Kiwi Karter 5th At Ladies Special Event
Tweetpress release
The last weekend in January saw top New Zealand female karter Chelsea Herbert from Auckland's North Shore finish fifth in class at the ‘Ladies Only Special Kart Event’ organised by the Combined Districts Kart Club at their track near Lithgow in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney.
Above: Chelsea Herbert in action
Competing in the Junior National Light class (the biggest field in the event), the 13-year-old Albany Junior High School student was under no illusions that the level of competition would be any easier than that of the male-dominated class she competes in at home.
Leaving a sunny Auckland (finally) and arriving to a very wet Sydney was a little frustrating as it seemed every other meeting she and her family-run team competed at in New Zealand of late was wet.
As it turned out the wet weather racing skills Chelsea has gained over the years in New Zealand proved to be very beneficial. Over the wet two days practice that was available she appeared to be in a class of her own, to the point where the locals referred to her as a duck rather than a Kiwi.
Race day dawned and finally the sun shone, and as the twenty-odd Kangaroos that had invaded the track overnight bounded off into the surrounding bush, Chelsea entered qualifying for the first time on slicks tyres.
After some stunning drives and fastest laps, a second place finish in the Pre Final and a well calculated and preferred P3 start position for the CIK format Final hopes were understandably for the young Kiwi.
Unfortunately an off-track excursion to avoid a spinning driver saw here dropping back to last. That was by no means the end of her challenge, however, and after an inspiring drive back through the field Chelsea claimed a fighting fifth place at the flag.
Despite nagging thoughts about 'what-might-have-been' Chelsea was philosophical, agreeing that when everything was taken into consideration it was one of the best karting weekends she has had.
The event itself, organised to raise awareness and money for the Australian National Breast Cancer Foundation, was awesome. The Combined Districts Kart Club made Chelsea and her family feel as if they hadn’t left their home track. Everyone was very kind and supportive and welcomed the family's visit.
Above: All the Ladies lined up at Lithgow
pic - Herbert family
The event organisers were also excited to have a New Zealand entry making their event a truly international one and they have invited Chelsea and her family back next year and asked that they bring some more Kiwi girls along too.
The event continues to grow and has become the unofficial women’s Nationals, with those winning their respective classes allowed to run their Pink plate at events!
Chelsea says that her host, Stones Kartsport, supplied her with very competitive gear allowing her to compete at the front whilst making the trip cost effective. And with the thought of more Kiwi females crossing the Tasman for next year's event Stones is planning to offer more arrive-and-drive lease packages, with the lease money being donated back to the cause.
Chelsea would like to thank all those who supported and helped make the trip possible.