end of the race.  It was a solid drive but not enough to start the final from pole.  WA local, Grant Johnson had a blinder in the reverse grid race which gifted him pole for race 3.  Running into turn one, on lap one, I found myself on the outside from grid two and Monster Energy driver Nathan Pretty saw opportunity to muscle his way up the inside relegating me back to P3.  I slotted into line and used the Ice Break Holdens speed to move past Nathan into second then slotted up the inside of Grant exiting turn one on lap two.  We ran side by side through the infield till I had track position at turn 5 and claimed the lead.  I pushed on hard to build a gap but Grant came home strong and passed me back with 3 laps to run.  Finishing 2nd in race 3 concluded another good round and saw us 2nd for the weekend as well, but more importantly in the lead of the championship!  Its early days in the season now but the IBR Team will continue to strive forward to find more speed in myself and the Ute and aim for more consistent results to see us in a position to attack for the championship come the penultimate round.

After the weekend we decided to extend our stay in Perth.  On Thursday we did some testing and took the chance to thrill some of our supporters by taking them for hot laps.  After the truck was packed and parked up at the local Mack dealership, our work in Perth was done.  We enjoyed a bit of team bonding with a game of golf and a swim at the beach before flying out.  I thought I was flying back to the Gold Coast but I got side tracked at the last minute and ended up in Adelaide.  I picked up the Ice Break Promo Ute with Hayden and set off on a bit of a road trip back to the GC.  I dropped Hayden off in Sydney and carried on home.  It was lucky I had plenty of IBR caps in the Ute because I was constantly getting stopped by people wanting an Ice Break drink or a cap!  2400km later I was pretty excited to get into my own be.  After a day at home it was off to the Glades Golf Course on the Goldie for the ‘Make-a-Wish’ foundation fundraiser by Parmalat.  It had a massive turn out and the GC turned the weather on for a ripper day on the course.  I parked the Ute up at the 18th tee full of Ice Break and with the heat of the day the Ice break Girls gave out plenty of drinks.  Later that day I heard Jesse Dixon got the call up to race the Ice Break Swift at round one of the championship.  I booked a flight and headed off on Saturday morning to lend a hand where possible and give support.  Jesse drove hard and finished the round 2nd and showed he’s a championship contender.  On Sunday night I flew home and had two days there before heading back to the Land Of The Long White Cloud for the NZ Motorsport awards held in Wellington on Saturday night.

Looking ahead and things aren’t slowing down at all.  Next week I will be working at Queensland Raceway doing some driver training days for FPV which is always good fun!  After that I’ll be concentrating on preparation for Darwin, Round 3.  Mr Steeb, our team truckie, is heading north from Perth to Darwin at the moment in the Ice Break Racing Mack transporter.  4232km is nothing for him!  Some say that his heart is upside down, and that his teeth glow in the dark… all we know is, he is called Mr Steeb.

This update is probably a bit overdue but I have had lots going on recently which is cool!

Thanks for the support,