Trucks are a rare sight in Targa Newfoundland other than as support vehicles with one distinct exception – a 1971 GMC C1500 street rod pickup truck that raced in 2014 and surprised everyone except the owner. It was the first truck to ever compete in the legendary rally.

The Targa Truck was built by a father and son from Toronto, Ontario – Martin and Mark Bovey from a tired stock pickup bought for $100.

“This 1971 GMC was truly a farm truck,” wrote Mark. “My high school friend’s grandfather bought it new in 1971. He traded it in for a new truck in 1986 to the dealership where my father managed the parts department. In 1986, my friend’s uncle bought it and drove to the local fertilizer and grain plant where he drove transport trucks. My mom worked as a grain accountant there almost her entire life. The truck was abandoned beside the fertilizer plant in 1987. My buddy and I were hired to paint the warehouse and had to have the truck moved to paint a wall. And in 1988, I found it sitting in our driveway. My dad had dragged it home to keep me out of trouble and have a simple truck to drive when I was 16.”

Once they were done with it, that badass truck packed a big punch with a 427-cubic-inch V-8, six-speed manual transmission, lowered suspension and fat tires.

According to a recent article in Car and Driver, when the Targa Newfoundland organizing committee put out a social media post saying that they’d never had a truck compete, Bovey responded with a tongue-in-cheek message: “I can scratch that itch.”

He didn’t just scratch it, he almost won the Classic Division that year, placing a respectable second with co-driver Miles Markovic behind Jack Rogers and C.J. Strupp in a 1965 Ford Mustang while beating a Porsche 911 and a Chevy Corvette. Co-driver Miles also wrote about their Targa adventure in The Globe and Mail newspaper: Targa Newfoundland: Part street race, part rally race, part insanity – The Globe and Mail. Bovey also took his creation to track days and autocross events as well as the legendary Mount Washington hill climb.

Mark explained in a post on Bring A Trailer how his street rod became a racing truck: “I started racing it on a dare. At the time I had drag raced it, land speed raced and autocross seemed like a hilarious thing to try. On my first few outings it really exceeded anyone’s expectations, myself included. It is giant, it is fun, it sounds incredible. Back then, when you showed up to an event with a truck, let alone a long bed, everyone knew you were there and everyone had strong opinions about it. Those strong opinions were fun to prove wrong. Functionally, the long wheelbase really helped with high speed stability. The events I like to do, like the Targa Newfoundland, are really rough and the wheelbase helped a lot. You could hammer on this thing exiting a corner, and at high speeds it is calm.”

After Targa, the race truck saw even more modifications. Carbon-fiber and steel body panels are mounted to a custom-fabricated tubular steel chassis that rides on a No Limit front suspension assembly, a three-link rear setup with a Watt’s linkage, adjustable coilovers, and 18” Forgeline wheels.

In 2019, a 427ci V8 was installed that features an LSX Block, a Callies rotating assembly, Wiseco forged pistons, Air Flow Research cylinder heads, an Aviad dry-sump lubrication system, and MoTeC engine management. The engine is backed by a Tranzilla T56 six-speed manual transmission, a Strange Engineering differential, and a Speedway Engineering full-floating rear axle. Additional equipment includes a Vibrant Performance exhaust system, a Radium fuel cell, a Wilwood hydraulic handbrake, AP Racing brake calipers, Hella LED headlights, racing seats, a MoTeC digital dashboard, and a fire suppression system. 

Mark has owned Targa Truck for 37 years but recently put it up for sale. “This truck has been a part of my life through a lot. Sad to see it go. My life is vastly different from when this was built, and I’m hopeful it will find a new home with someone who can use it as intended.”

You can read more about it here: Badass Targa Truck Is a Father-and-Son Project Now up for Auction, and here The old GMC pickup that took on the Targa Newfoundland as well as the listing on Bring A Trailer.

If it sells, perhaps the new owner will take another run at Targa.

Do you have a street rod, classic, or sports car and an itch to take on Targa Newfoundland? Click the red button below and let the fun begin.

Check the Rules and Regs page for more details on what is required for each division. If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

On Day 5 of Targa, teams will race through communities along Notre Dame Bay in Central Newfoundland. They’ll start the day in the former logging community of Glenwood on the Gander River, then proceed to stages in Bobby’s Cove, Pleasantview, Point Leamington, Leading Tickles and Glover’s Harbour before ending the day in Appleton. 

