A History of the

AUSTRALIAN

MOTORKHANA CHAMPIONSHIP

by Bill McCarthy

Original: 14 April 1998

Updated 11 & 13 October 2006 – added 2006 and minor edits

Updated: 24 January 2007 – added to report of 1993

Updated: 30 January 2007 – added to report of 1992

Updated: 13 February 2007 – various edits incl. 2001

Updated: 31 October 2007 – added 2007 AMC

Updated: 24 October 2008 – added 2008 AMC with other minor updates

This document was created to provide a history of the Australian Motorkhana Championship.

There were many ways I could have changed the emphasis of this history. Probably most contentious was my decision to concentrate the commentaries and results on the outright championship contenders and largely ignore the class competition. My personal interest has always been on outright competition rather than class, but if anyone wants to write up a paragraph or two on the class action for each year, I would be happy to insert it provided it readily cuts and pastes into Word.

I have mostly ignored team awards as they have no apparent consistency of rules or membership from year to year. The team results are, however, included in most recent years as are full results. I have used Excel format for results files where available, to enable keen competitors to track times and organizers to assemble stats.

Any and all comments are invited. Information to expand the commentaries is particularly welcome. I would appreciate it if you can replace any of the ??? words or confirm (or not) any item followed by ?? and advise me of the corrections/additions by email at:

[email protected]

Many thanks to Peter Deck, Jim Newell, Duncan Sides, David Beames and Keith Butcher for sending me results and commentaries. Thanks also to Andrew Collier, Duncan Sides, Peter Bready and David Beames for clarifying some of the details.

I hope you enjoy the read.

Cheers,

Bill McCarthy

Introduction

Motorkhanas have been run in most states of Australia for many decades. State Championships were conducted for some years before the Australian Motorkhana Championship (AMC) was first held in 1972. State delegates were selected to form a National Motorkhana Committee in 1971??. The Committee formulated a National Motorkhana Code consisting of the rules for the conduct of an Australian Motorkhana Championship and dimensions of the tests which could be used. Former CAMS Board member and CAMS President Peter Bready was instrumental in driving this process to a successful conclusion.

The first Code was based on the NSW Code with some amendments from other states’ practices. Victorians noticed that many of the tests were similar to those they used but the dimensions were often smaller.

To save confusion, the basic penalties are:

Hit a marker (flag or cone) – plus 5 seconds

Go the wrong way – slowest time on that test plus 5 seconds

1972

The 1972 AMC was held on Sunday, 24 September at Young, New South Wales. It was run by the Young Car Club on a grass surface. There were 50 starters.

A mainly windless day combined with a dry surface to cause severe dust problems. Current NSW Champion Peter Deck and leading QLD driver Phil Griffin both ruined their chances by scoring WD on Double Loop due to the dust. With a competitive Double Loop time, Peter would have won easily.

Classes

A Registered - wheelbase to 85 inches (2159 mm) and Special or Unregistered

B Registered – wheelbase over 85 inches (2159 mm) and up to 95 inches (2413 mm)

C Registered – wheelbase over 95 inches (2413 mm) and up to 105 inches (2667 mm)

D Registered - wheelbase over 105 inches (2667 mm)

Ladies

Results

1 Martin Lawrence Renault Special NSW 258.9 A1

2 Tony West Morris Moke NSW 259.2 A2

3 Bill West Morris Moke NSW 259.5 A3

4 Les MacKenzie Mini Special NSW 263.5 A4

5 John Solman Mini Special NSW 264.9 A5

6 Charlie Gruber Mini Special NSW 265.8 A6

20 Chris Gabriel Renault R12 ACT 284.5 C1

26 Milton Smith VW 1200 NSW 289.1 B1

29 Carol Witherdin Mini NSW 294.3 Ladies

39 Roger Mail Renault 16TS NSW 318.5 D1

Test Times

1 Straight Slalom Tony West Morris Moke 22.0

2 Double Garage John Solman Mini Special 41.1

3 Serpentine Les MacKenzie Mini Special 27.0

4 Double Loop Ian Langfield Morris Moke 28.3

5 Tee Slalom Bill West Morris Moke 20.0

6 Hopkirk Peter Deck Morris Cooper S 34.5

7 Lazy Eight Ian Langfield Morris Moke 27.4

8 Crossover Martin Lawrence Renault Special 51.0

Many thanks to Peter Deck for the above information.

1973

The 1973 AMC was held on Sunday, 5 August 1973 at Frankston, Victoria - a south-eastern outer suburb of Melbourne. It was run by the HMAS Cerberus Car Club on a bitumen surface at Balmoral Shopping Centre. There were 70 entries and 58 started.

John Latham was fastest on only one of the 8 tests but his consistency won the day. This was the only time a production or registered car won the AMC. Declan Ohara was second in a near standard Mini Clubman GT. John Gwynne in a much modified Moke was leading when he had a lose in the cross garage of the Tee Garage and dropped about 9 secs. Bill McCarthy was easily fastest on the forward tests but was let down by his reversing.

Classes

A Touring Cars 1 - 1000cc

B Touring Cars 1001 - 1300cc

C Touring Cars 1301 and over

D Sports Cars

E Specials and Lightweight Vehicles

Results

1 John Latham AH Sprite Mark IIA VIC 222.1 E1

2 Declan Ohara Mini Clubman GT VIC 224.7 B1

3 John Gwynne Morris Moke VIC 225.5 E2

4 Dennis Trigg Renault Special NSW 225.8 D1

5 Rick Perry Perry Mk. IV VIC 227.1 E3

6 Bill McCarthy Morris Cooper S VIC 228.6 B2

8 Alan Hall Morris Mini VIC 233.9 A1

20 Wal Pywell Colt 1100SS ACT 253.7 C1

29 Lesley McCarthy Morris Cooper VIC 262.9 First Lady

It is doubtful if Dennis Trigg’s special should have been in Class D when John Latham’s moderately modified Sprite was in Class E. Other entries in these classes are similarly anomalous. There was no Ladies award presented in 1973 but it’s not worth a divorce to leave Lesley out. She was driving a Mini Cooper borrowed from Peter French as multiple entries in one car were not permitted.

Test Times

1 Forward and Reverse Slalom John Latham AH Sprite IIA 21.3

2 Double Kidney Bill McCarthy Morris Cooper S 26.7

3 Hopkirk John Solman Mini Special 29.8

4 Opposite Garages John Gwynne Morris Moke 25.0

5 Tee Garage Bill McCarthy Morris Cooper S 30.5

6 Manoeuvring John Gwynne Morris Moke 26.1

7 Crossed Four Point Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S 20.9

8 Double Bone Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S 30.8

1974

The 1974 AMC was held on Sunday, September 8 at Surfers Paradise, QLD. It was run by the Surfers Paradise Auto Racing Club on a bitumen surface - the main straight of Surfers Paradise Raceway. There were 52 entries and in spite of serious floods in much of NSW, 47 started.

Dennis Trigg recorded fastest time on 5 of the 7 tests in his 4 wheel steer special to easily win the event. Local Phil Griffin gave Trigg his only serious competition. The National Motorkhana Committee decided after this event to ban 4 wheel steering in specials for future AMCs. The State Panels followed suit for state championship motorkhanas.

Classes

Classes are not known but may be defined by wheelbase.

Results

1 Dennis Trigg Renault Special NSW 180.2 A1

2 Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S QLD 185.8 A2

3 Harry Greening Leyland Clubman GT NSW 197.3 A3

4 Kevin McCloy Mini Special QLD 197.9 A4

5 John Gwynne Morris Cooper S VIC 198.5 A5

6 David McCaig Minigog Special NSW 201.2 A6

17 Russell Worthington ???? QLD 226.4 B1

36 A Frierichs Renault 16TS QLD 253.4 C1

Test Times

1 ???? Dennis Trigg Renault Special 23.7

2 ???? Dennis Trigg Renault Special 27.4

3 ???? Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S 18.4

4 ???? Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S 22.0

5 ???? Dennis Trigg Renault Special 25.0

6 ???? Dennis Trigg Renault Special 28.6

7 ???? Dennis Trigg Renault Special 33.8

1975

The 1975 AMC was held on Sunday, September 7 at Penrith, NSW - approximately 50 kilometres west of Sydney. It was run by the Datsun Drivers Club of New South Wales on a bitumen surface at Penrith Plaza shopping centre. There were 91 entries and 82 started.

This event was notable for being prematurely stopped by police. The story goes that a “person of influence” was having a drink in the adjacent RSL club and found the car noise annoying. He called the local police traffic branch and they stopped the event. Results are thus based on only 4 tests, even though many drivers had completed 7 tests.

Terry Goodacre recorded fastest time on all 4 tests to score an effortless win. Dennis Trigg converted his winning four wheel steer special of 1974 to 2 wheel steer for this event and came second. His effort is especially noteworthy as he had been ill for much of the intervening time.

Classes

A Registered - wheelbase to 215 cm

B Registered - wheelbase to 215 - 240 cm

C Registered - wheelbase to 240 - 265 cm

D Registered - wheelbase over 265 cm

E Ladies

F Specials and Unregistered Vehicles

Results

1 Terry Goodacre Subaru Special NSW 86.2 F1

2 Dennis Trigg Renault Special NSW 90.1 F2

3 John Gwynne Morris Cooper S VIC 94.9 F3

4 Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S QLD 95.7 F4

5 Bill McCarthy Morris Moke VIC 96.2 F5

6 Hugh McCausland Coopermac NSW 98.7 F6

7 Harry Greening Leyland Clubman GT NSW 99.7 A1

26 Maya Wheatley Morris Special NSW 115.5 E1

30 John Rosengrave Morris Nomad VIC 117.9 B1

32 Wayne Griffiths Ford Escort NSW 119.0 C1

38 A Frierichs Renault 16TS QLD 122.6 D1

Test Times

1 Triple Garage Terry Goodacre Subaru Special 27.1

2 Forward and Reverse Slalom Terry Goodacre Subaru Special 16.8

3 Tee Slalom Terry Goodacre Subaru Special 16.3

4 Hopkirk Terry Goodacre Subaru Special 26.0

1976

The 1976 AMC was held on Sunday, 29 August in Canberra, ACT. It was run by the Renault Car Club of Australia on a bitumen surface at Woden Plaza shopping centre. There were 66 entries and 63 started.

Terry Goodacre became the first driver to win 2 consecutive AMCs. He drove a mid-engined, Subaru 1400 powered, self-built special with 7” and 9” wide racing tyres. This was the last time a rear wheel drive car won the AMC until 2005. The next 10 places were taken by FWD cars.

This was the first year when purpose-built motorkhana specials took the first 3 places. In previous years, modified production cars had been almost competitive but this was no longer the case. The obvious potential of Rob Mutimer’s and Brian Hughes’ Mini Specials led to a rash of front wheel drive (FWD) specials in coming years.

Classes

A Registered - wheelbase to 215 cm

B Registered - wheelbase to 215 - 240 cm

C Registered - wheelbase to 240 - 265 cm

D Registered - wheelbase over 265 cm

E Ladies

F Specials and Unregistered Vehicles

Results

1 Terry Goodacre Crypton Subaru Special NSW 207.1 F1

2 Rob Mutimer RWM Mini Special VIC 213.3 F2

3 Brian Hughes Mini Special VIC 213.7 F3

4 John Gwynne Morris Cooper S VIC 215.1 F4

5 Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S QLD 215.9 F5

6 Bill McCarthy Morris Moke VIC 217.5 F6

17 Mike Hayward AH Sprite VIC 236.4 A1

=21 Lesley McCarthy Morris Moke VIC 246.2 E1

29 Simon Browning Ford Escort TC VIC 259.2 B1

40 Milton Karis Holden Torana XU-1 VIC 274.0 C1

50 V. Fifield Renault 16TS NSW 302.6 D1

Test Times

1 Lazy Eight Rob Mutimer RWM Mini Special 21.6

2 Crossed Four Point Peter Collins Mini Special 18.9

3 Triple Garage Terry Goodacre Crypton Subaru Special 27.0

4 Double Loop Rob Mutimer RWM Mini Special 22.3

5 Tee Garage Brian Hughes Mini Special 27.3

6 Forward and Reverse Slalom Terry Goodacre Crypton Subaru Special 18.1

7 Crossover Phil Griffin Morris Cooper S 41.5

8 Hopkirk Terry Goodacre Crypton Subaru Special 25.5

1977

The 1977 AMC was held on Sunday, 28 August in Dandenong, VIC. It was run by the Chrysler Owners Car Club of Victoria on a bitumen surface at Dandenong Saleyards. There were 90 entries and 84 started.

Bill McCarthy won his first AMC. This was the first year a front wheel drive car won the AMC. In fact, FWD specials took the first 5 places. The winning Delta S was a refinement of the concept pioneered by Rob Mutimer and used modified Mini Cooper S engine and brakes with a Mini front subframe and suspension. For more details, see Motorkhana Cars

As drivers aged 16 or over were now permitted by CAMS to compete, a Juniors Class was run for the first time for those under 18 years. It was fittingly won by David Monk, a son of CAMS co-founder Maurie Monk, a great supporter of “grass roots” motorsport.

