Tour Auto 2012, Follow Kevin Kivlochan here!

[TLegate]

Just had a text from France - they've WON!!!!!!!!! Time for a cuppa tea to celebrate

[aaron]

quote:Originally posted by TLegate
   
Just had a text from France - they've WON!!!!!!!!! Time for a cuppa tea to celebrate
   

   
   I am sure Shaun and Kevin will be drinking something stronger than tea tonight !!

[AC Ace Bristol]

.
   .
   
   Shaun  & Kevin  Car 201.. 644CGT
   
   
   CONGRATULATIONS !!.
   
   
    Flying the Flag In True AC Style:
   
   
   BLOODY WELL DONE
   
   Thank you Russ  and Nik for keeping us all informed of progress
   
   Keith..[]..[:p]..[]

[MkIV Lux]

Very vell done Shawn and Kevin.. after all previous years unfortunes...... now you're the greatest !!!
   
   Constant

[Chafford]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip3MXYLY1RQ&feature=related

[ACOCArch]

Excellent news! Brilliant win.

[aaron]

quote:Originally posted by Chafford
   

   
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip3MXYLY1RQ&feature=related
   
   

   
   This ones better.
   
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB3hA1cDkbM

[nikbj68]

Apologies that the last installments are somewhat belated, but, here are Russell`s updates from the last day.
   May I just say waht a fantastic job he has done with these, helping to bring to life an event that most of us couldn`t have access to!
   
   Final Day, Part 1. Unlucky for some….
   On the 4Km stage at Collias this morning Shaun and Kevin were unlucky to finish 13th with Ludovic Caron taking the stage victory once again. You didn’t think they were out of the race did you???
   
   The good news is that the top 13 cars were only split by ten seconds on this short stage. So even though Freeman’s AC Cobra  and Kohler’s Lotus Elan finished ahead of Shaun and Kevin there is no change at the top of the leader board and they go on to the final stage of the race at the Paul Ricard circuit with just over two minutes between them and the Kohler car in 2nd place.
   
   The 2nd , 3rd and 4th places on the podium will still be fought out this afternoon though as Philippe Giauque has steadily crept up the leader board over the last couple of days and now finds himself in 3rd place in the E Type – pushing the Freeman AC Cobra into 4th place by 25 seconds. Giauque is also only 16 seconds behind the Kohler Lotus Elan.
   
   1 – Lynn/Kivlochan – AC Cobra
   2 – Kohler/Laboisne – Lotus Elan 2m4s
   3 – Giauque/De Freundreich – Jaguar E Type 2m20s
   4 – Freeman/Freeman – AC Cobra – 2m45s
   5 – Koel/Koel – Porsche 911 3m17s
   
   Once again the fight continues to the Paul Ricard circuit and hopefully Mark Freeman can put himself back on the podium ahead of the E Type. I know all the AC owners and racers will be keeping a close eye on that battle.
   
   There is a feature on the Tour Auto website where they pretty much hand victory to Shaun and Kevin (barring a massive incident) but they are also keen to remind readers that it was in 2008 that Shaun found himself taking a 30 second penalty on the way to the Paul Ricard circuit that put him 2 seconds behind the Ludovic Caron AC Cobra. Having to throw everything at the race that afternoon eventually blew Shaun’s engine and Ludovic Caron romped home and eventually took his first Tour Auto victory.
   
   http://www.tourauto.com/fr/s53_course/s53p01_resume_etape.php?etape=48&course=131[/url" class="bbc_link" target="_blank">
   
   Ludovic Caron is out of the running this year down in 46th place but he is still winning stages and I’m sure he will still feature this afternoon. However, Shaun can relax a little on the race track this afternoon so I’m sure he will be putting his feet up and cruising round at a leisurely pace to preserve his lead safely.
   Then again….maybe not.
   Shaun doesn’t do relaxed or leisurely on the race track!!  Keep your fingers crossed!!

[nikbj68]

Final Day. Part 2.
   Hi everybody,
   
   Firstly let me tell you the initial big news of the day – after 4 attempts in the AC Cobra Shaun and Kevin have finally taken the spoils at the finishing line in Nice having been in the lead since the end of day one. Tense stuff!! They won in 2009 in the Ford GT40 but this is the first win behind the wheel of the Cobra after retiring three times in the lead in 2008, 2010 and 2011.
   
   I haven’t got any photos from today and they will probably appear on the Tour Auto website tomorrow but I’m sure they will be celebrating with a glass or two of bubbles.
   
   After a good morning session the cars moved on to the dreaded Paul Ricard circuit where Shaun killed the Cobra in 2008 trying to overhaul Ludovic Caron’s two second lead. Today it was a very different story. The cars completed 8 laps of the track and the top three cars were all Cobras – Merlin winning the stage from Caron and Pierre-Alain France in third. Shaun was 7th (39s) and Mark Freeman brought his Cobra in just one place down (43s).
   
   Damien Kohler finished just ahead of Shaun and Mark so retained his second place on the podium when all the cars crossed the line in Nice.
   
   The second big piece of news is that Philippe Giauque in the Jaguar E Type only completed two laps at Paul Ricard and so Mark & Duncan Freeman jumped into third place and onto the podium in Nice. I told you it was close and anything can happen in the Tour Auto.
   
   Great year for Cobras to dominate the race as it’s the 50th anniversary and if you want to see most of these AC Cobras in action then the Goodwood Revival is the place to be this year with a whole race dedicated to the Cobras like the Jaguar E Type race last year.
   
   Hopefully see some of you there in September!!
   
   Russ

[nikbj68]

Victory Celebrations!
   
   Hi everybody,
   I never said the Tour Auto website were quick to update but finally some photos of the last day and celebrations have appeared....You can download these in High Definition from the website if you like by clicking on the link under each photo:
   
   http://www.tourauto.com/fr/s10_phototheque/s10p01_phototheque.php?pg_cur=1 [edit from Nik: Remeber, version Francais only has the Hi-def link![end edit]
   Enjoy!! Russ
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   I had a message from Kevin too:
   "Nik, Thanks for the support, an incredibly tough event as you know.
   Almost 2500 Km of roads in a very noisy Cobra, hot  with lots of fumes all week and a total of 32 hours sleep in 7 days.  I am absolutely knackered, but with a great sense of achievement.
   Kev."
   I`m amazed he managed to even write that much!!! I think I`d be on oxygen after a battering like that, but I`d give anything for the opportunity to find out! []
   So.... what about next year then? []

[nikbj68]

quote:Originally posted by aaron:This ones better.
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB3hA1cDkbM

   And here are a couple more that are quite fun, Leaving Paris & 4 Cobras doing battle at Paul Ricard, AMAZING in-car footage! [8D][8D]

[cobham cobra]

A suggestion for Kevin at his next award ceremony http://www.wimp.com/brakinghard/