WHEN the Bathurst Real Estate Australian Hillclimb Championship is conducted at Mount Panorama next weekend the fastest cars will be averaging an incredible 160 kilometres an hour on their runs.
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To be run by the Bathurst Light Car Club, the event will be on the Mountain Straight side of the circuit – starting from the hump on Mountain Straight and finishing just before the McPhillamy Park gates, a distance of 1.7 kilometres.
One of the event favourites, Tim Edmondson, drives a Gould GRB 55, a car imported from Britain and fitted with a Nicholson McLaren motor. Edmondson knows what it’s like to drive at that speed on the iconic and mountainous, concrete-lined circuit that takes no prisoners.
“I’ve now managed to break the Mountain Straight record unofficially at two events and have recorded a low 37,” he said. “So, on around three separate runs, we’ve broken the 100mph [160km/hr] mark for the climb.
“To give anyone an idea, in the recent Bathurst 1000 Top 10 Shootout the V8 Supercars covered the course in around 39 seconds, and they’re doing around 250km/h when they cross our start line on the hump.
“On top of that, when Jenson Button and Craig Lowndes drove the McLaren F1 car around the circuit in 2011, Button did the course in around 32 seconds and he was doing approximately 300km/h at the startline – so the top three to four competitors would certainly give him a run for his money over the top of the hill.”
Edmondson said doing a 100mph run up the course is certainly the most thrilling experience he has had in motor sport.
“By Griffin’s Bend the car is travelling at over 240km/h – a speed it reached in less than seven seconds. Griffin’s is a very challenging corner when entered at any speed, and a great exit is key to a good time.
“By the time I get to the kink before The Cutting I’m travelling in fifth gear and concentrating on braking as late as possible for the swoop into the Cutting. This is one of the most critical corners on the course, as the exit from here sets up your speed over the top of the mountain.
“From The Cutting you accelerate as hard as you dare through Reid Park and then concentrate on trying to set up for Sulman Park. In fifth gear over the top, the car is travelling at around 230km/h plus and pulling around 3Gs through the final left handers. After the exit it’s time to jump on the brakes hard in order to avoid overshooting the entrance to McPhillamy Park – and try and get your heart rate back down to something near normal.
“It’s about now that if you’ve done a good run you start to get the adrenalin rush as you try to comprehend how you managed to get here so quickly!”
