Fast Pace at AWC Tasmanian Statewide Series Rnd 2


by Johnathan Males 10 March 2016

Lap Records Tumble at the Gowans Motor Group Round 2 of the 2016 Andrew Walter Constructions Tasmanian Statewide Series

Tasmania’s North West coast once again turned on the beautifully warm weather for the second round of the 2016 Tasmanian Statewide Series held at the North Western Kart Club’s Highclere facility on March 6th.

  • Progressive series points after round 2 of 4 are HERE (Excel format)

Former NWKC member and recent Aussie Cars National Champion Adam Gowans’ support of the event through his business Gowans Motor Group ensured the meeting was a great success with Tasmania’s best up and coming talent taking to the track to hone their skills and have some fun.

Again, nearly all the previous lap records were eclipsed with some totally smashed by the new engine and tyre packages in their respective classes.

Another highlight of the weekend was the attendance, and participation of young Canadian racer Austin Riley. Austin is travelling around Australia to promote awareness of Autism through the group Racing with Autism. Not only did he and his amazing support crew attend the race meeting but he also competed in the highly competitive TAG Light class. Let me tell you the kid can drive and he certainly took it up to the regular front runners. If you get a chance to witness Austin in action or hear about his story I urge you to do so, you will certainly be richer for the experience.

Jade Waddington (99) and Austin Riley (20) lead the field on the warm up lap
Above: Jade Waddington (99) and Canadian Austin Riley (20) lead the field on the warm up lap
pic - Renee Chettle

The action in the Cadets 9 class was again fast and furious with Darcy Whelan aboard his Haase kart proving to be the one to beat. Young Ollie Richardson has really improved since upgrading to the current specification engine and tyre package and he, along with Toby Callow went toe to toe with Whelan all day long. Whelan though managed to take the wins in the first three heats ahead of Callow. In the final Callow jumped to the lead with Whelan in hot pursuit, unfortunately an altercation between the pair early in the race resulted in Whelan dropping down the order and having to come back through the field to eventually finish fifth. This allowed Callow to take the win ahead of Richardson who made the pass for second place on the last lap, relegating the much improved Denzil Sargent to third place. At the hallway mark of the series Whelan effectively has a one race win advantage with a thirty point lead over Callow.

The elder Whelan brother Campbell is also performing well in the Cadets 12 class and even though there are two race meetings to go he has a fifty seven point advantage over Fletcher Bellars in second. He was able to stretch his advantage by taking all four wins on the day. In the final it was Whelan followed by Bellars and Jesse Keeling took third.

Cadet 9 form up for a start
Above: Cadet 9 form up for a start
pic - Renee Chettle

The KA4 Junior Light title fight looks like it will go down to the wire at the final round with a very interesting series of events taking place. Both Lachlan Dalton and Tate Frost have totally dominated the field at the first two rounds, however both have missed a round, Dalton due to other commitments and Frost recovering from a broken foot suffered from an incident at the first round of the AKC. This leaves the pair deadlocked on one hundred and twenty points each and equal fourth in the standings. Their title rivals Evan Chivers, Tyson Phegan and Logan Dixon have all put in solid efforts and only thirteen points separate the trio. It will be fascinating to see if they can hold off the charge from Frost and Dalton later in the year and I suspect come round three all three will have improved even more and might yet knock off their more fancied competitors. On the day at Burnie it was Frost who took wins in all four races ahead of Logan Dixon who demonstrated how much he’s improved of late taking second and young Tyson Phegan aboard his Praga kart in third.

Tate Frost (62) leads Logan Dixon (64) and Tyson Phegan (6)
Above: Tate Frost (62) leads Logan Dixon (64) and Tyson Phegan (6)
pic - Renee Chettle

Just like it was at Smithton KA4 Junior Heavy came down to a battle between Connor Griffin and Jesse Sheals. Both drivers finished in either first or second places throughout the day excepting the third heat where they both recorded DNF’s. This allowed Lucas Dickenson to cruise on past and take his first win aboard his Direct Access and Equipment Arrow. Proving it was no fluke he went on to take third in the final behind Sheals in second and Griffin again taking the win. The point score is a close affair with Griffin leading but Louis Popowski is only twelve points adrift after two solid weekends ahead of Jesse Sheals and Cohen Wells is still within striking distance too.

