[PHOTOS] Trackside at the Creek: Australian GT Round 3

I've been a bit lax with my love of Motorsport for a while now... I forget to watch the F1 races when they're broadcast, don't pay much attention to the V8s, and I haven't been out to a racetrack for years. When I'd heard that an old friend of mine, Formula 3 Champion Peter Hackett was out at Eastern Creek to put his brand-new Mercedes AMG SLS GT3 through it's paces, I knew I had to get out there and see it.

And so, reasonably early on the 29th of May, hiJacker and I jumped in the car and made our way our to Eastern Creek International Raceway. It was cold, but amazing, as a day at the track always is. There's something about the combination of it all; the symphony of 20-odd engine notes, perfectly choreographed, as they rev and purr, and the smell of high-octane fuel that gets your heart pumping before you can even see the asphalt. If you've never had the chance to get out there, I recommend it, whatever the track. The Creek, as it's affectionately known to the locals, has some awesome vantage points, and plenty of visibility almost the entire way around the track, so make sure you've got your camera.

Pete finished 3rd overall for the weekend, after coming in underweight in the first race, but the car itself looked amazing as it weaved through the corners. He'd run a brilliant second race, however as the sun started to set, the rains came, and while it was light enough that standing in it was tolerable, it definitely changed things on the track. The Porsche's started to make their move, finding slightly more traction in the wet, and found second after second on each lap, creeping towards the front.

We watched the following race as well, the GT Challenge series, and it was tight, fast, and brutal. So brutal, in fact, that around 4 laps in, just over the bridge, we witnessed our first close up motorsport crash, when a Lamborghini Murcielago crunched into a Lotus, and headed straight for us.  Let me be the first to say, watching a crash on TV, or in a Racing game, is nothing like it when it happens 10 metres from where you're standing. You also realise that it doesn't take much for one to happen... The slightest miscorrection, in the wrong spot, at the wrong time, and you're not just trading paint, you're flying uncontrollably towards a concrete wall.

Thankfully, both drivers were mostly unharmed (though definitely visibly shaken), and I was impressed to see the driver of the Lotus make sure the other driver was alright, even helping him off the track and sitting with him till the medics arrived, in what was a commendable display of sportsmanship.

As we left the Creek for the day, I smiled, knowing that not only was it an awesome day out, but that had I rekindled my love of Motorsport as well... 

Round 4 of the Australian GT is in Townsville, QLD July 8-10, Round 5 in Phillip Island (Sep 2-4), Round 6 in Bathurst (Oct 6-9), and finishes it's 2011 season in Sandown (Nov 18-20).

For all the photos we captured on the day, click here.