Classes

I am not sure of the classes but have given likely specifications:

A Production - wheelbase to 220?? cm

C Production - wheelbase to 245?? - 265?? cm

E Production - wheelbase over 265?? cm

G FWD Specials

H RWD Specials

I Ladies

J Juniors

Results

1 Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 218.2 G1

2 Robin Mutimer RWM Mk IIIA Mini Spl VIC 218.7 G2

3 Brian Hughes Cosmos II Mini Special VIC 225.8 G3

4 Graeme Adams RWM Mk IIIA Mini Spl VIC 227.6 G4

5 Peter Deck Deck Mini Special ACT 229.8 G5

6 Terry Goodacre Delta V VW Special NSW 230.0 H1

10 Lesley McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 238.9 I1

12 David Monk Subaru Special VIC 243.7 J1

19 Don Lemm Honda Scamp 600 SA 260.9 A1

=36 John Gwynne Holden Torana XU-1 VIC 277.2 E1

43 Michael?? Monk ????? VIC 284.5 C1

Test Times

1 Gate Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 20.9

2 Square Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 19.9

3 Hopkirk Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 25.0

4 Double Bone Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 27.1

5 Multiple Loop Phil East Mini Special 28.0

6 Opposite Garages Rob Mutimer RWM Mk. IIIA Mini Spl 23.7

7 Double Loop Phil East Mini Special 22.5

8 Reverse Lazy Eight Rob Hume Mini Special 23.8

9 Butterfly Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 21.5

1978

The 1978 AMC was held on Sunday, 27 August in Deniliquin, NSW - about 270 km north of Melbourne. It was run by the Deniliquin Sporting Car Club on a grass surface at the Club ground. There were 57 entries and 47 started.

This was the first time a grass surface had been used for the AMC since 1972. A number of competitors suffered this time because of changes to the damp surface during the course of tests. As a result, it was decided that future AMCs should be run on sealed surfaces to minimize these inequities.

Ronn Jay in an XP Falcon was unable to fit his car through the Double Kidney test. Measurement showed that the test was slightly smaller than the required size and it was dropped from the results. The National Committee considered later that the test was too cramped for larger cars and the dimensions of Double Kidney and some other tests were increased as a result.

Bill McCarthy won his second AMC. Geoff Thomson’s 4th place outright while aged 16 was notable.

Classes

A Production - wheelbase to 220 cm & capacity to 1200 cc

B Production - wheelbase to 220 cm & capacity over 1200 cc

C Production - wheelbase over 220 cm & to 245 cm

D Production - wheelbase over 245 cm & to 265 cm

E Production - wheelbase over 265 cm

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

H Ladies

I Juniors (under 21)

Results

Note: I have adjusted some class results as Colin Edwards’ special was shown as winning class C when, in fact, he was 3^rd in Class G.

1 Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 243.2 F1

2 Harry Pearson Mini Special VIC 254.4 F2

3 Robin Mutimer RWM Mk IV Mini Spl VIC 255.2 F3

4 Geoff Thomson Delta S Mini Special VIC 255.9 I1

5 Graeme Adams RWM Mk IV Mini Spl VIC 259.1 F4

6 Terry Goodacre Delta V VW Special NSW 259.5 G1

7 Harry Greening Leyland Clubman GT NSW 265.8 B1

11 Lesley McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 275.1 H1

17 Peter Johns Leyland Moke VIC 282.3 A1

21 Larry Bensch Datsun 1600 VIC 290.1 C1

29 Gary Young Hillman Hunter VIC 316.4 D1

=43 Ronn Jay Ford Falcon VIC 363.8 E1

Test Times

1 Forward & Reverse Slalom Don Lemm Honda Scamp 600 25.1

2 Straight Slalom Robert Death VW Special 23.7

3 Gate Slalom Lesley McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 28.9

4 Waltz Slalom Rob Mutimer RWM Mk. IV Mini Spl 35.6

5 Opposite Garages Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 29.2

6 Plumb Crazy Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 29.7

7 Double Kidney Maurice Monk Subaru Special 35.3

8 Reverse Lazy Eight Geoff Thomson Delta S Mini Special 31.9

1979

The 1979 AMC was held on Sunday, 25 August in Adelaide, SA. It was run by the Modified Mini Car Club of SA on a bitumen surface at Tea Tree Plaza shopping centre. There were 78 entries and 67 started.

This event was dogged by rain which fell all day. Bill McCarthy won his third AMC in succession, setting fastest time on all six tests. Geoff Thomson’s 2nd place outright while aged 17 will probably never be matched by another Junior driver.

10 Western Australian drivers made the journey across the Nullarbor Plain, a trip of 2700 km (1675 miles) each way. After the event, McCarthy sold the Delta S to Ross Whitbourne and started the construction of a new special.

Classes

A Touring Cars to 1100 cc

B Touring Cars FWD 1101 to 1500 cc

C Touring Cars RWD 1101 to 1500 cc

D Touring Cars 1501 to 2000 cc

E Touring Cars 2001 cc and over

F Sports Cars including Mokes

G FWD Specials

H RWD Specials

I Ladies

J Juniors (under 21)

Results

1 Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 149.22 G1

2 Geoff Thomson Delta S Mini Special VIC 156.66 J1

3 Robin Mutimer RWM Mk IV Mini Spl VIC 162.06 G2

4 Graeme Adams RWM Mk IV Mini Spl VIC 167.17 G3

5 Harry Pearson Mini Special VIC 175.84 * G4

6 Neil Turner Morris Cooper S SA 175.39 * B1

11 Ross Whitbourne Leyland Moke VIC 180.2 F1

13 Lesley McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 182.62 I1

14 Ross Hutchison Subaru Special VIC 183.63 H1

19 Larry Bensch Datsun 1600 VIC 186.51 D1

30 Peter Drew Mini SA 196.1 A1

35 Robert Lee Renault 750 SA 197.03 C1

52 Michael Darling Datsun 240K VIC 218.43 E1

* It appears that Neil Turner was 5th.

Test Times

1 Double Loop Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 23.58

2 Eccentric Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 32.1

3 Crossed Four Point Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 17.74

4 Hopkirk Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 24.4

5 Butterfly Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 22.2

6 Waltz Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special 29.2

1980

The 1980 AMC was held on Sunday, 31 August in Dandenong,VIC. It was run by the Datsun Car Club of Australia on a bitumen surface at Dandenong Saleyards. There were 88 entries and 85 started.

A few showers fell during the day and some squabbling over running order resulted in stricter regulations in following years. This was the closest finish to date with the first 3 within 0.38 of a second. Rob Mutimer won his first AMC.

Classes

A Production - wheelbase to 220 cm & capacity to 1200 cc

B Production - wheelbase to 220 cm & capacity over 1200 cc

C Production - wheelbase over 220 cm & to 245 cm

D Production - wheelbase over 245 cm & to 265 cm

E Production - wheelbase over 265 cm

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

H Ladies other than Class I

I Ladies in registered vehicles

J Juniors (under 18)

Results

1 Robin Mutimer RWM Mk IV Mini Spl VIC 172.47 F1

2 Ross Whitbourne Delta S Mini Special VIC 172.60 F2

3 Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special QLD 172.85 F3

4 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 174.47 F4

5 Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 178.75 F5

6 Terry Goodacre Mini Special NSW 181.18 F6

10 Neil Turner Morris Cooper S SA 185.98 B1

11 Don Lemm Leyland Moke SA 189.95 A1

12 Paul Monk Subaru Special VIC 191.05 J1

13 David Monk Subaru Special VIC 191.80 G1

16 Theo Wintels Toyota Corolla VIC 208.14 C1

18 Dianne Mummery Morris Cooper S VIC 209.68 I1

20 John Gwynne Holden Torana XU-1 V8 VIC 211.10 D1

21 Lesley McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 211.36 H1

72 Mal Rutherford Holden EH VIC 256.08 E1

Test Times

1 Opposite Garages Rob Mutimer RWM Mk. IV Mini Spl 22.91

2 Double Bone Rob Mutimer RWM Mk. IV Mini Spl 27.24

3 Hopkirk Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special 24.76

4 Manoeuvring Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special 24.32

5 Reverse Garage Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special 23.86

6 Double Loop Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 23.24

7 Trefoil Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special 20.62

1981

The 1981 AMC was held on Sunday, August 30 in Canberra, ACT. It was run by the Brindabella Motor Sport Club on a bitumen surface at the Woden Town Centre shopping centre. There were 79 entries and 79 started.

Bill McCarthy led for most of the day until a shower fell before the Tee Garage on which he and Ross Whitbourne hit flags. Geoff Thomson became the youngest AMC winner aged 20 years and 1 day. After finishing 2^nd in 1980 & 1981, Ross Whitbourne sold the Delta S to David Beames who was to keep it for over 20 years and win multiple AMCs and SAMCs.

Classes

A Registered Production FWD - wheelbase to 215 cm

B Registered Production RWD - wheelbase to 215 cm

C Registered Production FWD - wheelbase over 215 cm & to 240 cm

D Registered Production RWD - wheelbase over 215 cm & to 240 cm

E Registered Production FWD - wheelbase over 240 cm & to 265 cm

F Registered Production RWD - wheelbase over 240 cm & to 265 cm

G Registered Production FWD - wheelbase over 265 cm

H Registered Production RWD - wheelbase over 265 cm

I FWD Specials, non-production or unregistered

J RWD Specials, non-production or unregistered

Results

1 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 183.4 I1

2 Ross Whitbourne Delta S Mini Special VIC 186.7 I2

3 Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 188.1 I3

4 Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special QLD 190.8 I4

5 Don Lemm Manta MS-2 Mini Spl SA 193.3 I5

6 Roy Randall Manta MS-2 Mini Spl SA 199.3 I6

9 Cedric Green VW Special QLD 206.7 J1

10 Ron Brown Leyland Moke VIC 208.1 A1

18 Carol Griffin Ventura Mini Special QLD 223.7 First Lady (no Class)

21 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 228.4 C1

25 Larry Bensch Datsun 1600 VIC 237.8 F1

=30 Phil Lemm Renault SA 240.2 D1

44 Geoff Boyd Peugeot 404 ACT 252.7 H1

Test Times

1 Triple Garage Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special 25.2

2 Crossover Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 38.3

3 Lazy Eight Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 19.8

4 Forward & Reverse Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special 16.1

5 Double Loop Ross Whitbourne Delta S Mini Special 23.4

6 Tee Garage Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 29.6

7 Hopkirk Ross Whitbourne Delta S Mini Special 25.9

1982

The 1982 AMC was held on Sunday, August 29 at Ipswich, QLD. It was run by the Ipswich and West Moreton Auto Club on a bitumen surface at Centenary Shopping Centre. There were 73 entries and 72 started.

After 4 tests, Don Lemm led Bill McCarthy by 2.61, Geoff Thomson by 4.18 and Arthur Latta by 4.64. After 7 tests, Don led Bill by 1.65, Geoff by 7.68, Greg Wolski by 12.72 and Phil Griffin by 13.57. After all 10 tests, Don led Bill by 2.99, Geoff by 8.74, Phil by 15.64 and Greg by 19.53.

Don Lemm became the first South Australian to win the AMC and he did it convincingly with 8 fastest times from 10 tests. This was one of the few occasions when the Manta had good tyres which released the car’s potential. By contrast, the Delta SS suffered from graining front tyres which hampered Bill’s and Geoff’s efforts.

Phil took an early flag but pegged Greg back to finish as first Queenslander.

Classes

Class descriptions have been deduced from a magazine article and may not be accurate.

A Registered - wheelbase to 215 cm

B Registered - wheelbase to 215 - 240 cm

C Registered - wheelbase to 240 - 265 cm

D Registered - wheelbase over 265 cm

F1 FWD Specials

F2 RWD Specials

L1 Ladies in Registered vehicles

L2 Ladies in Specials

Results

1 Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl SA 242.80 F1 1

2 Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 245.79 F1 2

3 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 251.54 F1 3

4 Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special QLD 258.44 F1 4

5 Greg Wolski Mini Special QLD 262.33 F1 5

6 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 267.80 F1 6

9 Lesley McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 276.70 L2 1

14 Alan Wheeley VW Special QLD 289.07 F2 1

20 Dennis Williams Mini NZ 300.51 A 1

25 Alan McConnell Mazda RX2 QLD 311.03 C 1

28 Ray Vandersee Datsun 120Y QLD 316.05 B 1

39 Robyn Jenkinson Mini Cooper QLD 325.51 L1 1

63 Ean Rapley Leyland P76 QLD 368.91 D 1

Test Times

1 Crossover Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 39.32

2 Multiple Loop Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 26.62

3 Hopkirk Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 21.46

4 Plum Crazy David Beames Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 22.30

5 Double Loop Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 21.46

6 Reverse Garage Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special 21.48

7 Crazy Square Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 16.00

8 Square Slalom Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 18.38

9 Tee Garage Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 26.98

10 Double Bone Don Lemm Manta MS-2D Mini Spl 26.02

1983

The 1983 AMC was held on Sunday, 4 September in Maribyrnong, VIC. It was run by the Victorian Motorkhana Panel on a bitumen surface at Highpoint West Shopping Centre. There were 119 entries and 111 started. This was still the highest AMC entry in 2004.

