Chunky’s Chatter July 2016 Now Available for Download

CSCA 2016 Round 4 by Mark and Annette Alexander

Catch up on all the Club Lotus Australia news in the July 2016 edition of Chunky’s Chatter, which is now available to download from the members’ page.

Features in this month’s mag include:

  • Lots of Shots from Retro Racefest
  • Mike Basquil Report on the AHOC CSCA Event at Wakefield
  • Something You’ve Always Wanted to Know: “Who was a CLA member in 1975?”
  • Get Ready for Kings and our Annual Concours
  • Mike Moore Gives Us the Latest Duratec Update

And much more! Enjoy Chunky’s lighthearted and sometimes irreverent monthly look at the world of Lotus.

Head to the members’ page to download your copy. And if you’re not a member already, have a browse around the site and hit up our membership page here to find out why you should be!

Image thanks to Mark and Annette Alexander

Lotus Photos & Report: CSCA 2016 Round 4 at Wakefield Park

CSCA 2016 Round 4 by Mark and Annette Alexander

The 24th and 25th of June were busy ones at Wakefield Park, with an excellent turnout of Lotuses making their way to Wakefield Park for a motorsport double header. Part two of the weekend’s motorsport saw us return to Wakefield Park for Round 4 of the 2016 CSCA series.

Enjoy this report by Mike Basquil and scroll on for photos thanks to Mark & Annette Alexander, and Paul Cooper.

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Ashton’s President’s Prattle for July, 2017

President's Prattle

Hello!

We have five important topics that I would like to present to you for dissection and, hopefully, discussion this month.

Topic Number One – Politics

I wish I could admit to being happier about that which is going on in the world politically at the moment, but to be honest I am a bit fed up by it all.

By the time you read this we will have voted in the next Australian government. With good fortune and a following wind, Rob Bryden will have secured a seat in the Senate for the Australian Motor Enthusiasts Party. If not, he has conducted a robust and remarkable campaign and I wish him well in the work he is doing to represent motorists in parliament.

Brexit, on the other hand, is a very different kettle of fish. And it’s one that both smells a bit like that kettle, and is going to carry on causing the UK significant pain for a long time to come. I can only watch from the sidelines and pray that the leavers get a workable plan together quick smart.

What happens in the US is anyone’s guess, but I really hope that they don’t stuff it up!

On to a Happier Note – Lotus 2017

Lotus 2017 plans are well up and running, which is great to see. If you’ve not booked your accommodation yet, get a shuffle on because the rooms at the George Kerford Hotel are booking up fast! Full details are available at www.lotus2017.com.

Celebrating the 60th Birthday of Lotus Elevens

The recent HSRCA Sydney Retro Racefest was a wonderful weekend. It was great to see so many familiar faces, and to see members of the Club out there on the track (Daniel Bando and Syd Reinhardt take a bow!).

And by hook and crook we managed to get six of the twelve Australian Lotus Elevens lined up in the sunshine, which was great fun. If you’ve not seen the photos, have a look on here on the site, and on our Facebook page here.

Personally, it was a great privilege to meet the other owners and to forge a close friendship with them over the weekend. I hope we can get together more often.

Simply Sports Cars

Simply Sports Cars very kindly sponsored our marquee at Retro Racefest, and brought along a lovely lineup of cars. These included the brand new Evora 400 which, having driven one in the UK recently, I can attest is a stunning motorcar – and it sounds like a real sports car too!

Since their appointment as the importer, the team at SSC have been very actively progressing their vision for the Lotus brand here in Australia, and at the Lotus Only Track Day on June 24th, they introduced their brand ambassador Grant Denyer (who’s not only a handy peddler but also a lovely bloke) and announced that they will be key sponsors for Targa High Country and Targa Tasmania.

Currently there are 15 Lotus cars entered in Targa High Country, so if you fancy joining in the fun, it should be a gas! I have entered the Eleven in the Tour category, in case you need a laugh. And, better yet, if you fancy being my navigator give me a bell!

We have not had such a strong and valuable relationship with a Lotus Distributor in Australia since the days of Geoghegans’ involvement. It is wonderful to see Simply Sports Cars’ enthusiasm for the brand, not to mention their immense technical excellence in supporting our cars!

