A grinning Hopper said they were on the receiving end of losing their perch as leaders in the previous round and Gill/Robinson benefited from it.
He praised Goudie's cast-iron guts in their conquest after building a rapport for 18 months.
"Mike's done this most of his life. He's good. He doesn't get sick. He reads the notes and looks up and down so I couldn't do it," said the bloke who has been competing in Targa Rallies for more than a decade and relishes hooning along open back country roads up to 200km/h.
"It's not like a closed circuit where you just go round and round where it gets a little mundane," he said, emphasising roads throw myriad obstacles such as unpredictable weather, mud, animals and trees.
Asked if he found time to admire the scenery, Hopper said: "I don't even blink. From start to finish my eyes are wide open."
The pair finished 42 seconds ahead of ex-NZ rally champion Chris West and co-driver Andrew Simms (Mitsubishi Evo 10).
Goudie has been "in the cheap seat" for almost five years after starting with his father, Greg, but stressed his breed had to put their lives on the line.
"Because I can't pay for a car means I have to sit in a co-driver's seat," the 32-year-old Auckland Tourism Event and Economic Development employee said with a laugh. Goudie said one would be surprised to find how many co-drivers often lost the contents of their stomach.
"I've never had motion sickness. I think because I've been in motor sport with my father and that all my life it's pretty bred into us."
Goudie said while the likes of Hooper were in the driving seat he had made a wrong call and ended up in a paddock.
"But then he also makes mistakes so it kind of goes both ways," he said.
However, he added, on-the-edge Hopper was an incredible driver and Goudie wouldn't want to be in any other car.
The navigator said buying his own car was a highway project.
"I'm always working on that. Give me half a chance, mate, I'll show you what I can do behind a wheel," he said, giving himself two years to make that fiscal challenge a reality in Targa.
Goudie, who keeps a Terrier race car in his garage at home, said there were ways to do it cheaper.
The pair praised the Bay hospitality, including the city councils, and the die-hard fans who lined the streets in bitterly cold weather to fuel their passion.
"We enjoy coming back here and hope it continues."
Homeboy Nathan Tough lived up to his name when he and co-driver Greg Browne, of Feilding, eclipsed eight crews to clinch his maiden one-day Rally of Hawke's Bay crown on debut.
A hillclimb champion, Tough took a mindset in his first rally event of striking from stage one while others might have been easing into it.
"We were in a superb state where we finished 11th overall over the entire Targa field as well," said the 40-year-old from Hastings in his 2WD Honda CR-X.
But Tough, who has NZ Rally Championship ambitions, said they encountered some brake issues so he threw caution to the wind around corners until they replaced them.
He showed his prowess in his favouritism for the final Middle Rd stage to finish almost a minute ahead of Tony Gosling/Blair Read (Ford Escort).
"To get a minute over a 22km stage ws good."
Tough said the recent exposure of his intentions to embark on the elite rally platform had caught some interest.
"I've used my Facebook as a promotional tool as well for my suppliers and supporters moving forward so I might get some traction for some more rounds."
