If the plans come to fruition, it will be in a very controlled environment and no racing as such. Rather, the event in whatever guise would be with controlled speeds and riders.
The idea originally started around 12 months prior when Superbike champion rider Robbie Phillis posed the question on social media about prospects of an event and who would be interested.
He was contacted by Bathurst Regional Council mayor Robert Taylor with the suggestion of a controlled non-race event and limits on numbers and riders with marshals at the front and rear and riding at good speed, certainly above 60kmh.
The response from Phillis’ social media posts for such an event were astounding.
“It went absolutely ballistic,” Taylor told Speedcafe.
Taylor then invited experience racers Jeff and Murray Sayle along and after a tour of the circuit they agreed that while racing was out of the question, a controlled event was viable.
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With the blessing of Peter Doyle from Motorcycling Australia for a recreational event, Taylor approached Greg Evans who runs Challenge Bathurst for some limited track time.
“Greg was very forthcoming, although we had to do some things,” explained Taylor.
“We were originally going to have some race bikes and a sidecar. But that would have put the onus back on Greg.
“So, we ran registered bikes, and the riders had to have NSW licences.”
Three time Superbike champion Shawn Giles rode at the front of the session along with the experienced Mick Muldoon and Stephen Woods who have all raced on the track. Taylor also brought along David Fisby, a track novice.
“We also brought along Tony Hynes, the track assessor from Motorcycling Australia and after 20 minutes the boys came in and we had a debrief,” Taylor added.
There are still some finer points to be sorted and the need for telemetry data to further assess the track was identified. Plans now lay with using a bike with telemetry for this purpose and finding a day to do it.
The idea was also discussed to have a third marshal in the middle of a pack of bikes to ensure strict control.
The ultimate goal is to get Motorcycling Australia approval and potentially integrate the event into Greg Evans’ Challenge Bathurst.
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