Riverside Sends Year Off With A Bang

Andrew Andrew

• RACE REPORTS

Riverside Sends Year Off With A Bang

Riverside Speedway

Photography by Vanessa Adcock

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.)

For twenty two seasons the Invercargill Licensing Trust has supported Riverside Speedway and its annual Fireworks Extravaganza, every year it has just got bigger and better and this weeks Christmas Championship at Aotea Electric Riverside Speedway was no exception with one of the biggest crowds in attendance for any event in recent years, packing the arena.

The scene was set, it was a stunning Southland summers day, not a cloud in the sky, temperatures sitting in the mid twenties and an atmosphere both in the crowd and in the pits, giving off the vibe that we were in for something special.

Now a bit of back ground, up until last season the club would hold the Fireworks event in November - makes sense its Guy Fawkes time. But the date the club kept using got rained out year upon year, so last season a couple of the committee members put forward that we try and run an event between Christmas and New Year and make the Fireworks a draw card.

This was a gamble that could have fallen flat on its face, the club copped backlash with people saying "everyone leaves town over this period, its a ghost town" but the club tried it and it was a success.

It makes sense to tag on to the racing happening all around you, Woodford Glen in Christchurch race Boxing Day, Beachlands in Dunedin run the day after that, then Riverside, then two days later Central Motor Speedway in Cromwell. This has become an attraction for drivers to hit all these tracks over a few days while enjoying a holiday, speedway fans are also joining the travelling circus, its great for Speedway in the South.

This event would host Round two of the Tri Series for both Stockcars and Youth Mini Stocks with Round one being contested the evening prior at Beachlands Speedway. Stockcars were the headline act without a doubt, thirty Stockcars all on track at once bought the big crowd to their feet.

Heat one and the local fans had plenty to cheer about as Riverside driver Shanan Knight raced from midpack to get to the front and dominate a big angry field. Knight managed to maneuver his way around multiple battles that were unfolding around him and the crowd erupted when one of their own took the race win.

In second was Beachlands Paul Simon while Jason Brooks of Christchurch who was the early race leader drove a solid race in third.

Heat two and series leader Tyler McPherson of Christchurch would start from the front of the grid. McPherson started to dominate out front, building a healthy lead which would assure him a solid points haul in the overall series.

McPhersons clubmate Tyler Houghton put a big hit on Riversides Karl Thomson mid race, putting Thomson on his side, up and over in turn three. This almost set the big crowd into a frenzy, but it would ultimately end Thomsons day.

At the restart McPherson would again build on his lead, working his way through lapped cars and looking likely to take the win with one lap to run, up until he came into a bunch of about four or five cars in turn three, and decided to make solid contact with Zac Newsham of Riverside, Newsham's car lifted off the ground while McPhersons car limped to a standstill, a stoppage he really did not need. This incident would not only turn this race but also the series on its head.

When the green flag dropped it was Simon who had control of the race, Simon seemed to just appear from nowhere in all of the races, almost a stealth type drive from the former New Zealand Streetstock Champion.

Simon would take victory in heat two, Riverside's Luke Fallow got up to second with Christchurch teenager Amber Brooks impressive in third.

Heat three and the race stopped as quick as it started with Houghton being hit and injured getting off the line. This led to a small hold up while medical staff ensured Houghton was fine. When the race started again it was Knight again who got off to a flyer and started to pull a gap on the field.

As the race rolled out you could sense something big was going to unfold, Riverside driver Luke Molloy was sitting in second and making ground on the leader, laps were counting down and when Molloy made a run up the inside on the main straight, the race leader Knight speared off into the wall with damage putting him out of the race after putting on such a solid performance.

At this stoppage Amber Brooks also needed to seek some attention after she suffered a solid hit, Brooks would be fine but would retire from the race.The race would restart only to be stopped moments later to remove Dunedin's Nico Tuhura from the track.

Molloy would assume the race lead and remain unchallenged to take a fitting race win in front of his home crowd, again the big crowd showing their appreciation with rapturous applause for Molloy when he took his victory lap. In second was Murray Greig and third Daniel Cox both of Christchurch.

Overall Christmas Championship results went the way of Simon in first, Greig second with Cox in third.

Youth Ministocks are always a welcome edition to any meeting at Riverside, a grade the club does not have contracted.

The question for the Youth Ministocks was could anybody stop Clay Dawson of Central Motor Speedway who won all three races at Round one of the Tri Series at Beachlands Speedway the night prior.

Heat one and Christchurch driver Jaxyn Houtos got a run on the field to get to the front early and start to drive away. By the time Dawson had worked his way through some solid competition Houtos had gapped him and it would be too little too late for Dawson as Houtos would take a well driven race win. Dawson chewed into the lead but would need to settle for second this time around with Zak Phillips of Central Motor Speedway third.

