Pukekohe track

daniel993, Nov 9, 3:23am
Who thinks that this is a dangerous track for the V8 super cars? So many little fences and walls etc
tamarillo, Nov 9, 3:27am
No way. Used to have open wheelers f1 cars on it!
Much safer than a street circuit.
slarty45, Nov 9, 3:59am
wrap the cars in Hi-Viz jacket coloured cotton wool?
differentthings, Nov 9, 4:00am
they should sort out that 1st corner. The bumps are too dangerous for the high speeds that they do around it.
daniel993, Nov 9, 4:03am
And pit entry
tamarillo, Nov 9, 4:03am
Poppycock. It's not as if they're are a surprise, they drive accordingly.
differentthings, Nov 9, 4:15am
but no one can pass there as there is only 1 racing line due to the bumps. If they make the straight a bit longer and tighten up the bend at least they will created another passing opportunity
socram, Nov 9, 5:28am
So how has Monaco survived since 1920? Quite simply, drivers have to accept the tracks for what they are.

Taking turn 1 and the final corner flat out, even in a lesser car is what makes the track awesome to drive.
kazbanz, Nov 9, 5:31am
im sorry tam--Im pretty passionate about this one. Puke track got totally effed because the auzzie V8 promoters came in promising this and that and the other if several VERY dangerous changes were made to the track.
by dangerous-NOT for touring cars,V8's or other closed wheel vehicles. For bikes and open wheelers its now lethal at race pace.
MNZ have pulled ALL permits for racing and even training days and you will notice NO open wheel racers racing there any more.
The Walls were soposed to be like at the gold coast. Big forklifts pick em up and stow em away except for "V8 Week"
But they are a permanent feature of the place now.
IMO the very worst change is up and over "ford hill"
You are on the gas HARD from the hairpin crank it left at about 100km/h
screw it up and slam into wall virtually trackside.
keep in mind you are still hard on the gas. Crank it right up to the hill and crest it. front wheels in the air and get it wrong you are slamming into a concrete wall TRACKSIDE at 200km/h
There used to be a 10m wide grass strip there then a wall that was covered in "haybales" on raceday.
The fair and reasonable answer to the V8 guys concern would have been to move the wall backwards another 10-20m and put kitty litter in there.
That's Just one example--I can take you round the track corner by corner if you like and tell you where the screw ups are.
Im passionate about it because pukie was my favourite track in the world.
jennian corner sorted the men from the boys.The Men are flat out into jennian and use the esses to wash pace before Castrol
Castrol You stayed on the noise tiil your ass cheeks puckered then you turn point n squirt un that huge back straight.
making the hairpin an matter of who had the biggest kahoonahs
get the hairpin wrong and you are screwed for pace into the left and up over the hill.
kazbanz, Nov 9, 5:35am
jennian will NEVER be properly sorted. WHY?
because the reason its so chewed up is its where the horsey people transit across to the track.
kazbanz, Nov 9, 5:37am
sorry dude--Monaco has survived because there are BILLIONS of dollars sunk into it every year. Pukie track owners don't want to even spend thousands on drainage
daniel993, Nov 9, 5:50am
Well said Kaz
kazbanz, Nov 9, 6:16am
Sorry guys again Im really passionate about the place.
I was "that guy" standing up at the agm back in the 1980's trying to get the pigheaded shortsighted fools to pool resources and BUY pukie as a dedicated motorsport venue. The price back then COULD have been raised by the clubs both four and two wheeler DIRT and sealed.
I saw what was gonna happen at the springs and saw the trotting track as the perfect alternative.
rsr72, Nov 9, 8:00am
The V8 Supercar drivers love the Pukekohe track, as do most who have driven on it over the years.
It makes most Aussie tracks look like learner circuits.
socram, Nov 9, 8:20am
There I do agree, though it is (marginally) better than in the 1980's as meetings have often been rained off before and after the drainage was supposed to have been addressed.

We have also had days rained off or delayed at Hampton Downs.

I hadn't heard that MSNZ had pulled any permits for single seaters, though there are groups of single seater drivers who are less than happy with the changes. TACCOC certainly ran single seaters October 3rd this year.

Due to injury and other factors, I haven't driven the 'new' track but feedback from most of our series drivers is that they have accepted the changes.

As one who got his car topped and tailed before the changes, when a car was on it's roof and spinning in front of me right on the apex of 'the hill', (I had to hit him or the wall. I chose the latter. ) I know only too well that you can come a cropper there, as there hasn't been any wiggle room ever since they put concrete walls in, so hitting the concrete on the inside of the track has been a given when things went to custard long before the Aussie V8 changes, but I do agree about the outside.
serf407, Nov 9, 9:56am
Long term the 'answer' is probably going to the extended Hampton Downs.
http://www.hamptondowns.com/pages/65/circuit-map.htm

Do any circuits at multi-use venues use a protective matting to protect the racing surface?

