FALL 2005 - TOUR DE ILE DE FRANCE RD5: NAGINII Pre Race WEATHER: Temperature: 16 Cs/61 Fs. Wind Factor: 4. Overall: Overcast. Welcome to the final grand prix of the Tour de Ile de France, the first of the season’s three tours. We come to Naginii with Oodgtastic Racing in firm control, especially after a bizarre midweek decision by the MSA to bring in the new points system (1st–60pts, 2nd–55pts, 3rd–50pts, 4th–45pts, 5th–40pts, 6th–35pts, 7th–30pts, 8th–25pts, 9th–20pts, 10th–18pts, 11th–15pts, 12th–12pts, 13th–10pts, 14th–8pts, 15th–6pts, 16th–5pts, 17th–4pts, 18th–3pts, 19th–2pts and 20th–1pt) for the Naginii GP and institute it retroactively. This means that Delia Kovach has been knocked out of the lead by Miss Piggy, who has an excess of thirteen points. So to take the Tour crown back, Kovach needs to finish eleventh with Piggy out of the points. Can the Negamegendonite do it? We’ll find out. While most teams benefited in one way or another, the Liamist Racing Tech (LRT) team actually had their top two drivers fall back out of the top ten. Just goes to show, each action has an opposite reaction. In just the nick of time, the Naginiian government supplied facility information so racers can actually race. The 2 wheelers will kick off in the city of St Crashcup, racing around and avoiding becoming a part of the city’s rich history of vehicle accidents, dating back some four hundred years, before the first motor vehicle was invented. Racers will head to the 4 wheeler circuit, and all round motor sport classic, Veelastone, the site of last seasons Naginii GP, where Keetorama’s Nestle took honours on the day. With a fairly crap season so far, can the Keetorian team pull together and get their drivers into the new expanded points system? They’ll first have to face the 0 wheeler leg, which will take drivers over the Crashcup Knoll, a simple looping course over rolling green pastures and meadows. A short hour long journey later and racers will emerge at the Mt Longshanks rally complex, another driver up the side of a steep mountain face for our Marmaduke heroes. With points going to twenty drivers, there should be twice as much celebration for the finishers. 2 Wheeler To wrap up a fairly crap Tour for the Meadowbank outfit, Hans Furenheimer has already failed to finish, making him one of the exclusive club of drivers who have bowed out in the first section of the race. His Calare tyres were unable to warm up in the very cool temperatures and may as well have been flat. Unable to get any pressure, Furenheimer gave up the race and reportedly crawled into bed early. The season has been hard on the rookies so far. But not for the drivers at the front, which include a very strong looking Edward (Salaxia International) who is blazing a trail at the front, followed closely by the Modeni-powered and determined Kurt Fluke and Fish Goti of Rhellis National Racing. Slayer (MIF-Ardent Antagonists) and Pete (Salaxia International) are fighting a hard fought battle for fourth place in the early stages of this race. Top five at the conclusion of the 2x leg: 1. Edward (Salaxia International) 2. Kurt Fluke (Rhellis National Racing) 3. Fish Goti (Rhellis National Racing) 4. Slayer (MIF-Ardent Antagonists) 5. Fred (Salaxia International) 4 Wheeler Well, it couldn’t really get much worse for Meadowbank Boy Racers with a second DNF over the first two legs of the NGP. James Pimpanzee, second in the Drivers Championship in Ile de France last season, has been unable to continue his good form in his home region and failed to perform convincingly, capping it all off with a second tyre issue. In fairly similar circumstances to teammate Hans Furenheimer, Pimpanzee had to pull out of the race and hope for better luck in the next tour: the Exodus-Tableland Series (ETS). Joining him on the sidelines were Ibn the Big (Ancient Speed Demons) and Karlos Wildebeest (Negamegendonites). Both drivers came together in a macho, overaggressive collision that could have been easily avoided if either driver had not been so full of themselves to expect the other to move. Shattering each others front suspension, neither racer could go any further and gave up. Upon exiting their vehicles, they got into a rather heated dispute that saw the marshals needing to put them both in time out. Ibn's crash gives his nation it's tenth DNF and taking the Least Reliable title back from Rio Racing. Edward, from Salaxia International, managed to extend his lead out to a healthy eighty seconds over a determined Pooder, looking to