Rally driver crashes dad's car into sea

A rally driver was allowed to race his father's prized car on two conditions - he didn't come second or crash it.

But George Miedecke, 25, didn't finish at all when he lost control of the cherished vehicle and ploughed it into the sea.

Mr Miedecke was loaned the 1970 Ford Capri Perana after his racing car father, Andrew, pulled out of a competition after injuring his back.

But he drove the classic motor off the road on a tight corner at 80mph before hitting the ocean and colliding with a competitor's Subaru WRX STI which had crashed just moments earlier.

"It was a tight corner and obviously somehow we got it wrong," said Mr Miedecke, who was unhurt along with co-driver Daniel Willson.

Mark Perry, organiser of the Targa Wrest Point rally in Tasmania, Australia. added: "This is what we would call a spectacular crash."