Karl Reindler
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6:00 AM Tue 17 January, 2012
Source: BigPond Sport
WEST Aussie Karl Reindler certainly captured plenty of attention last season- but not in the way he wanted - when images of his fiery crash at Barbagallo Raceway beamed around the world. The Fair Dinkum Sheds driver suffered superficial burns to his hands in the accident, but managed to compete at the following event at Winton just weeks later.
Testament to his dedication to fitness, his preparation for the Sydney Telstra 500 included competing in the opening triathlon of the WA season - which he promptly won.
Reindler is setting up home in Melbourne in the off-season, and tells BigPond Sport he has plenty new boxes to tick this year.
Championship Position: 25th
Best Result: 7th (Perth)
Best Qualifying: 5th (Ipswich)
What is your highlight of last season?
Saturday at Perth's Barbagallo Raceway was definitely the highlight for me, qualifying sixth and finishing seventh. The car was working well and it was a good solid day. To do it in front of my home crowd with all my family and friends there was pretty special.
What is your funniest moment from this season?
I was laughing in my helmet when I passed half the field in Abu Dhabi when the Safety Car was going so slow and I passed them by going through the pit lane! I made up 15 spots or something crazy! That was hilarious – and I was stoked about it at the time! Oh, and when James Moffat grabbed me by the helmet after the Sunday race in Hamilton. He didn’t think so, but I did!
What are you getting up to during the off-season break?
I have no desire to get on a plane, I'm sick of travelling! I'm moving to Melbourne before the season starts so I'm going to chill out with family and friends in Perth and make the most of the summer.
What was the race that got away from you this year?
At Sandown we were sitting just outside the top ten and knew we had a really strong car when the engine just died in pitlane. I went from 11th to 28th, so that was incredibly frustrating. Sunday at Barbagllo, for obvious reasons (referring to his fiery crash). (BJR teammates) Jason Bright went on to win the race, Jason Bargwanna was third and I was as quick as those two … but while they ended up on the podium I ended in hospital!
New Year’s Resolution?
To take my racing to the next level.
2012 Goal?
I'm going into my third full-time season and it's a pretty important one so my goal is to step it up a bit, to get more top ten results and get more aggressive on track.
2011 Rating out of 10?
Probably a 7.5 satisfaction level for the season, if you exclude mechanical dramas.
