Brendo and Rhi have entered the 2010 Pacific Cup, which takes in three rounds of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC). Their first forest foray of 2010 was at New Zealand’s Rally Whangaeri earlier in July, where they finished 3rd overall and 2nd in the Pacific cup to Kiwi Hayden Paddon, who will not be in Queensland this year. The final Pacific Cup event will be held in New Caledonia at the end of August. As they have been granted ‘wildcard’ entry to Rally Queensland, they will also be eligible for APRC points.

It will be great competition for the brother-sister team, as it gives them a chance to gauge their pace against ARC drivers on gravel for the first time since their accident in Rally SA last year, as well as sharing the stages with guys like Alister McRae, Chris Atkinson and Cody Crocker who will be participating in the APRC section.

Atkinson was complimentary of Brendo in NZ:

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After leasing an Impreza in NZ and transplanting their own suspension, Brendan and Rhianon will be back in their own www.rallyschool.com.au STi for Queensland and hope to build on the solid performance achieved in NZ. “The first day in New Zealand, perhaps we were a bit too conservative, just easing back into things on gravel after all our tarmac rallies this year,” said Brendo. “We were happier with our rhythm on the second day and being back in our own car on home soil should be an advantage for us.”

We will be watching the stage results with interest.

The official Rally Queensland press release text can be found below:

THE biggest field for a championship rally in Australia in years, 83 cars, will start the International Rally of Queensland on the Sunshine Coast this Friday.

The final entry list for the 30 July-1 August event features teams from India, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand, New Caledonia and Australia, plus a star-studded driver line-up.

Starting in Caloundra on Friday night with two tarmac special stages at the Coates Hire Rally Shootout, the event will host round four of the 2010 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship, round five of the Australian Rally Championship, rounds three and four of the Queensland Rally Championship, the third and final round of the Australian Classic Rally Competition and a category for All Comers.

Event Director Errol Bailey promises spectators will be treated to a thrilling display of skill by international drivers making their only Australian appearance this year.

They international line-up comprises Australian Chris Atkinson, formerly with the Subaru World Rally Team and now the factory Proton R3 Malaysia squad, teammate and British Rally Champion Alister McRae (Scotland), Team MRF’s Asia Pacific champion Katsu Taguchi (Japan) and his Indian Rally Champion teammate Guarav Gill (India), Rifat Sungkar (Indonesia), Atsushi Masumura (Japan), Brian Green (New Zealand) and Jean-Louis Leyraud (France).

Three young Australians, Brendan Reeves (21), Glen Raymond (25) and Nathan Quinn (24), have been given a chance to showcase their talents with wildcard entries in the Asia Pacific field, but the man who beat everyone in the 2009 event, Victorian Simon Evans, will run only in the Australian Rally Championship division in a bid to clinch his fourth driver’s crown.

“This is a fabulous field for the International Rally of Queensland. There will be more talent, more cars and more variety than has been seen at a championship rally in Australia for many years and certainly at our own event since the mid-nineties,” Mr Bailey said.

“If spectators have never seen a world-ranked driver like Chris Atkinson at work in a genuine works rally car like the Proton Satria Neo S2000 before, they’re in for a fantastic experience.

“There will be great battles to watch in every part of the field – the Classics will be particularly exciting to watch – and plenty of chances for spectators to see the cars in action and at rest.”

Promoters Brisbane Sporting Car Club have added new opportunities for spectators to see the cars on this year’s event, the 42nd as a round of the Australian championship.

After the Caloundra-under-lights Coates Hire Rally Shootout, the rally resumes on Saturday with an 8 am service break in the main street of the pretty hinterland town of Kenilworth, where fans and locals are expected to turn out in force.

At the end of the day, crews will make a meet-and-greet visit to Cooroy from 5 pm en route to the secure overnight compound (parc ferme) at the ocean-front SurfAir at Marcoola resort and rally headquarters.

Of the crews not required to enter the parc ferme, many will spend the night at Imbil, the location of the Novus Autoglass Service Park, where the Mary Valley Show Society will welcome them and spectators at the inaugural U-ROCK when IROQ party. The headline act is the harmonica-playing Mayor of the Sunshine Coast Regional Council Bob Abbot with his eight-piece Boreen Point Connexion band.

The Service Park at the Imbil showgrounds and the Spectator Park just outside the town will be the hub of weekend activity.

Crews will contest eight gravel special stages in the Imbil State Forest on Saturday and a further eight on Sunday, returning to the Service Park – a popular place for fans to see the cars and drivers – a total of five times before the winner arrives at the Imbil finish podium at 3.30 pm.

With these words said via car to pit radio during the weekend of the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, it was clear the feud was over. The long, bitter quarrel that had raged over many years against the backdrop of the most competitive motorsport arena had finally come to resolution.