Heat two and Christchurch driver Jacob Skurr got the early jump and took a handy lead while behind him Houtos and Dawson were fighting hard for the minors. Further down the pack Mad Maori Racing's Trent Ainsley was finding pace on a track which he has tasted success at previously, Ainsley was sitting in fourth when he took a beautiful dive down the inside of both Dawson and Houtos in turn one taking second away from them.

Ainsley would then drive like a man on a mission chasing down Skurr up front, stealing the lead and ultimately the race win. Unfortunately for Skurr he would slip down the order to fourth after such a good drive, Dawson again placed second with Houtos awarded third.

The third and final heat for Ministocks was nothing short of an upset, but also a coming of age for young Cromwell driver Ashdyn "Smash" Gable. Gable picked up his first ever race win just a few weeks ago at Central Motor Speedway and has been brimming with confidence since, putting in a solid result at Beachlands Speedway also.Gable would clear off from the pack early in the final race and you could tell that the focus and determination was going to be enough to get him over the line in this race, there is nothing stronger in speedway than a confident driver who knows he has the ability to win races, and Gable did just that, claiming a popular race win over more favored competitors, Houtos also made a late pass on Dawson to snatch second with Dawson in third place.

Overall Christmas Championship results were Houtos in first, Ainsley second and Gable third.

A big field of Production Saloons were entered for the Christmas Championship and they certainly put on a good show for the crowd.

Heat one saw a great battle up front between Riverside's Jared Dawson and Blenheim driver Sam Martin, Martin had the advantage but Dawson just would not go away, challenging Martin for the lead lap after lap.

Unfortunately for Dawson a had a major tank slapper coming out of turn for, hitting the side of Martins car before going hard into the wall on the main straight, surprisingly he backed out of the incident to rejoin the field but would eventually retire to the infield.

As the race restarted and found its rhythm again both Tony Jones of Riverside and Clay Marshall of Dunedin found each other on the main straight, putting both cars into the wall and bringing out the second caution of the race. Marshall would take his spot back in the grid where Jones deemed to be the cause would go to the back of the pack.

Martin would remain out front to take a race win, behind Martin was Aaron Brookland of Dunedin in second and Dave McKenzie of Riverside in third.

Heat two and plenty of dramas in this race also, Brookland had a good lead only to suffer a mechanical drama, which looked to be some sort of steering issue making him stop on turn three while leading. Dawson would bring out the next caution with a stoppage in turn one after a spin.

The big talking point of heat two was Riverside's Alex Crosbie who just two weeks ago won the Southland Youth Saloon Championship, Crosbie decided to leave the Youth grade and have a crack at the Production Saloons. Crosbie still driving his Honda Integra Youth Saloon which was well under powered compared to his competitors carved his way from the back of the big field, picking off cars one by one to be sitting up just behind the top three cars.

Jones made amends for his heat one contact by getting out to a big lead which would turn into a big win, Riverside clubmate Laura Heads would place a well driven second, and on the line Crosbie would snatch third place away from Marshall.

Race three and again Jones would get to the front early and remain out front despite all sorts of pressure from Dunedin's Caleb Marshall. Marshall was constantly challenging Jones but Jones placed his car perfectly on track to ensure Marshall would have to make a bold move to snatch the win.Jones would grab his second race win of the day, Marshall took a well driven second with Blake Murdoch of Riverside third.Murdoch would need to return to the track soon after for a run off for third place with Clay Marshall, the pair battled hard over four laps but Marshall would get the win giving him third spot.

Christmas Championship went the way of Blake Hamilton of Riverside who drove consistently all meeting, Jones bagged second with Marshall third.Six Shooters opened the meeting and it was Central Motor Speedway brothers Luke and Jake Shearing who set the pace early, Jake had the early lead but Luke soon grabbed it away driving off to bag maximum points first up, Jake would hold on for a well driven second while Riverside's Nigel Marshall ensured he would throw a challenge to the Shearing's with a third placing.

Heat two was a good hard fought out battle that was one of the races of the night. Marshall, Luke Shearing and Cromwell's Brain Ellison were the lead cars, Ellison was determined to put a horror crash at Riverside last season to rest and gain the confidence to take it to the front runners. This was that race, Ellison drove like his car was on rails, no way was Marshall or Shearing going to take that race lead away from Ellison with the Cromwell driver taking a well driven win, Marshall finishing ahead of Shearing in second, Shearing building on his points lead in third.

Heat three would decide the Christmas Champion and Marshall who was in with a shot was the cause of the first caution, putting his car against the wall on turn two, this was followed a few short laps later by Cromwell driver Sophie Wills who spun up in turn two also. While all this was unfolding it was Luke Shearing who slipped to the front and would remain unchallenged, Riverside's Duane Cracknell threw everything at Shearing but Shearing was simply too fast bagging the race win for heat three with Cracknell home in second ahead of Kane Jemmett of Christchurch who was starting to come to grips with a new track.

Shearing took out the overall Christmas Championship with younger brother Jake second and Ellison on the podium in third.

Youth Saloons were running a Grand Prix format which was a great chance for the kids to run something a bit different to the usual three heats and combined points wins.