KA4 Senior Light is turning out to be an absolute cracker with the leading quartet producing some of the best racing seen this series. At the hallway mark a mere seven points separates the top three with Gemma Wyllie leading the Slater brothers, Johnah and Keenan who are tied in second place. After a slightly disappointing round where he couldn’t quite get the setup right, Bodie Reading is a further thirty one points behind and will no doubt be relishing the fact that the next round is on his home turf and the others know he is blisteringly fast at Hobart. On the day Gemma took the win aboard her Wyllie Tiles Tony Kart ahead of Johnah and then Keenan Slater.

Very little separated the leading duo of Andrew Walter and Johnathan Males all weekend in the KA4 Senior Heavy class. With both AWC Motorsport drivers laying down near identical lap times this meant neither could afford a mistake as the other would be ready to pounce. Males took the first two race wins and looked set to do the same in the third until a late race charge from Walter saw him in a position to challenge for the lead. This he did three laps from the end and after a battle that saw the two exchange the lead six times in as many corners Walter went on to take the race victory. Males got the better start in the final and this allowed him the breathing space required to go on to take the win with Walter a close second at the flag. Phil Isaac improved with every race and he followed the leader’s home in third place.

Andrew Walter (43) and Johnathan Males (92) battling it out
Above: Andrew Walter (43) and Johnathan Males (92) battling it out
pic - Renee Chettle

Shane Burdon and David Jackson provided an upset in qualifying for KA4 Masters by relegating regular pace-setter Scott Hildyard to third starting position for the heat races. This however didn’t prove to be repeatable in the racing with Hildyard turning the tables on his rivals and winning all four races. David Jackson was able to secure second place on the day ahead of Burdon in third.

You could throw a blanket over the front three drivers in KA4 Masters Super Heavy for the majority of the weekend. Terry Pinfold won three of the four races on offer, one of which being a comfortable win in the final. He was joined once again at the front by the Lee brothers, John and Garry. John took the win in the second heat and then was able to finish ahead of Garry to take second and third respectively in the final.

After a very close four races at Smithton in KA3 Junior, series leader Jackson Callow was able to find a bit more pace from his new FA Kart that allowed him the breathing space required to take the wins in all four races at Highclere. Whilst it was only a tenth or two a lap his nearest rival Justin Murphy just didn’t quite have the pace to stick with his fellow Launceston Kart Club member and he had to settle for four second places. Kiana Toon, aboard her Wrigley’s Karts and Parts OK1 had her best performance to date as she was able to get the better of Declan Sherburd for third in all the races and has certainly narrowed the gap in lap times to the front two in this field.

Series leader Shane Bray is really on top of his game right now in KA3 Senior Light. The NWKC driver has won every race so far this series and this sees him forty six points clear of his nearest competitor Zevie Eisentraut. However Eisentraut seems to be narrowing the gap between the pair and with round three at his home track the recent graduate from the junior ranks might be able to claw his way back into contention to take home the red plate later in the year.

The KA3 Senior Heavy class saw Chris Williams take a much deserved win aboard his Williams Fencing Arrow in all four races at Burnie. He was pushed hard all weekend by 2016 series debutant Glen Newman from Hobart.  So much so that only .510 separated the two across the finish line in the final. Stephen Johnstone was looking the goods to finish third but unfortunately recorded a DNF.

After winning every race at Smithton in TAG Restricted Light, Andrew Lee looked to be the favourite going into the weekend at Burnie. However somebody forgot to tell Nicholas Walpole that and he simply went out and took a race meeting clean sweep for himself. Lee however still had a strong weekend and was able to minimise the damage to his point advantage by finishing behind Walpole in second in every race. This sees Lee thirty points clear of Walpole, who leapfrogged Brianna Hobden and Paul McKenzie who are now third and fourth respectively. Following both Walpole and Lee home in the final was Paul McKenzie who recovered remarkably well from a heat three DNF.

