TWO DECADES OF TOP END SUPERCARS by Paul Marinelli
It was a big call back in the late 90 ’ s as the Northern Territory Government worked solidly on attracting and developing major sporting events to their distinctly unique region of Australia . They had experienced outstanding success with the Finke Desert Off Road Race for many years prior , the International Solar Vehicle Challenge and the growth of their own Darwin Racing Carnival among others . It was no secret that the Northern Territory wanted its own high profile national sporting event and with its own motor racing circuit near Darwin called Hidden Valley Raceway , set its sights on securing a round of the then newly established , Australian V8 Supercars Championship . The deal was done and in 1998 a massive convoy of Supercar transporters made its way north for the long trip to Darwin , for the first ever top end round of the Championship . The tropical race venue was an instant hit with the drivers , teams and fans , enabling them to escape their frigid southern state winters for a week of brilliant sunshine and warmth coupled with an infectious local enthusiasm from the Territory fans . That 1998 convoy of trucks was welcomed to the City of Darwin by tens of thousands of locals who lined the roadways , overhead walkways and bridges leading into the city to marvel as the Supercar show pulled into town . This started a unique Darwin tradition that has continued each year onwards with similar levels of local interest . Now every year , once the Supercar transporters have emptied their precious Supercar cargo at Hidden Valley Raceway , they are polished to perfection and then driven into town along that same route that they first used in 1998 , to a rapturous public reception in the city centre . The lead Supercar transporter accepts the Northern Territory flag in the centre of town from the Chief Minister and after much waving and insanely loud air horn blowing , the convoy continues on its way through town and back to Hidden Valley Raceway . The sight is truly incredible as this multi-million dollar cavalcade of colour , noise and sheer brute size powers through the relatively small Darwin inner city streets , airhorns blazing , surrounded by fans holding up endless phone cameras accompanied by curious tourists . The race event itself has seen a number of incarnations over the past twenty years of either three or two race formats , all linked to what is known as the Darwin Triple Crown . In either a two or three race format , over the past 20 years no driver has yet claimed the pole position and the race wins that make up the Darwin Triple Crown , clearly displaying how difficult this is to achieve . Many have come tantalisingly close , including Kiwi racer Scott McLaughlin this year . The 24 year old ace dominated the top ten shoot-out and the second Darwin race , but was runner-up in the first race , narrowly missing out on the Darwin Triple Crown .
12 CAPRICORN IGNITION JULY 2017