Conditions were perfect for the day – with 25+C, a slight breeze and a beautiful large flat but sloping paddock.  The hosts for the day were Triumph Car Club members who whose daughter used to drive Daniel Richardson to school in their Yellow Spitfire 1500 and who also kindly allowed me to copy their radiator set up for my Midget at their club’s concourse at Vellenoweth Green in St Heliers. There are only 2 degrees of separation in NZ!

On the day we had 1 x MGB, 2 x MGBGT, 3x Midgets, Spitfire IV, Spitfire 1500, a Triumph TC and a Nissan something (I think).  The youngest driver was 12 and he was amazing for his age and a good reason why you start driving in events young. The driver of the Triumph TC hadn’t done a Motorkhana for 30 years but he still did really well and had a great time.

Having a Midget 1500 makes me neutral (sort of) as I am part MG and part Triumph – it was really great mixing with the Triumph Car Club members and we do have a lot in common but the MG’s were the clear winners on the day.

Some of the things that stood out for me were

1. All the very helpful people reminding me to start in 1^st not reverse (like I did at the Kemp Rd Hill Climb – thanks Darryl)
2. How dry the north is ! – several drivers were unable to see the guides when driving due to the amount of dust they generated and excessive right foot.
3. How much easier it is driving a small midget around a motorkhana than say a MGB or Triumph TC.
4. How many different ways you can arrange a course to test your driving skill and your car.
5. How helpful everyone is to help you go faster and have more fun.

How exciting it is to get anywhere near the top 4 in a test. At one stage Andrew said to me “I don’t want to put you off but you were 2^nd fastest in the first round”.

I would tell you about the different courses we did but I am totally unqualified to do so.  I can say we did lots of slaloms, a j turn, and lots of reversing. Some drivers, more skilled than myself, did handbrake turns and we parked in the garage forwards and backwards.

I remember 20 years ago watching a motorkhana in the Manuaku City shopping centre car park on a Sunday. That event is what inspired me get an MG 20 years later and enter my first MG car club event 2 years ago. I am now pretty well hooked.

Thanks Ryan Orr for liaising with the Triumph Car Club, our lovely hosts, and Darryl, Andrew and Jennie for arranging everything on the day and keeping to time (for an MG event). The hosts had such a good time that they are keen for us to return again. My wife made me burn my clothes when I got home due to the dust (refer photo’s) and my car may never be clean again.

Cheers 
Garry Fissenden MG Midget 1500

Click HERE to view the event results page.