The sandy bitumen surface troubled most of the drivers. After 4 tests, Geoff Thomson lead by 0.74 secs to Phil Griffin, 3.1 to Bill McCarthy and 3.98 to Ross Bennett. After 8 tests, Phil had dropped back on the reversing tests to finish 5^th, Ross held on to 4^th, David Beames recovered from an early garage penalty to 3^rd, Bill hit a flag but managed 2^nd.

Geoff Thomson put in a fast, consistent performance to take his second AMC by 6.53 secs. Bill McCarthy struggled for pace after a lengthy layoff due to back pain. This was to be his last AMC until 1993 as his back pain became chronic. This was David Beames’ first AMC in the Delta S which had been owned first by Bill McCarthy and later by Ross Whitbourne. David was to become the most successful AMC driver in the 1990s.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to be:

A Production - wheelbase to 220 cm

B Production - wheelbase over 220 cm & to 245 cm

C Production - wheelbase over 245 cm & to 265 cm

D Production - wheelbase over 265 cm

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

H Ladies other than Class I

I Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors

K Novices

Results

1 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 180.71 F 1

2 Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 187.24 F 2

3 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 189.24 F 3

4 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 194.71 F 4

5 Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Special QLD 196.27 F 5

6 C Terlick Turben Mini Special WA 198.92 F 6

7 Ron Brown Leyland Moke VIC 199.89 A 1

14 Lesley McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 207.09 H 1

16 Greg Colgan Hillman Special VIC 211.35 G 1

19 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 213.53 C 1

20 David Brown Leyland Moke VIC 215.17 K 1

24 Ken Douglas Mazda RX3 VIC 222.57 B 1

56 Mike Krauth Peugeot 404 VIC 245.63 D 1

63 Stewart Hall Renault Special VIC 249.54 J 1

80 Helen Palmer Celica VIC 258.30 I 1

Test Times

1 Plum Crazy Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 23.14

2 Crossed Four Point Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Spl 18.85

3 Gate Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 20.24

4 Crazy Square Phil Griffin Ventura Mini Spl 16.44

5 Manoeuvring Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 24.37

6 Waltz Slalom Bruce Mills Redback S Special 24.38

7 Opposite Garages Bill McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Special 27.35

8 Hopkirk David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 23.40

1984

The 1984 AMC was held on Sunday, 2 September in Perth, WA. It was run by Mini Car Club of W.A. on a rather slippery and, later in the day, wet bitumen surface at Southlands Shopping Centre. There were 87 entries and all started.

Geoff Thomson got away to a good start to lead Don Lemm by 3.81 secs, Jim Newell by 4.31, Ross Bennett by 4.78 and Murray Turner by 5.26 after 4 tests. After 8 tests, Geoff led Ross by 7.01, Jim by 8.31, Don by 11.36 after a flag on Hopkirk and Murray by 12.09. After 12 tests, Geoff led Don by 14.41, Murray by 17.06, Jim by 23.45 after dropping about 11 secs on Triple Garage and Ross by 24.83 after dropping about 13 secs on the last 2 tests.

David McDonald had a consistent run to 6^th place. David Beames had an early flag and struggled with the surface to come 7^th. A WD and a flag kept Roy Randall from a top 5 finish

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A Registered - wheelbase to 215 cm

B Registered - wheelbase to 215 - 240 cm

C Registered - wheelbase to 240 - 265 cm

D Registered - wheelbase over 265 cm

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Results

1 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 275.56 F 1

2 Don Lemm Manta MS-2 Mini Spl SA 289.97 F 2

3 Murray Turner Turben Mini Special WA 292.62 F 3

4 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 299.01 F 4

5 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 300.39 F 5

6 David McDonald Turben Mini Special WA 301.19 F 6

15 Alan Wheeley Kwakakart QLD 345.00 G 1

16 Lyn Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 350.77 Ladies in Specials

18 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 351.80 C 1

21 J Cottam Morris Moke WA 356.36 A 1

22 A Taylor Honda City Pro WA 356.37 B 1

44 Mike Krauth Peugeot 404 VIC 395.21 D 1

45 Allison Palmer Toyota Corolla WA 396.15 Ladies in Prod’n

Test Times

1 Crossed Four Point Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 18.02

2 Butterfly Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 20.53

3 Open Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 20.23

4 Six Gate Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 15.68

5 Cloverleaf Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 19.65

6 Manoeuvring Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 23.73

7 Forward & Reverse Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 16.23

8 Hopkirk David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 24.21

9 Star Don Lemm Manta MS-2 Mini Spl 20.83

10 Triple Garage Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 25.08

11 Crossover Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 41.72

12 Tee Garage Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 28.89

1985

The 1985 AMC was held on Sunday, 1 September in Wodonga, VIC, 300 km. north-west of Melbourne. It was run by the Albury-Wodonga & Districts Car Club on a dirt and gravel surface at Wodonga Saleyards. There were 84 entries and 82 started.

This was the first AMC held on an unsealed surface since 1978. The supp regs specified that hand-cut and winter tread tyres could not be used and some competitors were unhappy about what was accepted. In addition, the 1978 problem of the surface changing during the course of a test recurred. The National Motorkhana Committee resolved that only sealed surfaces would be used in future AMCs.

Classes

A Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

H Ladies in specials

I Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors

K Novices

Results

1 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special VIC 313.67 F 1

2 Harry Pearson Mini Special VIC 314.93 F 2

3 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 319.46 F 3

4 Don Lemm Manta MS-2 Mini Spl SA 320.41 F 4

5 Neil Edwards Renault Special NSW 322.23 G 1

6 Phil East Mini Special NSW 323.37 F 5

13 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 334.70 C 1

14 Neil Boyd Morris Cooper S VIC 336.11 A 1

17 D Cavanagh Ford Laser VIC 340.66 B 1

19 Allison Palmer Turben Mini Special WA 342.39 H 1

33 Chris Allan Mini Special VIC 354.39 J 1

39 Jim Richards BMW 635 VIC 357.92 D 1

44 S Taylor Morris Cooper NSW 371.04 I 1

Test Times

1 Eccentric Phil East Mini Special 41.04

2 Waltz Slalom R Clarke VW Special 37.03

3 Forward & Reverse Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 23.48

4 Triple Garage Harry Pearson Mini Special 34.55

5 Manoeuvring Alan Upton Mini Special 33.11

6 Atom Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 39.48

7 Plumb Crazy Alan Upton Mini Special 31.48

8 Double Kidney Wayne Griffiths Mini Special 33.02

9 Star Alan Upton Mini Special 29.64

1986

The 1986 AMC was held on Sunday, 31 August in Adelaide, SA. It was run by a group of SA car clubs on a bitumen surface at Colonnades Shopping Centre. There were 70 entries and all started.

Geoff Thomson led after 4 tests by 4.99 secs from David Beames, 5.14 from Don Lemm (Turben), 5.45 from Jim Newell and 6.83 from Peter D’Angri (Delta SS). After 8 tests, Geoff led David by 11.62, Jim by 13.92 and Don by 15.93. Don had a slow time on Reverse Garage in the unfamiliar Turben, while Peter could have been 3^rd but for a WD on Atom. In the last 4 tests, Geoff increased his lead, followed by David, Jim and Don.

Geoff Thomson was 0.13 seconds away from having fastest time on every test. Having won the last 4 AMCs and aged 25, he retired after this event to the relief of the other drivers. His record in only 9 AMCs was 5 firsts, 2 seconds and 2 fourths (while aged 16 and 18). He is to date (2008) the only driver to win 4 consecutive AMCs. The Delta SS was sold to Phil East.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

E FWD Specials

F RWD Specials

After discussion with David Beames and Jim Newell, we believe that there were no awards for Ladies, Juniors or Novices at the 1986 AMC. I have added our best guesses below for reasons of consistency and marital peace.

Results

1 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl VIC 267.82 E 1

2 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 287.31 E 2

3 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 289.53 E 3

4 Don Lemm Turben Mini Special SA 293.93 E 4

5 Phil East Mini Special NSW 302.04 E 5

6 Harry Pearson Mini Special VIC 303.25 E 6

9 Colin Edwards Renault Special NSW 314.63 F 1

11 Lesley McCarthy Delta SS Subaru Spl VIC 319.86 First Lady

17 Neil Boyd Morris Cooper S VIC 345.87 A 1

19 Graham van der Hoek VW SA 350.87 C 1

24 C Bastian MGB SA 358.07 B 1

34 Clare Kissack Honda Civic NSW 374.82 First Lady in Prod’n

50 Darren Colgan Galant Special VIC 390.61 First Junior

53 John Boston VW NSW 410.41 First Junior in Prod’n

68 D Brown Ford Fairlane SA 536.37 D 1

Test Times

1 Multiple Loop Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 26.69

2 Trefoil Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 17.40

3 Hopkirk Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 22.45

4 Double Loop Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 22.01

5 Reverse Garage Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 21.85

6 Straight Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 17.27

7 Atom David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 28.27

8 Opposite Garages Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 20.43

9 Forward & Reverse Slalom Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 15.40

10 Double Bone Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 25.83

11 Gate Slalom Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 20.49

12 Double Garage Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Special 29.60

1987

The 1987 AMC was held on Sunday, September 27 on the Gold Coast, Qld. It was run by Gold Coast Tweed Motor Sporting Club on a bitumen surface at The Pines Shopping Centre, Elenora. There were 63 entries and 63 started.

Eventual place-getters David Beames, Phil East and Ross Bennett dropped 6.38, 10.75 and 17.26 secs. respectively to Jim Newell on the Paddy so after the first 3 tests, Jim led Alan McConnell by 1.63 secs., David by 6.43 and Wayne Griffiths by 8.09. With fastest times on the next 3 tests, Jim led Alan by 6.17 secs., David by 10.80 and Wayne by 15.86. Alan and Wayne dropped 19.55 and 8.05 to Jim on Hopkirk so after 9 tests, Jim cruised home to beat David by 12.28 secs. and Phil by 20.34.

Jim’s blend of speed and consistency dominated the event with 7 fastest times and all his other times within .57 seconds of fastest. Alan McConnell showed promise in a typically mercurial performance in the Mini Special built by his father, Keith. David Beames, apart from a slow Paddy, had another consistent day for second placing. Jim said later that he came to the event expecting to run second (or worse) to Geoff Thomson only to find that Geoff had retired.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to be:

A Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F1 FWD Specials

F2 RWD Specials

Other awards:

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

Results

1 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 286.69 F1 1

2 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 298.97 F1 2

3 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 307.03 F1 3

4 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 312.23 F1 4

5 Wayne Griffiths Mini Special NSW 313 .21 F1 5

6 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 313.24 F1 6

7 Kerry O’Sullivan Renault Special QLD 322.89 F2 1

8 Alison Palmer Turben Mini Special WA 328.69 L 1

44 R Jenkinson Mini Moke QLD 409.99 LP 1

53 M O’Sullivan Renault Special QLD 432.87 J 1

Test Times

1 Paddy Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 21.40

2 Atom Alan McConnell Mini Special 27.46

3 Manoeuvring David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 23.23

4 Reverse Garage Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 24.78

5 Opposite Garages Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 21.69

6 Gables Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 31.07

7 Hopkirk Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 24.04

8 Butterfly David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 20.81

9 Double Bone / Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 26.31

\ David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 26.31

10 Reverse Lazy Eight Alan McConnell Mini Special 20.22

11 Corridor Alan McConnell Mini Special 25.19

12 Square Slalom Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 18.65

1988

The 1988 AMC was held on Sunday, September 25 in Sydney, NSW. It was run by the Mini Car Club on a bitumen surface at Australia’s Wonderland - a fun park. There were 102 entries and 101 started - the largest AMC entry to date.

The surface started gravelly and broke up into rough dirt as the event progressed - hence the slow times and more than usual flag and garage penalties. Jim Newell claimed an early lead, heading David Beames by 4.01 secs after 4 tests, Kerry O’Sullivan by 5.45, Ron Dean by 6.67. After 8 tests, Jim led David by 8.46, Phil East by 13.76 and Ross Bennett by 14.33. After 12 tests, in spite of a 5 second garage penalty on Hopkirk, Jim led David by 6.20, Ron by 12.94, Ross by 13.30 and Phil by 14.95.

Jim Newell won his second AMC in convincing fashion with 4 fastest and 5 second fastest times. Davis Beames drove steadily but slow reversing hurt his chances. For the first time in many years, a rear wheel drive special made an impression on the AMC with a VW Special coming 3rd driven by Ron Dean. Phil East was quick but 2 penalties and a slow Paddy inflated his total. Alan McConnell was surprisingly off the pace all day.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

E1 Ladies in Production Vehicles

E1 Ladies in Specials

F1 FWD Specials

F2 RWD Specials

G1 Juniors in Production Vehicles

G2 Juniors in Specials

H unknown - perhaps 4WD Production Vehicles??