The two great rivals Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost had spoken. Following Alain Prost’s retirement as the 1993 champion, Senna’s attitude towards Prost changed remarkably. Ayrton treated Alain differently, as a colleague rather than a competitor. Sadly later that weekend in San Marino while negotiating Tamburello early in the race, Senna’s Williams Renault bottomed out over the same bump as previous laps- but this time Senna didn’t, couldn’t hold it. There was a fault in the steering column that rendered his steering numb and useless. Senna was a passenger as his Williams slammed straight into the concrete wall at around 150mph. It was a horrendous crash, though it is believed that Senna would have survived except for the unfortunate, cruel blow to the head from a suspension part that pierced his helmet. Tragically Ayrton Senna da Silva succumbed to his great wounds later that day. It was part of a black weekend where fellow driver Roland Ratzenberger lost his life and close friend Rubens Barrichello ended up in hospital after shocking accidents. Brazil declared three days of mourning and people openly wept in the streets. Alain Prost was quoted as saying “I have lost my greatest rival. The only driver that I ever respected…”

Formula 1 and motorsport in general had lost one of its heroes. The charismatic Brazilian, the terror in the yellow helmet. His memory lives on with those who were fortunate enough to see this fierce competitor behind the wheel. Alain Prost felt as though part of him died that day too, so tightly these two competitors, now friends were connected.

Ayrton Senna was one of the most gifted drivers of the modern era. As far as raw talent, his abilities in the car were astounding. Throughout his illustrious career he earned a reputation for rising to a higher level in qualifying – at the time of his death holding the record for the most pole positions with 65. In the race sometimes it was no different; he had the capability to do a fantastic first lap and simply disappear from the field. Though often rash and prone to the occasional silly mistakes that cost him good finishes, Senna scored 41 Grand Prix victories. A key attribute was his aggression, allowing him to slice through the lapped cars with ease. In wet conditions he was even more superior, leaving everyone else in his wake. He became World Champion three times- in 1988, 1990 and 1991.

While Senna relied on a ruthless driving nature that endeared him to his millions of fans, Prost was more mature and drove more tactical races. He preferred to focus on race setup and driving the race to his preconceived plan rather than the fastest qualifying lap. Prost was not usually as quick as Senna in qualifying; such was Senna’s blistering pace and ability to focus so intently on a single lap. But don’t be mistaken for thinking that because of this Prost was not quick – he was, blindingly so. You could see this over the course of a race distance. He never appeared ragged or under pressure but his lap times were deceptively rapid. He was much more a complete driver than Senna – perhaps the most complete race driver of all time.

In qualifying his rationale was that one did not always have to start first to win, if the car qualified in the top four then that it was easy enough to be victorious. Prost won 51 Grands Prix, the most in Formula One history until Michael Schumacher came along and rewrote the record books years later. Often during the race Prost would settle for second or third place, rather than risking his car and a good finish to catch the leader. He was also very easy on the car, protecting his machinery from too much wear and tear in case he needed the engine, tyres, etc in good shape later in the race. It was this tactical approach and incredible smoothness in his driving that earned him the nickname ‘The Professor’. He became World Champion four times and finished second or better in eight of his thirteen career seasons, retiring on a high note after becoming World Champion in his final season.

Dream Beginnings and Teamwork

Let us turn the clock back a few years to the close of the 1987 Formula 1 season. Nelson Piquet had won his third Championship from Williams-Honda team mate Nigel Mansell. The new shining star Ayrton Senna was third in the similarly engined Lotus while fourth was Prost in the ageing McLaren-TAG. The following year two significant additions would join Prost at McLaren to form the modern F1 Dream Team. Fans relished the chance of seeing Alain Prost with his new team mate Ayrton Senna battling it out in their newly Honda motivated McLarens…the 1988 season couldn’t come soon enough.

At first the two new team mates discussed the set-up of the cars and shared testing. While completely different people, their talents created a tremendously productive partnership. However Senna was a young star full of potential with sights set on becoming the number one driver in the sport and beating his illustrious team mate, already a twice World Champion by 1988. Soon, Prost noticed Senna was quite introverted and was less friendly with him than his previous team mate Stefan Johansson.

Putting this aside for a moment, history shows the McLaren MP4/4 of 1988 as class of the field; between them the dream team took 15 of a possible 16 wins. The season wasn’t without its share of incidents between the two and psychologically things were simmering behind closed doors towards the end of the season.

These mind games almost boiled over at Round 13, in Portugal. At the start of the race Prost, who had for a change qualified fastest, slipped back to second after being out dragged by Senna on the cleaner side of the grid. Prost made an attempt to protect his position, slightly squeezing Senna towards the grass on the side of the track but Senna held on and led the first lap. This weekend, however, Prost was in no mood to hang about. Full of confidence and looking to gain an edge over Senna he pulled alongside to pass as they came down the front straight to start the second lap. Senna then made a very aggressive chop, swerving straight at Prost. Alain used aggression against aggression, kept his foot down and passed Senna; it was very dangerous and could have resulted in a monumental high-speed crash. Later, after winning the race, Prost was not amused and words were exchanged between the two.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zznJjSncGCE

Senna went on to win the 1988 championship taking eight wins to Prost’s seven. The season came to a sporting end with Alain Prost gallant in defeat. “Senna was too good this year,” admitted Prost, already looking forward to next season.

