TASMANIAN SMT - Nov 2016

[turboT]

ItsuJack contacted me last week tabling the idea of taking part. Apparently there is a more 'social class' of entry that is less competitive for those of us who just want to have a bit of fun rather than risk our precious metal.

It will mean convincing the family that I deserve a week away from them (unless anyone has any suggestions on how family can join?). Shipping the car down? Or convoy down with other PFAérs? It has the potential to be a pretty cool big adventure. Even mate Magnus might be convinced to join as he mentioned wanting to take part.

So who has been? Taken part? What are your experiences? Anyone up for it?

I mean we all now have PFA T-shirts, so would be a shame not to use them    

[Harvs11]

Lap of Tassie in a Porsche. Been there, done that.  Unlike some other things, I'll do it again. 

Call a date and see what happens.  

[Redracn]

I have done the following categories.

Tour. No Helmets needed. No special car preperation just basic stuff. 130kph speed limited monitored by Rallysafe. You will get a couple of warnings if you go a bot over and they will throw you out if you keep it up or go way over. You will be in a tour packet of 12 or so cars with a tour leader who sets the pace. How much fun you have is very dependent on the tour leader and other cars in your packet. You will also need a navigator. 

Trophy. Helmets and a half cage or better are required as well as basic car saftey prep. The car must comply with the rules of the competition catagories that are generally based on year of manufacture. You have a 130kph speed limit and will be penalised if above this, go over 140 a couple of times and you could find youself in the tour or out. Cars depart every 30 seconds so you have the road to yourself and how much fun is up to you. You must have a navigator and an intercom is also a must have so you can talk to them. You have a given time to get between stages and if you exceed your allowance you get a penalty. If the trophy sweep passes you you can not start a stage but may get a run at the rear of the competition field as the trophy cars leave after the tour with competition cars last on the road and all the speed limited cars must be through the stage before the unrestricted cars start. 

Modern. This is now an abandoned category. With most cars being forced into a GT or early modern classes. This is full competition with no speed limit and cars must meet the rules for eligibility and safety. 

The rules are very unstable having changed 3 or so times in the last 18months. This is pissing off a lot of people me included as it is a large cost to keep making changes to comply. My dual clutch EVO X is no long allowed as it has an additionl transmission oil cooler  and a data logger. I could remove the logger but to go without the oil cooler would just leave me stopped on the side of the road which is no fun. What really annoys me is that my car was perfectly legal in Showroom 4WD at Targa High Country 2015. With the latest rules now making it not suitable for use in a Targa. The GTR35's have the same issue.

You will need closer to 10days away as the competition itself is 6 days and you need scrutineering the day before it starts and a ferry trip at each end.

Cost would be anywhere from 8,000 to 20,000 depending on class for a very basic effort with no crew or support. You can do it without a fuel service but if you need 98 I suggest you use one. Expect to pay $3/litre. You can choose to only use them in selected sections such as MT Arrowsmith to save some coin. You can also bring friends/family etc to do refueling and look after any other issues. Given the road closure window it is very push push to make sure everything runs on time. All cars except tour are locked in a compound overnight. They do offer a curtsey shuttle bus which works well except for Burnie as it does no go far enough out of town. There will be about 520klm of clossed road and over 2,000klm overall from start to finish line.

They are overnighting in Burnie which has limited accommodation. So if you do not have a booking already you may find getting one difficult. Also Strahan but it is better than Burnie. 

If you are after some fun on closed roads then Mountain Motorsport do 4 Tarmac rallys in VIC at nearly half the entry price of $1950/event full competition and $600 tour with much less commitment in time. The Snowy River Sprint is 320klm closed road in 2 days with negligible km between stages. They now have a better organized Tour than Targa does but nothing equivalent to the trophy class. Also a great atmosphere with a very friendly bunch and a much more sensible attitude to the rule book.

Hope you find some of this info helpful as it is certainly an experience that will leave you elated or sole destroyed if you crash out or break down early on. 

Note that many a Tour car has crashed usually at low speed as the roads in tassie when wet can be treacherous with patches like ice. 

 

 

[turboT]

I have done the following categories.

