Day 4 of Targa Newfoundland 2015

Hi from sunny windy Newfoundland
Yes, we found the sun today!
Although, the air was cold and damp most of the day.
Results to date.
Targa officials sorted out the GT results and car #1333 Craig and Nicole are in first place, Norm and Christina are in third place as of end of Wednesday. Mean time john Jr. and  Justin Crant in car #9 over in Modern Division are just barely holding onto third place.
And Ron and myself in #333 moved up to 6th place in Modern Division. That is 6 out of 8… Still leading from behind if course! I am having a riot here this year.
Had a great day today all around. Looking forward to tomorrow.
All for now.
Hey staff thanks for the fabulous picture too!
John

Chinese Water Torture at Targa Newfoundland 2015

Rain, rain, rain, rain, and today add to that….
Wind, wind, wind ,wind – 50 kph with gusts up to 65 kph….
Add to that a temperature drop from 18 C to 10 C……
And you have our rally weather today….
Lots of excitement on the roads too. Norm and Christina in MINI #1334 were victimized by the wind, in that the yellow tape was ripped from its post and was flying across the road in front if them. They thought it was a no go zone, so promptly turned around and drove back into oncoming rally traffic, just averting a head on collision. They did get turned around but lost mega penalty seconds while doing so. The front runners in GT class in Trinity Simon  and Steward in their VW a Golf #1006 decided to show boat to the crowd and tried an E brake turn on a hairpin up hill,  only Simon missed the turn and drove straight into some rocks. Car OK, Ego dead!
Ron and myself in # 333 are now leading the modern division from …..Behind, yes we are wiping up the rear. It can only get better for us. We hit hard on one long fast straightaway and managed to dislodge one of our head light lenses. Garrett and Alex will make it right tonight however. John Jr and Justin in car #9 are fighting for third place in Modern division with Mr. Kenzie in #114 – That Is bound to be a close battle.
Finally Craig and Nicole in MINI #1333 are fighting for a third or better position in GT E class. Unfortunately not all scores are uploaded yet, so we will not know until tomorrow where everyone stands. Except Ron and I, we are definitely wiping up….and leading from behind…

Anyway, we are all in good spirits and having a blast. If only the freaking rain would just quit already even!
All for now from the Chinese water torture chamber……Otherwise known as Newfoundland….

P.S. Rumour has it no rain tomorrow just freezing cold high winds….

John

Beautiful Newfoundland

A view on the way to Harbour Mille

Beauty everywhere in Newfoundland

Day two at Targa Newfoundland, all about the weather

Hello from lake Newfoundland!
Yes, rain, rain and well more rain. We ran 8 races all in the rain. The race only lost one car today, despite all the water, water everywhere. Our four cars all did very well, even me! The scoring for GT is in question, so I am not able to report where our two MINIs stand. John Jr is I believe penalty free. I only picked up 10 or 12 penalty points myself. No too shabby for a rookie in my class. I believe I am 7th from the bottom. In other words six teams are worse off than me! Spirits are high in all four cars and our wonderful service crew are keeping these overworked racing machines in excellent shape. I hear the weather is supposed to be a tad less wet tomorrow. Phew let’s hope so, I was soaking wet most of the day. Dummy here did not bring rain coat or umbrella with him. Note to wife insist next time, will ya!
All for now,
John Hume

Day 1 is in the books!

Hello from rain drenched Clarenville.

All 4 of our cars and crews survived a day of sun, rain and wind. Competition in GT class is very tight but our two MINIs handled things very well. The two M3s stayed on course and on the road. John Hume Jr in #9 drove flawlessly.
In car #333, well let’s just  say it is a learning experience for me being in Targa class for the first time. However, me and my co-pilot Ron Bartleet had a fulfilling day and kept it shiny side up on the Tarmac.
Final scores for today are not posted yet, so we will have to wait until tomorrow to see where we all stand.

Ahh, tomorrow a nice soggy day is forecast. We will be driving in the rain all day.
No need to wash the vehicles to be sure. All crews in all four cars are getting along beautifully so far, but hey, it is only Monday after all! Despite the rain we had crowds of spectators watching us zip by along the side of the road on transits. We handed out bunches of “Hero cards” to kids and adults alike!

Until tomorrow….
Vroom,
John Hume