Kiwi F5000s heading to Laguna Seca

17 June, 2015

A contingent of 12 Kiwi F5000 racers will be heading abroad to represent New Zealand at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion meeting at the infamous Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, in California.

The event takes place between August 13–16, and is a celebration of classic cars and motoring history. The F5000 division will include racers from the USA, Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, who will compete at the pre-reunion race meeting at Laguna Seca.

“It’s a big deal, alright,” says the president of the New Zealand Formula 5000 Association, Roger Williams. “Monterey is one of the three big historic race meetings they have in the States each year, but the last time the Formula 5000s ran there [Laguna Seca] as an SCCA category was in 1976.”  

Project Adder – an MGB with bite

Bill and Rae Denize have been active MG Car Club members in Wellington for nearly 32 years. They have held a variety of positions on the club committee, and now that they are both retired, they can be even more involved in the club’s activities. Bill is currently the president of the MG Car Club, Wellington Centre.
The list of cars they’ve owned over the years is testament to their passion for the brand. It includes a 1972 Midget — the round rear-wheel arch model with 1275cc motor; a three-door 2004 MG ZR; a 2005 MG ZR (five-door); and Rae’s 2005 MG TF, which they still own. Bill also raced a 1967 Morris Mini Cooper S at Manfeild for many years. That car featured in an article in the January 2013 issue of this magazine.
In April 2013, Bill sold the Cooper S and decided to buy a low mileage, freshly imported MG RV8 from Japan. He liked the idea as there were only 1983 built in the early 1990s, which, hopefully, would translate into these cars holding their value. More importantly, their bodies were galvanised, which meant fewer rust problems, although Bill and Rae didn’t escape encounters with oxidation unscathed.