Even longer term probably indemnity forms won't cut it and drivers might be restricted to racing each other on simulators.
drog, Nov 9, 6:30pm
Amen.
kazbanz, Nov 9, 7:33pm
socram- DEFINITELY MNZ have made it clear they will not issue permits for pukie.
I may have it wrong re single seaters in that MSNZ issue a permit for a meeting regardless of it being open wheeler ,V8's ,toyota cup cars or utes, The open wheel drivers I understood refuse to drive there because it is now too dangerous. Genuinely sorry if my info is incorrect.
What I find equally frustrating is that THE TRACK itself makes so little money on that one race weekend compared to the other 51 weeks a year yet all the rest of the year is dictated to by the V8's
By "makes" I mean actual net profit.
socram, Nov 9, 8:30pm
When Cochran wanted to bring the circus to town, reputedly, he wanted $1m. Hampton Downs owners wanted no bar of it (nor would they have made any money out of it) and the Auckland rate payers plus central government (well, tax payers, including 500,000 Aucklanders of course) coughed up a lot of money and we all know that the money invested wasn't exactly for the benefit of the users for 51 weeks of the year.

Sticking concrete blocks purchased at a knock down price from Hamilton around the place wasn't really necessary and who was the Aussie who got paid megabucks to suggest the extra corners?

The place is a horse venue, owned by the horse fraternity and I totally agree, had it been sold to the motorsport fraternity, things might have been very different. As I understand it, hire charges for the track now include the garages (sic) and it behoves the hirer to recoup the costs.

As for single seaters, I have not seen any MSNZ bulletin or any mention on car message-boards to say that MSNZ wouldn't issue permits, but I do know that some drivers have boycotted the place because of the strictly enforced 95db noise limit, TRACKSIDE. (Donington in the UK is 105db.)

I suspect that the Aussie V8s will indeed go to HD after 2017, given the new ownership and the probably closer ties with the owners of the Aussie series' by the new owner.

Where that leaves Puke is anyone's guess, but I believe it has a licence for cars until 2021. The sad part of it is that unlike HD, Pukekohe does have a great local community where many do support the V8's as an annual event and it is the locals who would miss out.

HD has a way to go yet but situated away from local housing may be a drawback in some respects, but a huge advantage overall.
kazbanz, Nov 9, 9:02pm
Socram--sounds like we are singing from the same song sheet.
My genuine concern is that even with its current level of use if we loose Pukie then HD is the only "Auckland" track. yep HD is plowing ahead with the extention which would at least offer the possibility of two events run at the same time. (The extention being planned to be capable of running as a separate track)
kcc55a, Nov 9, 10:35pm
Well its THEIR track
elect70, Nov 10, 3:00am
Perhaps V8 Sc hireacy will demand more improvements to the track or no more SC . Uncle Len will pour few more mill$ ito it just to keep them in auck , he wont want them going south to HD now that Quin is finishing the track & putting up corporate boxes . BUT dont think Quin is interested knowing the $$ they want for the franchise as socram pointed out . He could put on extra round of the GT series plus NZ V8s if the SC pull out .
socram, Nov 3, 2:10am
Uncle Len is gone burger anyway and at the moment, the centre right may not have a candidate to take on Phil Goff. Best hope would be John Banks who is a bit of a petrolhead, but I'm not sure that the mayor alone will have too much say, it has to be a council decision.

I have not heard too much of what economic benefits the V8's have brought to Auckland City. Relocating the event to HD would probably still bring the same economic benefits to Auckland City anyway, given that they have a fair bit of motel accommodation the same distance away from each track.

Hamilton would gain most from a relocation to HD without the Waikato council/ratepayers having to subsidise it.

Yes Kaz, singing from the same hymn sheet overall but HD's strength from day 1 has been that it has always been a dedicated motorsport facility. Pukekohe has always been somewhat restricted by never having the option of a secondary track and my bet is that that with three track layouts at HD, for many amateur people, they'll garage their cars and bikes down there and not bother trailering to Pukekohe or Taupo.

What we haven't seen yet are any plans for a covered grandstand at HD, which I'd personally place between the track and SH1 across the sweeper and to the second track, which would give the best views without obstructing any existing views.

I'm not sure of the actual relationship between TQ and the Aussie V8s, but I suspect it may be stronger than we think and he has the added option of controlling Highlands for a double header and don't forget, they only have 16 race days a year. A double header for the Aussie GTs which he owns anyway puts TQ is an extremely strong position.