The Sporting Rivalry becomes bitter

Formula 1 fans waited impatiently for the 1989 season to start, eager to witness Prost’s advance on Senna’s title. However unlike the previous year, this season was not to have an amicable outcome. Throughout the year, the battle grew somewhat ugly with the sporting rivalry turning hostile. The McLaren-Honda team was pushed to the limit just in keeping up with its drivers.

Round 2 in San Marino proved the tipping point. The McLaren was again the class of the field, the car’s superiority attributed as much to the designers and engineers as the drivers, who themselves refined the McLaren-Honda combination after exhaustive test sessions. The net result was that both Senna and Prost were lapping 2-3 seconds proud of anyone else.

After over a year of enjoying their superiority on the track, the two drivers had developed a gentlemen’s agreement. Since they were so superior it made no sense to attack each other at the start so whoever led away would be allowed to proceed unchallenged into the first corner. It relied on both the honesty and integrity of each other’s word.

Senna got the drop on Prost at the start and both McLarens were drawing away until Gerhard Berger’s Ferrari hit the wall on the outside of the fast Tamburello curve. Within seconds the whole car was engulfed in flames. Fortunately Gerhard was fine apart from some burns to parts of his body.

As the race was red flagged it necessitated a restart. This time it was Prost who led away from the grid, not defending his line through Tamburello or the first corner Tosa as per the standing gentlemen’s agreement. Imagine his shock then, to see Senna slithering up the inside into the first corner and driving off into the distance. Prost was demoralised; his word had always been his bond and his fears about Senna had been justified. Senna duly won the race with Prost finishing a distant second. Afterwards Prost was asked if he had a problem during the race; his answer was a polite “no comment” as he stormed off to talk to McLaren team manager Ron Dennis in the motor home. Senna’s version of events was that the agreement stood for the race start, but it did not stand for the race restart. With his blatant disregard for their agreement, Senna’s integrity was shot to bits as as far as Prost was concerned: “Senna plays by his own rules and it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks or says about it,” Prost was later quoted as saying.

From that day forward the already strained relations between the two champion drivers quickly deteriorated. In his sixth consecutive year at McLaren, Prost felt as though it was his team, his family. With the arrival of Senna and Honda the previous year it was supposed to add to that family, however soon after the San Marino weekend Prost felt himself becoming distant from Honda and some members of the McLaren team. Prost complained that his car and equipment was not to the standard of Senna’s and Senna spoke out that Prost just could not keep up his pace. Indeed, while Senna was usually quicker in qualifying there was an occasion at the Italian Grand Prix where the gap was over 1.7 seconds! In this instance Prost felt his engine was well down on power. Honda insisted they were exactly the same, but it seemed to Prost a little too coincidental that his car seemed inferior just as he had made an announcement that he was joining Ferrari for the 1990 season.

Prost won the Italian Grand Prix due to a combination of luck and an engine problem for Senna. On the victory rostrum, Prost enjoyed the cheers from the Italian fans and he dropped his winning trophy down to them, a gesture of defiance to McLaren and his perceived unfair treatment. Ron Dennis was not amused and dumped his winning constructor’s trophy at Prost’s feet before storming off. It seemed the perfect marriage between Prost, McLaren and Senna was shattered for good. Although Prost was ahead by 20 points in the championship standings with four races left, the obvious performance deficit to his team mate was worrying him. Despite this, Prost seemed to put it behind him and came out to perform well in the next two races, finishing second and third respectively. With two races remaining he was sixteen points ahead. The championship could be decided at Round 15 in Japan.

In simple terms Prost could win the title if Senna didn’t win the race. During an interview prior to the race Prost stated that many times over the past two seasons he had given in to avoid a crash with his team mate’s aggressive driving, but today it would be different. The door would not be open for Senna simply to walk though and he feared the two might collide on the track at some point if neither driver gave way.

It all boils over

The scene was set then – A race between the two champions for the Formula 1 crown. As the race started Senna had a bad start, allowing Prost to build a comfortable lead of five seconds. Over the next 40 laps the gap between the two drivers was never greater than five seconds, never less than two. The tension around the circuit could have been cut through with a knife. Senna dug deep and in the closing laps he had caught Prost. The crowd was on its feet!

On lap 46 of 53, Senna made a desperate lunge up the inside of Prost into the final chicane. He was a long way back, too far back as many would agree. As he stated before the race, Prost would not give in to an aggressive move and duly closed the door. The two cars collided.

Prost retired instantly, but Senna received a push start and eventually won the race. He was disqualified afterwards for the assisted restart as it was rightly deemed illegal by the stewards, and thus Prost was crowned Champion-elect.

