circuit club issue 22

8/6/2019 Circuit Club Issue 22

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MOTORSPORT LIFESTYLE www.circuitclub.com.au

ISSuE 22, FEBRuARY 2009

WE RIDE

WITH THEDRIVER! WE DRIVE THE CAR!

THIS MAGAZINE IS FREE! PLEASE TAKE A COPY FREE!

INTRODUCING...

C A R & D R I V E RO F T H E Y E A RT W O T H O U S A N D A N D E I G H T



FEEL THE POWER OF THE LEAF

TEA CAN DO THAT.



a

THECIRCUITISSUE22C A R A N D D R I V E R 2 0 0 8

EDITOR’S LETTER

Car and driver of the year is a big claim. "What in their rights

gives them the authority to give such an award," you may ask

yourself.

Well, let me explain.

Since we started, we here at The Circuit always come across

people within our community that inspire us. These people are special

because it can be sometimes hard to ind inspiration from someone within

a community. We always look upwards towards the famous people - those

people who are out of reach and often too dificult to relate to on a more

personal level.

But if we can ind inspiration close to us, we get to know them and learn

so much more.So that is what Car and Driver of the Year is about. We wanted to pick one

stand out combination of a car and its driver that has inspired us to be be

better drivers or maintain better cars.

It is important that we chose to combine both car and driver into

one award too. Nothing symbolises our community more than what a

combination of a car and it's driver can achieve. You can have the best car in

the world, but if you can't drive it, then what use is it? The same can be said

vice versa. You could be Fernando Alonso (sorry Hamilton fans), but without

a good car, you just won't, um, go so fast.

Finding this years CaDotY, to be honest, was pretty easy. Where ever you

looked, where ever you went, people would comment on how fast Jacky Yick

and his Honda Civic are. And no matter what you heard, you always heard he

is one of the nicest guys in the paddock.

So we hope you enjoy the read, and whether you agree or disagree with

our choice, we want your feedback because this is something we want to

keep doing every year.

On another note, if we were to crown a Man of the Year, it would have

to go to Garry Wilmington. The ex-boss of Wakeield Park has been quietly

working in his backyard for the past few years and has now unveiled

Australia's newest circuit. It's not a race circuit, but a "Training Centre", and

at just 1km in length, its a real cracker.

Seriously, hats o to the guy - if you see him at a pub, buy him a beer. It

takes real guts to fork out the money to build a circuit.

Lastly, we are proud to present our irst ever competition in this

magazine. The people at Madmen Entertainment have given us 25 double

in-season passes to Love The Beast - Eric Bana's up and coming movie. So

turn to page 22 to see how you can win!

Cheers,

Narada Kudinar

ISSUE 21

Circuit Spy 6

Dreamchaser 8

Car and Driver of the Year 12

Competition! 22

CONTENTS

The Circuit, Car and Driver 2008, Issue 22, February 2009

Publisher Circuit Club // Editor Narada Kudinar // Sub-editor Daniel Leong // Senior Writer Narada Kudinar // Sta Writers Marc Hammond, Tim Fung, Justin Fox,Modi Song, Justin Narayan, // Advertising Mangaer Alex Escobar // Art Director Narada Kudinar // Team Photographer Matthew Mead // Illustrator Shaun Tan //Logistics Manager Tim Fung // IT Andrew Handmer, Hien Nguyen // Printing Team Felix Kusuma, Ivan You // Project Co-ordinator Narada Kudinar // Concept RedBulletin Verlags GmbH // Printers CPPS // Published by Circuit Club Pty Limted // email: [email protected] // Copyright 2006-2008 Circuit Club Pty Limited.All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, without the permission from the publisher.

For more information on advertising in this publication, please contact Ivan by email at [email protected]

WWW.CIRCUITCLUB.COM.AU

DISTRIBUTORS!Get your free copy of The Circuit from these

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NSW AAI Motorsport - Unit 19/4A Bachell Ave,

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Autostyle - 163-169 Stoney Creek Rd,

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Bel Garage - 19 Clapham Road, Regents Park

IS Motor Racing - 5/5-7 Bermill St, Rockdale

JDM Yard - 2/9 Mavis St, Revesby

Peak Performance - 80 Macarthur Street,

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Powerplay Imports - 82 - 88 Victoria Rd,

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Proconcept - 1a Mellor St, West Ryde

Mu Secret - 7- 9 Parramatta Road, Concord

Revolution Racegear - 3/Rear of 191

Parramatta Rd, Auburn

Turbosmart - 32 Milton St North, Ashield

Wakeield Park - 4770 Braidwood Rd,

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ACTJ Racing - 14-16 Maryborough Street,

