After the PROMAXX EXHAUSTS TA2 Muscle Car Series practice on Friday Andrew was feeling a little more confident in the Chevy Camaro and called her Ruth, in honour of his sister who is stuck in the lockdown in Victoria.
Saturday’s program started out with qualifying, where Fishtail did a great job to slot the Camaro on the front row in P2.
“She is a big car, wide, lots of power and a lot more entry and mid corner grip than Abigail so it’s a very different driving style.
The team has also asked me not to use the clutch on the way up or down through the gears and add to that they want me to left foot brake due to the pedal offset and you could say it has been quite a challenge, but they are fun to drive ” Andrew remarked.
As the first race was about to get underway the pole man, Hugh McAlister, jumped the start which meant that Michael Coulter, in 3rd, got away with moving forward into the pole slot and was able to hold Andrew off into T1 and 2.
Lap after lap the cars in 2nd, 3rd and 4th raced within a second of each other trading faster sectors. At the mid point of the 10 lap race, Coulter and Fisher dropped 4th placed man Zac Loscialpo and Andrew could concentrate with eyes forward and not have to worry about the car in the mirror. The best opportunity came at the beginning of the last lap as the cars went across the start finish locked together but Fishtail just didn’t quite have enough to get the Camaro around the Mustang and finished in 3rd position.
With McAlister receiving a penalty for jumping the start, Fisher was promoted to 2nd and again started on the front row of the grid.
Fishtail got a great start and began to hunt down Coulter in 1st. The opportunity presented itself on lap 5, but having to go wide into the marbles Andrew found himself with less grip and dropped back to 4th. After a lap or so Fishtail had cleaned up his tyres and started to reel in Coulter now in 3rd, managing a great move to pass him on the last lap before the checkered flag.
“That was a lot of fun! So good to be back in a real car, much better than SIM racing. It was a great job by the guys out there today. It’s been a steep learning curve and with a few little tweaks I’m sure we can battle for the lead again tomorrow.” Andrew said hopping out of the car with a big grin on his face.