Senna was gutted. McLaren launched an appeal on Senna’s behalf. The two drivers met in the McLaren garage and Prost congratulated Senna on a fine race, but Senna just ignored him. Later when asked about the incident Senna said he never caused the accident in Japan, it was not his “responsibilit”. Even after he was shown the race footage from the overhead helicopter view Senna is reported as saying “The video is wrong!” Incidentally, Senna did not win the last race of the season in Australia and Prost was officially crowned 1989 World Champion. It was not one of his happiest victories, and he left McLaren seeking happier times away from Senna with Ferrari.

The feud had reached epic proportions and it continued into the 1990 season. The two champions pushed their teams very hard during the championship but the pair maintained a bitter silence and kept their distance away from the track. Not so on track; the pair were almost inseparable. Once again the championship decider came down to the second last race in Japan though this time the roles were reversed…Senna would win the championship if Prost didn’t finish the race.

As usual Senna qualified first and Prost second in the Ferrari. Race day was going to be one hot ticket. Fears were high of another race incident similar to that of 12 months earlier, though most hoped to see a genuine fight for the title.

To say it was bitterly disappointing for race fans may be a little kind. After being refused his request to move pole position to the clean side of the track, Senna was furious and vowed to give his McLaren full power into the first corner- If anyone decided to turn in first there would be an accident and so be it.

Prost got a better start and was a car length ahead of Senna approaching the first turn. True to his personal vow, Senna rammed straight into the back of the Ferrari, sending them both spinning off the track, instantly out of the race. The body language said it all afterwards. Both drivers got out of their cars and walked in opposite directions. Senna had won his second championship in very controversial circumstances. To many this was Senna’s lowest point, where he showed his true colours. A ruthless racer who would do anything it takes to win. He faced a ban from Formula 1 and almost retired at the end of the season.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6qdIRzbukM

The coming of the 1991 season saw an uncompetitive Ferrari for Prost. Senna’s McLaren was simply too superior and the two did not get a chance to fight for the championship that year. That did not stop occasional on-track spats- a near-miss in Germany where Prost was run off the track as he went to pass Senna kept the feud in the press, Prost vowing to ‘push him out’ the next time they met.

Senna ended up with his third championship while Prost publicly criticized his team’s lack of performance and was promptly fired late in the season. The Senna fan camp now felt this was one of Prost’s low points on top of blaming him for the crash in the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix.

In 1992 Prost took a sabbatical year from Formula 1. The psychological toll of the past four seasons was great and time was needed to refresh his hunger for Formula 1 racing. Ayrton Senna did not win the championship in 1992 with his increasingly uncompetitive McLaren coming up against the mighty Nigel Mansell in the Williams-Renault.

The 1993 season dawned with Prost returning to Formula 1 at the wheel of the Williams-Renault. Senna was still racing for McLaren but was using Ford customer engines instead of the factory Honda after the Japanese manufacturer pulled out after 1992. In competitive machinery again, Prost and Senna resumed their on track battles. Senna was valiant in the slightly inferior McLaren but Prost won seven races to Senna’s five on his way to a fourth and last World Driver’s Championship.
After finishing second to Senna at the final race in Australia, Alain Prost officially retired. He spoke to Senna about perhaps shaking hands on the podium in front of the TV cameras and putting on a good show for the fans. Senna didn’t say a word, but invited Prost onto the top step of the podium after the presentations. The two great rivals standing side by side on the top step was a striking sight.

For five years the Prost vs Senna rivalry captivated the majority of F1 fans and community, polarising them into two groups. You were either a Senna fan and Prost was the enemy, or you were a Prost fan and couldn’t stand the sight of Senna leading a race. Their rivalry, their feud…their war was so fierce it shocked some but in essence it was truly wonderful. It pushed the two men far above anyone else, to heights never thought attainable. When Prost finally retired as champion at the end of the 1993 season, the two great rivals finally put aside their quarrels and started patching up their personal relationship together.

It is my belief that there will not be a rivalry as fierce and exciting as Prost vs Senna for a very long time, perhaps never again. Something that special with two enormously talented drivers such as Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost does not come along that often.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKKgrMROP7s

Summary of results
88-93 (excluding 92)
Total races – 80
Total Senna and Prost wins combined – 56
Percentage win rate Prost 23/80 = 29%
Percentage win rate Senna 33/80 = 41%
Percentage Win rate combined – 56/80 = 70%

Total points 88-93 (except 92)
Senna – 90, 60, 78, 96, 73 = 397
Prost – 87, 76, 71, 34, 99 = 367

Water crossing
They decided to make a splash on the international scene by tackling Rally Whangaeri in New Zealand with a leased Ford Fiesta. This first foray overseas also saw Brendan’s front-drive competition debut. “Rally Whangaeri came about because the Fiesta Sporting trophy hadn’t taken off in terms of popularity and they wanted an international driver to boost exposure. We had minimal testing in the car and I found that it needed to be set up for entry well before a corner, so we could drive through under power. My usual left-foot braking technique wasn’t as effective in the Fiesta, due to the brake booster (he had never rallied with one before) altering the pedal feel and making it harder to pivot into turns. Despite this we lead all Fiestas after the first day and were again ahead of the pace on the second. A puncture cost us some time but our challenge ended when we returned to the car. It wouldn’t start because the battery had gone flat,” he remembers.