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VICChasers - 4/440 Dynon Road, West

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Project Mu - 286 Southport Nerang Rd,

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TIME TO TRY OUT AUSTRALIA'S LATEST CIRCUIT

TRAININGDAY7-8 MARCH 2009 - MDTC

CIRCUIT CLUB PRESENTS TRACKDAY TWO THOUSAND AND NINE

venue: MARULAN DRIVER TRAINING CENTRE date: SATURDAY 7thMARCH and SUNDAY 8th MARCH 2009 price: $120 PER DRIVER,PER DAY, maximum: 30 DRIVERS PER DAY including: DRIVERTRAINING spectators: FREE bookings: [email protected]

circuit club



THE STORM COMETH

In yet another awesome photo from

resident photographer Matt Mead, we see

the storm clouds gather about to interupt

what was perfect weather. It almost looded the track, but that just meant even

more fun was to be had...

Photographer: Matthew Mead, Circuit Club

Labour Day Trackday, Wakeield Park,

06.10.08, 11.37am. Canon EOS 40D, 18-

55mm lens, 1/13s at F5.6.

CIRCUIT SPY



GARRY WILMINGTON HAS bUILT A NEW CIRCUIT INMARULAN – AN HOUR AND A HALF AWAY FROMSYDNEY. bUT AT ONLY 1kM IN LENGTH, WHAT WILL ITACTUALLY bE USED FOR? AND WILL IT bE ANY GOOD?

JUSTIN NARAYAN TALkS TO HIM DURING AN ExCLUSIVEFIRST TEST OF THE CIRCUIT.



22

such as building your own driver training

circuit. That’s where Garry comes in, funding

and constructing his own track in the name of

education, not just racing. Back in 1991 Garry

embarked on this task, and it has been a long

time coming. He spent 9 years managing at

Wakefield Park, but felt like they, and other

circuits in NSW, were lacking in a certain

sector – driver training and introducing new

drivers to motorsport. “I’ve been racing so long

and going to those tracks that didn’t have what

you needed, and you weren’t treated the way I

thought you should be treated”. His answer was

the Marulan Driver Training Centre (MDTC).

So what is the MDTC? Basically, it is a small,

tight challenging race course designed for one

to hone their skills. A track like Wakefield

Park can be daunting at first, so something

like the MTDC was needed to bring more

faces into Australian Motorsport. I myself was

lucky enough to have a first hand experience

of this track in my own car. It is defiantly a

tricky course at first, with some tight corners

and a small uphill section. It reminds me of

something that you’d see in Japan, which is a

good thing. We think Garry has done very well

with the overall track design. “It was designed

to be difficult, to be challenging, and to fit

within the landscape.”

Again something like the MTDC isn’t made

for length or high speeds, its purpose is to

educate. That’s what set’s it apart from other

tracks. With its smart configuration anyone can

happily bring their cars down, and experience

what it’s like first hand to drive on a race track,

without any fears because of the overall low

average speed. This enables the course to

target a larger audience, including groups and

clubs not associated with cars whatsoever.

“We have only got car clubs in mind, but

we want all types of clubs to come – ones that

aren’t associated with racing, but want to try

something different,” Garry admits. “We have

big plans for something we call ‘Family Days’,

where we can get both adults and children out

onto the circuit.

Garry plans to bring kids to the course,

from the age of eight onward. The MTDC is all

about the learning process with driving. This

means keeping older, younger and upcoming

drivers safe, whilst possibly gaining a love for

Motorsport and driving as a whole. “Actually

teaching yourself your limits and your cars

limits, and make it easier to stay safe on the

road.”

Adults will be able to take their children

for rides around the main circuit, while there

will be specially designed buggies where the

kids will be able to learn car control on a dirt

surface.

Garry is adamant that no motorsport will

take place here, at least for the time being,

but that its educational purpose is new to

Australian motorsport; which is what sets it

apart from other forms of circuit in NSW.

“Drivers will come here and really learn

something. I think there is definitely room for

the MDTC because what people learn here, they

will take to Wakefield Park or Oran Park or

Eastern Creek,” Garry claims with confidence.

“If you can drive fast here, you can drive fast

anywhere.”

Another great thing about the MTDC is that

not only does Garry function to educate, but he

functions to help the growth of motorsport in

Australia. “People who have never ever thought

of having a track day are going to come and

drive here and hopefully get hooked, and it’ll

all grow from there. That’s the plan.”

