Success for Tauranga drag racing team

NATIONAL CHAMP: Tauranga's Glen Oldfield in action. PHOTO: Mike Ashton Drag Pixs

It was a race to the finish line for Tauranga drag racing teams as the national series came to an end.

The Mayhem Racing team's Eze Auto Electrics-sponsored 1965 Chev Nova, piloted by Glen Oldfield, won the NZ IHRA National Top Street division, the Meremere Dragway track series competition division as well as Top Drag Racer for the season.

Oldfield participated in three of the five IHRA series events. Heading into the final event he was fourth on the leaderboard and in the first round was up against Rotorua's Fabian Tai-Porutu Goldbert in the 1970 Chev El Camino who was a point ahead in the series.

So a first round-win was vital and Oldfield won with a 8.776s pass at 157.3mph. He finished the IHRA competition series with an 18-point lead.

The Meremere track series saw Oldfield and Henderson's Ryan Sheldon leading the point series evenly in the competition division heading into the fourth meeting. Both had two wins and a runner-up in previous meetings.

Oldfield finished the Meremere track series first out of a field of 52 racers, 50 points ahead of second-placed racer Sheldon. Throughout the season, Oldfield's achievement was a PB of 8.654s at 155.33mph.

Karen Hay, the fastest NZ female, had another exceptional year. The Evil 2 team, 1927 Ford T Brogie Roadster, is a solid father, daughter combination with father Lindsay also entering the 200mph club - the only father, daughter team to ever achieve this feat.

In the IHRA series, Hay exited eliminations in round one of the NZ nationals with a 6.380s pass at 218.41mph on a 6.44 dial in, which was a PB and a track record for her class. At the Meremere track series, Hay had a dial in time in round one of 6.56s and ran a 6.555s pass at 212.33mph. At the Bay Rodders Nostalgia event, Hay ran her quickest and fastest time with a 6.34s pass at 222mph.

Te Puke-based Paul McLeod in the Exterminator sponsored 2008 Dragster also had a successful season. In the IHRA series, he won the NZ nationals with a 8.948s pass at 150.97mph. At the Meremere track series, he competed in three events and finished ninth within the competition. Throughout the season, McLeod achieved a PB of 8.87s at 151mph.

Cory Abbott in the 1993 Mazda RX7 competed in four of the Meremere Competition series and finished 10th within the competition.

John Key and son James competed within both series, John in the Super Sedan class in the 1965 Chev Biscayne and James in Super Streetclass in the 1966 Chev El Camino. John achieved a PB at the Bay Rodders Nostalgia event with a 10.725s pass at 129.33mph. James also achieved a PB time at the Nostalgia and in the Bay Rodders club champs with a 12.642s pass at 106mph.

Dave Bissett, competing in Super Sedan in the 1965 Cortina, competed in each of the Meremere track series, with two round wins. The fifth meeting required another win to take out Super Sedan but was unfortunately not completed. Overall Bissett finished second in the Meremere track series, only five points behind the first placed racer, and achieved a PB of 9.791s at 138.31mph.