Capacity fields took to Mount Panorama to contest the opening rounds of the NSW Hillclimb Championship over the weekend as cars of all shapes and sizes raced against the clock.
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Saturday’s racing saw the fields journey up The Esses before going up Mountain Straight the following day for the second round, eventually leading to a familiar face standing atop the podium.
In a repeat of last year’s Bathurst round of the event it was Malcolm Oastler who proved slightly too quick for Tim Edmondson in the race for overall honours.
Oastler’s 22.52 seconds was enough to sneak by Edmondson’s 22.72 on The Esses, before producing another narrow success up Mountain Straight on Sunday to the tune of 37.58 to 37.92 seconds.
For the second year running, Oastler used his OMS 28 to take out the Formula Libre Over 2000cc class.
Bathurst Light Car Club president Mick Tuckey was thrilled with the entry list for the weekend’s action.
“It was full fields with 90 cars on both days. We had 107 entered for the Saturday, but could only take 90. Because it was the first two rounds of the NSW Hillclimb Championship there were plenty of guys there who were keen to have a go,” he said.
“We put in our initial trophy order then realised we would have to get five more for the new classes.
“They’re put in their own groups to race and they’ve got their own benchmarks to race against.
‘There’s a lot of camaraderie and they’re a group unto themselves in the motorsport community.”
There were 13 new records at the conclusion of the weekend’s racing, the majority coming in classes that haven’t previous taken on the Mount such as Group 2B, 6SR and Electric.
The pick of the record-breaking bunch was Dejan Buneta who broke The Esses mark in the very competitive RRNL Over 2501cc class.
His 29.01 in a Toyota Supra was good enough to take the record by just six hundredths of a second.
The Mount has a habit of taking out some of the most experienced competitors and it was no different over the weekend.
November’s Bathurst Light Car Club Hill Climb runner-up Doug Barry found himself in a spot of bother on Sunday in his Lola T8750.
“We had a big prang on Sunday with local driver Doug Barry. He clipped the wall, deflating his tyre and ended up in the kitty litter at Skyline,” Tuckey said.
“He’s fine. He came away from it alright, just with a repair bill.”
Barry’s first run on the day was still good enough to see him take third place, the same result he achieved on The Esses.