Whangaeri was the precursor event to participation in the WRC round in New Zealand, again in the Fiesta. When I ask Reeves about nerves, he smiles, but his response is quite assured: “We took a lot from the experience, just seeing how much importance the WRC guys place on reconnaissance and being specific with their notes. I wasn’t nervous being in front of them, as obviously they were running well ahead on the road.”

As for the rally itself, they finished first in the Fiesta class and 25th outright- despite a broken ball joint on the last stage sapping time. Off the back of this performance Brendan earned a wild card entry to the UK for a Fiesta shootout. The majority of other invitees had been running the cars all season…

“Twenty junior drivers were flown in from around the world to compete, the prize being a contract with M-Sport (Ford’s international rally team). The first day we did fitness and psychological tests, and I came out at the top of the list. Day 2 was the actual driving. The conditions were very difficult for me, being minus five degrees and with an icy surface- I’d never driven on that type of surface before. It was a 3km stage and we had three allocated runs each, but I never had my last run as the driver before me destroyed the Fiesta! My second run was good enough for eighth overall, but I had a lot more time in hand as I got to grips with the car. Unfortunately I never got the opportunity to show it,” he says with slight annoyance. Regardless, Reeves made it through to the final five and was interviewed by an illustrious panel that included Marcus Gronholm and Malcolm Wilson. After his demeanour was assessed, they placed him third overall- a remarkable result given the circumstances.

Targa time
Back in Australia Rhianon had an opportunity to co-drive for Rick Bates in the Targa Tasmania for the factory Mazda team in a Mazda3 MPS. Bates was impressed with her professionalism and when an opening came up to drive a second MPS she recommended Brendan. The siblings were subsequently entered in the showroom class for the Tasmanian Tarmac Challenge, as preparation for an assault on the Targa in 2009. The result was a strong eighth outright and first in showroom class.

This momentum carried into the Targa as they won the 2WD Showroom class at Targa Tassie after mixing it in the wet with the Mitsubishi Evos- until the MPS was penalised for a tyre change (against Targa rules) after a puncture.
Gravel, however, continued to be the Reeves focal point. “Our intention was to do as many pace noted gravel rallies as possible, to gain more experience and good enough results to allow an entry into the Australian WRC round in Perth,” he says.

The early results were encouraging despite a small budget which did little for continuity of competition and equipment. “We were fortunate to have Mick offer us a Rally School STI for a couple of events. We won outright at Rally Lithgow in NSW and came second behind Eli (Evans) in South Australia despite being in a less developed car. “

Rising star
Two further key results leap out from his results page. The first was his performance in the Pirelli Star Driver event in Queensland, with Glenn Weston co-driving (Smyth was part of an all-girl team with Emma Gilmour). “This concept pitted drivers under 26 against each other where we competed for points on each stage rather than going by totalled stage times,” he says. “There was some exceptional competition with Eli Evans, Hayden Paddon and Nathan Quinn present. The top 2 guys were to be invited to an Asian Pacific shootout, with the winner getting a paid drive in the Production Car class of the WRC.” Reeves/Weston were duly victorious and one guaranteed spot was theirs, the shootout scheduled for aforementioned WRC round in Northern NSW.

The wander back to Whangarei
A chance for more international exposure came when Brendan was able to lease Emma Gilmour’s STI to enter the New Zealand APRC round, again at Whangarei. This time his intent was nothing less than outright victory. With Weston alongside, Reeves showed confidence and poise as he mixed it with the best rally drivers in the Asia Pacific championship. “The car was very well set up; with a terrific diff program that Emma had developed with Possum Bourne Motorsport to suit the NZ roads. Again we didn’t have much opportunity to test, but still we were running second overall behind Paddon. Cody (Crocker) was third, but driving a new and unsorted car so I expected a fight as the rally continued on. On the fourth last stage, we caught up to Richard Mason, who had blown a turbo and filled the stage with smoke. I lost too much time behind it, and Cody’s clear run allowed him passed. There just wasn’t enough time for me to catch it back up!” The rallying fraternity were mightily impressed with this 20 year old arriving to drive a leased car serviced by borrowed crew to a podium in his first outright Asia Pacific event. Things were looking great, and confidence in the Reeves camp was sky-high for a memorable performance in the Australian WRC event.

Learning experience
Rhainon returned to the co-driving chair for the ARC’s Rally SA, but it was here that all the hard grafted momentum stalled with a massive accident that separated the Rally School STI’s engine from its frame. “We were really focussed on running at the front and we were setting fastest stage times. Unfortunately the car developed a misfire and with the time lost came a need to claw it back. I don’t remember much of the accident- but in the lead up we were doing over 180km/h approaching a 9L over a crest. We landed on a gutter on the right side, the gutter then pulling the car up and into a gumtree before spinning us into another tree on the left. “

Rhianon suffered breaks in both legs and heels, while Brendan cracked vertebrae in his neck. As a result, the guaranteed entry into the Australian WRC in Northern NSW had to be shelved as it was on only three weeks later. “We were pretty shattered and Rhianon had to have several operations to set her legs. She maintained her positivity throughout, and she has vowed to get back alongside me again in 2010,” he explains.

