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[BOATS] Big step forward for 321Ignition
by Sean Henshelwood
(Archived)
A big step forward..
Rnd#4 2009 Continental Tyres Australian Superboat Championships
Round Mountain Road, Cabarita Beach, NSW
6-7 June, 2009
Immediately after the third round of the Continental Tyres Australian Superboat Championships, 321 Ignition’s Greg Harriman began work on what he hoped would transform his Group A Superboat into a regular top ten contender.
“There’s no denying we’ve really struggled to date this year,” he admitted – “part of that has been me and the workload of operating a business and juggling commitments, and part of that has been issues as the President of the AFJSA; something I hate admitting, but part of it has also been the boat, and that’s something we’re looking to change.”
The most obvious change on the sleek black, white and red Mackraft was the height of the rollcage, and the height of the crew.
“We’ve dramatically dropped the height of the cage, but also the height of the crew, in fact after our first run I had to drop the height of the steering wheel as well, because on some right-hand corners I was blind.. We’ve also adopted some new seats which have come from Phonsy Mullan’s GM Motorsport; they give us another good weight saving too.
“There’s a few other things we’d like to try as well, but we just didn’t have time, so I’m hoping to try them at Maryborough in two weeks time.”
From the opening session it was clear that Harriman and navigator Adam Doyle were pretty happy with the revised setup on the boat.
“Much better.. That’s the best we’ve ever had it, now it’s down to me to start driving it..”
By the close of the qualifying rounds, the 321 Ignition team had improved, and just narrowly missed the top ten; Greg’s aim for the weekend.
“Look, I can’t be too disappointed, we picked up about two and a half seconds on where we’ve been in the past, and that’s pretty good.
“I guess I was probably a little too tentative early on because I wasn’t quite sure what the boat would do with so many dramatic changes, but I honestly think we’re well down the right path now.
“Prior to Maryborough I’m going to change my exhausts as we’ve been working on something special there since the world championships, so we’ll see how we go, but all up I’m very happy and looking forward to the next round of the Continental Tyres Australian Championships later in the year.”
The Continental Tyres Superboat Championships now enjoy a slight sabbatical prior to the penultimate round of the season at Maryborough on September 5-6, then the final round of the championship back at Cabarita two weeks later (September 19-20). 321 Ignition Racing now goes back to state level competition with the second round of the Queensland Championships scheduled for Maryborough in two weeks time (June 20-21).
You can catch all the action from the 2009 Continental Tyres Australian Superboat Championships on SBS Speedweek and FOX Sports 'Inside Speed' (check local guides and keep an eye on www.v8superboats.com.au for dates and times).
321Ignition Racing is proudly supported by; 321Ignition Magazine, Brumby’s, Parish Automotive, ACE Truck Bodies, SKIN Industries Pickering Smash Repairs, Meridian Motorsport and Phicom Extreme Communication.
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2009 Continental Tyres Australian Superboat Championships
International Group A (drivers points after Rnd#4 of 6)
1. Slade Stanley/Vanessa Wright (182), 2. Rohan Smith/Owen Dyball (157), 3. Ted Sygidus/Kelsie Gill (141), 4. Brooke Dixon/Leanne Rake (139), 5. Nathan Pretty/Lincoln Burns (135), 6. Tremayne Jukes/Ruth Webster (123), 7. Robert Colman/Shane Stewart (108), 8. Greg Mercier/Dorinda Mercier (107), 9. Darek Sygidus/David Gill (70), 10. Daniel Walton/ Brad Nicolson (58), 11. Mick Manini/Athena Dickson (34), 12. Rodney Krause/Kristy Hamilton (31), 13. Greg Harriman/Adam Doyle (22), 14. Simon Zarb/Peter Keep (18), 15. Tony Whalan/Adrian Kemp (15), 15. Darren Watkins/Brad Saibura (15), 17. Brendan Donnelly/Tyson Allen (10), 17. Shane Loughnan/Joe Manganaro (10), 17. Damien O’Leary/Carly Nappa (10), 17. Kevin Laugesen/Tiffany Parratt (10), 17. Kieran Krause (10), 22. Shaun Dixon (5), 22. Chris Bollins (5), 22. Geoff Kunkel (5)
www.v8superboats.com.au
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