Finally, on the Future of General Meetings

As I write this, I am waiting to hear back from Classic Throttle Shop (Rory’s been over at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the lucky chap) to confirm our July General Meeting, currently scheduled for Wednesday the 20th of July.

I can confirm that Bruce Mansell has kindly agreed to host us on Wednesday the 17th of August at his shed in Chatswood. Please mark both of these dates in your diaries, and come along to support the kind hosts of these events!

We recognize that with work and family commitments getting out of the house on a weekday evening (particularly in the middle of winter), and are hard at work developing a social meeting schedule that’s a better fit members’ daily lives in 2016. If these two occasions fail to achieve good representation, we will have to concede defeat and will focus on our monthly Tyre Kick and Coffee, to be held on the 17th for July, with intermittent social events throughout the year.

We will make that decision at the AGM, which will be held this year on Wednesday the 21st of September.

That’s about it for this month! Your committee is meeting on the 9th of July to confirm the next twelve months of activities. If you have anything that you would like added to the agenda, please drop me a line!

Otherwise I hope to see you out and about and, in the mean time, keep safe, upright and on the black stuff!

Pip pip,
Ashton.

Tales of Gathering Lotus Elevens, thanks to John Partridge

Having seen Ashton’s efforts to gather Australian Lotus Elevens for Sydney Retro Racefest, John Partridge recently got in contact to share some of his own stories, images and information about Eleven gatherings over the years. Along the way, he shows that our recent gathering may be even more special than we thought.

These are truly wonderful stories and images, so please take a moment to enjoy them. With sincere thanks to John!

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Chunky’s Chatter June 2016 Now Available for Download!

Chunkys Chatter June 2016

Catch up on all the Club Lotus Australia news in the June 2016 edition of Chunky’s Chatter, which is now available to download from the members’ page.

Features in this month’s mag include:

  • Ashton sends us a full report of his recent UK Jaunt
  • Dan Bando is interviewed by Seth Reinhardt
  • The Lotus Driving Academy opens in France, and what a circuit it is!
  • All the details for Lotus 2017
  • Classic Team Lotus again victorious at Monaco

And much more! Enjoy Chunky’s lighthearted and sometimes irreverent monthly look at the world of Lotus.

Head to the members’ page to download your copy. And if you’re not a member already, have a browse around the site and hit up our membership page here to find out why you should be!

President’s Prattle for June 2016

President's Prattle

Hi everyone,

I do hope you all survived the recent rather rough weather in tact, and that no garages were flooded or cars wrecked by the inclement weather.

Mrs R and I are just back from three weeks in the UK, where we took the good weather! Sorry about that, but it did mean we had three weeks of almost uninterrupted sunshine. Selfish, I know, but it meant we were able to have a lot of fun, much of it in the car.

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Lotuses Needed to Join Elevens and Simply Sports Cars Display at Sydney Retro Racefest

Lotus Evora 400 from Simply Sports Cars, Artarmon

Simply Sports Cars will bring the brand new Lotus Evora 400, the fastest road car Lotus has ever built, along to Sydney Retro Racefest over the 11th and 12th of June.

We have just a little more space in which to squeeze Lotuses at Sydney Retro Racefest over the 11th and 12th of June, and would love for you to join us!

Our display will feature what’s sure to be the largest gathering of Australian Elevens since their heyday in the ’60s.

Simply Sports Cars have also kindly joined the festivities and will bringing along not only one of the first Australian-delivered Evora 400s, but a selection of modern Lotuses as well. The Lotus Evora 400 is the fastest road car that Lotus has ever built, putting out 400 horsepower and capable of 0-100 km/hr in 4.1 seconds and a top speed of 300 km/hr. We can’t wait to spend some time with it in the flesh!

This leaves us room for another five cars, classic if possible, and we would love for those cars to come from the Club! You and your Lotus would be involved in the display over the 11th and 12th of June. To get involved, please contact Ashton at [email protected] or by text on +61 478 478 796.

Sydney Retro Racefest is coming up this Queen’s Birthday long weekend and will feature a packed weekend of historic motorsport at Sydney Motorsport Park starring a magnificent collection of historic sports and racing cars. On the racing side of the action, Club members Dan Bando, John Tarren, Rob Bryden and Syd Reinhardt will all be plying their motor racing craft over the weekend.

See you out there!