Celebrate Retro at the 2014 Phillip Island Classic

Image: Derek Hanbidge

The Southern Hemisphere’s biggest and most action-packed historic motorsport event, the Phillip Island Classic, is just a week away, set for the 7th to the 9th of March, and this year they’re going retro to celebrate their 25th anniversary.

25th anniversary celebrations kick off where it matters – 25% more racing. The event will feature a record 44 events over the Saturday and Sunday alone, which will keep the entry list of around 500 racing, sports and touring cars from the past 100 years of motorsport history pretty busy.

Among that racing will be feature races for combined Group C & A Touring Cars spanning the ’70s and ’80s, including seven-time Bathurst winner Jim Richards in his 1990 Australian Touring Car Championship-winning Nissan HR31 Turbo.

Wings and slicks will have a commanding presence at the event, with a capacity grid of Formula 1, Formula 5000 and Indy cars, headlined by John Bowe driving Joe Calleja’s ’74 March 741 Formula 1.

“Let’s just say we’re planning to put on a good show. No one will be queuing for a hamburger while we’re on!” - Craig Miles

Looking forward to a time when Australian 5.0 Litre Touring Cars are accepted by CAMS in historic motorsport, Australian V8 Supercar racing will be represented by a special demonstration event for Ford and Holden V8 Supercars which competed between 1993 and 2002, some steered by their original drivers.

Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Peter Brock’s back-to-back victories in the ’73 and ’74 Australian Touring Car Championship will be his ’73 XU-1, ’74 SL/R 5000 and 2003 Bathurst 24-Hour-winning 7-Litre Holden Monaro 427C.

Other famous cars include Mark Donohue’s 1974 IROC 911 RSR 3.0 Litre Coupe, which he drove to his final race win and clinched the 1974 International Race of Champions series in the final round at Daytona, before his death in 1975. These cars were specially-built monsters, created by Porsche for a ‘who’s who’ of racers to contest the 1974 International Race of Champions series.

Sir Jack Brabham will be feted at the event in celebration of his amazing life and achievements, including a lap of honor joined by many of the drivers against whom he competed, and will be joined by his 1966 World Championship Repco Brabham BT19 and up to a dozen Brabham racing cars from the ’60s.

The 2014 Phillip Island Classic Festival of Motorsport, presented by the VHRR, will be held from the 7th to the 10th of March at the classic Phillip Island Classic Circuit. Head to the official websiteand Facebook page here for more information.

Admission:
Friday, March 7: $30.00
Saturday, March 8: $35.00
Sunday, March 9: $45.00
Two-day (Sat-Sun) pass: $70.00
Three-day weekend pass: $90.00
Children Under 16: Free
Pensioner concession: $5.00
Paddock entry: Free

The 2014 Phillip Island Classic Festival of Motor Sport presented by the VHRR is again being supported by Shannons, CoolDrive and Penrite, with additional support this year from Dutton Garage, Repco, Zagame, RDA Brakes and Trico.

SPORTSTER BY BRAWNY BUILT

The custom Sportster is one of those motorcycle varietals that can really go either way. I’ve seen beautiful examples and I’ve seen garish and raked out hack jobs that’ve made me want to set them alight, just to put them out of their misery.

This customised Sportster is one of the best I’ve seen in recent times, the combination of flat-tracker seat and rear cowling, 2-into-1 scrambler pipes, chain drive, boosted rear suspension, lowered front suspension, a hand-fabricated headlight cover/assembly and a series of parts additions from The Speed Merchant’s online catalogue have left the bike looking like a 70′s version of a modern hypermotard. And I think that’s a good thing, hell, I think it’s a great thing.

The Sportster was built by Brandon Holstein at Brawny Built for The Speed Merchant and the bike is now for sale viathis store.

Via 8Negro

3E SCRAM AFRICA 2014

More than a trip, an amazing experience about overcoming, adventure and friendship. A trip of more than 2.000 km for classic trail and neoclassic bikes to the south of Morocco by road, trail and dune.

On this edition we’ll ride more kilometers, more trails and sand than ever, a unique adventure; a trip only for nostalgic riders!

