On Thursday October 15th, our friends at Rudi & Company, world renowned automotive restorer and former owner of Pacific Competition Developments, joined us for an exclusive look at the current progress of the Vancouver Island Motorsport Circuit. Joined by Rudi and his team were Pieter Baljet, local dealership owner, long-time race car pilot and team owner and Kees Nierop, former Race Car driver and current Porsche Canada Driving Instructor who was joined by his wife.
After an enjoyable drive to the Cowichan Valley, the amazing weather allowed us to inspect the progress of the track and allowed them the opportunity to meet with Chris Erb, owner and President of SupErb Construction, on site.
As you can see, the clubhouse walls are erect to the second level and the pit garages, the presentation room and the ground level layout of the building are all clearly visible.  It is also apparent that the views from the second floor club room and observation deck will be phenomenal.
The cars will be visible from corner 19 accelerating hard towards the start finish line as well as the gradual include to 11.5% thru corners 1, 2 and 3. The exhaust sounds and the sheer excitement will easily become more entertaining than any big screen provided within the clubhouse.
Kees, Pieter and Rudi all provided positive comments regarding the track which meant so much to us being that they have all raced on so many famous tracks around the world.  This track is extremely technical and no driver on the limit will have any time to rest.  Complex corner combinations and elevation changes will take the full concentration of the pilots and a very balanced car to get to the best lap times.
After touring the track, Pieter graciously invited us to a visit his “Man Cave and Garage” and to say the least, we were all in for a big surprise. The garage was filled with race and sports cars from the past, some carrying very famous driver names we all remember well it was nice to see Pieters passion for the sport. Who would have thought someone local could be so heavily involved in the racing scene in North America.  The tour of the Man Cave was followed by a nice catered dinner by Duncan’s best “Hudson on First”.  A special thank you to owners Andrea and Daniel Hudson for your time and personal touches.
We would also like to sincerely thank Pieter Baljet for his hospitality and insight into his life surrounded by fast cars and of course Rudi for making this all happen and to the guests of the day for joining us.