Glenwood, the second oldest inland community in Newfoundland, is located about 20 km from Gander. Glenwood is a playground for the outdoor adventurer. Surrounded by natural beauty, the town hugs the shoreline of the mighty Gander River and Gander Lake. The river is one of the world’s best Atlantic salmon fishing destinations. The vast boreal forest attracts hunters from far and wide. Nearby is Mount Peyton, a favourite attraction for tourists.

Natural beauty abounds in this area. For those who love the outdoors, Point Leamington has much to offer in the way of sport salmon fishing, boating, hiking, hunting, or snowmobiling in winter. For a relaxing drive “off the beaten path”, Point Leamington offers scenic views, relaxation and friendliness to all visitors. Local attractions include the marina and Rowsell’s Hiking Trail.

Leading Tickles  is a fishing community on the northeast coast of Newfoundland. Many of the residents work in the fish plant in the summer months. Local fishermen catch mainly cod, snow crab, and lobster, with some mackerel, herring, squid and capelin when regulations permit. Tourism is a big draw to this beautiful area in the summertime. The area boasts three beautiful beaches, hiking trails, and camping. Area cliffs and lookoffs provide views of whales as well as icebergs in spring and early summer. A tickle is a narrow saltwater strait, in case you were wondering. 

Glover’s Harbour, formerly known as Timble Tickles, was settled in the second half of the 19th century and has remained primarily a fishing village throughout its history. It’s famous as the Home of the Giant Squid. In 1878, a 55-foot-long giant squid washed ashore there and was subsequently recognised as a world record by Guinness. Glover’s Harbour has a small heritage centre and “life-sized” sculpture dedicated to the giant squid.

First settled in the late 1800s after a lumber mill started operations there, the Town of Appleton is located  on the Gander River. You can enjoy a beautiful sunset against the water as people fish or you may  see the dragon boats training. Running through the centre of Appleton is the Trans-Canada Trail, which you can walk, ski, snowmobile, or drive your ATV on depending on the season. The Riverfront Peace Park features artifacts and written histories from Appleton’s past including a four-metre piece of steel from the Twin Towers donated to the town for its role in taking in passengers from flights diverted after the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

Read more about these and all the other communities that host Targa here:

Winning any competitive division of the legendary Targa Newfoundland rally requires a combination of preparation, endurance, teamwork, concentration, and luck. Six gruelling days on the road covering 2000 km total distance and about 500 km of competitive stages puts every team and car to the test and winning typically comes down to mere seconds. Jim Kenzie, who has won Targa three times and also suffered DNFs, shares his wisdom.  

My usual “first piece of advice” for Targa newbies is to remember there are no prizes for the Indy 495, the 23 1/2 Hours of Le Mans, or the 4 1/2 days of Targa Newfoundland. Another way of phrasing the oldest cliché in racing: to finish first, first you must finish. Targa’s history is littered with cars crashing out on the afternoon of Day Five. We won one of OUR titles that way!

Finishing and success are sometimes about the car. Everybody knows you have to look after the machinery. Make the car as bullet-proof as you and your crew know how to make it. Bring critical spare parts with you. That’s doubly important if you’re driving something exotic or rare. You’re not going to find a Maserati dealer in Leading Tickles, Newfoundland, and Amazon.ca can only do so much. Nut-and-bolt and fluid levels checks every night are critical. Same goes for proper allocation and rotation of the six tires. Cleanliness is next to godliness, which also makes the scrutineers’ jobs easier. There’s no point in pissing those people off!

Sometimes it’s about the crew. That starts of course before you even leave home. What a lot of newcomers don’t understand, at least not fully, is the toll the stress of a week-long race has on the team. Both physical and mental. Not just on the driver and co-driver, but also on the service techs. Be as fit as you can be, which means starting some sort of fitness regime at least six months ahead of the event. Getting proper sleep during the week is critical for everyone, both for in-car and out-of-car team members. Yeah, that’s difficult; sometimes, an all-nighter is necessary. Been there, done that. Avoid alcohol and other “stimulants” during the week. Hold off on the celebrating until you’re on Water Street.

