With a race car to prepare each week and a commute from Gisborne to compete at Baypark, young saloon car driver Dan Corrin says he won't have time for the leather armchair he won in the La-Z-Boy series on Saturday night.
"I haven't got time to sit around," said Corrin.
"I'll give it to my parents, because they put so much time and support into my racing."
Baypark's long-standing La-Z-Boy saloon series is a seven-race contest over three nights, which rewards consistency and the ability to pass cars.
Corrin, 20, didn't win a race but went through the series with a seventh placing being his worst result.
He began the final night leading by two points from Tirau's Michelle Wymer and Tauranga's Steve Muir and produced an inspired drive in the opening race of the night to increase his margin to six points over Wymer.
He was seventh in race two and in the final, Corrin was happy to let Wymer take the victory knowing her efforts could only erode his advantage to three points while he ran in a secure second spot.
"I wasn't going to get into a battle with her. She was fast and if I got into a tangle it was all over," said Corrin.
If Corrin's drive in the final race was necessarily conservative the way he started the night was a daring contrast.
On a wet track, he started 10th and quickly worked through traffic to third. Crucially he passed Wymer and beat her by four positions.
"I saw the drive on the outside and went for it," said Corrin.
"It was really wet and it was a bit of a risk, because a lot of the cars running lower down would slide up the track but it worked out."
It was Corrin's second major win of the season after winning the North Island title in Auckland.
Tauranga's Brent McClymont climbed from fifth to third during the final night, edging out Steve Muir by one point after Muir was a non-finisher in the first race.
With the track heavily watered to counter the dust issues of recent meetings there was a greasy low line for much of the night, one which Auckland sprint car racer Jamie McDonald made work as he raced to his second Baypark feature race win of the season.
"I'd definitely say that was a race that was won in the pits," said McDonald.
"We actually went backwards with the set-up and loosened the car up for the feature. In the second race my car was too tight and it just wouldn't turn.
"There was good drive down low but to run there we had to free the car up and run more stagger [the difference in rear tyre size] so the car would pretty much turn itself."
The sprint cars delivered a high quality, 19-car line-up with the heat race wins being claimed by young Christchurch racer Jamie Duff and Pukekohe's Daniel Eggleton.
"It's hard getting feature wins these days with the quality of the opposition," said McDonald.
"We spend most of the year chasing Americans and it never gets any easier."
The sprint car feature was declared with 17 of the 20 laps completed ,when a crash eliminated Dean Brindle and Greg Kilworth. Hamilton driver Daniel Thomas finished second ahead of Aucklander Ryan O'Connor.
Baypark Speedway results:
Super Saloons:
Heat 1: 1 Brent Emerson 7m; 2 Kristin Vermeulen 12m; 3 Mark Hutchins 53m. Heat 2: 1 Craig Cardwell 8h; 2 Emerson; 3 Gavin Dyer 88m. Feature: Not held
Stock Cars:
Heat 1: 1 Keegan Orr 47; 2 Mike Herbert 52r; 3 Stacy Keach 97m; Heat 2: Nick Chatfield 25m; 2 James Hamilton 38m; 3 Scott Hayward 92m. Feature: 1 Keach; 2 Caitlin Hayward 94m; 3 Damian Orr 2nz.
Youth Mini Stocks:
Heat 1: 1 Ash Henstock 87m; 2 Jason Gillon 43m; 3 Luke Alderdice 77m. Heat 2: 1 Jason Rowe 21a; 2 Bradley Marsh 67m; 3 Samuel Waddell 81m. Feature: 1 Trent Amrein 42m; 2 Hayden Greenhalgh 8m; 3 Henstock.
Saloon Cars:
Laz-Boy Series, Race 5: 1 Chris Cowling 272m; 2 Bryan Fraser 98m; 3 Daniel Corrin 274m. Race 6: 1 Steve Muir 16m ; 2 Steve Cowling 2nz; 3 Paul Cressy 45m. Race 7: 1 Michelle Wymer 75m; 2 Corrin; 3 Muir. Overall: Corrin 159pts; 2 Wymer 156pts; 3 McClymont 150pts.
Sprint Cars:
Heat 1: 1 Jamie Duff 19a; 2 Bradley Tyrrell 14m; 3 James Dahm 6m. Heat 2: 1 Daniel Eggleton 3nz; 2 Dean Brindle 2nz; 3 Greg Kilworth 75m. F: 1 Jamie McDonald 71a; 2 Daniel Thomas 55h; 3 Ryan O'Connor 8a.