The Roaring Season

225sloper wrote:This is the Kevin Fillingham Sunbeam Tiger.[ATTACH=CONFIG]24699[/ATTACH]

Steve Holmes wrote:Another shot of the former Richards/Millen/Dorn etc Monaro. This is pretty late in its career, and its looking fairly old and tatty here. Its a real shame this car didn't survive. I did some investigation work on it some years ago. When Streetstock racing was first introduced to Palmerston North speedway in the early 1990s, a racer wanting to get involved with the class convinced the person who owned the Monaro to sell it to him so he could Streetstock it. By this time everyone in saloon car racing had gone to space-frame cars with plastic bodies on top, so the old Monaro was really outdated.

I actually remember seeing this car race as a Streetstock at one of the earlier events in Palmy when the class was first introduced. At first I was amazed to see that someone had turned a Monaro into a Streetstock, but then noticed it was left hand drive, and the alloy sheet inside the cockpit was all still intact from its saloon racing days. It was painted matt black and basically got beaten to death. At the time I had no idea of its history.

I grew up in Palmy and remember riding my push bike when I was about 14 in the mid 1980s along behind a wreckers yard with a buddy of mine. On top of a stack of cars at the back of the wreckers was another HQ Monaro speedway saloon that was waiting to be crushed. It was painted cream with an orange stripe, and #13 on the door. When I saw it I assumed it was the ex-Dorn car, but it turns out this was another Monaro again. They made for pretty popular speedway saloons.

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Herman2 wrote:Kevin sold this car to Geoff Williams who raced it for 2 seasons. Geoff also ran a 351 in it. Short wheel base plus big grunt equals sideways turns. I took a photo of the car with Geoff driving it around the pit turn in his first season. You could only see the front of the car with the tyres poking out both sides. Looked quite spookie as the signwriter had painted cats eyes into the headlights! Geoff onsold this car to Mike Laird who extended the centre section to make it a Mustang. Not sure if it was ever finished.
The Mike Wemyss Tiger ended up as a Streetstock. I last saw this car in the hands of Richard Houstan from Hawkes Bay. Think it was running a 289 then as Streetstocks were only allowed 290 cubes max.

Steve Holmes wrote:A few guys built and raced these Sunbeam Tigers, with mixed results. They were light, but had very short wheelbase. I spoke with Kevin Gimblett a few months back about the one he raced. He said he did his wrong, in that he put a big motor (351 from memory) in it for more power, when he should have run a lighter 302 or 289. All that weight over the front axle in a short wheelbase car made it difficult to drive.

One of you guys will know who this is. Possibly Kevin Fillingham?


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Steve Holmes wrote:I can't even remember when I started going Sean, my father used to take me, but he didn't much care for speedway, so it wasn't as often as I would have liked. But the saloons were my favourites, and all the cars then were built from original road cars, then heavily modified. I was born in '71, so I guess it must have been early 1980s when I first started going. But I think you are right, there were at least two Monaros racing then. After a few years the space-frame cars began appearing. These were mostly Monzas and Toranas.

Here is the Wemyss Tiger. Note its right hand drive.

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Rod Grimwood wrote:A NZ Champion (14) getting the shove and by the look of it he is remembering who, and would no doubt have repayed with credit. Lindsay Willis was/is well known in all forms of motorsport and very handy car builder along with it.

seaqnmac27 wrote:Ok so without slandering anyone and with just a suspicion that this is the correct story. If I am right, this photograph is from the 83 National Saloon champs at Riverside in Invercargill and its from the final race of the night. IIRC Blondie was if not the absolute favourite, then one of the favourites for another national title. In race 1 very early in the race he was punted, pushed, describe it as you will into the wall on the city end of the circuit. damaging the car beyond immediate repair and as a result did not compete again until the last race of the night. Allan Jago is the 4th car I do not recognise the other 2 cars.

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Dave B wrote:http://macgor.proboards.com/thread/3980/mgbgtv8-saloon-car?page=2#page=1
Think the second car is a MGBV8.

seaqnmac27 wrote:Ok so without slandering anyone and with just a suspicion that this is the correct story. If I am right, this photograph is from the 83 National Saloon champs at Riverside in Invercargill and its from the final race of the night. IIRC Blondie was if not the absolute favourite, then one of the favourites for another national title. In race 1 very early in the race he was punted, pushed, describe it as you will into the wall on the city end of the circuit. damaging the car beyond immediate repair and as a result did not compete again until the last race of the night. Allan Jago is the 4th car I do not recognise the other 2 cars.

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Dave B wrote:http://macgor.proboards.com/thread/3980/mgbgtv8-saloon-car?page=2#page=1
Think the second car is a MGBV8.

Dave B wrote:The car at the rear of the pack is the Alan Jago VW
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Still working on the others (its bugging me now lol)

Rod Grimwood wrote:The number 77 'Rover' of Blondie think this car came up north (Kaikohe and raced in Auckland) to Ray Jordan, got photo somewhere, sure he got his 'Rover' off Chamberlain.