Speedway catches up post Covid

Jarrod MacBeth
The race meeting at Stratford Speedway on Saturday night was a catch-up meeting in more ways than one.  Two of last season’s races had been put off because Covid-19 shut down and the second scheduled attempt, on November 7,  to run these events was rained out.
On Saturday, stockcar competitor Sheldon Arapere, pictured in car #9, who recently placed third in the New Zealand Grand Prix in Gisborne, continued his good form, and won the Heritage Shield.  Arapere finished sixth and first in his first two races before producing a great drive in his third race where he moved through the field from grid 22 to third place. He won the event by a two-point margin from Karlin Painter-Dudley and Thomas Meyer, who were both tied on points for second place.  Painter-Dudley and Meyer raced a four-lap run off to determine the minor placings, which Painter-Dudley won after pushing Meyer to the infield at the race start.
A small field of saloons raced for the 2019/2020 King of the Mountain champs and New Zealand champion Thomas Korff came out on top.  Korff won both races one and two and placed third in race three to win by one pint from his father, Craig Korff, who was the most consistent driver all night and recorded three, second placings.  Jarrod MacBeth nabbed the last step on the podium after finishing third, fourth and first in his three races.
Supporting classes on the programme were superstocks, modifieds, streetstocks and Golden Oldie stockcars, which gave an insight into how stockcar racing was many years ago.
Palmerston North racer Peter Bengston won the first race for superstocks and Kihikihi driver Stephan Roigard the second while local Zane Riddick carried the chequered flag in the third.  Modified races were won by Blair Luscombe (2) and Tony Zehnder while victories in the streetstock class were shared among Ben Davis, Paul Blinkhorne and Adam Young.
The next race meeting at MG Taranaki Stratford Speedway is on December 26 and will feature the Taranaki Stockcar Champs, Taranaki Minisprint Champs, Taranaki Streetstock Champs, Superstock Best Pairs and a Demolition Derby!  Racing starts at the earlier time of 6:30pm.