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[V8SC] It begins now for Karl Reindler
by Signature Series Group
And so it begins...
17 February, 2010
For Perth’s Karl Reindler, the opening round of the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series can’t come quickly enough, yet despite making his debut in Australia’s highest profile form of motorsport on the other side of the world, the quietly spoken 24-year old admits that nerves really aren’t an issue...
“No, not really,” Reindler acknowledged, “I think I’m as well prepared as I can be considering this is the start of a new season, and for me, making my debut in one of the most hotly contested championships on the planet.”
This weekend (February 20-21) Karl will join 28 of the best drivers in Australia as they make their season debut at the newly constructed Abu Dhabi circuit in the Middle East, a venue which on it’s entry onto the Formula One calendar at the closing event of 2009, was widely regarded as the new world standard for the sport.
Whilst making his debut into the V8 Supercar ‘main game’ is daunting enough, to make that debut thousands of miles from the comfort of home soil is another thing again, but the experienced international campaigner is actually relishing the opportunity to start on what he sees is an equal footing with his peers.
“If I was starting at say Dubai, where round two of the championship kicks off a week later (February 27-28), I may be more anxious, but none of the V8 Supercar drivers have competed on the Abu Dhabi layout yet, so like me, they don’t know what to expect. Sure, I’ve got the added pressure of learning a new car and a new team, and I accept that, but I still believe I’m in a strong position to finish inside the top 20.”
Confidence indeed, but at this level of competition, preparation and self-belief are important factors.
“Honestly, I am prepared. Testing is limited in this category, so myself and Brad Jones Racing team-mates Jason Richards and Jason Bright have completed just one test day at Winton earlier in the month, but I was pretty happy with how things played out with the Fair Dinkum Homes & Sheds Commodore.
“In those areas outside the car that I can prepare, I’m ready too, having competed in a number of triathlons since my last competitive outing at the Bathurst 1000 in October [where Karl finished 11th alongside Jason Bright]; the most recent being on Sunday, just before I left where I won a half Olympic distance event in Hillarys [north of Perth].”
The event wasn’t Karl’s only success in triathlons, he is actually ranked as one of the state’s leading competitors having won a world championship qualifier late last year as well as the state aquathlon and Olympic distance triathlon championships.
“A lot of people don’t realise just how physical these racecars are to drive, then on top of that the actual cabin temperatures you experience at places like Darwin, and the Clipsal 500 can see you working at temperatures in excess of 50˚C so you have to be prepared and my investment in triathlons is a part of that preparation.”
It doesn’t hurt either that Karl is part way into a Mechanical Engineering degree, something that increases his knowledge in car setup and vehicle dynamics, an interest he developed in Europe whilst contesting the breeding ground for future Formula One stars, British Formula 3. “After winning the Australian F3 championship in 2004, I did what most F1 hopefuls do and moved to the UK to tackle the British championship. Sadly it was one of those deals where you needed an ‘in’ with a team to make it the next step, and whilst we had the odd strong result, it didn’t work out the way I’d hoped, so I came back to Perth to look at my future closer to home and family.”
Karl is certainly not alone on that note, drivers the calibre of James Courtney, Marcos Ambrose, Jason Bright, Craig Lowndes and Will Davison also met a similar fate in Europe and weren’t able to break into the upper ranks of the European scene, yet each one of those drivers is considered a champion in Australia and all (apart from Ambrose who is now challenging for victories in the hotly contested NASCAR ranks in the US) are amongst the front-runners in V8 Supercars.
What Karl also fails to admit though is that aside from his stillborn attempt to break the international open-wheel market, he did manage to make the podium for Team Australia in the A1GP series, a category established on a world stage to pit drivers from all emerging motorsport nations against each other in identical equipment; the result on the Shanghai street circuit certainly added to Karl’s weight as an emerging star.
What ever happens this weekend in Abu Dhabi, Karl Reindler is sure to make the most of it. He’s young, he’s fit and he’s prepared, all he wants now, is the green flag...!
Karl Reindler is proudly supported by Brad Jones Racing, Fair Dinkum Homes & Sheds, No Fear, Oakley, Biante, Thomson Aviation and Bostech Drilling.
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