Results

1 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 336.63 F1 1

2 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 342.83 F1 2

3 Ron Dean VW Special NSW 349.57 F2 1

4 Ross Bennett Manta Mazda Special WA 349.93 F1 3

5 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Spl NSW 351.58 F1 4

6 Robert Clarke VW Special NSW 358.45 F2 2

12 Andrew Clarke VW Special NSW 377.11 G2 1

14 Alison Palmer Turben Mini Special WA 328.69 E2 1

18 Garry Elliott Subaru NSW 390.42 C 1

21 Lindsay Jenkinson Moke QLD 395.01 A 1

28 Peter Otzen Honda Civic VIC 402.08 B 1

46 Phil Torode Peugeot VIC 428.90 D 1

68 Gavin Lake Mazda NSW 455.56 H 1

76 Susan Jones Moke NSW 466.74 E1 1

88 Derek Lane Mazda NSW 495.53 G1 1

Test Times

1 Manoeuvring Wayne Griffiths Mini Special 26.22

2 Paddy Kerry O’Sullivan Renault Special 23.60

3 Cloverleaf Phil East Delta SS Subaru Spl 22.05

4 Triple Garage Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 29.10

5 Double Bone Phil East Delta SS Subaru Spl 29.79

6 Waltz Slalom Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 32.04

7 Tee Garage Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 30.05

8 Lazy Eight David Beames Delta S Mini Special 22.65

9 Double Loop David Beames Delta S Mini Special 27.40

10 Hopkirk Matt Allan Renault Special 29.00

11 Corridor Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 29.89

12 Open Slalom Ross Bennett Manta Mazda Special 24.77

1989

The 1989 AMC was held on Sunday, 8 October in Somerton, VIC. It was run by a consortium of car clubs on a grippy, brushed concrete surface at the BP Oasis Truck Park. There were 83 entries and 83 started.

Alan McConnell and Jim Newell traded fast times but Jim’s slow Tee Garage early and flag penalty later allowed Alan a comfortable win. David Beames drove steadily all day but would have been disappointed with his reversing times. Ross Bennett rolled Jim Newell’s Turben special while attempting to finish the Hopkirk - their last test. Jim’s quote at the presentation was memorable - “I said to Ross “You need to do something to upset McConnell. Sacrifice the car if you have to””

Jim’s idea didn’t work and Alan McConnell won his 1st AMC by a comfortable margin.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

H Ladies

J Juniors

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 269.20 F 1

2 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 277.77 F 2

3 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 278.05 F 3

4 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 285.05 F 4

5 Alan Upton Renault Special VIC 300.57 G 1

6 Bill Nealy Mini Special VIC 304.02 F 5

10 Peter D’Angri Leyland Moke VIC 307.67 A 1

15 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 319.48 J 1

16 Ken Graham 1600 QLD 323.81 C 1

24 Dennis Kavanaugh Ford Laser VIC 334.40 B 1

36 Phil Torode Peugeot 404 Wagon VIC 356.48 D 1

58 Pauline Graham 1600 QLD 383.90 H 1

Test Times

1 Tee Garage Alan McConnell Mini Special 26.81

2 Square Slalom Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 18.70

3 Crossed Four Point Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 18.15

4 Straight Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 16.89

5 Triple Garage Phil East Delta SS Subaru Spl 25.93

6 Gables Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 30.70

7 Opposite Garage Alan McConnell Mini Special 22.73

8 Cloverleaf Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.54

9 Tiger Moth Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 19.39

10 Corridor Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.98

11 Trefoil Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 18.06

12 Hopkirk Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.22

1990

The 1990 AMC was held on Sunday, October 7 in Perth, WA. It was run by the xxx Car Club on a bitumen surface at Southlands Shopping Centre. There were 69 entries and all started.

Alan McConnell got away to a quick start to lead Jim Newell by 4.04 secs, Ross Bennett by 4.06, Phil East by 5.74 and David Beames by 6.89 after 4 tests. He extended his lead after 8 tests to Jim by 5.83, Ross by 9.69, David by 10.90 and Phil by 13.59. Alan further extended his lead to 11.03 secs. over the last 4 tests.

Alan McConnell won his 2nd AMC following up on his win in 1989. He was now the dominant force in national motorkhanas. All the front-runners had consistent times with the exception of a 5 second flag penalty to David Beames on the Paddy.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories:

L Ladies (Highest Placed Lady Driver)

LP Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors (Highest Placed Junior Driver)

JP Juniors in production vehicles

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 286.16 F 1

2 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 297.19 F 2

3 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 307.82 F 3

4 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Spl NSW 308.21 F 4

5 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 310.48 F 5

6 Peter Turner Turben Mini Special WA 316.11 F 6

7 Allison Burges Turben Mini Special WA 319.88 Cat L 1

10 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Spl NSW 328.18 Cat J 1

12 Tim Harland MGB WA 347.03 B 1

13 Graham Igglesden MG Midget WA 356.36 A 1

14 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 358.85 C 1

35 Kim Byett Ford Special WA 408.84 G 1

44 Margaret Knight Mini Moke WA 430.26 Cat LP 1

46 Kevin Little Holden Commodore WA 438.18 D 1

58 David Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 474.11 Cat JP 1

Test Times

1 Gables Alan McConnell Mini Special 30.20

2 Butterfly Alan McConnell Mini Special 20.60

3 Open Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.56

4 Cloverleaf Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special 20.58

5 Six Gate Alan McConnell Mini Special 16.09

6 Atom Alan McConnell Mini Special 28.17

7 Forward & Reverse Slalom Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 16.91

8 Tee Garage Alan McConnell Mini Special 26.80

9 Double Garage Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 32.91

10 Manoeuvring Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.12

11 Paddy Alan McConnell Mini Special 20.49

12 Eccentric Alan McConnell Mini Special 29.36

1991

The 1991 AMC was held on Sunday, September 29 in Adelaide, SA. It was run by a group of SA car clubs on a bitumen surface at Tea Tree Plaza Shopping Centre. There were 59 entries and all started.

15 tests were run in sets of 5 although the Atom was later deleted due to a dispute about flag colours. David Beames led all day with an ever increasing margin. Jim Newell put in a typically consistent performance for second as did Phil East for third. 1989-90 Champion Alan McConnell had an unhappy day with no fastest times, WD on Six Gate and a flag on each of Hopkirk and Paddy to finish 4^th.

David Beames finally won his 1st AMC after having been second 6 times previously. A change to Avon tyres seems to have helped David considerably. Noteworthy was Craig Williams rapid 22.50 secs run on the Paddy in a Moke. For the first time since 1988, a rear wheel drive special made an impression on the AMC with the Renault Special coming 6^th for Matt Allan and setting fastest time in the Hopkirk for his father Rob Allan.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

L Ladies in Specials

LP Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors in Specials

JP Juniors in production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 326.01 F 1

2 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 338.84 F 2

3 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 349.89 F 3

4 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 357.45 F 4

5 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 358.19 F 5

6 Matt Allan Renault Special VIC 363.02 G 1

9 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 376.99 L 1

10 Craig Williams Leyland Moke SA 377.92 A 1

17 Graham van der Hoek VW Beetle SA 405.53 C 1

18 Graham Loader Datsun SA 409.12 B 1

19 Scott Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 409.82 J 1

37 Karien Heimsohn Datsun SA 455.35 LP 1

50 David Rosengrave VW Jetta VIC 495.78 JP 1

Test Times

1 Crossover David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 38.38

2 Gate Slalom David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 19.60

3 Serpentine David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 19.27

4 Double Kidney David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 21.04

5 Crossed Four Point David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 17.21

6 Reverse Lazy Eight David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 19.86

7 Triple Garage David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.22

8 Six Gate David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 16.05

9 Butterfly David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 20.14

10 Double Bone David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.10

11 Triple Loop David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 34.98

12 Paddy Craig Williams Leyland Moke 22.50

13 Hopkirk Rob Allan Renault Special 24.06

14 Opposite Garages Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 20.93

1992

The 1992 AMC was held on Sunday, 27 September in Brisbane,QLD. It was run by Holden Sporting Car Club on a bitumen surface at Old Brisbane Airport. There were 82 entries and all started.

Defending Champion David Beames got away to a good start, trailing Alan McConnell by 0.19 secs. after 4 tests. Jim Newell was 2.98, Matt Allan 4.19, Ross Bennett 4.79 and Wayne Skyring 5.01 behind Alan.

After 8 tests, David led Matt, who ran a fast Paddy, by 1.44, Alan, who hit a flag on Paddy, by 1.86, Jim by 3.16, Ross by 8.18 and Wayne by 8.28 secs.

David Beames won his 2nd AMC. For the first time since Terry Goodacre’s wins in 1975 & 1976, a rear wheel drive special threatened to win the AMC with the Renault Special coming 2nd for Matt Allan and setting 3 fastest times in the process. Jim Newell came a solid 3^rd with Alan McConnell 4^th, ruing 3 hit flags.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to include:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

L 4WD Production Cars

Categories:

L Ladies in Specials

LP Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors in Specials

JP Juniors in production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 247.43 F 1

2 Matt Allan Renault Special VIC 249.67 G 1

3 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 250.59 F 2

4 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 261.74 F 3

5 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 261.82 F 4

6 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 265.90 F 5

8 Scott Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 271.19 Cat J 1

11 Craig Williams Leyland Moke SA 280.22 A 1

12 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 283.29 Cat L 1

13 Ken Graham Datsun QLD 285.08 C 1

17 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 SA 409.12 B 1

60 Steve Price Holden Commodore QLD 348.21 D 1

28 Pauline Graham Datsun QLD 303.71 Cat LP 1

78 David Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 386.43 Cat JP 1

Test Times

1 Manoeuvring Alan McConnell Mini Special 22.17

2 Gate Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.64

3 Cloverleaf Alan McConnell Mini Special 18.97

4 Reverse Lazy Eight David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 19.99

5 Plumb Crazy Alan McConnell Mini Special 21.33

6 Forward & Reverse Slalom David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 17.53

7 Corridor David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.57

8 Paddy Matt Allan Renault Special 19.12

9 Crazy Square David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 15.81

10 Open Slalom David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 20.37

11 Six Gate Matt Allan Renault Special 16.33

12 Hopkirk Matt Allan Renault Special 23.65

Click here for 1992 AMC Full Results

1993

The 1993 AMC was held on Sunday, 10 October in Quakers Hill, NSW, on the western periphery of Sydney. It was run by the Mini Car Club of NSW on a bitumen surface at HMAS Nirimba airfield. There were 97 entries and 93 started.

After 5 tests, Bill McCarthy led Alan McConnell by 5.07 seconds, Phil East by 5.11, Scott Bennett by 5.52, Wayne Griffiths by 5.89 and Jim Newell by 7.98 secs. Defending champion David Beames was 8^th after hitting a flag on his first test, Multiple Loop.

After 10 tests, Bill led Alan by 6.08 seconds, Jim by 8.52, Phil by 8.69, David by 9.20 and Wayne by 12.57 after a slow Double Garage.

In the last 5 tests, David moved up to 3^rd while the other leaders maintained the previous order.

Bill McCarthy returned after a 10 year absence due to back injuries to win his 4th AMC.

Classes

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2650 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2651 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

L 4WD Production Cars

Categories

L Ladies in Specials

LP Ladies in production vehicles

J Juniors in Specials

JP Juniors in production vehicles

Results

1 Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special VIC 378.23 F 1

2 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 385.10 F 2

3 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 388.07 F 3

4 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 389.36 F 2

5 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 393.38 F 5

6 Wayne Griffiths Mini Special NSW 394.13 F 6

9 Chris Allan Renault Special VIC 408.81 G 1

14 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 421.18 Cat L 1

22 Craig Williams Leyland Moke SA 445.31 A 1

27 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 459.63 C 1

28 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 SA 461.59 B 1

37 Paul Newell Turben Mini Special WA 473.33 Cat J 1

48 Les Payne Ford Laser TX3 NSW 494.96 L 1

52 Julie Evans MG Midget NSW 510.57 Cat LP 1

Test Times

1 Triple Loop David Beames Delta S Mini Special 37.06

2 Triple Garage Wayne Griffiths Mini Special 26.02

3 Hopkirk Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.31

4 Multiple Loop Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 28.27

5 Waltz Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 27.37

6 Manoeuvring David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 22.65

7 Reverse Lazy Eight David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 20.18

8 Corridor David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.53

9 Double Garage Rob Allan Renault Special 33.82

10 Gate Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 20.48

11 Gables Wayne Griffiths Mini Special 31.00

12 Trefoil David Beames Delta S Mini Special 18.21

13 Crossed Four Point David Beames Delta S Mini Special 17.71

14 Butterfly Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 21.35

15 Straight Slalom Chris Allan Renault Special 16.52

1994

The 1994 AMC was held on Sunday, 9 October in Mangalore, VIC, about 120 km north of Melbourne. It was run by a group of car clubs on a bitumen surface at Mangalore Airfield. There were 68 entries and all started.

The surface was initially abrasive but became gravelly as the day progressed. It seemed that the cars were pulling the fine aggregate off the bitumen.

After 4 tests, Wayne Skyring led Alan McConnell by 2.14, Jim Newell by 2.49 secs, David Beames by 3.49 and Corinne East by 6.10. After 8 tests, Wayne led Jim by .91 and Alan by 1.93. David had WD on Tiger Moth to drop about 19 secs. In the last 4 tests, Wayne suffered a gear linkage failure to drop about 48 secs and lose by 48 secs. Jim had a slow Forward and Reverse Slalom to let Alan back in front.

Alan McConnell won his 3rd AMC by 1.84 secs from Jim Newell. Corinne East’s third outright was easily the best outright placing to date by a woman. Craig Williams’ outstanding Paddy time of 20.57 in a road-going Moke was notable as was defending champion Bill McCarthy’s collection of six flags. Wayne Skyring was to rue having the only leading Mini special without a “straight-shift” gearchange.

