Tim Slade aquaplaned in front of the field amid worsening conditions
Penrite Ford's shocking slide recorded at 213km/h, Slade dropped three spots
Kai Allen and Slade recovered to finish second in thrilling race
Tim Slade joked he needed to change his underpants after he "almost wrote the car off twice” amid challenging conditions at The Bend.
Veteran racer Slade partnered Kai Allen to second in a wet-dry AirTouch 500 at The Bend, which was dominated by the Chaz Mostert/Fabian Coulthard.
Slade pounced on a Turn 1 clash between Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison to streak away into a big lead. Slade led by as much as 17 seconds before he spun at Turn 1 amid worsening conditions.
The #26 Penrite Ford spin again in the second stint, losing the lead to Coulthard. Slade cycled back to the lead when Coulthard stopped, before the Safety Car took control of the race.
On the restart, Slade caught a massive aquaplane moment — recorded at 213km/h — on the pit straight, right in front of Jarrod Hughes’s Erebus Motorsport Camaro. Slade lost three spots, but carried on.
“I almost wrote the car off twice down the front straight, just aquaplaning. That was so scary,” Slade said after stepping out of the car.
“Two-thirds of the way down the straight you just touch the brake pedal and it does not slow. I did that twice and that was on the restart, and then the next lap after that was crazy."
When asked post-race if his heart rate had come down, Slade laughed: "Yeah it has, I haven't changed my underpants yet, though… still a bit smelly."
Fabian Coulthard, who won with Chaz Mostert, chimed in: "I reckon they'll be soiled.”
Slade replied: "Yeah, they are.”
Slade continued: “That was a pretty hairy moment. I honestly thought the car was toast after that.
“There was the snap and then the other way, and then there was the grass, and I thought, 'Oh, if I hit the grass, I'm in the fence anyway’.
“Actually did it the next lap as well.”
It was a first Supercars podium for Slade since the 2019 season finale in Newcastle. It was also a first enduro podium for both drivers.
However, through all the smiles and celebrations of the result, Slade’s memory of the day in the car was one he’d rather forget.
“When it's aquaplaning down the straight at 250km/h and you have zero control over what the car's doing, it’s pretty hairy, and especially when you're the first car as well.
“I speared off at Turn 1, and then it was nice to actually follow Fabs, being in his wheel tracks because it disperses a little bit of water. That was that.
“Was happy to get out and hand it over to Kai."
