The best of times ... and the worst

HAMISH BIDWELL
"The best weekend of racing I've ever had" turned to despair for New Zealand V8 Supercar champion John McIntyre when his Hastings team's truck was destroyed in a blaze near Mercer on Sunday night.
Having begun his defence of the Parker Enzed New Zealand championship by winning two of the three races during the weekend's opening round at Pukekohe, McIntyre thought life couldn't get any better. Then the phone rang.
"I'd just gotten home and wondered who'd be calling me at 11 o'clock. I looked at the number and it was dad (Don) asking me if I had insurance," McIntyre said.
"The guys had just packed up all our gear in the truck and were driving back to Hastings. They'd gotten about half an hour out of Pukekohe when a motorist made it pretty clear that something was wrong and they pulled over.
"They went around to the back of the truck and could quickly see that it was on fire. By the time they could get the fire brigade out the there the whole thing was well under way.
"We'd just had the perfect weekend and scored almost every point available to us and then this happened. I just felt so bad for dad and our driver Grant Blackberry, having to stand at the back of the truck and watch everything go up in flames."
So how much did the Lodge Auto Centre-based team lose?
"Everything, except for the car," McIntyre said.
"Literally every other thing that we've built up over the team's 18-month history, apart from the car, was in that truck. All our spares, from panels and parts to gear boxes, tools and all the specialised parts we've built in the last year or so.
"All our signs, sponsor's boards, wheels, tyres, spare engine ... everything. I guess we can only be thankful that we don't have enough money for a big transporter, which means the car itself travels separately."
And also that McIntyre's answer to the question put to him by his father was "yes."
"We've got two weeks until the next round at Ruapuna, so while the guys are all working their butts off making sure the car will be ready, I'm taking care of the insurance," he said.
"It's a time thing, as much as money but if there was a problem with the insurance claim, then this would prove an enormous financial hit for us. The whole thing has ben a huge shock but I've been humbled by the support I've had from the other V8 teams and the way people, especially from Hawke's Bay, have rallied around.
"As is always the case with me, the glass is almost over-flowing, rather than half-full, and I know we'll be back on our feet and ready for Ruapuna."