A V8 racetrack will fit in Santa’s sack

WHAT you really wanted for Christmas was your own private racecourse complete with four V8 Supercars.

This 18th-century Amsterdam Sled can be your flying machine of choice for less than $10,000.

LET’S have a clear, open and honest discussion. Come on. No one’s listening.

You aren’t happy with the beach towel, the Old Spice, the splayds, the Commonsense Cookery Book and the Love Song Dedications CD are you? No. Of course what you really wanted was your own private racecourse complete with four V8 Supercars, a skid pan, hill climb and dirt speedway track.

Not to make you feel bad but Santa did read Garry Willmington’s letter and he and his helpers plonked Garry’s dream down outside Marulan, a little town midway between Canberra and Sydney.

We love Garry because he was one of Australia’s best privateers. A privateer is a person who goes racing using mostly his own money and mechanical skills. He began racing at Sydney’s Amaroo and Oran parks in a Ford Anglia (everyone makes a mistake) then got a loan to buy John Goss’s Falcon.

After not finishing two races Garry went on to take a ninth in his third trip around Bathurst. For his 10th mountain climb Garry changed to a Toyota Sprinter with Bob Holden and won Class 3. Garry’s Sprinter was the only car in its class to finish, leaving the two Toyota factory entries by the side of the road.

The Willmington family is the sort of family that would prefer a racetrack in the back yard to a swimming pool, spa, cabana and shed. Natalie Willmington races dragsters, production cars and wins burnout comps. Son Brayden has been dirt racing since 13 and is on the national speedway circuit.

Anyway, I went down to Marulan last week to show Garry how to take one of his V8s around his very technical 1km circuit. Trickster that he is, Garry suggested I use a front-wheel drive Toyota because he said it was cheaper ($450 for the day) and because the track was super slippery. Torrential rain, flooding and oil dripping from gum trees will do that to a road.

Garry took one of his V8s ($350 for seven laps) out first to show me what he could do. He did OK but then it was time for the speed professor. Pulling out from pit lane in a car I had never driven, and which was only about 200kW less powerful than Garry’s Falcon, I was pretty confident. On the straight I knew his reputation would be in tatters. The Toyota did a few strange things on turn one, but by the time I got to the gum-tree-oiled part of the track the front started heading for the environmental display. Then the back swung around to give me a better view of the trees.

Garry also runs driver training at all levels. I have booked in for the January session (mdtc.com.au).

Talking of legends, our favourite V8 driver, Chris Pither, took fourth in this year’s Dunlop V8 Supercar Series. Chris had an enforced break from racing for a few years and, while he was looking for a podium, this was a great result.

Naturally Chris continues to be sponsored by our favourite beverage, Ice Break Coffee. Phil King says he prefers it to Grange. Sitting behind Chris is Parmalat (Ice Break’s owner) boss Craig Garvin. Being a Queenslander, Craig drinks his Ice Break only with a shot of Bundy OP.

Talking of the white bearded guy in the red kit, we can reveal that the same ride that Mr Claus used to drop off Garry’s racetrack and toys to millions of other good boys and girls is up for auction in March. This one-owner 18th-century Amsterdam Sled can be your flying machine of choice for less than $10,000. Said to be signed on the dash by SC himself, Bonhams is selling the sleigh with full service history, certificate of airworthiness, but no reindeers. In an off-the-record interview SC said he was trading up to a Toyota front-wheel drive sleigh for 20I5.