WHILE Shane van Gisbergen and his Triple Eight crew were hunting for speed yesterday, they may have made important progress in another department.
That being the mission to have the three-time champion finally start to feel more comfortable in his #97 Gen3 Camaro.
Ergonomics were a major talking point last year, with redesigns required to make cockpits driver-friendly.
Even still, van Gisbergen has reported a less than ideal experience to date, leading to him now running a new seat.
“We had to make a new seat because my legs keep cramping, the way you have to sit,” van Gisbergen said during a mid-season test at Queensland Raceway.
“I’m kind of sitting all funky to try to get comfortable.”
There was a similar type of focus for van Gisbergen’s co-driver Richie Stanaway, who is significantly shorter than his compatriot.
“The main thing for me was just getting comfortable in the car with a proper seat insert, because when I drove at the pre-season test in Sydney and the day in February I didn’t have a seat insert,” he said.
“So it’s actually been fitted into the car properly now (which) is a good feeling and just to check that off the list.
“Driving with Shane, I was a bit anxious that I would be very compromised on my position but luckily with the sliding pedal box in the new car I can basically get exactly how I want to sit in the car.”
Van Gisbergen is expecting the Darwin sun to provide a different kind of discomfort in a fortnight’s time at Hidden Valley, sparking him to make light of his Newcastle disqualification.
“It’s going to be hot as hell in those cars so yeah, I guess we have got to put the coolbox in the right place,” he said.
Van Gisbergen led home Broc Feeney in a one-two at Race 1 of the season, only for both to be excluded due to a breach of the driver cooling regulations.
Matt Stone Racing rookie Cameron Hill noted heat had been a factor in their QR program yesterday.
“In preparation for Darwin, we have been running without the coolsuit today to try and expose ourselves to the heat,” he said.
The Darwin Triple Crown will be held on June 16-18 with the entire field to run indigenous-themed liveries.
