Grant Denyer, well known TV personality from the Channel 7 Sunrise breakfast show and 17-year-old Cameron Waters made history when they teamed up to drive the V8 Supercar Shannons Mars Commodore, run by Kelly Racing in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 at the world famous Mount Panorama Circuit.
Denyer is no stranger to this testing track as this will be his third Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 start, having finished ninth on debut with Alex Davison at Dick Johnson Racing in 2006, followed by 15th place with Michael Caruso at WPS Racing in 2007. This weekend is his return to the V8 Supercars Championship after seriously injuring his back in 2008.
Teammate Cameron Williams, at 17, became the youngest ever driver to race at Bathurst, he has yet to hold a standard car licence being still on his L plates.
The most famous race on the Australian motorsport calendar, the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000, again lived up to its reputation as the ‘great race’ in 2011.
After 161 laps of the 6.2 kilometre, track the difference between the leading two V8 Supercars came down to just 0.29 seconds. It was the Toll Holden Racing Team pairing of Garth Tander and Nick Percat who crossed the line first closely followed by Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife. In Team Vodaphone.
Unfortunately the Denyer/Williams team suffered an altercation with a wall and whilst they did finish the Bathurst 1000 when the car crossed the finish line with Grant at the wheel. they were classified as Did Not Finish, having completed only 95 of 161 laps due to a lengthy pit stop to repair damage caused when Waters crashed early in his first drive.
In the days leading up to the big race, Denyer and his family lived onsite at the track in the middle of all the action in the comfort and luxury of a Winnebago Esperance Premium A Class motorhome provided by Winnebago for the occasion.
“Thanks to the team at Winnebago for an awesome weekend in an amazing Esperance Premium! I love racing at Bathurst but I’m not exactly your 2 man tent kind-of-guy. Being able to stretch out in comfort in the Esperance with its wide lounge room, made this a truly luxurious adventure for us.”
The Winnebago Esperance provided a home away from home for the Denyer family with large comfortable beds, gourmet kitchen, a bathroom with hot and cold running water and a flushing toilet and a quiet place for Grant to meditate on the race to come.
“If you’re planning your own great Australian family adventure but won’t camp under anything less than ‘5 stars’… you have to check out the huge Winnebago range. Why sacrifice comfort?”
Incidentally, Rick Kelly, the owner of Kelly Racing with his brother Todd and who was driving in the big race owns a Winnebago Menindee and can vouch for what Grant is saying, it’s the only way to travel.