Garry has outlined a few things to come

for the MTDC. Things include small “Formula

3 / kit car style vehicles for the kids to drive”

and possibly something along the lines of

Mazda MX5s. This would be great for “walk in

and drive” days where people might not feel

their car is suited to the track. It also gives the

people the chance to drive a true track-suited

car around the course, and to get a feel for it.

The MDTC is located In Marulan, which is

around 1.5 hours from Sydney. The centre itself

has its own amenities such as a small briefing

room, toilets, parking, cafe and plenty of

shelter. In regards to what licenses are needed,

you if hold a CAMS, AASA or independent race

series license you are insured to drive, if not

Garry offers his own license you can purchase

on the day.

The MDTC is already open to car clubs, with

a full scale launch mid February. It will be open

to the public, and Garry will be holding Drive

days for people to come down and experience

the track. Driver training courses and other

forms of tuition are also available, start from

as little as 100 dollars for kids training, right

up to advanced driving lessons. Detailed

information can be found on http://www.mdtc.

com.au/. Also keep an eye out for our very own

Circuit club track days at the Marulan driver

training centre, another way to get involved

and experience the track first hand.

For more driver thoughts on the track and video

with commentary, visit circuitclub.com.au!

11

IT TAkES A LOT OF pASSIoN,DEDIcATIoN AND DRIVE

TO REALLY DO SOMETHINGWONDERFUL;

“IF YOU CAN DRIVE FAST HERE, YOU CAN DRIVE FAST ANYWHERE.”

Last Page: The final corner of

the 1km MDTC. It's very very

tight, and very very tricky.

Left: Garry Wilmington, the

mastermind of it all.

Left Bottom: Justin try's out the

MDTC for the first time in his

Corolla SX

NEW MDTC DRIVEN



8

CAR OF THE YEARPROCONCEPT-SPOON HoNDA cIVIc

DRIVER OF THE YEAR JACkY YIcK

C A R & D R I V E RO F T H E Y E A RT W O T H O U S A N D A N D E I G H T



10 15

LITTLE DID I kNOW THAT JACkYAND HIS LITTLE RED CIVIC WOULDEVENTUALLY bE AbLE TO ACHIEVE

lAp TImES IN THE HIgH 1’05"

Josh Cho fom Poconcpt h bought hm down

to Wakeield Park with a new red project Honda Civic that

was going to be the second of a two car team for the 2007

IPRA championship and Jacky was driving it that day. I

didn’t think much of it, or him, as they lapped the circuit

a second or two slower than the white and original Civic,

then famous for it’s ability to lap Wakeield around the

1’10” mark with only 1.6L.

Little did I know that Jacky and his little red Civic wouldeventually be able to achieve lap times in the high 1’05”s.

And little would anybody know how fast this guy can drive,

nor how fast his car can be, if they just took him on face

value.

Jacky is a quiet guy, dons your average looking silver

framed glasses and wears your average comfortable

clothing. He was probably that guy in high school who had

good grades, always did his homework, and when the class

mates got their licences and started doing burnouts in the

car park, he would quietly wait until it was safe to pass,

then drive on quietly home.

But having spent some time with him over the past

couple of years at the racing circuit, he can be somebody

else. Somebody who isn’t afraid to drive millimetres from

the concrete wall. Somebody who trains in his spare time to

be itter than his competitors. Somebody fast.

And he isn’t quite as quiet as you think he is too. At

race meetings he happily chats away about anything and

everything to do with racing and cars. You just have to ask

him irst, because he is too modest to start talking – you

feel that he himself doesn’t even know how good he is.

To th untn y t’s just Hon Cvc with

some stickers on it. To the trained eye, it’s a red Honda

Civic with some stickers on it that can’t physically have

enough power to lap that fast. An understated match made

in heaven then.

While Jacky is obsessed with his driving and improving

his ability to drive faster, between he and his Dad (and

with the help of Proconcept every now and again), they

are obsessed about making this car run as optimum aspossible.

We haven’t seen much of his car at Circuit Club

Trackdays too often this year, not because our days aren’t

interesting to him, but because his new, stroked to 1.8L

engine needs to be preserved as much as possible to make

sure it runs its best for the Championship.

But if you look even closer, you see l ittle things

that blow your mind at how well presented this car is.

There is a front undertray, home made in aluminium to

smoothen the airlow under the car to reduce drag and

improve downforce. There are those holes cut out of the

rear bumper to further reduce drag by not letting air get

trapped in its natural “parachute”. Move to open the rear

hatch and ind that instead of ive clips holding down the

rear bumper, there are only three – in order to save weight.

