This is another reminder that we all need to be vigilant when regulation changes are made.
The Federation does an amazing job looking after our best interests but if you know of anything which may have an effect on our hobby, please tell your club’s FOMC representative or contact the Federation directly. It is better that they get the same warning from 10 different sources than to miss something important because we all assumed someone else had passed the information on.
It only happened after the pages were put together that I realised exactly what a privileged position we at Drive-MY find ourselves in.
On hearing of the death of Sir Jack Brabham, I was speaking to Eoin Young and asked if he felt able to provide us with a personal tribute to the triple World Champion, as of course Eoin worked alongside Bruce McLaren when Bruce and Jack were the works Cooper Formula One team.
Eoin in his own words was feeling “pretty poorly” and I assured him that if he didn’t feel up to it, I did not want him to push himself at my request.
Imagine my surprise when literally two hours later I had an e-mail from him, with a few words from Chris Amon of his recollections of “Black Jack”.
Then Howden Ganley made contact. He assumed ESY was going to do a Brabham tribute but would I be interested in his memories in brief?
Unreal. The same day one of our sport’s most influential figures passes away, three men who knew’ him personally are preparing to give us their personal insights into someone who was so influential in the careers of two of New Zealand’s greatest drivers, Bruce McLaren and Denny Hulme.
My own memory of Sir Jack comes from the Phillip Island Historic meeting not so many years ago.
The Guest of Honour at the prizegiving dinner was Sir Jack and during a break in proceedings I sent Eoin a text telling him what I was up to. He came back immediately “Give Jack my regards”.
Later in the evening I went over to the top table, introduced myself and as requested, told him that ESY sends his best wishes. He lit up and spent the next five minutes asking after Eoin, what he was up to, how I knew him and was absolutely charming.
It was the highlight of my year.
By the time you are reading this, I will be in Europe, leading the Drive-MY Le Mans tour for a second time. Nine of us will be perched in the grandstand to cheer for Brendon Hartley in the works LMP1 Porsche Hybrid.
Realistically it is asking an awful lot for a team, even with the history of Porsche behind it, to win at Le Mans with a car which has only done two races but you just never know! Wouldn’t it be great to hear God Defend New Zealand being played just after 3pm on Sunday 15 June.
And maybe next year there will be two Kiwis in the Porsche team. I have it on very good authority that Wanganui’s Earl Bamber, currently leading the European Porsche Supercup Series, is in the running for a move into the big-time very shortly.
While it appears that the sport in New Zealand is continuing its downward spiral with few clues from the leadership on how to stop the rot, we are entering another era of Kiwis at the peak of world motorsport.
Ritchie Stanaway seems fully recovered from his injuries and is juggling a works Aston Martin drive in World Endurance racing with a full time seat in GP3, Mitch Evans seems to have rediscovered some of his form in GP2 and as I write this, Hayden Padden is a day away from his WRC debut for Hyundai. Exciting times!
