from Jason Fewins
Mount Gambier Kart Club has resurrected its 2020 Championship season by hosting its first, post COVID19 race meeting. After a 4 month break, the local kart club opened its gates last Sunday to members for competition racing and the support from members highlighted their desire to get back in the drivers seat.
Five classes contested the day with entrants starting from as young as 7 years old. The club day was well supported with a healthy number of Adelaide drivers also making the journey down, which boosted the entry numbers.
Despite having to adhere to a number of COVID19 restrictions, the first meeting back ran quite smoothly with the event concluding around mid afternoon.
- full results are on speedhive HERE
The youngest field on offer was the Cadet 9’s, and a healthy class of 8 drivers hitting the track. Local driver and Mount Gambier’s new member had an outing to remember as he started his racing career with some strong results. Denvor Herbertson, in only his first race meeting showed great pace throughout the day with some great consistency. A third placing in the final was enough for the youngster to secure third overall for the day earning him his first podium finish. Adelaide drivers Dominix Mercuri and Riley Harrison dominated the day with Harrison suffering from a DNF in the final heat to secure second while Mercuri cemented victory taking the win.
Cadet 12s produced some great racing, but it was Adelaide driver Jenson Marold showing all other competitiors a clean set of heels as he dominated the days racing. Marold went unchallenged all day, while Mount Gambier driver Xavier Cain and Adelaide’s Massimo Calabro fought for the minor placings. Calabro proved to be a quick learner, in only his first visit to the track, but Cain took charge to hold off a fast finishing Massimo, to round out the podium placings.
KA4 Juniors was again a close battle up the front. Adelaide Drivers Rock Han and Anthony Capobiaco lead the way with local Brock Fewins ready to reap the rewards if either of the front runners made an error. Han hung on to hold off Capobianco for the win with Fewins finishing third.
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KA3 Junior was dominated by local driver Parker Scott. Scott clean swept his heat races putting on a driving display in some tricky track conditions, but a brake failure in the final saw an abrupt end to his race as he negotiated turn one. Despite the heavy contact with the tyres, Scott was uninjured and still managed to take the top step of the podium.
The Senior classes also produced some great racing, proving some time away from the track did not hinder some drivers. KA3 Senior Light driving ace Troy Moreland could not put a foot wrong all day. Good kart setup bought strong results with 4 wins from 4 starts, while consistency and focus provided Moreland with maximum points and the all-important overall win.
TAG125 Restricted Light saw friends Matthew Hensel and Liam Downs Woolley, face off between mates. Handling the tricky and slippery conditions early in the day, Hensel proved too consistent for Downs-Woolley while the two battled out for bragging rights.
TAG125 Restricted Medium picked up where the club left off in February. The 5 drivers in the class all eligible to be winning contenders. While we had multiple race winners over the heat races, Kevin Harvey was victorious showing the rest of the field what the back of his kart looked like. A tie on points for second and third went to Tim Scarth and Alex Clode, with Scarth getting awarded the second step on the podium based on results in the final.
TAG125 Light again provided some close racing early in the day with Jobe Stewart staring the day in the best possible way, by taking a win in heat race one. Despite leading from start to finish he didn’t have it easy with Shane Moreland shadowing him nearly every step of the way. Stewart, due to other racing commitments, unfortunately was unable to continue for the remainder of the day. This left an opportunity for Moreland to regain some momentum and dominate the rest of the heat races including the final. Three wins from the next three races saw Moreland forge ahead to take the honours without any real issues.
The final class to showcase their talent was TAG125 Heavy. Making a return to the sport Jack Ryan suited back up and showed he still had what it took to be competitive. Ryan along with father/son duo , Kelvin and Matthew Moreland made it a local 1, 2 and 3 as they filled the podium placings in each race.
With the sport slowly re-emerging back from the unknown, competitors are already looking forward to the next local race meeting, to be held second weekend in August. The club is hopeful by then, again further state government restrictions may be lifted to allow additional spectators to attend and enjoy some grass roots level racing.
The club is always looking for new members, including those interested in getting up close and become active. Whether it be in a driving format or as a volunteer or official, there is an opportunity for locals to get involved and experience the thrill of such a fast paced, and action packed motorsport in their own region.
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