The Konica Series

[Crash Test]

2 seasons on, what are your thoughts on the Konica series?

Has it been a success?

Should the level one teams be allowed to compete? Should there be more endurance styled events? Should there be more/less rounds period? Should they be on the V8 Supercar big league package? What has been the highlight for you guys?

[twig]

Well, i think that the racing is probably more close and competative, well......i am talking about 2000, where Dean Canto, Wayne Wakefield and the new kid, David Besnard, took victories, and maybe some others i've missed. Although it is not to the high scale of the SATCC, the racing is very fair and great to watch. It may be thanks to the infamous reverse grid situation, but is a viewing spectacle. But we have to look at the big picture, there is the worlds premier touring car catagory, and a mini version, the konica series would not be successful if not for the SATCC, but not taking that away from them, but i think they should either stick closer to the mother, or break away. so they should either make endurance events individual, and important, or make them all enduros, or they could stay conservative and sink like many others.

There are many great drivers who have been molded in konica, such as, simon wills (bloody definate winning talent) and possibly dale brede, but the whole situ about leanne ferrier, and all the hype about her, is too much, has she won a race yet!? NO!!! and she finishes on average of about 6th position, well.......how could you call that great!? for a woman, well....yes okay, pretty good, but when you are behind the wheel, it dont matter what you are, just how well you can drive, so Gary Rogers should just get a decent long term driver for when someone wants to snatch jb or gt. and yes, another good driver, Owen Kelly, very close to the leaders for the majority of the season, and in a VS commadore.

But, answering your question, yes, they should have more endurance races, everybody loves them, but then you would have teams complaining about the money, and seeing that it is the lower level, that wouldn't work.

The top level teams, such as say, Castrol, HRT, DJR, FTR, SBR and you know the rest, that would be unfair, again, the money would come into it, and look at how great they are in the top level, then it would just become the second series with the same content, maybe the only country to have that, but i dont think that tony cochrane would do something so stupid as to let that happen, then one or the other series would colapse for some reason.

I think lakeside both years was a great race, it just seems to brew great racing, contriversial maybe, but wow! why did they remove it!?

Hey, if the kiwis want to get going at this v8 stuff, why dont they, or didn't they start in konica!? or put some kiwi drivers in there!? even if they are not stand out, or actually blitz the field, at least that would give them a bit more coverage and thus more money to hit it in the big time!?

So....yeah!

[Shazza]

If level one teams aren't allowed in the Konica Series then they will just bankroll a smaller team (or two) to get the drivers they want in there. Might as well let them stay in it and save the BS.

[DAVID PATERSON]

I think the Konica series is a great thing. I think 5 sprint rounds is enough for their budgets and spread them apart a bit, it's easier on the hip pocket that way.

Get rid of the reverse grid bull****. It degrades and belittles the class.

I think the racing has actually been better than the Shell series.

I think the Bathurst race this year was brilliant. 30 laps was just right. As long as possible without needing a fuel stop or tyre change. Pitcrews cost big money in accomodation and transport and catering. Most of these guys have mates who volunteer to be pitcrews and looking after all of them is a big expense. If you have stops during the races you will need more crew and now if you have fuel stops you will need fireproof gear for your crew, that's nearly a grand per man. A huge expense at this level.

Not withstandinmg the above, a 100 lap race at Bathurst would give the teams a chance to sell the second seat and that could bring in soe good money and give another bloke a chance to race there without having to put his own team together and buy a car and all the required infrastructure.

The highlight for me of course, was WW dominating Bathurst.

[mtpanorama]

The Konica series has been great. The couple of meetings i've been to have been pretty good. The main problem with them is that unfortunately they are run by AVESCO, which means very limited support races. There is nothing worse than going to a race meeting and spending half your time sitting watching an empty track.

The Konica races have been excellent, but i'm not really with you David on the Bathurst race, it was quite boring really. It was Lucky that youre hero and Matty white decided to put on a bit of a show, because nothing else happened for thirty laps.

Level one teams will come and go i think in the series. I think if they want to enter a driver they should only be alowed to do 2 or 3 races, and not the whole series. It would give the privateers something to ce themselves to , but also let them win the championship. Afterall it was designed for the privateers.

I dont think they should go down the endurance event road. Mainly fot the same reasons as David has said (pit crews, equipment and cost), but also i dont think they will really ever havre the depth of feild to have a truely competitve enduro