Beachlands Epic Battle Delivers The Goods

Andrew Andrew

• RACE REPORTS

Beachlands Epic Battle Delivers The Goods

Beachlands Speedway

Photography by Robin Simpson

Images supplied by: Christopher Scrimgour

(Disclaimer - results as seen by myself while commentating, results may have changed slightly due to relegations etc. - This article or extracts from it are not to be used by any other form of media without prior permission.)

The Battle Of The Streetstocks is fast becoming one of the most popular meetings on the calendar at Custom Signs Beachlands Speedway in Dunedin, the event sponsored by Gillies Contracting this year attracted thirty cars, fifteen local cars paired off with fifteen visiting South Island drivers racing three heats each night, over two nights.

Heavy rain leading up to the event saw a sodden infield and what was expected to be a damp racing surface was anything but, with Track Manager Russell Stewart putting on a track surface that needed no attention all night, a top job in a testing lead up.

To kick the night off each pairing would send a single car out to qualify in the Streetstock Shootout, Dunedin’s Mitch Lavender would bag the fastest time ahead of clubmates Ben Jenkins in second and Matt Stewart of Beachlands third.

Heat one of the Battle Of The Streetstocks and all eyes were on Stewart who was leading on the timing monitor and in a heated battle with both Jenkins and Lavender at the front of the pack, this race would see a couple of stoppages the main one when Riverside’s Steve Dryden came together with Scott Palmer of Dunedin, Palmer retiring to the infield while Dryden continued to battle.

What looked like a race win to Stewart actually took many by surprise with Christchurch driver Jono Garthley collecting the winners flag, Garthley not appearing on the timing due to a Mylaps fault actually taking the win with his partner Scott Ashton of Dunedin sixth, Stewart was second with his partner Jono Bower of Riverside suffering a DNF and Ben Jenkins third with his partner Dillon MacHattie of Riverside also parked up not finishing.

Heat two of night one was a good fast race, just the one red light period when Riverside’s AJ Lapsley was stopped with a flapping front guard, but the race would restart from there and run the distance without another stoppage. The win would go the way of Beachlands driver Braden Adams who’s partner Ben Turner of Christchurch suffered a DNF, second was New Zealand Champ Paul Leslie of Christchurch, his partner Adam Stewart of Dunedin was eighteenth with Corey Schumacher of Christchurch third, his partner Kelly Campbell of Dunedin also not finishing.

The third heat saw plenty of action, lap one turn one it was Lapsley minding his own business looking for a way around the outside of the pack where in front of him Adam Stewart was spun by Palmer who then shot Stewart out into Lapsley causing the Invercargill driver to have a remarkable roll over, bring the race to a stop early. Lapsley would walk away, in fact once back on all four wheels he would drive to the infield on his own steam.

This race saw multiple stoppages, mainly for flat tyres which really killed the momentum of the race. There was a nervous period in the race for Dunedin’s Ben Bisset when he got spun on the main straight, Bisset was parked facing an angry pack of cars all coming for him at speed, head on, and no gaps to turn around, so the race went red for Bisset to go infield.

Heat three would eventually be won by Garthley bagging some more vital points, with Ashton adding to that total with a solid third placing, while Leslie would snatch second with his partner Adam Stewart not finishing. After night one it would be Garthley / Ashton leading ahead of Lavender and Shaun Andrew of Christchurch in second with Campbell / Schumacher third.

Saloons were running a forty lap race to cap the evening off but first would be two ten lap heat races to determine the grid for the forth lapper. Heat one saw Christchurch driver Ashton Osborne take apart the opposition with ease to bag top points, second went the way of Dunedin’s Travis Smith who held off a fast finishing Aaron Andrews of Dunedin.

Race two and a good fast race with no cautions to speak of, another race dominated by a Christchurch driver in a Stealth, this time Peter “Dutchy” Schouten cleared out from the front to bag a heat two win Ryan Bennett of Dunedin second and Andrews again at the top end of town in third place.