THE BIKES:

The “Scram Africa®” is conceived and designed for classic trails and neoclassical motorcycles such as the Triumph Scrambler, BMW GS80/GS100/GS100PD , Royal Enfield, Ural, street  tracker and customized scramblers bikes and a few others. In short, “heavy” & classics on-off road bikes.

 

 

DEPARTURE: Friday April 25, 2014 (*Almeria)

ARRIVAL: Sunday May 4, 2014 (Almeria)

The organization and logistics is in charge of Soloraids company. A professional team composed by guides, drivers, mechanic, a doctor and support vehicles (a 4×4 and a truck) ready to take care of all the participants.

To book a place  in Scram Africa 2014 you just have to make us a deposit of 200€

In case of cancellation by the customer the deposit is not refundable.

Send us an email to scram@fuelmotorcyles.eu with your name and bike model or fill in the questionary and we’ll send you all the info for the transfer bank.

It is a trip for experienced off road riders?

No. This is a  trip for adventure and nostalgic riders no matter the experience or off road skills but, if you never ride on trails it could be a good idea to train before to come.

Can I come with a passenger?

No. There are some stages of the trip (specially the 3 days trough the desert ) that is not possible to ride with a passenger.

Is it possible to rent a motorcycle for the trip in Spain?

There are some people from other continents interested to come ,so we are working to offer the option of renting a bike for the trip but still can not give you prices and models available.

Do I need to take with me spare parts?

You don’t need to but if you have small parts as fuses specific for your bike is a good idea tot take it.

Do i need to take only motorcycle clothing for hot weather?

No. You should take some garment as lining jacket or windstopper jacket for crossing the Atlas. You should have also a rain suit.

photos @PierreXavier

Atelier 46 in Paris: Everything under one roof

At Atelier 46, Gael Regent has established a true full-service agency for classic automobiles. We visited the workshop – and were deeply impressed...

The high-rise district of La Défense in the northwest of Paris is certainly not the most picturesque location to run a meeting place for friends of rapid post-War sports cars. But the venue has a decisive advantage: "In 10 minutes, you are on the highway," smiles managing director Gael Regent. That’s important, because his customers don’t enjoy the torment of an overheating engine and steam rising from the bonnet during the rush hour, while attempting to get away for the weekend or head off to a historic race meeting. But the location is just the start – because Regent offers passionate Parisian motorists an incomparable all-round carefree package.

Sports cars of the 1950s and 60s

The focus of Atelier 46 is on GT, sports and racing cars of the 1950s and 1960s – Dino 246GT, Mercedes 190 SL, Maserati Sebring, Jaguar E-type, Lotus Elan, Porsche 356 and Aston Martin DB4 are among the regulars. In the workshop, 46 cars are in the process of being prepared for their next race, typically French events such as the Tour Auto or the Le Mans Classic, but the top meetings at Donington, Goodwood, Silverstone and Spa are also keeping the mechanics busy. Larger projects are personally supervised by Gael Regent and his team – such as the wonderful dark blue Dino that has just been brought back to life. Anything on the body, paintwork or upholstery that can’t be carried out in the workshop is entrusted to Atelier 46’s long-term partners. Everything is taken care of for the owner: even insurance and race entries can be dealt with on their behalf, if desired. 

Going underground

A mighty car-lift takes you to the lower floors of Atelier 46, where many customers park their classics. They enjoy 24-hour access, even at the weekend, and can readily exchange their modern Mercedes or Audi for their classic car. In addition, there is always an interesting collection of cars for sale, including rare French racing prototypes as well as more familiar race cars at quite acceptable prices. Anyone who fancies a change, or who doesn’t want to invest in a classic, can alternatively borrow a car from Atelier 46 – a Dino for the Tour Auto, for example, or an AC Ace for a track-day, perhaps.

Welcome to the club!

There is even a club operated by Maxime – with member benefits that include tickets to the top events or access to the pitlane at Le Mans. And anyone who is bored with their usual restaurant can instead book a table in Regent’s workshop; or use it as an event location. In short, any Parisian with a love of classic cars would be mad to ignore the attractions of Atelier 46.

Photos: Jan Baedeker

The current inventory of studio 46 can be found in the Classic Driver Market.