An incident as monumental as this can have a negative effect when one climbs back behind the wheel, however Reeves enlisted the help of a sports psychologist, Anthony Klarica, who was recommended by Simon Evans to assist in his rehabilitation. “He basically helped me refocus on my goals for the future, and to move forward with real positivity for the time ahead,” Brendan remembers.

Fightback
The return came on a local VRC round, the Akademos that he had previously won outright in the naturally aspirated RS. This time he entered in the STI that he had prepared for Perth, alongside Ben Atkinson, who is best known for sitting with Cody Crocker. “My intent was to ease myself back into the groove. Ben was so good about it, being very encouraging. To start with I was braking far too early, but I knew my reasons for it. We were initially running second outright, eventually upping our pace and eventually taking the win, so it was great for the confidence knowing I could still do it.”

Moving forward
So, what lies ahead in 2010 for Brendan Reeves? “I have an entry in Rally Tasmania in our LHD STI Spec-C, with Rhianon returning alongside,” he says. “We are entered in the outright class which allows us some freedoms in tyres, gearbox and engine. The competition is going to be intense- Jim Richards in his Porsche GT2 will be there, Tony Quinn’s GT-R…and Steve Glenney in a similar spec car to my own.” A ‘who’s who of recent Targa Tasmania winners, in other words.

“Things are also looking good for another attack on Showroom class in the Mazda MPS at Targa Tasmania and we’d love to do it again. It is a an event that consumes you… our ‘recce’ last year racked up over 6000kms as the roads change so much in wet/dry conditions. The challenge in making the tyres last the event was an education in smoothness and utilising a higher gear in corners to rely on torque to drag you out without spinning wheels.”

Strong drives in these local events will contribute to 2010’s ultimate goal- to further develop an international profile with entries in selected Asia Pacific and (hopefully) WRC rounds. Reeves is currently talking with a couple of international outfits to achieve this, and early feedback suggests things are progressing well.

The competition driving will be augmented with further work at the rally school (“It’s very cheap testing!”) and his ability to develop hardware has led to some further opportunities- in fact, after our chat he is off to test a new generation of tarmac rally tyre at Phillip Island, aboard a Les Walkden 2008 STI. I jokingly offer my availability should he “Need any circuit tips,” and he kindly goes along with the (attempted) comedy in his easy, down-to-earth manner. As we depart, it is this flash of personality that leaves the biggest impression. He combines good nature with an immense natural talent that is supported by an inquisitive, professional, committed attitude; the net result bringing a true self-belief that will see him go a very long way in the rallying world. Watch this space and remember the name- ‘Brendo’ is on a mission.

*If you are interested in supporting Brendan and Rhianon’s rallying, please feel free to contact us at info@lautista.com.au for further information. They have also introduced a new service designed to develop co-drivers- again, email us for info or visit www.brendanreeves.com.au .

With a jab of handbrake, the Evo pulls alongside the viewing platform, its driver’s face already broken into a smile as he hears yet again the incoherent ramblings of another passenger who has just had their perceptions of fast driving altered forever. The driver, completely relaxed, climbs out, the Evo now sitting idle, its previously superheated internals now ticking cool. He pulls up a chair alongside mine, shakes my hand. “G’Day, I’m Brendo. Nice to meet you.”

‘Brendo’ is perhaps better known as Brendan Reeves, the 21 year old country Victorian who has already proved himself as one of the quickest rally drivers in the country. His resume is already highly impressive and many in the industry are tipping massive things in his rallying future.

Fuelling the passion
How did it all begin? “My Dad Michael was a successful rally driver, winning the Victorian Rally Championship in 1997 and 2003. I remember going to watch him long before I was old enough to drive, helping out in the service crew. I was fascinated by the sport, and when my older brother Nathan got into go-karting I wanted to as well,” he recalls.
Even at the age of 7, Reeves had established that he wanted to be a professional rally driver when he grew up. Obviously not yet old enough to drive a car, he entered the world of karting and participated until he was 11, but found the atmosphere a little tense with other parents pushing their children a little too firmly to be the next Schumacher.
Being so young at the time, he remembers that the new information was quickly absorbed. “I learned race-craft on the karts, and almost unconsciously developed an understanding of the tarmac ‘line’- of entry, apex and exit, which helps me even today on bitumen.”

Reeves played Aussie Rules football and hockey as he ticked away the couple of years required before he could legally compete in local Autocross events. By the time he was 15, brother Nathan was already into rallying and father Michael felt it was time to retire from the stages to devote all his time to developing his children’s rallying interests (I say children as daughter Rhianon Smyth is today a highly successful co-driver in her own right, and usually partners Reeves on major events.)

