Sicily's Targa Florio events certainly featured the factory teams and top drivers of the day. However, the large entry fields were primarily local and visiting adventurers competing in their own daily drivers.

Bambina will also attract many top Targa teams. Nevertheless, entering Targa Canada West is very accessible for all levels of experience. Car-wise, your daily driver will do. You and your co-driver (or navigator) each need to be 16 years or older and have valid civilian driver's licenses. Motorsport approved helmets are required. (An intercom system between the helmets is highly recommended, especially if your car is loud inside).

No. Motorsport safety is paramount in the modern Targas. The TCW competition is about both pace and timing accuracy. In each of the six Speed Classes, there is an average speed to target over the competition stage, and maximum and minimum instantaneous speeds allowed.

Targa School on May 23rd will instruct you towards a safe and fun competition on May 24th. For those just starting out in motorsport, your Speed Class will emphasis timing accuracy, and de-emphasize a rapid pace. The twisty roads will be challenging, but keep speeds relatively low.

The one-day Bambina format is a great way to decide if the Targa-style of event in right for you. The faster of the six Classes your team proposes to compete in, the more safety equipment the Driving Team and the car are required to present. As well, the access to the faster Classes is restricted by the type, degree, and chronology of motorsport experience your Driving Team possesses.

(Driving around the same race track lap-after-lap is a very different challenge from competing against the clock across stretches of windy roads you have never seen before. The ability to work with a co-driver/navigator calling out instructions from a Route Book is also an acquired skill).

Assuming you don't already have the requisite gear and car, there are competition shops and competition outfitters keen to help you along buying/building your own. Some even offer short-term lease options from their in-house fleet of competition cars, competition equipment, and support crews, (called appropriately, "arrive-and-drive").

Then if you don't have the requisite motorsport experience, you'll need that too. There are any number of clubs, tracks, schools, and other business models through which you can access more motorsport experience. Prior Targa competition is the most applicable.

Cars end up in any given Speed Classes by virtue of:
- the safety equipment of the car and Driving Team
- the Driving Team's past motorsport experience
- the expected pace potential of the car
- the pace the Driving Team are comfortable at.

So all the cars in a given class are there for legitimate reasons, and they are all trying to go EXACTLY THE SAME AVERAGE SPEED. The entries with the best teamwork between the driver and co-driver/ navigator will have the most success. The newer or more modified vehicles have no inherent advantage.

Our experience in Targas around the globe indicates experienced competitors in a near-stock Mazda Miata, BMW E30, or Porsche 944 run competition stages all day long in the 95-110 kph average range, (Class 1-2-3). You may wish to benchmark off this estimate.

Another benchmark is lap times at Nurburgring (Nordschleife circuit). Various websites record best times: Nordschleife.no, bridgetogantry.com. We estimate TCW Class 6 winners will lap faster than 8 minutes....Class 5, faster than 8 minutes 30 seconds.....Class 4, faster than 9 minutes.

If spending quality time with a spouse/ child/parent/sibling/best man/ friend/ business partner is on your "to do" list-it is tough to beat a Targa as a memorable life experience. You're also assured of encountering other like-minded driver /co-driver pairings at the Event.

If you are having trouble finding a co-driver, there will be experienced and would-be co-drivers looking for the opportunity to compete in Targa Canada West. Contact our offices, or check out forums such as at www.specialstage.com

Targa Canada West has an extensive website, as do the other Targa events in Tasmania, New Zealand, and Newfoundland. Sign up for each Targa's newsletter. Or, give TCW's 1-250-505-5112 a call and see if you can stump us with a question.

Volunteering at a Targa event is another great way to learn more about this exciting form of motorsport, and master new skills. It is the most cost friendly Targa experience, and you'll meet a bunch of like-minded people who often become life-long friends!