TAG Restricted. Andrew Lee (26) leads Jason Close (98) and Bree Hobden (3)
Above: TAG Restricted, Andrew Lee (26) leads Jason Close (98) and Bree Hobden (3)
pic - Renee Chettle

There was an upset of sorts in TAG Restricted Heavy at Burnie. Regular front runner and series leader Brodey Lovett had a weekend to forget and was noticeably off his usual pace. Fellow NWKC members Jason Close and brothers, Troy and Allan Sheahen used this to their advantage and quickly dragged themselves back into series contention with strong performances by all of them. Close faring the best as he turned a thirty three point deficit at the start of the weekend into a two point series lead once the dust had settled. Only forty one points separate the top four in this class. First on the day went to Close who recorded his first meeting win since returning from a sabbatical ahead of Troy Sheahen and Shane Stonehouse.

The two main contenders in TAG Light at the first round were once again at the front of the field at Burnie but this time they were joined by Brad Hobden and Austin Riley. Hobden had a below average first round by his own high standards but really bounced back this time after fixing a few mechanical gremlins that were discovered after his team’s first round mechanical post mortem. Young Canadian driver Austin Riley also impressed in what was a new track from him and using borrowed equipment. These two really gave regulars Nathan Zuj and Jade Waddington a run for their money and the racing all weekend was fantastic. Waddington took the wins in the first two heats but had to settle for second in the third heat as Hobden made that race his own. Come the final and it really was anybody’s race, Zuj had struggled slightly all weekend with his kart setup being slightly off the mark. However a few tweaks before the final gave him the advantage he needed and after driving a very tactical race he took the lead right at the end of the race to narrowly beat home Brad Hobden and Jade Waddington in third. At the series halfway mark Waddington is eighteen points clear of Zuj with Hobden a further twenty points adrift. Hard luck story of the day would have to go to 2015 State Champion Evan Livingston who made his first appearance in the series only to destroy an engine in qualifying after recording the fastest time. This ruled him out for the weekend unfortunately as the engine is now only suitable as a boat anchor.

After dominating TAG Heavy at the first round of the series, Jake Rice was forced to miss the second round due to work commitments. This allowed Troy Stone and Alastair Lee to turn their fortunes around after both suffered first round DNF’s. It was Stone that got off to a flyer after switching from his regular CRG mount to a Tony Kart chassis. After qualifying well he was able to take the wins in the first three heats with Lee a close second. In the final though Lee had too much pace and was able to get the jump on his rival mid race to take the win. Only fifteen points separate the two before round three later in the year with Stone leading and Rice with a sixty seven point deficit to overcome.

Now *that's* a blow up! Evan Livingston's 'vented' TaG
Above: Now *that's* a blow up! Evan Livingston's 'vented' TaG
pic - Evan Livingston

The series now goes into a brief hiatus until August when the drivers will return to the Southern Tasmanian Kart Club’s Orielton complex. Some will be looking to tighten their grasp on their claim for the red plates on offer whilst others will be looking to make up lost ground.

Cadets 9
1st        Toby Callow
2nd       Ollie Richardson
3rd        Denzil Sargent

Cadets 12
1st        Campbell Whelan
2nd       Fletcher Bellars
3rd        Jesse Keeling

KA4 Junior Light
1st        Tate Frost
2nd       Logan Dixon
3rd          Tyson Phegan

KA4 Junior Heavy
1st        Connor Griffin
2nd       Jesse Sheals
3rd        Lucas Dickenson

KA3 Junior
1st        Jackson Callow
2nd       Justin Murphy
3rd        Kiana Toon

KA4 Senior Light
1st        Gemma Wyllie
2nd       Johnah Slater
3rd        Keenan Slater

KA4 Senior Heavy
1st        Johnathan Males
2nd       Andrew Walter
3rd        Phillip Isaac

KA4 Masters
1st        Scott Hildyard
2nd       David Jackson
3rd        Shane Burdon

KA4 Masters Super Heavy
1st        Terry Pinfold
2nd       John Lee
3rd        Garry Lee

KA3 Senior Light
1st        Shane Bray
2nd       Zevie Eisentraut
3rd        Tabatha Badger

KA3 Senior Heavy
1st        Christopher Williams
2nd       Glen Newman

TAG Restricted Light
1st        Nicholas Walpole       
2nd         Andrew Lee
3rd        Paul McKenzie

TAG Restricted Heavy
1st        Jason Close
2nd         Troy Sheahen
3rd        Shane Stonehouse

TAG Light
1st        Nathan Zuj     
2nd         Brad Hobden
3rd        Jade Waddington

TAG Heavy
1st        Alastair Lee
2nd         Troy Stone

 

 


 

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