Andrews would lead the field into turn one of the forty lap race, Andrews has never been beaten in previous years in the forty lap race and looked the part early in this race, but it was only a matter of time before Osborne and Schouten would start to make a move for the lead. There was a caution early when local driver Wayne Bennett spinning but managing to rejoin the field, next up was Smith who suffered steering damage heading into turn three putting him out of the race.

At the restart Osborne bolted from the field only to come to a grinding halt when Dunedin driver Calvin Todd spin up in turn two, the leader making light contact with Todd but able to continue on at this stage. Riverside’s Mark Dobson was starting to put together some fast lap times and began to make his move through the field, but a spin late in the race would see the Southlander fall down the pack.

Osborne would continue to impress and come home in first place winning the forty lap race with ease, Schouten would be second with Andrews third. Credit must also be given to Bennett and Jason Gold of Beachlands who were all over Andrews lap after lap, almost getting their way onto the podium.

Jayden Fraser would be the man to beat in Modified Sprints, the Riverside driver has been the class of the grade this season and he would smash the opposition in heat one to secure an easy victory, Glen Johnston of Beachlands would place second and Shae McKenzie of Dunedin third.

Johnston would turn the table in heat two, upstaging Fraser, despite Fraser having multiple attempts at making a pass he simply couldn’t make it stick giving Johnston the race win, Fraser second with McKenzie third.

Redemption came in race three for Fraser, racing off to a fast start taking the win with ease, Johnston was pressured by McKenzie but would get home in second, McKenzie consistent with his third, third placing of the night.

Youth Saloons provided some good clean racing with no cautions right up until the third heat. Dunedin driver Max Kemp was chased after breaking away to a solid lead, Kemp would fight off clubmate Jayden Cron to take the heat one win, Cron second ahead of Noah Kitto of Dunedin in third.

Heat two and Cron would go one better after having a solid battle with Riverside’s Joshua Richardson who got away to a good start making Cron have to work for the lead, Cron would snatch the lead late in the race to claim the win, Richardson second with Brooke Soper of Beachlands third.

Race three and it was newcomer Lachie Robertson of Riverside who bought the race to a stop with a big rollover in turn two, the car hitting a rut and firing upside down. At the restart Cron would again get his way to the front of the pack and go on to win the race, Madi Stewart of Dunedin claimed a well driven second with Kemp up to third.

Stockcars were entertaining as always, Dunedin’s Zane Tuhura was in one of those moods where he would inflict was much pain as he possibly could, wherever there was a car in the wall, you could almost bet Tuhura would be involved somehow.

Trazarn Ryland-Annabell would take an easy heat one win from Nico Tuhura of Dunedin with clubmate Liam Squire third.

Ryland- Annabell would start from the front row in race two and remain unchallenged for the second race in a row, yet again another simple win ahead of Nico Tuhura in second and just like in heat one Squire rounded out the top three.

The third heat saw plenty of biff and bash, it almost looked like a Tuhura battle up against the Simon family, with three members of each family attacking each other at every given opportunity. Squire would work his way to the front in this heat and remain there to take the win, Savannah Simon drove a great race to grab second while her father Paul also of Dunedin would settle for third place.

This meeting also saw the final night of action for Production Saloons with the grade stood down for the Saturday event. You could not fault the driving in the first three heats with just the one caution early when Lucy Greer of Dunedin had her bonnet flip over her roof in heat one.

Dunedin’s Liam Gillies and Clubmate Aaron Brookland were both class acts across the heat races Gilles taking out heat one with Brookland second and Clay Marshall of Dunedin third.

Heat two would go the way of Gillies also, Tyler Kelk of Dunedin would place second with Brookland third after actually winning but being relegated two spots.

The third heat would see Gillies do the three peat taking the clean sweep from well back in the grid, Brookland was second with Marshall third.

The feature race would see Gillies and Brookland have to start from the rear of the pack and work their way through. Dunedin’s Ricki Pilley would get the lead mid race but Gillies and Brookland would eventually get to him before both suffering problems, Brookland looked to have mechanic issues but still raced home in sixth while Gillies looked good for the win chasing Pilley before hitting the wall on the last straight while in second, this gave Pilley the win over Dunedin’s Kaleb Marshall with Gillies getting across the line in third.

