Hope springs eternal!
PS , WST, remember the little episode with Moss at RA? Maybe he would
autograph the Hot Wheels you might be driving. Then you would really have a
dilemma. In order to keep the autographed car w/damage, you would have to
pay the owner some outrageous price and have it shipped back here.
GJB
-----Original Message-----
From: Wm. Severin Thompson <wsthompson@thicko.com>
To: Mike Gigante <mikeg@vicnet.net.au>
Cc: team-thicko@autox.team.net <team-thicko@autox.team.net>;
spridgets@autox.team.net <spridgets@autox.team.net>
Date: Tuesday, February 24, 1998 12:48 AM
Subject: Re: Back from Rally with John Sprinzel
>Mike,
>
>Yes... I'm looking forward to the race at Bathurst... although I haven't
gotten
>over the disappointment of the cancellation of the race at LeMans. I'm
trying
>not to get too excited too early on this one...
>
>Chris Dimmock is scaring up a car for me to race ( I think scare is the
>operative word here...). I'm hoping Stirling Moss will also be in a Sprite
(a
>slower one) so we can open the proverbial Can O' Whupass...
>
>WST
>
>Mike Gigante wrote:
>
>> Thank you thank you. We certainly had a great time, but compared to the
>> honor of being declared thicko of the month, all else fades into
>> insignificance!
>>
>> Actually, in all honesty the thicko award comes 2nd to a compliment from
>> the great man himself John Sprinzel. He came up to me at the end of the
>> second day of comp and said "You must be a hooligan driver to be going
that
>> quickly without pace notes and with dodgy brakes".
>>
>> He has a great sense of humour and is really easy to talk to. He is a
wicked
>> teaser, pointing out to anyone who would listen that I was driving with a
>> 50-60lb handicap whilst pointing to my belly!
>>
>> He also signed my copy of "Spritely years" with the line "To my very
fast
>> and
>> GIGANTIC pal - Mike. John Sprinzel '98".
>>
>> I am busy writing up something on the event and will get the photos done
>> today.
>> I'll send WST something for the TT web site!
>>
>> I'm glad you'll be at Bathurst, I also plan to be there in either the
bugeye
>> (as a Marque Sports car) or else a MKIV Sprite (as a Historic Sb car). It
>> will
>> be fantastic. Are you bringing your car or borrowing a car?
>>
>> As for rotor wear, it was apparently because I did the event recce at
road
>> legal speeds
>> that caused the huge rotor wear with those carbon/kevlar pads (I'm not
sure
>> of the
>> brand - I bought them from Tom Colby at Speedwell). The pad and rotor
wear
>> during
>> the event itself (at race speeds) was minimul compared to the recce.
Despite
>> stages
>> that were exceptionally hard on brakes (16 km of downhill, with lots of
2nd
>> gear and 3rd
>> gear corners, all interspersed with 3rd/4th gear sweepers), I didn't have
>> any fade with
>> the carbon/kevlar pads. The standard pads I did the first day and a half
on,
>> faded so
>> badly I practically had no brakes at the end of each stage. They also
wore
>> out very
>> quickly!
>>
>> Would anyone like to see a short special stage as an mpeg? 1:55 which was
>> the
>> fastest spridget time for a 2.48km stage which started in the streets and
>> went up
>> a pretty steep tight, windy uphill road? I had an in-camera mounted for
most
>> of the
>> event. I had the IO port video camera mount I bought from minia mania a
>> couple
>> of years ago and a Canon Hi8 camera. Unfortunately on the bumpy stages
the
>> picture broke up far too much to be useful. Add that to forgetting to
press
>> the button,
>> flat battery, end of tape and madly rushing to cure electrical problems,
we
>> probably
>> only have 2 or three useful bits of video out of 19 special stages!
>>
>> Mike
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Wm. Severin Thompson <wsthompson@thicko.com>
>> To: Mike Gigante <mikeg@vicnet.net.au>
>> Cc: team-thicko@Autox.Team.Net <team-thicko@Autox.Team.Net>;
>> spridgets@Autox.Team.Net <spridgets@Autox.Team.Net>
>> Date: Tuesday, February 24, 1998 12:09 AM
>> Subject: Re: Back from Rally with John Sprinzel
>>
>> >Hear Ye, Hear Ye...
