Tim's the RX7 driver to watch

ROGER MORONEY
For 32-year-old circuit racing "rookie" Tim Forster of Hastings the plan was simple.
He and his father John, who bought the Pro7 Mazda RX7 racer earlier this year, would enjoy a season on the country's racetracks sharing the car.
Well that was the plan ... until the Taupo opening round of the eight-round series at Labour Weekend.
With nothing more in the race sense behind him than some kart outings when he was a kid, Tim went out and started putting in some eye-catching times at the fast new track.
"It all felt really good and I went okay in practice," was how Tim put it.
His father put it differently ... watching his son's ever-quickening times and effectively saying "here, you'll be doing the driving."
Tim's three race outings in the Pro7 class (for the older more classic RX7s and which runs alongside Pro7-Plus for later models) were impressive and he gradually improved his placings during the day.
He posted a 9th, then a 7th then a 6th, and while it's still early days he's eyeing up a top three spot if everything goes well at the second championship round, at Manfield, towards the end of the month.
Given it was his first time out on the big A1 GP track, the results led series promoter John Clunie to mark Tim as a driver to watch.
"He was immediately a stand-out performer, finishing the weekend leading the rookie driver category for first-season drivers, and that is something special."
Tim's reaction was "we were rapt."
Pro7 racing is fast, furious and very competitive as the cars are pretty well equal in performance.
Tim said while he was a "late entrant" in circuit racing he said the early years of karting experience along with years of driving rotary-powered cars set up up pretty well.
"I had rotaries since I was 18 through to when I was about 24, so I know them pretty well."
He said the handling and engine of the ex-Cushla Whetton car he was racing was good and that his mechanic "Pete" was still finding power and tweaking things such as braking and speed into corners.
"And I've got a bit more speed in me yet," he added with a laugh.
One thing that did not intimidate Tim was the occasional panel-clashing which went on in such a competitive series.
"In one of the races we were three wide and going 200km/h and no one was giving an inch ... it was great."
However, such ferocity meant that, as with several other teams, the boys had a bit of touch-up work to sort out before the next round.