SANDOWN 500

All about V8 Supercars Racing

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Julian Mayo
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SANDOWN 500

Post by Julian Mayo » Wed Sep 07, 2005 9:47 am

The first of the endros commence this weekend with the running of the Sandown 500 at the historic track 25 kms east of Melbourne.
PLEASE NOTE:
Tips must be in by FRIDAY 10:45AM when practice commences.
THIS IS AN ABSOLUTE DEADLINE.

The Circuit.
Sandown is a track which tests brakes, engines,gearboxes, tyres and drivers to the limit. Many say it is more of a car breaker than Mt. Panorama, Bathurst.
It is a 3:1km circuit run in an anti-clockwise direction
You have done your warm up lap, all the readouts are good to go and you take up your pole position halfway down the main straight, with a time you set of, lets say, 1:9:9386...a full second under Graig Lowndes 1999 Q record, and about 8 tenths under Ambrose' lap record of the same year.
The 10 second board comes out and you ease the box into 1st gear, take a huge breath and conciously try to relax your thoughts. You know who is beside and behind you and have already tried to guess their race plans.
161 laps lie ahead.
Green!
A good start moving slightly left to deter a move down the inside, banging up thru the gears to 3rd, onto the cold brakes and feeling the equally cold tyres squirming for grip, a nudge from behind unsettles the car momentarily, Ambrose is on your outside will he try to go all the way around with the fearsome sucking sandtrap waiting...its Ambrose of course he will, tuck it in tight for turn 1 in 3rd at 95..a 100kmh when the thing is warm. Mash the throttle as soon as the car is straight for the short chute to the right left combo of turns 2-3..down to 2nd, Ambrose is right beside you into the RH but you have track position for the LH immediately after. Lean on him a tad, damn there goes the mirror, blat it into turn 4 LH still in 2nd at 70, Ambrose is forced wide, but robs you of exit room out of the corner
Side by side you sweep out of 4 into the short chute to the kink in the back straight accelerating as hard as you can thru the gears, being forced back into the seat, and your helmet is lifting, and its now a drag race up the rising back straight til you hit 265 kmh check the readouts take a deep breath and another and keep the foot in to it as you crest the rise,snick it back into 5th and plunge into LH turn 6 at 175 kmh, the bloody thing wants to go straight ahead, sliding wide if we lose it here the day is done cos it is going to be a big one Ambrosehastofallinlinepoweronpoweroff, standing on the brakes thru the combo of corners and working the box hard til turn 9 at 70 in 2nd, up 2 gears to turn 10..190 in 4th down 2 gears to turn 11 in second, braking hard hard hard. Short burst to turn 12 at 80 kmh still in second then power power power upthru the gears onto the main straight again reaching265kmh.
Check the readouts, breathe, Ambrose has had a better exit onto the straight and is again on your outside, ease him as far right as you can and decide as you commence lap 2 of 161...race for position or drive for the win. The voice in your earphones is saying " let him go, its a long race, stick to the strategy" the voice in your head is saying "bugger it, we are here to race". Turn one is hurtling towards you....your choice.

One of the critical things about Sandown is the weather. Expect 4 seasons thru the course of the race and you will not be disappointed. In the past the race has been red flagged as the entire track turned completely white with hail in seconds, most of the field went off track, they were sliding off at 30kmh just trying to get back to the pits.
The pit stops are critical and the Co- drivers equally so.
Good luck.
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

Julian Mayo
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Post by Julian Mayo » Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:04 am

The program for Sandown is;
Friday 10:45am - 12:55 practice 1
2:35 - 3:05 Co-Drivers only
Saturday 1:30 pm Q for the slower 50%
1:55pm Q for the top 50%
2:30pm Top 10 Shootout
These times seem very compressed to me, but thats what was on the official site at 7am this morning
Sunday Warm up 9:30 am
RACE START Ipm. 161 laps or 4 :45 pm whichever comes first ( remember the weather!)
Television CH 10 Sunday Noon til 5 pm
Take the phone off the hook, give credit card to significant other, put animals outside, stock esky, make a vegemite sandwhich, turn sound way up and enjoy.
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

Julian Mayo
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Post by Julian Mayo » Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:07 am

In late news for Sandown Yvan Muller has been faster in testing than Steven Ellery and Adam Macrow. They will share one car and Muller will drive with Lowndes in the Triple 888 Ford.
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

mlittle
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Post by mlittle » Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:08 am

