The Toronto Star has a great account of the Targa Newfoundland race actually written by the winning MINI driver Jim Kenzie. Definitely worth a read:
Unlimited. You don’t have to read the rule book for the Targa Newfoundland car rally to understand what that means.
It means, run what you brung. No holds barred.
Bring on your 650 horsepower supercharged Mustang.
Bring on your 450 horsepower Hemi V8 Dodge Charger SRT8.
There are other classes, but Unlimited is the greatest challenge, so we entered our Mini-sponsored 2004 Cooper S with the John Cooper Works Edition package with its throbbing 208 horsepower in Unlimited, against all that might.
And we won!
I said two weeks ago that success in Targa goes not always to the swift, but to the durable, the lucky and the persistent.
Our strategy to enter what was supposed to be the fastest division in the event with one of the least modified cars in the field of 85 entries was based on the inexperience of the other teams who chose to run here.
You can read Jim’s full account of the race at the link below:
[ Not that I want to rub it in at all … but we won! ] Toronta Star
<p>“208 throbbing horsepower!”</p>
<p>I love it!</p>
<p>This brings a huge smile to my face!</p>
<p>Yahoooooooo!!!! Great news!</p>
<p>I am amazed at this car. It won the unlimited class. In stock form? Did I say amazing!?! Go, MINI!!</p>
<p>My friends know me as a MINI-obsessed enthusiast and I’ve had so much fun telling my other gear-head friends about how the factory-equipped+roll cage MINI Cooper S thrashing steroid-injected monsters with 2-3X the hp in the Targa Newfoundland Rally!</p>
<p>“The MINI outran the rally-trim 500 hp STi from the factory? Are you serious?” </p>
<p>LOVE IT!</p>
<p>What a great read. Total david-and-goliath. I wish they had more video available.</p>
<p>One 911 down, Bring on your Bugatti Veyron!</p>
<p>Anyone know if this was the only MINI entered into the race?</p>
<p>I would like to enquire if Jim Kenzie is still leading tours in Europe with great cars & laps of Nurburgring etc; we have 2 couples who would be interested. Yours truly, Don</p>