Race number one done from a marble draw got off to a weird start, as the green flag dropped all the cars raced past but one car happened to be coming down the main straight backwards. Riverside's Cayden Race must have been turned or spun on his own accord but this did result in a full grid restart.

After this is was a fast clean race with no stoppages at all, we must pay credit to the drivers on the mentor program and the new drivers who just held their lines and stayed out of the way of the faster more experienced drivers, they did an exceptional job in this race.

Beachlands driver Madi Stewart was simply too good in heat one, getting to the front early and dominating the race, winning by a margin, behind Stewart was Joshua Richardson of Riverside in second with Max Kemp of Dunedin third.

Heat two was a reverse grid from heat ones marble draw, Beachlands Noah Kitto dominated up front, Kitto built a handy lead which he almost lost as Richardson started to apply pressure late in the race. Richardson at one point snuck past Kitto amongst lapped traffic but as he went for the overlap his rear bumper caught Kitto tearing it off bringing out a caution which would see Richardson slot back to second.

With only two laps to run Kitto would hold Richardson out to claim a race win, Richardson second and top qualifier, while Race was heading in the right direction in third place.

The winner takes all final got off to a messy start with Riverside driver Kaden Cracknell hitting the wall coming out of turn two bringing out a caution on lap one.It wasn't long after the restart that Holly Murdoch of Riverside spun up in spectacular fashion on the back straight with Riverside clubmates Zoe Menpes and Bayton Benfell had a coming together at turn four.

Once the race finally got underway again it was Richardson who built a solid lead of around half a straight length, but behind him Stewart was on the charge, coming at Richardson fast but laps remaining was against her.

Richardson would take the win to cap off a solid start to the season so far, Stewart took second while Kemp grabbed the third place trophy.It was one way traffic in Streetstocks with Steve Dryden of Riverside just too good across all three races.

Dryden took an easy win in heat one which started in untidy fashion when Riverside's Phillip Kay never got off the line both Dryden and clubmate Jono Bower making contact, Dryden continuing on while Kay and Bower would retire.

Dryden would work his way to the front fairly promptly to bag the win over Chris Kergozou and Troy Dryden both of Invercargill.

Heat two again plain sailing for Dryden, two wins from as many starts but Troy Dryden had to battle hard to claim second with new driver Lance Yeo of Riverside looking impressive in just his second meeting claiming third spot.

Race three saw Kergozou come under fire from Yeo early and this time Steve Dryden had to work a bit harder but once again, when in front he sailed off to another race win. Behind Dryden was Troy Dryden again second and Dunedin's Regan Constable in third.

This gave Steve Dryden the Christmas Championship, Troy Dryden second with Kergozou third.

A small field of Saloons were on track to compete for the Christmas Championship and race one of the day was a good battle across the entire field. Early race favorite George Phillips of Cromwell would park up infield before the race even started with damage to the front of his car.

Blenheim's Daryl Martin took off to a handy lead that would remain unchallenged to give him maximum points after heat one. The battle for second and third was intense between Riverside clubmates Dan Black and Graham Williamson but Black would get bragging rights this time around claiming second ahead of Williamson.

Heat two and Phillips was back on track, the current 2NZ stamping his authority over the field taking a simple race win, again behind Phillips the pack battled hard, Black again getting across the line in second ahead of Williamson in third.

Phillips gave a repeat dose of the same in race three but this time remained challenged lap after lap by Williamson. Riverside's Darcy Hewitt also looked fast in this race sitting just behind Williamson before making a mistake on the last lap to fall down the order.

Phillips had enough in the tank to take a solid win with Williamson on his bumper in second and Martin up to third.

This result meant a run off for first and second between Black and Williamson, the four lap race went the way of Williamson who would be crowned Christmas Champion, with Black having a solid outing in second and Phillips bagging enough points from his two wins for third overall.

It was also a small but entertaining field of Modified Sprints on display, heat one saw local driver Daryl Scott charge off early and build a nice lead, it was great to see Scott back on track with a couple of challenging seasons chasing mechanical gremlins, a race win in heat one was nice reward to Scotts commitment, second was Beachlands driver Glenn Johnston while Mason Whelan of Riverside drove a nice race to claim third.

Heat two and Johnston got to the front early and remained unchallenged to claim the race win, behind Johnston was Shae McKenzie who was just in his second Modified Sprint Event, the former Stockcar and former 2NZ Streetstock driver starting to really find his way in the grade, looking impressive getting up to claim second spot ahead of Dunedin clubmate Ewan Stewart in third.

The third race to decide the Modified Sprint Christmas Champs was a great battle between Johnston and Scott or the first few laps, eventually Johnston would break the shackles and clear off to bag his second win of the event, Scott settled for second getting home ahead of a fast finishing McKenzie in third. Those results also reflected the final placings for the Christmas Championship, Johnston first, Scott second and McKenzie third.

Aotea Electric Riverside Speedway will return to action on January seventh.

ARE YOU READY TO MAKE A MOVE?

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