Tour. No Helmets needed. No special car preperation just basic stuff. 130kph speed limited monitored by Rallysafe. You will get a couple of warnings if you go a bot over and they will throw you out if you keep it up or go way over. You will be in a tour packet of 12 or so cars with a tour leader who sets the pace. How much fun you have is very dependent on the tour leader and other cars in your packet. You will also need a navigator. 

Trophy. Helmets and a half cage or better are required as well as basic car saftey prep. The car must comply with the rules of the competition catagories that are generally based on year of manufacture. You have a 130kph speed limit and will be penalised if above this, go over 140 a couple of times and you could find youself in the tour or out. Cars depart every 30 seconds so you have the road to yourself and how much fun is up to you. You must have a navigator and an intercom is also a must have so you can talk to them. You have a given time to get between stages and if you exceed your allowance you get a penalty. If the trophy sweep passes you you can not start a stage but may get a run at the rear of the competition field as the trophy cars leave after the tour with competition cars last on the road and all the speed limited cars must be through the stage before the unrestricted cars start. 

Modern. This is now an abandoned category. With most cars being forced into a GT or early modern classes. This is full competition with no speed limit and cars must meet the rules for eligibility and safety. 

The rules are very unstable having changed 3 or so times in the last 18months. This is pissing off a lot of people me included as it is a large cost to keep making changes to comply. My dual clutch EVO X is no long allowed as it has an additionl transmission oil cooler  and a data logger. I could remove the logger but to go without the oil cooler would just leave me stopped on the side of the road which is no fun. What really annoys me is that my car was perfectly legal in Showroom 4WD at Targa High Country 2015. With the latest rules now making it not suitable for use in a Targa. The GTR35's have the same issue.

You will need closer to 10days away as the competition itself is 6 days and you need scrutineering the day before it starts and a ferry trip at each end.

Cost would be anywhere from 8,000 to 20,000 depending on class for a very basic effort with no crew or support. You can do it without a fuel service but if you need 98 I suggest you use one. Expect to pay $3/litre. You can choose to only use them in selected sections such as MT Arrowsmith to save some coin. You can also bring friends/family etc to do refueling and look after any other issues. Given the road closure window it is very push push to make sure everything runs on time. All cars except tour are locked in a compound overnight. They do offer a curtsey shuttle bus which works well except for Burnie as it does no go far enough out of town. There will be about 520klm of clossed road and over 2,000klm overall from start to finish line.

They are overnighting in Burnie which has limited accommodation. So if you do not have a booking already you may find getting one difficult. Also Strahan but it is better than Burnie. 

If you are after some fun on closed roads then Mountain Motorsport do 4 Tarmac rallys in VIC at nearly half the entry price of $1950/event full competition and $600 tour with much less commitment in time. The Snowy River Sprint is 320klm closed road in 2 days with negligible km between stages. They now have a better organized Tour than Targa does but nothing equivalent to the trophy class. Also a great atmosphere with a very friendly bunch and a much more sensible attitude to the rule book.

Hope you find some of this info helpful as it is certainly an experience that will leave you elated or sole destroyed if you crash out or break down early on. 

Note that many a Tour car has crashed usually at low speed as the roads in tassie when wet can be treacherous with patches like ice. 

 

 

great insight. I am pretty sure what we had in mind was your first option as we are not exactly committed racers. So you still need a navigator? Satnav count? Can't think of anything worse than sitting in the passenger seat of a car whilst twisting through country roads..

[Redracn]

^ You will need a navigator in the Targa Tour. You will get a road-book that has turn by turn navigation instructions to follow and even though the tour moves between stages as a convoy you will find that you do get separated and need to find your own way between stages also the tour leaders who have a navigator often take wrong turns. Toilet stops, fuel stops etc. can mean you need to nav. Also there is quite a bit of pressure for the tour group to remain together. If you are late to a targa stage start and your tour leader has already gone you will not be allowed to run. No passing in stages and if you stop in a stage you will likely be there until the road is opened again. The tour sweep may wait for you for a few minutes but once they leave you are stuck there. Navigation in stages is easy and if you are looking at bunting you have got it wrong. It is helpful if the nav is on the ball enough to warn about hazards in stage but these are normally signed. You can skip a stage and rejoin but this is not always possible. It also pays not to be shy about reliving yourself along a farmers fence near the stage start. 