>> >
>> >Following this outstanding performance in international competition, I,
the
>> >Flounder, do hearby declare Mike Gigante to be "Thicko of the Month" for
>> the
>> >month of March. This prestigous award will include public notice, a page
on
>> the
>> >infamous Thicko web site, and some sort of trinket (yet to be
determined).
>> >Please forward a jpeg or two for the TTweb site... or the URL for the
>> section on
>> >your site...OK?
>> >
>> >Nominations for subsequent months should be directed to me at
>> ><wsthomspson@thicko.com>.
>> >
>> >Congratulations Mike on your competition success... sounds like a great
>> time.
>> >I'm looking forward to racing the all Healey Race in Australia in
>> October'98...
>> >will you be there?
>> >
>> >Concerning your brake troubles... have you tried Hawk Blue pads? I get a
>> pretty
>> >long life out of them, without too much rotor wear. Haven't been able to
>> fade
>> >them yet... other comp pads I fade in 2 laps.
>> >
>> >WST
>> >
>> >Mike Gigante wrote:
>> >
>> >> Hi Guys. I just got back from Tasmania where I competed in the
>> >> Rally of Tasmania/Heritage Rally. I was in the bugeye ("redcar").
>> >> This was a bitumen "special stage" rally with Tulip diagrams,
>> >> overnight impound and the lot. It was a first for a circuit racer like
>> me.
>> >> I had done the 3 Peaks Rally in '96 but that was a navigation rally
>> >> not a drivers rally. This was 3 days of full on driving on closed road
>> >> stages.
>> >>
>> >> John Sprinzel of "Spritely Years", Speedwell and Donald Healey
>> >> Motors fame also competed in a bugeye. There were 11 sprites,
>> >> 2 midgets (and 1 lone MGB Ha!). Of the 11 sprites, 8 were bugeyes.
>> >> There also was a lone 100-4.
>> >>
>> >> John Sprinzel is a wonderful fellow and it was a joy and privilege to
>> >> be in the same event. He was not really driving hard (he certainly has
>> >> nothing to prove). I enjoyed talking to him and I picked up a few
hints
>> >> (like it is a must to use pace notes next time!)
>> >>
>> >> A new team was created just for me - Just in Time Racing - team motto
>> >> is "It will be OK in the end". Let me just say we did (finally) get
the
>> car
>> >> finished just in time for scrutineering and miraculously we did finish
>> the
>> >> event. I did cop a lot of flack for it though. We had brake problems
>> >> throughout the event (my wonderful carbon/Kevlar pads ate the brembo
>> >> rotors so badly during the course recon that we had to start the event
>> >> on virgin standard road pads. We wore them out after less than half
>> >> the event and had to re-install the C/K pads on the side of the
>> >> road. We were checking the rotors after every special stage! I was
using
>> >> handbrake only on transport stages! At one stage the brakes jammed on
>> >> (a stone in the pedal box) and I couldn't do more than 2nd gear under
>> full
>> >> noise - we though that would be the end of us.
>> >>
>> >> I was chasing a deficit of 2 or minutes at the start of the last day
and
>> >> realistically didn't think I could do it. That wasn't stopping me
trying
>> >> though!
>> >>
>> >> Suprise surprise at the presentation dinner I was announced class
winner
>> by
>> >> 40 secs. The 2nd place guy was a very experienced and successful
bugeye
>> >> rally driver and he was not happy!! He lodged a protest over what
turned
>> out
>> >> to be
>> >> a timing error on one special stage and it turns out we failed to nail
>> him
>> >> by
>> >> just 8 secs. I was catching him hand over fist - one one special stage
>> >> (Hellyer
>> >> Gorge reverse I took 30 secs out of his lead! (9:25 vs 9:55). Oh well.
I
>> had
>> >> fun
>> >> trying.
>> >>
>> >> I also cooked redcar's motor so by the 2nd day we were burning 4
>> litres/day
>> >> of
>> >> Mobil 1. We definately lost top end and redcar's motor will need a
good
>> >> check
>> >> and freshen up before she competes again.
>> >>
>> >> This friday night we have a 40th anniversary of the sprite dinner with
>> John
>> >> Sprinzel
>> >> talking a bout the cars we love most. It will be fun too!
>> >>
>> >> cheers, Mike
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
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