With day one done and dusted it was time for the second day of action to unfold, and the meeting started with the top ten overall individual points scorers on track for eight laps with the top points scorer Leslie being given the option to start from the rear of the field and if he wins gets $500 cash.

Leslie drove exceptionally well but could only get as far up the field as third with Schumacher second and Garthley first.

Next up was heat four of the Giles Contracting Battle Of The Streetstocks, and the only stoppage was again for Jono Bower early on. Schumacher was strong in this race and had to fend off solid challenges from a number of quick cars but he would get home to win the heat, his partner Campbell scoring good points in fourth, second was Garthley with his partner Ashton sixth, then in third Lavender with partner Andrew fifth.

Heat five was the highlight of the night, it was brutal, cars that were out of contention were out to put on a show, and a show they delivered. The race was only half a lap in when Adam Stewart put a killer blow on Schumacher on the back straight, this then sent Schumacher into Palmer who will then feel the full force of Riverside’s Chris Kergozou come through to tear the back end of his car to bits. Schumacher was ordered off the track with a damaged front bumper. Dunedin driver Jacob Campbell was in menacing form in heat five, he went after Ashton which led to Ashton being ordered off the track with a flat tyre, Campbell would then hit Ashtons partner Garthley putting both championship leaders to the infield, really opening up the competition.

The race looked to be won and done when Blenheim’s Jorden O’Çonnell Inns would tear in from turn three at pace and clean out Kergozou who would roll heavily, the Invercargill driver stating in a post race interview that his car would be fixed and he would be out looking for O’Connell Inns.

This race would go the way of Mike Jones of Christchurch with Matt Stewart second and MacHattie third.

The crowd were now amped and ready for the sixth and final race of the event, who would be the Battle Of The Streetstock Champions now that the event was wide open with several contenders?

To be fair the race was a fairly clean affair with Jacob Campbell out early, followed by Palmer and Ashton bringing out red flags.

Up front Kergozou’s car was repaired from the roll over and he was making a statement that the crowd loved, a bit of an underdog story, from outhouse to penthouse almost. Kergozou was being chased hard but the Riverside racer who has never won a race at Beachlands Speedway before wasn’t about to give up the top spot taking a popular race victory, his partner Craig Blackler of Dunedin tenth, Turner was second with partner Adams ninth, while Jenkins placed third with his partner MacHattie seventh.

So at the end of all the carnage it was Lavender and Andrew who were crowned Battle Of The Streetstock Champions, Jenkins and MacHattie second with Schumacher and Kelly Campbell third overall.

Youth points were also being added to the Streetstock pairs for the Young And The Restless Championship, these points carried forward from the Friday night.

Heat four for Youth saw Kitto hit the wall before he actually passed the green flag bringing the race to a restart. At the restart it was Stewart on her last night of racing in the Youth grade that got off to a flying start, she got past the cars on the front row of the grid and powered off unchallenged to take her last ever race win in Youth Saloons, Richardson placed second with Beachland’s Ashley Bennett fast in third.

The fifth heat was a heart breaker for Kemp who was fighting hard with his clubmate Cron when his engine blew causing the car to catch fire, Kemp was visibly gutted but would return to heat three thanks to a great act of sportsmanship from Richardson giving up his car to Kemp to take part in the final race.

Beachland’s Max Fleet had a tough race with two spins bringing out cautions but the race win would go the way of Cron with Soper second and Kitto third.

The final Youth Saloon race for the season was a fast, tidy race with no cautions, it was fitting that Cron would get to the front of the pack and win the race in his last meeting in the grade, Kitto was again consistent placing second with Cayden Race of Riverside Speedway third.

With this race done the Young And The Restless Championship went the way of Cron, Campbell and Schumacher in first, Dunedin’s Lycan Cuff – Willman , Lavender and Andrew second with Bennett, MacHattie and Jenkins third.