Sometimes it’s just knowing the rules! We won one of our titles because my co-driver Brian Bourbonniere knew the rules better than the “referees”!

Be REALLY nice to your CRO – Competitor Relations Officer. You might well need to rely on them at a critical juncture, and best to keep them on your side.

Likewise, be nice to the people of Newfoundland. If you have never been there before in a Targa or even on vacation (highly recommended, by the way) – you won’t believe how warm, friendly and welcoming Newfoundlanders can be. They are closing their roads so you can race on them! Would YOUR neighbours do the same in front of their houses? Yeah, you might not understand a word they’re saying once you get 100 klicks out of St. John’s (“Lard tunderin’ jaysus byes!”). Sure, you’ll find a few people who don’t want the event there. Be as civil as you can be, and don’t get into an argument with them, or remind them that Targa has brought millions of dollars to the province in gasoline sales, hotels, restaurants, etc. Yeah, tow trucks too. Again, been there…

Most important? ENJOY YOURSELF! It’s hard not to.

Jim wrote an auto/biography, In The Driver’s Seat, which includes a history of Targa Newfoundland. Find out more and order a copy here: https://www.facebook.com/jim.kenzie.

Check the Rules and Regs page for more details on what is required for each division. If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

Click the red button below and let the fun begin.

The year was 2009 and Targa attracted 60 teams and cars, including some heavy hitters, even Godzilla.

The team of Frank Sprongl and Rod Hendricksen became two-time Open Division champs in a 1983 Audi Quattro (see photos above and below). Sprongl, a renowned champion rally driver and car builder along with his brother Dan, is one of only a handful of drivers who have achieved Grand Master status in the Canadian Association of Rally Sport and a member of the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame. Hendricksen was also a Canadian Rally Championship winner as a co-driver.

Pairing with Nissan, legendary New Zealand IMSA racer Steve Millen and Mike Monticello from Road & Track magazine took first in the Modern Division in their modified, 620-hp 2009 Nissan GT-R, a car dubbed Godzilla.

TSN in Canada ran a Targa special you can view here. Speed TV (remember them?) aired a Targa show the following year.

Subaru Rally Team entered Targa with journalist Marc Lachapelle from The Car Guide magazine behind the wheel along with replacement co-driver and chief mechanic Stewart Hoo. They came second in Modern Division behind the GT-R and won the 2009 Churchill Motorsports International Team Trophy. Lachapelle, who ran Targa multiple times, wrote about the experience. Keith Tanner of Flyin’ Miata and a past Targa competitor also wrote blog posts about the rally.

In the Classic Division, Roy Hopkins and Adrienne Hughes made it three class wins in a row in a 1969 BMW 2002. Grand Touring was won by Ferdinand and Christoph Trauttmansdorff running a 1990 BMW 325i while Alan Kearley and Greg Martin in a 2004 Mazda 3 Sport GT took their second of what would become three titles in GT (unequipped).

Check the Rules and Regs page for details on what is required for each division. If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

Click the red button below and let the fun begin.

The second leg of the rally concludes in the twisty streets of the Town of Gander in Central Newfoundland. This is one of the favourite parts of the rally for competitors as they navigate the residential streets with hundreds of cheering spectators lining the course.

Gander was once known as the “Crossroads of the World” due to its perfectly positioned airport. Once the largest on earth, with runways big enough to land the space shuttle, it was a strategic location for refuelling and a bustling centre during wartime. Celebrities such as Frank Sinatra and world leaders including Fidel Castro stopped there.

The airport made this community the focal point for human kindness and generosity as highlighted in the hit Broadway play Come From Away. Gander’s airport hosted 38 planes, carrying about 6,600 passengers, after they were forced to land in Canadian airspace after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. The people of Gander and surrounding communities took them in and formed lasting bonds with these unexpected visitors. Come From Away is performed throughout the summer at the Joseph R. Smallwood Arts & Culture Centre.

Gander has a population of 12,000 people and is also a service centre to surrounding communities and approximately 80,000 people. The town is home to 9 Wing Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Gander, which includes 103 Search and Rescue Squadron. The North Atlantic Aviation Museum celebrates Gander’s rich aviation history by preserving and presenting stories and artifacts highlighting the town’s role in the development of Trans Atlantic Aviation.

