Tony Pond, with co-driver Rob Arthur, on the 1983 Tour de Course; they finished 6th overall. The rally was won by the duo of Markku Alén & Ilkka Kivimäkiin in the Martini Racing Lancia 037 Rally.
Showing posts with label Tony Pond. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tony Pond. Show all posts
24 June 2015
Tour de Corse - Rallye de France, 5th-7th May 1983
Photo by Migtao.
Tony Pond, with co-driver Rob Arthur, on the 1983 Tour de Course; they finished 6th overall. The rally was won by the duo of Markku Alén & Ilkka Kivimäkiin in the Martini Racing Lancia 037 Rally.
Tony Pond, with co-driver Rob Arthur, on the 1983 Tour de Course; they finished 6th overall. The rally was won by the duo of Markku Alén & Ilkka Kivimäkiin in the Martini Racing Lancia 037 Rally.
18 June 2014
Isle Of Man TT, 6th June 1990
The 800th post on The Amazo Effect
On 6 June 1990 Tony Pond completed the first ever lap of the famous Isle Of Man TT motorcycle course at an average of over 100mph in a car - a Rover 827i Vitesse, standard apart from a safety harness, a fire extinguisher and racing tyres.
Back in 1988, Pond missed the 100mph average by a mere six seconds, but he returned with an ‘unmodified’ Rover Vitesse in 1990 and successfully beat the magical target; the actual average being 102.19mph with a lap time of 22 minutes 9.1 seconds. Although his in-car commentary is dead-pan, listening to what he says is riveting, giving the viewer a true insight into a driving genius’ mindset.
As a marketing effort, the 100mph lap was masterful, although Rover’s assertion that the car was standard was I feel stretching it a little bit. Mind you, even if the exhaust - which apparently made the Vitesse sound like a Honda NSX - wasn't standard and might have added a little power, it doesn't distract from the scale of this achievement in a car that was never really renowned for its agile handling.
The record stood until 2011, when British rally driver Mark Higgins in a standard Subaru WRX STI set an average speed of 115.3mph with a lap time of 19 minutes 37.4 seconds.
- Mr Fabulous
On 6 June 1990 Tony Pond completed the first ever lap of the famous Isle Of Man TT motorcycle course at an average of over 100mph in a car - a Rover 827i Vitesse, standard apart from a safety harness, a fire extinguisher and racing tyres.
Back in 1988, Pond missed the 100mph average by a mere six seconds, but he returned with an ‘unmodified’ Rover Vitesse in 1990 and successfully beat the magical target; the actual average being 102.19mph with a lap time of 22 minutes 9.1 seconds. Although his in-car commentary is dead-pan, listening to what he says is riveting, giving the viewer a true insight into a driving genius’ mindset.
As a marketing effort, the 100mph lap was masterful, although Rover’s assertion that the car was standard was I feel stretching it a little bit. Mind you, even if the exhaust - which apparently made the Vitesse sound like a Honda NSX - wasn't standard and might have added a little power, it doesn't distract from the scale of this achievement in a car that was never really renowned for its agile handling.
The record stood until 2011, when British rally driver Mark Higgins in a standard Subaru WRX STI set an average speed of 115.3mph with a lap time of 19 minutes 37.4 seconds.
- Mr Fabulous
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