perform well on his home soil and show the crowd that Fluffy’s success last year wasn’t just a fluke. Tailing him though is the Knight of Avolon, Franklin Roosevelt, who is almost literally riding Pooder’s gearbox with only 1.2 seconds separating them. Nakisha, ZoomTamamara, is out for pride more than anything else after a simply awful season for the MarmaCup winning team. Heinz follows into fifth place, looking to repeat last season’s fine drive from Nestle. Top five at the conclusion of the 4x leg: 1. Edward (Salaxia International) 2. Pooder (Naginii Racing Group) 3. Franklin Roosevelt (Knights of Avolon) 4. Nakisha (ZoomTamamara) 5. Heinz (Keetoria) 0 Wheeler Tragedy! Pooder, hometown hero and eyeing off a podium finish, if not, first place, has spun out and crashed into very solid ground, when the Menzies AG gear failed to provide enough grip, so to speak, while heading at some hundreds of a kilometre an hour around a sharp Crashcup Knoll bend. He tipped his 0 wheeler up and piled it into the ground, showering the area with wreckage and creating a huge wave of disappointed sighs as the home crowd realised Pooder was not going to be the first driver to win on home soil. Pooder was not the only causality as Roberto Juan Hosera faced gearbox difficulties (being unable to slide it out of fourth). He couldn’t compete and threw in the towel. This will hurt the chances of Team Muhji taking home a Tour crown but will not end it for them. And MIF’s Princess Shirvine’s royalness was not enough to keep the Crashcup Knoll tree from embedding itself in her engine after the two came into contact. With a two and a half minute lead, and having led pretty much from start to finish, it seems unlikely anyone will be able to take the lead from Salaxia International's Edward, as he heads into the rally leg. The remaining podium places are still a matter of contention, as Kurt Fluke pushes his Modeni engine into second, with a trailing Paul Herbert (Swiss Mix), whose team we have not heard much from since the Liamopolis GP, six races ago. Holding a steady fourth, despite the changes around her, is Nakisha with an unwavering Heinz continuing on in fifth. With second to fifth so close, really anyone with some revs left in their engine could collect some major points today. Top five at the conclusion of the 0x leg: 1. Edward (Salaxia International) 2. Kurt Fluke (Rhellis National Racing) 3. Paul Herbert (Swiss Mix) 4. Nakisha (ZoomTamamara) 5. Heinz (Keetoria) R Wheeler Pushing an engine can be hazardous for drivers. While they change vehicles and engines with each leg, the engines are hooked up remotely, so that for each rev in the previous legs, every subsequent engine goes through the same. By the time drivers reach the R wheelers, it’s amazing their engines are still running. Although the luck ran out for Adalicia Carillo-Rodriguez of El Equipo de Dulces, when her CNX engine fell apart while climbing a particularly steep part of Mt Longshanks. Luckily, after the engine cut out, Rodriguez quickly engaged the brakes and was not hurt. Given her proximity to the back of the field, stopping midtrack provided no problems for most of the drivers. As we predicted earlier Edward from Salaxia International cruised into first place on Mt Longshanks with a slightly reduced lead as second placed Kurt Fluke tried to make up ground but the tricky terrain proved too much. Amazingly, Mike Jr of Leaf Special Forces Racing finished in third, coming from nowhere. This provides his team with fifty points under the new system, a huge improvement on the previous total of two. This puts LSFR ahead of an extremely lack lustre St Heliers Sykers, who finish with the wooden spoon on seventeen points. Speaking of wooden spoons, it was also a good day for Drivey McDriver who put his past poor performances behind him, scoring fourth and securing twentieth in the tour Driver Championship. Keetorama backed up their win from last season with all three drivers finishing in the top twenty in fifth, ninth and fifteenth, bringing a landslide of points from the Naginii GP for the team. Pimpy McBling picked up a single point in twentieth for the Meadowbank Boy Racers in a truly bittersweet race for the team, warping up a below expectation performance for the team. Top twenty at the conclusion of the Rx leg and the grand prix: 1. Edward (Salaxia International) - 60 points 2. Kurt Fluke (Rhellis National Racing) - 55 points 3. Mike Jr (Leaf Special Forces Racing) - 50 points 4. Drivey McDriver (Rio Racing) - 45 points 