In a few short weeks, Canberra's Josh Fife will finally have a roof over his head.
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For a racer who has spent all his career exposed to the elements in a racing kart, the transition to a Commodore V8 Supercar marks the next step forward in a promising career.
The 18-year-old emerging star has got his first break in tin-top racing with the Albury-based Brad Jones Racing. He will race in the Super3 Series, the third tier of V8 Supercars, alongside team-mate New Zealand-born Melinda Stewart, who is the same age and also came up through karting.
Fife will be one of 10 drivers making their debut in the series which will start at Victoria's Phillip Island this weekend, then travel to Winton in Victoria in May, Queensland raceway in July, the new Tailem Bend raceway in South Australia in August, and then Sandown raceway, in Victoria in late September.
Conceived as a development series, Super3 will have a record 25-car field for the opening round and although Fife is accustomed to racing in close company, it's the first time he will do so with the protection of doors and a rollcage.
"I'm driving the ex-Jason Richards Holden Commodore so it's a great car with some previous wins in V8 Supercars," Fife said.
He visited the challenging Phillip Island grand prix circuit, south of Melbourne, two weeks ago and spent a full test day in the Commodore.
"It rained early in the day but then dried out in the afternoon so I had the chance to try the car in different conditions which is important for race day," Fife said.
The first-year apprentice plumber and gas-fitter is a two-time Australian karting champion in his category and raced for three months overseas last year with an Italian karting team based near Bergamo, which he said was "an amazing experience".
"Kart racing is huge in Europe and super-competitive and because I was there during the winter, there were some Formula One regulars turning up to do some practice laps to keep themselves sharp before their season began," he said.
"To give you an idea, you would have 30 karts all qualifying with 0.5 of a second. It's just full-on. And they race in all weather. One day it was snowing and they still raced."
Fife said his transition to a big and heavy V8 Supercar from a tiny, featherweight kart which sits your rear end just millimetres off the track was not as dramatic a shift as he'd anticipated.
"You make the mental adjustments pretty quickly but the speeds are much higher, with the car pulling 270km/h down the Phillip Island straight," he said.
"The weight transfer in the car is probably the most notable thing. There's more mass moving around as you brake and accelerate so it's just getting a good feel for that balance."
Team manager Brad Jones said he had been keeping a close eye on the young Canberra kart racer for some time and thinks he has what it takes to succeed.
"I've been watching Josh for a while. He's quick, and is a fast learner," Jones said. "It's a great way to show you have what it takes."
