A two-man team of GTA lawyers is racing in this year’s Targa Newfoundland, a week-long, 2,200-kilometre rally across the island running from September 11 to 18. We’re following Dean Novak and Rob Hansen’s journey here at lawandstyle.ca, and posting updates from the racers throughout the week.
You can also check out background info about Dean and Rob’s race team, and donate to their fundraising effort (a friendly competition with a team of racer-bankers to see who can raise the most money.
September 16:
Rob: “The cars are fixed! We had a power issue with H1 (Law) that we temporarily fixed by buying a second battery. We also convinced the owner of the Clarenville Napa Auto Parts store to get out of bed at 11 p.m. last night and drive down to his store to see if he had an alternator for us — no luck. So now we carry two batteries in the car and swap them out when our speedometer looks like it is possessed. H2 (Investment Banking) also had a power issue — lost alternator tensioning bolt on a rough stage. The guys from New Jersey in the yellow BMW M3 happened to have a replacement for us. Sweet. M3 drivers are the best.
“As the week progresses, the specified time window within which you have to cross the finish line narrows — from 20 seconds within the “target” time on the first day to three seconds on Friday. Outside those windows, and you get penalty minutes, and the car with the fewest penalty minutes wins. It’s kind of like golf (but a bit more dangerous). Also part of the “fun” of the Targa GT class race is calculating the target time. The route books only provide distance intervals and average speeds. Nerdy, but fun.
“We began the day with a 135 km transit stage. Then two fast 24 km competitive stages (Boat Harbour & Petite Forte) to start the fun — with breakfast burritos from a BBQ beside the ocean in between the stages. After that, we did a short and slow stage (Mooring Cove) that was difficult… really tough to slow your brain down after a fast stage. But we managed to hit our target times.
“Then things got crazy. Six stages with significant in-town roads. Lots of slipping, sliding and spinning around tight corners in tiny villages. Think driving around the alleyways in the financial district in Toronto at 130 km/h. The red Porsche behind H1 crossed the finish line of one stage with red caution tape wrapped around it (looked a bit like a Christmas present). Many corners were missed by our competition. But the Hammerheads were (almost) perfect. Rob was navigating a competitive stage today and Dean launched the car so hard that he flew into the timers and rally computer and cleared them all by accident — not good. Despite “flying blind,” H1 managed to zero out the stage. Luck and great estimates of time, speed and distance. But mostly luck!
“The day’s results just in: H2 (Investment Banking) is in first and H1 (Law) is in third going into the last day. Not bad for Targa newbies!”
Read older updates here.