Dirty work
Out at the family farm at Wedderburn, Michael built a dirt practice track and Brendan’s first memorable dirt experiences came in an assortment of Datsun’s, along with a stripped out Falcon. “It had no weight in it so the suspension worked quite well, and it had a torquey engine so I quickly learned about oversteer!” he laughs.

Brendan fondly recalls Sunday afternoons where he would race a stopwatch over 6kms around the track, battling for top time against his father, brother and friends. “It was fantastic to have the benefit of that track. Combined with Dad’s advice, along with that of his rallying friends, was invaluable. I still occasionally venture out there for testing.”

The move into autocross was “To learn the ropes in a competitive environment at low cost,” he says.
Obviously a fast learner, Brendan at 16 years old became the youngest ever winner of the Victorian Autocross Championship, which pits drivers against the clock over a range of 2km dirt circuits. He competed in a Datsun 240Z that he keeps to this day. “It was a great, reliable car, with around 280bhp and the ‘Option 1’ dog-leg gearbox which the works teams used back in the Seventies. Being rear-wheel drive and quite powerful, I learned a lot about being smooth with my inputs and aiming for the cleanest, grippiest exit lines during that time.”

At the end of 2005 Brendan entered Nathan’s Datsun 1600 in his first stage rally with his father’s old co-driver, Robin Smalley. “Having an experienced hand guiding me at that point was vital,” Brendan remembers. “I drove right on the edge in the first stage, as fast as I could go. As the stage ended, Robin said ‘You don’t need to drive anywhere near that hard to win this event.’ The underlying message really sunk in- you had to manage your speed in a way to combine good pace with enough margin to bring the car home. I also discovered how fit you had to be to achieve consistency. There was a 57km night stage, still the longest I have ever driven, and I came out of it panting. Dad caught me, and said ‘What’s the matter, Brendo? A bit puffed are we!?’”

Brandan’s quickly developing professional mindset was enhanced by an invitation to a 3 day course at the Australian Institute of Sport Rally Development program. Here he was presented with further tools that would assist his development. “We basically learned the other side of rallying. Most people think we just turn up and drive the cars. The AIS educated us about nutrition and mental/physical fitness, but also introduced skills in dealing with the larger rallying community- sponsors and media in particular.”

Adaptation
2006 saw Reeves participate in a couple of rounds of the RS Cup, a championship designed for the all-wheel drive, naturally aspirated Impreza RS. “It was…enlightening!” he grins. “Going from the 240Z which had big power but not much grip to something completely the opposite dictated a change in driving style. The RS was all about keeping up momentum through the corners.”

He quickly adapted, winning the RS cup with a twelfth outright at the 2006 NGK Rally of Melbourne, a round of the Australian Rally Championship (ARC). Rallyschool.com.au owner Mick Ryan reminds me that “Brendo also won a Victorian event outright in the RS…against turbocharged STI Imprezas… including one driven by his brother!”
In light of this banter, it is obvious the siblings enjoy a good natured rivalry. Rhianon, who also works the Melbourne rally school weekends with her brothers, appears to enjoy stirring the pot- at one stage cheekily asking a returning school student which brother was the quicker ‘hot lap’ instructor. When “Nathan” was the response, she made sure Brendan heard about it! “But those laps are about going sideways not about speed!” was his smiling response.

The national stage
Brendan’s impressive performances in the RS led to a real breakthrough for 2007, as Les Walkden provided a privately owned left hand drive STI for Brendan and Rhianon to compete in the ARC. “Les was a big supporter of the RS challenge and after it finished in ’06 he wanted to give a young driver a chance to step up. I was lucky enough to be chosen,” he recalls.

It was another steep learning curve as Reeves was new to LHD and the Impreza’s ‘dog ‘box’. The established rallying fraternity, more close-knit than in other forms of motorsport, were quick to lend the new boy a hand. “Cody Crocker was great,” Reeves says. “A fortnight before the first Rally in Queensland he came out to the farm and, on that same dirt track Dad had made, he showed me how to get to grips with the car.”

This quick familiarisation led to a scarcely believable third outright in Queensland, but the lingering taste of champagne was not long to last, for at the next event in Western Australia Brendan and Rhianon failed to finish. “We’d come through to the last stage and were again looking good on pace. It was a wet stage…we crashed and basically destroyed the car. It was humbling, especially after experiencing the elation of Queensland.”

Reeves/Smyth ended the ARC season sixth overall and third privateer. Ever competitive, he recalls with disappointment the missed opportunity to take third overall with a strong finish in the Melbourne finale. “The Victorian drought made the surfaces very slippery. On the fourth stage I misheard the pace note for a 7 Right and lost my spot on the stage. We ended up rolling seven times…,” he says, voice trailing off at the memory.

