Speedway: Sensational shootout and Superstock lap record speed at Oceanview
The first half of the 2019-20 speedway season is over, and it was an all-action ending at Fast Lane Spares Oceanview Family Speedway on Saturday night.
Big fields, an outstanding track surface and an enthusiastic crowd set the scene to send 2019 out with a bang.
The Trev's Concrete Stockcar Shootout was the feature event, and again showed why the drivers enjoy this format so much.
Kyle Lampp (779P) and Wayne Wright (24V) were the first drivers on track after the marble draw, and their 1 vs 1 race couldn't have been closer.
Wright looked to have the race in the bag, until he got loose coming out of the final corner, allowing Lampp to sneak past by a matter of inches.
Lampp's title challenge didn't last long as he was slotted up the wall by local Trazarn Ryland Annabell (33V) in the next heat, starting a three race run for the Whanganui driver.
**Ryland-Annabell finally met his match in Callum Sturzaker (15V), who was later awarded the prize for best challenge. **
Sturzaker was eliminated by experienced team racer Dion Mooney (6V), who took care of his recent arch-rival Taylor Lampp (992P), setting up a final against Luke Miers (15P).
Miers immediately took Mooney to the infield, recovered quickly, and streaked away for a comfortable victory.
A big field of Adult Ministocks faced the starter for their West Coast Championship, and Ayrton Smith (971p) took advantage of a front grid start to power away for the opening heat victory.
Heat 2 was a Stratford benefit, with Craig Mason (77S) taking the win from Bradley Korff, while Smith came in third to take a five point lead into the final heat.
Heat 3 was all action in the supposedly non-contact class, with the final result not settled until well after the lights on the track had been turned out.
Mason won the race from Korff, but other relegations saw Smith eventually awarded third place, enough to give him the title by three points from Mason.
Korff and Dylan Barclay (44P) were tied for third overall, but with a run-off being impossible due to the lateness, the Stratford driver took the place on the podium due to his two second place finishes in the heat races.
Withdrawals reduced the size of the Superstock field, but definitely not its quality, with current 3NZ and two-time 1NZ Simon Joblin headlining a field which included two other former 1NZ's in William Humphries (94P) and Jared Wade (58K).
At the upcoming Elite Mechanical New Zealand Superstock Championship, Joblin has the chance to join the most exclusive club in Superstock racing.
Only Kevin Free and Craig Boote have previously won three New Zealand titles.
Humphries took the first heat in a race where the pace was blistering fast.
No fewer than six drivers went under Graeme Barr's lap record of 16.11 seconds, but it was Asher Rees (126K) who created history with the first ever sub-sixteen second lap at Oceanview.
Rees turned in a 15.95s lap to send out a message to his fellow contestants at the NZ Superstocks.
Scott Joblin (52P), Rees and Quinn Ryan (46B) took out a heat apiece on a night of high attrition, with only 14 cars coming out for the final Superstock race.
Luke Miers added to his tally with a win in the opening Stockcar heat, from a field of 29 cars.
Wayne Wright (24V) and **Callum Sturzaker won the other races. **
Grant Loveridge (7R) took a clean sweep of the Production Saloon races, and broke his own lap record in the bargain.
Loveridge had a couple of slices of luck after Matt Buckley (73V) and Bailey Goldsack (72V) both got caught up with lapped traffic while leading late in two of the races. He was close enough to take advantage when the cars ahead of him slowed.
Youth Ministock wins were shared between Jesse Whelan (10S), Trent James (56V) and Jacob Buckrell (99B).
Once again, local track guru Mike Annabell delivered a stellar racing surface, after heavy rain during the week.
Competitors in the NZ Superstock Championship, now less than two weeks away, should enjoy the Oceanview track surface, which will reward drivers who get their set-ups right.
With 133 cars entered to date, fans are in for a fantastic weekend of action from the country's very best drivers and cars when they descend on the River City on January 3-4.
All the elements are there for a meeting that's going to be talked about for a long time.
Tony Stuart / Speedway
Whanganui Chronicle 23/12/19