New King of the Hill crowned

KNYSNA NEWS - Desmond Gutzeit (senior) is the new Jaquar Simola King of the Hill following the 1,9km race in Knysna on Saturday, May 16 and Sunday May 17.

In his 2006 Nissan GTR R32, Gutzeit uncrowned Franco Scribante by setting the new King of the Hill record at 40,148 seconds. Scribante's previous record, set in a 1970 Chevron B19 in 2014, was 41,159 seconds.

On Saturday morning, it was already clear that the heat was on when, in the practice rounds, both Gutzeit and his son, Jade Gutzeit (in his Mitsubishi Evo 7) raced faster up the hill than Scribante's record. However, these times did not count as new records and only served as motivation in the build-up to the final race record times.

After four practice rounds and four qualifying races the contestants for the final King of the Hill shootout were Scribante in the same record-setting Ford with his best qualifying time of 41, 650, Desmond Gutzeit (40,210), Jade Gutzeit (41,366), Shane Gutzeit (43,335), Darron Gutmanz (42,098 seconds in a 2008 Nissan GTR), Sav Gualtieri (42,316 seconds in a BMW 335i), Craig A Czank (44,237 seconds in a Nissan GTR 35), Mohammed Dangor (43,817 seconds in a Nissan RB26 R34GTR V-Spec), Willie Hepburn (44,348 seconds in an Opel Chev Record) and Duane Galloway (44,182 seconds in a Nissan GTR R32).

Everything were set for a Desmond and Jade Gutzeit's battle for top honours. Jade however had a nightmare start and even the commentators announced that his take-off was not good enough for the podium. Less than four minutes earlier, his father had already set a new record time.

"It was a fantastic weekend, and I thoroughly enjoyed it," Desmond said at the winner’s podium. "We set out to win this event after coming so close last year, and I'm really glad we achieved our goal. My crew did an amazing job with the car, and I have to thank the organisers for putting a splendid event together."

The Gutzeits are already looking forward to the 2016 event. "I'm not sure if I can go any faster, but next year we'll definitely try break the 40-second barrier," he said confidently.

The top ten competitors were:
1. Desmond Gutzeit (40,148).
2. Sav Gualtieri (41,659).
3. Darron Gudmanz (41,763).
4. Franco Scribante (42,015).
5. Shane Gutzeit (42,983).
6. Craig A Czank (43,017).
7. Jade Gutzeit (44,173).
8. Mohamed Dangor (44,320).
9. Duane Galloway (44,325).

10. Willie Hepburn (44,790).

In the class final race, Class A caters for road cars, while class B hosts saloon-type race cars. Class C consists of single-seater and sports racing cars. The best times were set as follows (class, driver, time, car):

A3, Wynand Vlok, 45,849, Mitsubishi Evo 7.
A4, Geoff Mortimer, 47,178, Nissan 350Z.
A5, Quinsley Sale, 44,447, Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R.
A6, Jacques du Plessis, 50,768, Toyota Conquest.
A7, Johann Zulch, 56,234, BMW 325iM.
A8, Greg Parton, 45,676, Lamborghini Aventador.
A9, Ernst Du Preez, 45,713, McLaren 650i.
B1, Jade Gutzeit, 41,962, Mitsubishi Evo 7.
B2, Desmond Gutzeit, 40,266, Nissan GTR R32.
B3, Thouca Mechanicos, 45,066, Mercedes Benz 55.
B4, Nico Van Rensburg, 54,923, Volkswagen Scirocco Mk1.
B5, Pieter Zeelie, 45,698, Lotus Exige.
B6, Willie Hepburn, 44,070, Opel Rekord.
C1, Donny Lamola, 50,237, Mygale Formula Ford.
C2, Franco Scribante, 41,891, Chevron B19.
C3, Arnold Klimke, 47,975, Lotus 7 Replica.
C4, Mike Verrier, 45,797, Reynard Single Seater.

C5, Michael Forsyth, 57.727, AC Cobra Race Car.

Charles Arton is celebrating his first place for clocking the fastest time of 45,894 seconds in the Classic Car Friday race. Arton drove a 1,6 litre four-cylinder Ford DBA. In the second place in a time of 46,051 was Scribante in a 1974 2,8 litre sic-cylinder Porsche Carrera RSR. Ross Lazarus was third in a time of 47,390 with his 1965 Ford GT 40 with a 5,8 litre, eight-cylinder engine.

Arton, Scribante and Lazarus were three of nine competitors racing in the final of Classic Car Friday. The others were Antony Ashley (4th - 48,715 in a Lotus 7)), Brent Watts (5th - 49,186 in a Porsche 911 RSR), Jan Vosloo (6th - 52,936 in a Porsche 911 RS), Peter Lindenberg (7th - 54,157 in a Ford Fairlane), Gavin Rooke (8th - 54,736 in a Porsche 911) and Malcolm Uytenbogaardt (9th - 55,226 in a Sunbeam Tiger).

Watch a video below: