Targa introduce 1000km endurance epic for 2015 finale

20 July, 2015

Targa New Zealand’s 2015 season is set to end with one of their biggest bangs to date, in the form of a 1000km, six-day marathon between Auckland and Palmerston North. This will comprise of 35 closed special stages, making it one of the longest events of its kind in the world.

It’s the second time in consecutive years that Targa have done something special for their season final, with the 2014 Targa calendar ending with their first journey to the South Island as part of their 20th anniversary celebrations. While the length may seem gruelling, Event Director Peter Martin says that the revised length comes as a response to competitor feedback. The result of which has the potential to be a memorable event.

“What we’re doing, in effect, is celebrating our return to the North Island, to the event’s roots if you like, by taking some of the best and most popular stages from previous events and putting them together in one. It’s going to be mega,” Martin explains.

The compressed six-day slog will see the return of numerous memorable stages from past Targa New Zealand events, including the Glen Murray, Kawhia, Inglewood, Whangamomona, Gentle Annie, and Mangatainoka stages.

Glenn Inkster and co-driver Spencer Winn, in their Mitsubishi Evolution, enter the event as one of the favourite combinations for outright honours. The pair aim to take a clean sweep of all three Targa New Zealand events this year, following victories at the 2015 Metalman Targa Rally Sprint, which took place in Auckland on March 8, and the Targa Bambina, which ended on May 18.

“Winning the 20th anniversary event was our big goal last year, but now that we have done that, we decided that our main goal this year would be to not only finish all three Targa events — but to win them as well,” says Inkster.

While entries are still flowing in, Inkster is likely to face strong competition from the likes of past circuit racer Clark Proctor and his co-driver Sue O’Neill in Proctor’s eccentric Nissan-powered Ford Escort, as well as Leigh Hopper and co-driver Simon Kirkpatrick in Hopper’s rapid Subaru Impreza.

But, as is always the case with Targa New Zealand, the real talking point will centre around diversity and community. Keep an eye out for more coverage of the event at The Motorhood!

Grand Routier — in the french tradition

10 July, 2025

Sitting in Paddy and Patsy Williams’ Dunedin garage is a stunning example of one of these rare French grand routier sedans. It is a 1949 four-door Lago-Record Factory Berline sedan, to give its full name. Daughter Cath let us know how proud she was of her dad, who had been tinkering away in his garage on this car for so many years.
Without exaggeration, it has been a mammoth task. I first saw this Talbot-Lago in mid 2019. The long-nosed, sweeping, curved four-door saloon, clothed in its misty green metallic paint, was quite breathtaking. There’s more than a little English influence in it, too, harking back to company owner Tony Lago’s involvement in the Clement-Talbot-Darracq era. The long front wings and bonnet, usually multi-louvred, highlighted with artful touches of chrome bling, are typical of the era, but these were indeed luxury length. Interiors provided leather-clad, armchair-style seating and ample legroom, with touches of wood and surprising details such as dainty childproof interior locks — a far cry from today’s lozenge boxes.
Paddy, a retired civil and structural engineer, knows his way around a lathe. He has a well-equipped garage-workshop to assist in any machining tasks along with his other passion for restoring classic motorcycles.

The Great River Road

4 July, 2025

A few years ago my family, knowing my fondness for driving, gave me the book Unforgettable Road Trips: Thirty-Six Drives of a Lifetime by Martin Derrick. Most of the road trips listed take less than a day in places like Scotland, Monaco, and Australia, plus one in New Zealand. Most of these places were too far to go just for a short drive but four of them would take several days. My interest was piqued, and those four drives were added to the bucket list. To date, I have done three of them: ‘Route 66’ (USA 21 days), ‘State Highway 6’ (NZ 10 days) and ‘The Great River Road’ (USA 22 days). You can drive all of them in less time, but you could also fly over them. We wanted a decent immersion in their charms.
The great river referred to is the Mississippi. While the name conjures the deep south, the river actually starts at the bottom of the great lakes, before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico about 3800km later. The great road is more of a concept than a specific strip of tarmac, as you can drive down either side of the river on various routes. Regardless of which side you drive, time should be kept aside for detours to places such as Nashville, which is famous for something or other.

Targa introduce 1000km endurance epic for 2015 finale

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