The ‘new boy’ had thus made an STI-sized dent (sorry) on the sport, and as time went by he found that the advice that was once free-flowing from guys like Crocker, Simon Evans, Ed Ordynski and Neal Bates was now replaced with competitive banter as their respect for his ability grew. “Cody and Simon sometimes work for the rally school, and we always try to one-up each other, the aim being to slide the car as much as possible!” he laughs.

The brother/sister team then spent the summer of 2007/08 developing their pace note communication, adapting the familiar 1 to 10 corner grading system to their own specifications under the guidance of the aforementioned Crocker and Ordynski. A more diverse range of opportunities were to come in the new year….

Follow the link for part 2: Part 2

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Having recently driven through the Queenstown Targa stage, in normal road conditions but in the wet, and knowing how damn slippery it is (the muddy rock run-off from the mining country surrounding the road turns it into a quagmire) I have an even greater appreciation for the skill and commitment of the guys that run at it this hard during Targa time. Enjoy!

So far we have been looking mainly at videos which showcase the ability to corner well. Lets change it up a bit and turn the focus on pure performance in a straight line. Drag racing and circuit / rally have co-existed for many years, but there is a certain fascination with drag racing as it only attempts to answer one single question in the pursuit of absolute performance. Not how well the car behaves though the corners, nor how quickly it can complete a circuit or stay reliable for a 24-hour marathon. The question it attempts to ask is ‘How fast can a car go over a standing quater mile?’

Top fuel is one of the elite level drag racing categories and is popular worldwide. Supercharged, Nitro-fed and tuned to within an inch of their ability, these dragsters are the Formula One equivalent of Drag racing. With their wide tyres, wild wings and ground-shaking performance, they captivate audiences workldwide. Ground-shaking performance? Try in the region of 7,000 to 9,000 horsepower from the flame-spitting V8, depending on the level of tune! It has been said when a Top Fuel dragster launches the sound level produced reaches 120dB (enough to burst some eardrums) and the raw energy causes such vibrations that it feels like an assault over your whole body.

This video showcases Martin Stamatis in his Top Fuel dragster at West Sydney International Dragway in 2008 perfoming a standing quater mile in 4.577 seconds and passing through the speed trap at an amazing 529km/h!! This is truly an amazing achievement.

Enjoy.

I thought we should have a bit of fun this week to make Sheldon feel welcome. Trolling through the old youtube vault, I came across this devilishly quick Alfa 90. I presume the speed run is in a controlled environment.. Listen to the sweet sound that only an Alfa V6 can make as this 90 goes through a series of opponents before displaying its maximum speed.

Henri Toivonen and the Lancia Delta S4 seemed made for each other. A flamboyant and immensely talented driver, Henri first made his name on the world stages at the wheel of a Talbot Sunbeam Lotus before progressing through GM and Porsche products, finally reaching the pinnacle with a works Lancia drive. 1985 was a largely trying year for Henri and the Lancia Martini team, their outdated rear-wheel drive 037’s being left behind by the new generation 4-wheel drive, turbocharged Peugeot 205 T16’s.

That all changed with the competition debut of the Delta S4 in the last world rally event of the year, the RAC in Great Britain. Mid-engined with 4-wheel drive, the Italian engineers came up with the brilliant idea of supercharging the S4’s turbo 2 litre to overcome the throttle lag inherent in turbo motors of the time.

But it was Henri that stole the show, with a dominating first time out victory in the RAC ahead of team-mate Markku Alen. Come 1986, the Toivonen/S4 combination was vastly superior to the competition in pure speed, prompting many an observer to say that he was the only man to truly master a Group B car.

In light of this, his fatal accident on the tarmac of Corsica that year (that also saw his co-driver Sergio Cresto perish) was all the more shocking and signalled the true death of Group B rallying. Upon reflection, Group B was a crazy era, with 500bhp and out of control crowds, (not to mention fuel tanks under the seats….) but it provided rally fans with a truly unforgettable blend of brutish machines and brave, skillful maestros guiding them.

From the carbon fibre kevlar composite sleek racing machines of today, we go back over 70 years to a time where racing drivers gained a stature nearing superhero status.  Tubular frame chassis was in its infancy, races lasted for well over three hours, no power steering, drum brakes, speeds over 300km/h, no seatbelts, drivers often sat on or near a metal fuel tank and the fuel used was a concoction of chemicals that caused nausea. 

Pre-War Grand Prix racing was an era when racing cars were fast, safety comprised of straw bales and the accidents often resulted in tragedy.  It was dominated by the two German automotive giants; Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union.  Their design and methods spawned machinery that was very exotic for its time, with some design concepts which are still used today (for example the mid-mounted engine).

The 1937 Monaco Grand Prix was won by Manfred von Brauchitsch in the 600+hp supercharged Mercedes W125.  Rudolf Caracciola was supposed to win, however von Brauchitsch disobeyed team principal Alfred Neubauer and won anyway.  The footage of these cars sliding around on skinny tyres does not do it justice just how many risks the drivers were taking each lap!  Hear the sound of the superchargers and large capacity engines from a golden era in motorsport.