The Silent Witness Memorial is located in a tranquil park dedicated to the memory of the 256 individuals from the U.S. 101st Airborne Division who lost their lives on December 12, 1985 in the Arrow Air Crash.

Gander has a number of restaurants and hotels to choose from including Jungle Jim’s, Rosie’s Restaurant and Bakery, Quality Hotel Gander,  Albatross Hotel and Sinbad’s Hotel. The town is also a perfect base to explore central Newfoundland.

Learn more

Whether you are a Targa veteran or new to the rally, the key to having a successful event lies in the preparation before you turn a wheel. Who better to give advice on that than automotive journalist, Targa co-founder and multiple winner Jim Kenzie. The original version of his article appeared in the Wheels section of the Toronto Star.

What kind of car can compete in the Targa Newfoundland rally?

Chances are if it has four wheels, we’ve seen its like in the 23 years of this unique-to-the-northern-and-western-hemispheres event.

There’s been everything from a 1938 Alfa Romeo Mille Miglia Spyder to a Citroen Traction Avant (the French gangster car), to a Mercedes-Benz S-Class Sedan, to the other end of the Mercedes-Benz model spectrum, a tiny little Smart car, to the more usual suspects like Porsche 911, Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Mini, Subaru WRX, Mitsubishi EVO. Even a 1971 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck entered one year.

How do you prepare a car for this gruelling six-day, 2000-plus km event?

If you are running in the Targa Tour division, you pretty much just have to pump up the tires and do the requisite calculations for average speed, etc. on your phone. In contrast, Grand Touring means installation of a rally trip computer which keeps track of your distances, times and speeds to a fraction of a click/second. (You also need a roll bar for safety in Grand Tour and Targa 1.)

Now, if you plan to run in the Targa 2 division, the high-speed category, it is a somewhat larger kettle of fish…

How much should you budget?

It’s sort of like the income tax form:

1. How much money do you have? $_____.__

2. Spend it.

Minimally, you have three sets of criteria to satisfy.

The first two — (a) Make it legal, and (b) Make it safe — are mandatory.

The third — (c) Make it competitive — well, that’s where it gets interesting.

I have known people who spent less than $20,000 to prepare a safe and legal Targa car. Competitive? Hardly. And that low cost level can be achieved only by doing a huge amount of the work yourself (assuming you know how) and enlisting friends and family as crew.

I have also known people who have put six figures into a Targa run, with none of those figures to the right of the decimal point.

In all cases, it was well worth it.

I wouldn’t tell you what the budget was for the 2014 Nissan Juke NISMO RS Turbo that Nissan Canada entered for me, even if I knew.

But through the words of Frank and Dan Sprongl of Four Star Motorsports in Georgetown, Ont., who have built and/or prepared all but one of my 14 Targa rides, I can at least outline what went on.

Said Frank, “We take all the stuff out, and put all the stuff back in.”

Okay, he didn’t exactly say “stuff,” but you catch my drift. And that jocular little summary greatly simplifies the detail that is involved.

By far the biggest component, both in cost and in time, is the roll cage. And this is not an area where you want to scrimp.

When I first met my co-driver, Brian Bourbonniere — my original co-driver in Year Three had fallen ill and four-time Nova Scotia champion navigator Bourbonniere jumped in to help — he looked at the car and said, “Oh, it’s a Sprongl cage. At least I’m unlikely to die!”

Frank and Dan were long-time and very successful competitors on the Canadian national rally scene and have built a lot of strong and successful cars. That gave Brian the confidence to climb in.

The first step in building the cage is “taking all the stuff out.” The doors, tailgate and windshield are removed, and the interior stripped.

Says Frank, “Every modern car has pretty similar crash structure. Through years of experience building these things — and seeing how they perform when something goes wrong on a rally — we have a pretty good idea of where to put the reinforcements.

“We use 4130 chrome-moly steel and have our own tube bender. We measure every piece and cut and weld them into place. It’s all about triangulation, putting the strength where it’s needed.”

Dan sourced some Sparco racing seats that were narrower than usual; neither Brian nor I am particularly broad of beam, so we fit nicely in them. These seats have big side panels on the upper back rests to protect the head against side impacts and roll-overs — been there, done that. Five-point harnesses complete the major safety pieces.