Stockcars were running night two of the Stockcar Man Of Steel and in heat one of night two Nico Tuhura was too strong for the opposition taking the race win ahead of Dunedin’s Zac McClenaghan in second and Ryland-Annabell third.

The second race saw a lot more action with some solid hits put in, especially when Riverside driver Adam Naber placed Beachland’s Mike Holley up the wall in turn two, getting the big crowd excited. Ryland-Annabell would take this race with Nico Tuhura second and Shannon Simon third.

This left one race to run for Stockcars and an early stoppage when Naber put Shannon Simon into the wall in turn two, it wasn’t long after this hit that Holley would again be placed up the wall, this time in turn three. There was plenty of biff and bash but when the flag dropped Nico Tuhura was the first man past the line taking the win, second was Ryland-Annabell with Savannah Simon third.

Final results for the Man Of Steel went to Nico Tuhura with Ryland-Annabell second and Paul Simon third, while Zane Tuhura took the stirrers award ahead of Naber with McClenaghan third.

Saloons were back on night two after a big forth lap race the night prior, they were racing for the Donald Maclean Trophy, heat one Osborne continued on from where he left off on Friday with a dominant race win, second was Bennett with Dobson home in third place.

Race two and Dobson got away to a flying start while the pack battled hard behind him, Dobson would take the race win to shake the hoodoo of an early season fiery crash here at Beachlands, Gold would drive well to get up to second with Andrews third.

The final Saloon race was again a fast clean race, Osborne was out with steering issues which opened up the fight for the silverware.

Gold and Andrews put on a fantastic show with Andrews constantly threatening to make a pass, but Gold would take the heat win along with the Donald Maclean Trophy, Andrews second and second overall, while Shane Greer of Dunedin would place third but Dobson would take third overall.

A strong field of Super Saloons were also at Beachlands for the Otago Super Saloon Championship, Christchurch’s Josh Boulton was an early scratching damaging a rib prior to racing but a handy replacement was found in the way of three time New Zealand Super Saloon Champion Mark Osborne of Christchurch.

Cromwell’s Owen Dixon bought out the races only caution when he hit the wall hard coming out of turn two, but out front it was Osborne who took apart the opposition claiming the heat one win from Ray Stewart of Cromwell and Ricky Boulton of Dunedin in third.

Heat two and Osborne had an uncharacteristic spin in turn three, his clubmate Trevor Elliott would dominate this race from the front battling hard with Boulton, taking the race win, Boulton second with Alister Lister of Dunedin third.

The deciding heat would be the final race of the event, Boulton was racing off the front and would power away from the pack on his home track, Cromwell’s Greig Johnston threw everything he had at Boulton, actually leading the early laps but Boulton would claim the eventual win, Johnston would cap off a good race in second with Elliot third.

Boulton would take the Otago Super Saloon Championship with Elliott second and Johnston third overall.

Modified Sprints returned for their second night of action, and heat one saw a shock winner, Friday night was all about Fraser and Johnston but heat one of Saturday saw former 2NZ Streetstock driver McKenzie upstage Fridays winners to claim his first ever Modified Sprint race win, Fraser settled for second with Johnston third.

Heat two and this time Johnston held out a fierce challenge from Fraser with McKenzie not far off the pace, those three drivers would remain in those placings when the checkered flag dropped.

The final race for Modified Sprints saw Fraser again dominate from out front, smashing his rivals to cap off a big weekends racing for the Riverside speedster. Frasers clubmate Vernon Helms struck some good form over the weekend getting up to second in race three while McKenzie raced home in third.

It was also pleasing to see a field of Classic Streetstocks on hand on the Saturday also, Gary Cuff of Dunedin took a race win in heat one after a good battle with Dunedin’s Arnie Tuhura with Darrell Richards also of Dunedin third.

Cuff also claimed heat two but this time Lockie McLean of Beachlands would place second with Shane Anderton of Christchurch third.

The final race saw Richards take the race win ahead of Cuff and Anderton, this result gave Cuff the overall win with Richards second and Anderton third.

ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A MOVE?

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