“Do these things even work?” you might ask yourself.

Well most people wouldn’t think so, but then again, his

nearest competition around Wakeield park is at least two

seconds behind him – and that can’t all do with luck and

timing.

“I love to drive fast.” Jacky once told me.

WHEN I FIRSTMET JAcKY YIcK ,

IT WAS AT ACIRCUIT CLUb

TRACkDAY.AND THEN THERE

IS HIS cIVIc.



“CAN I RIDE WITH YOUFIRST?”It’s th Ccut Cub Fv Y Annvsy

Tcy, and today I am lucky enough to be allowed to

drive Jacky’s Civic for the very irst time. I was supposedto have a go last year, but his engine unfortunately blew

up with three laps to go after just winning the 2007 IPRA

Championship (talk about on the edge!). But before I drive,

I am determined to ride with Jacky irst – to see how he

drives his car and watch at how he can possibly be that

much faster than everyone else there on the day.

“Can I ride with you irst?” I ask Jacky as he checks his

tyre pressures (he is always checking his tyre pressures).

“Ummm, OK...” Jacky responds with a kind of “Why the

hell do you want to ride with me? It’s not that I’m special”

manner. “But it isn’t going to be that special – the car is

very understeery today”.

“I just want to make sure that I drive the car correctly, is

all” I reassure him.

But he is right about the car being slow today – he was

aiming for a high six second lap time (with old tyres) to end

the year on a high, but the windy conditions are blowing

layers of dust onto the track, and his used tyres are more

worn than anticipated. But no matter, he is still good for a

1’08” today, which is still the fastest car present.

We both strap in ready to go, and Jacky looks very

relaxed behind the wheel. Despite the noise, the car drives

in a very civil manner towards the pit exit. We are on a tight

schedule, so we have had to run in Group C, meaning there

will be quite a bit of trafic for Jacky, but hopefully not too

much.

But then we are o and the car kind of erupts with noise

and vibrations as we shoot o into the distance. He uses his left

foot to warm up the brakes and he throws the car left to right

under acceleration to warm up the rear tyres.

“I don’t think you will have any problem driving the car

today,” he shouts to me half way through the irst lap. “Like I

said, the car isn’t taily today so you’ll have a lot of conidence

in the car”

It’s like he still doesn’t believe I should be wasting my time

watching him drive his own car because I won’t learn anything.

Then he brakes for the last corner at around 10 metres after

the braking marker and the car steps out a little sideways

towards the apex of the corner in one swift motion.

Over the course of the next few laps I can really see why

this guy drives so damn fast. He is aggressive in that all of his

inputs put his car very much on the limit of its tyres adhesion

but all his motions are smooth and luid like he is driving in

super slow-mo.

His gear changes, as unimportant as they seem, are a true

indication of his style. As the revs hit the upper limit of the

engines range, he dips the clutch and looks as if he slams the

next gear into place with one fast and strong motion. Except

when he gets on the gas, it all feels as if nothing had happened

because it was timed so perfectly.Sorry Jacky, as much as I claim to know about driving, you

have taught me a valuable lesson. Your driving is way too cool.



18 19

I PUT ALL MY THOUGHTS TOGETHER AND DRIVE.



end to break free while unloaded.

In all the noise and vibration I am feeling a little lost.

My steering inputs a jagged and the car is very rough to

drive. The steering won’t stop pulling with every crack in

the road and the rear suspension is so hard that I bounce

everywhere if I don’t hit the ripple strips properly.

Somebody spins out and beaches themselves so the red

lag is waved and I pull back into the pits. I am so amazed

at the machine, but at the same time I am frustrated with

myself. I need a couple more laps to try and igure it out.

“Sure,” Jacky tells me. “Finish o your session, the car

seems to be ine f rom here,” he says with a happy smile on

his face. Sure doesn’t feel ine from in here I think to myself.

I calm down for a couple of minutes and then we are

let back out again. The best time from the last session was

only a 1’12” – I need to beat that. So I put all my thoughts

together drive.

Corner after corner it starts to low a little more, but

my inputs are still unreined as I see-saw at the wheel,

trying to control all the power through the front wheels.

The corner speeds are higher now, and I can start to feel

that bit of understeer that Jacky is talking about, but the

steering is getting heavier by the second as the g-forces get

higher and higher.

I put together a decent lap and look down at the timer.

1’11” lat.