Classes

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2575 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

L 4WD Production Cars

Categories

L Ladies

J Juniors

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 281.01 F 1

2 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 282.85 F 2

3 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 298.78 F 3 & Cat L 1

4 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 299.57 F 4

5 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 304.87 G 1

6 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 308.01 F 5

7 Craig Williams Leyland Moke SA 312.56 A 1

15 Brian Shanahan Toyota Corolla VIC 340.00 B 1

17 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 341.07 C 1

36 David Holtkamp Renholt Special VIC 378.28 Cat J 1

46 Les Payne Subaru Liberty NSW 391.13 L 1

47 Jim Halkyard Holden Torana VIC 403.18 D 1

Test Times

1 Double Kidney Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 22.65

2 Cloverleaf Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.77

3 Eccentric Wayne Skyring Mini Special 30.59

4 Reverse Lazy Eight Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.77

5 Noughts & Crosses Wayne Skyring Mini Special 20.30

6 Hopscotch Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 26.05

7 Paddy Craig Williams Leyland Moke 20.57

8 Tiger Moth Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 19.22

9 Gables Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 31.80

10 Forward & Reverse Slalom David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 18.48

11 Hopkirk David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.18

12 Crossed Four Point / Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 18.20

\ Wayne Skyring Mini Special 18.20

1995

The 1995 AMC was held on Sunday, 24 September in Canberra, ACT. It was run by the Brindabella Motor Sports Club on an excellent bitumen surface at the Police Driver Training complex. There were 62 entries and all started.

A wet Saturday had many drivers worried but the rain held off on Sunday. The event suffered from a lack of experienced officials. One of the first set of tests, Gables, was dropped from the results because of timing errors.

After 3 tests, Alan McConnell led David Beames by 1.08 secs., Jim Newell by 2.32, Bill McCarthy by 3.05 and Wayne Skyring by 5.66 after a slow Triangles.

After 7 tests, Alan led David by 1.02, Jim by 2.79, Wayne by 8.97 and Bill by 10.46 after a flag on Open Slalom.

After 11 tests, David won by 7.22 from Jim, 12.81 from Wayne after a slow Reverse Garage, 12.89 from Alan after a slow Reverse Garage including a flag and another flag on Paddy.

David Beames won his 3rd AMC with a relentless consistency while all except Jim Newell made errors to fall behind.

Classes

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2575 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 257.15 F 1

2 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 264.37 F 2

3 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 269.96 F 3

4 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 270.04 F 4

5 Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special VIC 277.79 F 5

6 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 282.85 F 6 & Cat L 1

7 Andrew Fifield Renault Special NSW 288.59 G 1

17 David Holtkamp Renholt Special VIC 315.90 Cat J 1

19 Brian Shanahan Toyota Corolla VIC 321.70 B 1

20 John Boston Honda Civic NSW 322.45 C 1

31 Kelvin Goodman Morris Cooper S NSW 343.50 A 1

45 Gary Elliot Subaru NSW 379.57 E 1

50 Ray Rowe Nissan NSW 394.54 D 1

The results do not identify Category winners. I was unable to deduce the winners of LP or JP.

Test Times

1 Gables Excluded from results due to timing errors

2 Try Angles Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.78

3 Hopskotch Wayne Skyring Mini Special 25.13

4 Noughts & Crosses Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.58

5 Double Bone David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.66

6 Crazy Square Wayne Skyring Mini Special 15.73

7 Open Slalom Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.58

8 Opposite Garages Jim Newell Turben Mini Special 22.06

9 Triple Loop Alan McConnell Mini Special 36.24

10 Plumb Crazy David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 21.35

11 Reverse Garage David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 24.19

12 Paddy Andrew Fifield Renault Spl 19.73

1996

The 1996 AMC was held on Sunday, 13 October in Canberra, ACT. It was run by the Brindabella Motor Sports Club on an excellent bitumen surface at the Police Driver Training complex. There were 62 entries and all started.

As in the previous year, the event suffered from a lack of experienced officials.

After 4 tests, David Beames led Wayne Skyring by 1.88 secs., Craig Williams by 2.11, Corinne East by 2.65 and Andrew Collier by 3.53 while Alan McConnell lost about 17 secs. with a WD on Star.

After 8 tests, Andrew took the lead with fast Hopkirk and Waltz Clover times to lead Wayne by .63, David by 1.27 after a slow Waltz Clover, Corinne by 7.68 and Phil East by 8.19. Craig’s Manta blew a diff after 5 tests.

After all 12 tests, David won by 1.20 from Andrew, 2.20 from Wayne who had a slowish Reverse Garage, 8.95 from Alan, 12.20 from Corinne and 12.55 from Phil.

David Beames won his 4th AMC with a typically consistent day. Andrew Collier put in his best performance to date for a close 2^nd. Wayne Skyring was let down by his reversing but scored a solid 3^rd. Alan McConnell’s WD on the Star probably cost him the title but he made a great recovery to 4^th place.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to be:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2575 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 275.98 F 1

2 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 277.18 G 1

3 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 278.18 F 2

4 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 284.93 F 3

5 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 288.18 F 4 & Cat L 1

6 Phil East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 288.53 F 5

16 Ashley Skyring Mini Special QLD 328.58 Cat J 1

17 Warren Degnan Holden Gemini QLD 328.94 C 1

20 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 QLD 332.93 B 1

27 Warwick Butt Morris Cooper S NSW 353.89 A 1

33 Avis Fowler AH Sprite VIC 368.92 Cat LP 1

34 Bruce Moxon Holden Camira NSW 371.71 D 1

44 David Burgess Nissan Skyline GTR VIC 399.77 E 1

52 Megan Elliot ??? ??? 441.61 Cat JP 1

The results do not identify Vehicles, States and Category entered. I am not sure of the Category winners above.

Test Times

1 Manoeuvring Alan McConnell Mini Special 21.75

2 Forward & Reverse Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 17.20

3 Crossed Four Point Wayne Skyring Mini Special 16.38

4 Star Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Spl 20.19

5 Double Bone Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.55

6 Hopkirk Alan McConnell Mini Special 22.50

7 Lazy Eight Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.59

8 Waltz Clover Andrew Collier Renault Special 28.75

9 Gables Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Spl 30.22

10 Reverse Garage David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 23.51

11 Reverse Lazy Eight Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.28

12 Cloverleaf Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.37

1997

The 1997 AMC was held on Sunday, 28 September in Adelaide, SA. It was run by Terry Racz for the MG Car Club on a somewhat gravelly bitumen surface at the Port Adelaide truck park. There were 74 entries and 73 started.

Alan McConnell got away to a good start and after 4 tests, led Bill McCarthy by .28 secs, David Beames, the defending champion, by 1.57 secs, Wayne Skyring by 1.93 and Jim Newell, who had hit a flag on Atom, by 5.64 secs. After 8 tests, Alan led David by 4.52, Jim by 7.48 and Steve Byett by 9.42. Wayne and Bill had dropped back with slow Paddy times. After all 12 tests, Alan led David by 7.28, Jim by 13.43, Steve by 14.04 and Wayne by 14.59 secs.

Alan McConnell led all the way to win his 4th AMC. David Beames had a typically steady run to second. Jim Newell recovered from an early 5 sec. penalty for third ahead of a steady Steve Byett. Wayne Skyring was, once again, let down by his reversing. Bill McCarthy was quick early but was later hampered by failing brakes which were traced to crushed brake shoes.

Classes

Classes are uncertain but appear to be:

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2575 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 269.99 F 1

2 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 277.27 F 2

3 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 283.42 F 3

4 Steve Byett Mini Special WA 284.03 F 4

5 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 284.58 F 5

6 Corinne East Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 292.14 F 6 & Cat L 1

10 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 297.35 G 1

12 Craig Williams Morris Cooper S SA 309.75 A 1

22 Wayne Griffiths Honda Civic NSW 329.99 C 1

23 Michael Heslewood Mitsubishi Lancer NSW 334.34 B 1

42 Bruce Moxon Holden Camira NSW 371.71 D 1

43 Tim Playford Leyland Clubman GT SA 363.40 Cat JP 1

49 Bev Waters MGB GT V8 SA 377.37 Cat LP 1

58 Nathan Wuillemin Renault Special VIC 394.43 Cat J 1

Test Times

1 Serpentine Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.07

2 Atom Alan McConnell Mini Special 27.77

3 Six Gate Andrew Collier Renault Special 15.53

4 Triple Garage David Collier Renault Special 25.74

5 Gate Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 20.44

6 Try Angles Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.33

7 Moth Balls Wayne Skyring Mini Special 21.09

8 Paddy David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 21.23

9 Open Slalom Wayne Skyring Mini Special 20.41

10 Double Loop Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.14

11 Corridor Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.19

12 Hopkirk Alan McConnell Mini Special 23.94

Click here for 1997 AMC Results

1998

The 1998 AMC was held on Sunday, 11 October in Perth, WA. It was run by the Mini Car Club of WA on a smooth, gravel-free bitumen surface in the car park at Belmont Park Racecourse. There were 116 entries, 12 from interstate, and 109 started.

The event was very well run in spite of the near record entry. Alan McConnell, narrowly ahead of Wayne Skyring, took a steadily increasing lead of 2.50 secs in the first seven tests. Four of the last five tests included reversing where Wayne slowed and dropped to fourth. David Beames recorded steady times in early runs but came home with a flag and fast times on the reversing tests.

On his 10th and 11th tests, Alan recorded fast times but struck a flag on each. To cap it off, a heavy shower of rain descended for Class F during the last test, the Hopkirk, and Alan struggled on the wet surface. As a result, David’s fastest time on the Hopkirk won him the championship by .82 seconds from Alan.

Ross Bennett had a steady run to third. Jim Newell came fifth in spite of two penalties and Bill McCarthy came sixth in David Beames’ Delta S which Bill owned in the late 1970s.

David Beames won his 5th AMC - the second driver to do so (Geoff Thomson was the first in 1986). Alan McConnell suffered, especially on the reversing tests, with pain from a couple of ribs he broke in the previous week.

Classes

A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2575 mm

D 2WD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 280.32 F 1

2 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 281.14 F 2

3 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 283.25 F 3

4 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 283.89 F 4

5 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 288.31 F 5

6 Bill McCarthy Delta S Mini Special VIC 293.60 F 6

9 Corinne East-Johnston Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 298.96 Cat L 1

12 Brent Matthews Morris Moke WA 315.52 A 1

15 Peter Folland Mazda MX-5 WA 332.90 B 1

17 Kim Byett Ford V8 Special WA 336.89 G 1

27 Sue Elliott Morris Moke WA 348.47 Cat LP 1

36 Mike Brewer Ford Escort WA 361.38 C 1

47 Simon Lingford Mitsubishi Lancer GSR WA 377.43 E 1

61 BD Soutar-Dawson Lotus 7 WA 390.08 Cats J 1& JP 1

68 Simon Loh BMW M3R WA 397.90 D 1

Test Times

1 Hopscotch Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.21

2 Manouevering Alan McConnell Mini Special 21.85

3 Renno Diamond Wayne Skyring Mini Special 24.12

4 Star Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.01

5 Atom Alan McConnell Mini Special 26.75

6 Square Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 18.32

7 Paddy David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 19.08

8 Butterfly Alan McConnell Mini Special 19.05

9 Forward & Reverse Slalom Steve Byett Mini Special 17.00

10 Double Bone Scott Bennett Turben Mini Spl 25.52

11 Hopkirk David Beames Delta S Mini Spl 25.31

12 Triple Garage Jim Newell Turben Mini Spl 25.39

1999

The 1999 AMC was held on Sunday, 26 September in Sydney, NSW. It was run by the Mini Car Club of NSW on a bitumen surface in a car park at Nirimba TAFE, Quakers Hill. There were 91 entries and 89 started.

The event was run on a mixture of surfaces – three tests on good, slightly gravelled bitumen and two on broken, dusty, gravelly bitumen. None of the leading group recorded penalties or made serious errors in the five tests before the lunch break.

Heavy rain commenced during the lunch break which was extended. When the rain showed no sign of abating after several hours, the officials decided that there would not be time for another set of tests to be completed before sunset. The remaining tests were abandoned and results based on the five morning tests.

Alan McConnell won his 5th AMC. Bill McCarthy was happy with his second place but rued a poor Waltz Clover. Andrew Collier, Wayne Skyring and David Beames were clustered together for the next 3 places.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 118.57 F 1

2 Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special VIC 118.90 F 2

3 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 122.82 G 1

4 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 122.86 F 3

5 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 123.46 F 4

6 Corinne East-Johnston Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 128.35 F 5 & Cat L 1

14 Michael Heslewood Mitsubishi Lancer NSW 140.26 B 1

21 Warren Degnan Holden Gemini NSW 146.30 C 1

28 Brett Manewell Morris 850 NSW 152.13 A 1

32 Bruce Moxon Holden Camira NSW 154.74 DF 1

36 Phil Torode Peugeot VIC 155.85 DR 1

46 Wendy Gibbs Austin-Healey Sprite NSW 161.12 Cat LP 1

57 David Lucas Mazda 121 NSW 175.10 Cats J 1& JP 1

Note: no entries in Class E

Test Times

1 Reverse Garage Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Spl 23.01

2 Star Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.70

3 Waltz Clover Alan McConnell Mini Special 28.80

4 Try Angles Wayne Skyring Mini Special 26.34

5 Forward & Reverse Slalom Alan McConnell Mini Special 17.25

2000

The 2000 AMC was held on Sunday, 13 August in Willowbank, QLD. It was run by Holden Sporting Car Club Qld on a grippy, smooth, bitumen surface in the pit area at Queensland Raceway. There were 76 entries and 75 started.

