News from the Targa Team
We have been working hard over the last two months to deliver you some exciting innovations for Targa Tasmania next year and beyond. We have listened to your feedback, not only from this year but over a number of years in relation to the time it takes to get the event started in earnest, the time commitment to compete in the event, and that it was time for Targa Tasmania to return to the south with a full day of competition once again.
Tomorrow will see widespread Tasmanian media coverage in relation to these exciting innovations so I wanted to give you all the heads up pre-empting this coverage tomorrow.
We are very excited to announce that for the first time in Targa’s long and colourful history that next year’s event will start on the Monday starting on Monday 27th April. Yes, we have finally done ‘it’. We are going to use the west coast roads heading south on a weekday rather than a Sunday, which has always been the case. This change will enable us to finally start with the Prologue on the Monday. It means you can still arrive at the same time if you wish with Documentation and Scrutineering starting from Noon on Saturday 25th April and all day Sunday to enable you to still bring your car over Friday or Saturday night if you wish.
Added to this, the three early and easy to clean stages of the event will be run on the Monday to fill the day out and still give you a chance to ease into the event as normal. The day will now be known as Leg 1 rather than Leg 0. The next three days will be very similar to that of 2014 but the difficult base time stages will start from the first stage of the Northern Loop on the Tuesday. The East Coast Loop on Wednesday will revert back to its traditional clockwise route in preparation for the 25th Anniversary and the run out to Strahan on Thursday 30th April will include all of your favourites including the return of the full length 35k Riana stage.The field will then head south to Hobart over the normal stages including Mt. Arrowsmith and the field will arrive in Hobart on the Friday night 1st May to end what is now Leg 5.
Now it gets really exciting; Day 6 on 2nd May will see the return of the Southern Loop for the first time since 2007 and will include old favourites, Oyster Cove, Woodbridge, Cygnet and of course Longley. We have a few other big surprises in store for this day and will advise these as they are finalised in the weeks and months ahead.
Lastly, the Southern Loop will enable us to do what so many competitors ask for every year, and due to the long run down the west coast have been unable to deliver, and that is the Gala Presentation Dinner being held on the night of the last day. With a planned early afternoon official finish, the themed Gala Dinner will be held on a Saturday night for the first time in the events history. Perfect for those who wish to bring partners, family and friends along with meaning that everyone will be able to attend the dinner and still head home at their leisure on Sunday 3rd May or explore a bit of Hobart. This will see two days removed from the end of the event and encapsulate the whole event in a single working week for the first time, all this without compromising a stage or the endurance that Targa Tasmania is famous for.
In summary, the event looks like this;
Saturday 25th April- Documentation- Overnight Launceston
Sunday 26th April- Documentation- Drivers Briefing- Welcome Party- Overnight Launceston
Monday 27th April- Leg 1- George Town- Ceremonial Start- Expo- Overnight Launceston
Tuesday 28th April- Leg 2- Northern Loop- Overnight Launceston
Wednesday 29th April- Leg 3- East Coast Loop- Overnight Launceston
Thursday 30th April- Leg 4- Launceston to Strahan- Overnight Strahan
Friday 1st May- Leg 5- Strahan to Hobart- Overnight Hobart
Saturday 2nd May- Leg 6- Southern Loop- Official Finish- Gala Dinner- Overnight Hobart
Added to this, we have received approval to bring the 25th Anniversary Targa Tasmania forward by a week to hopefully have some warmer weather so will be held using the same overnight layout as 2015 and will start on Monday 18th April and finish on Saturday 23rd April 2016. A full list of event dates for the years ahead will be issued in the near future.
Hope you will agree that these are very exciting changes for Targa Tasmania that will see your time commitment to compete in the Ultimate Tarmac Rally reduced by two full days, which will help reduce costs as well giving you the opportunity to be home on Sunday.