The TerraTrip rally computer was installed, then most of the interior was replaced — although the rear seat was removed and some trim bits sacrificed to fit the cage.

The finished car looked remarkably stock, apart from the cage and seats. We even kept the air conditioning, satellite radio and backup camera. Sure, several hundred kilograms of weight could have come out of the car, but some of those transit stages are long and hot.

But you can never be too thin, too rich, have too much horsepower or too good a suspension. So, for 2015, Dan built some adjustable suspension units, beefed up the brakes and re-jigged the intake and exhaust systems to give a few more ponies. Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires were our rubber of choice.

A test day at Toronto Motorsports Park showed that the car was indeed quicker, the brakes were epic, and it was much easier to drive hard. Compared to a Targa-bound Mitsubishi EVO IX which was also testing that day, we were giving away about 100 horsepower and two driven wheels — the Juke is front drive; it’s four-wheel drive — yet our lap times were only 2.5 seconds slower than the EVO.

Even with better go, better stop and better cornering, we weren’t able to add to the three Open Division championships we’ve racked up over the years.

But we think we gave a decent account of ourselves.

Jim wrote an auto/biography, In The Driver’s Seat, which includes a history of Targa Newfoundland. Find out more and order a copy here: https://www.facebook.com/jim.kenzie.

Check the Rules and Regs page for more details on what is required for each division. If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

Click the red button below and let the fun begin.

Targa Newfoundland is made up of four distinct divisions. There are three competitive divisions – Targa 1, Targa 2, and Grand Touring – and one non-competitive division, Targa Tour. Targa 1 and 2 divisions are further grouped by two-wheel and all-wheel-drive vehicles made before or after the year 2000.

Targa 1 is a competitive, timed event for cars with a roll bar. A base time is set for each stage with the goal to beat that time without any penalties. You are penalized for being slower than the base time for your class and road condition.

Targa 2 is a competitive, timed division for vehicles with full roll cages and has the highest speed limits of all divisions. As with Targa 1, the goal is to beat the base time for each stage without any penalties.

Grand Touring (GT) is a time, speed and distance (TSD) competition, also known as a navigational rally. The emphasis in the Grand Touring competition is on precision, not outright speed. The goal is to maintain an average speed throughout the stage and to arrive at the finish within an allowed time window.

Targa Tour is a non-timed, non-competitive motorsport adventure. It is a tour within Targa that is designed to allow the owners of sports, classic and exotic cars to drive them the way they were made to be driven without the stress of competition. Targa Tour covers the same stages as the competitive divisions but the runs are not timed and the speeds are set lower.

Check the Rules and Regs page for more details on what is required for each division. If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

Click the red button below and let the fun begin.

So, you’ve always dreamed of entering Targa Newfoundland but you’re not interested in competing against others. You just want to have fun with your car on the open road (and closed ones too!). Targa Tour is for you.

You’ll drive the same amazing stages as Targa 1 and 2 without racing the clock. It’s all about enjoying the drive, the adventure, the scenery and the experience. Mostly it’s about enjoying yourself and your car. And you still get to ignore the posted limits on the closed stages!

Kurt and Lu Penner, aka Team Jellybean, drove all the way from British Columbia to Newfoundland to experience the Tour. “Targa has been one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done,” says Kurt. “The roads that we’re running, the scenery, the people of Newfoundland … everything is just unbelievable. It has been a fantastic experience.”

Don Bray from PEI took part in the Tour last fall with his brother Frank from New Brunswick as the Bavarian Brothers. Don called it incredible fun and “one of the best driving experiences of my life. The driving was amazing; the scenery and the sights were amazing; and the people were amazing.”

What is Targa Tour?

The Targa Tour division is not a competition. It is a tour within Targa that is designed to allow the owners of sports, classic, and exotic cars to drive them the way they were made to be driven, within the limits prescribed by the event, but without the stress of competition.

What do I need to enter?

You need a road legal vehicle, a driver and co-driver, helmets, fire-resistant coveralls, and a healthy sense of adventure. Check the Rules and Regs page for more details.

If you have more questions, visit our FAQ and Event Info pages to learn more or contact us at info@targanfld.com.

Click the red button below and let the fun begin.