After the first 3 tests, Wayne Skyring led by 0.79 to Alan McConnell, 2.01 to Bill McCarthy, 2.03 to David Beames, 2.51 to Andrew Collier and 3.27 to David Collier. After 6 tests, Alan’s car had a crownwheel and pinion failure and Bill had a brain fade on Atom, leaving Wayne 1.61 ahead of Andrew Collier and 2.39 ahead of David Collier. After 9 tests, Wayne led Andrew by 2.37 and David by 7.33. After 12 tests, Wayne led Andrew by 4.12 and David Collier by 9.37.

After many years of just missing out, Wayne Skyring had won his 1st AMC with a convincing performance. Peter Deck made a cameo return driving Bill McCarthy’s special and showed that the old flair was still there. Once again, a RWD special threatened to win but couldn’t quite get there with Andrew and David Collier coming 2^nd and 3^rd in their mid-engined Renault Special.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 274.05 F 1

2 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 278.17 G 1

3 David Collier Renault Special NSW 283.42 G 1

4 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 287.14 F 2

5 Jim Newell Turben Mini Special WA 292.22 F 3

6 Ross Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 298.09 F 4

11 Brent Matthews Leyland Moke WA 315.04 A 1

12 Larisa Skyring Mini Special QLD 317.89 Cat L 1

14 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 Coupe QLD 323.64 B 1

24 Scott Rayment Renault R12 QLD 347.72 C 1

26 B-D Soutar-Dawson Leyland Moke WA 349.07 Cats J 1 & JP 1

28 Melinda Both Honda Civic QLD 352.06 Cat LP 1

33 Alan Moore Peugeot 405 SRi QLD 358.52 DF 1

42 Ken Graham BMW 318i QLD 367.36 DR 1

47 Leslie Payne Ford Laser NSW 372.24 E 1

Test Times

1 Serpentine Scott Bennett Turben Mini Spl 19.02

2 Hopscotch Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.40

3 Try Angles Wayne Skyring Mini Special 23.87

4 Opposite Garages David Collier Renault Spl 20.30

5 Hopkirk David Collier Renault Spl 22.56

6. Atom Wayne Skyring Mini Special 26.92

7 Corridor Wayne Skyring Mini Special 23.74

8 Paddy Scott Bennett Turben Mini Spl 18.82

.9 Double Kidney Wayne Skyring Mini Special 21.55

10 Mothballs Scott Bennett Turben Mini Spl 20.84

11 Eccentric Wayne Skyring Mini Special 28.22

12 Noughts & Crosses Wayne Skyring Mini Special 19.59

Click here for 2000 AMC Results

2001

The 2001 AMC was held on Sunday, 26 September in Melbourne, VIC. It was run by a group of clubs on a grippy, brushed concrete surface in the truck park at BP Oasis, Somerton. There were 74 entries and 74 started.

After the first 3 tests, Wayne Griffiths led by 0.31 secs from David Collier, Andrew Collier by 0.78, all three being very fast on Triple Garage. Wayne also led Alan McConnell by 4.07, Bill McCarthy by 4.86 and David Beames by 5.04.

After 6 tests, Wayne led Alan by 4.20 secs, David Collier by 4.35, David Beames by 6.45, Richard Carlson by 12.20 and Warwick Butt by 12.97. Andrew hit 5 flags on Hopkirk and one on Multiple Loop while Bill had a WD on Hopkirk and a flag on Waltz Clover,

Wayne hit a flag on Corridor and Alan won from David Collier by 1.69, leading Wayne by 1.95, David Beames by 4.82, Warwick by 11.46 and Corinne East-Johnston by 12.65.

Alan McConnell won his 6th AMC - the first driver to do so – in spite of a nose and throat infection. David Collier put in his second podium performance. Wayne Griffiths showed that he had the pace to win and just needed some luck.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Alan McConnell Mini Special QLD 251.24 F 1

2 David Collier Renault Special NSW 252.93 G 1

3 Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special NSW 253.19 F 2

4 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 256.06 F 3

5 Warwick Butt Mini Special NSW 262.70 F 4

6 Corinne East-Johnston Delta SS Subaru Special NSW 263.89 F 5 & Cat L 1

17 John Walker Leyland Moke ??? 289.49 A 1

20 Michael Heslewood Mitsubishi Lancer NSW 310.57 B 1

25 Scott Gibbs Austin-Healey Sprite NSW 315.08 Cats J 1& JP 1

28 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 319.30 C 1

38 Leslie Payne Ford Laser TX3t4 NSW 326.90 E 1

50 Wendy Gibbs Austin-Healey Sprite NSW 345.05 Cat LP 1

53 Warren Reid Mazda MX6 VIC 347.27 DF 1

57 Phil Torode Peugeot 404 VIC 351.00 DR 1

Test Times

1 Eccentric David Collier Renault Special 27.37

2 Gables Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 29.13

3 Triple Garage David Collier Renault Special 23.52

4 Hopkirk Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 22.99

5 Double Bone Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.97

6 Multiple Loop Alan McConnell Mini Special 25.52

7 Waltz Clover Andrew Collier Renault Special 29.70

8 Triple Loop Alan McConnell Mini Special 33.98

9 Corridor Alan McConnell Mini Special 24.51

Click here for 2001 AMC Results

2002

The 2002 AMC was held on Sunday, 26 September in Melbourne, VIC. It was run by a group of clubs on a grippy, brushed concrete surface in the truck park at BP Oasis, Somerton. There were 81 entries and 81 started.

The 2002 AMC was to have been held in Canberra, ACT but when the Canberra organizers had major problems, the event was moved to Melbourne and successfully run with only a few months preparation thanks to the efforts of Duncan Sides and Director, Bill Bennett.

After the first 3 tests, Wayne Griffiths led by 2.34 secs from Andrew Collier and by 2.64 from Matt Allan. After 6 tests, Wayne led by 1.63 secs from Andrew and 2.61 from Allan. Andrew slowed in the last 3 tests and Wayne won by 3.04 from Matt and 4.90 from Andrew.

Wayne Griffiths won his 1st AMC. The defending champion, Alan McConnell, suffered a differential failure on his first test.

Geoff Thomson entered the AMC for the first time since his 1986 win, had trouble with the Delta SS recently re-acquired from Phil East, and finished 8^th. It was to take another year for Geoff, Bill McCarthy and Link Automotive to sort out most of the problems which had accumulated in the Delta SS.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special NSW 258.42 F 1

2 Matt Allan Clipper Special VIC 261.46 G 1

3 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 263.32 G 2

4 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 268.41 F 2

5 David Collier Renault Special NSW 263.32 G 3

6 Warwick Butt Mini Special NSW 270.09 F 3

16 Lesley McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special VIC 305.03 Cat L 1

20 Gary Kotzur Leyland Moke SA 308.78 A 1

25 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 Coupe QLD 316.99 B 1

27 John Rosengrave VW Golf VIC 318.19 C 1

33 Corinne East-Johnston Mazda 121 NSW 329.90 Cat LP 1

34 Simon Ridgewell Leyland Moke WA 329.97 Cat JP 1

48 Jason Spencer Fiat 500 Special VIC 345.18 Cat J 1

49 Warren Reid Mazda MX6 VIC 350.32 DF 1

80 Phil Torode Peugeot 404/Ford XR8 Ute VIC 419.75 DR 1

Test Times

1 Triple Garage Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 23.69

2 Triple Loop Andrew Collier Renault Special 34.39

3 Eccentric Warwick Butt Mini Special 28.15

4 Multiple Loop Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 25.48

5 Gables Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 29.09

6 Waltz Clover Andrew Collier Renault Special 27.60

7 Crossover Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 37.52

8 Try Angles Matt Allan Clipper VW Special 23.57

9 Hopkirk David Beames Delta S Mini Special 22.64

2003

The 2003 AMC was held on Sunday, 28 September in Adelaide, SA. It was run by MG Car Club of SA on a slippery bitumen surface in the staff car park of the Mitsubishi Engine Plant at Lonsdale, about 25 km south of the Adelaide CBD. There were 63 entries and 63 started.

The venue was to have been the Colonnades Shopping Centre but was changed five weeks prior to the event due to problems in gaining police permission. Many drivers had trouble with the slippery surface, especially on the reversing tests, and there were many penalties and other errors.

After the first 3 tests, David Beames led by 0.56 secs from Geoff Thomson and Scott Bennett while Andrew Collier scored a slow time on the 3^rd test - Dollar. Scott had a disastrous Paddy and Geoff a slow Manoeuvring due to electrical trouble so after the 6^th test, David led Andrew by 2.89 secs and Geoff by 3.60. Geoff overtook Andrew in the last 3 tests but David held on to win by 3.15 secs.

David Beames became the second driver to have won 6 AMCs, Alan McConnell having achieved this in 2001. McConnell did not enter the 2003 AMC and sold his motorkhana special to Phil East in late 2003. Defending champion Wayne Griffiths was one of many drivers who struggled on the slippery surface and finished 5^th.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 David Beames Delta S Mini Special SA 197.69 F 1

2 Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl VIC 200.84 F 2

3 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 201.44 G 1

4 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 210.12 F 3

5 Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special NSW 210.85 F 4

6 David Collier Renault Special NSW 215.29 G 2

9 Corinne East-Johnston Delta SS Subaru Spl NSW 222.98 Cat L 1

14 Gary Kotzur Leyland Moke SA 233.64 A 1

16 Sam Collier Renault Special NSW 240.06 Cat J 1

19 Paul Whiting Mitsubishi Mirage SA 245.43 C 1

22 Karein Heimsohn Leyland Moke SA 246.14 Cat LP 1

26 Simon Ridgewell Leyland Moke WA 248.17 Cat JP 1

34 David Batchelor Toyota Corolla VIC 259.67 B 1

39 Graham Vanderhoek Mitsubishi Magna SA 267.85 DF 1

41 Leslie Payne Ford Laser NSW 270.56 E 1

59 Paul Keane Datsun 240K SA 322.04 DR 1

Test Times

1 Double Loop Warwick Butt Mini Special 22.50

2 Cloverleaf David Beames Delta S Mini Special 18.86

3 Dollar Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 19.46

4 Try Angles David Beames Delta S Mini Special 23.76

5 Paddy Andrew Collier Renault Special 19.23

6 Manoeuvring Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 22.19

7 Atom Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 26.66

8 Hopkirk Geoff Thomson Delta SS Subaru Spl 22.17

9 Butterfly David Beames Delta S Mini Special 19.75

Detailed Results

Click here for 2003 AMC Results

2004

The 2004 AMC was held on Sunday, 24 October in NSW. It was run by the Renault and Mini Car Clubs of NSW on a mixture of concrete and bitumen surfaces at Oran Park Raceway at Narellan, about 50 km south west of the Sydney CBD. There were 83 entries and 82 started.

The test areas were a bitumen road which joined a concrete skid pan and a smaller bitumen area with one test on each. All competitors started at the skid pan and upon completing their run, did the test on the road. They then had to drive through that test to the third area, compete there and wait there until all drivers had completed the 3 tests.

After the first 3 tests, Wayne Griffiths led by 1.52 secs from Wayne Skyring, 1.93 to Corinne East-Johnston, 1.99 to David Collier and 2.01 to Andrew Collier.

The early leader, Wayne Griffiths, dropped back in the reversing tests and the event was won by Warwick Butt in a Mini special. Rain commenced during the second set of tests and while Class E (4WD Production) and Class F (FWD Specials) had 6 dry tests, Class G (RWD specials) had one or two wet tests and most Production classes had 3 wet tests. The event was halted after 6 of the 9 planned tests.

The rain caused some hard luck stories among the leaders of Class G in their struggle for outright honours. David Collier (NSW) was second after 4 tests but a wet, slow 5th run dropped him back. This left Matt Allan (Vic) and Andrew Collier (NSW) first and second after 5 tests but both hit flags on the final, very wet test to drop back. The organisers took some risks in using this site and they lost the bet. The running order, which was forced on them by the site layout, undoubtedly changed the outright results.

One young competitor in a Renault 12 lost control on the wet 6th test and slid off the test area, down a fairly steep, grassy embankment and the 12 finished up, apparently undamaged, 2 or 3 metres below the bitumen. It had to be retrieved by a four wheel drive (on the bitumen) and a stout cable. It was lucky that it didn't roll. Perhaps that area wasn't quite large enough.

Jim Newell was the only WA entry and was a bit disoriented in his first drive in the Delta SS Subaru special. The car steers and turns more quickly than Jim's Turben Mini special which made it hard for him to find a rhythm. Differently placed pedals didn't help either. Even so, Jim came 14th outright and was improving with every test.

Warwick Butt put together 6 good runs with excellent reversing times and thoroughly deserved his win. Defending champion David Beames suffered a mis-fire, hit a flag and finished 7th. Wayne Skyring once again put in a solid performance for 4^th, less than 3 seconds behind the winner.

