Our idea of the ultimate vacation is this: following a group leader who isn’t afraid to keep a spirited pace, we spend all day driving fast sports cars on scenic roads (preferably closed to the public). At night, we sleep in comfortable hotels, but only after eating really good food. In the morning, we awake, caffeinate, and repeat the process for as many days as our budget allows.
The only time we’ve even come close to this was on an Edelweiss motorcycle tour, which we’d easily rate as the best vacation we’ve ever had. These days, we prefer four wheel to two, so the thought of entering an event like Porsche’s Targa Tasmania is definitely appealing to us.
Billed as “Australia’s premier road rally,” the event stretches over seven days, including five spent driving winding ribbons of asphalt in Tasmania. Some routes include closed-road Targa Tasmania stages, giving Australian Porsche owners the chance to drive bits of the historic event. We’re sure it’s a guaranteed good time, but, sadly, we don’t own a Porsche and we don’t live in Australia.
For now, the best we can do is offer up this video of the 2012 event. Think of it as a three-and-a-half-minute Australian vacation, without the long flight.
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
