Veterans storm Island again
It was a case of déjà vu at Phillip Island for the 2011 L&H 500, as Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife stormed to their second consecutive victory at the event – their third consecutive win when paired together at the endurance events.
The win moves Lowndes closer to teammate Jamie Whincup in the points standings, but Whincup limited the damage with second place, as pole-man Will Davison and co-driver Luke Youlden completed the podium.
It was a surprisingly uneventful race for an enduro, with no retirements amongst the 28 entries and no major incidents to report. Garth Tander and young co-driver Nick Percat provided a lot of the entertainment, storming from the back of the pack following gearbox problems at the start to grab fourth place by race’s end. The place was stolen on the finish line from Shane van Gisbergen, who was at one point challenging for the lead but suffered tyre issues.
It was a great weekend for the fans as Phillip Island remarkably turned on a weekend of beautiful sunshine and none of the cold, wet and wintery weather it’s renowned for. One fan was heard to comment, “This isn’t Phillip Island, surely?” But it was. And a healthy crowd made the most of it on Sunday. The XXXX GOLD retreat overlooking the start-finish line and pits proved a popular vantage point all weekend, as fans swarmed the surrounding merchandise area and grabbed a spot to watch the frantic activity across the way in the pits.
Such was the weather that the local wildlife got in on the act, with three different species of animals joining the fun on track over the weekend. On Friday, Mark Winterbottom had an encounter with a local hare. Sadly, the little fella didn’t make it to see the race! Within the race a pair of geese got a bit too close to the action caused the first and only safety car period of the race, while a local kangaroo made a late-race dash on track.
There could be more kangaroo intrusions at the next event on the calendar, the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 – the big one. While Bathurst tends to throw-up so many variables, including the odd kangaroo, it’s hard to look past the Lowndes-Skaife combination as the overwhelming favourites.