Sam Collier’s 12^th is the best result by a Junior for 14 years.

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

LS Ladies in Specials

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

JS Juniors in Specials

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Warwick Butt Mini Special NSW 127.70 F 1

2 Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special NSW 128.51 F 2

3 David Collier Renault Special NSW 130.52 G 1

4 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 130.57 F 3

5 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 133.31 G 2

6 Corinne East-Johnston Mini Special NSW 133.46 F 4 & L 1

12 Sam Collier Renault Special NSW 140.35 Cat J 1

18 Kevin Goldfinch Mini NSW 153.57 A 1

24 John Boston Renault Clio NSW 163.09 C 1

27 Michael Heslewood Mitsubishi Lancer NSW 167.73 B 1

33 Leslie Payne Ford Laser TX3 NSW 170.59 E 1

36 Graham Vanderhoek Mitsubishi Magna VRX SA 171.86 DF 1

37 Craig Hornibrook Holden Commodore QLD 173.03 DR 1

57 Janene Carrad Holden Commodore QLD 191.74 Cat LP 1

66 Matthew Goldfinch Mini NSW 206.42 Cat JP 1

Test Times

1 Corridor Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 23.78

2 Historic Straight Slalom Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 14.27

3 Reverse Lazy Eight Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 19.42

4 Waltz Clover Andrew Collier Renault Special 27.37

5 Forward & Reverse Slalom Matt Allan Renault Special 15.27

6 Double Kidney Wayne Skyring Mini Special 21.92

Detailed Results

Click here for 2004 AMC Results

2005

The 2005 AMC was held on Sunday, 6 November in Western Australia. It was run by the Mini Car Club of WA on a smooth, grippy bitumen surface at the AHG Driver Training Centre near Perth Airport. There were 70 entries and 66 started, including 16 from interstate.

As in previous WA AMCs, the organization was excellent. The 12 tests offered plenty of variety and the weather was good for practice and the event, though there was rain on the Friday before and the Monday after.

Class A consisted of 5 Moke drivers led home by Brent Matthews who was 1st on handicap.

The 18 cars in Class B included Westfields, MG TFs, Lotus Elises, etc. The Westfields dominated the class, coming 1^st, 2^nd and 4^th with Peter Morley beating Phil Morley by 2.09 secs.

Class C was a tussle between Craig Williams in a MINI Cooper S and Duane Joubert in a Corolla Sprinter with Craig coming out ahead, 2^nd on handicap.

DF saw Ian Towart (Camira) and Julian O’Hara (Peugeot 405) locked together all day. Julian took an early lead but Ian regained time on Noughts & Crosses to win by 0.63 secs.

Gavin Little (Rover SDI) easily won Class DR while Ruari Soutar-Dawson (Nissan Pulsar GTiR) comfortably won Class E.

The 2002 champion, Wayne Griffiths, led David Collier after the first set of four tests by 1.17 secs., Scott Bennett by 2.17, Andrew Collier by 2.52 and Wayne Skyring by 3.34. Steve Byett had dropped back with a seized diff.

After 8 tests, Scott, after two hot reversing runs, led David Collier by 2.10, Wayne Skyring by 2.88, David Beames by 6.28 and Ross Bennett by 7.76. Andrew had dropped about 7 secs on Dollar while Wayne Griffiths had hit 2 flags on Dollar, dropping him to 6^th place.

During the last 4 tests, two of them having reversing, Scott was plagued by his gearbox jumping out of reverse and dropped back. David Collier won his first AMC, 0.02 secs ahead of Scott. Wayne Skyring was a second behind them, followed by David Beames, Andrew Collier and Bill McCarthy. Defending champion Warwick Butt did not enter, deterred by the 8000 km round trip.

David Collier’s AMC win was the first by a RWD car since Terry Goodacre in his Subaru Special in 1976. The Colliers partied long and hard on Sunday night, having finally taken a win after more than a decade of being in contention including 3 second and 2 third places..

Classes

Classes were: A 2WD Production - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Categories

LS Ladies in Specials

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

JS Juniors in Specials

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 David Collier Renault Special NSW 273.84 G 1

2 Scott Bennett Turben Mini Special WA 273.86 F 1

3 Wayne Skyring Mini Special QLD 274.90 F 2

4 David Beames Mini Special SA 279.12 F 3

5 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 280.79 G 2

6 Bill McCarthy Mini Special VIC 291.00 F 4

10 Brent Matthews Moke WA 303.68 A 1

19 Craig Williams MINI Cooper S SA 323.76 C 1

22 Tracey Killick Turben Mini Special WA 338.70 LS 1

23 Peter Morley Westfield SE WA 342.86 B 1

31 Ruari Soutar-Dawson Pulsar GTiR WA 357.08 E 1

37 Ian Towart Camira WA 370.96 DF 1

44 Sue Prance Toyota Sprinter WA 394.48 LP 1

49 Gavin Little Rover SDi WA 407.28 DR 1

62 Tegan Stewart Mazda MX-5 WA 442.09 JP 1

Test Times

1 Double Kidney David Collier Renault Special 21.16

2 Eccentric Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 27.52

3 Crossover Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 37.84

4 Double Hat Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 21.15

5 Dollar David Beames Delta S Special 20.57

6 Forward & Reverse Slalom Scott Bennett Turben Mini Special 16.24

7 Spiro Slalom Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 21.79

8 Reverse Lazy Eight Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 18.96

9 Noughts & Crosses Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 18.72

10 Paddy David Beames Delta S Special 19.80

11 Opposite Garages David Collier Renault Special 21.07

12 Plumb Crazy Andrew Collier Renault Special 20.51

Detailed Results

Click here for 2005 AMC Results

2006

The 2006 Castrol AMC was held on Sunday, October 1^st in Queensland. It was run by the Holden Sporting Car Club of Queensland on a grippy bitumen surface at the Willowbank Raceway, about 50 km south west of Brisbane. There were 83 entries and 77 started, including 31 from interstate.

As in previous Qld AMCs, the organization was excellent. 4 of the 12 tests included reversing but the other 8 were a bit too easy. The weather was fine and hot for both Saturday practice and Sunday competition. The heat and bright sun warmed the specials’ slick tyres and made them quite sticky.

Former champion Bill McCarthy led Wayne Griffiths after the first set of three tests by 0.74 secs., Wayne Skyring by 0.85, Warwick Butt by 0.88, David Collier by 1.97 and David Beames by 2.02. Andrew Collier had a brain fade on Plumb Crazy and dropped about 5 secs.

After 6 tests, Bill led Wayne Skyring by 3.31 secs, Wayne Griffiths by 4.28, David Collier by 4.70, David Beames by 5.59 and Steve Byett by 6.29. Warwick took a 5 second flag penalty on Forward and Reverse Slalom.

After 9 tests, Wayne Griffiths led Wayne Skyring by 0.47 secs, Steve by 3.48, Bill by 3.65, David Collier by 4.21, Andrew by 5.25 and Warwick by 5.82. Bill had been slowed by problems selecting first gear during front throws, while David Beames took a 5 second flag penalty on Hopkirk.

After 12 tests, Wayne Griffiths won the AMC, 0.14 secs ahead of Bill, Andrew 1.12 behind after a late sprint, 2005 Champion David Collier 1.17, Steve Byett 2.58, and David Beames 6.04 behind. Wayne Skyring suffered a driveshaft failure on Bowler while Warwick hit 2 flags on Paddy.

As often happens, there were plenty of hard luck stories in the AMC, but Wayne Griffiths put in a safe, consistently fast performance to become the 2006 Champion. Wayne is the oldest winner to date, aged 57 (sorry to mention that Wayne but we have to keep the stats straight). Just 1.17 seconds covered the first 4 placings at the end.

In Class A, Alan McConnell in a Mini Cooper S narrowly beat Greg Dobson also in a Mini Cooper S with Andrew Mitchell in a Mini third. This was Alan’s first motorkhana in a car with a handbrake for a couple of decades so he did well to beat Doogie (Greg)

Class B was easily won by Terry Scharf (again) in his Datsun 1200 from Tony Galletly in a Lotus 7 and Brian Shanahan in a Corolla.

Class C was headed by Stephen Gabb and Ken Graham in Datsun 1600s, followed by last year’s class winner Craig Williams in a MINI Cooper S.

Craig Hornibrook easily won Class DR from Janene Carrad and Barry Hayes, all driving Commodores.

Class E was exclusively Subaru WRX territory with Peter McCloy beating Evan Wheeler by only 0.04 secs with Neville Scott close behind.

In Class F, Wayne Griffiths in the Honda Terrier was 0.14 secs in front of Bill McCarthy in the Delta S2 with Steve Byett third in the Delta SS.

Class G had Andrew Collier 0.15 secs ahead of his brother David with Aaron Wuillemin third, all in Renault Specials

Juniors and Juniors in Production Cars were won convincingly by Cameron Beller in a Mini with Alex McCloy second in a Mini Cooper S and Michael Galletly in an Alfa Sud third.

Ladies was headed by Corinne East Johnston in a Mini Special with Larisa Skyring in a Mini Special second and Lauren East-Wuillemin third in a Renault Special.

Ladies in Production Cars was won by Janene Carrad in a Commodore with Pauline Graham in a Datsun 1600 SSS second and Cindy Cook in a Mini Cooper third.

Craig Hornibrook was fastest on Handicap, followed by Stephen Gabb and Wayne Griffiths, who just edged out Terry Scharf and Bill McCarthy. The winning team was Comb Over - Wayne Griffiths, Andrew Collier and David Collier.

This was Wayne Griffiths’ second AMC win. Phil East remains the only driver to have driven in all 35 AMCs, followed by John Rosengrave with 34.

Classes

Vehicle Classes were:

A 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

DF FWD Production Cars - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

DR RWD Production Cars - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Driver Categories:

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

Results

1 Wayne Griffiths Honda Terrier Spl NSW 251.65 F 1

2 Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Spl VIC 251.79 F 2

3 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 252.77 G 1

4 David Collier Renault Special NSW 252.92 G 2

5 Steve Byett Delta SS Subaru Spl WA 254.23 F 3

6 David Beames Delta S Mini Spl SA 257.69 F 4

7 Corinne East Johnston Mini Special NSW 261.19 L 1

19 Stephen Gabb Datsun 1600 QLD 292.34 C 1

20 Terry Scharf Datsun 1200 QLD 292.68 B 1

22 Craig Hornibrook Holden Commodore QLD 296.64 DR 1

25 Alan McConnell Mini Cooper S QLD 302.79 A 1

32 Tony Galletly Lotus 7 QLD 306.23 B 1

42 Peter McCloy Subaru WRX QLD 322.16 E 1

45 Janene Carrad Holden Commodore QLD 323.45 LP 1

46 Cameron Beller Morris Mini VIC 324.89 J 1 & JP 1

Test Times

1 Straight Slalom Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 16.67

2 Plumb Crazy Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 21.33

3 Double Loop Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 23.15

4 Forward & Reverse Slalom Aaron Wuillemin Renault Special 15.37

5 Crazy Square Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 15.30

6 Try Angles Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 24.22

7 Hopkirk Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 23.67

8 Dollar Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 21.46

9 Star Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 20.36

10 Paddy David Collier Renault Special 20.88

11 Double Kidney Andrew Collier Renault Special 21.88

12 Bowler Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 16.06

Detailed Results

Click here for 2006 AMC Results

2007

The 2007 NGK AMC was held on Sunday, September 23rd in Victoria. It was run by the Ford Four Car Club and other Victorian car clubs on a bitumen surface at South Pacific Tyres, Somerton, about 20 km north of the Melbourne CBD. There were 62 entries and 61 started, including 27 from interstate.

Saturday was a fine spring day. Licence check, Scrutiny and Practice went smoothly for most people, though some drivers had trouble adjusting to the slightly slippery surface.

Sunday was a challenge for the organizers as the wind howled in from the north and flattened the flags. They coped with double and triple flag bases plus glue under the lowest bases, and then it was up to the drivers and officials to not get blown away.

The event organization was fairly good. Space was limited so that restricted the range of tests. 5 of the 12 tests chosen included reversing but the other 7 were a bit too easy.

Championship Battle

In the battle for Outright, Andrew Collier (Renault Special, NSW) blew his competition away with a faultless display. Andrew had fastest time on 6 of the 12 tests and was within half a second of fastest on the other 6.

Andrew led Aaron Wuillemin after the first set of three tests by 2.81 secs., Scott Bennett by 3.47, Warwick Butt by 4.04,Wayne Griffiths by 5.22 and Sam Collier by 6.57. The apparently simple test Bowler claimed a few scalps as David Beames and Bill McCarthy each hit a flag and Jim Newell had navigation trouble.

After 6 tests, Andrew led Warwick by 5.91, Scott by 6.10 secs, Wayne by 7.72, Sam by 13.03 and Aaron by 14.20. Aaron, Bill and David each hit a flag on Hopkirk. Bill’s car expired with a cracked clutch hydraulic pipe, ending his day.

After 9 tests, Andrew led Scott by 7.62 secs, Warwick by 12.86, Wayne by 13.26, Sam by 20.94 and Ross Bennett by 24.98. Wayne had hit a flag on Gables, Warwick had dropped back with a slow Paddy, while Ross hit a flag on Paddy.

