Team VIP Petfoods’ chief Tony Quinn has made a blistering run over the opening stages of the 2007 QUIT Targa West – coming home in sixth overall by the close of today’s proceedings to make his presence well and truly known.
Dominating early, Quinn held down second quickest overall behind Jim Richards for the first five stages, before a small mistake on the sixth saw his gap to Richards widened - temporarily dropping him down the order to eighth.
A stalled start was to blame for the 60 second gap now standing between Quinn and the top spot. However, Quinn has never been a racer to let circumstances get the better of him, thundering back for the final three stages this afternoon.
Clearing stage seven, finishing eighth fastest in stage eight and fifth fastest and only 11 seconds from stage winner Richards in today’s final run saw Quinn move back up the ladder to sixth position ahead of tomorrow’s 14 stages.
“To be finished sixth at the end of today is great, I am really happy with that, ” said Quinn.
“The car has been motoring along well today and there was only that small mistake with the stalling at the start that got in the way, but to be sitting where we are in such a competitive field is just fantastic.
“The fact that I was sitting higher up the order for the first half of today was a pleasant surprise, but to be where we are is fine with me - there is still a whole lot of stages to go yet so you never know! ”
Quinn was joined today by his note-formulator Laurie Pitt in the co-drivers seat with his regular navigator Keith Wenn called away by work commitments as principal of Launceston College in Tasmania.
Following on from today’s first leg of proceedings, tomorrow’s Linton and Kay Fine Art Leg Two will see the 78 cars tackle their biggest day of competition with 14 special stages and 93.59 competitive kilometres to be run – almost twice the distance of today’s leg one.
By the time the first competitors roll up to the podium at the close of Sunday’s third and final leg, they will have completed a massive 1019.30 kilometres, 225.09 of which through the 33 special stages.
The field for the 2007 QUIT Targa West is made up of four categories – two touring and two competitive – with the Modern Competition category the largest with 42 entries including the Team VIP Petfoods entry and other notables such as Tony Longhurst with Jahmeil Taylor aboard Ray Vandersee’s self-designed Skelta Sports Car.
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