5. Heinz (Keetorama) - 40 points 6. Jack Roe (Via Bestiae Road Warriors) - 35 points 7. Orval Leggans (Cascadian Geoduck Racing) - 30 points 8. Misamoto Kanapono (Oodgtastic Racing) - 25 points 9. Golden Circle (Keetorama) - 20 points 10. Renaldo Meihoffer (Island Racing Squad) - 18 points 11. Nakisha (ZoomTamamara) - 15 points 12. Shonna Carafella (Cascadian Geoduck Racing) - 12 points 13. Atilla Snitvanburg (Negamegendonites) - 10 points 14. Paul Herbert (Swiss Mix) - 8 points 15. Nestle (Keetorama) - 6 points 16. Jos Oxford (Liamist Racing Tech) - 5 points 17. Franklin Roosevelt (Knights of Avolon) - 4 points 18. Arthur (Knights of Avolon) - 3 points 19. Fluffy (Naginii Racing Group) - 2 points 20. Pimpy McBling (Meadowbank Boy Racers) - 1 point Post Race While Edward may have won the race and Delia Kovach finished over a minute in front of Miss Piggy, neither were enough to stop the Oodgtastic charge. Miss Piggy was crowned Tour de Ile de France Driver Champion, with Delia Kovach gaining runner-up and Kurt Fluke, who finished second today, being propelled onto the final podium step. All three drivers are now in the MarmaCup, joining Nestle of Keetorama and Marsie of ZoomTamamara, podium finishers in last season’s MarmaCup (there is a space reserved for Mariah of Team Wilkenstan also, if she can get her country to re-sign before the end of the season). In teams, and with over one hundred points of lead, Oodgtastic Racing defied critics at the start of the season and crushed all opposition in their quest to win. Team Muhji, despite a DNF today, managed to scrape into second in the Tour Team Championship, just ahead of the Liamist Racing tech team, who picked up their fourth trophy in the nations forty grands prix history. So, that wraps up a fairly interesting Tour. Next week is a week off. The following weekend will see the first Superpolo tournament of the season proper, the Keetorian Cup, coupled with the Switzerstan GP, the first of the Exodus-Tableland Series. SPLIT TIMES Car No 2x 4x 0x Rx 1 58.483 117.938 180.674 237.864 2 60.697 120.746 179.103 240.956 3 57.216 113.142 DNF 4 60.892 118.300 177.787 241.451 5 64.086 124.020 180.101 241.718 6 61.392 119.431 179.263 237.424 7 59.505 121.503 184.287 246.306 8 56.450 117.630 179.294 242.254 9 60.452 119.582 DNF 10 58.557 120.951 180.186 241.791 11 60.525 DNF 12 61.749 119.130 178.487 238.307 13 56.250 119.541 176.225 238.263 14 56.901 119.398 179.531 238.011 15 55.332 114.854 173.917 230.283 16 58.061 115.300 175.064 237.937 17 59.922 DNF 18 DNF 19 59.788 118.017 178.388 238.336 20 57.654 118.075 176.015 233.283 21 57.795 118.439 181.291 240.591 22 60.765 118.813 177.328 237.155 23 56.703 114.533 175.054 235.453 24 61.349 120.421 177.628 235.970 25 61.534 124.045 186.740 244.178 26 59.829 117.701 179.786 236.061 27 59.858 117.926 175.951 238.060 28 60.931 118.884 178.098 237.982 29 61.098 122.391 183.209 241.171 30 57.814 113.992 174.413 236.319 31 60.204 124.320 185.207 245.813 32 60.855 124.537 183.625 242.547 33 63.419 123.532 179.599 242.646 34 57.508 119.397 181.711 243.676 35 57.650 DNF 36 57.763 116.356 177.526 236.855 37 60.844 120.020 181.403 241.340 38 62.008 126.360 184.608 242.929 39 63.207 123.784 186.468 248.172 40 62.536 122.305 180.307 240.383 41 62.879 126.060 188.504 247.037 42 58.482 118.212 180.534 239.343 43 64.426 125.211 188.206 188.670 44 59.418 123.080 185.111 248.044 45 59.203 118.931 179.186 243.605 46 63.392 123.883 183.291 246.310 47 62.126 123.355 186.106 247.719 48 59.696 120.851 181.738 240.678 49 57.259 115.386 177.068 232.696 50 62.879 122.840 181.097 243.649 51 59.612 122.143 182.200 242.238 52 60.903 124.194 186.146 246.123 53 60.924 119.546 182.311 244.849 54 57.765 118.423 178.463 235.928 55 59.460 123.009 181.612 238.568 56 58.486 120.894 180.069 235.752 57 62.910 123.519 181.489 239.741 58 58.715 116.046 179.673 242.356 59 59.342 118.182 179.332 237.742 60 58.252 113.975 176.992 237.675 61 57.999 115.311 174.207 236.933 62 62.707 122.377 186.220 244.859 63 60.344 123.522 186.849 248.858 64 61.598 123.703 184.365 242.001 65 62.725 120.507 183.628 244.415 66 59.843 117.509 178.706 241.738 67 57.984 118.410 179.057 241.177 68 60.242 123.195 187.290 246.962 69 61.824 125.249 187.590 250.145 70 59.742 119.482 183.204 243.388 71 56.511 116.936 177.669 241.386 72 54.812 112.710 171.337 228.797 73 63.219 126.187 DNF 74 61.776 124.630 182.996 238.163 75 60.074 118.286 179.663 240.185 76 62.638 125.185 184.992 241.991 77 62.628 119.290 177.530 235.794 78 60.248 118.605 177.891 236.343