There is also the TSD class (regularity) where you aim for a predetermined average speed. You need a Helmet but no roll cage and have the 130kph speed limit but you leave on 30second gaps so can drive at your own pace. Some in this class ignore the competition aspect of it racking up huge penalities but they are probably having the most fun in setting their own pace.

The tour is  first on the road so be prepared for early starts as you will often be on the road at or before sun up.

 

You do not need a navigator in the Mountain Motorsports Tour as navigation between stages is very simple or non existent. 

 

 

[itsujack]

Yep I'm 95% I'll be entering the Tour, with a view to a more serious run the following year.

It runs for a full week from Monday 24th - Saturday 29th April. The plan so far would be to drive down from Sydney the preceding Thursday, boat to Tas on the Friday, then the weekend in Launceston for scrut, prep and party before the start on Monday.

 

For those unfamiliar, the Tour is a non competitive category which follows the same fully closed roads as the competitive targa. You must adhere to the speed limit, yet can drive in a "spirited" manner. This means your car needs no specific modification, roll cage, helmets etc are not required.

 

More information is available here:

 

The Tour: https://targa.com.au/tc/page_standard.asp?asset_id=1635

Costs: https://targa.com.au/tc/page_standard.asp?asset_id=21610

 

Early Bird entires close end of this month. If we get together a big enough group maybe we can rope in one of our friendly mechanics to join us down there...

I have a lot of mates on the NW coast so don't worry about accommodation around Burnie and Launceston, plenty of options for us.

[edgy]

Maybe my 924 needs to return to targa. ? 

Kinda keen.... 

[Harvs11]

Maybe I should have read the bold print at the top more carefully.  I was thinking a PFA style tour such as has been done in the past.  The full blown Targa Tasmsnia event tour is not what I had in mind. 

[tomo]

Yes the 8 to 20 k bit, Yikes bit steep for me 

[turboT]

Maybe I should have read the bold print at the top more carefully.  I was thinking a PFA style tour such as has been done in the past.  The full blown Targa Tasmsnia event tour is not what I had in mind. 

I am thinking that actually sounds like a better option Harvs. I would have no chance getting a navigator

[MFX]

I am thinking that actually sounds like a better option Harvs. I would have no chance getting a navigator

I am with you. My hat is off to navigators. That is a tough job and I know I would be throwing up everywhere if I had to do it. 

[Harvs11]

I am with you. My hat is off to navigators. That is a tough job and I know I would be throwing up everywhere if I had to do it. 

big +1 

I can get crook driving, let alone as a passenger. And a passenger/navigator would have to accept that conversation will be next to nil while on the move.   I prefer the more relaxed cruise with a few friends. Just enjoying the countryside with a few challenging roads just for fun.

 

[mhh]

What about doing the Porsche Tour? Run by Porsche Cars Australia, it is a superbly organised event. I did it in 2014 and thoroughly enjoyed it. With a race car driver as the packet leader, the pace was plenty quick enough for me. Dinners are provided at top restaurants every night and the price was quite reasonable as I recall.

 

 

[Redracn]

What about doing the Porsche Tour? Run by Porsche Cars Australia, it is a superbly organised event. I did it in 2014 and thoroughly enjoyed it. With a race car driver as the packet leader, the pace was plenty quick enough for me. Dinners are provided at top restaurants every night and the price was quite reasonable as I recall.

I can vouch for the Porsche Tour as well having done 4 in Tassie. Way better value than the normal tour and mostly at a better pace (unless the stig takes a nana nap after lunch) Some recent targa changes also improve the experience by sending everbody out with a gap to the car in front rather than the nose to tail of the past. But you will have the rallysafe monitoring your speed and pinging you for over 130 for 3 seconds.

big +1 

I can get crook driving, let alone as a passenger. And a passenger/navigator would have to accept that conversation will be next to nil while on the move.   I prefer the more relaxed cruise with a few friends. Just enjoying the countryside with a few challenging roads just for fun.