Julian, is the top 10 shootout the same format for Sandown and Bathurst as it is for the other V8 races, or do we have to list both drivers for each position?
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Post by Julian Mayo » Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:19 am

mlittle wrote:Julian, is the top 10 shootout the same format for Sandown and Bathurst as it is for the other V8 races, or do we have to list both drivers for each position?
Usually the teams have their top Driver do the shootout. If you nominate the usual driver for the top 10 and the co-driver takes his place, your nomination will stand.
I.E, Nominate Lowndes, and If Muller drives, he will represent Lowndes.
The decision as to who drives is sometimes not made til an hour or so before the shootout, and as the tips MUST BE IN BY FRIDAY MORNING its the only way we can do it.
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

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Post by mlittle » Wed Sep 07, 2005 10:27 am

Got it, thanks.
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Post by mlittle » Thu Sep 08, 2005 9:30 am

Anyway, here are my picks for Sandown....

1--Ingall
2--Lowndes
3--Ambrose
4--Skaife
5--Ritter
6--Ellery
7--T. Kelly
8--Bowe
9--Tagliani
10--R. Kelly
The Sci-Fi Station Come by and visit when you get the chance. :)
The Wayward Tarheel I'm even in the blogosphere.... :shock:

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Post by Julian Mayo » Thu Sep 08, 2005 1:33 pm

mlittle wrote:Anyway, here are my picks for Sandown....

1--Ingall
2--Lowndes
3--Ambrose
4--Skaife
5--Ritter
6--Ellery
7--T. Kelly
8--Bowe
9--Tagliani
10--R. Kelly

The Ritter/McLean entry could surprise a lot of "experts".
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

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Post by mlittle » Thu Sep 08, 2005 1:36 pm

Hey, one can dream, can't they?
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Post by Julian Mayo » Thu Sep 08, 2005 1:39 pm

mlittle wrote:Hey, one can dream, can't they?

Thats what I have been doing in 8npole all season :lol:
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Post by mlittle » Thu Sep 08, 2005 1:44 pm

You and me both, julian.
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Post by Southernman » Thu Sep 08, 2005 4:40 pm

Lowndes
Ambrose
Skaife
Murphy
Tander
Bowe
Ellery
Ritter
McConville
Radisich

Don't ask for any logic in my picks because there isn't any. :lol:

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Post by Julian Mayo » Thu Sep 08, 2005 5:57 pm

Southernman wrote:Lowndes
Ambrose
Skaife
Murphy
Tander
Bowe
Ellery
Ritter
McConville
Radisich

Don't ask for any logic in my picks because there isn't any. :lol:
Well, lets have a look,
Ambrose is hot to trot
Skaife...proven performer at this track
Tander, getting quick and consistantly so
Bowe, leave these guys out and you take a risk
Ellery, fast..reliability in an enduro?
Ritter, runs on the board here
McC..vastly under rated and the fittest driver out there
The Rat, unbeatable with the right car on the day, sadly that has not happened enough this season, cheap supplier parts letting them down

Now for Murphy. This guy is an enigma to me. Undeniably they are starting to get the balance of the car right, since the mid-season change of engine type. I think there is no faster driver out there, indeed IMHO he is the fastest driver out there...I just feel that the moon has to be in the right quadrant, or he has to "get lucky" on race eve, or something. It is as if he is a "luck driver. A few of years ago I was up at Bathurst, from the thursday am on, and from watching at the various points around the circuit, he was having to brake 5-6 metres earlier, the car was skittish across the top of the mountain, you could see he was " elbows flailing" across Skyline
I think, from memory, they didn't make the top 10, yet with 3 laps to go he was in the lead and posting near lap record times.
When he blew them all away with that brilliant ..still standing..lap record in the top 10 shootout he actually pulled the wrong gear coming out of Forest Elbow. Anyone else would have been counting the pistons as they came thru the bonnet.
I suspect that the enduro gods like him.. and I am damn sure the Mountain God does
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

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Post by Julian Mayo » Fri Sep 09, 2005 8:40 am

Mfer Tod Kelly is paired with Skaife
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

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Post by Julian Mayo » Fri Sep 09, 2005 8:44 am

My apologies for not having a complete entry list for Sandown, I simply have not been able to find one.
The Mountain is a savage Mistress.

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