AROCA takes another sprint to the Island

Friday 03 July, 2020

Phillip Island plays host the AROCA Phillip Island Sprint.

The Victorian section of Alfa Romeo Owners Club of Australia (AROCA) will be running another supersprint this weekend after a successful return to action last month.

Taking place at Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit, the club’s second event since COVID-19 restrictions were eased is expecting to have more participants than last month, with all almost 100 entrants confirmed to compete in the supersprint.

Last month’s event for the club took place at Winton Raceway and saw Paul Ledwith secure the win after posting the fastest time out of 80 drivers, just one second ahead of the second placed Les Bone.

Now with the club having already run an event using the Motorsport Australia Return to Race protocols, Assistant Clerk of Course Colin Edwards believes they are ready for an increase of competitors due to their prior experience.

As part of Motorsport Australia’s ongoing changes to event restrictions, it is important to note that this weekend’s event will not allow any competitors living in the recently declared Victorian postcode hotspots to compete.

“The event we ran a few weeks ago was challenging with all the requirements we needed to make, but it was just great that it happened in the current climate we find ourselves in,” Edwards said.

“We had about 80 entrants last week and we felt everyone did the right thing. There were hand sanitiser stations everywhere and everyone practiced the correct behaviour which made it easier to run.

“The Motorsport Australia Return to Race guidelines have a clear policy for us to run by. You read the document and put all those things in place. It helps that there is a policy because you know what to do and how. It’s a good set of guidelines that makes life easier.

“It was a bit weird to not have our traditional Drivers’ Briefing, but we emailed out the reggs in the lead up and were really strict in people reading them before they attended.

“Phillip Island is a different ball game compared to Winton because it’s logistically more challenging, but I am confident that we can do the same job, if not better, than we did there.

“You have a bit a recipe about what you need to do to make sure it’s all good. It’s a case of rehashing 80 percent of what previously worked and just tweaking a few things to match the new venue.”

Like the round at Winton in June, the competitors will be split into different groups and get multiple runs around the famous circuit in a bid to post their fastest time.

With a number of the club’s core regulars to make a large portion of this weekend’s entries, Edwards was confident it’s the participants who define whether an event is successful or not – especially in times like this.

“It’s a matter of trust and having faith in the people coming will do the right thing. All the officials and competitors know what’s going on around the world, so what we ask of them shouldn’t be a surprise,” Edwards added.

“The good thing is that we are dealing with people who are a lot more disciplined compared to the general public. Like most events, all attendees want to be there and play their part in making sure we can continue racing.

“Our officials are accredited. Our competitors are licensed and know how to abide by supp reggs, so we have a little more confidence that we can continue without issues.”

The AROCA Phillip Island Sprint takes place at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on Sunday 5 July.