Damn. All that hard work, for this?

The session is over and I pull into the pits. I start to

laugh a little and shake my head. Yeh sure, I was pushing

hard, but I was nowhere near the braking points and apex

speeds of Jacky.

This is why we here at The Circuit rate Jacky and hislittle red Civic as the Car and Driver of 2008. Not only

is Jacky and his car a part of some sort of symbiotic

relationship – he and the car almost act as one.

But the sheer level of expertise they operate at?

Awesome.

17

He makes driving the car look so easy, but when I really

think about it, I know it’s going to be a real challenge to

drive. It must be hard to drive a car with only 130kW at the

front wheels and go as fast as Jacky does.

I take a deep breath and leave the pits. The lywheel is

mighty light, and I realise you need to change gears really

fast, otherwise you mismatch the revs when shifting up. I

replicate the warm up procedure and my blood is pumping.

My senses are alert in this car and it feels completely

dierent to how it looks. In the hands of Jacky, the car

seems smooth and composed, but in my hands, it feels like

a wild beast wanting to break free.

When I step on the gas the non-power steering wheel

pulls me o line and I have to ight it straight. And when

I smoothly apply the throttle at 6000rpm (the VTEC

changeover point), it chokes and coughs and tells me “you

need to drive faster than that son, or else you might as well

go home”.

So I take a deep breath and take the engine into VTEC

and blast down the straight. Not only can you hear the

induction sucking in as much air as 1.8L can handle, but

you can feel the revs through your bones – especially from

the whine of the straight cut inal drive.

Normally, Jacky can brake right after the kink for Turn

2, but I can’t bring myself to do it. In 5th gear down the

straight, the car feels like it is going way too fast to stop in

such a short distance. I also don’t want to ride the brakes

through to the apex because I don’t want to spin out and

lat spot his tyres. So as I turn in, I feel slow, even if the car

is moving fast.

I need to drive faster – try and emulate Jacky in order

to get the car to work for me. Its not like I don’t know thetheory of his driving. I need to brake late to make the most

of the straight. I need to wash o excess speed by carrying

the brake through to the apex. I can’t carry too much

braking because I will cause the front to push wide, and if

I’m too aggressive with the steering, I will cause the rear

SO NOW IT IS MY TURNAND IN MY HEAD I AMREPLAYING EVERYTHINg THAT I SAW WHILEWATCHING JACkY DRIVE.

R A Y M O ND H U I

20



*Peter Lucas - Winner o the 2008 Superlap

ALL YOUR RACING NEEDS

www. .com.auUnit 2/4 Wrighland Place, Arndell Park NSW 2148 Ph: 02 9679 8044 Fax: 02 9679 8033

COMPETITION!

loVE THE BEAST

Obsessed with cars and racing since he was a

child, Bana takes us on a journey that spans

a lifetime and culminates in his "Beast's"untimely death in one of the world's most

dangerous races, the Targa Tasmania

With guidance from three life-long friends

as well as other self-confessed petrol heads,

Jay Leno, Jeremy Clarkson and Dr Phil, Bana

examines the significance of the bond that is

formed around a common passion.

Love The Beast opens in cinemas on March

12, 2009. Check out the trailer at

www.lovethebeast.com

Eric bana has cast himself in his ultimate role - Love The beast -bana's directional deut in a film aout the importance of his 25-year-long love affair with his first car - a Ford xb Falcon Coupe.

For your chance to win 1 of 25 in-season

double passes, describe in 20 words or less

why you love your "beast" and we will pick

the best and publish them in the next issue

of The Circuit .

All entries must be emailed to info@

circuitclub.com.au, and must include your

full name, address and contact number.

22



WARNING: V70A MAY REDUCE

LAP TIMES

1300 4 KUMHO1300 458 646 or your nearest Kuhmo Motorsports Dealer

THE KUMHO V70A IS A CONSISTENTLY fAST TYRE AROUND THE

TRACK, WITHOUT SACRIfICING STREET DRIVEAbILITY AND WET

WEATHER HANDLING

Proven in Tarmac Rally (Tony Sullens - Targa Tasmania Winner 2004, 2007, Skelta Gforce - Mount Buller Sprint

2007, Bill Pye - Targa Classic Winner 2007) and Supersprints (Peter Lucas - Winner Superlap, Jason Wright - SV

and SVD lap record holder Oran Park and Wakefield Park). Voted best wet weather and best Value or money track

day tyre by BILD magazine 2007. Availale in sizes rom 13” to 18” diameter

circuit club issue 22

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