In the final 3 tests, Scott had a 6 second “brain fade” on Top Hat and Warwick hit a flag on Reverse Garage. In a complete contrast to 2006 when the top 4 finished within 1.2 seconds, after 12 tests, Andrew Collier won the 2007 AMC by 14.28 secs from Scott Bennett. Scott was 0.87 secs ahead of Wayne Griffiths who was 8.35 secs ahead of Warwick.

Sam Collier was 5^th - the best placing by a woman since 1996. A jet-lagged David Beames recovered from a poor start to finish sixth.

Andrew Collier put in a safe, consistent and very fast performance to become the 2007 Champion. This was only the second AMC win by a rear wheel drive car since 1976, but the other time was 2005. Is a trend appearing?

Classes

Vehicle Classes were:

A 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

D 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Craig Williams (Mini Moke) won Class A from Gary Kotzur (Mini Cooper S)and Greg Dobson (Cooper S).

Class B was easily won by Michael Heslewood (Lancer), followed by Brian Shanahan (Corolla) and Terry Scharf (Datsun 1200).

Class C was comfortably headed by John Rosengrave (Golf GTi), from Peter Otzen (Civic) and Robert Rigg (Peugeot 205GTI).

Andrew Lau (Vectra) won Class D from Steven Champion (Falcon) and Megan Boyes (Falcon).

In Class F, Scott Bennett (Mini Special) narrowly beat Wayne Griffiths (Terrier Honda Special), while Warwick Butt (Mini Special) was third.

Class G had Andrew Collier followed by his daughter Sam with Aaron Wuillemin third, all in Renault Specials.

Andrew Collier was fastest on Handicap, followed by Scott Bennett and Wayne Griffiths..

This was Andrew Collier’ first AMC win. Phil East remains the only driver to have driven in all 36 AMCs, followed by John Rosengrave with 35.

Categories

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

Juniors and Juniors in Production Cars were won convincingly by Cameron Beller in a Mini, followed by Matthew Gold, also in a Mini.

Ladies was headed by Sam Collier (Renault Special), Corinne East Johnston (Mini Special) was second with Shannon McCarthy (Delta S2 Mini Special) third.

Ladies in Production Cars was won by Cindy McMechan (Morris 850) with Megan Boyes (Falcon) second.

Total Times

1 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 254.93 G 1

2 Scott Bennett Mini Spl WA 269.21 F 1

3 Wayne Griffiths Honda Terrier Spl NSW 270.08 F 2

4 Warwick Butt Mini Spl NSW 278.43 F 3

5 Sam Collier Renault Special NSW 281.13 G 2 & L 1

6 David Beames Delta S Mini Spl SA 283.03 F 4

14 Craig Williams Mini Moke SA 305.67 A 1

22 Michael Heslewood Mitsubishi Lancer NSW 318.15 B 1

26 John Rosengrave VW Golf GTi VIC 337.77 C 1

31 Cameron Beller Morris Mini VIC 347.22 JP 1

50 Andrew Lau Holden Vectra VIC 401.98 D 1

51 Cindy McMechan Morris 850 NSW 404.71 LP 1

Test Times

1 Opposite Garages Andrew Collier Renault Special 20.38

2 Six Gate Andrew Collier Renault Special 14.99

3 Bowler Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 16.71

4 Hopkirk Scott Bennett Mini Special 23.69

5 Double Bone Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 25.08

6 Star Andrew Collier Renault Special 20.16

7 Paddy David Beames Delta S Mini Special 20.56

8 Gables Andrew Collier Renault Special 30.25

9 Pentagon Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 19.44

10 Reverse Garage Andrew Collier Renault Special 24.35

11 Square Slalom Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 18.47

12 Top Hat Andrew Collier Renault Special 18.47

Shootout

A Top Ten Shootout was held after the main motorkhana.

The first ten place getters in the championship motorkhana were given a single run at a Hopkirk with $1000 awaiting the victor. All the drivers went hard at the test and more than a few mistakes were made and flags flattened.

The running order was from tenth to first and Ross Bennett was the only driver in the first six to have a penalty free run!

Andrew Collier capped off his weekend, winning the Shootout by just 0.01 seconds from Scott Bennett.

The Shootout placings and times including penalties in their running order were:

10th Nathan Wuillemin 45.58 WD

5th Daniel Wuillemin 27.91 +

9th Aaron Wuillemin 32.82 ++

4th Ross Bennett 24.65

7th David Beames 30.50 +

8th Sam Collier 31 27 +

3rd Warwick Butt 24.07

6th Wayne Griffiths 27.97 +

2nd Scott Bennett 22.75

1st Andrew Collier 22.74

Detailed Results

Click here for 2007 AMC Results – Class and Outright

2008

The 2008 Smartwax AMC was held on Sunday, October 5th in South Australia. It was run by the SA Motorkhana Panel and several SA car clubs on a concrete surface at the Big W Distribution Centre at Monarto South, about 60 km east of the Adelaide CBD. There were 69 entries and 67 started, including 39 from interstate, 21 from Victoria.

Saturday was a fine spring day. Licence check, Scrutiny and Practice went smoothly for most people, though most specials drivers had trouble adjusting to the surface. An interesting addition to scrutineering on Saturday was a weigh-in available to all and ready to trap any underweight production cars. Some of the specials gave surprising results with a range from 340 (XL Honda) to 570 kg (Wuillemin Renault).

Most of the FWD specials were around 360 to 375 kg on 13x8 wheels while the RWD specials were all quite a bit heavier. The likely lightest in each group, the Griffiths and Collier built cars, chose to skip the scales – have to keep their secrets. I’m guessing 330 and 410 for them.

Most of the specials’ drivers were moaning about lack of side grip on the driven wheels and many started on different tyres on Sunday. Sunday was a finer spring day which started early due to the commencement of Daylight Saving – groan.

Like the 2007 AMC, the organization was fairly good. Space was similarly limited so that restricted the range of tests which could be chosen. 4 of the 12 tests chosen included reversing but of the other 8, most were a bit too easy. It didn’t help that the scoreboard was well behind the competition and had no sub-totals.

Championship Battle

In the battle for Outright, as in 2007, it came down to a tussle between Andrew Collier (Renault Special, NSW) and Scott Bennett (Mini Special, WA).

After the first set of three tests, Scott led Bill McCarthy by 1.89 secs., Don Lemm by 2.01, Corinne East Johnston by 2.05, Andrew Collier by 2.38, David Collier by 3.06 and David Beames by 3.08. The first test for the specials was Hopkirk and it bit 2004 champ Warwick Butt who hit a marker.

After 6 tests, Scott led Andrew by 1.96, Bill by 5.25 secs, Corinne by 5.71, Aaron by 7.56 after a fast Paddy, David Beames by 6.72. Don and David Collier each hit a marker on Paddy and dropped back.

After 9 tests, Scott led Andrew by 1.18 secs, Corinne by 4.50, Bill by 4.95, DavidB by 9.98, Aaron by 10.57 and DavidC by 11.78.

In the final 3 tests, Andrew overtook Scott to win by 0.99 seconds from Corinne by 7.36, Bill by 10.55, DavidB by 13.54 and David C by 14.58.

Andrew Collier put in a safe, consistent and very fast performance to become the 2007 Champion. After a careful start, Andrew had 5 FTDs and drove to a deserved win. This was Andrew’s second AMC win.

Scott Bennett was unlucky to once again finish second after a fine effort with 12 fast test times including 3 FTDs.

Corinne East-Johnston took to the Terrier, a very different car to the Mini special she usually drives, and produced consistently fast times including an FTD. Corinne’s third outright was the equal best placing by a woman ever in the AMC, the other third place being by Corinne in the Delta SS in 1994.

Bill McCarthy made a good start, drove well on 11 tests but paid for being too aggressive on his last test, Waltz Clover. He finished with one FTD and was first of the geriatrics.

David Beames put in a characteristically strong performance after a slow start, although he seemed unsettled as a result of being heavily involved in the organization of the event.

Aaron Wuillemin put in one of the best drives of the day in a slow car to finish 7th including an FTD on Paddy.

Wayne Griffiths was fast in the Terrier on the forward tests but had a difficult time on the reversing tests.

Don Lemm, making a comeback after a serious illness, set some very fast times in the Manta but had a couple of forgettable tests.

Phil East remains the only driver to have driven in all 37 AMCs, followed by John Rosengrave with 36.

Classes

A 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase to 2150 mm

B 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2151 mm to 2390 mm

C 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2391 mm to 2574 mm

D 2WD Production Cars - wheelbase 2575 mm and over

E 4WD Production Cars

F FWD Specials

G RWD Specials

Simon Ridgewell (Moke – WA) won Class A convincingly from Craig Williams (Moke - SA) and Gary Kotzur (Moke - SA). Simon had second fastest time outright on Dollar, shaming many drivers of specials, and he finished eighth outright.

Class B was taken by Peter Lepherd (Eunos Roadster - Qld), followed by Michael Heslewood (Lancer - NSW) and Paul Whiting (Datsun 1200 - SA).

Class C was headed by Graham Vanderhoek (VW Beetle - SA), from Scott Browning (200SX - SA) and Robert Rigg (Peugeot 205GTI - NSW). Robert was consistently fastest in class but 2 markers and a WD dropped him to third.

Craig Michelmore (Falcon - SA) put in an outstanding performance in the Falcon EB to win Class D in spite of a WD on Try Angles. Next were Andrew Lau (Vectra - Vic) and James Crinson (Skyline - SA) .

Michael Clements (Celica GT4 - SA) easily took Class E from junior driver Jake Clements in the same car.

In Class F, Scott Bennett (Mini Special - WA) won from Corinne East-Johnston (Terrier Honda Special - NSW) while Bill McCarthy (Delta S2 Mini Special - Vic) was third.

Class G had Andrew Collier (Renault Special - NSW) followed by his brother David (Renault Special - NSW) with Aaron Wuillemin third (Renault Special - Vic).

Categories

J Juniors

JP Juniors in Production vehicles

L Ladies

LP Ladies in Production vehicles

Juniors and Juniors in Production Cars were won convincingly by Jake Haines (Barina - SA) from Lachlan Eames (MX5 - SA) and Jereemy Lepherd (Eunos Roadster - Qld).

Ladies was comfortably headed by Corinne East Johnston (Terrier Honda Special - NSW) from Sam Collier (Renault Special - NSW) who suffered a car failure on Hopscotch and Karien Heimsohn (Manta Mini Special - SA).

Ladies in Production Cars was led by Heather Daff (Civic - SA), Laura Goldsworthy (Corolla - SA) and Megan Boyes (Falcon EF - Vic).

Total Times

1 Andrew Collier Renault Special NSW 271.70 G 1

2 Scott Bennett Mini Spl WA 272.69 F 1

3 Corinne East-Johnston Honda Terrier Spl NSW 279.06 F 2 & L 1

4 Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Spl Vic 282.25 F 3

5 David Beames Delta S Mini Spl SA 285.24 F 4

6 David Collier Renault Special NSW 286.28 G 2

8 Simon Ridgewell Moke WA 288.29 A 1

21 Peter Lepherd Eunos Roadster Qld 312.94 B 1

26 Graeme Vanderhoek VW Beetle SA 323.63 C 1

37 Michael Clements Celica GT4 SA 344.95 E 1

40 Jake Haines Barina SA 357.15 J 1 & JP 1

43 Craig Michelmore Falcon SA 363.52 D 1

55 Heather Daff Civic SA 402.55 LP 1

Test Times

1 Hopkirk Scott Bennett Mini Special 23.25

2 Try Angles Bill McCarthy Delta S2 Mini Special 24.67

3 Double Kidney Scott Bennett Mini Special 22.38

4 Paddy Aaron Wuillemin Renault Special 19.34

5 Double Loop Andrew Collier Renault Special 23.33

6 Dollar Scott Bennett Mini Special 19.66

7 Hopscotch Corinne East-Johnston Terrier Honda Special 26.86

8 Lazy 8 Wayne Griffiths Terrier Honda Special 19.45

9 Crazy Square Andrew Collier Renault Special 15.91

10 Waltz Clover Andrew Collier Renault Special 28.30

11 Star Andrew Collier Renault Special 20.19

12 Plumb Crazy Andrew Collier Renault Special 21.40

Shootout

A Top Twenty Shootout was held after the main motorkhana.

The three fastest times Hopkirk in each class of the championship motorkhana plus a couple of wild cards were given a single run at a Hopkirk with $500 awaiting the victor. All the drivers went hard at the test and we saw some great runs and plenty of markers flattened.

Interestingly, the Colliers’ special broke a driveshaft on its first Shootout run (both David and Andrew were to have been included). Had this happened a little earlier, Scott Bennett would have gone home a lot happier.

Fastest time of 22.58 seconds in the Shootout was set by Aaron Wuillemin but he didn’t win. The results were based on the SA handicap system and the winner was Robert Rigg in a much modified Peugeot 205Gti with a time of 28.10 seconds, over a second faster than the previous Class C record.

Robert narrowly beat Craig Williams and Gary Kotsur in Mokes, to take out the $500.

Detailed Results

Click here for 2008 AMC Results – Outright and the Shootout