 

In the tour as well as all other clases the nav can drive if they have a licence so you can share  the driving and cost with a mate. Also helps with any motion sickness issues.

 

[itsujack]

What about doing the Porsche Tour? Run by Porsche Cars Australia, it is a superbly organised event. I did it in 2014 and thoroughly enjoyed it. With a race car driver as the packet leader, the pace was plenty quick enough for me. Dinners are provided at top restaurants every night and the price was quite reasonable as I recall.

 

 

This looks fun too. Ok we need a proper chat about options. Maybe time to discuss this weekend on the Autohaus road trip.

[Tit]

I could organise another PFA Tassie trip?

Just not during Targa..

[Stew F]

I could organise another PFA Tassie trip?

Just not during Targa..

I assumed you were.

[Tit]

I assumed you were.

2017 is a far away!

[tazzieman]

You will have as much fun and less stress on a Tit Tour. No pesky organisers with radar guns , no $3/L fuel , no exorbitant fees, late starts and long lunches .

Depends whether you want bragging rights or not. I'd rather spend 20k on a tour of the Euro alps passes in a hire Porsche. The cows are prettier.

[ANF]

I'd rather spend 20k on a tour of the Euro alps passes in a hire Porsche. The cows are prettier.

Or spend nothing and go for a drive in our "backyard" every week....  

[tazzieman]

Or spend nothing and go for a drive in our "backyard" every week....  

Well yes that's easy for us to say. But the boys want a camping trip with Mr Fish by the sound of it.

[Tit]

Team. If I have interest from a few of you, I will commence planning. It will be far easier to arrange this time around.

If you want to have a look at the details:

http://pfatasmania.trioed.com

Say the word.

[ANF]

Team. If I have interest, I will commence planning. It will be far easier to arrange this time around.

If you want to have a look at the details:

http://pfatasmania.trioed.com

Say the word.

I like your little website of the trip ‌@Tit

Happy to catch up again next time around and of course I have a P car now

[Pork Chops]

Team. If I have interest from a few of you, I will commence planning. It will be far easier to arrange this time around.

If you want to have a look at the details:

http://pfatasmania.trioed.com

Say the word.

Word.

This looks fun too. Ok we need a proper chat about options. Maybe time to discuss this weekend on the Autohaus road trip.

2.41 on the youtube vid.  Yum.

I can vouch for the Porsche Tour as well having done 4 in Tassie. Way better value than the normal tour and mostly at a better pace (unless the stig takes a nana nap after lunch) Some recent targa changes also improve the experience by sending everbody out with a gap to the car in front rather than the nose to tail of the past. But you will have the rallysafe monitoring your speed and pinging you for over 130 for 3 seconds.

In the tour as well as all other clases the nav can drive if they have a licence so you can share  the driving and cost with a mate. Also helps with any motion sickness issues.

 

So, the other option is to try High Country.  Much easier to get to and less time and money, particularly if in Vic.  I'm going with TP-993, but am torn between the Porsche organised event for $5,995! or just going in with the crown via Targa $1,650.  With the latter you need to organise and pay for your accommodation and meals and you're doing the same drive but not exclusively with Porsche's.  I've no doubt the Porsche experience is better curated but for double the price I'm struggling with their value.

Any thoughts on doing it with Porsche vs direct with Targa?

And +1 for the Tit Tassie Tour.  I've done a mercy blast up the West Coast to catch a boat back after a dirty weekend with the wife and drove flat out the whole way with barely anybody else on the road.

[Redracn]

Targa High Country is a mixed bag. Day one is rubbish except for the Buller climb which can also be a non event if it is hot or fogged in. Day two is now shorter and average at best. The Mansfield street stage is now a non event and is nothing more than a 400m parade that is not even scored. Day three is the only day worth showing up for. They would do well to offer this day only as an option.  When it comes to THC you are pretty much held to ransom by the Buller resort business most of which open just for the Targa weekend. That is of course in relation to the few that actually bother to open. With the Porsche tour you have the option of a more spirited drive than you will get in the standard tour.