As Team Toyo members travelled from all around the country to converge on the melon-holed track for the infamous Goondiwindi 400, few could have predicted the incredible highs and shattering lows of the weekend to follow.
Podium honours went to #56 Carl Haby and Brenton Gallasch, who recorded a time of 4:10:40 after covering the 400km race over five laps one minute and 52 seconds ahead of #93 Aaron James, with the #954 buggy driven by Dan Bonnor coming in third.
The podium results, however, far from tell the story of a particularly dramatic race.
Brad Gallard, steering the #454 trophy truck, was in hot pursuit of his third consecutive victory at Goondiwindi. Claiming fourth in prologue after a minor passing collision with a ProLite buggy, Brad and navigator Scott Modistach headed into the Top Ten Shootout.
“We were prepared to have a real go at the top 10 shootout, and we sure did, but we didn’t make it,” Brad said.
Truck #454, quite literally, ran into some trouble.
“We binned it hard and took a twelve-inch thick tree out of the ground; ripped it clear out.”
“We were hauling probably 140km/h through the tight stuff. I was just going too hard, pushing it and it got squirrely. We hit the tree on Scotty’s side door and it turned and rolled us, twice,” he said.
Not one to be put off by a simple roll-over at autobahn speed, Brad wanted to keep going.
“It didn’t hurt it mechanically. If it had come back down on its wheels I would have still been into it.”
With the shootout incomplete, #454 was seeded 10th, and the crew removed the damaged panels and readied the truck for the first lap. Chasing down the nine other cars ahead of them, the boys from Renmark pulled into first position during lap one and all looked good… until the temperature gauge started to fluctuate.
“The water temp soared so we pulled back into the pits,” said Brad.
“A little bleed line on the water system had come loose. The boys fixed it, put new water in and the truck was good to go. Unfortunately, the repair time cost us the race.”
With the win all but out of reach, Brad handed the keys to navigator Scotty Modistach for Sunday’s racing while Kyle Pfitzner took Scotty’s place in the navigator’s seat.
“Scotty made up some great positions seeing he hadn’t driven it for five years!” said Brad.
“There were contracts coming out for him to sign-on to drive, but unfortunately he had a roll-over on the last corner. It was a gentle roll; he just went in a bit too hot.”
With the roll tearing the last undamaged panel from the truck, the #454 crew called it a day.
“We always said when we go, we would go big – and we did!” Brad laughed.
Danny Brown in the #42 buggy was having a fairy-tale weekend, running second in prologue and getting on pole position during a heated top-10 shoot-out. Starting out on a cracking first lap, one of the buggy’s front brake lines let go mid-fang, with the trackside repair costing Danny and navigator George Apted three minutes and leaving them in fourth place.
Sunday’s racing saw Danny passing the entire field bar Brad Gallard, who Danny incorrectly assumed was still in the race and leading the field.
Continuing to push hard in the hunt for the non-existent trophy truck, Danny pulled a three-minute lead over second runner Carl Haby as the laps fell. 30km from the finish line on the last lap, with victory assured, an oil pressure light illuminated.
“We went through all the gauges and there was nothing else wrong,” said Danny.
“We thought it was a sensor. The motor was making plenty of power so we tried to keep going. We ended up snapping the oil pick-up off in the sump, and then the rattling started. The VQ35 totally lunched itself, and we needed a tow back to the pits.”
Despite a disappointing result, Danny and George were happy with their performance, with the Toyos making a huge difference on a slippery track.
“The track was gnarly, but we got a good rhythm going and we were in the zone. The car was handling really well. A bit of rain during the week kept the dust down, but it was slippery. A lot of guys were struggling hard to put the power down. The first lap on Sunday morning was quite greasy, which was where the extra grip came in handy and helped put us in the lead.”
Taking out first place in the X2WD class, the #408 Micklefab trophy truck driven by Mark Lacey and son Oliver had its first outing on Toyo tyres. A recent convert to Toyo, Mark was in search of a tyre solution that would give him the confidence to take his truck to the limit.
“For me, it was the run I was looking for,” said Mark. “I have only been in the car twice prior, but we have done all the fine tuning. It is down to racing and trying to improve my driving skills, and everything just came together.”
Running 37” Open Country M/T-Rs, Mark’s run at Goodiwindi was his best yet.
“The new tyres changed my car completely. It was the only thing we changed, but I didn’t fear the high speed down the fence lines. It was controlled in corners and we had traction everywhere.
“I can’t rave about the high-speed characteristics of the tyres enough; they gave me the confidence to push harder, without a doubt. It’s the right tyre for that type of event,” Mark said.
With a field-leading effort at Gundy let down only by bad luck, Toyo-shod racers continue to dominate at off-road events around the country. Stay tuned as Team Toyo heads to Coffs Harbour early next month.
